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Christ Eases the Burdens of Parents, June 6
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; ... and ye shall find rest unto
your souls.
Matthew 11:28, 29
.
No work can equal that of the Christian mother. She takes up her work with a
sense of what it is to bring up her children in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord. How often will she feel her burden’s weight heavier than she can bear; and
then how precious the privilege of taking it all to her sympathizing Saviour in
prayer. She may lay her burden at His feet, and find in His presence a strength
that will sustain her, and give her cheerfulness, hope, courage, and wisdom in the
most trying hours. How sweet to the care-worn mother is the consciousness of
such a Friend in all her difficulties. If mothers would go to Christ more frequently,
and trust Him more fully, their burdens would be easier, and they would find rest
to their souls.
Jesus is a lover of children. The important responsibility of training her
children should not rest alone upon the mother.... The father should encourage
and sustain the mother in her work of care by his cheerful looks and kind words....
Her children must have her time and attention.... This training of children to meet
the Bible standard will require time, perseverance, and prayer. This should be
attended to if some things about the house are neglected.
Many times in the day is the cry of Mother, Mother, heard, first from one little
troubled voice and then another. In answer to the cry, mother must turn here and
there to attend to their demands.... A word of approval will bring sunshine to the
heart for hours. Many precious beams of light and gladness can the mother shed
here and there among her precious little ones. How closely can she bind those
dear ones to her heart, that her presence will be to them the sunniest place in the
world.
But frequently the patience of the mother is taxed with these numerous little
trials, that seem scarcely worth attention.... She almost forgets herself time and
again, but a silent prayer to her pitying Redeemer calms her nerves, and she
is enabled to hold the reins of self-control with quiet dignity. She speaks with
calm voice, but it has cost her an effort to restrain harsh words and subdue angry
feelings, which, if expressed, would have destroyed her influence, which it would
have taken time to regain.... As the parents wish God to deal with them, so should
they deal with their children.
Our children are only the younger members of the Lord’s family, entrusted to us
to educate wisely, to patiently discipline, that they may form Christian characters,
and be qualified to bless others in this life, and enjoy the life to come.—
The Signs
of the Times, September 13, 1877
.
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