Larry Lilly's Journal Harbinger of Destiny in Child/Parental Relationship! Larry Lilly
Deuteronomy 5:16 “Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may be well with you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you.”
Ephesians 6:2 "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise:’
One thing is certain, the Bible lays out the path to peace and happiness for individuals and nations, or if you will, ethnic groups, starting with our first human relationship on earth. The parent/child relationship is designed to inculcate the ability to give and receive love, nurturing, duty, responsibility and loyalty among others.
Another relationship trait to be taught is respect for authority. This is largely by-passed in today’s teaching, yet it is a foundation stone of biblical instruction. The parent, mother and father or either on is the initial authority figure in a person’s life. If the parents or either one reneges on this responsibility, the child/person learns, falsely that life has no authority, that they themselves are a law unto themselves and their only responsibility is to personal fulfillment.
Parental failure to demonstrate and teach obedience and responsibility to children does not spare the children from the pains of an authoritarian world! Parental lessons are much less painful when learned from the father and mother, than when life takes charge! Prisons are tougher than a parent. So is the pain of failed marriage, of failed acceptance of caring for children, leaving them to be fed by grandparents, the neighbors and or the state.
Much of the rebellion against authority, rebellion that is rampant society wide, can rightfully be laid at the feet of parents who abdicated their responsibility, often with the pressure of misguided or willfully ignorant social constructionists who aided and abetted the destruction of the authority chain of the family.
The disenfranchising of the family is a major problem. However, a less than ideal father or mother is no long term excuse once the boy or girl comes to age. At some point, earlier than many think, each person, must as an old mountain saying has it in this ditty, “every tub must sit on its own bottom!”
Tragic is the man or woman who having had “good” parents, decides to do life the way they want, life and parents can go to …
Such men and women are in for many stripes, much sorrow, and as life wanes away, become ate up with grief, and often remorse. The failure of Dad and Mom will not sufficiently suffice when standing before a judge having been found guilty of serious crimes against God and society at large.
Many of the societal problems the Western nations are now facing rest largely on the refusal of parents to exercise legitimate authority, or the refusal of children to obey or both! As a counselor I face grown men and women too often who are in trouble of some kind. I have noted that until they get over blaming Dad and Mom or one of them, I cannot help their troubled soul. No one can. My all-time favorite coach, Vince Lombardi made a statement that if accepted in mind and heart will help any man or woman throw out the blame game, take personal responsibility for their actions and rise from the slime and start really living. Here’s the gem:
“Football is like life - it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.”
Many will suppose they can preach a series of sermons based on the quote. Go for it and learn upon the journey.
The part that Mothers have played in the history of world if written down would fill several gigantic stadiums and the reading would be beneficial to the entire human race.
Some say that Samuel was Israel’s greatest prophet. I agree and who can seriously deny that his mother made the difference in most every aspect of his profitable life for God. Hanna may be considered as the mother of all millenniums! Hanna was, as was the Savior, acquainted with grief. A husband who ridiculed her and worse. A barren womb until God opened it miraculously, a co-wife who mocked her, a high priest who accused her of drunkenness, and then the tender God loving woman who trusted God with her son, Samuel. A mountain of truth to be learned from Hanna. It was Abraham Lincoln who wrote: “All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” Millions of greater and lesser men could write the same.
The milk flowing from his mother’s breast, came to the fore after his being raised in the court of Pharaoh, when at the age of forty the God of his mother, Moses stepped up to the plate and stood for God and God’s people. A study of Moses reveals the hand of God on his life, especially God seeing to it that Moses was nursed on biological Mother’s milk.
It’s hard for me to talk about mothers and the respect they deserve and in some cases must earn. Take a special mother that was getting along well, happily married to a leader in the nations army. Her husband was an honorable man who had served well in the darkest period of the nation’s history up to that time. She had very good upbringing, her father and grandfathers were outstanding leaders. Yet, the first biblical mention has her bathing on a rooftop, as was the custom for people who had a rooftop. You are probably running ahead, but think about all the things that are seldom mentioned in the sermons about her and some of the imagined things that are said.
