Mothers in Aprons

20 Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.

21 Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

(Colossians 3:20-21 King James Version)

"Love was in the room And new life was born where only death had been Love was in the room And death and hell would never reign again When the glory of the Living God Broke through to the darkness of the tomb The earth was filled with His beauty And love was in the room"

Dolly Parton Hillbilly singer made famous these words in her tune "9 to 5",

"Workin' 9 to 5, What a way to make a livin' ,Barely gettin' by, Its all takin' and never given."

This writer, like Winston Churchill, when talking to his biographer about his mother said, "she was my first and greatest teacher". I thought, how could I explain to anyone that my mother always worked from 5 to 9. How could I possibly explain her tiredness when she sat at the table with her family, after working all day in the fields and otherwise, still preparing a meal and, When I was a child, (85 years ago) she had none of the modern conveniences. Every meal cooked on a wood burning stove. We did not have power lines so there was no refrigeration, no electric pots, toasters, mixers, or anything to make cooking easier.

 If anyone were to ask me the secret of what "propelled" this nation into this worlds superpower status... Super in military, education, research, commerce, Christianity. My answer would be "the mothers of our nation." Most mothers I know, certainly including mine, did not let their children bask in the comfort zone of laziness. Instead of letting them sit on their assets reading trash magazines more recent years, watching trash television, or the only exercise in their life; just moving their fingers on the computer, they made sure they were stuffing away in their minds, the brain power they would need in their chosen areas of endeavor.

Successful motherhood involved tough love. They love their children enough to discipline, made sure their children did not become what THEY wanted them to become,  but what GOD wanted them to become. No mother can be proud to think their child is a leech off their neighbors, or fellow productive citizens. I have never known a parent who did not take pride in productive children, grandchildren, even if as fortunate as this writer, great-grandchildren.

Most mothers I knew, and certainly my own mother, and grandmothers, did not make "idols" of their children... That their children could do no wrong. 

No one can grow or develop in a comfort zone, amid trust funds, amid the spoiling of parents and grandparents. "Into each life some rain must fall" on every beautiful rose bush, there are thorns, every road cannot be bump free, even Jesus said," In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). The apostle Peter told us that our trials and tribulations are worth more than gold. You must have slavery to self, in order to be truly free. The productive life does not come easy, homework, memorizing, reading, show me your books and I can predict your future. Fill me in on your habits, and I can predict your success. You must learn to separate your needs, and wants. We live among broken people, in a broken world. Surely with all the economic successes of this country, we have learned that nothing is forever... The man on the ladder to success, even in 21st century America, often finds that he placed his ladder on the wrong construction site. That is why it is so important to be kind to the little people on your way up, because you might meet them again on your way down. 

I still remember my mother preparing a plate of food for someone sick in the community. No matter what race, no matter what economic class, she wanted them to know that she cared, and everyone liked her cooking.

 How could a farm mother not be a Christian? My mother and grandmothers, were known for their aprons (a protective or decorative garment worn over the front of one's clothes and tied at the back).  I remember each of them with their aprons full of produce from their garden. Or a setting of small chicks taken from under a setting Hen. They knew about seed time and harvest, they understood young animal life... The preserving of excess food. The churning of milk for butter... Did not need a recipe book. My mother, grandmothers, and the women of their time, knew about drowning and drought- dry years and wet years. They knew about hard work, they honored having a husband who through sweat supported his family. They never thought about vacations or retirement... Would not know how to shuffle a deck of cards. But, they did know how to advise the young mothers in the community on the raising of children. They did know how to deliver babies when a family couldn't afford a doctor, lay out the dead when the family could not afford the mortician. 

I am so glad my parents dragged me to their country church to sit on hard benches. Showed me by example the "dignity" of hard work, showed me by example the treasury of savings. Showed me by example to profit and pleasures of reading. In that tomb AND our blessed lord was buried in a borrowed tomb, road on a borrowed staple. Love was all around, "God is love" (John 4:7-10). In the stable, in his tomb, every corner, every molecule of the walls-air-ground, love was "all around". When godly mothers are with children, friends, neighbors, we know that love is all around. 

