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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
May 9, 2010
A Godly Mother
Selected Scriptures
Introduction
What do you think of when you hear the word, mother? I suppose that will vary a lot today. I think I am safe in saying that at one time most people thought of a woman similar to Harriet Nelson, June Lockart or Barbara Billingsly in the old television series Ozzie and Harriet, Father Knows Best or Leave it to Beaver. Mom would be busy in the kitchen getting the family supper ready, or making sure the house was clean and orderly, perhaps even doing craft projects and planting flowers around the house to make the home beautiful. She directed the care of her children in everything from insuring their homework was done and their ears were clean before they went out to tending their physical and emotional wounds. The kiss on the forehead seemed to have had a much to do with healing the scrape as the Bactine and band-aids. She would have been involved in community affairs such as Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, PTA, and a host of other things involving her children as well as civic clubs seeking to build a better community. I think of my mom telling my brother and me to behave even as she prepared the Sunday School lesson for her class of junior girls. Perhaps your thoughts of “mom” are similar and bring to mind the woman who was always there, often when you did not want her there, ready to give you the discipline you justly deserved, yet also always ready to listen, ready to comfort, ready to say, “I love you.”
Sadly, I don’t think this is the typical thought of a mom these days in America. That is not to say that there are not still many women that do fit the older stereotype, but there are a lot more competing models now. More than a third of children in America are born to single women, and in some communities it is well over two thirds. In addition, high divorce rates add to this resulting in over half of children living in a single parent home at some point in their life. That of necessity changes mom’s role as she also has to take on dad’s role plus deal with time constraints that result in less attention or even neglect of the children. Single parenting may be the reality and even a necessity for some, but it is not the ideal or even good in many cases.
Another factor is the moral decline in America, which of course is a major factor in the huge number of single parent families, but more detrimental to the children than a single parent household is the moral character of the mom. There are many moms that are single through no desire of their own but by their moral character they overcome the handicap and are great blessings to their children. Through great self sacrifice such mothers model maturity and godliness resulting in her children rising up and calling her blessed. However, the moral decline in America has resulted in more mothers who are less sacrificial and more selfish. They ridicule their children instead of encouraging them. They treat them with contempt and sarcasm instead of nurture and love. They view their children as if they existed for their personal benefit instead of seeing themselves in the role of caring for the children by providing, protecting, training and loving.
Other mothers go to the opposite extreme and cater to the child’s every whim. While it may seem more loving than the outwardly selfish mom, its heart is still selfish for it is seeking to avoid the conflicts that are a natural part of rearing a child. Whether it is out of fear of somehow causing the child psychological damage, striving to win the child’s love, or to fit in with what the rest of society is doing, it is not what is right or good for the child. The goal of parenting is to train the next generation to become responsible and respectable adults. The sad reality is that those who cater to children trying to win their affection only end up reaping their disdain. Parenting practices based on secular psychological models have become dominate in our society and with it an increasing number are entering adulthood as self-centered and irresponsible individuals who flounder in their work and in their relationships. By contrast, when you follow Biblical principles of training your children to be mature adults, you also gain their respect and with it their affection.
Modern society minimizes the value of the woman who stays at home with her children as a “mere housewife.” Our society places pressure on women that in order to be something of value you must have a career. I watch very little TV, but I would hazard the guess that very few of the moms on dramas or sit-coms are stay at home moms portrayed in a positive light. My guess is that even if she is portrayed positively she also has a career of some sort.
Have you considered how modern society has helped the career woman to cope with her kids? Mom can be a wizard in the kitchen and provide gourmet meals to her family because she has a programmable microwave to heat up her wide selection of frozen dinners, and if that is too much there are plenty of fast food places to stop at on the way home. Modern mom can be involved with her children’s development by listening intently to the reports given to her by the preschool worker. Modern mom can provide a child with what society now says they need the most – lots of programs for kids, fad toys, snack foods, freedom of expression and a child psychologist.
This is not to make fun of or downplay the tough job that those of you who are single moms have. It is to simply point out that American society has lost its way with tragic consequences. The vast majority of Americans do not set their priorities by what God has said, but rather by either what they want or are pressured to fulfill. Even the basic question of what a mother is supposed to be has become confusing. One of the things we want to do today is to look at Scripture and remind ourselves of the role and responsibilities God has entrusted to moms so that they will know what they are supposed to be, and let me assure you before we even start that you are not supposed to be the superwoman our society is pressuring you to be.
