I first want to say HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all you mommies out there!!!

My pastor Godfrey wrote this following message and I think it’s apt to share it with ya’ll.  Have a wonderful and relaxing weekend and enjoy your special weekend, not just day!

The late Peter Marshall,  an eloquent Scottish-born preacher and for several years the chaplain of the United States Senate, told a parable, “The keeper of the spring,” about a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slopes of the Alps.

 

The old gentleman had been hired many years ago by a young town council to clear the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town.  He faithfully patrolled the hills, removing debris and silt from the little pools and streams.  And the town prospered.

 

Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semi-annual meeting. As they reviewed the budget, one man’s eye caught the salary figure being paid to the obscure keeper of the spring. Said the keeper of the purse, “Who is the old man? Why do we keep him on year after year? No one ever sees him. For all we know the strange ranger of the hills is doing us no good. He isn’t necessary any longer!” By a unanimous vote, they dispensed with the old man’s services.

 

For some time nothing changed. But by autumn falling leaves and branches began to impede the free flow of the sparkling water.  Then one day someone noticed a yellowish tint in the spring.  A couple days later that water was much darker.  And within another week, a slimy film covered the banks of the reservoir, and a foul odor was detected.  The flow of the water slowed to a trickle, and the mill wheels moved more slowly. Mothers began to notice their children were becoming sickly.  And so, the quaint and prosperous town began to lose its appeal.

 

The embarrassed council called a special meeting. Realizing their gross error in judgment, they hired back the old keeper of the spring…and within a few weeks the water began to clear up.  The water flowed more freely and clearer, the wheels started to turn, and good health returned to the hamlet in the Alps once again.

 

Peter Marshall went on to point out that mothers serve as keepers of the springs for our children.  Parents, among our God-given responsibilities to our children is the solemn duty to keep our children from becoming polluted by what they consume.  Let’s make sure that what they eat, watch, read, listen to, or learn is wholesome and pure so they can grow up healthy, well adjusted, and strong.

 

The greatest gift we can give to our mothers is to come to church with them.  However, I know many of you have lost your mothers and will be missing them this Mother’s Day.  My prayers are with you.