Lent
Isaiah 49.15, Micah 6.8
Rev Julie LC Chu
Minister of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan and co-pastor of the Chuang-Min Presbyterian Church in Taichung.
Years ago, after several miscarriages, I underwent a painful pregnancy. I decided to try my best to endure the pain, no matter how difficult it might be. Thus I read verses of the Psalms aloud to drive away the painfulness on a dark, windy night.
I was sent to the hospital the next morning, but the pills and shots could not stop my pain. After another scan, the doctor told me that I had an abnormal pregnancy that would not be successful. I was advised to undergo surgery to remove the foetus and the womb as well.
I received the news alone because my husband, also a pastor, was busy during the weekend at the church. This announcement sounded like a death sentence to me. How could I be a mother without a womb? I went back to my room where the sun was shining through the window. Hiding myself under the comforter, crying, I prayed to God that I might keep my womb and be given a chance to be a mother.
Kindness, the essence of the womb
In Hebrew, the noun "womb" has the same root as the nouns "kindness" and "mercy". Life is carried by kindness and nourished by mercy. Mothers who work with God to be hosts of life should be channels of mercy and kindness. With love and mercy, life is like a plant with sunshine and care. Without love and mercy, the womb will never give fullness to life.
Thanks to elders who were doctors in another city, I was urgently admitted to their teaching hospital that weekend. The doctors called all the interns to come and see my case, because it was rare. They looked at the scanner screen and carried on a long discussion while I lay on the cold examining table. It was just like waiting for the last judgment.
If I could save my womb, I might have the chance to be a mother. But only if I could keep mercy, which is the nurture, sunshine, protection, and consolation of life, could I be a nurturer. The womb is created by God and put in the female body to function according to God's will. Mercy and kindness cannot be made by human beings. Only God possesses and supplies them.
My God-given womb was facing a crucial test. Our God-given mercy and kindness are also tested every day and often endangered. All the negative experiences in life, like failure and defeat, prevent us from having the courage to take care of others and to give our hands to people in need. We become more selfish and less loving. God's mercy fades away.
Kindness, God's character
Mercy and kindness in the Bible are mostly about the love and grace of God towards human beings. We can experience God's endless love in the love of a mother. This kind of mercy is just like the womb that protects the foetus from harm until the time of birth, so that the infant comes safely into the world. Without mothers, there will not be babies; just as without God, there will not be human beings.
Nevertheless, God's love surpasses a mother's love: "Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you." (Is 49.15). Sometimes we hear on the news of parents abandoning their child. God, however, will never abandon God's people, even though we often prove unfaithful to God. We learn of God's steadfast love from the revelation of the Old Testament and the New Testament.
What God requires of God's people is recorded in Micah 6.8: "...to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God." To do justice, and to love kindness, here, is a requirement for us in relation not only to our family, but to everyone. This is a command for our daily behaviour. "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful" (Lk 6.36). To learn to reflect God's own character is such a challenging task, but we should try our best.
If we do try our best to fulfil the call from the depth of our hearts, we Christians could be the light of the world. We could be merciful like mothers protecting and nurturing their children, even though the mothers have to undergo hardship.
Kindness, a life-long process
Because of God's mercy, my womb was saved by using a special medicine to remove the foetus without surgery. The pain I went through that night was totally gone. I became a mother years later; God gave me two daughters who are so precious to me. I finally realized the importance of mercy. In learning to be a mother, I experience both joyfulness and difficult moments. When they are in a bad mood, I may be the scapegoat. For example, one child shouted: "I hate you so much"; but a moment earlier, she just lay in my arms, saying: "Mom, I love you!" At first I tried to reason about this with them, but this created even more stress. After understanding the lesson of mercy, I became more merciful to my children. As they are on their way to maturity, they will surely express their emotions and feelings to their closest family, and most of all, their mother.
In my role as a pastor and a pastor's wife, my experience of being a mother contributes a lot. Most of the congregation is nice, but at times some difficult members hurt the others. The pastor's family is sometimes hurt. I try to treat all of them with a mother's mercy and the love of God. People become difficult because of their negative experiences in life. We should try to deal with such people with mercy, and we should also learn to understand the reason behind their actions. Only mercy can help us with this task. Only being merciful can empower us to continue our love and service.
A woman's womb may be removed as she gets older or because of disease. Can we keep our mercy all life long? Let's learn to walk with God. May God help us to be merciful to others.
