Isaiah 33: 5 – 6 How great the Lord is! He rules over everything. He will fill Jerusalem with justice and integrity and give stability to the nation. He always protects his people and gives them wisdom and knowledge. Their greatest treasure is their reverence for the Lord.

Morning has broken

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5D3LEjGF8A

Proverbs. 2: 1 – 5

1 My child, learn what I teach you and never forget what I tell you to do. 2 Listen to what is wise and try to understand it.3 Yes, beg for knowledge; plead for insight. 4 Look for it as hard as you would for silver or some hidden treasure. 5 If you do, you will know what it means to fear the Lord and you will succeed in learning about God.

Make a Prayer of this song. Pause it between verses for your own prayer.

Father I place into your hands

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwuM4Div-y4

Bible Readings. Job 22: 23 – 26

 23 If you return to God and put right all the wrong in your home, then you will be restored. 24 If you give up your lust for money and throw your gold away, 25 then the Almighty himself shall be your treasure; he will be your precious silver!

26 “Then you will delight yourself in the Lord and look up to God.

I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzTHaJu1l2E

A Christmas reading may seem odd in March, but we can see the importance of the shepherds, as from that night their lives changed, and the world with it.

Luke 2: 13 – 22

13 Suddenly a great army of heaven's angels appeared with the angel, singing praises to God:14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,  and peace on earth to those with whom he is pleased!” 15 When the angels went away from them back into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and saw the baby lying in the manger. 17 When the shepherds saw him, they told them what the angel had said about the child. 18 All who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said. 19 Mary remembered all these things and thought deeply about them.

In other words Mary planted these words deep with in her heart and treasured them.

A Mothers love for a child can hold a box of treasure, things that money cannot buy;

maybe a walk to the park or a bus ride; feeding ducks; ice cream & padding pool; a cuddle when feeling hurt or poorly.

When one of my sons was at nursery school the teachers were trying to get the children to think of the things a mother does, she told me latter it was pulling hens’ teeth. The little ones just sat quiet. My son was the youngest and when they asked him, he smiled and said “my mummy laughs my mummy tickles my mummy loves me”. The lady in charge wrote this down and dated it and gave it me. And said it was so sweet it brought a tear to their eyes. This is something I have always treasured.

You may have some one like a mother in your life. My Grandmother was more like a mother to her her younger siblings as her mother was too ill to be an active mum.

There is always some one that can mean something special to you, a love like a mothers love. Mothers day has come across from America. Today is Mothering Sunday. This is when brothers and sisters in faith would leave their little churches to go to the mother church and join in a great celebration of worship together.

To imagine God as mother is easy, he loves us and gathers us up under His wing., “As a mother hen protects her brood.” God wants to give us everything good. As this time of Lent continues, we can look to Mary, Jesus’s mother; she knew that her son was from God but while Jesus was a child she knew in her heart that he was different. But she trusted in God, even if she could not truly understand every thing her son said or what would lay ahead for her.

Even if the way is hard for us, we can trust in a God of miracles, and give to Him our all.

I do not know what lies ahead

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgA4UlkB1N8

Luke 2: 41-51. The Living Bible

When Jesus was twelve years old, he accompanied his parents to Jerusalem for the annual Passover Festival, which they attended each year.  After the celebration was over they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t miss him the first day,   for they assumed he was with friends among the other travellers.

But when he didn’t show up that evening, they started to look for him among their relatives and friends;   and when they couldn’t find him, they went back to Jerusalem to search for him there.  Three days later they finally discovered him. He was in the Temple, sitting among the teachers of Law, discussing deep questions with them and amazing everyone with his understanding and answers.  His parents didn’t know what to think. “Son!” his mother said to him. “Why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been frantic, searching for you everywhere.” “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you realize that I would be here at the Temple, in my Father’s House?”   But they didn’t understand what he meant. Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them; and his mother stored away all these things in her heart.

