Did you know that there is a HUGE difference between a Christian mother and a godly mother?
Today, my goal is to show you the incredible characteristics of a godly mother and how they differ from the qualities that other mothers have.
So, whether you’re an aspiring mother, a new mother or perhaps even a mother whose children now have children of their own,
this post is for you!
I hope you are filled with encouragement as you read this article!
Here is…
7 Characteristics of a godly mother!
We will find these characteristics in the story of Hannah in I Samuel 1:1-28 NKJV.
We are introduced to a family, led by a committed man of God, named Elkanah.
He had two wives: Hannah and Peninnah.
Peninnah was the only mother in the house at this point, because Hannah was unable to bear children.
Though Peninnah is the mother in this portion of the story, her character is far from godly.
In I Samuel 1:3-4, we observe that she participates in Israelite sacrifice and offering customs and I see no indication in the text that Peninnah has pagan beliefs;
Therefore, we can infer that Peninnah shares the same beliefs as her husband Elkanah.
Hannah, on the other hand, clearly shows us her beliefs in verses 10-13.
She shows us just how diligently she seeks the LORD.
In this story, we catch a glimpse of the differences between a religious mother and a godly mother.
A woman who wears the title of her religion but doesn’t actually live like she believes it, and a woman who places all that she is on her faith.
Let’s get to know these women.
“But to Hannah he would give a double portion, for he loved Hannah, although the Lord had closed her womb.”
I Samuel 1:5 NKJV.
Elkanah gave more to Hannah than to Peninnah because he loves her.
In this time period, a man wouldn’t favor a woman who couldn’t bear children.
Most men would even divorce a woman who was unable to give him a child.
Not Elkanah!
Elkanah had two wives and though Hannah couldn’t offer him as much as peninnah could, he still loved her all the more!
She didn’t have to compete with Peninnah for the love of her husband!
His love for her was not based on what she could do for him,
He loved her truly!
Let’s not forget who loves her most…
The LORD!
Peninnah was blessed with children, but it wasn’t enough for her.
God kept Hannah’s womb barren, yet He still provided for Hannah through the compassion and love of Elkanah!
Though Peninnah had a reason to praise God, she instead coveted what Hannah had.
She saw that Hannah had more love from their husband, so she decided to remind Hannah of what she didn’t have.
“And her rival also provoked her severely, to make her miserable, because the Lord had closed her womb. So it was, year by year, when she went up to the house of the Lord, that she provoked her; therefore she wept and did not eat.”
I Samuel 1:6-7 NKJV.
Year, after year, after year,
Peninnah would aim to make Hannah miserable, solely because of her own jealousy and covetousness.
She would make the trip to the house of the LORD, and rather than acknowledge God and how He made her able to bear healthy children, she chose to focus on what Hannah had, that she wanted.
Hannah would faithfully go to the house of the LORD, still unable to conceive, while Peninnah constantly reminded her of her brokenness.
She shows us the first godly mother characteristic:
Faithfulness,
Even while facing adversity!
She had reason to be angry.
Anyone would understand if she turned from God.
She is unable to have the one thing that she wanted and she lives with a woman who reminds her of her agony everyday…
Still, she stays faithful to God.
She seeks Him, even while she is living a nightmare.
In her marriage, she stood by her husband, regardless of the ridicule that she endured from his other wife or the insecurity of infertility.
She never let her pain lead her away from God.
Which brings us to the second characteristic of a godly mother:
Prayer and Trusting in God,
Instead of trying to be the one in control!
“And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish. Then she made a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.””
I Samuel 1:10-11 NKJV.
She didn’t expect Elkanah to fix everything or blame him for her situation…
Hannah poured her heart out to God because she knew that He was the only One who held her in the palm of His hand.
She didn’t put unrealistic expectations on her husband nor did she take action against Peninnah.
Hannah knew that God is the One in control, so if she has a problem, question or a need, she brings it straight to Him.
A Christian mother can try to control her children’s decisions, but a godly mother doesn’t need to strive for control…
She is aware that any control that she thinks that she has is an illusion and she knows that God holds all the authority!
That mother casts all her cares on God, trusting that He cares more for her and her children, than anyone else ever could.
“casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”
I Peter 5:7 NKJV.
Another characteristic of a godly mother that we observe in her story is:
Giving God your whole heart,
Instead of care what the world would think of you.
“And it happened, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk. So Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!” But Hannah answered and said, “No, my Lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord. “Do not consider your maidservant a wicked woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief I have spoken until now.” Then Eli answered and said, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.” And she said, “Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.” So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.”
I Samuel 1:12-18 NKJV.
She didn’t care how crazy that she looked,
she just brought her whole heart to God.
Christian mothers want their children to appear perfect to the church and they want their family to look Christiany in all of their Instagram photos.
She would never cry out to God in public as desperately as Hannah did, because if she did, she wouldn’t appear to be a perfect Christian anymore.
Hannah had a real relationship with God and cared more about that relationship than she did about maintaining her reputation.
A godly mother
Cares more about her RELATIONSHIP with God
than her REPUTATION with the world.
