Mother’s Day!

65. I’m 67 and mom, I miss you. Happy Mother’s Day. Amen. Well, let’s just pray for a minute. Father, we come to you in Jesus’ name. I thank you for the privilege and the honor it is to share your word today with this beautiful congregation, your children. I ask that you would be seen and your words would go down deep and be rooted and planted into the soil of the hearts of the people here today. I thank you for your word. I thank you for your love and your grace and your mercy today in Jesus’ name. Amen. All right. Here we go. Despite the passage of time, despite the cultural differences, mothers of the Bible still speak to us today. Amen. Amen. 

All mothers need the timeless wisdom of moms. Dads, don’t close your ears or guys, don’t close your ears because you can relate to this too, okay? The word, excuse me, is chock full of narratives, of mothers who have struggled throughout all of life with the same issues that we ourselves as moms have dealt with today. Their stories navigate their own creating a rich tapestry of faith that is interwoven throughout the generation. 

Even their voices are long since silenced in this life, but we can still hear them through the Word of God. Amen?

Yes. Today is Mother’s Day. And as Marlene, I call her Marlene, as Marlene was praying, she said a few words that were quite interesting and just quick into my spirit because it’s about passing on, passing on. And today I’m going to be talking about passing on to the generation. So every time you hear the word, get ready, you might leave here today a little bruised,

okay? So every time you hear the word pass or pass on, nudge your neighbor. Let me see you. Nudge your neighbor. Not too hard, guys, in the front. Okay? And every time you hear two other words, I’ll let you know what they are shortly, okay? So I’m a mom. I have two children.

I’m a stepmom. I have four step sons and all together. I have 17 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Yes, I’m a great-grandma. Come on. I knew I was great before I was a great-grandma, but come on. Okay. So anyway, I know that we moms always look forward to having that one special day that we can say, wow, we can put our feet up and relax a little bit, get recognized.

Boys, do you remember ever giving your mom a little dandy lion in a juice? Yeah, of course. We even appreciate those dandy lions in juice glasses, don’t we? We do, moms, and those lovely dinners out. Oh, my goodness. I went out with my son and daughter-in-law on Friday night. We just had a wonderful time. So today is one of those days that we just want to acknowledge you, mom, and appreciate you.

A sermon on Proverbs 31 would leave us maybe feeling a little failure. So I’m not going there. An afternoon with Mrs. Faultless Christian mom can leave us wondering why we can’t find 15 minutes in the morning to spend with Jesus and why her kids are so perfect and mine aren’t. Can anybody identify growing up? I know I’ve been there, but I’ll never stop being a mom. And I’ll never forget what it’s like to deal with some of those issues that’s unique to that title. My grandma, my mom, and all the ladies I’ve encountered over the years have always said to me, a mother I will always be. It doesn’t matter how young or how mature you are, a mom forever you will be. And I wrote something on my Facebook, which I don’t do a lot, but I wrote a little something and my kids got it for me when they were younger. And it’s a mother who holds a child’s hands for a short time, but their hearts forever. Ladies, can you say amen? Amen.

I need to hear you. Okay, that’s good. Now as one who looks back on those years in my life, sometimes with mixed feelings, some you know, regret, maybe a little bit, some guilt, some relief. And yes, lots of joy as well, especially being in Anna. Well, you may be saying, well, come on, I don’t have kids anymore. They’re all older. And you know, I don’t speak to my kids or I’ve a loved child. And my child is no longer here.

I only have my grandchildren. Well, guess what? You’re in the right place at the right time to hear God’s word today. I’ll be sharing about two amazing women. There’s so many more, but I’m going to be sharing two. But right now I’m going to, these aren’t the ladies I’m talking about yet, but I’m going to start right at the beginning in Genesis. What a better place to start than at the beginning. 

