Patches

I walk through my laundry room every morning.
My back stairs come down into my laundry room, which is attached to my kitchen.
I love to do laundry.
For some strange reason, there is great satisfaction in seeing the dirty clothes get clean.

Like other rooms in my house, there are little country signs in my laundry room.
There is a picture of an Amish clothesline that a friend gave to me.
She knows how much I love Amish clotheslines.
The colors of the simple clothes, waving gently in the breeze, always catches my eye.

The picture from my friend has colorful clothes and an Amish quilt on the clothesline.
The picture always makes me smile.
Above one of the doors in my laundry room is a small sign I found in a country store.
It simply says, Patches 5¢.

I found the sign in a little country store in the land of Amish buggies.
It is a store I frequent with an upstairs room where Amish and Mennonite women quilt.
I never want to stare when I see the women around the many quilt frames.
I want to go in and sit down and talk to them but I would only be intruding.

Finding the sign there made perfect sense.
The women sew for hours.
Patches 5¢ means something when you actually sew.
Sewing is not my forte.

The same friend that gave me the picture of an Amish clothesline gave me another sign.
This one says, Laundry 25¢ a load.
Now, that is more like it.
That is something for which I could legitimately charge money.

How wealthy I would be.
How wealthy most mothers would be, especially with large families.
Can you imagine if you were paid by the wash load?
Payment for patches would not sustain me; payment for laundry would more than suffice.

I looked at those signs today and wondered what a mother is worth?
Not what a mother is worth by the sheer fact that she is a mother.
Rather, what a mother is worth based on the actual work she does for her family.
Incalculable, I would assume.

A mother is not a chief cook and bottle washer, though I’m sure she feels like that at times.
A mother is a teacher, nurse, psychologist, nutritionist, chauffeur, and librarian.
A mother is a disciplinarian, confidant, cheerleader, coach, referee, and event planner.
A mother is the teller of stories, the reader of books, and the player of games.

The many hats she wears and the many jobs she does, makes her invaluable.
A mother is invaluable because God has given her that special role in the life of her child.
God directs her heart and tunes it towards her child.
No tuning fork could be as perfectly pitched.

I thought of the Patches 5¢ sign.
I know why I like that sign so much.
It is not the patches that are done with needle and thread that matter most.
It is the patches that are done in the human heart that a mother is so good at mending.

No needle and thread required.
Just a heart that is tuned to God and looks to Him for her comfort and strength.
Motherhood can be a lonely job at times.
Motherhood can often be a thankless job.

However, mothers are never alone and they are recognized for what they do.
Well done, good and faithful servant. (Matthew 25:23)
What a mother does each day for her children cannot be measured by the world’s standards.
God sees; God knows; God is pleased.

The bandaged knees, the tears kissed away, the fevered brows cooled seem to go unnoticed.
The character being built, the discipline being administered, the love that spills over is priceless.
God sees, God knows, God is pleased.
A mother patches all day long; she mends what this sin stained world tries to ruin.

The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called the Repairer of Broken Walls. (Isaiah 58:11,12)

There is only one Repairer.
Jesus, God’s son, took the punishment on the cross that we deserve.
When the Son of God died on the cross, the curtain in the temple tore in two from top to bottom.
Jesus destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility. (Ephesians 2:14)

There are some patches that are not meant to be mended.
The dividing wall of hostility between sinful man and a holy God is not to be repaired.
The torn curtain at Jesus’ death opened the way for us to have access to the Father.
We can now freely come to God the Father because of Jesus.

The price was exorbitant.
The price was Jesus’ life.
Jesus rose again three days later.
Those who come to Him in faith are saved.

We mothers continue to patch.
That is what we must do in a sinful world.
Our patches do not hold, no matter how hard we try.
But the Repairer, the Mender, the Lord Jesus tore the barrier so that we could come.

It is not the curtain that needed to be repaired and mended, but us.
We are the ones who, because of sin, try to patch our way through this life.
We cannot.
Our patches do not hold.

We can only temporarily repair and mend.
Jesus mends permanently.

Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to interceded for them. (Hebrews 7:25)

Jesus mends.
The curtain is torn.
The wall of hostility is gone.
Come, and be mended.

2 responses to “Patches”

1. In this day and age mothers are many times unappreciated. You are so right in the many roles they have to play, and also be expected to work outside the home. Mothering is the most important job a woman can have and I think our country has suffered since women have had to work to keep the finances up to par. I realize many women WANT to work, but it is hard to do it all well. I wouldn’t trade being a Mom, MomMom, and Nana for anything. God has blessed your family with the devotion you have given them. God bless you!

   Reply

   • Sue,
     Mothers spend their days mending what this sin stained world leaves in its wake. We must look to the One Mender, Jesus, the One who died for us. All we can do is a temporary fix. Our Lord Jesus repairs permanently because He makes all things new.
     Gina

     Reply