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It’s Sunday afternoon, and we just returned from a weekend spent with our moms. Since we’re now back in Texas, it was the first Mother’s Day in a lot of years that we’ve actually spent with them. Needless to say, it was a special one. Knowing this post awaited my attention today, I struggled between wanting to write a Mother’s Day post and writing our usual prayer team post. Then, when we attended church with my mother-in-law and the priest said the following, it tucked itself into my heart and brought the post together:
‘I will teach you about sacrifice.'” Sacrifice: the surrender or destruction of something prized or desirable for the sake of something considered as having a higher or more pressing claim.
Today’s society is so “me-focused”, so “I’m worth it”, so “looking out for #1”, that we don’t really understand sacrifice as a people. Often, it seems that there is no need to “surrender anything desirable”, because there is nothing that we consider to have a “higher or more pressing claim” than ourselves. As I thought about it this morning, it occurred to me that if our children truly are teachers of sacrifice, we’ve lost a staggering number of this valuable faculty through abortion.
If all those millions of aborted children had lived, would our society be different? If the lies of the “ease” of abortion hadn’t been told, would millions of parents have grown and stretched as human beings through the act of sacrifice that it takes to raise a child? Or, would they possibly have made the sacrifice of presenting their child with an opportunity for a full life through adoption? I have to believe that maybe, just maybe, without abortion, the “me-centered” society that brought its legalization in the first place would understand sacrifice on a much deeper level. We would not be seeing those children as hindrance to a life well-lived, but we would, as a society, embrace their lives as valuable teachers of putting others first.
I posted the following video on the very first prayer team post, but it bears a repeat, especially today.
Our president’s mother made a choice for life when she became pregnant with him. He has sung her praises, from many a podium, for her hard work and sacrifice in raising him, as a single mom. Today, as I’m sure he’s had her on his mind (deceased in 1995), I pray that he will view sacrifice with her eyes. That instead of viewing unplanned pregnancies as “punishment“, he will begin to see them as a possibility for people to learn selflessness as they raise up future citizens that will bring their God-given potential to our world.
Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.
1 Corinthians 10:24 NIV
It is true that mothers make sacrifices for their children. As children we don’t always realize it. That knowledge comes with maturity.
Lord, please help us to better communicate to those who advocate the destruction of babies the need we have to learn the lessons these children can teach us. AMEN
wow, Melinda. I had not seen that video. I pray each day for our President and for his relationship with Jesus Christ. He says he has one and I have to believe him despite the lack of fruit. I pray that he does and I pray that he understands the horrors of abortion and the taking of innocent lives. God bless you for this ministry.
Happy Mother’s Day.
Leah
I have a friend who longs to give birth via her womb. Just today she emailed me with the news that 3 embroyo’s wait for implantation into her womb on Tuesday. She told me that she sat and wept in church today because she couldn’t help thinking to herself, today … at least for the moment … I am a mother. Regardless of how we feel about artificial means for “life,” I couldn’t help but fall on my knees in a puddle, weeping for this mother and her heart that longs to bring life into the world.
How quick we are to toss life away without a thought or concern; for those today who weep because their wombs are silent, I lift my prayers and petitions to our Father for his hand in the matter. For those today who weep because their wombs were silenced by sinful choices, I lift my prayers for the same.
May we always endeavor to choose life, both in the physical and the spiritual.
Love you friend.
peace~elaine
Hope you had a good Mothers Day…..We are packing for our visit with Mickey….
It was a joy to share Mother’s day with you and Kevin. Also, It was a joy to raise you and your brothers. When your heart is consumed with love, you don’t notice the sacrifices. Your post was touching and powerful. I will be in my prayer chair at 7:00 in the morning to continue this battle for those precious unborn babies! Much Love, Mom
This really touched a chord in me. Not only could I think long on the subject of sacrifice, but of suffering too. I'm not an advocate of self-proclaimed martyrdom, but I have come to appreciate suffering as an ingredient in life that does amazing things to the soul, to the heart.
How disheartening that we live in a culture that sweeps both sacrifice & suffering away as they might a mosquito. Sad. So, so sad.
Thank God for godly moms who have both sacrificed and suffered.
Kathleen
What a touching and very true post! Several other mommies and I were talking about this the other day… about how after having a child you realize how selfish you are … being a mommy teaches you about sacrifice…a lesson we could all stand to learn. – Praying!
April
Denver,CO
This picked my heart: “When a child is born, he comes out holding a little sign that says,
‘I will teach you about sacrifice.'”
And you gave me some great questions to think about!
Thank you for your amazing post. Pat spoke this weekend at church and we just had woman after woman come up to our table weeping. Weeping for the children they had aborted. God will heal them. I know this to be true. He will heal their wounds and set them free from the bondage they have been held in for so long.
Love you.
Jennifer
As ever, I’m standing with you for life today, Melinda.
Also wanted to thank you so much for your prayers for my friend Amy’s family as they are grieving her loss as well as that of Kyler. Everyone who knows them is brokenhearted. The prayers are needed. Thank you!
God Bless you. I am at church getting ready to pray for our nation and will continue to seek the Lord to change hearts of our Nations leaders and the people of our nation.
This was a great post today Melinda. We do make sacrifices for our children out of the love that we have toward them. Much like the sacrifices that God has made for us – because He loves us so much.
Thanks for this Word – Beth
Still praying in Oregon.
Thank you in so many ways, friend.
Blessings.
Pressing on in prayer. Pat spoke at church this weekend; what a powerful Mother’s Day message.
Melinda,
Please visit my writing blog. I’ve awarded you a “Lovely Blog” award. You can right click on the icon and save it. Then, if you choose, you can present the “Lovely Blog” award to 5 other blogs that you think deserve it.
Blessings,
Jean Hall
http://www.jeanmatthewhallwords.blogspot.com
Sweet Friend,
You have been ever so faithful with this charge to the troops! Thank you and AMEN!!!
Praying in Alabama!!
Melinda — I got your message and emailed you. I don’t have your number or I’d call you back. Deleted all the calls and that’s not the number I have for you…..
How are you? I miss you like mad!