John Haynes Williams
As I look upon the landscape of our culture, more than anything else, adults who love God with all of their hearts, who practice righteousness, who have a heart to reach others, who stand strong against the moral battles of this day, are what is most desperately needed in our world. God intended for righteousness to be passed on from one generation to the next by discipling those children who would become these adults. It would be they would effectively pass on God's Kingdom messages and values and loyal allegiance to Him to those in their own generation. The key to building healthy, godly souls comes from growing to maturity in a home where this life of Christ is lived, breathed and taught.
Mothers were God's finest idea of how such a legacy would be passed on each generation.
Mothers were designed by Him to shape and influence the hearts of children who would become the next generation of godly leaders in the sanctuary of their own homes.
Mothers have the capacity to inspire messages of truth and hope, to model love and servant leadership, to build mental and academic strength by overseeing the education of her children, to lead in faith and to build a haven of all that is good, true and beautiful.
Satan would love to obscure such an important calling so that generations could not be so well built. He would diminish marriage, having children, family, our walk with God and loyal love, the glue that holds all of these relationships together.
Yet, this is exactly why it is so important that mothers today receive instruction, encouragement, support and wisdom so that they can continue this great calling in their lifetime, so that history will mark her investment by the lives her children are enabled to lead.
However, I would say, one of my most fulfilling works of life, more of a blessing than I would ever have imagined, is to have built with Clay, these wonderful children into godly adults. What blessing and love God had in mind when He gifted me my children as the best work of faith I will probably ever do!
My prayer for you, this mother's day, is that you will embrace your eternally significant role, and that you will know just how much your children are hoping you will be faithful to God. Your faithfulness insures that they may be trained in spiritual strength, moral excellence and the influence of righteousness. I pray that every day, you will have vision for understanding how very much each day of your faithful serving as a mom matters to God and to His wonderful plan to create us for this role.
I wish each of you a blessed Mother's day. I pray my books will be of great encouragement and give you hope and confidence to become the mom He created you to be. May He bless and bless each of you with wisdom, strength and great joy!
In light of this important day of celebration, I would like to give away one of each of my books. I will be writing about different ones each day. My final gift will be a phone mentoring session with whoever wins--a call from me to you! Winners will be chosen at random and I will announce winners Friday in my blog post. Stay tuned for some surprise giveaways.
Mission of Motherhood is one of the most significant books I have written. I wanted moms to know how important their design was, from God's point of view, in shaping the souls of the next generation. I wrote this book to throw light on this eternal significance as well as to give a map, a plan for what it means to fulfill God's mission for us. In Mission, you see the amazing role of the mother as she shapes the heart, mind and soul of children.
Excerpt from the Mission of Motherhood:
"Home--it's such a beautiful word! It's the corner of our lives, the place that holds us with invisible strings of love within its walls. Home is the place where the delectable smells and tastes of "my favorite food" linger; where the comfort and beauty of "my room" and "my bed" can be enjoyed, where "my dreams" are inspired and begin to grow, where bedtime routines, prayers, and blessings give comfort, where the intimacy of deep relationships--unconditional love, grace, forgiveness, encouragement, unselfishness, laughter, and memories--is shared with people who have made us a priority in their lives. Its where appetites for favorite music, movies, books, games, art and traditions are shaped from infancy on up.
Home is a haven from a world that is swimming with challenges and difficulty. It is a school where one learns how precious life is intended to be. It provides the context of learning to know and love my Creator, the beauty of the world He made, and His Word, which guides me. And it is the environment where direction and purpose and values are passed from generation to generation protecting and preserving all that is precious in life."
Ministry of Motherhood is the book I wrote to help mothers understand the process of discipleship in the lives of their children by pondering the process of discipleship of Jesus with his own followers. Passing on GIFTS of eternal influence is the model of this book.
"Jesus was going to transfer to His disciples the responsibility of taking God's message of redemptive love to the world. But instead of just telling them what to do, harshly commanding their allegiance with orders and threats or guilt and manipulative statements, He chose to tie the cords of His heart to theirs with the strong and unbreakable bond of a loving, serving relationship.
Jesus spent His last night on earth with His disciples in service to them. How powerful their memories of that night must have been--the King of the whole universe touching and rubbing their dusty feet and gently drying them with a towel. Their Lord and Master breaking the loaf of bread and serving each of them for the celebrated feast of Passover.
Jesus' example of servant leadership set Him apart from so many historical religious leaders. He was not a God who lorded it over His followers and demanded they follow Him or coerced their obedience through authoritarianism and fear. Instead, He called them to the excellence of holiness and yet lovingly served them in order to win their hearts and show them the means of reaching others' hearts as well.
Contemplating the hearts of my own children and seeking to teach them about the grace of God, I realize my love and service to them must come before any of my great words, my teaching and training. My time, my attention, my "soft-tickling"--even when I am tired or have other "important" things n my mind--is what builds our relationship and prepares them to listen to what I have to say. Only then, once the wells of their need are filled with the grace of being loved, will my words to them about God's grace finally make sense."
~ from The Ministry of Motherhood
Own Your Life, as most of you know, is my most recent book. Women need to have a complete vision for their whole lives, and understand how to engage their lives in a close, vibrant relationship with God, so that they can experience His favor, blessing, purpose and love. This book is an overview of my life at 60 years old, of what matters most.
“Praying with You Lord, so often we are overwhelmed by all the tasks ahead of us. Today help us to turn our eyes to You so that we can discern between the truly important tasks and those that will not add any real value to our lives. May we look to You as our Peace today. Amen.” ― Sally Clarkson, Own Your Life: Living with Deep Intention, Bold Faith, and Generous Love
TO ENTER TO WIN 2 OF YOUR FAVORITE OF THE BOOKS I HAVE WRITTEN, (ONE FOR YOU AND A FRIEND--OR GIVE THEM TO SOMEONE YOU KNOW NEEDS THEM IF YOU HAVE THEM ALL!)
AND TO ENTER TO WIN A PRIVATE PHONE MENTORING SESSION WITH ME, ABOUT ANYTHING YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT OR ASK,
*SHARE ON FACEBOOK OR TWITTER, AND LET US KNOW YOU HAVE SHARED BY LEAVING A COMMENT.
*LEAVE A COMMENT ABOUT YOUR FAVORITE BOOK I HAVE WRITTEN AND WHY AND YOU WILL BE ENTERED.
WINNERS OF ALL PRIZES THIS WEEK WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON MY FRIDAY BLOG. HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!