Wonder Women

As I was sitting down to write this very article, I looked outside the upper floor window of my home, and outside on the driveway was my wife, packing the van with all 3 kids for a trip to the grocery store. She wasn’t taking all 3 because I asked her to (goodness knows I rarely risk my marriage over that!), but because it was the thing to do when answering the call of duty, as she saw it. 
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You see, my wife is, among many other wonderful qualities, a duty-first mother and wife. She knew I had some deadlines on some things and I was in a bit of a crunch before heading off to my second shift job. Without telling her a thing, besides what I was going to be busy doing at the moment, she decided in the nobility of her heart that it was more important for me to work upstairs without any possible disturbance than for her to run that errand by herself. Considering the fact that, as a stay-at-home mom, those opportunities to leave kids with Dad and go do something alone are few and far between, this was quite the sacrifice hidden within an everyday occurrence. 

But, my friends, this is what being an awesome mother looks like. This, and so, SO MANY other things as well. 

Marvel Comics’ much-anticipated movie, Wonder Woman, will hit the big screens in less than a month (and no, this is not a plug for everyone to go see it, necessarily). At the same time, the issue of gender in the modern age is under a lot of debate and even, in some circles, scrutiny. It seems that, more than ever, we’re supposed to tread so lightly on the topic of women, what role they should or do play in home or society, and whether one needs to identify as one or not. 

But what we know from Scriptures is that God had a very specific idea in mind when he created Eve, the very first woman. What she meant to Adam, and what women have meant to families, society, and the church as the body of believers on earth, is something far different and greater than what it’s been made by 21st century human beings. 

Without dwelling too much on what many of us might consider wrong with the state of womanhood in America in 2017 (and by that, I mean the interpretation), let me just raise a toast for this Mother’s Day to what a good mother is, from the perspective of one flawed, regular man. 

Folks, good mothers are truly Wonder Women. They take pride and immense joy in the miracle of life as it happens to them personally. Many women take their pregnancies so seriously, and feel such potential for that life from the earliest stage, that it can be just as devastating a loss to have a miscarriage as it is for a mother to lose a child who has already taken breaths of air and been held in her arms. Good mothers have an incessant desire to provide the best for their children. They tend to every possible bodily need, keep a watchful eye all day and wake at night over the most imperceptible cough or whimper from the room down the hall. They are rescuers of backyard warriors chased by big bad (or friendly) neighbor dogs, kissers of boo-boos with that magical touch, teachers of chores, coaches of dolly-dressing or monster truck noise-making, and chefs of the best tasting meals, all because the love of the one who bore them into this world colors everything. They are the women who fight for their kids’ rights in the school, who turn from Lucille Ball into Chuck Norris when someone bullies or threatens their loved ones, and who know how to lend a tender touch and caring word to their husbands when they need someone to pick up their slack as the often less patient parent. Great mothers do this all because, in their hearts, they want to, but also because it answers their call to duty. There is so much kids won’t learn well unless shown it by their Wonder Women moms. 

Another wonderful thing about mothers is that they reveal to us a side of God’s character that, without them, we couldn’t ever see or understand. The nurturing, empathic, and kinder side of our Lord who loves us is made evident through his creation in great moms. And that is awesome to meditate on!

Perhaps being a mother is less valued today than it used to be. But that can never take away from the truth that God made women with the special opportunity and ability to provide care and a role model to the next generation in a way that no one else can. As a man who has personally witnessed a woman doing the motherhood thing for 8 years, and through 3 births, 3 seasons of diapers, 3 cupboards of pureed weird food, 3 first words and first crawls and first walks, and so much more… Well I can’t imagine that God didn’t have my wife specifically in mind for the job with those little rascals. It’s uncanny in a beautiful sort of way, how well a great mother goes along with her children and her family unit. I don’t know what I’d do without her – I literally don’t. I’d have to have a manual. And I don’t like manuals. So I’m very thankful for my wife as the mother in this family!

May we all take the time to recognize and celebrate the mothers in our lives, and praise them for all the hard work that they do so well and so effortlessly (it seems, though it’s not). May our every word or action, when given the chance, advocate for the role and gift of motherhood! Let’s encourage all expectant mothers we know or run into, and spread the message of the value of life, as a blessing for the baby and for the mother to be. Every child conceived has a right to live, and has every right to be loved by a great mother! 

God bless and give strength and joy to the Wonder Women of our world! Happy Mother’s Day!

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Author: Jeff Ulrich

​​Jeff is a husband, father, and graduate school student. He attends Hope Lutheran in Oconomowoc. Jeff’s background in ministry education and future in the counseling field reflect a heart that loves to serve others and make a difference. He shares his personal or spiritual reflections in his own time at www.missionpossiblejeffulrich.blogspot.com