Mothering Sunday Message

Well, good morning, everyone.

Lovely to see you.

And a very happy Mother's Day.

So, special mention to all those mums

who've managed to actually get out of the house on time

and drag all the kids here,

and also to our mums and our mum-in-laws.

Today is a really special Mother's Day for me.

Terry, can you show the first picture?

As I'm a granny today, so my baby's had a baby,

so I just thought I'd share that with you.

So, I must admit to being a bit reticent

when Jess suggested Psalm 23 for the theme,

as it's usually used at funerals.

However, as I prayed through it, and read through it,

and read various commentaries,

it gradually became clearer how apt it is

for a Mothering Sunday service.

I never really appreciated before now

how vivid a description of how God parents us,

is articulated in Psalm 23,

until preparing for this sermon.

So, this Mothering Sunday,

let me encourage you to reflect afresh

on its familiar and comforting words.

So, along with all the mums and the grannies here today,

I really want to thank and acknowledge

all the spiritual mothers today.

We acknowledge the women who were called mums

by their children that they birthed and raised,

but we also acknowledge the women

who profoundly teach the depth and beauty of motherhood,

even if they've never raised their own children.

Some have raised their own children,

but their motherhood goes way beyond their own home.

They are all spiritual mothers,

and are all women that love and invest in someone's story,

but nurtures someone's heart and soul.

So, to the women who reflect God's heart to others today,

I just want to thank you

and honour each and every one of you.

So many women come to mind,

both near and far,

who have had a great impact and influence

on my life over the years,

and also on the life of my children.

These spiritual mothers have been

a great spiritual encouragement to me personally,

and also to the church communities

that I've been part of,

both in the past and now.

So, we're focusing on mothers today,

but actually, in this day and age especially,

spiritual mothers and fathers

are so important for his kingdom.

The family of God is for all generations.

And today, I want to acknowledge

and honour these spiritual mothers,

who are such mothers to their church communities,

those that nurture and care for people

in their own unique way.

And they are such great supporters and encouragers.

And I love the way that they cheer people on

in their own race.

So, I have a personal example here,

if Terry could put the next photo off.

So, here we get all my family here.

So, this is last year.

My daughter, Evie, and her husband, Ali,

got married during COVID restrictions.

And what we are anticipating

of being a bit of a damp squid of a day

turned out, in the end,

to be a great day of celebration

and rather raucous behaviour at times

due to the consumption of the Aldi speciality wine.

But we won't go there.

If you are listening to this online,

you know who you were.

But surrounding her here

are a group of her spiritual mums and dads

that have supported us as a family

since we moved down here in 2006.

Kim, the lovely lady stood just beside her

with the blonde hair,

was her kids' band worship leader

from the age of 10.

And she's one of the most beautiful

and prophetic ladies I've ever known.

She never says anything bad about anybody.

And this can be a real challenge.

She often challenges you

in a very gentle but godly way.

We know that we're being told off,

but it's beautiful how she tells us off.

So the saying in our house would often be

not what would Jesus do,

but what would Kim do?

So that was there.

And then Donna and Ray,

right at the far end there.

They've been friends of ours

since the twins and their kids

were at nursery together.

And we have supported each other

through house moves,

kids' struggles at school,

illness, bereavement of family members,

and helping to care for our kids

when I broke my leg in 2008

and supporting us all

when Evie was seriously ill

and nearly died at the age of 16

after a bodge operation.

So in short, we do life together.

And Pam and Wendy,

the lady beside Ali

and the lady at the end,

lovely ladies from our home church

who have loved and cared

for all of our kids

and always been there

for a chat, a hug and a prayer.

And the reason that they're all

on this picture

when all we could have at the wedding

was 13 people in May last year,

they were the catering team

for Evie and Ali's reception.

The only ones actually

that were qualified

were Pam and Wendy

and you could tell

from the way various people

were running around with things.

But they all helped

and mucked in

so that they could be there

to support Evie,

their spiritual daughter,

on her wedding day.

And all these people

were lovely Christian people

that were led by their shepherd

and in turn,

they impart that to others.

And that is why

it's so important

to have spiritual mothers

in your life.

So today I'm talking

about the good shepherd.

God is the true shepherd

and we are to shepherd others

from his example.

So what does shepherd mean?

The Bible mentions shepherds

and their shepherding

over 200 times.

However,

the Hebrew word

for shepherding

is often translated

as feeding.

Shepherds lead to pasture

and water

and protect them

from wild animals.

Shepherds guarded

their flocks at night,

whether in the open

or in the sheepfolds,

where they counted the sheep

as they entered

and they took care

of the sheep

and even carried

the weak lambs

in their arms.

So today I want to share

about Jesus,

the good shepherd,

as part of the good news

of the gospel.

In Psalm 23,

it describes the Lord

as our shepherd

and what he has

for each one of us

who come to him.

So what does a shepherd

look like

when we let him shepherd us?

The Lord is my shepherd,

I lack nothing.

He makes me lie down

in green pastures.

He leads me

to quiet waters.

He refreshes my soul.

He guides me.

He's always with me.

And even when I walk

through the valley,

he prepares a table

before my enemies.

He anoints my head

with oil.

My cup overflows.

His goodness and love

follow me forever.

We all have access

to these promises

and it's such a beautiful

invitation for us

to put our trust in him,

to rest and be refreshed,

to see his goodness

overflow in our lives.

