The Impact of a Godly Mother

I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

2 Timothy 1:5

In this verse, Paul reminds Timothy of the heritage of faith that had been passed down to him by two godly women: his mother and his grandmother. And Paul points out that these two women had a sincere faith. They weren’t fake Christians. They weren’t hypocrites or pretenders. They didn’t teach Timothy a false gospel. No! These two women were the real deal. By their words and by their life they passed down the genuine faith to young Timothy. They planted the seeds of the Christian faith deep in his heart, and those seeds grew Timothy into a mighty oak of a man of God.

And what I want you to see is that by doing this one simple thing, by raising Timothy up to be a man of God, Lois and Eunice made no small contribution to the early church. We don’t know much about Lois and Eunice. This is the only time their names are mentioned in Scripture. But they raised one of the men that the Apostle Paul relied on the most. When others were deserting Paul, Timothy stayed by his side. Why? At least in part, because of the influence of these two women of God.

Mothers and grandmothers, understand that you are raising future pastors, deacons, music ministers, youth pastors, children’s directors, missionaries, Sunday School teachers and lay leaders for the church. The future of the church nurses at your breast and plays at your feet. The future of the church looks to you to help them understand who God is. They look to you to teach them right from wrong. You are laying the foundation for the future success of the church right now. Lay it carefully and don’t underestimate the importance of the work you do.

Don’t let anyone tell you that being a mother isn’t important. Don’t let anyone tell you that your greatest achievements will come in the workplace. That shouldn’t be true of anyone… man or woman. No! The greatest achievement of your life may very well be raising your children up in the fear and admonition of the Lord to serve His church. Remember this... godly mothers and grandmothers can still raise up Timothy’s with help from the Lord.

Lord, give us more Timothy's, and give us more Loises and Eunices for the growth of your church. In Jesus' name, Amen.