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Supermom to the Rescue
What a woman of power! She cooks, cleans, nurtures, teaches, runs a business, takes care of the disadvantaged, worships, and even exercises on a regular schedule. Yes, the virtuous woman depicted in Proverbs 31:10-31 does it all, and with a firm character of excellent qualities. In every sense the virtuous woman resembles what could be considered a supermom. In addition to multiple homemaking responsibilities, she manages a full-time entrepreneurial career—all with perfection. Husband, children, and all others in the household are well sustained by a family budget that is consistently profitable. Accolades with high praise and honor seem to be the norm, coming even from those at the city gates where she is most subject to criticism.
In many ways this scenario personifies the nation’s new First Lady, Michelle Obama, who while participating fully in a most rigorous presidential campaign, worked a reduced schedule at the University of Chicago Medical Center, where she has been an executive since 2002. The phenomenal feat, however, required two BlackBerries to maintain connections with both entities. Deliberate efforts to balance work and family also included fitting campaign activities into day trips in order to be home in time to put daughters Malia and Sasha to bed at night. Obama’s commitment to family and motherhood has been openly and overtly pronounced. One such statement, “Family is first for us and it will always be that way,” scored big with moms across the nation during the 2008 presidential campaign.1 These same priorities were unmistakably revealed during an interview with Ebony magazine, where Obama discussed her role as a mother, asserting: “My first job in all honesty is going to continue to be mom in chief. Making sure that in this transition, which will be even more of a transition for the girls . . . that they are settled and that they know they will continue to be the center of our universe.”2
This busy routine aligns well with countless supermoms who perpetually rise before dawn to prepare meals, homes, and even people for the current day—often while functioning only in survival modes. For many, the short restful nights hardly begin before the sun’s radiance signals another rushed cycle of domestic and vocational toil. The work of the current day is rarely, if ever, completed—only recessed until the cycle of duty is recommenced. Amazingly, the supermom described in Proverbs 31 joyfully performs these duties and more at stress-free levels! For it is suggested that “she will enjoy forever the sweet fruits of her unselfish toil and her good example.”3
Perhaps a cognizance of the importance of the mother’s role motivates such tireless efforts. One godly mother (Ellen White) portrayed the prestigious position of motherhood this way: “The king upon his throne has no higher work than has the mother.”4 She further stated that “next to God, the mother’s power for good is the strongest known on earth.”5 The notable poem “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle Is the Hand That Rules the World,” by William Ross Wallace, further speaks to this point by praising motherhood as the preeminent force for change in the world.6 The family values of the nation’s First Lady and supermom in chief seem to fit well within these frames, fully acknowledging that motherhood is important, honorable, and meant to be enjoyed. Such a disposition is likely modeled after the nurturing home atmosphere that both Obama and her brother, Craig Robinson, report was created by the nation’s First Grand-mother, Marion Robinson, during their childhood years.7
However, the unique life demands of the current age frequently challenge the role of motherhood to the core, making it necessary to have a prioritization that considers spiritual enrichment above all others. A notable trait of the virtuous supermom in Proverbs 31:30 is her “fear of the Lord” (love and reverence to Him) that dominates every aspect of her life and personality. That’s right! Her supermom success is based on the priority given to her own spiritual growth and development! God’s high place is permanently secured, with no possibility of becoming second to another. It is the place that He desires in every mother’s sphere. Supermoms cannot afford to miss daily encounters with God. His wisdom, strength, and grace are essential for even the minutest details of life. In the absence of these, memory functions, physical stamina, time management, patience, and essential virtues underperform, and even falter when least expected.
Jesus really understands and cares about the plot of mothers. Just as He encouraged and affirmed them during His time on earth when their young ones were presented to Him for blessing (even at the rebuke of His disciples), He stands ready today with a storehouse of resources that will perfect the work of homebuilding, parenting, career pursuits, caring for elderly parents, coping with long commutes, and more. His love for mothers is all-encompassing and considers every possible motherhood circumstance, including learning the responsibilities of becoming a new mother; wondering and waiting as an expectant mother; managing perpetual fatigue, stress, and depression; performing the roles of two parents as a single mother; lacking the ability to provide everyday essentials due to pov-erty; caring for children who are physically, mentally, or emotionally challenged; caring for someone else’s children; experiencing grief due to the loss of children to death, addictions, or the penal system; battling illness; contending with heartfelt loneliness resulting from an empty nest or widowhood. And yes, Jesus is even attentive to the unfulfilled and passionate desires of those who are aspiring to become mothers.
Supermoms, you are in perfect view of the Savior! “The eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy” (Psalm 33:18). This writer/supermom, in her own overwhelmed state of life management, desires earnestly to rely fully on the SUPER GOD of the universe for every necessary motherhood endowment.
JOYCE JOHNSON, PH.D., is an educator and consultant who writes from Hagerstown, Maryland.
References
1www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/10/28/michelle_obama_ revels_in_family_role/
2 Ebony magazine, September 2008.
3 SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 3, p. 1054.
4 White, E. G. The Adventist Home (Nashville, Tenn.: Southern Publishing Association, 1952), p. 231.
5 Ibid., p. 240.
6 www.theotherpages.org/poems/wallace1.html
7 http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Inauguration/Story?id=6703161&page=2
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