Women’s Place: A Sound Foundation
SCRIPTURE FOCUS OF THE MONTH
PSALM 127:3
“Behold children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward”
Mothers Day 2025 – written by “Anon Emus”
A sound Foundation.
Today is a day of celebrations, thank You, Jesus.
We each have our own “mother’s date”, the day when we delivered our babies, the day when each of us, at one point or another in our life, spent anywhere from one hour to twenty hours or more, giving birth or trying to give birth. That is why we belong to this special club called “The Motherhood Club” and therefore we qualify to be celebrated today. Anyone who can stretch their body parts like that, for that many hours and survive, it should be celebrated!
Right?
We all know that huge pain in our bottom was only the beginning of our journey as moms. And as life goes on, and our children begin to grow, sometimes we feel like the pain of childbirth pales in comparison to other things that happen in our children’s lives. At other times, we are full of joy and happiness for our kids. You see, as moms, all along the way, we are watching, ever watching them from the start of day to the end. Did they brush their teeth, change their underwear, etc.? And of course, when they get hurt, our heart tries to leap right out of our chest and through our throat.
Their pain is our pain. And we soon find out, as they grow older, that their childhood pains seemed easier than when in their teens or young adulthood. Because many a time, just a band aid and a little hug would take care of the situation as a kid. Unless you were a Mexican kid growing up in a Mexican home, like we were, then you got a little of this:
“You come running in crying “Mama I hurt myself!”
Mama does the research, as she well should, and asks: “Are your tripas falling out?
You look for tripas, and nope, no tripas falling out, so you say “No mama.”
Mom: “Okay then, go out and play.”
You: “But it really hurts mama.”
Mom: “Okay mijito/a, come here, show me where it hurts.”
You point to your skinned knee.
Mama: Starts rubbing your knee and chanting: “Sana ,sana, colita de rana!” and then a Hug. (There is more that will remain unsaid!)
Then mama says, “Okay mijito/a you’re all better now, you can go play.” That was the cure…and away you go skipping outside, happy again.
Sana , sana means........ heal, heal.
Colita de rana means..... tail of the frog.
Laugh all you want, but it worked way better than any band aid ever did!
Later we came to understand that these kinds of hurts were outward, and we could do something about them as their mom. Later in life comes the first rejection, the first insult, the first matter of the heart; when your kid is suffering from a broken heart, and that is when we really earn our stripes.
First of all, let me say that holding yourself back from going after the little wench/jerk (as you ask the Lord to forgive you) that broke your son or daughters’ heart, is a huge achievement. Then trying to find the right salve or band aid to apply to that wound so that it heals properly and in a healthy way is our primary concern.
Our mother instincts continue until we die, and that is when we stop being a mom. Because we never stop watching over our kids from near or from afar, as they leave our nest and go start one of their own.
Hopefully, the foundation that we gave them is solid and they are able to sway to and fro from the winds of life and are renewed from the ups and downs of life on their own, and even lead their own families. But as a mom, you never stop that feeling of worry and concern inside.
Our role changes to one of counselor, prayer warrior, spoiler, etc.
So, the 64-thousand-dollar question is, “What is a solid foundation? And how do I know that I am achieving this? What is my purpose for my children and how do I get there? We all want our children to grow into good citizens, contributing to society and able to sustain themselves and their families over time.
Many of us learn from our parents some kind of parenting style that we tend to adopt, to a certain extent, and then modify what we like and release what doesn’t work for us.
What I wanted to share with you today is that we don’t have to look any further than the very first book in the Bible, Genesis. We know that the first children on earth were Adam and Eve. Their father was God, and as a parent, a single parent, He provided them with a great place to live called The Garden of Eden. Their parent provided shelter, nourishment, love, togetherness, guidance and discipline.
He blessed them and told them:
Genesis 1:29 “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of the earth and every tree whose fruit yields seed, to you; it shall be for food.”
He gave them specific instructions on the rules, and there was only one. Genesis 2:16-17:
“And the Lord commanded the man saying: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
They got off to a bumpy start and were disobedient to their parent, and their father immediately dealt with it. These two children of God were tested by an outside influence that neither recognized as dangerous. The serpent was very convincing, and Eve was tempted and disobeyed the single, “thou shalt not” that had been given to them, and then she convinced Adam to also try because she was tricked by the innocent looking serpent with whom they both had harmony. Right?
