Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 1 of 8 TURN ON THE LIGHTS with Love Genesis 1:26-27; Isaiah 66:13; Luke 13:34; Exodus 1:15-21, 2:1-4; 1 Samuel 2:18-19 INTRODUCTION TO THE SERIES A number of years ago, we used our vacation to help the boys learn about their wonderful home state, North Carolina. We started camping up in the mountains where we were living at the time and made our way to the NC coast, to Kitty Hawk and the wonderful North Carolina Lighthouses. It was the first time this South Carolina girl had visited those lighthouses. On that trip, I learned something I d heard my whole life but never understood. I learned what we were actually referring to when we sang, Let the lower lights be burning, send a gleam across the wave. Some poor fainting, struggling seaman you may rescue you may save. The lower lights. I never really knew what they were before I visited and learned about the lighthouses. You see, along the coast, where rocky bits jut in and out, it s almost impossible for lighthouses alone to provide enough protection. That s where the lower lights come into play. Lower lights are lanterns that were placed in strategic positions along the coast. Individuals were charged with the responsibility of placing these lights in those spots where additional light was needed for safe travel on the seas. Hence the hymn, Let the Lower Lights Be Burning. That s what every Christian is intended to be. It s our job to Turn on the Lights. That s what Jesus meant when he said: Matthew 5:16 let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. INTRODUCTION TO SERMON We are all called to be one of God s lower lights in the dark corners of this world. And some of the very best and brightest lower lights in this world show up as Mothers or women who function like good mothers. They show us how to Turn on the Lights with Love. And since it is Mother s Day, we are going to give a little attention to some of the good mothers we meet in the
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 2 of 8 Scripture to see what we can learn from them about doing just that. Turning on the Lights with love. EVE And let s start with the mother of all Eve. In the very first chapter in the very first book of the Bible, we discover one of the very best ways that not only Mothers, but all believers, can turn on the lights with love: Genesis: 1:26-27 26 Then God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth." 27 So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. The male and female are created at the same time. Together, they reflect the image of God. This may be the most important role any mother can embrace reflecting the divine to her children, to her family, to a world desperate to know the true character of God. This image of a nurturing, mothering God can be found in both the Old and New Testaments: Isaiah 66:13 As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you... Luke 13:34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings but you were not willing. When we, as mothers and fathers, nurture and care for the children God has entrusted into our care, we are helping them to understand God's nurturing love for them. When we as members of the community of faith nurture and care for the children God has entrusted into OUR care, we are doing the
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 3 of 8 same thing. We are helping them understand God s love. That s one really important way to Turn on the Lights with Love. THE MIDWIVES You know, in England the day set aside to honor mothers is not called Mother s Day. It s called Mothering Sunday. I like that because it acknowledges that some of the best mothering is done by people who are not biological mothers. If we are fortunate, many women will bless our lives with nurture and love. We can learn from all of them like these Old Testament characters, Shiprah and Puah. Do you recognize those names? Those were the Hebrew midwives who protected the baby Moses. We read about them in the first chapter of Exodus. Exodus 1:15-21 15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 "When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live." 17 But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live. 18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this, and allowed the boys to live?" 19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them." 20 So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families. Here we can learn something else about turning on the lights with love. Mothering is not meant to be a solo project. Neither is loving. These two women helped bring little boys like Moses into the world. And in each of our lives there are many different women who have ushered us into new ways of living. The same is true for our own children. Think for a moment about some of those women. Relatives who provide experiences beyond your means, school teachers and coaches who introduce new skills and greater
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 4 of 8 knowledge, neighbors who open their homes, Sunday school teachers, pastors and youth counselors who point the way to Jesus. These too are midwives midwives of the mind and spirit. They love us and our children. And they help us do a better job of loving. When you are doing your best to Turn on the lights with Love, welcome everyone who shows up to help. JOCHEBED Moses was blessed to have Shiprah and Puah in his life, but he was blessed to be mothered by three other pretty incredible women too. His biological mother, Jochebed. His older sister Miriam. And unexpectedly, Pharaoh s daughter. I think we can learn something about turning on the lights with love from each of these women. We read about them in Exodus 2. Exodus 2:1-4 1 Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. 2 The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him three months. 3 When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river. 4 His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him. 5 The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it. 6 When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him. This must be one of the Hebrews children, she said. 7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh s daughter, Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you? 8 Pharaoh s daughter said to her, Yes. So the girl went and called the child s mother. 9 Pharaoh s daughter said to her, Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages. So the woman took the child and nursed it. 10 When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh s daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses, [a] because, she said, I drew him out [b] of the water.
