Mama’s One Sentence Sermons
“Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
Proverbs 22:6
As we approach Mother’s Day, this one verse resonated on my mind as I thought about the senseless and dumb things I did as a teenager. My mother would remind me of her responsibility as a mother in a unique way. She would use what I called one sentence sermons… you know, the one liners that belted out of her mouth to let you know she just moved into the training mode.
Sometimes the one line turned into a short and to the point sermon. Other times it required me to sit in the pew and listen whether I wanted to hear it or not. Those one sentence commandments escalated into aggravating, painful and nerve wrecking sermons, but when I became grown and a mother, I found myself repeating most of them. I finally understood.
They depicted precious lifelong lessons and pearls of wisdom. My mother wanted me to experience more joy than pain as I grew and navigated through the roads of life. As I think back and reminisce over a few of them, I realized those tiny sermons, those essential truths represented teaching principles with biblical implications.
“Oh, I know you are sorry and won’t do it again.” Sermon on discipline…
“I don’t care what Cheryl’s mama lets her do. If you want to do that, go live in their house.” Sermon on choices…
“I brought you into this world and I’ll take you out.” Sermon on sovereignty…
“Do I look like a bank? Do you think money grows on trees?” Sermon on economics and working…
“If I were you, I would go to my room now and pray that you were not involved in that fight.” Sermon on faith…
“You forgot that I have eyes in the back of my head.” Sermon on omniscience…
“Because I’m your mother and I said so!” Sermon on authority and who’s in control…
“Where do you think you are going looking like that?” Sermon on modesty and decency…
“Your hard head is going to give you a soft behind.” Sermon on consequences…
“Just wait until your father gets home.” Sermon on delegation…
“Don’t get too grown for your britches.” Sermon on humility…
“I don’t care if all of your friends are doing it, you are not!” Sermon on nonconformity…
“You can leave when I say you can leave.” Sermon on patience…
“Have you lost your pure-d-mind?” Sermon on constructive thinking…
“I’m only going to ask you once…don’t make me repeat myself.” Sermon on counting and listening…
“This hurts me more than it hurts you.” Sermon on pain and love…
I could go on and recall more of those lessons but they all had one goal in mind. My mother wanted me to be able to handle any problem or situation I faced in life with a biblical perspective. She trained me up in the word of God so that the promise of God would be fulfilled. She dedicated me to Him, instructed me in His ways, and motivated me to do what the Lord required all through those one sentence sermons. She preached all of them in love and I hope my children can say the same about me.
I don’t know about you but because my mother kept the command to train up a child, the promise of God was claimed. Through all the trials of life, I can adamantly state, I will not depart from His word. Why? Simply…
