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Infertility and Mother's Day
I was asked to comment on how to care for infertile wives and singles on Mother's Day. Here are a few thoughts (I hope they are not so brief that they prove unhelpful).
1. Don't make Mother's Day Central, make Jesus Christ crucified central. He is our only unity, not our current status as singles, mothers, or infertile wives. Be all about Jesus on Mother's Day.
2. Weep with those who weep. In your Pastoral prayer acknowledge the real pain of those who long for a good thing, but have been denied that good thing by God. By the Spirit, seek to join in the pain, and remind them God is always doing them good because of Jesus (there He is again).
3. Rejoice with those who rejoice. Do not make all the mother's in the room feel guilty that they have babies. Avoid reverse Mother's Day guilt. Do not be ashamed to praise God for the gift they have been given (the Bible does it, so should you). Remember the children they have should be celebrated because of the grace of Jesus (there He is again), and remember children bring blessings, but they bring sorrows too. As hard as it is to hear, infertile mom's are not the only one's with broken hearts on Mother's Day. If you read through Proverbs you will see the tremendous power of children to break their mother's hearts.
4. Remind everyone that under Jesus we are all given both the gifts of blessings and the gifts of suffering. Perhaps we have more in common than we think. Indeed we do, if we keep the focus on Christ.
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