MATTERS OF FAITH: Remember to honor your mother

Every year in the month of May we celebrate Mother's Day. I want to begin today by reminding us that while we are celebrating our mothers, at the same time I know this day can be a very difficult day for some due to a number of reasons.

Maybe you really miss your mother because she is no longer alive. Maybe you don't have a very good relationship with your mother. There are also many of our mothers who have lost their children. And, of course, there are also those who have been waiting to be a mother for a very long time. My prayers go out to those mothers and children who are struggling today with any emotional pain.

During my reflection time this week, I came to the conclusion that there is nothing new that I can say about mothers that hasn't already been said. I still asked myself the question, "Is there anything that I can say that would be new to you or would be something you have not heard before?"

This Sunday in churches, cathedrals and temples, there will be many messages delivered about the virtuous and godly mother of Proverbs: ''Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praised her." (Proverbs 31:10, 28).

Some of you will certainly be reminded of the story of Jochebed who was the mother of Moses. What an amazing story of a mother's love and sacrifice for her son. Of course ministers will remind their congregations of Hannah, the mother of Samuel. The Bible tells us that Hannah dedicated her son, Samuel, to the Lord and how God honored her request by using him in the ministry.

There are so many amazing mothers in the Bible.

One thing we know is that being a mom is not an easy task! Mothers carry tremendous responsibilities-from conception, to birth, to nurturing. And very often with minimum resources and little appreciation.

I heard a story of a women who said, ''Before I was married, I had three theories about raising children. Now, I have three children and no theories.'' I am sure most mothers will relate to that.

For those of you who are mothers, you know that motherhood can be messy, and at times frustrating and exhausting. And there are no foolproof formulas. Right? Kids are different. You can raise two kids exactly the same, and they might turn out very different.

I remember my mother sacrificing so much of herself to care for us. We were not the most well behaved children. Sometime I wonder how many times a day she had to run to her room to pray for us and for her sanity. Being a mom is not easy. Today, we must pause and say ''Thank You'' to our mothers, and to honor them and thank God for them.

James Dobson tells the story of a mother who was sick in bed. He said: "She had the flu. And her little daughter wanted so much to be a good nurse. So she brought mom an extra pillow, and she brought her a magazine to read. And then she even showed up with a surprise cup of tea. And her mother took a sip of the tea, and she said, ''Wow! I didn't even know you knew how to make tea!'' And the girl said, ''Oh, yes. I learned by watching you. I put some water in the pot, and then I put the tea leaves in, and I boiled the water and then I strained it into a cup. But I couldn't find the strainer, so I used the flyswatter instead.'' And her mother said, ''You what?!'' And the girl said, ''Oh, don't worry, mom. I didn't use the new flyswatter; I used the old one.''

To all the mothers, remember you are a major part of framing and shaping our world view.

I thank God for my mother who taught me how to pray and to rest in God. I would like to encourage all the mothers to not be like Martha in the Bible whose life was filled with only things to do. Rather, find the time to be like Mary who knew to find rest at Jesus' feet. Jesus' words still ring true for us today... "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden [distracted, anxious, tired, frustrated], and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). God bless.