Do you ever wonder about Mary? Sometimes, I wonder if she ever had days like I do. You know, when she had just finished sweeping the floor and Jesus and his brothers and sisters came running through the house with muddy feet. Or weeks when her kids passed the same horrid virus back and forth to each other. I am guessing she probably did.
I wonder though if she ever got so tired or frustrated that she forgot for even a minute God had entrusted her and Joseph to raise his son to adulthood. We really have no way of knowing how Mary felt about the important responsibility God gave her (other than very limited references in scripture). I don’t know about Mary, but sometimes, I get just distracted enough by the craziness of family life or my exhaustion to forget God has entrusted me with a part of the future of His Church.
We rarely talk about it, but our children are the Church of the future. Or not. You see, they have the free will to accept or reject God. Just like Jesus, our children will be tempted by Satan to disobey God. Thankfully, Jesus chose to obey God in everything he did. Are we adequately preparing our children to make similar godly choices?
I can’t help but wonder about the instruction Jesus got from Mary as he was growing up. Did she and Joseph tell him the stories of how God worked throughout history? Did they remind him of how God was working in all of their lives? Did they model godly behavior for him? Did they reinforce God’s commands and principles? The Bible says very little about the childhood of Jesus, but I would imagine Mary and Joseph did all of those things.
As you celebrate Mother’s Day this weekend, I encourage you to enjoy the wonderful blessing of your children. Then take some time to reflect about how you are accepting the responsibility from God to raise your children to worship and serve Him. Pray to God about your thoughts and feelings. Read the scriptures to gain insight into godly mothers like Hannah and Mary. Then commit yourself to doing everything possible to enthusiastically dedicate your children to God. Focus your parenting energies on raising children who put God first in their lives. If we can do that, the Church may have a very bright future indeed.