Your Picture of Mother
by Marilyn J. Ehle
Do you have a hurt in your heart that needs the “parent” help of God? Ask for prayer now.http://thelife.com/interactive/share.html
Whatever you do…do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus… Colossians 3:17
Our North American eyes have a limited view of “mother.” Our Christian North American
eyes have an even narrower concept of that woman. Jesus described a hen “gathering
her chicks,” and we frequently transpose that picture into our vision of what a mother is
and does. Or should be doing. Do you see mother garbed in an apron, surrounded by
eager children in the kitchen? Or perhaps your view has mother rocking a baby cuddled
to her breast?
Over the years my vision of mother has expanded. I see the single working woman who
rises before the sun to throw yet another load of laundry into the washer, fill her son’s
cereal bowl and pack his lunch, then deposit him into the loving arms of a caregiver
before she hurries off to her job.
Or the African woman hammering at rock-dry earth in the effort to deposit a few seeds
which she prays will one day produce grain for her starving family.
Or the woman who has never given birth to children but shares warm cookies with
neighborhood latchkey children.
Or the Christ-loving public school teacher who, without words, expresses the love of God
each day to a roomful of inner city children.
Or the woman who regularly visits prisons to lovingly touch the arms and hearts of
women who have never before known such love.
Or the woman who cannot plant seeds or bake cookies or teach or visit prisons…but she
fervently prays each day for the millions of physically enslaved and abused children
around the world.
When God sees “mother,” He sees women with hearts as big as His own, committed to
sharing His love with children, children of all ages, colors, races, circumstances. His
picture of mother needs to be mine.
Father God, I thank you for my own birth mother, but also for the many women who
through the years have “mothered” me. Help me pass it on.
Questions: Who has been a “mother” to you? Phone, e-mail or write a note today to express your
gratitude. If she has died, spend time remembering and praising God for her role in your
life.
About the Author: http://thelife.com/experience/devotionalforwomen/authors/marilyn-ehle/
74 Responses to “Your Picture of Mother”
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Hannah Hannah: double the blessing on your life: DOUBLE the ‘favour, grace and blessed by God!’
Interesting question: but I had no idea this could be done?
Andi
Hannah, when the boxes come up to type your name, write Hannah. Do NOT add your last name. One time you must have written both your first and last name. Close the devotional website and when you open it again, hopefully the boxes will come up for you to keyboard into again or maybe the next day when the devotional comes through, make sure you just keyboard your first name only. Perhaps once you keyboard both your first and last name you are not able to get rid of it until the next day’s devotional. Let’s pray this works for you. Blessings, Judy
Oh Andi, you are a hoot. I said my Mom’s maiden name is Hannah. My name is Hannah J.Tipper. That would be funny though.
Does anyone know how I can get my last neme off of here. One of the Writers explained it to someone one night, but I can’t remember what she said. I have tried several things, but then didn’t work. I hit the change, but it did not tell me anything to do.
Love and Hugs and Prayers to all, Hannah
Hannah, LOL!!! God certainly blessed you by causing you to be Hannah Tipper Hannah! Double blessing. HE is a wonderful God.
We also have 4 year old Rosey and 2 year old Agnes there as well.
Their father flys us over at least once a year.
I am well thank you for asking. God is SO good to us. Even though we may struggle w/pain and other things in life our very being can have rest and peace in HIM.
Andi, wow, they are far away arent’s they, but I know they send pics of them and you get to see them at times I am sure. There are a lot of Hannah’s and Hanna’s out there.My Mom’s maiden name is Hannah.
Hope you are doing well.
even this devotional is over a month old now, I still love it.. God really knew what HE was doing when He planned for Mothers and Grandmothers. of course all of his plans are perfect. I praise His Mighty Name, Hannah
Patti & Hannah,
Our 2 month old grand-daughter in Norway [our son is married to a Norwegian gal and lives there] is also named Hanna [but no ‘h’ on the end.
PATTI SO GLAD YOU ARE FELLING BETTER
SHARON B
Thank you again, dear Hannah. What a beautiful name! We are soon to have a new granddaughter and her name will be Hannah. Our oldest daughter and husband are adopting a baby girl from Ethiopia. They have two boys now…and we are so excited.
I have never been to South Carolina, but I know would love it. I am from Oklahoma…..I too, have lived in California..but not for long.
Our youngest daughter went to Glorietta two summers in a row. I believe it was in 1993 and 1994. She went with a Baptist Student Union…the summer she began college. That was the first time.
My husband, myself, and friends drove up to Glorietta when we were in Sante Fe. What an absolutely beautiful place.
I have felt so much love from the ladies at this site. It is so amazing.
If ever you would like to write…my e-mail is pstew49@hotmail.com.
Again thank you, Hannah and others here for your prayers. I have been having to do some spiritual warfare…and am still learning. The battles are worth it! I am truly beginning to experience true joy!
