A Childless Mother

 •  2 min. read  •  grade level: 7
 
“I arose a mother in Israel.” Judges 5:7
I have been a childless mother. Does that sound strange? To me, one of the hardest parts of not having children was the feeling of uselessness. I used to wonder “What am I here for?” Perhaps for some women without children the answer to that question comes in the form of a job to help lighten the husband’s financial load. But perhaps there is a better way. In the book of Judges the Lord has given us the story of Deborah, a prophetess who lived in a very dark day in Israel’s history. The enemy was making things so difficult that “the highways were unoccupied.” (Judges 5:6) That sounds like there would have been very little fellowship. And “The inhabitants of the villages ceased” (verse 7). Today, often, Christian gatherings see fewer and fewer people attending. What was the solution to this state of affairs? “Until that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.” It does not say she was a mother, but “a mother in Israel.” The word mother, in Strong’s concordance, carries with it the thought of being the bond of the family. You may not be a mother of your own little one, but you can be “a mother in Israel.” If you are willing, you can do things in your local Christian gathering that will help create bonds, such as hospitality or helping other young mothers who feel overwhelmed with their load. Perhaps you will be led to be a help where a weak one has been overcome by the enemy so that they feel the encouragement of your love to them and are drawn back to the Lord. Or perhaps you will visit older people or help them in some way. Most important of all, you can pray. In these and other ways you can help to open the highways of communication and love and be an encouragement so that the gathering will once again be occupied. Ask the Lord...He can show you many opportunities to be “a mother in Israel.”