mother

"...How I have longed to gather your children as a mother hen gathers her chicks under her wings..."  Luke 13.34 paraphrased.

As deep as the mystery of  Who God is, there are some things that are very obvious about Him.  That He is far removed, beyond the squallor of human indignity, above the sin that pervades all of life and the earth, is known as His holiness.  That there is no darkness associated with Him is plainly stated in scripture, because He is light, and there can be no darkness in Him.  We know that He is eternal, and that Christ defeated death in His humanity while on earth.  Even as we know these things with our minds, still, they are more of a mystery to human understanding. 

But the parts of His image and likeness that He has woven into the human fabric, we hold closest to our hearts because we are most familiar with them.  The strength and supplication of fathers protecting and providing for their families is a reflection of His image and likeness.  The newness and innocence of life in Christ is clearly reflected in our children.  And the motor that generates the healthiest environment on earth for growing and becoming is the gentle goodness of a mother's love.  Mothers directly reflect the care and tenderness of God toward the crown of His creation, us.

As a child growing up, my knowledge of this mother's love was, as all children's, restricted by immaturity and lack of experience.  But the care I received, the correction-gentle and otherwise, I knew as a constant forcefield that surrounded me, filling my every need and encouraging me to try out the gifts God had planted within.  As a man I have been the recipient of words of adulation from my mother, and continued encouragement and shared wisdom through heart-felt letters, even a bit of financial aid.  As a husband and father I have been privileged to observe my wife in full mother mode, and I marvel at the invincibility of such a tender love.

Throughout scripture (the Bible) there are accounts of God's children who had great potential, and who blundered it time after time.  But that aspect of God's character, that is reflected in mothers, was there time after time, constantly thrusting His best intentions upon them, veerlessly leading them to perfect the gifts He had so graciously placed within them.  And when they rose to their heights, shamelessly exhibiting those gifts, God was there to boast His blessing upon them for all to see.  And when they fell into sin's persuasion, God was there to graciously, but firmly apply the rod of correction upon them in such a way as to re-establish their vision toward righteousness; as if to say to them, "I didn't raise you that way!"  In either case, God's utter faith in us is so clearly mirrored in the heart of women who tirelessly give of themselves for our best, and who, despite all odds, never stop hoping to see their children rising to fill up their potential.

"Deep" is the masculine love of God.  But the feminine aspect of God's love for His children is all-encompassing.  A mother is content to see her children thriving.  But her reward, and the unspeakable joy of her heart is when those children, understanding that incredible, invincible, ever-vigilant, and tender love, turn to call her "blessed."

To my mother:  Not because you have had to endure extraordinary sorrow in your life, nor because of your jaunty generosity known by many all over the world, but because you unswervingly point us to God in all you do, you are my blessed mother, and will forever remain so in my heart.