: Dear Momma, The Awaking Of Appreciation Of All Mothers.

THE ART OF MOTHERHOOD

“The words of king Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught him.” -Proverbs 31:1

In the early 90’s, late rap super star “Tupac Shakur” made the now familiar song, “Dear Momma”. This song acknowledged the adversities that his mother faced as a single parent, and it highlighted the impactful sacrifices she made to raise him. His ground-breaking and earth-shattering lyrics punctured the hearts of men, and caused them to give recognition to their mothers. Songs like these temporarily open the world’s eyes to the important subject of mother appreciation.

Music, movies, and social media are now where the majority of the world receives its knowledge and guidance on most subjects. Gone are the days when the Holy Bible was the light that enlightened our families. Now we are suffering from the damaging effects of taking God out of the schools, courthouses, and our homes.

Motherhood has such a powerful mystic quality, that
I can only sum it up as a God-gifted art form. In the Bible we see examples of powerful mothers like Mary (Luke 1 & 2). The art of motherhood can’t be simply explained by science, knowledge, or logic. In the Bible, we see that behind all the great Kings, Prophets, and Apostles was an even greater mother that birthed them. In fact, mothers throughout history have survived and thrived well beyond comprehension. Plus, we have numerous current examples of women who fight hard to protect and provide for their children.

It would be untrue for me to lead you to believe that motherhood could simply be explained in this brief tract. This is why my intentions are not to be an historian on the subject, but rather to highlight the world’s need to better appreciate the sacrifices of our mothers.

WISDOM IS A WOMAN NAMED MOMMA

“Get wisdom, get understanding; forget it not, neither decline from the words of my mouth. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee, love her, and she shall keep thee.” -Proverbs 4:5-6

In the Bible we often see the word wisdom personified as a woman (Proverbs 4:5-8). We all at one time or another have received wisdom from a strong motherly figure. The Hebrew word for wisdom is chokmal (khok-maw), and the Greek word for wisdom is sophia (sof-ee). This Greek word should look familiar to you, because in English Sophia is used as a female name. I believe that wisdom is a woman and she goes by the title of Momma. My mother’s wisdom is revealed through her dreams. Over the years she has given me sound advice based on things she saw in her dreams. Mothers have the unmatched quality of feeding us wisdom in the most needed times.

THE EPIDEMIC KNOWN AS THE “SINGLE MOTHER”

“Who can find a virtuous woman [Mother]; for her price is far above rubies [Priceless].” -Proverbs 31

Is it just me, or have you also noticed that there is an increasing amount of women that are raising children by themselves? We call these women “Single Mothers”, but in all actuality they operate in the roles of both Mother and Father. They conceive-us, carry-us, birth-us, and raise-us even if they have to raise us by themselves. For, you see, there are Single Mothers all around the world that love their children so much that they willingly sacrifice their goals, hopes, and dreams to raise their children.

I personally have admiration and respect for single mothers because, I too, once was a single parent. In 2015 my wife and I split up and she had custody of our 10 year old daughter Bri-Bri (pronounced Bree-Bree), and she voluntarily gave me full custody of our 5 year old son, DannyBoy. I was catapulted into the role of single parent, and honestly it almost broke me mentally. I never realized the mental capacity that you must have to raise a child by yourself. I only looked at the financial side of raising a child, and that way of thinking deceived me into believing that just because I was financially stable enough to raise my son, I would be able to take on that role effortlessly. Boy was I wrong! When we see single mothers posting adorable selfies with their child on Instagram, or playing with them at a park, that only gives us half of the story. The other half of parenting is not as fun as taking a selfie with your baby. You don’t see all the sleepless nights because your child was sick and had a fever, or all the times that you had to call out of work. I personally remember that my entire schedule evolved around my son from the very moment I received full custody of him. Mentally, you have to be a very strong person to raise a child by yourself. Being a single parent is not a role that’s taught. However, the rewards of raising a child outweighs all the sacrifices that you make along the journey.

