Whoever said, \u201cMotherhood isn\u2019t for sissies,\u201d got it right!<\/p>\n
Today\u2019s moms have modern conveniences their great-grandmothers never imagined. However, along with the microwave, dishwasher, frost-free refrigerators, self-cleaning ovens and permanent press clothing come a host of responsibilities that make moms busier and more stressed than at any other time in history.<\/p>\n
Today, many mothers not only have to cook the bacon, but also have to bring it home. Most moms work 40+ hours at the shop or office in addition to managing household and caring for a family. Today\u2019s mother keeps the house, cooks the meals, washes the clothes, and takes care of the children. Even if she has a husband who\u2019s willing to help with such tasks, seldom is it an even split.<\/p>\n
The burden doesn\u2019t get any lighter when the typical Mother\u2019s Day church service heaps a big helping of guilt on top of everything else. Proverb 31 is the icing on the cake! You have read the list. The good wife doesn\u2019t just wash the clothes. She buys the wool, weaves the fabric, and makes the fashion-worthy garments with her own two hands\u2014all with a smile on her face. That\u2019s just the beginning. She manages the household, buys, sells, invests, helps the needy, and of course, has dinner ready and waiting for her family. The to-do list never ends. What wife and mother possibly could live up to such a job description?<\/p>\n
Yet that\u2019s how the Proverb 31 woman often is portrayed. However, I think that\u2019s a wrong interpretation of the chapter. Proverb 31 never should be read through the eyes of a demanding husband scolding his wife. \u201cSee, you should be more like this!\u201d It does not represent the announcement of a foolish young groom complaining, \u201cThat\u2019s not the way mom did that,\u201d while his bride tries to approximate the reputation of her mythical always-did-everything-right-mother-in-law. Proverb 31 is not the nightmare of a guilt-ridden overworked mom, ruminating on all the impossible demands life places on her. That\u2019s not what this chapter is about! If it were, it probably wouldn\u2019t belong alongside the counsel of the wise man!<\/p>\n
I suggest we read Proverb 31 through the eyes of Ray Barone after his revealing encounter with wife, Deborah. While the hit sitcom\u2019s last episode aired nearly 10 years ago, \u201cEverybody Loves Raymond\u201d reruns still appear somewhere on cable TV almost every night. In one episode (Season 5, Episode 20), Ray, the always-messing-things-up-at-home sports writer is having a money argument with his stay-at-home wife and mother of three, Deborah.<\/p>\n
Deborah has discovered that Ray lost a large sum of money in a bone-headed business investment without telling her. Ray defends his actions by insisting he shouldn\u2019t have to explain every financial decision to Deborah. She takes exception. So far so good!<\/p>\n
As always, Ray doesn\u2019t know when to keep quiet. \u201cAfter all,\u201d he says, \u201cI am the one making the money! What do you contribute to this household?\u201d<\/p>\n
If that weren\u2019t bad enough, Ray mumbles something about how he probably should start charging her rent. As the words tumble out, Deborah\u2019s eyes get big. If it were a cartoon, you would see steam coming out her ears. The audience gasps. Across the room, Ray\u2019s brother, Robert, has been watching with glee at the unraveling of his brother. At the last comment, Robert heads out the backdoor for cover.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I don\u2019t contribute anything! Is that what you think?\u201d Raymond tries to take back the words. Too late! Everything goes downhill from there.<\/p>\n
Deborah goes on strike. Finally, she offers to assume her duties again, but only if compensated as hired help. Raymond tries to hide his smile as he agrees to the offer. After all, this can\u2019t add up to much. The next day, Deborah presents him with an estimated bill. Cooking, cleaning, childcare, chauffeuring the kids, bookkeeping and household management top the list. The tally covers three pages of the notebook.<\/p>\n
Finally, in exasperation Ray totals the list and the hourly charges. \u201cWhy, that\u2019s more than I make!\u201d he protests. Deborah smiles. Ray frowns. Somewhere Robert laughs. Eventually, Ray understands how much Deborah contributes. He apologizes. They kiss. Everybody lives happily ever after.<\/p>\n
Raymond discovered what Proverb 31:10-31 really means. Many of us should, as well.<\/p>\n
This section of Proverbs is an interesting and easily misunderstood piece of Scripture. It actually forms an acrostic. It doesn\u2019t come out in our English translation, but the 22 verses of this section each begin with a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Verse 10 begins with a word beginning with aleph; verse 11, beth; verse 12, gimmel! All the way through until finally verse 31 begins with the 22nd and final letter! For the ancient Hebrews, this was a poetic way of saying, \u201cI am saying it all! This is it\u2014A to Z! When I am done, there will be nothing more to add!\u201d<\/p>\n
Rather than a to-do list for an already over-stressed mom, Proverb 31 should be read through the eyes of an appreciative husband and family who recognize how much they owe the one who does life\u2019s most important job. It is a thank-you note from Ray Barrone after he has tallied the list of Deborah\u2019s everyday activities.<\/p>\n
The form and content of Proverb 31 underscore the theme. If you tried to put a price tag on the value of good wife and mother, you would conclude with Proverb 31:10, \u201cShe is worth far more than rubies.\u201d If you tallied everything in detail a mother does in a day, week or month, it would read similarly to the exhaustive list in Proverb 31. The wise advice after such a discovery would be Proverb 31:28, \u201cHer children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her.\u201d The bottom line would read as Proverb 31:31, \u201cGive her the reward she has earned.\u201d<\/p>\n
Christian writer Tony Campolo said in The Power Delusion<\/em>, \u201cToo many times women are made to feel that they should apologize for being mothers and housewives. In reality, such roles can be noble callings. When I was on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, there were gatherings from time to time to which faculty members brought their spouses. Inevitably, some woman lawyer or sociologist would confront my wife with the question, \u2018And what is it that you do, my dear?\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cMy wife, who is one of the most brilliantly articulate individuals I know, had a great response: \u2018I am socializing two Homo sapiens in the dominant values of the Judeo-Christian tradition in order that they might be instruments for the transformation of the social order into the teleologically prescribed utopia inherent in the eschaton.\u2019 When she followed that with, \u2018And what is it that you do?\u2019 they would often blurt out, \u2018I\u2019m a doctor,\u2019 or, \u2018I\u2019m a lawyer,\u2019 and then wander off with a dazed look in their eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n Mothers do the most important job in the world. Their work is the most valuable imaginable. The same tribute also should extend to ladies who never may have had a child of their own, but have devoted hours and years helping care for and teach the young born by others. Caring for a family and raising children and grandchildren is the noblest calling in the world.<\/p>\n The job description may seem overwhelming, but it never should be underappreciated.<\/p>\n Will Thomas is a retired teacher and freelance writer living in Darien, Illinois.<\/em><\/p>\n Whoever said, \u201cMotherhood isn\u2019t for sissies,\u201d got it right! Today\u2019s moms have modern conveniences their great-grandmothers never imagined. However, along with the microwave, dishwasher, frost-free refrigerators, self-cleaning ovens and permanent press clothing come a host of responsibilities that make moms busier and more stressed than at any other time in history. Today, many mothers not … Continue reading “Raymond Meets Proverbs 31: Preaching on Mother’s Day”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33684","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33684"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33684\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33684"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33684"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33684"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}