I once lost my youngest son at an event there where many exits. I stayed where we last saw him and my husband took my other son and went to the door marshals and said if you see another child dressed like him do not let him out. We then met up once more and we got on our knees and looked up, there at the end of the hall were lots of helium balloons tied together, we looked at them and as one we yelled “balloons” and walked towards them. There he was sat on the floor looking at them. I felt so relieved I did not know whether to laugh or cry. I had a Mary moment, My little son, did nor know he was missing even if it was only a matter of a few minutes (it felt like a life time) he just smiled at me and pointed at all the colours and said “look”. My eldest son sat with him smiled and looked at his brother and me and said “mum they are pretty”.

Mean while my husband went to tell every door man our youngest son was found safe and well.

Hidden treasure.

A mothers love is a treasure to behold, More precious than diamonds, silver, or gold.

A loving heart full of joy and laughter, tears, and pain,

carried through sunshine, wind and rain.

Treasured words remembered, hidden locked in the heart,

Words of love and knowledge to impart.

In Christ are hidden the secrets of Gods kingdom,

He blessed the mothers and their children,

Solomon didn't ask God for gems or money,

But to have wisdom and rule fairly.

Mary mother of Jesus found her young son,

Spreading the message of God to every one.

Remember love is more precious than diamonds, silver, or gold.

It’s a hidden treasure to be told.

By S Youdan

Some things are worth more then gold, silver, or jewels, cars or lots of money.

Yes we all need a little gold which never tarnishes and given as token of love.

A Jewel that holds sentimental value something we treasure, and yes we do need money to live. But the problem is when it is our everything. It, or the object, rules every step in life, the idol we worship, then this becomes an obstruction. It is God who can give us the gift of a brand new start, the gift of his love. For God so loved the world that He gave us His only beloved Son.

Many years ago I studied drama therapy working with people who had severe learning disabilities. They understood tangible objects even pretend objects pulled out of an empty box. Things like necklaces, rings, toy dolls and push along cars, even small picture books. But things intangible, untouchable like peace, love, happiness, hope, things that make you feel good inside they struggled with. One person who found it hard to talk about feelings one afternoon took my hand and said “I can feel I like you when I hold your hand”. I treasured this moment deep in my heart, even thou she is now with her Jesus.

Her memory lingers in my heart. At this time I was also a Sunday school teacher.

One Sunday morning I did a special treasure hunt. And each of the texts below were wrapped in gold paper around a “Wispa chocolate bar and hidden around the Sunday school room each child went home with a chocolate bar a bible verse a treasured gift from God. These are the verses

Peace  Isaiah 26:v3You, Lord, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in you.

Love  John 15:v10

If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.

Hope Romans 15:v13

May God, the source of hope, fill you with all joy and peace by means of your faith in him, so that your hope will continue to grow by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Comfort  Isaiah 40:v1

“Comfort my people,” says our God. “Comfort them!

Strength  Deuteronomy 6:v5

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

Joy  Psalm 9:V2

I will be glad, yes, filled with joy because of you. I will sing your praises, O Lord God above all gods.

To explain the gifts to the Sunday school children the following week we made a collage of the gifts they had taken home, then I ask each child to plant a few seeds in pots of soil that I had provided. The little seeds were hidden under soil. but things start to happen. We kept them watered, only God could see them grow. Soon the seeds started to sprout and grow. I explained that The word of God is like a seed when we read the Bible it roots its self deep with in our hearts there it grows and God nurtures it and waters it with His love and it grows. then soon we share Gods love with others.

Our father God in heaven

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcHhrlY7tgk

Jesus said.

Matthew 6: 19 – 21 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Lay up for your

self Treasures in heaven

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-aJr4hGb4E

God bless you this Mothering Sunday.

May He fill you with His Love and Peace this day and always.

Amen

How great thou art

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GKhDCsLrUg

Every Blessing

Susannah