Single Mothers make sacrifices without bitterness or resentment, and they do it all in love—a love that is so profound that I as a man would never be able to fully understand nor explain the bond between a mother and a child. Which leads me to the unspoken question: Why do we under-appreciate Momma?

THE UNAPPRECIATED MOTHER

“Strength and honor are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.”  -Proverbs 31:10

The movies, TV shows, and music industry have put value on the topic’s such as sex, drugs, and violence but at the same time have devalued and under-appreciated the role of mothers. This is mind-boggling, because the one thing that we all have in common is that we all have a mother. I can’t understand how it is socially acceptable to extravagantly celebrate certain holidays, but when Mother’s Day comes around, we treat it like an unnecessary holiday. For example, why do we show plenty of love on Valentine’s Day, but when Mother’s Day comes around we don’t keep that same energy? Why do we give away more presents on Christmas than we give Momma on Mother’s Day??

Or why do we “turn-up” on our birthdays more than we “turn-up” for Momma on her birthday??? Honestly, Mother’s Day is simply not long enough. Mothers deserve more than just a single day to celebrate and appreciate their accomplishments. I believe Mothers deserve an entire month of celebration, similar to how we use the entire month of February to celebrate African American History! Or how we use an entire month to bring awareness to breast cancer!

Mother’s Day has become the holiday that is often forgotten, easily ignored, and simply under-appreciated. I personally believe that it’s our fault as men that society has gotten away with under-appreciating Mothers. For, you see, it is on us to bring attention to the wonderful accomplishments of Mothers—the world will take notice and follow the trend. I envision a time when social media timelines are celebrating Mothers more than they are spreading the latest gossip. I know, I am a big dreamer, but our Mothers deserve nothing less!

THE INSTINCTS OF A MOTHER 

I understand that, historically speaking, men are known for being strong and brave, but a Mother’s love and instincts for her child are stronger and braver than any man. Only women have the courage, strength, and endurance it takes to conceive, birth, and raise a child. A mother will chase down a 7 ft, 500 1b grizzly bear to defend her child. Women have been known to run into burning houses to recuse their child. Women have motherly instincts that are without comparison. And knowing that the role of the mother is irreplaceable, this subject screams for attention and asks the question: What happened to all the love that mothers were once showered in?

MOMMA’S BOY

“Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her.” -Proverbs 31:28

Sons commonly tend to have a stronger connection with their Mother than they have with their Father. Similarly, we commonly see that daughters have a deeper bond with their Father. Henceforth the terms, “Momma’s Boy” and “Daddy’s Little Girl” are displayed.

There is a “Momma’s Boy” in all walks of society. There are doctors, lawyers, and politicians that are “Momma’s Boy”, just as you’ll equally find Drug-Dealers, Thugs, and gang members that are “Momma’s Boy”. “Momma’s Boy” comes in all different shapes, sizes, ages, races, and religions. There are Asians, Arabs, and Africans the same way that there are Christians, Muslims, and Buddhist that are “Momma’s Boy”. Only love could bring some of the most opposite people together under the same commonality. Momma’s love is far reaching, and more impactful than an atomic bomb. I am a 6 foot, 200 pound muscular man, and I am a proud “Momma’s Boy.”

DISRESPECTING MOMMA

As much as I am a “Momma’s Boy” today, I have not always been this honoring towards my mother. It’s sad for me to admit, but there was a time in my past that I didn’t treat my mother with the proper respect that she deserves. In fact, I once was a mean, rude, and disrespectful son towards my mother.

When I was a preteen, my older bothers started calling our mother by her first name. My mother’s name is Nora, and this was all that I heard them address her by. I believe that they did this as a way to signal to her that they were grown now. Regardless of the reason for them calling her Nora and no longer Momma, it really started to affect my preteen mind. Then one day I stopped calling her “Momma”, and I started calling her Nora also. From that moment on I called her Nora every chance I got. Then I slowly started “talking back” and challenging her authority. The more disrespectful I became towards my mother, the less love I showed her. And I would love to tell you that my disrespect to my mother only lasted for a few days and then I repented, but that wouldn’t be the truth. I shamefully disrespected my mother for years. Then in 2017 during many personal battles, I surrendered my life to God and was saved by the life, death, burial, and resurrection of JESUS Christ. This surrender led to the love of GOD being birthed in my heart—a love so profound that it spread and touched every area of my life.