The Impact of a Mother
James Dobson once made the humorous observation, “if moma ain’t happy, ain’t no one happy.” That may be from the negative standpoint, but it does illustrate the point that a mom has a major impact on her family. What she does and how she does it will have a major influence on her family and upon society for either good or bad. A comparison between the top problems in schools in 1940 and those today will illustrate this.
The Fullerton Police Department and the California Department of Education reported that in 1940 the top problems with school age kids were: 1. talking, 2. chewing gum, 3. making noise, 4. running in the halls, 5. getting out of line, 6. wearing improper clothing, 7. not putting paper in the wastebaskets. What are among the top problems among school age kids now? 1. drug abuse, 2. alcohol abuse, 3. pregnancy, 4. suicide, 5. rape, 6. robbery, 7. assault. What happened? Many things have changed in the last 70 years, but two major societal changes are the dissolution of the family and working mothers. Before WWII very few moms as a percentage of the population worked outside the home, but it was necessary during that war for everyone possible to be involved in the war effort which meant that many moms went to work, but a lot of them stayed in the workplace after the war was over and a new mindset was established. She liked the independence that having her own career and money gave her and society changed to feed that independence and market more things to consume that increase in income. This in turn placed new pressures on marriages which many could not sustain and the divorce rate started to rise.
The sexual and social welfare revolutions of the 1960’s were major factors in increasing the pace of family dissolution, or rather more accurately, enabling the formation of families without fathers. The sexual revolution steadily tore down the social mores. Prior to this time society recognized unmarried sexually active teens as fornicators and it gave them strong disapproval. Even in the 1970’s a High School girl who was sexually active was considered to be a slut and someone you did not want in your circle of friends. The pressure is now the opposite in many High Schools today. It has been found that teens will lie on surveys stating that they are sexually active even when they are not in order to fit in with their peers. Those who are still virgins are considered to out of step with society and have something wrong with them. The result of this has been a dramatic increase since the mid-twentieth century in the rate of unmarried teen pregnancies.
The social welfare programs that arose in the Great Society efforts of the 1960’s and after compounded the problem of teen pregnancies and single mother families. Prior to this when a single woman became pregnant there was the harsh reality of how to care for the baby. It would be rare for a woman in that situation to have the financial ability to keep the baby herself, plus there was a strong social stigma against it. The result was that usually the woman would either marry the father or she would give the baby up for adoption. Welfare payments to single mothers allowed her to have financial independence to keep the baby and remain single even though she would be poor. Since payment amounts would increase with the number of children, there was incentive to have more children. Since the payments would drop off or end if she married, there was financial pressure to stay single. With the change in the abortion laws in 1973, conservatives were sucked into supporting the irresponsibility of this kind of woman for fear that she would get an abortion and they were looking for ways to help prevent that.
The sexual and social welfare revolutions have had an even worse effect on the men because it removed them from their responsibilities. They could now sow their wild oats with few or no serious immediate consequences to them personally. This encourages them to remain immature, irresponsible and sinful in their behavior and attitudes. Such a person will eventually reap the consequences of his actions, though they may come too late to force positive changes in his life that would benefit any of his children. Galatians 6:7-8 warns, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal life.”
What has been the impact of all of this on the children? Very negative in two different ways. First, there is the negative impact that occurs when mom is in the workforce instead of at home. Second, there is the negative impact of irresponsible moms who model their sins to their children. In both cases the result is detrimental to raising children who will become responsible adults.
If mom is working, then who is watching the children? Who is teaching them their value system? Where do children gain their code of moral understanding and behavior? When a preschooler learns more from Sesame Street than his mother, there is a problem. When that preschooler becomes confused about who “moma” really is, there is a problem. When a child spends more time in front of a TV than in interaction with mom or in activities directed by her, there is a problem. When that adolescent has bought into the lies common to the peer group and is more concerned about pleasing them than the parents or God, there is a severe problem from which there may not be recovery without the direct intervention of God.
Again, this is not to bash those of you who are single moms. In fact, those of you who are in that position live in the struggle to be the one that has the greatest influence on your children and you know the self-sacrifice that must accompany the quest to do that. By God’s grace, mercy and help you can do so, but it is no picnic. You give up many activities and things you would like because your priority is your children and their welfare. You willingly spend your time and finances for their benefit. You are the one’s that will give the strongest warnings about the hardships of single parenting. But a large portion of single moms are not so dedicated and their children suffer the consequences of neglect.