Our girl finds herself in the middle of an adulteress affair, one leading to the conspiratorial murder of her faithful husband while he was fighting the enemies of the nation. How can such a woman become one of the most revered mothers in the Bible? You do know that our woman, this mother is the mother so fondly praised in Proverbs 31, the mother of King Solomon.
Aside from the praise of the wisest of men, Solomon, her history reads as though written by a Hallmark syrupy love story. Her life was one of historical magnitude. Bathsheba goes from a disgraced woman to the very heights of womanhood and wife beyond imagination. For long years she labored faithfully at David’s side. In his old age when he was weak and worn, it was Bathsheba who was used of God to save the kingdom, preserving it for Solomon.
I write the above thumbnail of Bathsheba to give millions of modern mother’s hope, some of whom are tormented by events of yesterday, thus unable to enjoy the blessings of today, and look toward a bright future of usefulness in God’s work. Once you accept God’s forgiveness, for whatever, you are as clean as the driven snow, and God has someone, a child of your own, or perhaps a grandchild or even a child in the neighborhood that you can influence tremendously for Jesus Christ. When I read the rooftop event, I think of Bathsheba and I actually praise Jesus, while thinking of a line from an old song; Bathsheba, “That girl belongs to yesterday, and yesterday’s gone!”
On the face of the evidence, (prima facie) it’s certain that God had forgiven Bathsheba and David, we know they suffered horribly at the death of their first son. Chastened they were, and totally forgiven beyond doubt.
Have you noticed that Solomon never mentions his Father and Mother’s past? Neither should children, often now grown mention the sins of the parents, most especially when those sins have been taken to the cross and left there. We must do the same.
To those whose parents may be unrepentant people, let me say that their style of dissolute living is no excuse for you to live in a manner forbidden by the Lord Jesus. Once we reach a certain age we are responsible for our life and even though our parents may have or be wasting their allotted time on earth is no excuse for us to do the same. Ask God to lead you in His path and commit to accepting His ways as better than the example set before you as a child and young person. He will help you.
Because of Calvary, Happy Mother’s Day!
Ephesians 6:2 "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise:’
One thing is certain, the Bible lays out the path to peace and happiness for individuals and nations, or if you will, ethnic groups, starting with our first human relationship on earth. The parent/child relationship is designed to inculcate the ability to give and receive love, nurturing, duty, responsibility and loyalty among others.
Another relationship trait to be taught is respect for authority. This is largely by-passed in today’s teaching, yet it is a foundation stone of biblical instruction. The parent, mother and father or either on is the initial authority figure in a person’s life. If the parents or either one reneges on this responsibility, the child/person learns, falsely that life has no authority, that they themselves are a law unto themselves and their only responsibility is to personal fulfillment.
Parental failure to demonstrate and teach obedience and responsibility to children does not spare the children from the pains of an authoritarian world! Parental lessons are much less painful when learned from the father and mother, than when life takes charge! Prisons are tougher than a parent. So is the pain of failed marriage, of failed acceptance of caring for children, leaving them to be fed by grandparents, the neighbors and or the state.
Much of the rebellion against authority, rebellion that is rampant society wide, can rightfully be laid at the feet of parents who abdicated their responsibility, often with the pressure of misguided or willfully ignorant social constructionists who aided and abetted the destruction of the authority chain of the family.
The disenfranchising of the family is a major problem. However, a less than ideal father or mother is no long term excuse once the boy or girl comes to age. At some point, earlier than many think, each person, must as an old mountain saying has it in this ditty, “every tub must sit on its own bottom!”
Tragic is the man or woman who having had “good” parents, decides to do life the way they want, life and parents can go to …
Such men and women are in for many stripes, much sorrow, and as life wanes away, become ate up with grief, and often remorse. The failure of Dad and Mom will not sufficiently suffice when standing before a judge having been found guilty of serious crimes against God and society at large.
