As Mother’s Day approaches, I have considered all the
implications of the day a lot. I know that it is a special day to show
appreciation to all Mother’s, to honor them and affirm their heart and their
work. I also know that it is a very difficult day for many women. For women who
are not mothers, but desperately want to be, it is a painful day. For mothers
of one child who are desperately trying to have another, it is a painful day.
For mothers who have made huge mistakes and are suffering the consequences, it
is a difficult day of reminder. For those who have suffered the loss of a child
through death, miscarriage, or failed adoption, it is a dreaded day. And, on
the other side, for those who have lost their mothers, or for those whose
mothers have not nurtured and cared for them, it is a hard day.
With all of those thoughts in mind, I was drawn to the first
mention of “mother” in the Bible. Genesis 3:20, recorded immediately after the fall of the first man and woman, says that the man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
The word that is translated Eve is the Hebrew word for life.
So, he says that he calls her life, because she was the mother of all living.
At that time, she had not given birth to anyone. She was not a mother yet. I
have wondered why Adam would say she was the mother of all living before she
was a mother at all. I believe this was
a declaration of faith.
After the rebellion of the woman and the man, God spoke to
them of the consequences of their action. But He said that the seed of the
woman would crush the head of the serpent. Adam believed God, and spoke prophetically
when he said that the woman was the mother of all living, looking toward the
seed that she would bear.
Before Eve bore a child, she was the bearer of life. Not only mothers are true life-givers. Every
woman has the opportunity to be a bearer of life. We can bring life into every relationship,
any situation. In any area where there is death, we can bring life.
But thanks be to God, who in
Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the
fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to
God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a
fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.
2 Cor. 2:14-16
1 comment:
Wow, that is exactly what I needed to hear tonight Jeanette. I really struggle to see how I CAN bring life into situations of my past that have only yielded death and destruction, sabotage and guilt. As I write this though, I see that with death there is life, and with letting go there is more life. Christ came so that we could have the strength to let go, to start over to begin anew as new creations. He is so for us! I am always terrified to let go, but it's me that's growing and changing, and He's the one that sticks by that. The rest just continues to fall away. All my love,
Liz
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