And while it is in theory good for an irresponsible mom to remain at home and care for her children instead of being in the workforce, the tragic reality is that unless she learns to become responsible she will train her children to be like herself. Since the father is also irresponsible, that is the model the children are trained to repeat. Is it any wonder then that there are now multiple family generations that have remained on welfare? What happened to parents sacrificing of themselves so that their children can stand on their shoulders and improve their living conditions?
Does a mom have an impact on her children? Yes! And through those children she has an impact on all of society. We also see this in the pages of the Scriptures both positive and negative.
A positive example is the life of Timothy who was the Apostle Paul’s faithful companion in the Lord’s work. Timothy was the son of a Greek father and a Jewish mother. Paul states this of Timothy’s godly heritage in 2 Timothy 1:5, “For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that is in you as well.”
The impact of these two mothers is marked in Scripture for all eternity. There was a reason for Timothy to be the way he was, and a large part of that was the godly influence of his mother and grandmother. We can think of these two women as godly Jewish mothers who loved God and their children. They lived true and honest lives of sincere faith in God. Lois instilled these values in Eunice who in turn raised Timothy with those same values. That is why Paul traces Timothy’s sincere faith back through his mother Eunice to his grandmother Lois.
Now Timothy is a positive example of the impact a mother has on her child, but there are also negative examples. In his studies of 1 & 2 Kings and 1 & 2 Chronicles, J. Vernon McGee points out that the mother of each of the kings is recorded. This information gives some insight into why each king turned out as they did. For example, 1 Kings 14:31 says of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, “and his mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.” The Ammonites were one of the pagan nations bordering Israel. 1 Kings 11 tells us that Solomon’s marriage to these different pagan women was one of the reasons he turned from God. 1 Kings 11:5 records that Solomon went after “Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites.” Rehoboam was raised by a pagan mother so it is no wonder that he turned his back on the ways of the Lord.
Follow this next example carefully. 1 Kings 15:1-2 states, “Abijam became king over Judah. He reigned three years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom.” 1 Kings 15:8 -10 records, “Abijam slept with his fathers . . . Asa his son became king . . . 10. and his mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishaloam . . .” Both passages lists a Maachah the daughter of Abishaloam as the mother of both men – Abijam and his son, Asa. In other words, Abijam had an incestuous relationship with his mother with the result being that Asa’ mother was also his grandmother. Is there any surprise then that Abijam was such a wicked king.
The point is that a mother does greatly impact her children. So much so that a child’s success or failure is in part due to his mother’s influence. This is not to say that a child will not reject his mother’s influence whether good or bad. Asa turned out to be a godly king because he rejected the influence of his mother Maacah, even removing her as queen mother. You also have those children who reject their mother’s positive teaching which is why Proverbs 1:8 warns, “My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother.”
A mother is probably the single greatest influence on her child, and through her impact on that child, she affects the rest of society. If a mother fails in doing her part in rearing her children, then she has failed regardless of any other thing she does in the work place or society. This being true, then we must now answer that first question. What does the Bible teach a mother is supposed to be? What is the criteria that marks a godly mother from an ungodly one?
Here are the four areas for evaluation in order of importance:
1. Her own walk with the Lord
2. Her relationship with her husband
3. Her behavior before others
4. Her commitment to her children
1. Her Own Walk with the Lord
Don’t ever be fooled into thinking that anything in your role as a parent is more important than your own relationship with God. If you are struggling in this area, then it is impossible for any other area of your life to be doing well.
Jesus said, “he who loves a son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37). A personal relationship with God is what being a Christian is all about. Jesus died in order to bring you to God. Can you now just take that for granted and neglect it? Of course not! We love God because He first loved us and we desire to be close to the one that loves us. David described it as a deer thirsts for water, so his heart desired God. Read Psalm 119 some time and see David’s love for God and God’s Word. This is our top priority
Diane may be a little embarrassed for me to say this, but generally, I can tell if she had her time with the Lord or not. If the time she normally has set aside for personal time with God has slipped by, she does not seem to be as joyful. She can tend to be more distant, emotional, irritable, and hard to talk to. The problems of the day seem to way heavier upon her. When Diane has spent that important time reading and studying the Bible and talking to the Lord in prayer, then she is less burdened by the cares of this life. Life is more enjoyable and exciting. She could of course say the same thing about me, for the same principle applies to men and women equally.
