By Pastor Luis Rodriguez
“And she said, “Oh my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to him. Therefore I have lent him to the Lord. As long as he lives, he is lent to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.” 1 Samuel 1:26-28
As we prepare to celebrate Mother’s Day this weekend, I think especially of my mom. This is the first year that I won’t be celebrating Mother’s Day with her, as we no longer live in the same city.
Thinking of my mother makes me think of Hanna, the mother of Samuel. Hannah prayed to the Lord for a son, and my mother prayed for a son. Though my mother’s prayer was answered differently from Hanna’s prayer, because my parents adopted me when I was born. As a matter of fact, my biological mother lived with my parents while pregnant with me, and once I was born, she gave me to my parents. I know that the Lord put me in her care, picked her particularly to be my mother and placed me in a family where I would be loved.
I am grateful for having her as in my life, I am grateful that God gave her to me as my mom. I am so proud of my mom, because after my father passed away when I was eight years old, she did everything in her power to provide for me, to raise me, and to deal with the growing pains of a teenage boy. Even though we did not have much, she always supported me in sports and school, she worked extra shifts and made sacrifices to be able to get what we needed for me to travel to the many soccer tournaments that I had the opportunity to participate in. She always told me to work hard, and to always trust in God. Even through my rebellious stage, she had patience and love for me, and for that I am forever grateful.
I know we all love our mothers, and we may all say that there is no one like her. On Sunday let us celebrate with our moms, if they are still with us, let’s enjoy a good time with them, if they are far away, let’s give them a call and tell them how much we love them, and if our mothers have passed on, let us remember them, and as we reflect on this Mother’s Day weekend let’s be thankful that we had a mother that loved us. We may not know it or realize that we are an answer prayer for these wonderful people.
Hanna prayed for the blessing of a son, and when her prayer was answered she dedicated her son to the Lord. This Sunday, and my prayer for this week is that we thank God for our moms, let us celebrate them, and remember the great blessing they have been in our lives. To my mom, gracias por ser mi mamá y amarme como tu hijo y por darme una familia a la que pertenecer. (Thank you for being my mom and loving me as your son and for giving me a family to belong to).