1) IMPORTANCE OF MOTHERS IN FULFILLING THE DESTINY OF THEIR CHILDREN When God finally decided to come to earth in the form of a human being to save us, He went first to the woman in the marriage (Mary) who was going to become the physical channel for Jesus to enter the world. "Near the Cross of Jesus was His mother" (St. John 19:25). How and why did His mother stand by the Cross so boldly while even His disciples, including Peter, had run away and hidden because of fear? Where were the brothers and sisters and other family members of Jesus? Only a mother such as Mary would be fully convinced of her Son hanging on that Cross, as to who He really was.
Women should know the importance of their exclusive value to families and in society, and allow their convictions to become irreversible regarding their destiny as women and mothers, and the specific destiny plus continual love and care for their children. Any woman, who has spent time to wait upon God in prayer and scripture meditation along with obedience, should stand firm by her convictions, and engage in courageous, focused, and consistent pursuit of her God-given vision for her singleness (as she waits for God’s timing and choice of the best mate), or her courtship, marriage, children and entire family.
No common or unexpected trials or problems (not even crucifixion on a Cross) should deter and disappoint any woman, or deceive and distract her to compromise her Godly and principled standards. Men and fathers should understand that specific God-given role of women and mothers who go through those 9 tasking months of pregnancy, excruciating labor, and childcare, and make every effort to give women all the support they need from men, especially husbands and fathers, for the development, productivity, and success of society.
2) IMPORTANCE OF INTIMATE PARENTAL RELATIONS Many parents (biological or step-parents) do not have real dependable and intimate relationship with their children. Some children do not even know where their parents are hiding. Sometimes the children also create problems with rebellion, sinful lifestyles, shirking of responsibility, secrecy, and running away from home, and therefore make parenting feel like a project in hell for many parents. Jesus never forgot His mother even in death, and made provision for her upkeep (St. John 19:26, 27).
It shows the strong loving relationship between mother and child. If you make time for God to speak with you, and make time to ponder quietly on God's dealings with you (as Mary did), God will never abandon you, and your child will never forget you, even when he or she is dying. It is also never an excuse to neglect your mother or any parent (or guardian) by using any trials and problems as excuse. Jesus did not use the Cross as excuse to neglect His mother.
Are your problems the most severe among your peers in your country or overseas to become tangible excuses for your silence regarding spiritual, social, and physical needs? Even if you are being crucified where you are, you will not be excused by God and man. There is always something you can do. Even a phone call, text message, facebook message, a sentence of e-mail, a prayer, loving greetings, a card, simple gift etc. can be used by God to cheer someone up, meet a need, and turn a situation around.
3) JESUS ENTRUSTED THE CARE OF HIS MOTHER TO HIS DISCIPLE JOHN FOR A REASON AND A PURPOSE Although John was single, Jesus entrusted the care of His mother into the hands of John. He could not even give His mother to his brothers and sisters (who were then Unbelievers) or to Peter who was married (who was then spiritually unstable and was far away from Jesus, denying Him). John was described as "the disciple Jesus loved" (St. John 13:23), and was very close to the Cross as well during the crucifixion of Jesus. In the same way, the Lord will also entrust precious things into the hands of those who have clearly established a love relationship with Him (not just following Him or observing traditions), and who decide to walk closely with Him, no matter the circumstances.
Can you imagine the gossip around town, mixed with some envy and malice in the hearts of some family members and friends when they heard that unmarried disciple John had taken the middle-aged woman Mary to his home? Dirty-minded folk would even “wonder what must have been going on between them in that house”. Peter was older than John, and is often regarded by many as the leader of the 12 Disciples, but we learn that God could bypass a leader who is not prepared and close enough to the Lord at a particular time, and rather entrust important things to the younger more faithful member of the group, organization, workplace, institution, church, family, or community.
4) HEAVEN (GOD) IS THE SOURCE OF ALL GENUINE POWER These are days when people are seeking after all kinds of power and miracles to satisfy their desires, but the devil also has several of his counterfeit powers in operation. If, during His trial, Jesus declared to Pilate that "he could have no power at all against Him unless power were given him from above" (St. John 19:11), how could any of us expect to receive any form of genuine power from any other source? Or who would think that any power (to even breathe, eat, use our emotions, exercise talents and gifts, make plans, do our job, receive favor, obtain any form of results etc.) comes from any human effort, or is generated from other forms of spiritual sources that God has not allowed or given?
