A Wife of Noble Character
10 Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?
She is more precious than
rubies.
11 Her husband can trust
her, and she will greatly enrich his life.
12 She brings him good,
not harm, all the days of her life.
13 She finds wool and flax
and busily spins it.
14 She is like a
merchant’s ship, bringing her food from afar.
15 She gets up before dawn
to prepare breakfast for her household and plan the day’s work for her servant
girls.
16 She goes to inspect a field
and buys it; with her earnings she plants a vineyard.
17 She is energetic and
strong, a hard worker.
18 She makes sure her
dealings are profitable; her lamp burns late into the night.
19 Her hands are busy
spinning thread, her fingers twisting fiber.
20 She extends a helping
hand to the poor and opens her arms to the needy.
21 She has no fear of
winter for her household, for everyone has warm
clothes.
22 She makes her own
bedspreads. She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns.
23 Her husband is well
known at the city gates, where he sits with the other civic leaders.
24 She makes belted linen
garments and sashes to sell to the merchants.
25 She is clothed with
strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.
26 When she speaks, her
words are wise, and she gives instructions with kindness.
27 She carefully watches
everything in her household and suffers nothing from laziness.
28 Her children stand and
bless her. Her husband praises her:
29 “There are many
virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!”
30 Charm is deceptive, and
beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the lord will be greatly praised.
31 Reward her for all she
has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.”
Happy Mother’s Day to:
·
All the women who are moms
·
And to all of the fathers who fulfill the roles of moms
·
And to all of us who have a wonderful mother.
·
We all should be celebrating in this day.
·
God has truly blessed us all tremendously.
Happy Mother’s Day to
all.
There is a story of a young man who has just started to step out
into the world. He has completed his schooling and now he is working in the
work force but he has a beginner’s job so he still lives at home to help with
his living costs.
One day, Johnny was complaining to a friend about how hectic his
days were since he got his first job.
"I get up at 6:00 each morning and eat my breakfast,"
he said.
His friend said, "Don’t you mean you get up and fix your
own meal?"
"Oh No," said Johnny. "My mom prepares it for me.
She has to cook Dad's breakfast by 6:30 anyway."
Then his friend replied, "Gosh, your mom gets up that early
just to fix breakfast?"
"Oh, no," Johnny said. "She likes to get up
early. It gives her more time to do the things she enjoys - like mopping the
floors, dusting furniture, shopping for groceries, and preparing lunch for me
and Dad."
"I see," said his friend, "but she does have the
afternoon for herself? Right?"
"Oh, yes," said Johnny. "She spends that time
playing with my little sister, sewing, and preparing supper, 'cause my dad and
I like to have supper on the table when we come home after our hard day's work.
We think that's fair; after all, Mother doesn't work!"
Such
an attitude brings chuckles and groans from us because it is So Ridiculous BUT
at the same time – in way too often of the time - it is so true on how so many
of us think and feel.
Just
because our mother or wife may not be employed outside of the home, it most
certainly doesn't mean that she doesn't work.
I am
sure we have all said just that once or twice, but I'd be willing to bet that no
one here would want to trade jobs with you ladies.
Moms,
we know that you have a 24-hour-a-day – 7 day a week J – O – B.
One
which demands not only all your time, but also all of your attention and
energy.
Because
of that realization, we salute you here today, in the fashion that we should
honor you every day - for all that you do for us and for all that you give to
your family.
Few of
us show our mothers the depth of our love, our honor, and our respect that we
should.
·
We know we don't, and because of that, we feel
guilty about it.
·
So on Mother's Day, we try to make up for our
failures by giving our MOM gifts to symbolize our true feelings of affection
and appreciation towards her.
We
give all sorts of gifts which range from:
·
the elaborate to the simple,
·
from store-bought to the homemade,
·
from fancy flowers to fattening foods.
We SHOULD shower our Mother with gifts, for
indeed she needs to be reminded of our love and of our gratitude for all of
what she has done.
My hope
and prayer would be that this gift-of-giving would not be on just one day a
year.
We
should give to our Mothers each and every day.
This
morning, I want to suggest several gifts of a non-materialistic, noncommercial nature,
which are necessary in the Christian Family, a Christian Life and should be
given each and every day.
Honor is the First of these Gifts.
Let me
begin by speaking to us Sons and Daughters.
·
Children, no matter what age you are, from 9 months to 90
years,
·
no
matter how many children of your own you have,
·
The Bible says
that the gift you should give your Mother every day is honor!