Many of the societal problems the Western nations are now facing rest largely on the refusal of parents to exercise legitimate authority, or the refusal of children to obey or both! As a counselor I face grown men and women too often who are in trouble of some kind. I have noted that until they get over blaming Dad and Mom or one of them, I cannot help their troubled soul. No one can. My all-time favorite coach, Vince Lombardi made a statement that if accepted in mind and heart will help any man or woman throw out the blame game, take personal responsibility for their actions and rise from the slime and start really living. Here’s the gem:
“Football is like life - it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.”
Many will suppose they can preach a series of sermons based on the quote. Go for it and learn upon the journey.
The part that Mothers have played in the history of world if written down would fill several gigantic stadiums and the reading would be beneficial to the entire human race.
Some say that Samuel was Israel’s greatest prophet. I agree and who can seriously deny that his mother made the difference in most every aspect of his profitable life for God. Hanna may be considered as the mother of all millenniums! Hanna was, as was the Savior, acquainted with grief. A husband who ridiculed her and worse. A barren womb until God opened it miraculously, a co-wife who mocked her, a high priest who accused her of drunkenness, and then the tender God loving woman who trusted God with her son, Samuel. A mountain of truth to be learned from Hanna. It was Abraham Lincoln who wrote: “All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” Millions of greater and lesser men could write the same.
The milk flowing from his mother’s breast, came to the fore after his being raised in the court of Pharaoh, when at the age of forty the God of his mother, Moses stepped up to the plate and stood for God and God’s people. A study of Moses reveals the hand of God on his life, especially God seeing to it that Moses was nursed on biological Mother’s milk.
It’s hard for me to talk about mothers and the respect they deserve and in some cases must earn. Take a special mother that was getting along well, happily married to a leader in the nations army. Her husband was an honorable man who had served well in the darkest period of the nation’s history up to that time. She had very good upbringing, her father and grandfathers were outstanding leaders. Yet, the first biblical mention has her bathing on a rooftop, as was the custom for people who had a rooftop. You are probably running ahead, but think about all the things that are seldom mentioned in the sermons about her and some of the imagined things that are said.
Our girl finds herself in the middle of an adulteress affair, one leading to the conspiratorial murder of her faithful husband while he was fighting the enemies of the nation. How can such a woman become one of the most revered mothers in the Bible? You do know that our woman, this mother is the mother so fondly praised in Proverbs 31, the mother of King Solomon.
Aside from the praise of the wisest of men, Solomon, her history reads as though written by a Hallmark syrupy love story. Her life was one of historical magnitude. Bathsheba goes from a disgraced woman to the very heights of womanhood and wife beyond imagination. For long years she labored faithfully at David’s side. In his old age when he was weak and worn, it was Bathsheba who was used of God to save the kingdom, preserving it for Solomon.
I write the above thumbnail of Bathsheba to give millions of modern mother’s hope, some of whom are tormented by events of yesterday, thus unable to enjoy the blessings of today, and look toward a bright future of usefulness in God’s work. Once you accept God’s forgiveness, for whatever, you are as clean as the driven snow, and God has someone, a child of your own, or perhaps a grandchild or even a child in the neighborhood that you can influence tremendously for Jesus Christ. When I read the rooftop event, I think of Bathsheba and I actually praise Jesus, while thinking of a line from an old song; Bathsheba, “That girl belongs to yesterday, and yesterday’s gone!”
On the face of the evidence, (prima facie) it’s certain that God had forgiven Bathsheba and David, we know they suffered horribly at the death of their first son. Chastened they were, and totally forgiven beyond doubt.
Have you noticed that Solomon never mentions his Father and Mother’s past? Neither should children, often now grown mention the sins of the parents, most especially when those sins have been taken to the cross and left there. We must do the same.
To those whose parents may be unrepentant people, let me say that their style of dissolute living is no excuse for you to live in a manner forbidden by the Lord Jesus. Once we reach a certain age we are responsible for our life and even though our parents may have or be wasting their allotted time on earth is no excuse for us to do the same. Ask God to lead you in His path and commit to accepting His ways as better than the example set before you as a child and young person. He will help you.
Because of Calvary, Happy Mother’s Day!