Eve, wow. Eve was called the mother of living. The first mom who lost her child at the hands of another child. Have you ever thought about that? Rebekah, Isaac’s wife who struggled with favoritism of her son Jacob over Esau. Jacob, a caring mother who had to give her son Moses up. You think things only happen in this generation, don’t you? And then there’s Deborah who never had children but was called the mother of Israel. Mary, think about it, the mother of our Savior. She was a participant in a miracle of a level that no other human being had ever encountered.

And like I said, we could talk about many other women because their stories are interwoven throughout the word and the rules that they played to move on the gospel. Some were front and center while others seemed to be blended into the fabric of life. Today as I said, I’m going to introduce to you two women and their substantial role that they played and the legacy that they left. But before I get to them, are you getting curious about who they are? Yes, let me tell you one more thing. I’m going to talk about the Olympics for a minute. Deb, it’s Mother’s Day.

The Olympics, are you kidding me? Really? Yes, the Olympics. The torch. Here’s the torch. It started its epic journey on April the 8th and it is travelling to the opening ceremonies in Paris for the summer Olympics for July 26th. And this is the thing I want you to hear. Those who carry the torch, see the torch, from one location to another are often referred to as guardians of the flame. Guardians of the flame. And their number one responsibility, boys, there’s going to be a test afterwards just so you know, okay? The number one responsibility is to ensure the flame remains lit and it’s passed on. Wow. 

Those two women that I want to share about are guardians of the flame of faith. We’re all called. We are all called to carry and be responsible to ensure the flame remains lit and is passed on. So who are these women? There is grandma and there is mama. Does anybody know who they are? Lois and Eunice. Oh my gosh, are their names really in the Bible? Yeah, they are. They’re in the Word in Timothy, right? They passed on the baton of faith.

The hand off, the firm grip, the intentional effort. They placed it right in the hand of the next generation, right into the hand of Timothy. And in first Timothy, well, first of all, I think I’m going to go to Acts 16. This is where we first come across Timothy. First or Acts 16, one. Then he, Paul, came to Derby and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple was there named Timothy, the son of a certain Jewish woman who believed his father was Greek. Well, Timothy, that word means honoring God.

And as you see in his life, that’s exactly what he did. Now in 16, 2, it says Timothy was well spoken of by the brothers and sisters who were in Lystra and in Iconium. He was a young man. And this is Paul’s second trip to Lystra. So his grandma, Lois, that’s the other word, Lois and Eunice are the other nudge words. Okay? So Lois and Eunice and pass on. So Lois and Eunice were the grandma and the mama.

And Lois and Eunice were Jewish. So they would teach young Timothy the word of God. The scriptures, obviously, it was the Hebrew, right? They were Jewish. And then one time Paul comes and they get saved. Lois and Eunice, they got saved. So the reputation of them, they started teaching Timothy, their grandson and son. Now the father was Greek, which indicates at that time that he was a Gentile. And then after that, it doesn’t really talk about his dad at all.

So it was a mixed family situation which we can all identify to some point as well. Timothy was a young man. He had a godly reputation by the time Paul got back to him. He was already well known by the brothers and sisters in Lystra. He had a solid foundation. Why? because of Lois and Eunice. Lois and Eunice literally only get a very brief moment in the Bible. But they have much to teach us on legacy.

It’s the only place in the word of God that has the word grandma or grandmother. That’s actually the word grandmother is associated with Lois. There are other grandmothers in the word, but only Lois gets that title. Let’s turn to 2 Timothy 2, if you have your Bibles. If not, that’s okay. 2 Timothy 2 verse 1. Let’s see, here we go. 2 Timothy 2 1- 5. When I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwells first in your grandmother, Lois and your mother Eunice, I’m persuaded that is in you also. Wow, that’s Paul. Paul is talking here. Paul is speaking to a son in the faith. Paul is reminding Timothy of the stock of which he was raised. Another version says, I remember your sincere faith, the surrendering of your entire self to God in Christ with confident trust in his power, in his wisdom and goodness. A faith which first lived in the heart of your grandmother and the heart of your mother Eunice, and I am confident it’s in you as well.