Hi Patti, you are so very welcome for the prayers I lifted up for you and for others also.
There is nothing more great to me than to have a chat with my Heavenly Father.
Like you, it has been a real uplifting experience to be on here with these other ladies and to be able to tell your concerns to each other and know you are not going to be criticized for them. You know they will pray for you and it is such a good feeling.
even though I have a church family and my own family, there is a feeling on here that is so special.
I go to bed late and get up late, not because I want to, but problems keep me up. That is why I post so late ususlly, but today this is early for me.
You asked where I live. We live in South Carolina, USA. Where do you live? I have never lived anywhere else, except for spending a long time in California one year and 3 months visit to New Mexico one summer. I was on the Staff at the Glorietta Baptist Assembly for the whole summer. usually they only allow you to stay for half of the summer, but I was a friend of the Secretary to the President of the assembly. It was a wonderful experience and I made a lot of wonderful friends.
Again I praise God for your feeling better. Love to you and Blessing to you and your family and to God, Hannah
patti i am praying for you
sharonb
Hannah…thank you so much for your prayers. I knew as I went away this weekend, that I was being lifted up.
You are a very special lady and I look forward to getting to know you better. Where do you live?
What a place this is…to be able to come just as we are…with no pretence. A place where unconditional love is abundant and we pray for eachother.
For me and through many of you, it is been a turning point in my life and only recently, have I begun to understand unconditional love, His mercy and grace….Only recently have I begun to experience real joy.
Thank you, Andi….for praying and asking prayer for me.
Praise God!
Yes , Praise God Patti, you were certainly bathed in prayer and best of all, our Lord was covering you.
It is wonderful that you are feeling better. I knew you would. You are a fighter. I can tell. You are like me. Things can get me down, but God can get me back up when I cling to Him and that is what you do. May you be blessed and bless God. Love to my new friend, Hannah
Thank you so much, dear friends….for your prayers. I am so blessed!
I am doing fine. I had a bit of a slide after the weekend, but Greater is He that is in me than anything of this world!
God is doing something very serious in my heart. My lows are no where near they once were. Praise God!
Hannah,[& others who are led to pray for her today] thanks for your prayers for ‘our Patti.’
She will love to read that and realize that she is ‘ours’ just as you wrote.
Overtime we seem to become a new family in HIM don’t we? And it can happen SO fast! I praise HIM daily for all the blog gals who are now a part of my life.
As for quoting the devotional; I believe the author’s would allow you to use it IF you note that it is authored by them rather than coming from yourself.
Andi, I did not mean to put your daughter Patti. ( another one of my typos)
It just hit me that it was Patti that posts on here that you were talking about. Hope it did not make too much confusion. I am very concerned for our Patti. I just pray for our Lord to lit her up high above her condition and relieve her of whatever she id going through. She is a blessing to this group as you are also. Love,Hannah
Our Dear Heavenly Father who cares about everything concerning us. I ask in Jesus name for Andi’s daughter Patti who is very down tonight that you pull her up and let her feel your presence.
Gail Rodgers had a devotional not too long ago that talked about ” The Lord Our Banner, Jehovah-Nissi. She said and I quote,”I stand in awe today that you cover me with Your love. Your love and care is the banner, the flag that is held high over my life today. Your banner over me declares that I am Yours and You are mine.” ” You provide shade for me in the midst of the heat of the circumstances of life.”Thank you that as my Banner, you rescue, protect,defend,honor,avenge, guard, and preserve me.Wow! May my heart rest in that today. Whatever characteristic of these I need, today may I be aware of Your flag waving over me reminding me You are my guard and my honor”
There is more to it than I copied, but I pray for the Lord Our Banner cover Patti and give her peace and help her with this down time she is going through tonight. I pray she can get some rest tonight. Things always seem better the next day for me for some reason, probably because I take it to the Lord. Much love to you and Patti and the rest of the family. Praying for all of you too.
Thank you for letting me know that Sarah’s baby girl is already here. and I love her name, Taylor Joyce. I am happy for you that she close and you will get to see her a lot. I know the ones in Norway are adorable too. You are blessed to have so many grandchildren. They are such a blessing, aren’t they.
Love, Hannah
I hope Gail Rodgers does now mind that I quoted her tonight. It was such a good devotional and some of it is a prayer she prayed. I copy and put them in a folder so I can refer to them if I need help or a reminder in my day.
Urgent prayer request to everyone:
Please pray for our dear Patti as soon as you receive this! She is very down tonight and needs our intercession.
Thank you for doing this right now and letting her know that you are praying for her tonight and in the next couple of days.
She needs our prayers SO much.
Andi
Hannah,
I find it interesting that you describe ‘electrical charges’ for that’s how my brain gets at times. I have Sjogren’s Syndrome and it is OFTEN mis-diagnosed as MS until other symptoms come in to play.
And YES you are right about the need to rest as well.
