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Sermon of the Week 
Monday, May 13 2019

I want to open with a poem which I wrote a few years back 

which could be from every son and daughter, 

I have titled it….“The Mother Inside of You”

Your Mother is the place you came from, your first home here on earth...

She's the guide you follow, as your life takes shape 

and you discover your values and worth. 

She's the first love you experienced, the first heart entwined with yours,

No one can take that special place, In the eyes of a child, so adored. 

As time goes by, with it’s shifts and turns, your love grows ever strong and true, 

And the mother who carried you inside, now, you carry inside of you.

I was not carried in the womb of the woman I call mother, but I was loved as any child given birth by a mother. I always knew that I was her son, not her orphan child. She stepped out of her comfort zone to offer her heart so one more child, could be raised in a home with family, instead of an institution. She led me to Christ as a new Christian herself and we came to know and love the Lord together. She changed my life and gave me a second chance, so that I could offer a second chance to many others throughout my life… 

Yes, I can say that I have experienced the miracle of Motherhood, through the love of a Mom who accepted me as her own, and the wonderful wife, who took me to the next level of healing and gave our home, 3 beautiful children.

A mother’s love cannot be measured. Motherhood is about the place in every woman’s heart to love what is unlovable, to hope when it’s hopeless, to believe the unbelievable and see the invisible things which are part of every child’s journey.

When our first born son, David was born, he was one of the ugliest new born babies I had ever laid eyes on. My first thought was, who has the ugly gene in our family gene pool. He truly had the face that only a mother could love. He looked like a shriveled up little old Indian. We called him Geronimo… But to Winnie, he was the most beautiful baby ever born! An angel in the flesh! I believe her love made him beautiful and brought out the beauty day by day, till he lost his nick name… finally!He went from Geronimo to Gorgeous!!! 

Proverbs 31:25 – 28  “Strength and honor are her clothing and she shall rejoice in the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom and in her tongue is the law of kindness. She looks well to the ways of her household and refuses the bread of idleness. Her children arise up and call her blessed”….                                                                                                                                 

Thank God for mothers who never stop loving, never stop giving, never stop caring, and never stop mothering even when it’s not their own child or their own children!

During a visit to India in 1995, Shah-la Ette-fagh was so moved by seeing children living in extreme poverty that she vowed to come back to India to dedicate her life to helping poor children and families, especially women. You see, during her 1995 visit, while she complained about the smells, the filth, and the poverty all around that no one seemed to care about…she was having an expensive meal and sipping her tea, away from the squalor, but a very thin 3-year-old girl entered on a cold India day, wearing a short-sleeved dress with a broken zipper in the back and no shoes. Her hair was knotted and matted to her head. She had a beautiful face and her big black eyes radiated innocence. She came right up to Shahla and pointed to her chaitea. She thought the girl wanted to drink the chai, so she gave it to her. But she didn’t drink it, she just held the hot cup close to her body for warmth. Then she sat on the floor right next to Shahla feet and snuggled up to her legs to share her body heat.                                                                                                                                         Those motherly instincts kicked in as she felt the girl’s tiny shivering body, and she bent down to hold her inher arms and give her tiny body a little relief from the cold.That was it. With her eyes closed and her arms still around the girl, she entered into a tunnel with a bright white light at the end. Scenes from her entire life of priviledge flashed all around her. She saw herself skiing in Switzerland, then on a yacht in France, then shopping in Paris, and eating at a casino in London. Even though she was a single woman, she saw the image of her 3-story, 4-bedroom house located outside of San Francisco, with its 4 walk-in closets full of designer clothes and shoes, many with the tags still attached because she never had time to wear them.                                                                                                                         Through these flashing images, shesuddenly woke up to the realization that she had been carelessly wasting her money on jet-set traveling, partying every night, drinking and shopping! One question came to her mind: “why should I have so much money that I can waste it, and this child should be so freezing cold to need my cup of tea to warm her fragile body”?                          