Letters & Comments
Note from Dave Thomas,
Then the king talked with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, "Tell me, please, all the great things Elisha has done." 2 Kings 8:4. NKJV
Several great messages are peering forth from this brief verse. I shall try to stick with one of them. Gehazi was a loser as far as his testimony as a servant of God was concerned. He had been given an opportunity as golden as few men who have walked this earth have ever received. To be a constant companion of Elisha, to hear his words of instruction to the sons of the prophets, to watch miracles having God's fingerprints so clearly manifest upon them; a life so many of God's people could only dream of.
And he threw it away. He cast the honor of such a place in God's program aside for some money, and a few bright garments. And his failure gave Satan an opportunity to diminish God's glory before the entire nation of Syria. (ch. 5:15-27)
Some of the rabbinical schools of Old Testament times taught that the lepers who appear in ch. 7:3-10 were Gehazi and his 3 sons. While the Bible does not prove that definitively, this passage (ch. 8:4-5) strongly supports that idea.
We often hear of people being condemned by their peers as having committed offences beyond the pale of God's forgiveness, and thence, their usefulness to the Lord. But Gehazi came back to a useful position, if not in ch. 7, there is no denying his usefulness to the Lord here.
If you are sure that some difficult handicap in your life is from God's hand, thank Him for His discipline, praise Him for it, and go out and tell others what great things He has done anyhow. Who knows; you might find a king willing to listen. Pastor Dave
Editor’s Note: You may subscribe to Dave’s FREE blog by emailing a request for it to this link dlthomas@minister.com
Pastor Lilly,
you have noticed I have not been able to send an offering for quite a while now. My situation has changed (quite a lot). I have enclosed a small amount of cash. This will be the only way I will be able to do it and I am not able on a regular basis. I am trusting the Lord to allow it to get to you unhindered. I will continue praying for you and your ministries. There is nothing preventing that. Please continue praying for Pastor Tom. He is still in the nursing home and will be until the Lord takes him home. G.C.
Editor’s Note: G.C. is Pastor Tom’s wife. For many years Tom was a captain of the Guards in an Eastern prison, as well as a faithful pastor in the service of Jesus Christ. This couple has faithfully prayed for and supported me for eighteen years. I cannot find words to tell you how much this letter blesses while also paining my heart for their suffering. Thank God the rigors of time will be erased when we see Jesus face to face! Please pray for G.C. and Pastor Tom. LML.
****
Remember this at Election Time:
Democrats want to skin you from the neck down.
Republicans, however want to skin you from the ankles up.
Huey Long
***
If God wanted us to vote, He would have given us candidates. Jay Leno.
***
Beliefs of last 2 generations:
13% view religion and Spirituality, of any kind as important.
70% believe the American church is irrelevant.
Under 20% have a biblical understanding of Jesus and matters of salvation.
65% rarely or never attend church.
Sean Dean from Groundwire states that less than 20% of these groups have
a relationship with Christ. This means over 60 million students in the US are
spiritually dead. That is a huge mission field. One that we cannot ignore!
From Dale Flynn 23 Rose Ct Elkton, MD 21921. DFynn@wol.org
Then the king talked with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, "Tell me, please, all the great things Elisha has done." 2 Kings 8:4. NKJV
Several great messages are peering forth from this brief verse. I shall try to stick with one of them. Gehazi was a loser as far as his testimony as a servant of God was concerned. He had been given an opportunity as golden as few men who have walked this earth have ever received. To be a constant companion of Elisha, to hear his words of instruction to the sons of the prophets, to watch miracles having God's fingerprints so clearly manifest upon them; a life so many of God's people could only dream of.
And he threw it away. He cast the honor of such a place in God's program aside for some money, and a few bright garments. And his failure gave Satan an opportunity to diminish God's glory before the entire nation of Syria. (ch. 5:15-27)
Some of the rabbinical schools of Old Testament times taught that the lepers who appear in ch. 7:3-10 were Gehazi and his 3 sons. While the Bible does not prove that definitively, this passage (ch. 8:4-5) strongly supports that idea.