We see Hannah beautifully display this characteristic!
The next characteristic of a godly mother is this:
Believe,
before you see it come to pass.
When Eli told her that God will answer her prayer, she didn’t just agree to go in peace…
She left that place with an actual peace, which allowed her to eat again and she no longer had sorrow covering her face.
She actually trusted God and we see that in her actions!
Faith is shown through works.
(See post:
ARE CHRISTIANS REALLY SAVED BY FAITH?
if you want to see why faith is nothing without action.)
You could see her faith in God’s sovereign power when you learn that she was no longer depressed and her appetite came back.
Her fear wasn’t making her sick and her depression wasn’t imprisoning her demeanor.
She fully believed that God would move in her life…
even though she hadn’t seen the miracle happen yet.
Hannah believed God before she saw her dream come true!
She went home without a sign that a baby was in her womb, but she believed God and when that hope filled her heart, it changed how she lived her life.
This is a godly mother!
A mother who believes God before the miracle happens and let’s that hope determine her actions.
A Christian mother can say that she prayed for a miracle but you will not see faith in her actions.
She can wear a cross necklace and go to church, yet walk around hopeless because she believes the lies in her head more than she believes God!
A godly mother actually believes that God is good and that He loves her!
The final characteristics of a godly mother are found in I Samuel 1:19-28.
“Then they rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned and came to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the Lord.” Now the man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and his vow. But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “Not until the child is weaned; then I will take him, that he may appear before the Lord and remain there forever.” So Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him. Only let the Lord establish His word.” Then the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh. And the child was young. Then they slaughtered a bull, and brought the child to Eli. And she said, “O my Lord! As your soul lives, my Lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the Lord.” So they worshiped the Lord there.”
I Samuel 1:19-28 NKJV.
Here, Hannah shows us a radient characteristic of a godly mother:
Gives God the glory
for the dream coming true!
Hannah continued to make God her first priority and she worshipped Him, even though her dream hadn’t come yet.
Peninnah was still reminding her of her infertility, but Hannah still praised the LORD because she believed that He heard her prayer!
God heard her and she gave birth to a boy, whom she named
Samuel.
Samuel means
“God has heard”
or
“one who hears God”
in the original Hebrew context.
She was not blinded by her love for her dream.
Hannah still looks to God and she acknowledges the miracle is not the birth of a child from a barren womb…
The real miracle is that God heard her prayer.
She gives her dream a name that reminds her that he only exists because God heard her and remembered her.
Hannah doesn’t give her heart to Samuel,
She turns to God even more than ever before.
Hannah shows this godly mother characteristic:
keeps her vow,
even if that means loss.
She remembers the promise that she made God in verse 11.
Hannah promised to give Samuel to God and she doesn’t change her mind now that she is holding her dream in her arms.
She keeps the word that she has spoken, even if it hurts her.
Hannah’s story shows us that having a dream come true doesn’t mean clinging to it.
This takes us to the final godly characteristic that Hannah’s story shows us:
The Child is given to God!
Hannah gave Samuel to God, which meant that his life was now to be lived for God.
Samuel becomes a prophet; a man who actually HEARS the voice of God.
Hannah didn’t see Samuel as her belonging.
She saw God’s love for her through Samuel’s birth and because she knew that God was her Father, she trusted God to be Samuel’s Father, as well.
Samuel was a gift to Hannah, but not something to be possessed.
Hannah considered the baby’s birth to be a sign of God’s faithfulness and love towards her.
She chose to continue to make God her first priority and she held onto the sign of God’s love for her while she gave Samuel to God.
A Christian mother might cling to her children because the child fills a void in her heart.
A godly mother is fulfilled by God, so she is able to trust God with everything that she has.
She doesn’t worship the dream that she had prayed for…
she worships God even more because she sees His heart towards her.
This is what a godly mother looks like!
Through Hannah’s incredible story, we get to clearly see some characteristics of a godly mother.
I hope this encouraged all of you wonderful women of God!
If you don’t feel like you have perfected any of these characteristics,
don’t be discouraged.
Hannah was not perfect!
It took time for her to become content in the love of God and in the gifts that God already gave her.
Hannah wasn’t a godly mother based on perfection…
She was a godly mother because she never stopped seeking God and she allowed Him to continuously work on her heart.
So, if you feel far from perfection as a mother or even just as a woman,
Don’t let that keep you from the LORD!
God can work with a heart that is still open for growth.
The only way to truly achieve godly characteristics like those we saw in Hannah’s story,
is to seek God’s heart and let Him take care of yours!
You can trust that He will guide you and grow you as He did with Hannah!
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.”
Proverbs 3:5-7 NKJV.
“Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”
Isaiah 41:10 NKJV.
This post is dedicated to my very own godly mother!
Hungry Still? is the name of this ministry because of her.
Words cannot describe the diligence and dedication of this godly mother and it is due to her loving and tenacious example, that I stand where I am today!
I am grateful that God blessed me with a mother like her and I pray that God grows in my heart, the beautiful qualities that God has flourished in her heart!
Photo by Taryn Elliott
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