A year after my spiritual transformation, I was on the phone with a friend of mine named Shanell. Shanell was telling me a story about an encounter that she had with my mother a few months prior. She said,

“Danny, one day I was in the grocery store, and I saw your mother. And your mother started talking to me about you. She began telling me how you got saved and gave your life to Christ. I just listened as she continued to talk. Then she said to me, ‘Do you want to know how I know that my son is truly saved?’ I said to her, ‘How?’ She said, ‘Because when my son was a little boy he use to call me Momma, but then one day he started addressing me by my first name. When he first did this I thought it was a mistake, but he kept calling me by my first name. For years it hurt my heart to hear him call me by my first name. Then one day he gave his life to Jesus, and then something changed within him. He stopped calling me by my first name, and went back to calling me Momma. I knew that JESUS changed my son because he now loves me how he once loved me’.”

As I sat on the phone and listened to Shanell tell me that story, I had tears in my eyes. That story broke me down because my mother never told me this testimony—I just didn’t know. And the most shocking part is that I didn’t even realize that once I got saved, I started back addressing her as Momma. That was a physical reaction to a spiritual transaction. When I got saved, I gave up the hate and disrespect and received the love of God operating in my life. I wonder if there are more people that similarly disrespect their mother intentionally or unintentionally. Regardless of our intentions, the damage is done. Today is the day that we can end the disrespect and start rewarding Momma.

REWARDING MOMMA

There are Mothers all over this earth that deserve reparations. That may sound funny but I am serious. The Webster’s definition for the word reparation is, “1: the act of making amends for a wrong; esp: money paid by a defeated nation in compensation for damages caused during hostilities.” I believe that every mother should be rewarded, regardless if certain people try to qualify them as a “Good Mother”, or a “Bad Mother”. Simply stated, just carrying a big-head baby like myself for nine months, and then birthing my size head out of you is priceless within itself.

Recently I was watching the Grammy Awards show, and every single person that won an award gave thanks to their mother. It was beautiful to see people on a worldwide platform giving recognition to their mothers. A majority of the NBA, NFL, and MLB athletes that get drafted immediately reward their mother. Rewarding

Momma should be something that’s in all of our hearts, regardless if we are rich or poor.

In fact, some of the best gifts don’t cost any money but a little TLC—Tender, Love, and Care. And it’s not because our Mothers are expecting to be rewarded, because in most cases they are not. We should reward, respect, and appreciate them because without Momma there wouldn’t be no you and I.

LOSING MOMMA

One day I was speaking with a good friend of mine name “Big Wack.” He was telling me about the loss of his mother and how he would give anything in the world just to hear his mother tell him that she loves him. His words penetrated my heart and went down to my soul because his pain from losing his mother made me realize that I don’t appreciate my mother enough. If more people heard Big Wack’s testimony of losing his mother, I wonder if it would also awaken something inside them to more greatly appreciate their Mothers.

Losing someone to death is a difficult experience within itself, but I cannot imagine the pain of losing your Mother. Especially, if you had a close bond like Big Wack had with his mother. Over the years I have met too many people that lost their Mothers and my heart goes out to all of them. I once heard someone say, “Give your mother her flowers while she is around to enjoy them.” Yes, we need to appreciate and celebrate our mothers before they go to heaven.

LETTERS TO MOMMA

Today I challenge you to stop everything that you are doing and write a “Dear Momma” letter, email, text message, and/or social media post to your mother (#DearMomma). Take this moment of realization to appreciate the wonderful accomplishments of your mother.

I understand in this modem era that social media is where most people seek and receive attention. So I further challenge you to make your admiration for your Mother to be made public on all your social media sites (#MothersAppreicationMonth). Please allow your love, respect, and appreciation of your mother to be the spark that lights the flame that turns into a wildfire.

Today we will rewrite history in our undeterred effort to bring awareness to the beautiful role of motherhood (#DearMomma).