1. Mothers in the Bible...
Her husband lacks nothing
She makes clothes
She does all the shopping
She gets up very early to get the food ready (and to organise the servants)
She is shrewd in business
Her arms are strong and she works vigorously
She supports the poor and needy
She is fashionably and richly dressed
She speaks with wisdom
her children are all perfect and respect her
Are you sick yet?

2. That’s all in Proverbs 31 But also...
Jochebed
Mother of Moses (we learn incidentally in Ex 6:20)
Heartache in the face of terrorism
Giving a child up to save his life
Part of a suffering slave people
Rebekah
Mother of twins Esau and Jacob
Favouritism in a dysfuntional family
Lack of wisdom

3. Salome – mother James and John
Ambitious for them
But vital that they were part of God’s kingdom
but didn’t understand the nature of that kingdom
Eunice and Lois
Marriage across cultures
Her children (Timothy) not regarded as properly Jewish
Role played by Lois (grandparent)

4. All of these were very conscious of a wider family of believers
We need more than a ‘nuclear family’
How can we model this as a church, to people who are pressured on all sides?
How can the wisdom of the older be valued?
What can we do to value those for whom ‘Mothering Sunday’ is a difficult time?