#1727

What would Jesus think?

This Rockwell painting recently sold for 46 million dollars.

Romans 8:16-17

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁶ The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

¹⁷ And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

No Christian is where he ought to be spiritually

(A.W. Tozer)

No Christian is where he ought to be spiritually, until the beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ is being reproduced in his daily life!

Yet even though a person has become like Christ, he will not know it--because humility and meekness are also a part of the transformation of true godliness!

"Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did!" 1 John 2:6

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

                 We all read the book, "In His Steps," by Charles Shelton.  We have all heard the phrase, "What would Jesus do?"  It is far, far, more important to consider, "What would Jesus think of me?" 

                 We are very concerned about, "What will people think?"  Whether a politician, pastor, poet, everyone is concerned about what people think of them.  Many of us spend our entire lives working, sweating to have letters after our name (MD, DO, JD, AIA, etc.) I have known men and women who spent their entire lives working hard, living frugally to amass a large estate.  I certainly admire men and women who achieve an education and wealth, much more than those who just throw their lives away, never achieving or acquiring anything.  In this day of the welfare mentality full of entitlements and subsidies too many children are raised in homes with a carefree (it feels good do it) attitude.  There is real honor in hard work, real satisfaction in accomplishment.  I do believe my mother, grandmothers, women whose real accomplishment was the raising of children, providing a good example of the wife and mother in the community, were given, by God, a look far down the road, happenings after they were gone, to know the blessing of THEIR achievements. 

                 I so remember, the Sunday afternoon, when I took my parents in my car to the home of my sister.  My mother had been diagnosed with cancer.  In her wisdom, she knew she did not have long to live.  My sister had just given birth to the only female grandchild.  I remember my sister laying this beautiful baby in my mother's lap and my mother looking at the baby with such love. I believe she realized she would never see this child grow up, become a beautiful girl, graduate from Salem College, become a beautiful bride with a beautiful wedding, have own home and children, but I believe God, in his love-grace-mercy, gave her a look down the road.  It is essential that human beings, particularly those of use who are joint heirs with Christ know that our efforts in attainment, whether education, finances, or otherwise are not in vain and certainly, for those who live the simple, blessed lives, the real heroes of the world, parents, professors, pastors, who give encouragement and who make it all possible, surely must have a very special inheritance.      

Drop the Rock

"Drop the Rock"

Matthew 5:44 - But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

            During my long years of training and education in Memphis, Tennessee, some of my work was at the veteran's hospital at Millington.  In one room was four WWII veterans without arms or legs... just human beings with trunks and heads.  Of course, they were on special beds with specially trained nurses caring for them.  Men in this condition do not live long. 

            Veterans who are amputees, cripple, deaf, blind, know what they have given to their country.  I get so sick when I hear the pabulum about care for veterans.  Most veterans know they receive very little care.  Patriotism, like Christianity, is mostly talk.  This old blind veteran never even received a white cane from the Veteran Administration. 

            One preacher, seminary professor, said he had his students go to the cemetery and preach to the tombstones.  By doing this they knew what it was all about.  Some of the most impoverished people I have ever known, in my world travels, were missionaries on the foreign fields.  Of course with electronics all over the world, missionary zeal is different from hundreds of years ago.  Yet, it takes real courage to give your life for the cause of Christ among people who hate you, who do not in any way understand you.  Only those who have endured criticism in a home church or home community, could ever endure what might happen on the mission field. 

            Perhaps my favorite Psalm is Psalm 84, when David speaks of mountains and valleys.  I have written at length about one verse in the Psalm which changed my life.  Psalm 84:5 "Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee."  The race is mine, but in no way could I have engaged in the trials of life without realizing my strength comes from God.

