The Immense Importance of Mothers

"Honey, you did!"  I exclaimed.  The two of us locking eyes on our first born son.  My wife had just spent 17.5 hours working to get that little boy out and now he was here.

"Honey, we did it."  I said.  The two of us locking eyes on the phone.  My wife and I had spent months preparing to be foster parents and with one phone call we had a little girl in our home.

These are two of the ways that my beautiful wife became a mother minus the birth of sweet Anna earlier this year.  No matter how you became a mother I want you to know that you stepped into a beautiful and blessed role.

Motherhood is an exceptionally challenging, important and rewarding role.  Is is challenging every day?  Yes.  Is it important every day?  Most definitely.  Is it rewarding every day?  Certainly not.  Mothers put in so much effort into such an important role for little earthly reward most days.

As Mothers' Day approaches I want to say thank you to my wife and my mother, two of the best mothers I know.  I also want to encourage all the moms out there.  What you do matters so much.  No matter how you became a mother: birth, marriage, foster care system, etc; you are in a sacred occupation.

"Train a child in the way he should go,
and when he is old he will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6

Mothers, the impact you have on your child in their formative years is humongous and long lasting.  The training and discipline you give them when they are under your roof sets their path for the rest of their lives.  Now, there are exceptions and there are times when the path looks crooked, but as a general rule the morality and rules of conduct and behavior instilled in us from our parents is what we keep for our entire lives and what we teach to the next generation.  What you do has an impact that can last generations.

Moms, what you do is challenging and important.  Most days this holy job is overlooked and under appreciated, but today please know your worth.  Your mothering does not need to get likes on social media, it does not need to be featuring in Parenting magazine to be worthy of honor.  As Paul David Tripp said in his book Parenting, "He doesn't ask you to be able; He asks you to be willing."

"Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
'Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.'" Proverbs 31:28-29

May the mothers reading this feel appreciated for all they do and may the children and husbands reading this arise and call the mother of their household blessed today.