Hello Everyone, today I’m starting a series that looks at what the Bible has to say about being a Mom. I haven’t previously studied out this topic of motherhood before so I’m excited to delve deeper into it. When I initially thought of this series I thought of all sorts of mothers and women mentioned in the Bible, like: Eve, Sarah, Lot’s wife, Moses’ mother, Samuel’s mom, Samson’s mom, Timothy’s mother and grandmother, the mother of Jesus and James, the prophet’s widow, the mothers who came to King Solomon to settle a dispute over the living child, and so many more. And though most of the mothers that would have lived during the thousand of years the Bible was written go unmentioned and are behind the scenes, we know they were there and even though they didn’t get the spot light God was watching them, using them, and loved them. So, what about the women mentioned in the Bible? I believe they are there to teach us some lessons on motherhood and the power of not only being a mom but a woman. So let’s take a look and see what lessons we can glean from Scripture today.
Eve. Who was Eve? Eve was the first woman created by God. Unlike Adam, who was fashioned from the dust and God breathed into to give him life, Eve was created from removing a rib from the side of Adam (For the full story read Genesis 1-2). According to Kris Vallaton the fact that Eve is made from a rib taken out of the side of Adam shows that Eve was made to have equal value. Scripture attest to this fact as well in Genesis 1:26-28 HCSB “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.’ So God created man in His image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female. God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.” Both male and female created in God’s image. Both given authority to share in rulership over the earth. Both given the same mandate.
In Genesis 2 we learn an important detail regarding Eve. She was created second and she was created to be a helper for Adam and the task that God had assigned him too. The word translated as helper is ‘ezer; it conveys the sense of a “suitable helper” or “comparable” individual. This word has no connotation of superiority or inferiority but rather is a description of function. This function suggests the development of an endearing and productive relationship. Interestingly enough, the word ‘ezer is used 21 times in the Old Testament. Two-thirds of the time the word is used to describe God as a helper to his people and the word is often used with strong military overtones. Which I believe suggest that women are strong and highly capable individuals that weld their own type of power. According to Mounce’s Expository, “According to God’s design, therefore, the man and woman, the husband and wife, have been designed by God to stand together and help each other fight the battles of life. And there is the divine ‘ezer to fight with them.” As a side noted, In the New Testament, the word translated as helper, parakletos in the Greek, is used to describe the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity. While the word translated as helper, synergos means coworker, fellow worker, assistant.
In Genesis 3, we begin to see the distinction in the roles of Adam and Eve. In this chapter both Adam and Eve had rebelled against God’s authority and chose to eat the fruit God asked them not to eat (they ate the only thing in the whole garden that was forbidden for them to eat). Though Eve had convinced her husband to eat the fruit after she had, God addresses Adam first. But when God begins to dole out consequences He chooses to begin with who started the mess in the first place: the Serpent. It is in this address to the Serpent, Eve, and then Adam, the reader gets a clarification of Adam’s and Eve’s respective roles. To Eve: God says that labor and delivery will be more painful than was intended and that she will also have a “desire” for her husband but ultimately he will rule over her instead of working together in joint partnership (51%-49%). The word translated desire here, teshuqah in Hebrew, is only used two other times ( Gen 4:7, where sin desires to rule Cain & Song of Songs 7:10, where a man sexually desires a woman). Emerson Eggrichs, in his book Love and Respect, speculates that this desire may also be for emotional intimacy between spouses that women so strongly desire in Marriage. Eve’s consequences involved having children and her relationship with her husband, which implies that she was vital for the stability and growth of the family unit. For Adam, his consequences involved working for provision. This implies that Adam’s role was to provide food for his wife and subsequent children as well as to teach his sons how to provide for their own families in the future.
So, what does all this mean for us as Mothers? What can we learn from Eve that we can apply to Motherhood today?
My biggest take away from Eve is that the decisions that you make today have significant impact on not only the immediate but the distant future; even those decision that you make prior to having children. Every person born on the planet today is still dealing with the consequences of Adam and Eve multiple generations after they have past. Life, as Adam and Eve experienced it, took a quick downward spiral from being pleasant to difficult and painful, not just physically, but also emotionally and relationally. Unlike us, they knew the stark difference in the realities of inside the garden and outside of it. And they quickly experienced the harsh reality of life when you choose to live it outside of God’s boundaries. We may not see the consequences (positive or negative) of our decisions as quickly as Eve did but that doesn’t mean the consequences do not have an immediate or long term effect. Many times the consequences of our choices will not be noticed until months or even decades later; if we even notice it at all. Rarely do we think of the consequences of how our actions affect other people, let alone our children.
Here is a simple example of how some my decisions have affected my children’s lives: When I was a child I had decided that I wanted to go into either music or medicine. I chose the medicine route, did well in school, worked hard, and then started applying for colleges. Somewhere along the way, my father convinced me to go the nursing route instead of majoring in pre-med due to job stability in case I did not get into Medical school right away. I graduated from nursing school and had a choice: Do I return to my hometown or move to the coast? I chose to try out staying close to home first, landed my first nursing job and began making money. Next choice: Do I live with my parents and pay off as much student loan debt as possible or live on my own? I choice living with my parents and paid off most of my debt in 1.5 years while I lived with them. Next choice: Do I date this international student or do I stay single and wait for someone else? I chose to date the International student. Next choice: things are kind of rocky in the relationship, do I stay or do I end it? I chose to stay and work through conflict. Eventually I chose to marry that International student and now we have 2 boys with a 3rd child on the way. And if I had not chosen to pay off debt as quickly as I did then I would not have been able to stay home and just be a grad student or to stay home and educate my kids now.
Here’s another example, one that is not so obvious or at least not that obvious at this point in time but will be in the years to come: How I chose to live my life around and not around my kids. The day to day choices of how I chose to live makes a tremendous impact on the character of my children. When my eldest was young I had decided that I was not going to lie to him, not even little “white lies” or tell him that I was going to do something and not follow through on the commitment. Man, were there some tough times when I followed through on my word but now it’s so much easier and I have become more aware of what I say I will and will not do or allow. For instance, my eldest ripped one of my shear decorative curtains (behind the couch) in half almost a week ago and his consequence was that he no longer gets to sit on the couches. He has sat in his chair every day and has not tried to sit on a couch at all since his consequence began. He hasn’t even complained about it. He knows I mean what I say. Also when I give him a straight yes or no, he takes it. He does whine and cry over the “no” sometimes, after all he’s only 5, but for the most part he’s fine. Working hard at being consistent in the daily grind has paid off and made life better for all of us. My kids know what to expect, they know the limits, and when they follow those limits life is more “fun” for everyone involved. I realize that by my actions with my kids today, I am preparing successful adults for tomorrow.
So remember moms, your actions today, the decisions that you make, have lasting impact beyond yourself. You have the power to change the destiny of your family tree for better or worse. Today, you can make a conscious effort to say “No more! This cycle of … ends with me.” Or you can say, “Yes! I want this trend to continue. I’m going to perpetuate ….” It’s in your hands mom, you have the power to choose.
Teach your children right from wrong, and when they are old they will still do right. Proverbs 22:6 CEV
The Ruby Blossom 