All That I Am or Hope to Be, I owe to My Angel Mother! (Abraham Lincoln)

May 9  All That I Am or Hope to Be, I owe to My Angel Mother! (Abraham Lincoln)   11 Timothy 1:3-5

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY TO ALL!!

Good morning from Pastor Glen Brock, Baptist Tabernacle Church, Wendell, North Carolina… “I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day; Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy; When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.” (2 Timothy 1:3-5)

Many things have been said and written about mothers.  The old familiar saying, “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world” is very true.  History will reveal, and has already revealed this to be true over and over.  No one will dispute the fact that Abraham Lincoln was a great man.  He said if his mother, “All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother!”  Someone else said, “A mother is the only person, on earth who can divide her love among ten children and each child still have all of her love.”  God, likewise, had many great things to say about mothers; how they should be treated; and what they should do.  Exodus 20:12 says, “Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.”  Proverbs 1:8 says, “My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother.”  Many things have been said and written about mothers, and the reason is obvious.  Mothers occupy an essential place in our lives.  I have known some men that the world would consider “Tough;” and every one of these men have a tender spot in their lives when it comes to Mother!  One guy said, “When you have lost your mother, you have lost the best friend that you will ever have.  When all the world will forsake you, she will stand by you!”  Today is Mother’s Day, and we celebrate our Mothers!  Last week, May 3, was the 13th anniversary of my Mothers’ graduation to Glory and I fully agree with the guy who said that I lost my best friend.  As sad as her passing is, it is equally exciting to know that, as a Christian, I am going to see her again.  Mama was not perfect, however, she was the first to teach me about Jesus, she was the first to teach me to pray and she was the first to make me feel loved.  For all that she was and all that she taught and for all that she required of me, I am eternally grateful.  I ask that you would join me today in honoring our mothers!  These are special women, who have given of themselves to make us who we are today.  Please note, that there are women who have been and are mothers to countless individuals who have never given birth, yet they are, every bit a mother!  As Paul stated, in our scripture today, mothers have the power to instill in us, a recognition, of God’s grace and mercy.  He told Timothy that he thanked God for Timothy’s mother and grandmother!  Mothers; God has given you an important job!  I really like the way that George W. Wiseman described it:

                                      “GOD’S HELPERS”

“God could not be in every place, with loving hands to help erase the teardrops from each baby’s face, and so he thought of Mother. He could not send us here alone, and leave us to a fate unknown, without providing for His own the outstretched arms of Mother. God could not watch us night and day and kneel beside our crib to pray, or kiss our little aches away; and so He sent us Mother. And when our childhood days began, He simply could not take command, that’s why He placed our tiny hand securely in Mother’s. The days of youth slipped quickly by, Life’s sun rose higher in the sky, full grown were we, yet ever nigh to love us still, was Mother. And when life’s span of years shall end, I know that God will gladly send, to welcome home her child again, that ever faithful Mother.”

 Thank you Mothers!  Thank you for all of the acts of love that you have extended to us and for loving us, even when we were unlovable!  I thank God for each one of you and for the mothers that are still here, HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, and for the Mother’s that have gone on, THANK YOU MOTHER, for being  what God intended!  Friends, during this “Pandemic,” especially, I am clinging to the lessons that Mama taught me and I am doing what she did, “TAKING IT TO JESUS!”  Reach out to your mother today and tell her that you love her and if your mother has already gone on, Thank God for your time together and embrace your precious memories!  HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY TO ALL!  Praise God! Stay Strong, Stay Focused… Remember, THE BEST IS YET TO BE!