Sincere means without hypocrisy. That’s ouch or amen. I’m going to be who God has called me to be, not one way here at church, not one way at home, not one way at work, not one way in the marketplace, but I am going to be the real deal whom God has called me to be. Lois and Eunice had genuine faith, faith no hypocrisy. They allowed their faith to influence their decisions. Faith that abides, that dwells, means to live in you, that sincere faith, living you and influencing you for God, being real without hypocrisy.

It’s a faith that will stand through the trials and dwell in us as a living principle. Anybody been through trials? I know I have and I know without faith in God, I would not be where I am. He is my rock. He’s my everything. I’m so grateful for the Lord in my life. Some people just exercise their faith when they’re in an emergency, right? Oh God, help me. And then they don’t spend time with them the rest of the week or when things are going well, you just kind of don’t have that time because everything’s good. And you only go to them when you’re going through something and when you really need them. And that’s where his love and grace is, but we can give so much more to him. Can’t we? We have our sincere faith in him, our heart, even greater. When younger people look at you, ladies, men, moms, grandmas, grandpas, when the kids see you, they know what’s real, don’t you? Do you know what’s real?

And you can really see when somebody’s pulling your leg a bit and just saying, yeah, see, there you go. They know. Do they see Jesus in you? Mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, aunties? Do they see someone inspiring so that they want to be like you? Do they see what comes out of you through your journeys of ups and downs in life? Mom, are we one way here at church and one way at home? Lois in Eunice, the guardians of the flame of faith.

That’s the kind of faith you want your kids and your grandkids and your great grandkids to see, a legacy of faith. Deuteronomy, I want to turn there real quick here. Deuteronomy 11:18 – 21 says, therefore you shall lay up these words of mind in your heart and in your soul and bind them as a sign on your hand. And they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them, teach them the word, teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up and you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of heaven above the earth. 

That’s a good word. That’s a really good word. Another version, this is from the Holman Christian standard version, teach them to your children. Talk about them when you’re at home and when you are on the road, when you’re going to bed and when you’re getting up, write them on the doorposts of your house and on the gates so that as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors. Wow. Teach them. What are we teaching them? What are we teaching them, Mom? These mammies, Lois and Eunice, were great examples. They set a great foundation for Timothy to grow up in. It says in the word, it says thy word was found and I did eat it and it is the joy and rejoicing of my heart.

Well, that’s one of my favorite scriptures because it is where thy word was found and I did eat it and it is my joy. Well, that’s exactly what Timothy’s grandma, Lois and Eunice did. You may say, oh, I didn’t grow up with a legacy of faith. Be encouraged. That’s where the body of Christ comes in. Faith filled family just for you. Encourage with that, they want to speak life into your life. They want to encourage you, the body, each other.

We need to hang out with each other. We need to be immersed in the church, in our church community, in relationships to build each other up, to share and to keep the flame lit. In Hebrews it talks about, Hebrews 10, 24, let us consider how to inspire each other to greater love to righteous deeds, not forgetting to gather as a community as some have forgotten but encouraging each other, especially as we see the day of the Lord approaching. Amen? Amen to that one. 

You think for a moment of all the wisdom that Paul, that Eunice, that Lois instilled in Timothy. It talks about in 2 Timothy 2, 2, we read, I got to read it from the voice message, but as for you, my child, Timothy, be empowered by the grace that is in Jesus, the anointed one. 

Whatever you heard me teach before an audience of witnesses, I want you to pass along to trustworthy people who have the ability to teach others too. As a good soldier of Jesus, the anointed, be ready to suffer for me. Remember that soldiers on active duty don’t wrap up in civilian matters because they want to satisfy those who recruited them.

Look at it another way. If someone competes as an athlete, he won’t win the race and be crowned with the reef if he breaks the rules. And the farmer who exhausts himself in the field should be the first to taste his harvest. Think about what I’m telling you, Timothy, and let the Lord give you clarity on all of it. Timothy was Paul’s true son, his adopted son in the spirit. Paul had mentored no one more privately and successfully than Timothy. And he charges Timothy to pass the faith along.