·
Even 1
of our Ten Commandments says this. "Honor your Father and
Mother ..."
·
That means
that we children are to treat our mothers with GREAT RESPECT,
o
That is in how we act toward them
o
And in the way we speak to them.
·
Did
you realize that in ancient Israel, if a child cursed his
mother, he/she was to be stoned to death? Exodus 21:17
“Whoever curses his father or his
mother shall be put to death.”
·
That is God’s Word – straight from Our Lord God
to Moses and then to his pen.
·
Back then, they took God's law very, very
seriously.
Nothing
angers me more than to hear children speak back
to their parents using:
·
Sarcastic,
·
Hateful,
·
And sharp words
·
Or tones to their mothers.
And disrespecting them with and through their
disobedience.
That
is directly against God's will!
The Lord demands that you speak with utmost love and respect to your Mother.
And I am talking about Doing So All of the time.
She is
the instrument through which God gave you life.
·
She put her life in jeopardy in order to give
you birth.
·
Did you realize that?
·
She has sacrificed
so many of the luxuries of life in order to feed,
and clothe and to educate you.
So you
must never be dishonorable to your mother
in the way that you speak to her or about her.
·
You must offer
her the gift of honor in what you say
and in everything you do.
You
must also give her honor in the way you live.
·
Whether we want it to be this way or not,
·
But the way we
live is a reflection upon our parents.
·
So, if you really
want to honor your mother, you should live in a way that she will be proud of.
·
You must, You MUST
live an honorable life.
One day, several convicts were in a prison library flipping
through a merchandise catalog.
·
On one of the pages there was the
picture of a lovely home. One of the prisoners said, "Man, I sure wish I
could give my mother a house like that to live in."
·
Another prisoner pointed to the
nice car that was pictured in front of the house and said, "No, I'd rather
give my ma a car like that, so she could come to see me once in a while."
Then the two men noticed their friend, Bill, just staring
blankly at the magazine, so they asked him to say what he would like to give
his mother.
·
After thinking for a few minutes,
he looked at them with tears in his eyes and said, in a sorrowful tone, "I
wish I could give my mother a more honorable son."
·
That young man was grieving about
the fact that his dishonorable life and actions had dishonored his mother.
A child's life-style reflects on his parents.
Children,
if you want to give honor to your mother,
then live an honorable life.
When
you are out with your friends,
having
the time of your life,
far-far
from your parents' eyes, ask yourself,
·
"Would my
mother be proud of what I am doing?
·
Are my
actions honoring her?"
·
The way you go about your school work,
·
the way you conduct
yourself in your profession,
·
how faithfully
you exercise your spiritual life –
·
all of these things can bring
o
honor or shame to your parents.
God says that you should honor your
mother.
Has
your life-style done that?
The first and greatest thing that all children
should give their mothers is the gift of honor –
·
Through
what we say
·
And
how we live.
Obedience is our
Second Gift
God
says that unmarried children must be obedient
to your parents.
·
As
long as you live in the household of your parents, you have an
obligation to obey them.
·
That is - providing that they don't demand that you act contrary to God's word and will.
·
For the
Bible says
o In Ephesians 6:1-3 – “Children,
obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing
to do.
o ‘Honor your father
and mother.’
o This is the first commandment with a promise:
§ If you honor your father and mother, ‘things will go well for you,
and you will have a long life on the earth.’”
o And in
Colossians 3:20 it says – “Children, always obey your parents, for this pleases the Lord.”
This
principle applies to unmarried children
only, because the Bible says in Genesis 2:24, that at marriage, “This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is
joined to his wife, and the two are united into one."
And a
woman at marriage comes under the authority of her husband.
So,
let me speak just a moment to you unmarried children who are still living at
home.
·
The Bible says
that you should give your mother the gift
of obedience - provided she does not ask you to act contrary to God's will.
I realize that there are times when
you think that your mother knows absolutely
nothing about the way life and how we should live in our world today.
I am aware that you feel that there are
many times where SHE COULDN’T KNOW but YOU KNOW what is best for you.
But
let me explain something to you.
It may
come as a surprise to you in your youth BUT:
·
Your mother is
much wiser than you are.
·
She has a
wisdom that can only be gained through years of living.
If you
are a child living at home and being supported by your parents, the Bible says
plainly that you should obey your parents.
You
must treasure your Mother's unequaled love for you - and her wisdom - knowing
that she would never ask you to do anything which is not for your own good.
So
when your mother tells you to do some type of task
or chore around the house, do it immediately and without complaint.
