I want to honor Godly mothers, and I share these thoughts with a prayer, that God will raise up women of character who love their children and raise them to follow him.

Mother’s Day this year will be poignant as I remember my dear mother-in-law, who woke up in Jesus’ arms last week, and my own mother who has been with him for several years.  I have tended to my blog sporadically the last couple of weeks but it has been a rich and full mixture of sadness and joy.  The loss of a special one, the relief that she is no longer suffering, a house full of family and friends, visitation, meals and maybe most touching of all—old pictures.

Pictures of the beautiful, vibrant young woman who was my mother-in-law touched me more than anything this week.  She held a baby, who is now my husband.  Under her heart, she carried the son who, along with his wife and daughter, have lovingly cared for her the last few years. Pictures of her just living life- sitting on a couch with her feet curled up under her…something she had not been able to do for years.  Then pictures of the woman I knew- from weddings and pictures with grandchildren all around.

The day of her funeral was also the birthday of three special women in our family, so I needed to look through my greeting card collection to find some birthday cards. To top off my emotional roller coaster, was the Mother’s Day card I had purchased for my mother.  She passed away before I was able to send it to her.  Over the years, I intended to send it to my mother-in-law, but it got lost in the shuffle and I never used it. This brought back floods of memories of my own mom and of the sacrifices she made for her family.

With a full heart, I ask God to raise up a harvest of women who understand who they are in His sight, who understand how their destiny is in the Kingdom of God. Women who understand that their value is not in their physical beauty, nor their ability to make money, nor their profession or position in this world.  I pray that they understand their power is in the love and influence they share within their own walls- respect for themselves, love and respect for their husbands, and a deep godly desire to raise the children to be men and women of character.  Women, if we want to change the world, we must change our attitude and know that motherhood requires personal sacrifice.  But that said, a mother does have some rights.

1. You have the right to a partnership with your husband and with God in the upbringing of your child.
2. You have the right to own your responsibilities as a mother in this partnership.
3. You have the right to respect.
4. You have the right to leave the results of your child’s choices to him or her.
5. You have the right to be a person, not just a role.
6. You have the right to forgiveness for the sins you commit while you are a mother.
7. You have the right to be free from worrying about tomorrow because God said so.

This is not an exhaustive list of rights, but these seven things can make your load much lighter.  For more discussion of these rights, go to GOING DEEPER.