She vowed to come back to India to dedicate her life to helping poor children and families, especially women. In 2002, she fearlessly sold her house, business and personal belongings. She said goodbye to her family, friends and the boyfriend who was the love of her life. She ripped up all her photo albums to avoid the temptation of returning, and she moved to India to start a new life without ever looking back. Since that time, 1000’s of children have been given a second chance and a bright future. Every year since 2015, Shahla has received an award for “Outstanding Achievements” for her Mother’sMiracle School by the Government of India, and in 2018 she received the “Mahatma Gandhi Award” at the English Parliament.

If you’ve ever held a new-born baby in your arms, then you know that you are holding a miracle and you are experiencing a living, breathing, in the flesh miracle!! It’s been a joy having David, Vickie and Karen here, over the last 4 weeks, and I know Chris would be here if he could. To see what began as just the two of us, now becoming 24 eternal souls, all living for the lord, serving others, and putting Christ at the center of their home, is truly a miraculous thing in the day we’re living in. The fact that it is a miracle, says it all…. It says that God has done exceedingly abundant, above all that we could hope or ask for. We’re standing in faith that every family in this church body, will have that miracle to celebrate for eternity…..

In Acts 16:31 When God opened the prison doors for Paul and Silas, they spoke to the jailer… “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and all your house. 

And that’s exactly what happened… the jailer and all his house were saved!                                                    

I believe, as we share this message that there is a household blessing upon every Godly mom and every Godly dad… Let me tell you why…

1Corinthians 7:14  For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband, otherwise your children would be unclean, but now are they holy”. This is a promise for your household and for your children’s households!!!

Let me give every mom a declaration and a decree to confess each day, for your family….

It’s found in John 17:19 “And for their sakes I sanctify myself(I dedicate, and commit myself to this) that they also might be sanctified through Your truth”. (ladies, declare it)

Men, one of the things we cannot do, is be a mother.  We cannot be mothers.  No matter how hard we try and no matter how in touch we are with our feminine side…we can never be a mother.

But we can live and confess John 17:19, every day! So, I want the men to make this decree with me… (Let’s repeat it together)

I can tell you that if it wasn’t for my mom, I would not be the person I am today.  My dad was an example of manhood. He showed me what being a man meant, what it was all about, and how to do it.  But my mom—taught me how to be a human being.  She taught me how to feel.  She taught me how to laugh and cry and she connected me with many other parts of my humanity that frankly, I think my dad would have had a hard time doing, because he was busy being a man. Those first years of our lives are very impressionable years and mothers play an enormous role in those early years and in shaping us into the people we eventually become.

A man came home from work and found his three children outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud. The door of his wife’s car was open, as was the front door to the house and there was no sign of her. He moved on into the entryway, andfound an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over. In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a cartoon channel, and the family room was covered with toys and various items of clothing, and his youngest daughter and the dog were there in the think of it.

In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, and dog food was spilled all over the floor.

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened.

He was met with a stream of water as it made its way out the bathroom door. As he peered inside he found wet towels, soapy scum and more toys strewn over the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls.

As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel. She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went.

He looked at her bewildered and asked, ’What happened here today?’ She smiled and said, ’You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world I do all day?’ after a brief pause, She continued and said, ’Well, today I didn’t do it.’

More times than not, mothers are taken for granted.  Their love and devotion to us is so constant, that we come to expect it, to feel entitled to it.  We know it’s always going to be there no matter what we do or say or how bad we mess up—our moms are always going to love us.

That’s true, right up until the moment that they are no longer there.  Suddenly, there comes a point in life when you find yourself without a mother. And no matter how tough or awesome or successful you are in life, when your mom dies, a piece of you goes with her. There’s a blank spot that only she can fill. That one constant source of security you have known since you were born, is now gone.                                                              

Someone wrote that: “Mothers hold their children’s hands for a short while, but they hold their hearts forever”.

I’m talking about this today because I think it’s important, that we all acknowledge our mother’s, and all the other mothers that were around us as we grew up and are now grown. 