It is
your Christian duty to give her the gift of obedience.
·
When she tells you to do your homework and study harder,
o
Then go and do it.
·
If she says you should
be in no later than midnight, then don't come in at 12:30 with half-a-dozen
excuses;
o
be home at 12:00 or before as she said.
·
If your mother tells you to get up and go to Sunday School and to go to worship, then do
it.
o
You should go, not only because of your love
for the Lord, but also in obedience to your mother.
Children,
the Bible says that you are to obey your parents as long as you are unmarried
and being supported by them.
If you
want to offer a special gift to your mom this Mother's Day, start giving her the gift of obedience.
As to
everything, there is a second side to the coin.
When
we receive, we are also asked by God to give back.
Moms,
as you receive gifts today and throughout the year, in a response to that, you also have the responsibility to offer gifts
back to your children.
The first is to live an Exemplary Life
·
You are called to
be the kind of person you want them to be!
·
You must give them a Christian example in what you say and do.
·
Have you ever just
stopped and watched how a little girl will mimic her mother.
o
If Mom wears
high heels, she will slip into them also.
o
She will stand
before the mirror and pretend to put on makeup.
o
The child wants
to be like her Mother in every way.
For
this reason, Moms, it is your sacred duty
to live an exemplary life in word and deed.
·
You have the power
to influence your child for good or evil,
·
So you must be
a Christian example in your home.
·
And it is sad, but true, a negative example can come simply
through carelessness.
There is a little story about Susie and her first day in Sunday school.
Little Susie was asked to read from the Bible. She told the teacher that she didn't
like to read the Bible anymore, because she was "grown up now."
The teacher did not understand Susie's attitude so she began to
explain her how important it was to read the Bible.
Susie replied, "I've never seen my mother read the Bible,
so it must not be as important as you say."
Moms, you are one of the most powerful influences
on your child's life through your words and deeds.
o
Are you giving them a Christian example?
o
Do they see you pray
and read the Scripture?
o
Do they hear you witness
to your love for Christ?
o
Do they see you
serve God in the way you live?
·
If they do, your children will grow up to call
you "blessed," as we read earlier
in Proverbs 31.
It is
such a blessing to see Moms who are giving their children a True Christian example to live by.
What
may that look like you may ask.
·
Are
you praying with them?
·
Are you
presenting a Christian example in how you love their father?
·
And in how you love
the Lord and his Church?
·
Do they see Christ
in your unending love?
o
In your
patience?
o
In your concern
for others?
o
And in your
encouragement of them?
One of
the greatest gifts you can offer your children is to be the kind of person you want them to
be.
The Second Gift on GIVING BACK TO THEM would be IN the giving of
Your Time.
You
must give your child a huge amount of your
time!
·
Each one of us knows how hectic life is these days.
·
There are so more
demands put upon us and our time than ever before.
·
And the sad result of all the time-consuming
activity in our society is that we leave such precious little time for our
children.
As Psalm 127 says, "Children are a
gift from the Lord."
They
are a gift which must be:
·
nourished,
·
cared for,
·
trained,
·
and disciplined.
And to
do all of that, it takes time - and lots of it.
Children
must take priority over:
·
social engagements,
·
clubs,
·
adult activities,
·
and in some cases, even work.
Your
children need you more than they need clothes.
They
need you more than they need a:
·
New bicycle or more toys.
They
need you –
·
Your time,
·
Your attention,
·
And your affection –
·
SO MUCH More than they need any other thing else
on earth.
There was once two ladies were sitting on a park bench watching
children play. One of them, who had no children, said to the other, who was a
mother of four, "Sally, I'd give anything to have children like
yours." The mother replied, "No, Donna, you would not give anything;
you have to give everything for almost twenty years."
That's true, isn't it?
Motherhood,
as well as fatherhood, is a full-time job -
a full-time opportunity, one which demands
many sacrifices.
One of
the finest things you can possibly give your children, Mom, is your time, because in giving of your time, you give yourself.
So we
see that this special day demands special gifts.
1. All of
us children should give honor to our
mothers in what we say and do.
2. Unmarried
children who are living at home should give
obedience to their mothers.
3. Mom,
your children will be looking for you to show them the kind of person they should be –
4. And to
give them your time.
These
are the most precious gifts of Mother's Day.
Mothers,
Moms, we thank God for you,
·
And for all that you do.
·
For the kindness you show,
·
For the love you give,
·
And for the example you are.
We
love you with all our hearts!
May
God bless you on this, your special day!
