DAILY DOSE OF HOPE | BLOG – NAIMA LETT
TAKING CARE OF MOMS

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Mother’s Day is Sunday.
Sales are a’raging! Flowers, dinners, mani-pedi gift cards!
Retailers know this one thing: We take care of our moms.

Know how the holiday started? Wikipedia recounts the story of Mother’s Day founder Anna Jarvis. Here’s the quickie version:

Anna’s mother Ann Jarvis “founded Mothers’ Day Work Clubs in five cities to improve sanitary and health conditions. The Mothers’ Day Work Clubs also treated wounds, fed, and clothed both Union and Confederate soldiers with neutrality. On May 12, 1907, two years after her mother’s death, Anna held a memorial to her mother and thereafter embarked upon a campaign to make “Mother’s Day” a recognized holiday. She succeeded in making this nationally recognized in 1914, but was already disappointed with its commercialization by the 1920s”.

So, Ann started Mothers’ Day clubs to help people; and her daughter, Anna, started ‘Mother’s Day’ to honor Ann, her mother, and to encourage “each family to honor their mother”.

From its inception, Mother’s Day has been about taking care of people. Despite its ‘commercialization’, it is still a day that we can pause, honor, and take care of moms.

God’s Son took care of His mom.

While He was hanging on the cross, Jesus took a moment and made sure that His mother, Mary, would be taken care of after His crucifixion.

JOHN 19: 25-27

25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” 27 and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

A MOTHER’S NIGHTMARE

Every time I picture this scene, my heart breaks.

The fact that the innocent Jesus is hanging on a cross is horrific. But add on top of that, His mother is standing near His cross, watching the whole catastrophe go down. It’s a mother’s nightmare. The child whom you raised is dying and there’s nothing you can do about it.

I’ve talked to parents who’ve lost children and they say it’s the most unnatural thing in the world. Everything in us says that we are to precede our children in death, so nothing prepares us for the pain of losing a child. Nothing. Many families don’t survive the tragedy.

But there was Mary. Standing near the cross of her son, who by this time, had been beaten ’bout beyond recognition.

And there is Jesus. Suffering immense pain and anguish, but still, providing for others, particularly his mother.

A MOTHER’S PROVISION

Jesus is well aware of the Jewish laws which allow for widows, orphans and foreigners to gather leftovers from the edges of the harvest fields in order to eat. Technically, Mary should never go hungry.

But Jesus goes a step further. He makes specific provision for Mary. Sandwiched between “Father, forgive them” and “It is finished”, Jesus commissions His disciple John to care for His mother, Mary, as if she were His own mother, and John, now her son.

And that’s exactly what happens. John writes that he takes Mary into his home as his mother from that time on.

Jesus also says to Mary that John is to be her son. I’m sure He knew what a gigantic hole He was leaving in her soul with His departure. Nothing can fill that hole. But maybe caring for John, as her own son, would ease her pain.

Jesus gave them both to each other. He met their needs. He took care of His family.

TAKING CARE

On this Mother’s Day, let’s take care of families.
If our mothers are still here, let’s take care of them. Let’s meet their needs.
If our wives are mothers, let’s take care of them. Let’s meet their needs.
If we know other mothers, let’s take care of them. Let’s meet their needs.

And then, like Ann and Anna Jarvis, who founded Mother’s Day, let’s see if there are ways that we can feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and treat the wounded who have been in physical and spiritual wars.

Even if this is a time of crucifixion for us, if things are crazy painful, somewhere between our “Father, forgive them” and “It is finished”, we too can gift our pain to God and choose to take care of others who may also be hurting. In His unbearable situation, Jesus chose to take care of His mother. That’s selflessness. That’s love.

I’m not suggesting that we stuff our pain. No, we actively process it. But our own circumstances don’t have to stop us from loving and taking care of those in need. We too can practice selflessness. We too can love.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY

Wishing all the mommies a beautiful Sunday.

If you’re in the LaLa, you’re welcome to join us Sunday at our bible fellowship in Beverly Hills from 11:30-12:30. Please just let us know you’re coming, as we provide lunch.

Hugs, kisses and lots of love to all our fam nationally and internationally!

I’ll likely take tomorrow off, so please enjoy this blog for today and tomorrow.

Mother’s Days have gotten better each year since my own mother past when I was in college. The grief is no longer heavy, but I still give myself time and space to celebrate and process.

I remember Mama’s contagious laugh and know it’s filling every room of her heavenly mansion. I imagine she’s got friends and family over, singing and dancing and having a good time. And though she’s the life of the party, she doesn’t know it, because she’s so focused on what everyone else needs. She’s even more beautiful in her eternal, pain-free body. And she’s flanked with my sister, grandmother, grandfathers, great-grands, cousins, and all our fam that’s gone on before. And at any moment, they all might break out in spontaneous praise cause life with God is just that grand.

Happy Mother’s Day!
So very grateful the Lord is taking care of our moms today,
Naima

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