We should always carefully check the kind of faith, Biblical source, level of obedience, holy living, honesty, and the private lifestyle of any religious person, prophet, pastor, leader, miracle worker, man or woman of God, and person promising to give us solutions to our spiritual and social problems. Many false prophets and teachers are running around these days with revelations, miraculous signs, prophesies, strange and contorted ideas, unbiblical instructions, weird practices, and gargantuan promises for prosperity, all of which are fake and usually satanic-inspired. Satan works miracles too. Watch out carefully!
(5) GOD ALWAYS PROVIDES CLEAR EVIDENCE God made sure that the women who first went to the tomb of Christ after His resurrection could see the inside of the tomb in order to obtain evidence of His resurrection. God will always ensure that He gives you every opportunity to see anything He really wants you to see. If you miss it, then it is your fault. The women were worried (probably throughout the night) as to who would roll away that huge stone at the entrance of the tomb for them, but when they looked, the stone was already rolled away (Mark 16:3, 4). We are told "the stone was VERY GREAT".
Does any obstacle appear VERY GREAT in your life at any time? Most of what we are always afraid of (when doing God's will) never really occurs. Our fears and worries often stem from disobedience, lack of trust in God's promises, poor preparations, procrastination, pride (lack of humility) that robs us of God's grace for accomplishments, our inability to forgive ourselves for past offences, and doubts concerning God's perfect will in specific situations. We waste our minds and emotions in needless worry, fear, anger, and anxiety, and get stomach ulcers and wrecked nerves from imaginary problems that never materialize.
Sometimes we even prophesy the problems into place in our education plans, career pursuits, singleness, dating, marriage issues, waiting for someone to fall in love with us and sincerely marry us, choice of right mate (confused in saying yes to a proposal or selecting one among multiple proposals, or difficulty in choosing one out of many ladies we like).
Some of us pronounce negative outcomes that open wide doors of spiritual and human attacks on our courtships, marriages, parenting, in-law relations, ministries, church matters, professions, businesses, investments, acquisition of property, construction and accommodation plans, obtaining travel or immigration documents, safety at new locations, political matters, and national affairs etc.
If God has promised to resurrect and give life to anything, He will by all means cause it to finally happen. ”Do not fret – it only causes harm (only leads to evil)” -- Psalm 37:8. “From eternity I am He. None can deliver out of My Hands. I work, and who can hinder (stop) Me?” (Isaiah 43:13). Learn to rest your heart, faith, accomplishments, singleness, courtship, marriage issues, parenting, family life, education, career, finances, investments, business, health, ministry, position of authority, and all hopes in God’s love, His divine integrity, God’s mighty power, and His unfailing promises.
(6) THERE IS TREMENDOUS SPIRITUAL POWER IN THE BLOOD OF JESUS Jesus bled from 7 areas of his body to take care of the 7 major areas (sources) of our sins and problems. He bled from: 1. His Head --- to take care of the sins of our minds; 2. His side (near his heart) --- to take care of the sins of our hearts; 3. His Right Hand --- to take care of the sins committed with our right hands (representing our strengths and human power plus gifts, positions of trust, favors, riches, and endowments); 4. His Left Hand --- sins committed with our left hands (where are weaknesses, deficiencies, and enemies are); 5. His Right Foot --- to take care of the sins committed with our right feet (where more strength resides for kicking, rushing, refusing to move and act, and going to places to do evil); 6. His Left Foot --- to take care of sins committed by our feet in places where we are too weak to run away from temptations, procrastinate, and refuse to go and do what is right); 7. His Back --- to take care of the sins we commit by turning our back on people, backbiting, stabbing people behind them, and refusing to turn and look at the poor and needy in order to care for people’s needs. It also took care of the hidden troubles and attacks that pounce on us from behind that we don’t see because of our spiritual blindness and lack of wisdom and insight. The Body of Jesus therefore took care of all of our sins, weaknesses, and needs!
7) IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER The first thing Jesus did on the cross was to pray. "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). That prayer really stabilized Him. Remember that Jesus was fully human and fully God. Otherwise he could have run into trouble with is endurance capabilities, and reactions towards the vexation thrown at Him with nonsensical mockery by people expected to know God. Out of His 7 phrases on the Cross, at least 4 of them were prayers.
Jesus set us the example that the FIRST THING to do when any trouble erupts or any crisis arises is to PRAY. The first thing to do is not to allow panic to grip you (although natural fear will set in), and get on the phone or walk to someone to complain, lean on a confidant, yell for everyone to hear your plight, start blaming people, make yourself miserable and tell everyone in order to canvass for human sympathy instead of God’s comfort etc., and not even to run to your special counselor. TELL GOD FIRST, for Him to be primarily in charge. Distinguish between God-directed and wise support, versus immature or carnal human dependence, or self-pity.
Apart from personal prayer, try not to keep special problems or emergencies to yourself out of your own pride and secrecy when that situation needs corporate prayer and united support of true Believers and genuine lovers who look out for your welfare.
The prayer of Jesus on the cross had its roots in the preparatory prayers in Gethsemane. If you have not prepared yourself with prayer in the morning or prayed before getting to where you are in any situation, then it becomes more difficult to engage in any prayer when problems suddenly confronts you, or if things intensify.
Some versions of the Bible tell us in Luke 23:34 that "Jesus was saying Father forgive them, for they know not what they do", implying that all along while He carried the Cross, and they drove the nails into His hands etc., Jesus was saying that prayer within Himself. That made it easier for him to finally utter it on the Cross at the climax of His suffering, instead of cursing or complaining.
I always told my children before they went off to school: "Whenever there is trouble, please do not rush to call me first, but immediately call God first before calling me, even if all you have to do is to call Jesus and shout your prayer as "JEEEESUUUUS!". After that then call me. Because if I am there with you and Jesus is not there it is worse, than if I am not with you but Jesus is there with you."
No matter your situation today, Jesus took care of every human need on the cross and declared; "It is finished!" (St. John 19:30). Let us take it all by faith. Your faith must be rooted in God's word. But first ensure that you have given your heart to Jesus by faith, asked Him to wash all of your sins in His Blood, and accepted him into your soul as your Savior and Lord.
Then grow in Christ by meditating on some scripture daily, accompanied by prayers to God the Father through Christ. If you are already a Christian, then draw closer to the Lord in deeper COMMITMENT with consistent Bible study and fervent PRAYERS OF FAITH, plus diligent efforts to live in HUMILITY, OBEDIENCE to the end, and HOLINESS, in order to derive all the benefits of God's grace through what Jesus accomplished for you. This is what Jesus did, and made God exalt Him highly – “He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a Cross” (Phil. 4:5-11).
Learn to thank God daily for his mercies and provisions, and develop a heart of gratitude for what you have now, as you patiently wait for the rest of your blessings from the Lord. Beware of ungratefulness, pride, anger, quarrels, grumbling, doubts, envy, jealousy, wrong utterances, gossip, backbiting, spirit of un-forgiveness, prejudice, doubts, worry, lust, immorality, pornography (and indecent practices especially in secret), wasting of resources, laziness, prayerlessness, selfishness, unnecessary fear, and occult practices. These and other associated habits, become huge barriers to the flow of God's grace and blessings in your life.
May the Blood of Jesus wash us; may His stripes and wounds heal us; may His betrayal and trial take care of our betrayals, disappointments, false accusations, and misinterpretations; may His Cross infuse hope and joy into us and give us meaning for all of our trials and suffering; may His broken Body mend and heal all of our brokenness; and may His resurrection power give life to all that is dead or trying to die in our lives.
ENJOY A FRUITFUL, MEANINGFUL, HAPPY, AND JOYFUL LIFE FOR THE WEEKS AND MONTHS AFTER THE EASTER CELEBRATIONS ARE OVER! By Dr. Samuel Kisseadoo. E-mail: kisseadoo@msn.com. Website for resources: www.fruitfulministriesint.com.