We often hear of people being condemned by their peers as having committed offences beyond the pale of God's forgiveness, and thence, their usefulness to the Lord. But Gehazi came back to a useful position, if not in ch. 7, there is no denying his usefulness to the Lord here.
If you are sure that some difficult handicap in your life is from God's hand, thank Him for His discipline, praise Him for it, and go out and tell others what great things He has done anyhow. Who knows; you might find a king willing to listen. Pastor Dave
Editor’s Note: You may subscribe to Dave’s FREE blog by emailing a request for it to this link dlthomas@minister.com
Pastor Lilly,
you have noticed I have not been able to send an offering for quite a while now. My situation has changed (quite a lot). I have enclosed a small amount of cash. This will be the only way I will be able to do it and I am not able on a regular basis. I am trusting the Lord to allow it to get to you unhindered. I will continue praying for you and your ministries. There is nothing preventing that. Please continue praying for Pastor Tom. He is still in the nursing home and will be until the Lord takes him home. G.C.
Editor’s Note: G.C. is Pastor Tom’s wife. For many years Tom was a captain of the Guards in an Eastern prison, as well as a faithful pastor in the service of Jesus Christ. This couple has faithfully prayed for and supported me for eighteen years. I cannot find words to tell you how much this letter blesses while also paining my heart for their suffering. Thank God the rigors of time will be erased when we see Jesus face to face! Please pray for G.C. and Pastor Tom. LML.
****
Remember this at Election Time:
Democrats want to skin you from the neck down.
Republicans, however want to skin you from the ankles up.
Huey Long
***
If God wanted us to vote, He would have given us candidates. Jay Leno.
***
Beliefs of last 2 generations:
13% view religion and Spirituality, of any kind as important.
70% believe the American church is irrelevant.
Under 20% have a biblical understanding of Jesus and matters of salvation.
65% rarely or never attend church.
Sean Dean from Groundwire states that less than 20% of these groups have
a relationship with Christ. This means over 60 million students in the US are
spiritually dead. That is a huge mission field. One that we cannot ignore!
From Dale Flynn 23 Rose Ct Elkton, MD 21921. DFynn@wol.org
The Book Worm's Corner. Comments From Helpful Books Joyce D. Lilly TgB
The Whosoever in John 3:16 Robert Ford Porter, Litt.D. Lifegate INC PO. Box 5 Monrovia, IN 46157.
This small booklet is dynamite! I read at one sitting and it rang the bell concerning our so great salvation! The opening statement makes the biblical position on salvation crystal clear:
“The most familiar verse in the Bible contains the most incredible promise! It’s the promise God made to ‘whosoever.’” For God so love the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.
Dr. Porter’s book brings back fond memories of the first days of Larry’s and I’s salvation experience. All of the preaching we heard dealt with the reality of the truth of John 3:16. We sang songs about it and rejoiced that our destination in eternity was settled by child-like trusting belief in Jesus rather than believing about him. This booklet, when read and believed will help many a person sleep much sounder at night as accepting the undiluted truth of scripture drives doubt away and Jesus brings sweet peace concerning our eternal dwelling place.
Page 3 gives millions comfort concerning salvation and children with this gem:
“If a child dies before they reach the age of accountability, their soul goes to be with the Lord. Until a child is old enough to understand the difference from right and wrong they are free from condemnation.”
The closing statement is pure gold: “The simplicity of salvation is such an indescribable gift that it’s difficult to wrap our finite minds around it. Our God is full of love, mercy and grace. As humans, we try to make salvation complicated-something we have to work for-but God in His goodness, made it so simple. He just asks us to believe what Jesus did for us on the Cross and receive Him as our personal Savior.”
*****
You may get the bulk order price at the above address. Larry has over a thousand copies and will send you one FREE so that you may review it prior to ordering from Lifegate INC. Joyce Lilly TgB
This small booklet is dynamite! I read at one sitting and it rang the bell concerning our so great salvation! The opening statement makes the biblical position on salvation crystal clear:
“The most familiar verse in the Bible contains the most incredible promise! It’s the promise God made to ‘whosoever.’” For God so love the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.
