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It was 3:30 AM.  The house was quiet as Gale and I tried to get in the last little bit of sleep before the start of another day.  Then all of a sudden without warning a high pitched, bloodcurdling scream broke the tranquility of the morning; it sounded like steam being suddenly released from a boiler.   We both instantly revived with a lot of questions on our minds about what was going on.  The source of the heart-stopping noise came from a two year old who was spending the night with us.  Before I hardly had time to get myself together, Gale had already retrieved the little girl from her crib beside our bed and had her in her arms comforting her.  We found no reason for Raegan to have had such a response; perhaps it was a scary dream.  One thing is for certain, scary dream or not she certainly gave us a terrifying few moments!

Gale’s quick intervention to protect and comfort a little one is just one of many reminders of the motherly (and now grandmotherly) heart that she has.  In those moments of need in the children, she does not seem to pause to figure out what to do, she just instinctively does what is natural to her.

God has given us great responsibility and precious opportunities to invest in the lives of the children that He has entrusted us with to help them become what He desires of them.  And without a doubt, one of the great instruments that God uses to instill in those little ones the important and lasting lessons of life is mothers.  As we honor them during this special season devoted to the recognition and appreciation of their sacrificial investment in so many young lives, let us not forget to be thankful for mothers who are willing to refuse their children permission to indulge in those things which they know would be harmful to them spiritually and morally.  By taking such a position of tough love, they provide a major component to the positive shaping of the character of their children.  The words of Proverbs 1:8-9, though penned long ago, are absolutely applicable today:  “Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.  They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck” (New International Version).

I am grateful that I am blessed with a mother who loved all five of her children and did her best to guide us toward serving God.  She saw to it, to the best of her ability, that we were taken care of physically, and she set a beautiful example before us of a woman of prayer and faith that impacted our lives spiritually.  Even though she is elderly now and celebrated her eightieth birthday just a few days ago, her spiritual and loving care for her family remains obvious and meaningful. 

As I remember how we have been richly blessed through those mothers that are now advanced in age, I also think of the many demands and expectations on young mothers in our day.  It is amazing how much they accomplish—too often in the absence of dad–and how effectively they do it.  May it be our prayer that God will guide and encourage all mothers as they lovingly fulfill their vitally important responsibilities to their families.  And may we never neglect to show our gratitude to the older moms who have endured so much to see that their children and grandchildren were provided for physically and spiritually.  As Proverbs 31 states, “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.  Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate” (verses 30-31).