This is short, simple, but profoundly sincere.
To my mother. To my wife, the mother of our children. To my daughters, themselves now mothers. To my sister, both a mother and grandmother. To all the blessed-to-be-a-blessing mothers, who have born children, and who have deeply sacrificed their own comforts and wants to give selflessly and tirelessly to their children.
To you all, I say thank you. To you all, I say bless you. To you all, I say thank God for you. To you all, I say there are no words which can adequately pay you the tribute you deserve as we stop to honor you on this day.
Perhaps there is no greater example and closer analogy to God’s grace, His love for us which we do not deserve, than the love of a mother for her children. Moms, you are remarkable in both giving life and giving of yourselves to raise and nourish and give continual care for your children.
You young mothers with newborns and infants, you get no sleep, yet you persevere with mysterious strength. You mothers of school-age children, you pack-and-go, you hug and discipline, you wipe away tears and cheer wildly whatever your kids are doing. You mothers of teenagers, you too wipe away tears and give every ounce of yourselves both to understand and to correct your little chicks who will soon be out of your nest.
You mothers of college kids and young adults, you walk that fine line between giving advice and setting your grown children free out into the great big world. You mothers who care now for your children, your grandchildren, and your aging parents, you find enough love to go all the way around.
And, of course, mothers, no matter what age or how old your children are, you give and bless and love to the fullest extent possible. Yup! Kinda like God.
So, to you, every mother, we say with enormous love and admiration, “Happy Mother’s Day!” And to that we can surely add, “Amen!”
[Kollmeyer, a Fayette County resident for 36 years, is Pastor Emeritus at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Fayetteville. Follow Pastor Scott Ness and this great church at www.princeofpeacefayette.org. Kollmeyer until recently was Interim Pastor at Word of God Lutheran Church in Sharpsburg. Find some of his video recorded sermons at www.woglutheran.org and follow Pastor Jason Dampier and this great church on this site.]