Dr. Porter’s book brings back fond memories of the first days of Larry’s and I’s salvation experience. All of the preaching we heard dealt with the reality of the truth of John 3:16. We sang songs about it and rejoiced that our destination in eternity was settled by child-like trusting belief in Jesus rather than believing about him. This booklet, when read and believed will help many a person sleep much sounder at night as accepting the undiluted truth of scripture drives doubt away and Jesus brings sweet peace concerning our eternal dwelling place.
Page 3 gives millions comfort concerning salvation and children with this gem:
“If a child dies before they reach the age of accountability, their soul goes to be with the Lord. Until a child is old enough to understand the difference from right and wrong they are free from condemnation.”
The closing statement is pure gold: “The simplicity of salvation is such an indescribable gift that it’s difficult to wrap our finite minds around it. Our God is full of love, mercy and grace. As humans, we try to make salvation complicated-something we have to work for-but God in His goodness, made it so simple. He just asks us to believe what Jesus did for us on the Cross and receive Him as our personal Savior.”
*****
You may get the bulk order price at the above address. Larry has over a thousand copies and will send you one FREE so that you may review it prior to ordering from Lifegate INC. Joyce Lilly TgB
Page Four Mother's Day Origins
Mother’s Day Origins
Anna Jarvis was born in Webster, Taylor County, West Virginia, on May 1, 1864. She was the ninth of eleven children born to Ann Marie and Granville Jarvis. Her family moved to Grafton when Anna was a year old. It was here that the Anna did her schooling. In 1881, she enrolled at the Augusta Female Academy in Staunton, Virginia, now Mary Baldwin College. After finishing her academics, Anna returned to Grafton and did teaching in a school for seven years.
Anna Jarvis: Inspiration for Mothers Day
Anna Jarvis got the inspiration of celebrating Mothers Day quite early in life. It so happened that one day when Anna was 12 years old, Anna's mother Mrs Jarvis said a class prayer in the presence of her daughter. To conclude the lesson on 'Mothers of the Bible', Mrs Jarvis said a small prayer,
"I hope that someone, sometime will found a memorial mothers day commemorating her for the matchless service she renders to humanity in every field of life. She is entitled to it."
Anna never forgot this prayer. And at her Mothers graveside service, she recalled the prayer and said, "...by the grace of God, you shall have that Mothers Day." The words were overheard by her brother Claude.
Anna Jarvis: The Struggle for Mothers Day
After the death of her mother in 1905, Anna Jarvis resolved to honor her mother. She became all the more serious in her resolution when she found that adult children in the US were negligent in their behaviour towards there parents. Besides the desire of her mother that someone would one day pay tribute to all mothers, living and dead and appreciate their contributions made Anna decisions even more stronger.
In 1907, Miss Anna began an aggressive campaign to establish a National Mothers Day in US. On the second death anniversary of her mother she led a small tribute to her mother at Andrews Methodist Church. By the next year, Mother's Day was also celebrated in her own city of Philadelphia.
To give shape to her resolution, Miss Anna Jarvis along with her supporters began to write hundreds of letters to those holding the positions of power to advocate the need for a national Mothers Day. A fluent speaker, Anna used every platform to promote her cause. Though the response was cold initially, she achieved a breakthrough by gaining the support of great merchant and philanthropist, John Wanamaker of Philadelphia. The movement gained a fresh impetus with his support. In 1909, forty-five states including Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico observed the day by appropriate services. People also wore white and red Carnations to pay tribute to their mothers, according to the tradition started by Anna Jarvis. Anna chose carnations because they were her mother's favorite flowers. White carnation was her most favorite because it represented the purity of a mother's heart. A white carnation was to be worn to honor deceased mothers, and a red one to honor a living mother.
By 1911, Mother's Day was celebrated in almost every state of the Union. And in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day as a national holiday that was to be held each year on the second Sunday of May.
Anna Jarvis: Purpose of Celebrating Mothers Day
An activist to the core, Anna Jarvis stepped outside the four walls of the house. Striking feature of her personality is that she did not frowned on the traditional women who felt complacent staying at home. Instead she strived to bestow honor and dignity on women who were homemakers. This was one of her main purpose of celebrating Mothers Day.
