Reflections on Mother’s Day
By Dns Debbo Lee, Vanessa Lee
If you have been attending Zion Bishan for a while now, you will likely have felt the presence of the growing number of children within our premises. The scurrying of little feet across the sanctuary, excited voices shouting at the playground, screams and cries during a tantrum, and never far from them are their mothers or grandmothers. For most of us, this might be the traditional way in which we recognise motherhood.
A day like today, where Mothers are especially recognised and appreciated, can be a day of much joy, excitement and celebration for some. But for others, it reminds them of their aching pain in waiting, or profound sorrow in loss. As a church, we want to get better at acknowledging the breadth of women for whom the motherhood journey applies.
There are many women (single and married) in our church family who assume the role of spiritual parents like the apostle Paul (1 Thess 2:7-12, 1 Tim 1:2, 2 Tim 1:2, Titus 1:4). These women are spiritual mothers who pour themselves out into growing and maturing the next generation disciples of Christ to worship and follow Jesus faithfully. There are also women who are in a season of waiting and longing for children like Hannah (1 Samuel 1) and Rachel (Genesis 30:1), women in sorrow who grieve over the children they have lost (Luke 7:11-16) and women who have chosen to foster, adopt and support other families.
We want to recognise and honour all of these women, for their unique joys and faithfulness in their God-given work and responsibilities as mothers to earthly or spiritual children. We want to come alongside them, bearing their burdens and struggles, reminding them of the grace of God that empowers and sustains. We want to encourage them to grow even more deeply into their cross-bought identity that moulds and shapes all other identities and roles in this life, and guarantees our great hope for the next.
If you are a woman who desires to journey with others in this motherhood journey, Zion Bishan has a number of mum and women groups who meet to read the Bible and encourage one another in prayer and fellowship. If you would like more info about these groups or find support in the fellowship of other women, please contact our women’s ministry staff, Ms Vanessa Lee (vanessa@zionbishan.org.sg) or Dns Debbo Lee (debbolee@gmail.com).
Read on for some reflections from mothers in beautiful, unique, God-given circumstances.
Sister Janet Wang, on behalf of the Special Mum’s group
A group of us meet monthly to share, encourage and pray as we parent our children with special needs. Through every trial, we journey together and celebrate the victories, knowing that we are not alone and God is with us. Over the years, we have experienced His presence and help in time of need during challenging seasons, and we hold fast to His promises that “it will all come to pass”. Through the joys and heartaches of parenting,
I am reminded to treasure and nurture my relationship with my Heavenly Father, without whom we can do nothing. Through the ongoing challenges which we face I have grown to understand God’s great love and patience for me and our loved ones. He is faithful and gives us the courage and strength for every trial (sometimes by sending His angels in the form of caring brethren at just the right moments). Hallelujah!!! To God be the glory!
Deaconess Cerintha Chia
In this era of increasing ungodliness, more and more young people are deceived into following the ways of ‘Babylon’. If older people live godly lives, this can be a powerful influence on the young. The Bible has much to say about older people teaching younger people and Titus 2:3-5 specifically talks about how older women are to live and train younger women.
To me, spiritual mothering requires more than just teaching them God’s word. It involves spending time with them, listening to those struggling with life’s issues, discerning what their needs are and modeling godliness which inspires imitation. Truly caring for a younger woman means looking out for their relationship with Jesus: do they really understand the gospel of grace? Are they born-again and abiding in Christ? Please pray for our single women to recognise their roles as spiritual mothers and to desire to carry out that role well. Please also ask God to bless singles with spiritual children whom they can bond well with and may they blossom into true disciples of Christ and in turn care for them as they age.
Sister Rachelle Low
Motherhood is a funny one. One moment you’re responsible for the life of few others’ than yourself, the next you’re having to figure out why your child is crying (is he still hungry after 3 bowls of rice or did he hurt himself jumping off the bed?) Motherhood is also full of excitement, but it is exhausting keeping up with a toddler #boymumthings. There is also the pressure to have it all together, but if we’re honest, few of us really do. We are often anxious about the uncertainty of life – some friends in church will know that we suffered a miscarriage earlier this year, and my world was filled with darkness for a while after that.
But the beauty of being a Christian mother is knowing that the God who sees my unborn baby, her unformed substance, is the God who saw me before my days were formed for me (Psalms 139:16). Before being a mother, I am first a daughter of the Most High; before I knew how to turn to God, by grace I have been saved and made alive with Christ. (Eph 2:5). He loves me as I am because of who I am in Jesus, and there isn’t a mistake that I make as a mother that can separate me from His deep love. As a younger mum with a young child, quiet time looks different this season. So please pray alongside for discipline and creative ways to be soaking in gospel truths about who Jesus is and my identity in Him. Practical help such as offering to babysit (for a few hours) if you’re feeling brave will also be very much appreciated.
