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As a young boy, before I would exit the house in pursuit of adventure, my mother would attempt to ensure that I was properly outfitted for the weather outside.
Put Your Coat On
If it was raining, my mother would instruct me to put on a jacket to keep me from getting wet. If it was a sunny day, my mother would instruct me to put on a hat to keep the sun from my eyes. If it was approaching dusk, my mother would tell me to watch for vehicles. Whatever the weather conditions existed outside of the house, my mother would always provide me with the appropriate instructions and would always add the parting directive, “Be careful.”
What Did Mom Say?
After enduring the delays in exiting the house, I would find myself away from the house and my mother. As I was bounding down that last step, I may have had the fleeting thought, “What did Mom say?”
When it was raining, I would find the puddles and conduct an experiment in seeing how high I could splash the water. Despite my mother’s precautions in attempting to keep me dry, this experiment inevitably resulted in me becoming wet. When it was sunny, the hat would often become an annoyance and would be displaced, with the sun then turning my skin pink. Despite my mother’s precautions, I would get sunburned. When it was approaching dusk, I would forget that cars were bigger than me. Despite my mother’s directive, sometimes, I wasn’t careful.
My Mother is Better than Your Mother
Who can argue that the most notable mother is Mary? As Matthew 1:20-21 relates:
“Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.”
Before Jesus Christ was even born, Mary knew that He would do great and marvelous things. Perhaps, in recognition of the impact of a mother’s love, the first miracle that Jesus Christ performed was in response to a plea for help from His mother. As John 2:3, relates:
“And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.”
What a thrill, what an honor for Mary to see her son perform a miracle. What pride Mary must have felt.
Whose Child Is That?
Often, when a child becomes unruly in a restaurant or store, people will whisper, “Whose child is that?” When a child becomes an adult and achieves greatness, people will often comment, “That person must have had a great mother.” When a person becomes famous or infamous, there is often the tendency to either revere or defame the person’s mother.
People recall the mother of Jesus Christ and hold her in high esteem. Few people would consider that Judas even had a mother, let alone hold her in high esteem.
As my mother’s attempts to prepare me for the outside conditions were often futile, due to my failure to obey, a mother’s attempts to prepare their children for the world are also often futile. No matter what a mother may tell her children, the children must make their own decisions.
Let the Rain Fall
A tribute to mothers? I only know my own mother. She is perfect.
What really makes my mother special and perfect is the fact that she is a Christian. Before I even knew her as my mother, she knew that while I was her son, I was also a child of God, possessing a soul that needed to be guided. My mother taught me to pray. My mother showed me the path of righteousness. My mother sung songs of praise to God. My mother taught me of God’s love not only through her words, but also through her life.
Whatever I have faced in the world, I have known that my mother loved me and that I was constantly in her prayers. What attributes could a mother possess that would make her more perfect?
Let torrents of rain fall down on me, let the blazing sun parch my skin, let the coming darkness swallow me, but never let the love of my mother fade.
Copyright 2002 by Bruce Durbin