****
“From God’s word I learn that Malachi showed God ready to fling open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing on all of us who will put our money where our faith is.” Bill Bright The Journey Home.
More from Bill here: “The life of Nehemiah reminds me it is never too late to finish what God has started.”
Do you know that we will reap what we have sown/ Galatians 6:7.
It is through prayers and unselfish giving to the ministry that I am able to continue producing this Journal each month. Thank you very much for your kindness. LML.
Larry Larry
P.O. Box 5212
Terre Haute, IN 47805
larrylilly@larrylilly.net
Anna Jarvis was born in Webster, Taylor County, West Virginia, on May 1, 1864. She was the ninth of eleven children born to Ann Marie and Granville Jarvis. Her family moved to Grafton when Anna was a year old. It was here that the Anna did her schooling. In 1881, she enrolled at the Augusta Female Academy in Staunton, Virginia, now Mary Baldwin College. After finishing her academics, Anna returned to Grafton and did teaching in a school for seven years.
Anna Jarvis: Inspiration for Mothers Day
Anna Jarvis got the inspiration of celebrating Mothers Day quite early in life. It so happened that one day when Anna was 12 years old, Anna's mother Mrs Jarvis said a class prayer in the presence of her daughter. To conclude the lesson on 'Mothers of the Bible', Mrs Jarvis said a small prayer,
"I hope that someone, sometime will found a memorial mothers day commemorating her for the matchless service she renders to humanity in every field of life. She is entitled to it."
Anna never forgot this prayer. And at her Mothers graveside service, she recalled the prayer and said, "...by the grace of God, you shall have that Mothers Day." The words were overheard by her brother Claude.
Anna Jarvis: The Struggle for Mothers Day
After the death of her mother in 1905, Anna Jarvis resolved to honor her mother. She became all the more serious in her resolution when she found that adult children in the US were negligent in their behaviour towards there parents. Besides the desire of her mother that someone would one day pay tribute to all mothers, living and dead and appreciate their contributions made Anna decisions even more stronger.
In 1907, Miss Anna began an aggressive campaign to establish a National Mothers Day in US. On the second death anniversary of her mother she led a small tribute to her mother at Andrews Methodist Church. By the next year, Mother's Day was also celebrated in her own city of Philadelphia.
To give shape to her resolution, Miss Anna Jarvis along with her supporters began to write hundreds of letters to those holding the positions of power to advocate the need for a national Mothers Day. A fluent speaker, Anna used every platform to promote her cause. Though the response was cold initially, she achieved a breakthrough by gaining the support of great merchant and philanthropist, John Wanamaker of Philadelphia. The movement gained a fresh impetus with his support. In 1909, forty-five states including Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico observed the day by appropriate services. People also wore white and red Carnations to pay tribute to their mothers, according to the tradition started by Anna Jarvis. Anna chose carnations because they were her mother's favorite flowers. White carnation was her most favorite because it represented the purity of a mother's heart. A white carnation was to be worn to honor deceased mothers, and a red one to honor a living mother.
By 1911, Mother's Day was celebrated in almost every state of the Union. And in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day as a national holiday that was to be held each year on the second Sunday of May.
Anna Jarvis: Purpose of Celebrating Mothers Day
An activist to the core, Anna Jarvis stepped outside the four walls of the house. Striking feature of her personality is that she did not frowned on the traditional women who felt complacent staying at home. Instead she strived to bestow honor and dignity on women who were homemakers. This was one of her main purpose of celebrating Mothers Day.
****
“From God’s word I learn that Malachi showed God ready to fling open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing on all of us who will put our money where our faith is.” Bill Bright The Journey Home.
More from Bill here: “The life of Nehemiah reminds me it is never too late to finish what God has started.”
Do you know that we will reap what we have sown/ Galatians 6:7.
It is through prayers and unselfish giving to the ministry that I am able to continue producing this Journal each month. Thank you very much for your kindness. LML.
Larry Larry
P.O. Box 5212
Terre Haute, IN 47805
larrylilly@larrylilly.net