Mothers know how hard it is to get any time alone when there is a little one around. They also know how valuable the time is when the little tyke is asleep or occupied with an independent activity. There is always a long list of things she would like to accomplish without interruption. A priority on that list should be her quiet time with the Lord. Personal time for mom does not always get easier as the kids get older for there are new demands such as driving them all over town and the time is soon gone. If you do not make time with the Lord the priority, it will soon slip away.
If the Lord your priority, then other things will be of less importance and may not get accomplished. This means the husband must cooperate and encourage her in the proper priorities. Maybe the house is not as tidy as it might otherwise be. Maybe dinner is not quite as fancy. Maybe it takes longer to get household projects done. But how do any of those things compare with communion with the Creator of the universe? Mary understood this and was commended by Jesus for choosing to listen to Him rather than being distracted with the housework.
A few of quick practical suggestions to help keep this priority in order. First, be proactive and schedule it into your day and establish it as a normal part of your daily routine. If you try to do it “when you get a chance” it is not a priority and it will not occur. Second, use a phone answering machine to keep from being interrupted. Return the calls when you are done. Third, learn to discern between good, better and best and to say no to those things that do not fit your priorities. That will help alleviate some of the time pressures that can make life hectic and interfere with your priorities. There are a lot of good things that you could do that are not what you should do.
Are you busy with the things that God says are important in your life? Or are you bogged down in the temporal that 1 Corinthians 3 says will burn anyway? The first priority of a godly mother is personal time with God.
2. Her Relationship with Her Husband.
This is a priority that is often neglected in the busyness of parenting. Sometimes the neglect of the marriage relationship does not have its real impact for many years. Parents who neglect each other but stick with a marriage “for the sake of the children” often find that after the children are grown and have moved out of the house they no longer have a relationship with each other. That is why there are so many couples who divorce after having been married for 25, 30, 35 years. Those who are more selfish do not even make the effort of trying to stick it out for the “sake of the kids.” Divorce statistics still continue to be unsettling, but they no longer tell the whole picture since many couples no longer bother to get married. When they split up there is no divorce statistic to even note the tragedy.
We must make sure that we are following the Biblical priorities within the family unit, and the priority is the marriage relationship of mom and dad and not the children. Are the children important? Of course, and yes much sacrifice must be made for the sake of our children. However, the children are welcome members to the family, but they are not the family. The husband and wife were a family before the children arrived and they will still be a family after the kids have grown and left home. Why do I say this? Because the Bible teaches it.
First, in Ephesians 5:31-32 Paul describes marriage as a picture of Christ and the Church. The love of a husband for his wife and her response of respect back are to reflect the relationship between Christ and the church. Paul talks about the children in Ephesians 6:1-4, but they are outside this analogy of Christ and the Church.
Second, there are many specific commands concerning marriage, and children are not an excuse to fail to carry out those commands of Scripture. For example, 1 Corinthians 7:3-16 commands spouses to fulfill their duty to one another and not separate from each other. Ephesians 5:22-33 commands the husband to love the wife and the wife to respect the husband. Titus 2:3,4 commands older women to teach the younger women how to be good wives who love and submit to their husbands as well as be good mothers in loving their children and keepers at home. 1 Peter 3:1-7 commands wives to win their husbands by their chaste and respectful behavior and for husbands to live with their wives with understanding and giving them honor. Motherhood in no way negates God’s commands to be a godly wife first.
Third, if your marriage fails because you neglected it, then you have also failed your children. You present them with a low view of marriage. In essence you teach them that marriage and the elements that make up a successful marriage are not important. You teach them a wrong view of life.
Mother’s be very careful here. It is very easy to get so caught up with the busyness of caring for the children that your husband can get neglected. Make sure that he still knows that he is important to you. Fulfill your role as a godly wife. You cannot be a better mother than you are a wife.
Husbands, you must protect your wife in this area. Make provision to spend time with her alone without the kids. Make sure that she knows that she is important to you personally. Treat her as your bride and not just the mother of your kids. Fulfill your role as a godly husband. You cannot be better dad than you are a husband.
Parents – make sure you remember your marriage!
3. Her Behavior Before Others
I have three reasons for placing this as the third criteria in evaluating a godly mother.