And that wouldn’t have happened except for Lois and Eunice. That’s how important it is in your life example to pass your heritage along. They allowed their faith to fill every nook and cranny of their life and particularly to the next generation. As grandma, as mom, there’s nothing more important than your spiritual legacy. No money, no job. And I’m going to say men’s sports. Everything is more important than your spiritual legacy. It’s got to be obvious in our life.

What’s beautiful? It’s never too late. You may say, oh, Deb, you know, again, I wasn’t raised in a Christian family. And now here I am and my kids are older. You know what? God is the Redeemer. God redeems. He is so loving and so gracious and he has allowed you, empowered you as a mom to speak words of encouragement.

What I do with my grandkids and my great-grandkids, you know, some of them, I’m kind of off-script for a second. But one of my little granddaughters, she’s nine years old and let me just get there. I’ll see. Yep, here it is. I asked my granddaughter last week how she knew that Nana loved Jesus. She’s nine years old and she said, well, Nana, she goes, you know, when we’re in the car, she goes, you’re always listening to Jesus’ music. And we have so much fun.

She goes, you’re hitting the steering wheel and we’re singing and we’re just dancing in the car in our seat as you’re driving. I love how you love Jesus. And I’m like, wow, that’s really exciting. And then she said to me, she said, Nana, when we’re at the cottage, she goes, you know what, Nana, she goes, you’re the first one at and you’re reading your Bible and you’re praying and you’re having coffee. And I thought, well, I’m glad she saw that and just didn’t see me have coffee. These are little things that we’re planting into our children and our grandchildren and our great-grandchildren. I’ll send my great-grandkids and my older-grandchildren. 

I have like three sets of generations, older-grandkids, middle-grandkids and younger-grandkids. And then the great-grandkids. But my older-grandkids, to encourage them, they’ll say to me, you know, they’re not serving God. They know Nana loves the Lord. They know my life. They know of the Lord, but they do not serve Him as Lord and Savior of their life yet.

And so they’ll say to me, Nana, is there another station on the radio that we can listen to? And I’ll say, no, this is the only one I got. And they just kind of look at me. Oh, yeah, okay, Nana. We know you got more there, but I know you’re not going to change it. So, you know, and that’s okay because, you know what, I’m planting seeds there. I’ll text them and I’ll say, have a great day. God loves you, Nana loves you too. And if they’re, you know, going through something, what do they do?

They’ll call or text Nana. That’s why I’m going through. I’m so grateful for that. I am so grateful. Did I start late? Yes, I did. But again, I’m seeing God redeem. God redeem. Now, you may say, but my kids don’t speak to me.

You may say, you know, I’m all alone. Again, you’ve got the body of Christ. You’re not alone. I have two children, like I said, and I have four stepchildren. And my relationship with my children has been very unique over my 45 years of serving the Lord. And my daughter and I were very, very close, very, very close. And due to many other situations in our life, things happened. And I haven’t seen my daughter in 10 years.

Ten years. Is God still moving? Absolutely. Do I have a smile on my face? Yes. You know why? Because I know I have seen what God is doing during COVID. I waited and waited and waited and waited and prayed and prayed and prayed. And the Lord spoke to me and said, now’s the time to text her.

I went, okay. And part of me says, am I going to get rejected? Am I going to feel like she doesn’t, you know, well, hey, you got to be obedient? And so I did. I text her. And I waited. Two days went by and she texted me. Oh, my goodness. I was flying high.

I was like, Lord, thank you, thank you, thank you. And it was a lovely text. It was so when her heart was softening through all those years. Did I continue to send birthday cards? Did I continue to do all the things that us moms do? And nobody sees your heart or hurt. Only daddy. And you know what? This morning I got, you know, a phone call.

Happy Mother’s Day. You know, God is so good. Do we have to wait? Sometimes you do. But when we’re waiting, God is preparing you too. It’s not just about them. God’s got to do a work in you. Moms. Even though we hurt, even though, you know, our job seems to be so unappreciated at times,

especially when they’re little, look, goop. Have you ever said that, cheer, mom? I don’t like what you’re doing or sometimes. Yeah. So I’m grateful. I am so grateful that God is in control and not me. Because if I wanted my heart, you know, come on, moms, you’d be like, come on, let’s get together. Let’s talk.

