Mrs. Beverley Wells
Good day, my sweet friend. As you read this article, I pray that you are having a great day in the Lord. As we approach another Mother’s Day, my thoughts have been going back to a story in the Old Testament focusing on Moses and his sweet mother Jocabed-the setting being one of a political reign, worldly culture, and a great time of despair. Sounds somewhat familiar to the days that we are living in.
As we read the story of Moses and the detailed watch care of his mother during his early years of life, there is hope of God‘s protecting hand on our very own children. No doubt when she knew that she was expecting another child, a precious gift from God, Pharaoh was already extracting tiny little lives in his anticipation to annihilate the small children that he suspected would seek his throne. What fear she must have had knowing that her child’s life was in great danger.
With that being said, we must realize that there is one looking to extract our small children from us and the truth of the gospel.
Jocabed gives us a great example of the responsibilities of being a mother. As she heard the screams of many mothers around her, as they cried out in desperation, pleading for the life of their children, she was doing her best to keep Moses hidden from the evil influences that were seeking to destroy him. How she did this is beyond my comprehension. How do you keep an infant from crying? If you have had a newborn, then you know what I am talking about. They cry in the midnight hours when all around is quiet and sleeping. They cry when they are hungry, when they are wet, and sometimes for no reason at all. She kept him quiet for three months. This had to be God!
I imagine during her nine months of pregnancy, she was devising a plan of how to protect her son, giving great attention to the preparations that were needed ahead.
If you are a young mother with small children, have you made it a point to devise a plan of protection for your children? This is so crucial for their future to protect them from the dangers that lie ahead. Be their shield, guard, and defender! They are not yet equipped for the battle. They cannot see the enemy before them. They do not have the strength to defend themselves.
Prepare the way! Pray for them! Position them in the way! Place them in His care!
The task was not easy, but she knew there was a greater purpose. She had a vision for him. The perfect plan was to weave a basket and to cover it in slime and pitch (tarlike substance) that would be waterproof. She placed growing Moses in it and sent him out into the elements
of the world. She had been very thorough in her preparations.
Perhaps putting it through tests to make sure the job was complete. We don’t know if she had to make several baskets until she made the perfect one or not. Her careful attention to details was also observed by Miriam (Moses' sister) as she was instructed on her part of the plan. Jocabed’s focus did not just include one child but all her children. Each was given instructions to do the job that needed to be done.
How wise were the choices made by Jocabed! Her trust was in the unseen hand of the Lord. Her faith had to be in the God of Israel. Was it easy? Absolutely not!
How sure are we to let go and let God? If we will be as Jocabed, then we too can press on and know that God is in control. We must trust God with the in between parts of the journey. Knowing that this is not to hurt us but to develop us. To experience a Jocabed life, we must walk a life consecrated unto our Lord - obedient to His Word even in the darkest of times.
How interested are we in being used to develop God-honoring children that will walk in His way.
Moses was influenced greatly in his young years and because of his childhood training, he was used mightily. The formative years are of the greatest importance, for it is then that one's character is developed. We as parents have a crucial role during these short years.
How would you like to see your child’s life play out? Successful in Christ or selfish in quest? One can only imagine how everything played out. It was Jocabed that bore the burden of standing post to guard and guide. As she prepared the ark of bulrushes, covering every nook and cranny with slime and pitch, I’m sure you could hear the prayers to Jehovah to protect this goodly child. Jocabed had, without reserve, given him into the hands of her Lord.
We must do the same. Resolve to do all the Word instructs us to do as mothers - dying daily to yourself and allowing Christ to live through us. When we live as Christ, we can step back and let His purpose be fulfilled. Never retreat though the pressures are unbearable. There is strength in the Lord! The rewards are unmeasurable!
Be a Jocabed….
Prepare the way!- Deuteronomy 6:5-9, II Timothy 1:5, Hebrews 11:23-29
Pray for them! -Proverbs 1:7, Matthew 19:14, Isaiah 11:2, II Thessalonians 3:2-3
Position in the way!- Psalms 1:1, Esther 4:14, Daniel 1:8-12, Proverbs 22:6
Post yourself as a guard!- Ezekiel 33, Isaiah 62:6
Place them in His hands!- (Samuel was placed in Gods hands)I Samuel 3:1-10,
Praise Him for His promises! - Psalm 1:1