1 Kings 3:16-27 “she is the mother thereof…”
A Mother’s Love
Every year as the weather changes, we find ourselves celebrating one of God’s most precious gifts to the world: Mothers. They are the first doctors, lawyers, mechanics, tailors, chefs, and best friends that we ever know. The process of being a mother is so selfless that it brings a woman to the door of death to pass life into the world. Everything about a mother shifts from the very first day that she is aware of life growing inside of her. From that first epiphany, she has morning sickness to make sure the embryo stays well. She has odd cravings to ensure the baby is well balanced. And when the body can’t seem to take any more, it finds the strength to fight itself to ensure excruciating labor. For you. For us.
There were two mothers in the Bible that already came from unpopular beginnings. Both started the journey of motherhood the same. They endured the labor, and rejoiced in the beginning development of their babies, and did the best that they could. And then something happened…
One mother rolled over on her baby and it died while they were asleep. It was most accidental, and the pain of burying her child was too much to bear. So she took the other woman’s child and placed her dead child in the bed of the innocent mother. The problem was that the mother couldn’t be fooled. She knew her child. She knew what she gave birth to. King Solomon was asked to preside over the legal matter of custody. As each mother pleaded a very believable case, he knew there could only be one way to tell which mother was telling the truth. “Kill the baby! Split it in half, and give a piece to each lady,” he exclaimed. In a panicked frenzy, the actual mother pleaded not to kill her child. She agreed to give her baby up. It was then that the King knew who the real mother was. A real mother would never allow such dastardly circumstances to come upon her child, even if she had to lose it.
True mothers understand this Biblical passage fully. But more than just mothers understand this prose. Perhaps you are not an actual mother, but a spiritual mother. Perhaps you gave birth to a vision, dream, or business and it is threatened by someone of something that has no desire to take care of it. Perhaps the villain is one who has suffered and is thus giving out only what they know. And perhaps the villain is your own procrastination or mismanagement of the blessing God have you. In either case, my heart for mothers and birthers is this: never allow what you labored for to die in the hands of one who only had a lust for it. They don’t know the cost, they don’t understand the weight of burden, and they are not equipped to care for what God gave you. They can even try to fool you or emulate a failure for you; but you know what God gave you. You know what you birthed! You know the difference between life and death. Whatever sacrifices you must make, do so; but the baby must live.
When I consider my own mother and the sacrifices she often made for me, I weep with a greater understanding. My mother knew that she had to watch others trying to destroy what she birthed. But she knew what was in me, what was for me, and what she prayed over me. I now walk in ministry because she didn’t allow me to die, and didn’t allow others to kill me. Happy Mother’s Day everyone. There is nothing like a mother’s love!
-Modernday Lazurus
Cleo Dailey, III is a minister, freelance writer, and author who has written for several city and nation-wide publications. He is currently releasing his newest memoirs this summer while studying to obtain a degree in both English and Clinical Psychology in Peoria, IL.
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