First, your behavior before others reveals what your relationship with the Lord is like. Jesus said that if we loved Him we would keep His commandments (John 14:21), and one of those commandments is to “let our light so shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). Another is that we are to love one another as Christ has loved us because people will know we are Christians by our love for one another (John 13:35).
Second, your behavior will reveal your relationship with your husband. Do you give him the respect Scriptures command you to give him (Ephesians 5:33, 1 Peter 3:1-6), or do you complain about all his bad qualities to your girl friends?
Third, the greatest lessons you will teach your children are the ones they will learn by observing you. Telling children to do what you say and not follow your example never works. They immediately recognize the hypocrisy involved.
Teaching is not information content. The fact that a student can repeat a lot of information back on a test says almost nothing about whether he has been taught. In the Old Testament, teaching occurred by example with explanation. A child was not considered to have learned until they could repeat the task themselves. Jesus taught his disciples by example. Paul taught those he ministered to by example even saying in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.”
Probably one of the more sobering verses concerning teaching is Luke 6:40. “A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.” We are teaching our children to be just like us. The question is what is your example training them to be like? What are they learning from you about walking with the Lord, how a marriage works, and how to treat others?
4. Her Commitment to Her Children
In times past and still among many moms this is an assumed given for it is normal for mothers to care about their children and be sacrificially committed to them. The warning about getting between a bear and her cubs also applied to a mom and her children. However, our society has changed and it does have a strong influence even on those who attend church.
First, society no longer values a child the way it once did, and especially those not yet born. A mother is no longer “with child,” she is pregnant with a fetus. Societal pressures concerning career, finances, social standing and personal convenience have risen to the point that the first and most basic commitment to a child – the preservation of his/her life – is greatly diminished and even absent. It is utterly tragic that even Christian women have been deceived by this mindset and ended up in abortion clinics.
The godly mother is committed to carrying that baby to term despite the personal inconvenience and pain including morning sickness, the heartburn, indigestion, the uncomfortable bigness in the last months, and then labor and delivery. After the birth, the godly mother continues to be committed to caring for that child’s needs at her own sacrifice. That includes not only those feedings of the infant in the middle of the night, but multiple sacrifices made during the years the child is being reared.
The stories of mothers sacrificing for her child abound ranging from everything from going without food herself so that her children could eat, to giving up the dream of having her own house so her children could get a better education, to laying down her own life to protect the life of her child. The godly mother – the godly woman – the godly person, gives of themself sacrificially because they put into practice Philippians 2:4 in humbly considering others more important than themselves. The godly mother resists the pressure of the world to conform her to its image because she values her God, husband and children more than what the world offers.
One lady that still sticks in my mind as an example of such a godly mother was a lady we knew in California named Margo Wilson. The Wilsons did not have much according to the values of the world in part because Margo stayed home with her kids and wanted to be available to those who might be in need. I am sure there were some that looked down on them because they raised their three daughters in a 2 bedroom home. The oldest daughter slept on what was really their back porch which was just wide enough for her single bed. Some might have viewed them as poor because Paul and Margo shared the family car, but I tell you they were rich in all that was actually important. They raised their three daughters in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and set before them an example of love and sacrifice for others. Though they had a small home, they were always among the first to offer hospitality to others. I have lost track of the younger two daughters, but the oldest, Kirsten, serves the Lord with her husband as a missionary to tribal people in northern India.
I realize that economic conditions are such that it seems like there is not much choice but for mothers to go to work and single mothers may have little choice in the matter. Circumstances are always individual and sometimes can become fairly bad, but even so, I challenge you to give serious consideration to the real reasons mom is going to work instead of being home with the children. Make sure it is because of actual necessity and not the result of desire for the things of this world. Make sure that if that must be done that the negative impact on the children is as minimal as possible. Remember that the Lord’s promise is to provide what is needed for those who seek first His kingdom and righteousness (Matthew 6:33).
To all, I leave this final challenge to make sure your priorities match those God has given to you – your own walk with the Lord, your relationship with your spouse, your behavior before others and your commitment to your children.
May you be found to be a godly mother whose children will rise up and call you blessed.
Sermon Notes – 5/9/2010
A Godly Mother – Selected Scriptures
Introduction
The typical idea of what a mom is has ___________ in American society
Single parenting has forced many women to take on roles __________ God’s design for the family
The ______decline in America has resulted in women who are more self-centered & less self-sacrificial
The goal of parenting is to train the next generation to become _______________and respectable adults.
