Scripture: Then she said to him, "My lord, you swore by the LORD your God to your maidservant, saying, 'Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.'   (1 Ki 1:17 NKJV)

Observation: Absalom’s brother, Adonijah, decided to make himself king of Israel since his father David was old and getting closer to his death.  Bathsheba, mother of Solomon, asked David to fulfill his promise to her to elevate Solomon to the throne which is indeed what David did, not just to respond to her request but also following God’s plan and will for David and his family.

Application: Second only to the love God has for us is the love that mothers have for their children.  In fact, that love is so special that God uses it as illustrations of his love for us in various places in the Scriptures.

Among the Jewish people, the love of mothers for their children is legendary and is credited for the great success of so many of them.  They joke about the mothers who while holding their babies in arms or when they’re still small children they introduce them as, “this my Aaron, the doctor,” or “this is my  David, the lawyer,” and when they leave for school they make sure their children have their books while other mothers may be more concerned as to whether their children have their lunch or are properly clothed to go outside.  In the gospels, John and James’ mother asked Jesus for a special place for her sons, next to Jesus.  As upset as the other disciples were, we sometimes are annoyed with mothers who are too proud of their children and would like for the rest of us to admire their children.  If they wish to be proud of their kids they have ever right to do so, but not try to force them on us.

As a father who loves his daughters dearly, it may sound “unfair” that the love of fathers is not shown as prominently as that of mothers.  But the reality is that carrying a child inside for the months of pregnancy makes those children much more a part of them than they are of the fathers.  But it doesn’t mean we as fathers cannot develop a strong bond with our children.  I am blessed to have a very close, strong relationship with my daughters and we enjoy spending time together.  But I also recognize that there are many things where they and their mother have a stronger bond – like shopping, or talking about clothes.  Some time ago I heard that James Dobson, the famous Christian psychologist, claims that the most strained relationship today is that between men and their sons.  Since I don’t have sons I don’t know why that may be, but we as parents should still try to maintain and nourish close, strong bonds with our children.

A Prayer You May Say: Father, thank you for our children and for the good relationship we enjoy with them.  May those bonds be strengthened each day.  And bless us, when our relationships are strained, and bring healing to them.

Used by permission of Adventist Family Ministries, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.