MOTHER, MOM, MUM, MOMMA, MONNY, MA, MAMA

At the stables where I take riding lessons, there is a new colt that was born about a month ago. When he was born, he was all crooked, and appeared deformed. The owners thought he would never grow up to be worth even trail riding, so pretty much ignored him the first few weeks of his life. Well, as he grew a bit and stretched out his long legs and exercised them, faltering around at first and gradually gaining his coordination, he has actually straightened out and looks pretty good! His momma was just a smaller mare and he was so lanky, he had been scrunched up too tightly inside of her and just needed more space to spread out. Luckily, his mother nurtured him regardless of how he looked, just as most mothers do with their offspring. Their child is usually the most beautiful baby in the world to them.

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Psalm 139: 13-16 NIV

Mother's Day is set aside to honer our maternal parent every year on the second Sunday in May. There are many different types of mothers in this world. For some women, Mother's Day is a joyous celebration, but for others it may be a very troublesome time.

How we each relate to our mothers is quite variable. Some of our mothers are still living here on this earth. Others have already left their mortal bodies. Whether they are still alive on this planet or not, we may have positive or negative thoughts about this person on this day. Some people have or had an excellent relationship with their moms. They loved, nurtured, supported, encouraged, and prayed for their children. And when it was time to let go, they did, without cutting themselves totally out of the picture, but staying in the background, ready to help if needed. Some people were also blessed to have moms that were faithful servants of the Lord and brought them up to know Jesus. Yet there are many who did not have this kind of relationship with their mother. Perhaps their mother was not present, physically or emotionally. Some lost their mothers very early in life, either through death or abandonment. Or their mothers may have been very ill physically or mentally to the point that they were not able to be there for them. There are even mothers who are so disturbed that they abuse their children physically, emotionally, verbally, or even sexually. For these people mother's day may bring mixed or negative emotions. Sometimes foster parents or adoptive parents step into the picture. These relationships also can take many forms. Some foster or adoptive children are able to say these were their true moms as opposed to their biological mothers, others perhaps cannot say that. There are even surrogate mothers literally and figuratively. This includes those who carry a child in their womb for someone else to parent, and those friends who are lovingly called "mom" or some endearing term because they have "mothered" others in a special way in their lives. The variety of mother-child relationships is endless.

Some of us are mothers ourselves, having bore children of our own, fostered or adopted them, or "mothered" them as an aunt or more distant relative or as a friend. With God's help we strive to be good mothers and create good relationships with our children, however there may be times we feel we have failed to do so. No one is a perfect mother, of course. There may be strained relationships with our own children. Or some may have lost a child to an early death, given their baby up for adoption, or perhaps even had an abortion. Then there are women who yearn to be mothers but are not, as some have trouble conceiving or birthing their own child, and others do not have someone to father their child, etc. I have known women in almost every one of these scenarios. All of these difficult situations can be very heart wrenching. But through it all, God is with us, even when a situation seems hopeless. If we can turn to him and trust in him to bless us according to his will and ask for help in all our troubles, we can rest assured he hears us and takes care of us.

He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. Isaiah 40:11 NIV

Our relationship with God is a loving and nurturing one at all times. We are blessed children of God, carried by him through the trials on this earth, encouraged to grow, and given all we need to blossom as his servants. All of us can "mother" others, as their actual parent or not - nurture them, help them grow, support and encourage them and then let them go when they are ready. That is what a mother does. So, whether you are a parent or not, "Happy 'Mothering' Day"!

Blessings,

Written by Jan Andersen