            In my car, often at traffic lights, a car will come near me with the radio blasting or someone will walk down the sidewalk with a boom box blaring.  We can understand people who have this much ferocious noise around them have no tranquility of spirit.  In my years of selling bibles, door-to-door, in the summer, windows open, babies and old people unable to escape the noise inside the building.  There was no mystery to me about the depletion of all joys in the lives of some.  How could they have joy, solitude in living amid the clang, clatter, awful words in music which was always too loud for man or beast?  Just imagine a young, newborn baby, growing up amid such violent noise.  We should be surprised that many young people from many of these ghetto homes turn out as well as they do.  Yet, I have heard adults say they forgive their parents and siblings for the turmoil of their surroundings. 

            The most ecstatically happy person in the room when a child is born is the mother of the newborn baby.  She knows the pain of childbirth.  It took me a long time to discover why so many evangelists became preachers.  They had experienced the pain which sin brings and want to celebrate their deliverance. 

            The only time we find Jesus writing anything, he was in the outer court of the temple.  Some male religionists brought a woman to him caught in the very act of adultery.  (John 8: 3-11)  Of course, mosaic law demanded she be stoned to death.  There were so many stones-rocks in the holy land.  On three of the times I was there, in Capernaum, still mostly rocks, I thought that surely Jesus must of sat on some of these rocks.  I remember rock piles near the Muslim homes.  They still throw rocks at the Jews and Christians.  In a day of cell phones, newsprint and news broadcasts, there is not much need for the throwing of rocks.  It is also strange the man caught with the woman in the adultery was never mentioned.  Jesus said to these religious people, just as he would say to many of us who have been judgmental and hypocritical in our evaluation of others, "He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone."

            The greatest deliverance in Christianity, forgiveness.  We must forgive because our fellow human beings are made in the image of God.  We must forgive because our we do not realize the baggage that some fellow human beings carry around.  We must forgive because God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven us.  In the disciples' prayer, where Jesus taught us to pray, he said, "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. "  (Matthew 6:12)  How can we expect forgiveness if we can't forgive?  I truly believe Jesus should have added to this prayer, "we should not put trespasses or temptations into the paths of others."  It is so necessary to start out each day asking God to keep Satan and his temptations away from us.

            I still remember the day our school principal held up a white piece of paper with one small black dot on the paper.  He said, "What do you see?"  Everyone said, "A dot on a piece of paper."  He was trying to squelch a rumor going around the school about a certain student.  The popular student had a perfect record in every area of life.  Someone was attempting to make one dot soil that record.

            In a day where the best seller is the worst smeller, when it is politically correct to excuse all bad behavior, it is so necessary to applaud-rejoice in good behavior, especially forgiveness of sins.  (Philippians 3:20).  When we realize the truth of sins ruin and Christ's redemption we know the full joy of forgiveness, both the joy of our forgiving and the joy of others forgiveness.  Truth is truth whether anyone believes it or not.

Point of View

#540

The great North Carolina, US Senator, Jesse Helms, became famous through a radio program called “Point of View”. He did not expect to get famous, I don't believe he even expected to get political when I first knew him. He would often use our friend, Judge Chub Sewell, when he was away as his guest. Judge Sewell said, all he knew was what he read in the papers.

Woody Allen said, “eternity is very long, especially towards the end”. Christians believe in eternal life. When you open the Bible, it is like looking into the mind of God. God talks more about Hell than he does about Heaven but death and the fear of death hovers over all religions.

There are many delusions about death. We actually believe other people will die, but not us. We join groups because groups live on. Man is the only animal who knows he is going to die. We are faced with it's certainty every day...every time we pass a cemetery...every time we pass a funeral home. This weekend, a Mennonite family of 12, well known singers, ten were killed in a terrible vehicle accident when a truck crossed the center line. As Mennonites, pictures were shown of neighbors building boxes for their burial much as did my ancient ancestors around the time of the Civil War and even during the Great Flu Epidemic at the beginning of the 20th Century. Seasoned wood planks were kept on hand so the men in the community could build boxes in order to bury family members. My mother, who survived the 1918 flu epidemic said the worst sound was the sound of men building coffins before the sick had died. ALL knew that death was just around the corner.

