One old post of mine getting a lot of hits these days is one about Mother’s Day reading, but since I did not know many of you then, I’ll repost a little of it here. I know some of you don’t like to look through lists of links, but there is good stuff in these. I was thinking of posting this on Saturday, but then thought some of you might like to see some of these before then.

Elisabeth Elliot wrote a leaflet she titled “A Call to Spiritual Motherhood” which she read in on of her radio broadcasts. You can read the transcript here. It is an excellent article encouraging all of us in any stage of life to spiritually “mother” younger women. Many of us have had godly women besides out own mothers who were shining examples to us, who taught us along the way and encouraged us. I think they are worthy of honor on a day like Mother’s Day, too.

Girltalk has some excellent articles for those who have lost children to miscarriage or a later death, struggle with infertility or have wayward children, for whom this time of year can be quite painful.

Annie’s Mother’s Day pages have several neat links. I especially liked What the Bible Says About Mothers.

I mentioned the high expectations some women might have about Mother’s Day, setting themselves up for disappointment, but I’ve often run into just the opposite: a mom who doesn’t like all the fuss on Mother’s Day, or, as Al Mohler wrote one year, that Mother’s Day is a bad idea because of the commercialism, the sentimentality, or the lack of honoring mothers other days of the year and trying to make up for it on that one day. To moms who maybe don’t like to be put on the spot or feel uncomfortable about all the attention that day, I would say just accept it as an expression of love.  You may not want or need gifts and may just want the family to have time together, and that’s fine, but don’t downplay what your family tries to do to honor you. Have you ever tried to give a gift to someone who keeps saying things like “You shouldn’t have!” so much that it takes all the joy out of giving to them? Don’t be like that (of course, balance is the key here. Maybe next year well before Mother’s Day you might want to express to your family that you really don’t want anything and ask about a family day instead, if you feel that way. But don’t downplay their efforts after they’ve already done something.)

As for the sentiment that Mother’s Day is a bad idea for the reasons mentioned: I agree with some of Dr. Mohler’s points: it’s wrong to passively neglect or actively dishonor one’s mother and then try to assuage guilt with a card and flowers on Mother’s Day. And I do agree some sentiments are over the top: sometimes when buying cards I have wondered if they were made for real people at all. Sentimentality, though, is often in the eye of the beholder. What might seem “gushy” and over the top to some might seem just right to another. And, yes, most holidays have become too commercial, but that doesn’t mean we need to do away with them completely. There are multitudes of options between going all out and not celebrating at all.

I consider Mother’s and Father’s Day and many holidays  in the same way I think of Thanksgiving: we’re supposed to be thankful all the time, but there is something special about that one day and taking special care and thought into pondering just how much we have to be thankful for and the One to Whom we owe our gratitude. So with a day dedicated to parents: it’s one of the ten commandments to honor our parents, and Mother’s and Father’s Day is just one way to do so. It’s not that we save up our honor all year for this day: we honor them all the time, but this special day we focus on them, their love to us, and all they have done for us, and let them know we love and appreciate them.

What if you don’t feel your mother is worthy of honor? The command to honor our fathers and mothers is just that — a command. During my teens I did struggle for a brief while with respecting my parents. One day after a sermon on “Children, obey your parents,” it occurred to me that the two passages that teach that (Ephesians 6:1-3 and Colossians 3:20) do not qualify the command (obey if they are saved, if they are perfect, if they do everything just right, if they deserve it). I realized that all of the commands about relationships in the rest of those passages were not dependent on the other person doing his or her part. We’re supposed to do our part whether the other one does or not. I was supposed to obey my parents and respect their position as my parents. I had to apologize for my attitude, and the Lord enabled me to indeed honor them and respect them, and even to appreciate them and to be thankful for the life they gave me, the care they took of me, and so many more things. It showed in my attitude (I had never been allowed to “backtalk,” but there are other ways a disrespectful attitude can seep out), and the Lord healed the breach between my parents and me. I only wish she were still here for me to honor, but I do honor her memory. A few years ago I wrote Things I love about my mom.

Here are some things I’ve posted in the past regarding Mother’s Day. 🙂

Mother’s Day funnies.
Mother’s Dictionary (funny).
Mother’s Kisses (poem).
Mother’s Day Poems.