Mother’s Day Special: Timothy … who learned
from his mother and grandmother.
One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother
do the dishes at the kitchen sink. She suddenly noticed that her mother had
several strands of white hair sticking out, in contrast on her brunette head.
She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked,
"Mommy, why are some of your hairs white?”
Her mother replied, "Well, every time you do something wrong and
make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white."The little girl was
silent for a while, and then said, "Poor Grandma. You must have been a
very, very bad girl."
MOTHER'S DICTIONARY
1. Bottle Feeding: an opportunity for Daddy to get up at 2:00
a.m., too.
2. Defense: what you'd better
have around de yard if you're going to let de children play outside.
3. Feedback: the inevitable
result when the baby doesn't appreciate the strained carrots.
4. Grandparents: the people who
think your children are wonderful even though they're sure you're not raising
them right.
5. Hearsay:
what toddlers do when anyone says something they don’t want others to hear.
6. Independent: how we want our
children to be as long as they do everything we say
7. Look Out!: what it's too late
for your child to do by the time you scream it
8. Prepared Childbirth: a
contradiction in terms
9. Puddle: a small body of water
that draws other small bodies wearing dry shoes into it
10. Show Off: a child who is more
talented than yours
What’s is the greatest gift any mother has ever
given or can give to a child? The
gift of human life has already been given so the greatest gift that can be
given is the gift of eternal life. How
can you build the fire of God into someone else?
Moms are the very ones who are interested in leading their children to
God. Here is a Biblical example
of two moms who were successful in igniting the fire of God into their
children. How can we give the
promise of life which is in Jesus to another?
Scripture Text:
2Tim 1:1 (KJS) Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God,
according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, 2 To Timothy,
[my] dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, [and] peace, from God the Father and
Christ Jesus our Lord. 3 I thank God, whom I serve from [my] forefathers
with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my
prayers night and day; 4 Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy
tears, that I may be filled with joy; 5 When I call to remembrance the
unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois,
and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also. 6 Wherefore I
put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is
in thee by the putting on of my hands. 7 For God hath not given us the
spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
One year in the Boy Scouts, we
had a fire building competition. The
troop who could be the first to build a fire and burn a string approximately
24 inches above the fire would become the winner.
The requirement was that no artificial or man-made fire starter could
be used. We had to create the
environment, the heat, and the conditions that would start a fire and burn the
string. The string bow was our
chosen weapon for creating the friction that would produce the heat, the
spark, and thus the fire. We
didn’t win that competition, but I remember the extraordinary work that it
took to get that fire started. It
could be done. As we pulled the bow, blew on the kindling, and worked
quickly the Lord gave the spark that ignited the fire and quickly burned the
string.
None of us can save another person, but we have been chosen by God to
create the conditions that will give way to the spark that God will give to
work in another’s spiritual life. Lois
had worked in Eunice’s life, Eunice had worked in Timothy’s life, and Paul
the spiritual parent of Timothy had also participated in this work of the
Lord. My grandmother Eunice and
my mother Kathryn have both been
used by the Lord to build the fire of God in my heart.
Can we be used to build the fire in the life of another?
1.
Get on fire. The fire of the
Holy Spirit is within the lives of the people who serve the Lord.
3 I thank God, whom I serve from [my] forefathers with pure
conscience… 5 When I call to
remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy
grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also
You have to have the fire before you can pass it on.
But, it only takes a spark to get a fire going.
Soon, all those around can warm up to its glowing.
You acquire the fire of God, by receiving it from someone else.
2.
Ignite
the spark. The heat source is the Holy Spirit who must do the warming of
the heart through the prayers of the people.
He wants to use us to bring others to him. The living faith of Godly mothers is the spark that has lite
many fires in the hearts of their children.
The emphasis is on the living faith.
We must have a faith that is viable, visible, and victorious.
That is the kind of faith that is contagious.
It catches like the spreading of a fire that you think is out that
ignites the fire in others. We
often underestimate the effect we can have on others.
If you are on fire for the Lord you can fire up another, but the
opposite can be true as well. If
you are a wet blanket you can dampen the fire that others are trying to
create. Are you a firestarter?
3.
Keep the fire burning in your heart.
Don’t let the fire go out. You
have to keep applying the kindling and fueling the fire.
Remember the consistent faith. Apply
the kindling. Join together
with them. Pray together.
Devote yourselves to God together.
Let them see your devotion and your sincere faith.
Are the conditions right to start a fire?
Love, Trust, Patience, Understanding, Flint, and the Spirit.
From John Killinger's book LOST IN WONDER, LOVE, AND
PRAISE includes the following affirmation:
“I believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of the loving God, who was born
of the promise to a virgin named Mary. I
believe in the love Mary gave her Son, that caused her to follow Him in His
ministry and stand by his cross as He died.
I believe in the love of all mothers, and its importance in the lives
of the children they bear. It is
stronger than steel, softer than down, and more resilient than a green sapling
on the hillside. It closes
wounds, melts disappointments, and enables the weakest child to stand tall and
straight in the fields of adversity. I
believe that this love, even at its best, is only a shadow of the love God, a
dark reflection of all that we can expect of Him, both in this life and the
next. And I believe that one of
the most beautiful sights in the world is a mother who lets this greater love
flow through her to her child. Blessing
the world with the tenderness of her touch and the tears of her joy.”
4.
Passing of the torch.
Will we lay hands on them in love? Discipline,
hugs, kisses, keeping in touch with them.
The touch that nurtures another to grow benefits both the giver and the
receiver. We are passing on the
torch of life whether it be spiritual or physical.
Mothers who nurse, feed, and love their children are passing on this
torch of life. You can also pass
on the torch of the spiritual life.
5.
Fan the Flame
by opening the draft. Allow
the Spirit of God to blow freely creating a draft. The opening of the draft
takes effort, determination, work, When
we open the draft on the flame in our hearts and in the hearts of others we
create an environment that the flame will burn the brightest.
The mother, the friend, the family, and the individual who fans the
flame of the Spirit will be encouraging another to grow spiritually into the
people that God wants them to be. Paul
was fanning the flame of the Spirit in Timothy’s life
6.
Will
you become a heating duct?
God has given us the Spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Allow His Spirit to flow through you to your children, and friends, and
loved ones who need the Lord or who need to have the flame fanned. Stoke up the fire. Don’t
allow the Spirit of fear to stop you from being used by the Lord.
7.
Will you begin to pray for the Lord to work through you today for your
children, friends and family?