Sunday Stretch: Mother's Day 2025
Start off your week with a grounded take on Bible, prayer, the world, and your life ...
Hi Readers,
Well, I said the below last year - but what do you know - it’s true again this year!
(And - I’m currently recuperating from a nasty upper respiratory virus/infection - so send some prayers for clear lungs + quick healing when you get a chance. Thank you!)
Mother’s Day came fast this year! I’ve been a mom for 13 years now (if you count the time I was pregnant with my first) and that old adage of long days, short years, just gets more and more true all the time.
And isn’t it fitting that Mother’s Day, for so many of us mothers, is not only a celebration of ourselves but a time to share that celebration with our own mothers, or to grieve their loss. It gets kind of complicated kind of quickly, huh?
I took some time last year to talk a bit about the layers of feelings people often bring to Mother’s Day, especially in the church, and I got the chance to lift up some really powerful Motherly Images of God. So today, in a break from our regularly scheduled Lectionary texts, I want to share that content with you again:
I mean, isn’t that just the BEST image to shake up your flowers and frilly dresses on Mother’s Day?! I’ll also reproduce the Biblical texts here below:
Happy Mother’s Day from the Bible!
Biblical Images of a Mothering God
Isaiah 49:14-15
Is. 49:14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me,
my Lord has forgotten me.”
15 Can a woman forget her nursing child,
or show no compassion for the child of her womb?
Even these may forget,
yet I will not forget you.
Isaiah 66:12-13
Is. 66:12 For thus says the LORD:
I will extend prosperity to her like a river,
and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream;
and you shall nurse and be carried on her arm,
and dandled on her knees.
13 As a mother comforts her child,
so I will comfort you;
you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
Hosea 13:8
I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs,
and will tear open the covering of their heart;
there I will devour them like a lion,
as a wild animal would mangle them.
Isaiah 42:14
Is. 42:14 For a long time I have held my peace,
I have kept still and restrained myself;
now I will cry out like a woman in labor,
I will gasp and pant.
Reading these passages, I can’t help but think of the more popular modern-day American Christians conceptions of womanhood. The “Live, Laugh, Love” ethos. The “Proverbs 31 woman.” Purity culture. Submission. Abuse.
But these images of God from the prophets are very different. They lift up feminine, mothering strength as being an attribute of God, godself! They honor the power of women and of motherhood. They strike against a hierarchical, New Testament understanding of complementarianism, where women are held to be submissive to men. And these texts are from the Bible, too, and every bit as important as Paul’s letters to understanding who God is, and who God calls us to be as human beings, of all genders.
PRAYER
However you’re taking in Mother’s Day today - and whoever you are - know that you are exactly who God created you to be, and God is at work in you.
As promised, here is a special prayer for Mother’s Day adapted by Heidi Carrington Heath and originally written by Amy Young, shared with me by my colleague pastor and friend, Natalia Terfa.
I want you to know I'm praying for you if you are like Tamar, struggling with infertility, or a miscarriage.
I want you to know that I'm praying for you if you are like Rachel, counting the women among your family and friends who year by year and month by month get pregnant, while you wait.
I want you to know I'm praying for you if you are like Naomi, and have known the bitter sting of a child's death.
I want you to know I am praying for you if you are like Joseph and Benjamin, and your Mom has died.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if your relationship with your Mom was marked by trauma, abuse, or abandonment, or she just couldn't parent you the way you needed.
I want you to know I am praying for you if you've been like Moses' mother and put a child up for adoption, trusting another family to love your child into adulthood.
I want you to know I am praying for you if you've been like Pharaoh's daughter, called to love children who are not yours by birth (and thus the mother who brought that child into your life, even if it is complicated).
I want you to know I am praying for you if you, like many, are watching (or have watched) your mother age, and disappear into the long goodbye of dementia or Alzheimers.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if you, like Mary, are pregnant for the very first time and waiting breathlessly for the miracle of your first child.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if your children have turned away from you, painfully closing the door on the relationship, leaving you holding your broken heart in your hands. And like Hagar, now you are mothering alone.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if motherhood is your greatest joy and toughest struggle all rolled into one.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if you are watching your child battle substance abuse, a public legal situation, mental illness, or another situation which you can merely watch unfold.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if you like so many women before you do not wish to be a mother, are not married, or in so many other ways do not fit into societal norms.