Society minimizes the value of the woman who stays at home with her children as a “mere __________”
The Impact of a Mother
Mothers can have a major influence on her family and upon society for either good or ________.
Two major factors that have changed society: Dissolution of the __________ and working moms
The sexual and social welfare revolutions of the 1960’s are major factors in the __________of the family
Social welfare programs have enabled _______________ girls to raise their children on their own
______have been allowed to abandon their responsibilities – though God will still hold them accountable
If mom is working, who is watching the children and whose _________ value system is being instilled?
By God’s grace a single mom can raise godly children, but only at great ________________
_______________ of irresponsible parents will tend to be irresponsible themselves
Lois and Eunice had a _____________ influence on Timothy – 2 Timothy 1:5
King Rehoboam’s mom had a _____________ effect on him – 1 Kings 14:31
King Abijam’s mom was an __________ influence on him – 1 Kings 15:1-2, 8-10
King Asa was _________ despite his mother’s evil influence which he rejected
1. Her Own Walk with the Lord
A right walk with the Lord is ___________ to do well in any other area of life
Having a devotional life with the Lord must be a ____________ in order to be a godly mom
Be proactive and schedule daily time with the Lord and make it a routine _____________
Use a phone answering machine to keep from being _______________
2. Her Relationship with Her Husband
The busyness of parenting can easily result in the ___________ of the marriage relationship
A husband and wife are a _______before children arrive and will remain so after they grow up and leave
Marriage is to be a picture of _____________ relationship with the church – Ephesians 6:1-4
Children are not an excuse to disobey the Biblical commands concerning ______________:
1 Corinthians 7:3-16; Ephesians 5:22-33; Titus 2:3-4; 1 Peter 3:1-7
A marriage that fails because of neglect also fails the _____________
Husband, make sure your wife can periodically get out of her “mommy” role to be your ____________.
3. Her Behavior Before Others
Your behavior before others will reveal the nature of your relationship with the _____and your husband
Your behavior before others is the ___________ you are teaching your children to follow – Luke 6:40
4. Her Commitment to Her Children
Society may not value a child as it used to, but a ________mother will be self-sacrificial for her children
The godly mother ________the pressure of the world to conform and keeps her priorities in proper order
Always give serious consideration to the _____________for what you do – be careful of worldly desires
Mom’s that must work must also be even more self-sacrificial to __________the impact on the children
Make sure your priorities match those that ___________ has given to you
KIDS CORNER
Parents, you are responsible to apply God’s Word to your children’s lives. Here is some help. Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents at lunch. Older Children – 1) Write down all the verses mentioned. 2) Count how many times “mom” or “mother” is used. 3) Talk with your parents about what it means to be a godly mother.
THINK ABOUT IT!
Questions to consider in discussing the sermon with others. What do you think of when you hear the word, mother? How do you think the view of motherhood has changed in America over the last 75 years? What are some of the ways children have been effected by the moral decline in America? What pressures does society place on women to be something more than a housewife / mom? What are some of the reasons for the moral decline in America? What role has the dissolution of marriage played in this? What has been the result of the sexual and social welfare revolutions that begin in the 1960’s been upon women in general, motherhood and children? What is necessary for a single mom to be able to raise godly children? What kind of children will an irresponsible mom raise and why? What influence did Timothy’s mom and grandmother have on him? What effect did the mother of King Rehoboam have on him? What about the mother of King Abijam? Why wasn’t King Asa also evil? Why does a personal walk with the Lord have to be the priority for a godly mom? What are some practical ways a mom can ensure that can spend time with the Lord in the midst of a very busy life? What is the Biblical role of a wife? What is its relationship to the Biblical role of being a mom? Can a mother be a better mother than a wife – why or why not? What can husbands do to protect their wives and ensure they do not become entrapped in the “mommy” role? What is revealed by your behavior before others? What does your behavior before others teach your children? Why do people get abortions? How does that compare with the motivations of a godly mom? What are some of the sacrifices a mom must make on behalf of her children – prior to birth, during infancy, during early childhood, adolescence and young adulthood? What are the priorities God has give to all Christians concerning Himself, your spouse, others and your children? How are you doing at keeping those priorities in proper order? If you are struggling to do so, what things are interfering and what can you do to change it?
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