The promise of a feast

and abundance

in the presence

of our enemies

and to let him be

the shepherd

in our lives.

In this scripture,

there's so much depth

to uncover.

When David wrote this,

it shows his trust

in the Lord,

his shepherd.

He knew that the Lord

would take care of him,

not only to a place

of comfort and peace,

to not only protect him

in times of trouble

and provide him food

in hard times

in the presence

of his enemies,

but also to provide him

with the nourishment

necessary for his life's purpose.

David knew and trusted

his shepherd

and the shepherd

provides nourishment

for all of our callings too.

What he has for you

will sustain you

like nothing else.

So turn your eyes

back to him

and then the fruit

of your life

will nourish others.

Mothers are a great example

of shepherds

in our lives.

These attributes of Jesus

are also seen

through mothers

in how mothers give,

in how they feed

and provide

and how they guide

and encourage,

how they protect,

how they empower

and how they care

for those in their flock

and how they sacrifice

and many more.

These attributes

are all a reflection

of Jesus,

the good shepherd.

If we look at another passage

in John,

John 10,

it says,

I'm the gatekeeper.

Whoever enters through me

will be saved.

They will come in

and go out

and find pasture.

And it says,

the thief comes only

to steal,

kill and destroy.

I have come

that they may have life

and life to the full.

So the thief

that's referring to someone

who enters a sheep hen

without going

through the gatekeepers.

So the characteristics

of the thief,

the thief wants to deceive

and the only motive

is to scatter

and destroy

and to kill

and to bring disunity

amongst the sheep

to lead them away

from their shepherd.

So that's why

it's so important

that you know

the shepherd for yourself.

And the only way

to the father

is through the gatekeeper,

which is Jesus.

And then it says,

so it says,

I have come

that you may have life

and life to the full.

So Jesus came

so that we can live life

to the full

under the good shepherd.

And finally,

it says,

I'm the good shepherd.

I know my sheep

and they know me

in the same way

the father's known me

and I know the father.

Jesus,

the good shepherd,

knows his sheep.

He knows every single one of them.

He calls every single one of them

by name

and he knows you

and every single detail

about you.

And a mother knows

their child's voice

and can recognize it

when they hear them.

And a child knows

their mother's voice.

A mother's voice

is one of the first recognitions,

a sound that a baby hears

when inside the womb.

So our roles as mums

or as any of us

as spiritual parents

from all generations

are to know the shepherd

and then to show the shepherd

through how we live

and lead others.

Being the shepherd's voice

for the next generation,

to speak the voice of Jesus

so that all of our children

and our spiritual children

are being led,

nurtured

and encouraged

by the good shepherd.

To know

and to show

the good shepherd.

Jesus always puts

his sheep before himself

and he's always

about the one.

As in the parable

about the lost sheep,

his heart is to gather

and Jesus shows his life

a sacrifice

as how he laid down

his own life

out of his free will

and walking in the authority

that was given to him

by his father.

So Jesus is the good shepherd.

His attributes

as the good shepherd

are faithfulness,

compassion,

guidance

and protection.

And we can also see

these attributes

through mothers.

As you follow the shepherd,

his character,

his attributes

flow through your life.

So my prayer for us all

is that we let the shepherd lead us.

Let him lead us

beside still waters.

Let him take us

to the oasis of peace

and let him bring nourishment

to our life's calling.

Let him uplift,

encourage and enlighten us

in truth

of your true identity

and that you know

that you belong to him.

Let him call out

the gold in you

so that you can call it out

in the next generation

and in others.

Let him guide

and empower you

to impart wisdom

to love

and to shepherd you

and freely you receive

and freely you give.

And I pray that you will

lean into the good shepherd

so that as you receive him

it will overflow

out of your life

and impact

on those around you.

And I pray that we all

take that responsibility

to shepherd others,

that you can lead them

to green pastures

and to the living water

and that you can help

gather his sheep

to nurture,

to care

and to impart

and to speak wise words

that build up

and edify people

and that bring out life.

So as a mother,

a spiritual mother,

as a son or a daughter,

as a child of God,

the Father's desire

is for all of us

to know him

and to know his voice.

My favourite verse

in the psalm is

surely your goodness

and unfailing love

will pursue me

all the days of my life

and I will live

in the house of the Lord.

That however far off I go,

he's constantly pursuing me

and he's not going

to give up on me

and he's not giving up

on you too.

And when we die,

our lives will be even better

because we get to spend

eternity with God.

Psalm 23 reminds us

that no matter

what we are going through,

that we're not alone

in the very difficult trials

that come along.

I don't know about you,

but last year,

I couldn't wait

for 2020 to be over.

But this year,

even though,

thank goodness,

most people have been vaccinated,

although numbers are rising,

most people are not

being really ill.

There's still a lot

of scary stuff

going on in the world,

especially what's happening

with Ukraine and Russia

and things that we're also,

that we're personally

worried about.

This psalm can also

help us to recall

that however fearful

or worried we are

right now,

there are many others

who find themselves

in much greater peril

through no fault

of their own.

So finally,

recognizing that

he knows you

and he knows your voice,

he has given you

that voice.

And when you know Jesus,

then you know the Father,

the Lord,

our Shepherd.

Jesus is the perfect

representation of the Father.

And when you see Jesus,

you will see the Father.

Amen.