"WHAT MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME"

May 11, 2020     “What My Mother Taught Me”   Exodus 20:12

Good morning from Pastor Glen Brock, Baptist Tabernacle Church, Wendell, North Carolina… “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.  Exodus 20:12   I would like to extend Mother’s Day and continue to honor our Mothers! What did your mother teach you? Hear what one, anonymous son has written along these lines:
My Mother taught me LOGIC... "If you fall off that swing and break your neck, you can’t go to the store with me," as well as, "If everyone else jumped off a cliff would you do it too?"
My Mother taught me MEDICINE..."If you don’t stop crossing your eyes, they’re going to freeze that way."
My Mother taught me TO THINK AHEAD..."If you don’t pass your spelling test, you’ll never get a good job!"
My Mother taught me TO MEET A CHALLENGE..."What were you thinking? Answer me when I talk to you... Don’t talk back to me!"
My Mother taught me HUMOR..."When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don’t come running to me."
My Mother taught me how to BECOME AN ADULT..."If you don’t eat your vegetables, you’ll never grow up.”
My mother taught me about GENETICS..."You are just like your father!"
My mother taught me about my ROOTS..."Do you think you were born in a barn?"
My mother taught me about the WISDOM of AGE..."When you get to be my age, you will understand," or, "I will explain it all when you get older."
My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION..."Just wait until your father gets home."
My mother taught me about RECEIVING...”You are going to get it when I get you home.”                                                                             And the all time favorite thing my mother taught me - JUSTICE
"One day you will have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you. Then you’ll see what it’s like! I can’t wait!" I think this is the secret hope for every mother…that history will repeat itself. One thing we all hold in common today is that we have mothers. Every one of us qualifies as a child of someone. Now, we recognize that not everyone’s situation is exactly the same, and some of you may have been lacking one of your parents, or you may have been adopted. Nevertheless, we come to recognize the role that mothers have played in our lives today. We come to recognize the terrific job that they have done for us. Surely, most of what they have done for us goes unnoticed. Take for example this description of a mother’s typical day. "Preheat oven, but first check for rubber balls or ‘Batman’ figurines that might be lurking inside the oven.  Clear counter of ‘legos’ and ‘Hot Wheels’ cars. Grease pan. Crack nuts. Measure flour. Remove Johnny’s hand from flour. Re-measure flour. Crack more nuts to replace those Johnny ate.  Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Get broom and dust pan. Sweep up pieces of bowl Johnny knocked on floor. Find a second bowl. Answer doorbell. Return to kitchen. Remove Johnny’s hand from bowl. Wash Johnny. Answer telephone. Return. Remove half inch of salt from grease pan. Call for Johnny. Look for Johnny. Give up search. Grease another pan. Answer phone. Return to kitchen. Find Johnny. Remove Johnny’s hands from bowl. Remove layer of nuts shells from grease pan. Sternly turn to Johnny who knocks off second bowl off counter while running away from you. Wash kitchen floor and counter and dishes and walls. Final scene: Call bakery. Place order. Take two Tylenol. Lie down." Perhaps this is something that you can relate to. Well…we want to recognize that… God has given us our mothers. God has assigned our parents to us. And they are ours just as we are theirs, whether we have come to them biologically or chosen by some other means. Now we are not going to kids ourselves here today. We recognize that not all mothers are perfect. And probably your mother was not perfect, even if she told you that she was. But did you ever find yourself saying, “I just don’t know what to do with my mother”? We do have an answer for that…God has given us instruction on how we are to treat our parents.  We find the instruction in Exodus 20:12: Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. We are told to honor our parents.  You honor your mother by following her teaching and guidance. What have you learned from your mother? My mother taught me about faith. My mother taught me about love. My mother taught me about suffering. And she taught me hundreds of other things as well, but you don’t have time for me to tell you all of them. Take a moment and reflect… What have you learned from your mother? More importantly though… What have you applied? Honor God today—by honoring your mother, whether she is with you today or not, respect her, for she is a gift from God to you; Honor God today—by honoring your mother, by being the best son or daughter you can possibly be; Honor God today—by honoring your mother, by learning from her, listening to her, and applying it to your life. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  Stay Strong, Stay Focused…Remember, THE BEST IS YET TO BE!