What are you doing for Mother’s Day?
Mother’s Day can trace its roots back to seventeenth century England. Mothering Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Lent, was a day when children, who were often sent away from home to work as servants or learn a trade were given the day off and the opportunity to be at home. Much like today mothers were treated to special foods and bouquets of flowers.
Today, included in this special day of honor, May 11, many moms spend an hour with their family in your church. So, I wondered what you were doing to honor, celebrate and encourage the mom’s in your congregation.
I have planned and participated in many Mother’s day services. I remember looking for just the right song, drama or experience. I thought you might be doing the same thing … looking for just the right words, the right music or expression to tell the mom’s in your community that they are valued and important to our families.
I asked a few friends for some of their ideas. Here is just a smattering of what they told me …
Each mom receives a flower as they leave the service.
Each mom receives a cake, saying ‘Happy Mother’s Day.’ Just in case, dad or the kids forgot dessert.
A video with pictures of moms and kids set to Steven Curtis Chapman’s song, One Heartbeat at a Time. (Here is a short sampling of the song, with Steven explaining why he wrote the song.) 
One of my favorite ideas is from Shane Duffey, Creative Arts Pastor at NewSpring Church. Their pastor weaves into the message a story of one mom. One mom who sacrifices and gives so much to her children. This year they have identified a single mom and will do the ‘extreme home makeover’ thing and give her a home.
Shane told me, “We love it because it blesses a family that needs it, warms people’s hearts, casts vision about ‘loving people’ and making an impact in our community all the while providing a tangible example and platform to share who Jesus is.” This is the second year NewSpring has given this wonderful gift to a mom and their church.
So, what are you doing for Mother’s day? Share your ideas and let’s do a little virtual brainstorming.
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We had a great week of brainstorming Mother's Day ideas this week. Here's a brief description of some of the ideas we're considering at Willow:
--HOME VIDEO: distributing 50 disposable video cameras (available at CVS for around $30 with processing) and asking people to spend 3 minutes talking about their moms and 7 minutes showing their moms in action. We would then create an A-roll segment built from their thoughts on moms, while using the action shots for transitions as well as, potentially, b-roll for another element, like a song.
--LETTERS: one of our writers has composed very touching letters to two moms at different stages in their lives (could be many scenarios: a teenager writing to his/her mom, a middle-aged mom writing to her mom with Alzheimer's, etc.). We would then follow that with a chance for the congregation to respond with some kind of writing exercise...probably not enough time to write a letter, but maybe people are given a note with a phrase they finish...like: I want to thank you, Mom, for...
--RECOGNIZING AND THEN PRAYING FOR MOMS: one of our song writers has written a very funny tribute to moms that, by the end, has moms standing..."Moms, stand if you've ever licked your thumb and used it to wipe dirt off a child's face; moms, stand if you've ever..." By the end, you've hopefully got all the moms standing and everyone applauding. Then, a teaching pastor would turn the corner and pray for all moms...could be a very poignant moment.
--OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM: we're thinking of expanding the experience with professional photographers taking free pictures at stations around the building that would then be emailed to mothers.
So, some pretty raw ideas, but might provide stepping stones for other ideas.
I love the idea of an extreme makeover for a deserving mom!
Here are a few idea we had on our whiteboard this week:
For Lighthearted Fun:
1. Prepare a video montage of children sharing, “My mama always said…” or “Mom, thanks for…”
2. Perform “The Mom Song” by Go Fish. Available on i-tunes.
3. Give one woman in the congregation a spa day. Choose any method you’d like to select the winner.
To Shower the Women with Words of Encouragement:
1. Prepare a slideshow thanking women for the little things they do.
2. Record children’s voices reading quotes about moms or sharing thoughts about motherhood.
3. Prepare a magnet, sticker, bookmark, or any printed item with words of affirmation for women.
4. Purchase Dove chocolates, ordered with special Mother’s Day messages inside. Order at mydovechocolate.com.
5. Position a large sheet of paper or canvas at the entry way to the auditorium, provide colorful markers and prompt people to write a message to moms or women they treasure. Read a few during the service.
6. Provide note cards to everyone attending the service, and ask them to write a note to a special woman in their lives. Provide envelopes and stamps if your budget allows.
For Moments of Tenderness:
1. Engage a family of women (3-4 generations) who all attend your church and have them share their story, including the ups and downs of the roles of women in their family, the generational differences or the struggles they have faced as a family and how the women have helped their family through their problems. Have them write out and rehearse their delivery for an interview or testimony during the service. Or put their story on video and include photos or extra video footage of their family.
2. Ask an artist in your church to paint an abstract painting during the worship or special music portion of your service, including the many treasured aspects of women in words or phrases. Or have a calligraphy artist do the same. Connect the artwork to the concept that God created women with unique and special qualities.
3. Allow time in the service to honor women who have lost babies or miscarried or who have lost their mothers. Encourage them to attend, knowing you will take time to recognize the difficulty of this special day for a portion of the women in your congregation. Honor them with a special time of prayer, a time of spiritual direction or a portion of the message designed to help women ask hard questions or a moment of silence to honor those who have lost babies or mothers this past year.
Thank you for posting about this now....we gotta get workin' on this. This is a HUGE holiday to leverage for the kingdom! Thanks for the reminder : )
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