Historians tell us that people did not think much about dying in the ancient world. It was a matter of acceptance. There was no bible, the people only knew what they heard from the profits. Amazingly, life and nature taught them the rudiments of death. Moses, having spent 40 years in the desert, after leaving Egypt, scared for having killed an Egyptian, even though he had been reared in the Pharaoh's house, had no problem recognizing God speaking to him from the burning bush. There is no record that God had any contact with Moses during his 40 years in the desert but, obviously, God knew Moses's whereabouts the entire time and Moses did not question who was talking to him. Only the modernist, Agnostics which we find even in today's pulpits, want to change God instead of God changing them. The most lies told in any one week, are told in the most segregated hour of the week, the worship hour on Sunday morning in churches and usually told with a hymn book in the hand when people sing of God's expectations and promises and they, singing away, do not believe one word they are singing. “My Jesus I love thee, I know thou art mine, for thee all my sins, I resign” or, “standing on the promises of God, my king”, or, “Jesus savior, pilot me” etc.

There is no word on mortal tongue as sweet as the sound, mother. Yet, we know, that the most selfish and selfless animal on earth is a woman. She is wired that way. Watch any animal, hog, dog, cat, bear, protect her young. One congressmen said he had rather fight any black bear than have a fight with Maxine Waters, congresswoman from California. He said, “she is the most viscous human being one can imagine”.

It is rare for me to meet a young woman who does not smoke cigarettes. I asked someone, “knowing what we know about smoking tobacco, why do most women smoke?” He said, “it is a matter of liberation”. Women will often talk with others about intimate things. My wife told me what my dentist friend wore to bed, his wife had told her. Research the breakup of any church, any school problem, any business fold up, troubles in any hospital or social group and you will usually find a woman at the bottom of it. Over 50% of all marriages end in divorce...usually in favor of the woman. There are many more women alcoholics than men alcoholics. I think of Genevieve, my secretary, one of the most talented, intelligent people I have ever known yet completely intemperate in her addiction...to alcohol. She had so embarrassed her children that they would not even come about her yet, at the church, everywhere, she was the persona of perfection...when sober. Make this test, see how many women will let you get out into traffic when traffic is lined up at an intersection and you need to get through. Check the grocery store, see how concerned they are about the people in line behind them and, so it goes. But, if it were not for the mothers, who did not abort us, we would not be here to discuss this point of view.

In many parts of the world, particularly Kashmir, on the shores of Lake Srinagar, I noticed that it was the women of the culture who seemed to be responsible for everything...their homes, their children, their own financial support. I was told that the men were away in military or construction projects. Throughout the world, particularly Mexico , Latin America and China, men have left homes as legal and illegal migrants to work in America and Africa (China) in order to send money home for family support. In fact, traveling all over the world, I find the family units completely disrupted by financial survival. Always, without exception, in any part of the world, the mother is at home with the children while the father is away, now, more than ever, for many months at the time. In the Communist countries, under complete totalitarian government control, family life is a matter of government compliance. When I was in the Balkans, while still under U.S.S.R. control mothers were given a bonus to have children...double bonus for twins. In my several trips to Communist China, mothers were subjected to forced abortion and under the one child policy, most children were boys. You expect this type thing under Godless, authoritarian, Marxist doctrine.

The tragedy is, in America, where the family was always the inspired hope of the nation, mothers are being torn from the home, in the workforce, necessary for family financial survival. Did we ever think we would see the days in America, when the early rearing of children would take place in a public nursery or that females would go to war leaving small children behind?

89% of Americans believe there is a judgment at the end of your life. God is not on trial, we are. He only requires trust.

“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these [is] charity.” (1 Cor 13:13)