Last week I had the opportunity to sit in the back during our worship services. Typically, I sit in the front row, and am mostly unaware of anything other than my own children and working to keep them engaged in the service, but this Sunday was different.
As I worshiped, and watched, I saw with fresh eyes the community gathered around me. The people who come in and out of my midst. Often overwhelmed with my own roles. . . . I haven’t seen you and, perhaps, you have not seen me either. I’m sorry; I want to do better.
I see you on this Mother’s Day.
To the mom wrestling a toddler (or two. . . . or three), embarrassed by cries and trying to find a quick exit from the sanctuary . . .
To the grandparent, sitting next to a grandchild but grieving the son or daughter who is not with you in the pew . . .
To the mother about to have an empty nest, looking at her daughter who has turned into a young woman, filled with pride and hope for her future . . .
To the young woman, or not so young woman, who had hoped for a child but that child has not arrived . . .
To the child, wishing for a mom who you never knew . . .
To the mom, sitting alone, looking down at your children, wishing for a hand to hold next to you, overwhelmed and feeling alone . . .
To the families facing a first Mother’s Day without . . . a mother who was your secure base, a wife who raised your children, a grandmother who always prepared the family dinners . . .
To the teenager, filled with frustration toward your mom who doesn’t understand your world but who you desperately wish to connect with . . .
To the new mother, staring in the face of a new baby, savoring each moment but also so tired and uncertain about raising this little one . . .
To the father, filling the role of both parents, navigating parenting without a partner . . .
To the family, struggling to balance the busy schedules, the budget and demands, barely finding time to have a full conversation . . .
To the extended family, sitting in all a row, celebrating the generations of faithful mothers in your midst . . .
Regardless of your stage and circumstances in this life, may you sit quietly and hear the words of Psalm 139 today.
For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them. (Psalm 139: 13-16)
Let this Mother’s Day be more than Flowers, Cards and Brunches.
Let it be a day to see, and be seen, by the Creator who made you in the womb of your earthly mother. Reflect and remember your God who loves and redeems you daily.
He walks beside you. He celebrates with you. He grieves with you. He hears your cries. He knows your thoughts.
You have a God who sees you.
Let us open our eyes to see those gathered in our midst this Sunday (and every Sunday) and be a community who sees.
Click on the link below to learn more about the importance of community the Christian life.