Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl

Today’s Passage –Matthew 27 – 28 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)

(Second Milers also read – Psalms 76 – 80Proverbs 16

Scripture Memory for October – Matthew 5:1 – 16

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Deuteronomy 32:4

Great article by R. B. Oullette – “The Basis for Biblical Standards”

The Study of Women in the Bible

Two Babies, Two Mothers

“Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him. And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. And this woman’s child died in the night; because she overlaid it. And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear. And the other woman said, Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said, No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the king. Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living. And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it. Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof.” (1Kings 3:16-27)

Wow! What a story. How disconnected the woman must have been who lost her child. She had no regard for the other woman. She had no compassion towards the living child. The baby is only three days old – no big deal. As long as she doesn’t have what I want, I’ll be happy.

One of the most precious things that God gives us is a child. Some couples pray and prepare about having children, while others get surprised. Many don’t even think about the results of their actions, and then use their child as a pawn in their relationship, or worse ‘get rid of them’ before they’re even born. Women prepare for 9 months for the baby’s arrival. The room needs to be ready with furniture and decorations. A name needs to be chosen. I’m sure even the two harlots were excited and prepared for the birth of their babies. There’s usually a baby shower with lots of gifts and excitement. Finally the day comes and the baby is born. Everyone gathers together, fussing over the new arrival. The baby comes home. The sleepless nights come. The changing of the poopy dippers…..

The child is still so cute and cuddly, so all of this inconvenience is overlooked. Now we get to the terrible two’s. Some mothers realize this is the time of intense training. Other moms would like to remove themselves from the responsibility of being a mother. Some just don’t care. For the next 11 years mother and child are going in one of two directions, growing closer or growing apart. By the time they are teens you either have them or you’ve lost them.

At 6 years old “Mommy, I love you”

At 10 years old “ Mom, whatever”

At 16 years old “My Mom is so annoying”

At 18 years old “I want to leave this house”

At 25 years old “I wanna go to Mom’s house”

At 30 years old “I don’t want to lose my Mom”

At 70 years old “I would give up everything for my Mom to be here with me”

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

(Proverbs 22:6)

As a side note, it’s unfortunate that many pre and young teens are not taught the right way about married life and raising children. I’ve heard great preaching on the subject, but it gets me so mad that parents are neglecting that vital area of their responsibility. Just a thought!

You ask, “how can I apply this to my life? I don’t have children or grandchildren. I’m not a harlot.” Or you may think, “my children are grown, I’ve already raised them in the Lord.”  How many times have we heard a mother verbally putting their child down or neglecting them in someway? We say, “I don’t want to interfere, or it’s not my business”.

“The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,” (Titus 2:3-4)

That “aged women” doesn’t only mean old in physical age, but also old in spiritual maturity.

About two months ago, while in Shop Rite, I saw a mother on her cell phone with her 3 children. Two of the children seem to be helping her and the third was in the cart. She looked about 5 years old. She was crying because she wanted to get out to help shop with her brother and sister. The mother backhanded the girl, called her names (cursing), and then went back to texting. I so wanted to say to her how blessed she was that she had children, to help her realize that she could lose them at any moment. I chickened out. While checking out, I notice they were at the next register. The little girl still sitting and crying because she wanted to help, with mom still verbally putting her down. When her mom was paying her bill, I said to the crying girl, “Hey I really like that necklace you have on.” She stopped crying for a brief moment and smiled until mom abruptly say it was time to go. Again, I chickened out about saying to mom how blessed she was. I was so mad at myself, I decided later that day that I would not chicken out again.

It’s just like our story. By not giving kind words (not judgmental), it’s just like being the woman whose child died. We are showing that we don’t care. We get so busy in our lives, that we overlook opportunities to do the work of the Lord.

In closing, if you are guilty in this area – I know I’ve been -pray and ask the Lord to help you. If not, pray and ask the Lord for an opportunity to be a blessing to someone else who may be struggling. You may never know how you’ve touched someone’s life.

Thank You

1 John 5:13 – 14


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Lisa Love
Lisa Love
11 years ago

Wow, thank you for that Mrs. Stahl!

Cindy
Cindy
11 years ago

Children are a beautiful gift from God and I thank Him for lending our four to my husband and I. It does sicken me to watch how some parents treat their kids when there are husbands and wives praying for a chance to have them. I think of my daughter Melissa and her husband Wes who desire to have children but it doesn’t seem to be happening for them right now , but I do know God is in control . Thank you Camille for this post today.

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