I want you to know that I am praying for you if you see yourself reflected in all, or none of these stories.
This mother's day, wherever and whoever you are, we walk with you. You are loved. You are seen. You are worthy.
And may you know the deep love without end of our big, wild, beautiful God who is the very best example of a parent that we know.
Amen.
**This has been a special FREE edition of the Sunday Stretch for Mother’s Day, because I want everyone to have access to these amazing images of a mothering God, as well as to share the prayer above. Typically, the Sunday Stretch is only available for paid subscribers. Subscribe below to receive it in your inbox each Sunday morning, and thank you to those of you who are already a part of this community! May God bless your day today, all of you.**
An Invitation
A Community that prays for one another is transformed by the power of the Spirit. We’ve been praying for and with each other now for over two years! About once a quarter, I will re-start this space for prayer requests and praises. Please email with your own requests and I will share here with your permission!
Today is the fourth Sunday of Easter. We re-started prayer requests on Easter 2. Please do send your requests to add here to the list!
For all in local faith communities: ministers, music leaders, staff, volunteers, all who prepared to acknowledge Holy Week and Easter with worship and service, might you give them strength and rest and assurance this week, that they are doing the work you call them to do. Give them space as well to rest and give thanks for the gifts of this season.
Thank you for the blessings and support I’ve received as I have launched my new book and traveled to speak again. Please continue to expand this community of listening, understanding, and inspiration - and may my words be received with open hearts and new questions and opportunities for growth.
For all impacted across the U.S. and the world by strong spring storms: grant them the assistance and the support they need to repair and rebuild, and provide shelter for all who are experiencing homelessness.
We pray for immigrants, migrants, and all those who are undocumented. May they be given sanctuary and support in America. May our churches find ways to resist the politics of demonization of immigrants.
For all who are seeking community in their neighborhoods and local environs: may we find grassroots ways to be together in person and know one another in love and support.
For American federal government employees: may they continue to do their work with dignity and honesty and without the threat of political retribution. Also for aid workers and organizations who have been threatened and who have lost their funding access: that they may be given pathways forward to continue their work.
For brave faith leaders who dare to speak out against powerful political leaders
As we continue into Spring, we pray with deep sighs for the war and death and violence in the Holy Land. We continue to pray for an end to escalating violence in Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and throughout the Middle East - as well as in Sudan and Yemen. May world leaders prioritize peace over power, and mercy over might. May those who cry out for justice and an end to war be protected and heard.
For all immigrants and migrants around the world, far from home, seeking a new and safe homeland. Might they be embraced where they go, offered assistance and solidarity and friendship.
Be with all American lawmakers in this time of political upheavals and corruption by business leaders and wealthy individuals. Give them courage to speak truth and govern with care for humanity and life.
For so many loved ones of mine who have recently been diagnosed with cancer and are undergoing treatment. May they have caring and high-quality care, rest as needed, and loving support of family and friends.
We also pray for all those who are caring for loved ones who are going through myriad health challenges, including mental health and addiction. Grant them rest and relief in the midst of difficult and tiring times.
For those who continue to live and fight in Ukraine, that the world will not turn away its attention from the plight of Ukrainians and their stand against authoritarian Russia.
For all those who don’t have a safe place to live or enough food to eat, that they might be first and receive what they need.
For all around the world who face persecution for their religious beliefs, especially for religious minorities in places where governments sanction religion-based violence
For Christians to be emboldened to speak out courageously against anti-semitism and to acknowledge how we have been complicit in anti-semitic actions and speech against our Jewish siblings
For governments and leaders to prioritize climate change solutions and not be only ruled by profit or big business
For all those who don’t have a safe and warm place to sleep at night, that they might have shelter, and that people might work for more affordable housing
For journalists, who risk their lives and livelihood to write and report truth - even against the wishes of media ownership and administration
For all the concerns deep on our hearts, that you hear and know and acknowledge, we pray …
In the confidence of Jesus’ resurrection, as we await the leadership of the Holy Spirit, may You give us hope and energy for new life …
In Jesus’ name we pray,
AMEN
P.S. …
A Few Notes:
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Sending the prayer for healing with Thanksgiving for your voice