We need to do this. We need, you know, and I would be blowing it because I would be stepping into a place that daddy said to me, just wait how long? Just wait in my time, in my time. And it’s God’s perfect timing. And I am so excited because I haven’t seen one of my last great-grandson’s. He’s four months old and I’m getting to see him this month. And that means I get to see my daughter as well. I’m so excited.

Ten years. Come on. That’s, that’s a praise God. That’s something that I am so grateful and so appreciative and so thankful for. Now, I think I’m running a little late here. I won’t be long. I know many of you have had those special times with your kids. But if you haven’t, do yourself a favor, step out and ask them. Really, and get ready to hear some of those answers because some of them will be quite fun and interesting only because out of the mouths babes, get ready. You’ll hear some fun things. Like Lois to Eunice, we need to allow our faith to be seen and influence what we say, what we speak, what we watch, what we read and what we even think about. As I started off with Eve, Rebekah and Jacob. Those stories remind us that, again, it’s okay that our relationships between a month and children aren’t perfect just like I shared. My great assurance and your great assurance is knowing that God is at work redeeming our biggest mistakes.

Second Timothy 1, 12 says, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep what I have committed unto him until that day. Deborah, who had no children, be that spiritual mom. Moms, you may not have kids in your household today, but be a spiritual mom. Reach out to that neighbor. Reach out to that single mom. Reach out to that niece or that young youth in the youth group. My dear friend who you all know graduated to the kingdom just a few weeks ago, Joan Bombay, she was a spiritual mom and that was part of her eulogy and legacy that she left.

She was a spiritual mom to so many people. Families may be divided spiritually, but that doesn’t stop us because the truth of God’s word will prevail. This tells us that Lois and Eunice were women with the right priorities. They knew that putting the Lord first was most important in their life and they wanted that imparted into Timothy. When we read about all the amazing things that Timothy did, he was a pastor in Ephesia in Ephesus and it was a really difficult church. So Paul knew what he was doing to encourage Timothy.

It’s a handbook. First and second, Timothy is a handbook for pastors throughout the whole church age. That’s a legacy. Paul asked this young leader to shepherd a divided congregation through one problem after another. He couldn’t have done all those things without being rooted and grounded in the word, in the legacy that he had. There’s great purpose and value in investing in the next generation. I love how Lois and Eunice took the responsibility seriously. In Paul’s letter to his protege Timothy, he acknowledged that Timothy’s faith was modelled to him by Grandma Lois and Mother Eunice. In closing, be inspired by the lives and the recognition of Lois and Eunice. A lot of their work, ladies, was not in the scriptures, just like a lot of ours are not recognized with the thank you sometimes. The truth is, God is working often in the most mundane places to fulfill his purpose and his plan. We may not feel significant at times in our efforts to make disciples or to share the gospel, however, remember that Jesus was born in a manger. King David grew up as a shepherd boy.

Queen Esther was an orphan. It is in the everyday life that the Lord calls out people in seemingly simple situations. Say that three times. Simple situations to do great things for his glory. Most importantly, we all have the opportunity to model sincere faith to those around us and leave a lasting legacy. Mother, mums, spiritual mums, you have a significant spiritual influence on the next generation. It is never too late.

The church needs more Timothy’s who are determined to guard the gospel as a sacred deposit committed to them who are faithful to proclaim it, who are ready to suffer for it and who will pass it on to the next generation of faith followers. The church needs more Lois’s and Eunice’s. Grandma, mama, it is never too late. Your spiritual investments like Lois and Eunice may we remember them as faithful and sincere women of faith who we can model our lives today as guardians of the flame of faith. Number one responsibility to ensure the flame remains lit and to pass it on. Amen.

Amen. Amen. Amen. I’ll close with that.