When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world (John 16:21 ESV).
Where would this world be without mothers? Further, what would it be like without the love of mothers? Giving birth is not an easy process. As I use to hear the old folks say, “A pregnant woman has one foot in the grave and one on a banana peeling!” The travail of becoming a mother cannot be explained as it is a pain like no other. However, once the pain is over, as alluded to in the above verse of Scripture, all the new mother feels is joy once she lays eyes on her child.
Even when a mother’s children may disappoint or hurt her, she doesn’t love them any less. What she does is strive to do what God commanded of her in Proverbs 22:6 (KJV): “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” There is no love like a mother’s love. I can truly attest to that because every time I have been sick in my life, the love of my mother fell fresh on me. Even though she has gone home to Glory, during my times of trials and tribulations, I can feel her love ever flowing in the Spirit. When the world is against you, your mother’s love will prevail. When man speaks all manner of evil against you, your mother sees and speaks of the good in you.
I can vividly recall, whenever I got a spanking from my mother or grandmother, she would say, “This hurts me more than it hurts you!” I wondered how in the world could that be true when I was the one feeling the pain of the punishment! After a few life experiences, I later understood what she meant. As it is written in Proverbs 13:24 (ESV), “Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.” The rod represents two concepts: spiritually, the Word of God and literally, the correction, verbally/physically the child deserves, in order to understand that wrong comes with consequences. Therefore, a mother who loves her child will discipline him in order to teach him right from wrong and in an effort to save him from this world.
I dedicate this Mother’s Day and this article to my mother, Rev. Dr. Evelyn Gelzer Stevens; my grandmothers, Mrs. Lela Florence Daniels Gelzer and Mrs. Sallie Robinson Stevens; my mother-in-law, Mrs. Jessierine Davis Bright; and my sister, Ms. Janifer Stevens. They were all exceptional mothers of love and devotion!
Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers and mothers-to-be! Have a wonderfully blessed week, be thankful in all circumstances, and never leave home without Him!
(Anna Bright is a minister and educator in Walterboro. She can be reached at abrightcolumn@lowcountry.com)
