Traditionally, Mother’s Day was known as Mothering Sunday, and was a day when children, mainly daughters, who had gone to work as domestic servants were given a day off to visit their mother and family. Now, although still remembered, it is often a day when we think of all ladies, and especially those who are dear to us and who have loved and cared for us.
This last week I was looking through a book of mine called ‘Bursting at the Seams’, A wealth of wit and wisdom, by, for and about women, collated by Killy John and Alie Stibbe, Monarch Books. I would like to share the following extract with you, entitled, ‘And God made woman…’
By the time the Lord made woman, he was into his sixth day of working overtime. An angel appeared and said, “Why are you spending so much time on this one?”
And the Lord answered and said, “Have you seen the specification sheet on her? She must be completely washable, but not plastic, have 200 moveable parts, all replaceable, run on black coffee and leftovers, have a lap that can hold three children at one time, have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken heart, and have six pairs of hands.”
The angel tried to stop the Lord. “This is too much work for one day. Wait until tomorrow to finish.”
“But I can’t!” the Lord protested. “I am so near to finishing this creation that is so close to my heart. She already heals herself when she is sick and can work 18-hour days.”
The angel moved closer and touched the woman. “But you have made her so soft, Lord.”
“She is soft,” the Lord agreed, “but I have also made her tough. You have no idea what she can endure or accomplish.”
“Will she be able to think?” asked the angel. The Lord replied, “Not only will she be able to think, but she will also be able to reason, and negotiate.”
The angel then noticed something and touched the woman’s cheek. “Oops, it looks like you have a leak with this model. I told you that you were trying to put too much into this one.”
“That is not a leak,” the Lord objected, “that’s a tear!”
“What’s the tear for?” the angel asked.
The Lord said, “the tear is her way of expressing her joy, her sorrow, her pain, her disappointments, her loneliness, her grief, and her pride.”
The angel was impressed. “You are a genius, Lord. You thought of everything. A woman is indeed marvellous!”
The Lord said, “Indeed she is. She has strength that amazes a man. She can handle trouble and carry heavy burdens. She holds happiness, love and opinions. She smiles when she feels like screaming. She sings when she feels like crying. Cries when happy and laughs when afraid. She fights for what she believes in. Her love is unconditional. Her heart is broken when a loved one dies, yet she finds strength to get on with her life.” The angel asked: “So she is a perfect being?”
The Lord replied, “No, she has just one drawback… She often forgets what she is worth.”
I’m sure at times it is not just women who forget how valuable they are, but also men. When God first created male and female they were made perfect. They were the climax to God’s wonderful world. After creating the heavens and the earth, light and darkness, Day and Night, the waters and land, grass, herbs and fruit, the Sun, moon and stars, God then made the fishes in the sea, the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. Everything was good. God was pleased with his handiwork. Finally God said, “Let us make man in our image” and so he did. In Genesis Ch. 2 v 18 we read the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the Man should be alone; I will make him a helper, a companion’. So God put the man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken from the Man, Adam, to make Woman, Eve.
It is interesting to note that God had created Adam from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. But he made Eve from existing tissue and did not ‘start from scratch’ again. This shows that Adam and Eve were made of the same substance; she was made from the same stuff. Eve was a companion for Adam, formed from the physical part of Adam, she was truly his complement, an integral part of who he was, therefore a perfect companion for him. By taking a rib from Adam it is a reminder that woman was created to be ‘beside’ man. Not above him or below him, but equal to him.
In God’s eyes we are all special and of worth to him. We fail and mess up, just as the first man and woman did, but when we turn to God and repent, and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, God forgives us and our relationship with him is restored.
God bless
Eileen
18.3.23