Happy Mother's Day

 

Jesus . . . said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. — John 19:26-27

In many countries at some time of the year there is a focus of thankfulness and celebration for the life and influence of mothers. This Sunday is such a day in the United States and Canada as we celebrate Mothers Day.

On this day we generally celebrate the mothers who gave us birth, or adopted us, or stood in a mother’s place for us (such as an aunt or grandmother). We give thanks for and honor the people who have cared for us and loved us.

In God’s family the basis of our relationships is love and care as well. Being part of God’s family is about recognizing the love and provisions we receive from God, coming to faith by God’s grace, and then connecting with others who have a similar relationship with God—and inviting still others whom God wants us to welcome into his family.

As we learn about how the early church developed, we see that the mother of Jesus became part of the household of the disciple John. She also became a “mother” to John and took care of him. Jesus made sure that this relationship of mutual adoption formed their future even as He paid the ultimate price for all our sin.

Let’s not forget about this important link between Mary and John. The early church was noted for their love for one another in Christ. May we follow that example today too and live out that truth.

Have you held an unrealistic view of the model Christian woman? Did you grow up believing the ideal godly woman was an over-worked, exhausted wife and mother, whose kids were perfect, home was spotless, and who always maintained a selfless and sacrificial attitude, — regardless of her circumstances or state-of-mind. Traits that, at the time, I thought were needed for any devoted, Bible-believing, woman of God. Have you been one of these women?

To me - being a Proverbs 31 woman is no longer about getting everything right, keeping the perfect house, being the perfect mother, or even having the perfect attitude all the time. After all, perfection is unattainable for anyone other than Christ. It’s about giving it all you’ve got, striving to keep a positive perspective. The real woman described in this passage, is a God-fearing, dedicated, and independent woman. She bravely dives into leadership roles and takes on challenging positions with courage and confidence. Really, it’s impossible for any woman to live up to the full description of the Proverbs 31 woman, but I believe this passage is meant to inspire us to be the unique, persistent, fearless women that God created us to be. Therefore, let’s push past the boundaries that our society sets, and those we set for ourselves, and embrace our God-given potential with God’s ever-present help, persevering when the task at hand is difficult, taking care of yourself and caring for the needs of others, and embracing your God-given abilities in order to reach your God-given potential.

Let’s join together - mothers and all women - and allow Proverbs 31 to inspire us to be the fearless, dedicated, faithful, women of God, He is calling us to be. Will today be the day you put aside any hurt, shame, or self-condemnation and run with courage the race God has for you?

You are all wonderful women - mothers, grandmothers, stepmothers, caregivers, aunts, sisters, and best friends and deserve to be honored on Mother’s Day. May this Sunday be a truly blessed day for you all.

The above is a devotion that I gave to the ladies in the colonias on Friday. After the distribution we had a short devotional time, gifts for all the ladies, a meal, and then the ladies had a Bible study group. We left  because we had more items to lead and get ready for Tuesday as well as a move to Iglesia Bautista De Emanual church, where Caring Hearts Ministry will be distributing all the time now. The church has a new pastor and wants to become more involved in the ministry, and we are so grateful for the help. On Tuesday we were blessed with a group from Iglesia Bautista Nueva Esperanza (New Hope Baptist Church). They are interested in the ministry, as an outreach for the youth in their church. What a wonderful help they, too, were

                                         

                                                they parked their van under one of the few shade trees in the yard

                                       

                   lots of help - even the youngest did help although he rather enjoyed eating the candy

We have a lot of things in storage containers that we need to get moved to the church, rather than  leave them in the heat. The building in the colonias is gong to be moved to the church soon so we cannot store them there. 500# of cheezits, 1000# of cereal, and a ton of beans. Thanks to the wonderful help of Linda Smith, we bagged all of the cereal and cheezits this last week.. Monday will be bagging 500# of beans, and Thursday another 500# - a difficult job well done.

                                  

Linda bagging cereal - I opened the bags, Linda filled them, I handed them to Fred and he packed them in boxes. 

                                           taking a break from the cheezits - same process s the cereal

                                                               Linda working on the cheezits

Chloe's name means Green Herb. She is the emblem of fruitful grace and beauty. Paul was a guest in her home when he heard of  the problems among the leaders of the early church. not much else is known of her background except the fact that she as the head of a Corinthian household and well known in her community. She is mentioned in I Corinthians 1:10-11. 

Today is all about ladies as Vance's sermon this morning was about the lady at the well, taken from John4.We don't know her name, probably so we can identify with her. She had a conflicted past and an uncertain future Jesus left Judaea to reavel to Galilee because the Pharisees had heard of the baptizing by Jihn and Himself. Jesus went through Samaria, even though He did not have to as the Samaritans were hated by the Jews Most people took the way around Samaria. There He met a woman at the well. He spoke to her which was unheard of at that time because there was a lot of racial and religious tension between the Jews and Samaritans. The Jews hated them because they were half-breeds and had different religious celebrations. Jesus had to go to Samaria instead of around it so He could have a divine appointment with God. He had to met not only a Samaritan but a Samaritan with a past. It was inappropriate for Jesus to talk to her. Because her community knew of her past, she came to the well alone as she was almost an outcast. She knew she had a complicated past but it was not too complicated for Jesus to overcome. Jesus knew it all and was not surprised by anything she said. Jesus is the only one in the universe who knows you but still loves yo completely. Jesus told her to call her husband, but He knew she had 5 husbands,. She did not deny this and thought Jesus was a prophet. He knew she was spiritually bone dry. She tried to change the subject because He was getting too close to the truth. The most important issue we must deal with is who Jesus really is. The one relationship that can fill you completely can only come from Jesus, the living water. Only He can live with your past, present, and future. The woman went back to the town and told everyone what Jesus said and did. The Samaritans then believed that Jesuis was the Savior of the world. Jesus accepts you just as you are, but He wants you to come to Him. If you won't let your past die, it won't let you live.  

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