The mothers of the world do more for the advancement of our society than any other force on earth.  Each one of us, regardless of our circumstance owes our life to our mother.  Even if you happen to have a really lousy mother, you still owe her your life, and that isn’t a little thing.  That’s part of the amazing miracle of Motherhood! A Godly mother can believeand know, that as SHE asks in faith God will meet the needs of her family.                                                                                                                                                                  As Philippians 4:19 promises us: “And my God will liberally supply (and fill until its full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus”. …

There was a name that was known around the world. Crowds flocked to his church to hear him preach, and everywhere he went people couldn’t get enough of the printed editions of his sermons. When he died, 60,000 admirers filed past his casket and 100,000 lined his funeral route. Even today, people visit his grave to pay tribute. Even more read his books and are inspired by his sermons. Yet before Charles Spurgeon was The Prince of Preachers, he was a young boy in the arms of a godly mother. He was one of 8 children. And with all his success and all his fame, he would not forget his first and best *…..instructor. “I cannot tell,” he said, “how much I owe to the solemn words and passionate prayers of my Godly mother. She was the starting point of all the greatness and goodness any of us, by the grace of God, have ever enjoyed.”

It’s difficult to pour out of an empty cup…. Just as an expecting mom is now eating and doing all she does for two people…because she knows she has a little one on board who is counting on her to eat right, rest, exercise, and make the right choices. And it doesn’t stop when the baby is born. Mom and Dad must understand that they are now living for someone besides themselves. They are feeding others, physically, emotionally, and spiritually….

In the bird world, the parents will gather up and eat more than they need, so that they can bring it back up and place it in the mouths of their hungry brood of babies. They can’t feed their babies if they themselves are empty. They can’t say “I don’t feel like it”…. Or “I’m too tired”…. They know that only if they are full, can they feed their babies. The same is even more true for every believing mom.

If you are a parent, please know, It’s no longer all about you. You fill up on the word, you fill up in prayer, you fill up on the answers to things they will be asking… you fill up on everything that you need to impart to them, because you’re not living just for yourself.

Luke 11:11” If a son shall ask bread of any of you, will you give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will you for a fish give him a serpent? v12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will you offer him a scorpion? v13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him”?                                                                                                     I find it interesting that God compares His giving to how a parent gives to their children. It causes us to ask our selves what and how we are giving to our families. It is addressing the basic parent child interaction and quality of care that we can expect of God and that He expects of us. How many parents give everything to their children except a spiritual heritage, a foundation in the Word, and example in prayer, Christian service and attending the house of God….

I want to direct your attention to the occasion when Jesus turned water into wine… He had just told the disciples to go and get water because they were out of wine…. You can almost see the big question *…..marks over their heads as they wonder what filling the pots with water has anything to do with providing wine for the wedding celebration!!! But Jesus mother comes into the picture and his mother makes a statement that is foundational in the training program for any parent, as they raise their children….Look at it with me….

John 2:1 “And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there v2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. v3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said unto Him, They have no wine. v5  And His mother said unto the servants, Whatsoever he says unto you, do it”.

What better way to raise your children than to teach them the word of God and then to tell them, “Whatever He says to you, do it”…. Wow… what a novel idea!!!!

Because you will be wrong sometimes. You will make mistakes, you will misjudge situations, you will fail to have the right answer at the critical time…. But Jesus will never be wrong!!!

Jesus had to respond when His mom called upon Him because earlier He had told His disciples… “Honor your father and mother”….. She wanted a miracle… she got a miracle…. She wanted wine, she got the best wine…

Listen to me Mom, no one has God’s ear like a God- fearing, God chasing mother… No love goes deeper than a mother’s love, No care goes further than a mother’s caring, and no connection to family is more powerful than a mom’s connection….. When Mothers trust Jesus enough to impart “just do whatever He tells you” to your kids, your grandkids, your nephews and your nieces: they will do well in this life and in eternity”… They’ll see some amazing miracles in their lives.