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 5 of 8 Let s think for a moment about Moses mother, Jochebed. She was the mother of three of the Old Testament's most important leaders. We know very few facts about this woman but when we reflect upon the influence of Moses, Miriam and Aaron, we have to acknowledge that Jochebed raised her children well. A slave herself, belittled and abused, this woman still managed to model a key characteristic of a faithful and effective mother. She protected her child and taught his older sister, Miriam to protect him too. Protecting another is often the best way we can Turn on the Lights with Love. There are many things in this world that will threaten our children physically, mentally, socially and spiritually. Until they can protect themselves, it is our job to do everything within our power to keep them safe. That includes things at home like baby-proofing our houses, providing protective gear, teaching our kids to make good choices. It means securing medical care for our own children and making sure other children have the same kind of good care. AND it means providing a community of faith. We may not have to place our babies in baskets and hide them on a river, but to Turn on the Lights with Love we will need to embrace the same protective spirit we see in Jochebed and Miriam. Still, protection alone is not love in its fullness. And remarkably, in this story, we encounter that additional emotion needed for protective love in a most unexpected source. The Scripture says that Pharaoh s daughter saw the crying Moses and took pity on him. She felt compassion for the child. To truly Turn on the Lights with Love in the dark corners of this world, we will need to feel compassion too. Com passion. Literally that means to feel with another. Protective Love depends upon compassion. If we do not feel with another in their pain, their struggle, or their need, we will not want to protect them even if we realize they need it. It was an interesting trinity that protected the infant Moses. His own mother, his clever sister and the enemy s daughter. It took all three of them but together they Turned on the Lights with Love, protected a Baby and in the process protected a nation. HANNAH So what have we learned from these Biblical mothers? We can Turn on
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 6 of 8 the Lights with Love 1) by reflecting the loving image of the divine, 2) by partnering with others and 3) by protecting others. But there s still more to learn. Hannah, the mother of the Old Testament prophet Samuel, is one of my favorite Biblical mothers. From Hannah we learn that at times the very best way to Turn on the Lights with Love is through our prayers. Hannah longed for a child. She was desperate. And being wiser than most, she took her desperation to the Lord in prayer. The old priest, Eli, sees her praying with such abandon that he thinks she is drunk and scolds her. Hannah then explains her situation and receives Eli s blessing. It makes me wonder about my prayers for the children in my life. Do I worry too much about what others think? Am I too reserved to come to the altar when they need me to be praying for them? Am I too hesitant to ask others to support them by praying for them in times of need? Hannah was desperate so she prayed, and she did not worry about what others thought. There s a lesson there for all of us. And you know, I don t believe her prayers stopped there. Many people marvel at how the young Samuel, surrounded by the evil behavior of Eli s sons, was pure enough to hear a word from the Lord. I remember the first time I ever preached on Samuel. His ability to hear the Lord was classified as a miracle in almost ever commentary. It was a mystery to the writers. Well, no doubt it was a miracle but there was no mystery not to me. Then I went back and looked. Every commentary I had consulted was written by a man. They all missed something that seemed absolutely obvious to me, the mother of two young sons. They failed to catch the full impact of this verse. I Samuel 2:18-19 18 Samuel was ministering before the Lord, a boy wearing a linen ephod. 19 His mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to him each year, when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. The answer to Samuel s purity and openness to God s call? Why his mother, Hannah, of course and her prayers. Hannah had prayed desperately for the birth of her son. I am quite confident those prayers continued as the
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 7 of 8 little boy grew and especially when she had to honor her promise and leave him to live among the priests. But Hannah did more than pray. Hannah made Samuel a new robe every year and brought it to him herself. I like to imagine those visits and conversations. No doubt Samuel, like any little boy living in those circumstances, would ask to go home with his mother every year. And she would explain, Oh Samuel, how I wish you could be with me every single day. Nothing would make me happier. But you know that you, my precious son, are very, very special. God sent you to me and God has a very special purpose for you. You are my miracle baby. And God will do great things through you. We do not know what those things are, not yet. But I am praying. I am always praying and I know that some day the Lord will speak to you and then you will know. You are always with me in my heart and always with me in my prayers, but you must stay here so that God can use you to bless our people. I love you more than you could ever know. And then, Hannah would pray. Desperately and faithfully, Hannah would pray. When Samuel heard the voice of God sound through the evils of his day, it was indeed a miracle, but it was no mystery. Through her prayers a woman named Hannah was busy turning on the lights in his world with love. CONCLUSION This past week, it was my turn to lead in Preschool Chapel time. The children gather in the Sanctuary and the time of worship begins this way: one child carries in the light assisted by a teacher, of course, makes his or her way up the steps and then lights the candles on the altar. Now, the candles in the sanctuary are way too high for the children to light on their own. So the teacher helps. I ve seen this many times over the past few years, but this week, well I saw it in a new way. This is what I saw. That child was doing everything possible to Turn on the Lights. She was determined so much so that she was eventually holding the candle lighter high over her head, standing on tiptoe and trusting the teacher to guide the flame to the right spot. And together they Turned on the Lights. Seems to me folks, that was a perfect picture of what it means to Turn on the Lights with Love. Whether through protection or prayer, when we
Turn on the Lights with Love / Mother s Day Page 8 of 8 Turn on the Lights with Love, we really help those we care about have a chance to turn on the lights for themselves. It s something we can learn from the mothers in the Bible --- and thank God from many of those who are busy mothering all around us. In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Life Application Questions: 1) Who in your life has done the job given to Adam and Eve (and to all of us) of reflecting the loving nature of God? Who needs to see that image of God in you? How can you better reflect that image? 2) What women in your life served as midwives --- ushering you into new ways of living? How did they do it? What difference did it make? Who could you serve in that way and how? 3) Who has loved you by protecting you? Who are you now loving through protection? When are you most likely to feel compassion? 4) Whose prayers have made a difference in your life? What children do you fervently pray for? What are you praying? Do they know you pray for them?