May 14, 2006          Read: 1 John 4:7-12

“Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life.” – Sandra Carey

There is a lot of difference between knowledge and wisdom. St. Augustine says that knowledge prepares you for life in this world, but wisdom prepares you for life in the next world. Knowledge, at least to some degree, is something that we can acquire on our own. Wisdom, on the other hand, is a gift of the Holy Spirit.

Each year on the second Sunday of May, we pay tribute to those who not only give us life, but also help us in our journey to acquire wisdom. Of course, I am speaking of our mothers. They are the ones who make us into families, and they are the ones who make the places we live into homes. Home, you see, is not just a place. It is just as much a state of mind, a place of comfort and well-being. I was reminded of this on our church’s mission trip to Mississippi. There we saw houses that were devastated, but at the same time we saw homes that no wind or water could overcome.

I once heard a story about Alex Haley, the author of Roots. He kept a picture in his office of a turtle on a fence post. The idea behind the picture is that if you ever see a turtle sitting on top of a fence post, you know it didn’t get there on its own. Haley kept the picture there as a reminder to himself that if he ever got to feeling self-important, if he ever thought about how wonderful he was, he didn’t do it on his own.

Likewise, none of us ever do get anywhere on our own. We have help from many sources, but especially from our mothers. They lift us up to where we never could go on our own. And it’s a pretty good view of the world from up there.

Our mothers are an example of living out the lesson of First John: “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” (1 John 4:7)

That’s what our mothers have done for us. Loved us with a love that comes from God. So, especially on the day set aside to honor mothers, we need to say thank you. Thank you, mothers. May God bless you all as you have blessed us.