Matthew 25:40 “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as you have done it unto one   of the least of these, (little ones) you have done it unto me”.                                                           Luke 18:16 (message bible) “But Jesus said, Don't get between me and the children, These children are the kingdom's pride and joy. 17 Know that unless you accept God's kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you'll never get in."                                             Jesus gave the greatest tribute to mothers when He chose to come to this earth and be born in the womb of a young mother named Mary….  But let’s go further into the next levels of motherhood. Look at the words of Paul to his spiritual son Timothy….and you will see a generational blessing which can be claimed in….                                                   2 Timothy 1:5 “I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.”                                                                                                                         SoPaul has connected Timothy’s faith with what he received from his mother and grandmother.                                                                                      Mom, don’t back off, don’t let up, don’t even think of quitting…. It may happen when you’re a mom, a grand-mom or when you’re a great, grand-mom… but God’s word will not return void…. It will come to pass!!!                                                                                                          Monica, who was the mother of St. Augustine, prayed for years that her brilliant but rebellious son would be saved. When she sought the counsel of her pastor, he listened as she poured out with tears, her heart of love and her intercession for this prodigal. At the conclusion, the pastor said, “Go on woman! Leave me alone. Live as you are living, and I can tell you, It is not possible that the son of such a mother’s tears should ever be lost.”                                                                              (I think when a mother’s prayers arrive in Heaven, they go right to the head of the line). 

When Hannah, who had been barren, gave birth to her son, she was so thrilled that God had heard her prayers, she brought him to the priest to be raised in the temple for the work of God. She named the child Samuel—literally, in the Hebrew, it means: “Heard of God.” His very name proclaimed that God had heard this mother’s prayers!                                                                            I want to read a letter from an 80 yr. old woman on her birthday: “To all my children: This is a good time to tell you that what I truly want are things I can never get enough of, yet they are free. I need your patience when I don’t hear what you say the first time. I know how tiresome it is to always be repeating, but sometimes I must ask you to repeat. I need your patience when I think too much about the past, with my slowness and my set ways. I want you to be tolerant with  whatthe years have done to me physically. Please be understanding. I spill things. I lose things. I get unduly excited when I try to figure out my bank statements. I can’t remember what time to take my medication, or if I took it already. I take too many naps. Sometimes sleep helps to pass the day. Well, there you have it: your Time, your Patience, and your Understanding. Those are priceless gifts that I want. You’ll be where I am too soon, so remember to give what you hope to receive when that time comes.  Being old is just another place you come to and another adjustment we all have to make! I have and will always love you with forever Love, Your Mom”.                                                                                                               To those who have given life both in birth and in the care of those who are not your own, to those who have lost a life before birth and before old age…

To those who have faithfully done what only mother's love can do, 

To those who have been "the perfect mother" and to those who may be living with regrets… To those who are close to their children, and to those who feel like they are a million miles away… We bless you today, on this Mother’s day. 

To those women who have given birth to a child, We celebrate with you the gift that God has given. 

To those who have experienced miscarriage, failed adoptions, and kids who have pushed you away… We come along side of you today. 

To those who have longed for children, but for whatever reason have been unable to have them, We love you and we apologize for the times that we have failed to be sensitive to your journey. 

To those who have been "mother's" to others who are not their children, We need more people like you both in the church, and in the broken world in which we live.

To those who have close and meaningful relationships with their children, We celebrate this day with you and thank God for His amazing grace.

To those who have complicated, hurtful or painful, relationships with their children, 

We hurt with you and thank God for his grace, while we pray for redemption and reconciliation.

To those who have close relationships with their own mother, We thank God for that intimacy. 

To those who lost their mothers whether recently or so many years ago, 

We join with you and stand by your side today.

To those who will soon have an empty nest, We both celebrate your job well done and feel the separation with you. 

To those of you who long to be better mother's, we pray that God's grace will provide all you need and beyond. 

To those who long to make things right with your children, we agree with you that God's redemptive power can rise above any boundary, any brokenness, any pain. 

To those who struggle with their children today, We are here to share our stories of successes and failures as well as our encouragement…your investment is never in vain, and God is using your faithfulness to change the world.

For those of you who struggled through pain to get out of bed this morning and be here, We love you and we are encouraged by your faithfulness. 

We pray that all of us may be more sensitive and more active in being a blessing to you and yours, this Mother’s day and always!

Bless these moms and may they truly see the miracle that is motherhood!!

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