Next Sunday is Mother’s Day. Did you know that a graduate from Augusta Female Seminary, now Mary Baldwin University, in Staunton, Virginia founded Mother’s Day? Anna Jarvis wished to make Mother’s Day a national holiday and in May 1914 a Staunton born president, Woodrow Wilson, did just that. Unfortunately, as with many holidays, companies capitalize on this day to make a profit. Now you’ll find Mother’s Day cards, cakes, flowers and any number of “things” that bear the emblem of Mother’s Day.
But are “things” really what we should focus on as Mother’s Day approaches? As Christians, we are called to “[h]onor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12). Note what the commandment doesn’t say. There are no “if”s in there. God could have said “honor your father and mother, if they treat you well” or “honor your father and mother, if you agree with everything they say and do.” God knew that parents and children wouldn’t always be on the same page. Sometimes parents are not kind, not understanding, not loving. And sometimes, parents and children end up being enemies. Jesus said “… I say to you, love your enemies…” and “… if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?” (Matthew 5:44, 46).
No one said it would be easy. Love and honor or respect are choices we make. Even if our parents are terrible, we can still find a way to honor them without endangering ourselves. Some people have abusive parents. This is not in accordance with the will of God. He wants parents to love their children but we live in a sinful world. Honoring your father and your mother doesn’t mean doing everything they say or staying around them if it is a dangerous situation for you. It simply means to treat them with respect and in some cases respect they don’t deserve. Respect can be shown in how you speak to someone or about someone and through the way you treat them. I feel very blessed to have my parents. Have we always gotten along? No, we have had periods of disagreement. But I am thankful that so far, we have worked through those times in what I believe were respectful ways.
Honor or respect is something that is shown. Mother’s Day was never intended by Anna Jarvis to be a money making commercialized event where everyone rushes at the last minute to buy a token of obligated gratitude. It was meant to be a day where you show EXTRA how much you love your mother by spending time with her and focusing on her. And if you do buy something give it thoughtful consideration.
In my freshman year attending Mary Baldwin, I met a professor named Irene and our friendship lasted well beyond my graduation. She and her husband decided not to have children but instead treated ALL of her students as their children. For several years before she passed away, I bought her flowers for Mother’s Day because I wanted to show her how much she meant to me I knew she LOVED flowers. The year before she got sick, I decided to give her flowers she could plant instead of cut flowers that would die in a couple of weeks. Those flowers still bloom beside her house, and they make me think of her every time I see them. How appropriate that one of them was a bleeding heart. Each year since her death, I’ve given Mother’s Day flowers to someone in honor of her. She taught me many things, one of which is the importance of thinking of others and how much even just a simple flower arrangement can bring joy to someone who is having a hard time or needs encouragement.
Mother’s Day isn’t just for your biological mother. I challenge you to go out this Mother’s Day and do something for someone who has been an influence in your life, or to someone you know is lonely, or to someone who is having a hard time. Part of being a Christian is about caring for those beyond our own families and by doing that we honor our God who is our ultimate parent.