Adam had been given the job to name all living things. In fact the bible says, “Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them, and whatever Adam called each living creature that was its name.” So neither Adam nor Eve were afraid of any of their fellow residents in the garden of Eden.
One could surmise that Eve was naive, she hadn’t been around very long, she lived in a gated Community, one could say, and had not experienced anything but good in her short life. and so, she agreed to an offer made to her by a fellow resident... someone she trusted! So where did she go wrong? We can only surmise from what we know in the bible, but we know for certain that she was told the rules.
Let us look at the sequence of events according to the bible that led to her outcome.
1. Her parent told her the rules.
2. She was asked by someone she knew, other than her parent, if it was true that they couldn’t eat of any fruit tree in the garden.
3. She then recalled and correctly recited the rule, and tried to refrain from participating.
4. Someone else convinced her that her parent was wrong and led her to disobedience. (To me this was the most dangerous one)
5. She ate the forbidden fruit ....and liked it.
6. She then invited her companion and convinced him to participate.
7. She and Adam tried to hide the truth form their parent.
Most of our children at a very young age are very much like Eve. Their gated community is the protection and rules provided by their parents and extended family. They have not experienced evil.
So when someone comes around with whom they feel safe, because they don’t know any better, they often are fooled, hurt, and exposed to evil because of their naiveté and a single act like that can impact a child forever. So, what does a parent do? Be watchful, you have your normal routine every day and whenever something seems just even slightly out of whack, pursue it and check it out.
Much of our children’s learning occurs from us, so all day long they watch and mimic our behavior.
What is our language like? What is our temperament like? What is our respect for our parents like? Are we praying? Are we teaching them worship songs or twerking?
A child is like a young tree. We must place stakes on each of the four sides; right, left, front, and back, so that the tree will grow upright and firm. We, the parents, represent those stakes, as well as the people you surround them with. Your children trust us, and who we bring around them, they accept as trustworthy, and many times, what happened to Eve happens in our children’s lives because of our complacency or inattention.
God showed up every morning for His walk with His children faithfully, and one day they didn’t show up. Big clue.
We must be protective, be the parent, and fight all odds to protect our kids because the invader in our gated community is sometimes a very unexpected person, or situation. In today’s world, anything goes, so with the morals and expected courtesies that we knew to be proper, are now very quickly slipping away.
Let’s begin by teaching them the right from wrongs that are expected in your gated community.
It should begin from infancy, in order to lay a solid foundation. In proverbs 1:8 It says:
“Train up your child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
We will notice that when he speaks to us, it is a command, it is not a suggestion. As parents, we will be held accountable for our child’s upbringing. Children are a gift to us from heaven. God makes us the steward for that child’s well-being; physically, mentally, and spiritually. He makes us responsible for having balance in all three areas.
Let's read Psalm 127:3”
“Behold children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward”
Proverbs 30; 10-12 and 28-29. Written by Solomon, the wisest man in the world describes a wife and mother in this way:
10 If you can find a truly good wife, she is worth more than precious gems!
11 Her husband can trust her, and she will richly satisfy his needs.
12 She will not hinder him but help him all her life
25 She is a woman of strength and dignity and has no fear of old age.
26 When she speaks, her words are wise, and kindness is the rule for everything she says.
27 She watches carefully all that goes on throughout her household and is never lazy.
28 Her children stand and bless her; so does her husband. He praises her with these words:
29 “There are many fine women in the world, but you are the best of them all!”
So, to all the mothers I say, today, be proud. Because you are involving yourselves very strongly in your children’s lives. The result of your efforts will be that your children will prefer to be with you more than anywhere else or with anyone else in their world. And there you will find the proof in the pudding. Our reward will be that our young tree has grown upright and straight and proud.
Be quick to acknowledge and reward their accomplishments. At the end of the day, this is what we truly have worked so hard to achieve.
We serve a mighty God, and His blood has covered us just like he did for all of Israel. Let us be grateful for his mercy and walk in the light.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we are so thankful that you are our Father and that you have given us such a great parenting tool that is your Word. Your Word that is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path, that guides us as we navigate through the parenting years of our life. Help us to have the wisdom, the strength, the fortitude, and the constancy required to do our parenting job well. Our children are very precious to us and we know they are to you as well. We are very grateful that you have entrusted us with the care of our children. We want them to grow healthy in body, mind, and spirit, that they may grow into godly adults that will serve you, and will be fully capable of serving their own families and communities well. With Your help, we can and will achieve those goals.
We love you Jesus, Amen.
~ Anon
