I’m thinking of some women that I know, some are mothers, all are daughters, some have become grandmothers, even great-grandmothers. Speaking as a woman who is spending this Mother’s Day with one of two sons and apart from my own mother, and thinking of the various situations that we women find ourselves in, I would be inclined to entitle this post Emotion. But this is Sunday, the eighth Sunday since we’ve been in stay-at-home mode, Mother’s Day Sunday, so Pray 8 it is.
An old hymn, a favorite of mine from childhood, came to mind as I thought about the love of and for mothers. Maybe you remember singing For The Beauty of The Earth, too. This is a prayer, a song of grateful praise. Here are the first and third verses.
For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth, Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to Thee we raise, This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the wonder of each hour Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower, Sun and moon, and stars of light,
Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human love, Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above; For all gentle thoughts and mild,
Lord of all, to Thee we raise,This our hymn of grateful praise.
Heavenly Father, we do offer you grateful praise for your creation, the earth, skies, trees and flowers that proclaim your glory, and today, in particular, for the joy of human love. On this Mother’s Day, we give you thanks for our mothers, for all that they have sacrificed for us, for their support throughout our lives, for all that they have taught us.
Some of us have had to say good bye to our mothers. We pray for those who are grieving. Some have been unable to visit in person, to look into her eyes and give a hug. We thank you for the challenge of finding new and meaningful ways to honor our mothers from a distance.
Lord, we pray for young moms, some with newborn babies, some with several little ones, asking you to bless and protect them and to give strength to the women who have been called upon to school their kids at home.
Lord, we pray for lonely, isolated, or worried mothers, especially for those who are hospitalized or living in care facilities. We pray that soon it will safe for family members to visit and that you will give them peace today.
Lord, we know that there are proud mothers who have worked alongside their children for many years, looking forward to school graduation or wedding days. We pray that the celebrations will be sweet and special, though not as expected.
Most of all, God, we praise and thank you for Your love that gives us life and invites us into your family to be sons and daughters and co-heirs with Jesus. May your Holy Spirit show us the way.
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Composer John Rutter arranged a gorgeous melodic arrangement for choir some years ago, one that I first heard performed at the church camp my son Eric was attending. You will be blessed by this choir and orchestra’s performance: For the Beauty of the Earth