How to Care for Women in Your Ministry on Mother’s Day

For women in your ministry, Mother’s Day can hold a myriad of emotions. As you think about celebrating mother’s day in your women’s ministry, consider ways you can care for all the women in your church.

A Brief History of Mother’s Day

Anna Jarvis enlisted the first Mother’s Day in May 1908 to honor her deceased mother. Anna’s vision was an intimate day for reflection when children honored their mother. In 1914, Mother’s Day was officially recognized by order of President Woodrow Wilson. Ironically, after being officially recognized, Anna spent her time and fortune trying to abolish Mother’s Day because of its commercialism.¹

As the day has transitioned, so has the way in which it is celebrated. Red roses have replaced white carnations. Purchased cards have replaced handwritten letters. Specialty gifts galore! And Proverbs 31:10-31 has become the symbolic verse.

Remember: Mother’s Day May Be Complex for Women in Your Ministry

For me, Mother’s Day is both complicated and meaningful. My siblings and I did not always live with our mom due to a series of bad decisions.  We were more often under the care of a grandparent, aunt, or foster parent. Today, I am blessed with three amazing sons. Mother’s Day is my reminder of God’s grace and redemption. There are a myriad of stories like mine making Mother’s Day complex, including women in your ministry. The stories of women who:

• will never be a mom;
• are living with the loss of a child;
• have a prodigal child;
• are battling cancer wondering if this is their last Mother’s Day;
• are affected by dementia;
• have geographically-distant children;
• have a deployed child;
• did not choose singleness but are living it;
• have a past they regret.

For them, Mother’s Day may be a sad reminder of their circumstances, but we have an opportunity to encourage them with the love of Christ.

Their stories are alongside the women who embody all the amazing traits of a mom. For them, this is a day filled with joy and gratitude. These are the women the store-bought cards are written for. These are the women that have influenced so many of us. They are the women who have:

• cleaned a thousand messes;
• lost countless hours of sleep caring for a child;
• lived sacrificially for their families;
• given advice with spiritual wisdom;
• preferred to serve rather than be served;
• provided a stockpile of wonderful memories;
• endured the hard with grace.

As leaders, we are tasked with navigating this day: simple and complicated, joyous and sad, serene and chaotic. How do we navigate and guide our co-laborers through these waters?

What Ruth and Naomi’s Story Can Teach Us About Celebrating Mother’s Day

Plus, Ideas for Celebrating Mother’s Day with Your Women’s Ministry!

Proverbs 31 may be on the top of the list for this holiday, but the passage that comes to my mind is the story of Naomi and Ruth. Naomi was the woman who had it all and lost it all:

• once a Bethlehem home, now a Moab home;
• once a dream of Jewish daughters-in-laws, Moabite women instead;
• once a wife, now a widow;
• once a mother, now childless;
• once pleasant, now bitter.

Yet there was something about her that compelled Ruth (her Moabite daughter-in-law) to leave behind all she knew and follow her back to Bethlehem. “Wherever you go, I will go . . . your God will be my God” (Ruth 1:16).  Despite Naomi’s imperfect self, God worked through her life, resulting in Ruth discovering Him. Be encouraged by that.

The way in which Ruth served Naomi can give us insight into how we, as leaders, can serve moms in whatever stage of crazy, hard, difficult, sad, happy, proud, or mundane they may be in.

Ruth encouraged Naomi by refusing to leave her side.

Women need relationships!  We were created to be in relationship with God and with one another. Yet sometimes motherhood can be a very lonely place, even though the house may be full. For some, it is the isolation of having a newborn, the worry of a wayward teen, the hectic schedule, or the endless chores. For some, it is an empty house once full. Mother’s Day provides an opportunity to remind women they are not alone on the journey. Here are a few ideas:

• Picture Booths. Think outside the box and include generational age groups, adopted “moms,” friend groups, and so forth. No limitations. Provide a QR code that links to the pre-service PowerPoint.
• Enlist families to adopt a mom who may be celebrating alone.
• Arrange stations in the foyer with prayer cards, journals, devotions, white carnations (for a throwback), stationery for note writing, and church prints as a reminder of their church family.

Ruth took care of Naomi’s needs.

Moms may not like to admit it, but we have needs. What do the women you serve need?  A meal? Space to grieve? Prayer? Laugher? Here are a few ways to serve them:

• Offer precooked take-home frozen meals or gift cards.
• Assign a team to write notes to grieving or struggling moms.
• Provide prayer bookmarks appropriate for every stage.
• Share laughter—it’s the best medicine! Stage funny mom sayings/memes around the building or on the pre-service PowerPoint. (E.g., How long is Mom’s “just a minute?” No one knows!)

Ruth listened attentively to Naomi.

Women like to verbally process. Serve by providing opportunities for women to be heard:

• Gift prayer journals in various prints. Pair prayer groups with matching journals. Encourage them to keep in touch until the next Mother’s Day.
• Place conversation starter cards on tables around the coffee/donut station.
• Host a women-only Bible study during the Sunday School, Discipleship, or Small Group hour with every generation learning together. Consider a panel discussion.

Ruth gave Naomi a sense of hope.

In every scenario, hope is the door to surviving. Serve by providing reminders of the hope, strength, and sustaining power we have in Christ for our unique roles and life stages.  

• Provide highlighter pens and a list of verses for women to highlight the verses that give them hope.
• Set out station servers with baskets of Hershey Nuggets^Ⓡ (treasures) with the reminder, “You are God’s treasure.”
• Enlist teens to make friendship bracelets as giveaways.

Ruth included Naomi in her new family.

And here we are back to our need for relationships and belonging. Serve with a spirit of inclusiveness.

• Direct team leaders to reach out to women whom they serve making note of those who may need to be partnered with an “adopted” family for the day.
• Guide staff in developing a service that reflects a “family of God” atmosphere.
• Be attentively present.

The story of Ruth and Naomi has a happy ending. Naomi was not left without a redeemer. He is in the lineage of our Redeemer, Jesus. As leaders, we have the privilege of partnering with Him on Mother’s Day, sharing His redeeming love by serving the women He loves. May His name be made famous for all generations.

About Gayla Parker