Oh, Sarah’s baby girl is already born. 3 weeks ago. Her name is Taylor Joyce. We have 3 little girls in Norway as well. Rose is 4; Agnes is 2 and baby Hanna [no 'h' on the end] is 2 months! We get to see the Norwegian grand-daughter’s once a year SO it is incredible to have Taylor just over an hour away from us!
Thank you for letting me know you feel I bless rather than gab too much. As for praying, thank you for that as well. We serve an amazing Father don’t we?
The devotional writers are excellent in their choice of topics and they keep us thinking and challenged. I love how the Group responds and shares w/each other. This is a good place to make friends.
Hi Andi, yes we have to laugh at our typos. And laughter is good medicine too. My husband is real humorous and keeps everyone laughing.
That is wondeful for our faimly to have your daughter’s shower at your home. It is very thoughtful. when our daughter was expecting Joshua, my friends had the shower here for the same reason, for me. I will pray for your daughter and the baby for a safe and good delivery and a healthy baby.
Yes, you and I do have a lot of problems that make us tired and sometimes I feel foggy too. With MS, if you do anything for too long of a period it makes my brain feel like it has electrical charges. Thank goodness that does not hurt, but I do have to go and lie down for a while and rest. Thank the Good Lord He planned for rest. When you feel that “Mind fog ” coming on it is probably when you have done too much and need to sit down and rest and just talk to the Lord. I do that and it makes me feel better.
I am so sorry that you and others do not have their Mom. My Mom is starting the Dementia you mentioned. She is 90 years old and has had a wonderful life.
Andi, you are a real blessing to this group. You pray the most touching prayers and they make me feel so good. Thank you for caring so much about everyone.
I too send Blessings to you and all of our other sis ters on here. It is a wonderful group of Ladies ,and the Writers are so good. Love , Hannah
Hannah,
I can relate to the typo’s. I’ve verbally gotten so many dates and years confused that even I have had to laugh at it or go c r a z y!
LOL.
You are a real blessing to this blog group. My mum died when she was 85. She went quickly w/in 2 weeks as she had always prayed for rather than a lingering illness.
I am SO happy you still have your mum!!
Your health issues are very complex. [Mine are as well].
It is good to know that your family comes to you. We have learned that this is the best approach as well. In 2 weeks there will be a baby shower for our daughter in our home to save my energy in order that I can enjoy it. Blessings to the relatives who are doing this!!!
I have deep periods of ‘mind fog’ when my body is pushed to use up too much energy and it has made me wonder if dementia is down the road for me; but the doc doesn’t believe so and I’m simply trusting HIM w/the future.
Be blessed this day………
and all you other Wonderful Women as well!!!
Andi
Patti? How did your weekend go?
Hi Everyone, this statement I made in a post up above just has to be corrected. I said that I fell in love with my husband in 1997. That is so funny. It should have been 1957. We got married in 1960. These typos can really get us into trouble sometimes, can’t they? I made a terrible one about 5 years ago that I wouldn’t tell a soul. Only the two people that I was chatting with in a Christian Chat room saw it and they will never let me live it down. I try to watch as I type, but some times it happens.
margreat thank you for shareing about you mother it was very sweet sharing
sharonb
Mom grew up on Manitoulin Island. Mom was the third in the famiy of 8. She had the rickets as a child and that is why she was so much smaller than the rest of the family!She accepted Jesus as her personal savior at the age of 10. At the age of `19 she went to a Free Methodist Bible College called Lorne Park College in 1939. She wasn’t very tall but played Basketball, was on the school radio and was a ping pong champion.
She came home to Manitoulin after Bible College and was asked by the Superintendent to teach school near Sault Ste. Marie. This was during the war and they were short of teachers. The school where mom taught school was pretty remote and there were not a lot of stores and she was not accessible to a church. After this mom went to Toronto and had accepted a job to work in the bank. Several weeks earlier she had applied to become a City Mission worker. Mom left the Bank and was a Mission Worker for 4- 6 years. Mom did everything that a pastor did but couldn’t belicence and couldn’t marry or conduct funerals. Mom was stationed in Petrolia and POrt Hope. Port Hope was her last post as they phased the workers out. Mom met my dad at the Port Hope church and they were there for over 50 years. Mom continued with Sunday School, speaking, entertained Missionaires in our home. Mom loved sweets and from her I have learnd to like to bake as well! When she was at the Nursing Home she saw a sweet and had to climb up on the counter to get the sweekt. As I said earlier Mom had a great sense of humor. (Making beds not my cup of tea) and she liked to drive, and was stubborn but could admit when she was wrong! My earliest memory of her was sitting me on her lap and reading to me and praying with me. At 3 I was a morning person! and that has since changed! I miss her a lot but know I will see her again. I was there to say goodbye to her when she passed away. I think that has been the roughes thing I ever did and most fulfilling thing I could have done.
margreat please do tell us about your mother
sharon b