http://www.unlockingthebible.org/a-less-than-perfect-mother/ A Less Than Perfect Mother Genesis 17:15-16 Mother's Day, May 11, 2008 by Colin S. Smith "God also said to Abraham, 'As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her'" (Genesis 17:15-16). Karen and I have noticed a remarkable change in family life over the last 10 years. I want to give a tribute to the moms who are in the middle of raising kids right now: You are more intentional, more organized, and more disciplined in your parenting than we ever were. You have thought more, read more, talked more and planned more than we ever did. We rejoice in what we see you doing, and we are full of admiration for it. Looking back over the years, I've preached a lot of sermons affirming the role of mothers. Twenty years ago when Karen and I were new parents, the emphasis was on career, and so over these years I've preached a lot of sermons affirming the role of mothers: I've been saying from the pulpit, "If you're a mum, you have the most important job in the world." Most of the mums don't need that message today. You already know that this is the most important job in the world. A growing number of husbands agree. So you're giving yourself to this sacred trust of being a mother. That's a big change in ten years, and it is a good one. But inside every virtue, there is a hidden temptation. Behind the vision of a godly mother When God gives you a vision for being a godly mother, you will soon face this danger: To be crushed by the weight of your own vision. You think about how this little life has been placed in your hands. You are the mother. Not "a" mother, but "the" mother! Some of you have come to feel that the way your child turns out really rests on you. Some of you even feel that your child's eternal destiny depends on your parenting. That is a burden that no human being can bear. You want to be the best mother, and you are being crushed under the weight of your own vision. I want to lift that burden today. The liberating message of the Bible is that "Salvation comes from the Lord" (Jonah 2:9). "Salvation is by grace, not by works" (Ephesians 2:8, 9). Not even parental works. Nobody was ever saved by good parenting. Nobody was ever lost by bad parenting. If salvation was by effective parenting it would be better never to have children, because who could bear the weight of that kind of burden? I cannot save myself, so what hope do I have of saving my children? There are no perfect parents. No father or mother can look back and say "I got this parenting thing absolutely right." Salvation does not come from the parents. Salvation comes from the Lord. God intercepts the lives of sinners with his incredible grace and mercy in Jesus Christ. That's how you were saved, and that's how your children will be saved. Salvation comes from the Lord: It is by his grace and for his glory. To be a Christian is not to live proudly before the world because you are right, but to live humbly before the world because you are rescued. Sarah: A less than perfect mother
