Mothered By Mercy" 10-May-2026 10AM

May 10, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Hands That Spared Life

Pharaoh summoned Shiphrah and Puah, Hebrew midwives tasked with killing newborn boys. Their hands—trained to cradle life—faced a brutal decree. Yet when Hebrew mothers labored, these women breathed courage instead of death. They lied to power, claiming Hebrew women birthed too quickly for intervention. Their fear of God outweighed fear of Pharaoh’s wrath. [14:14]

Shiphrah and Puah understood life’s sanctity. They refused to let political terror override divine purpose. By protecting vulnerable boys, they preserved Israel’s future—including Moses, who’d later confront Pharaoh. God honored their integrity by giving them families of their own.

Your hands hold power to nurture or neglect what God values. Where do systems pressure you to compromise? Name one situation this week where you’ll choose integrity over compliance. How might your courage ripple beyond today?

“The midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live.”
(Exodus 1:17, NRSV)

Prayer: Ask God to reveal where He’s calling you to protect vulnerable lives.
Challenge: Text one person facing injustice today with a Scripture of hope.

Day 2: Lies That Told Truth

Shiphrah and Puah stood before Pharaoh, inventing stories about vigorous Hebrew births. Their deception masked holy rebellion. Though their words bent facts, their hearts upheld a greater truth: every life bears God’s image. Pharaoh’s rage couldn’t unravel their resolve. [14:35]

God doesn’t endorse lying but honors allegiance to His character. The midwives’ risky faithfulness disrupted genocide. Their “failure” to obey evil became a triumph for mercy. God turned their shaky defense into a legacy of liberation.

Many face dilemmas where cultural demands clash with conscience. When have you softened hard truths to survive? Pray for wisdom to discern when silence or speech best honors God. What compromise have you tolerated that needs confronting?

“The midwives said to Pharaoh, ‘Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.’”
(Exodus 1:19, NRSV)

Prayer: Confess one area where fear has muted your witness.
Challenge: Write down a cultural lie you’ve accepted; replace it with a Bible truth.

Day 3: Wombs That Built Nations

Shiphrah and Puah, likely barren in a culture equating worth with motherhood, devoted their lives to others’ children. They cradled strangers’ sons as their own. God rewarded their faithfulness not with personal legacy but with national deliverance—and eventually, families. [52:05]

God multiplies hidden sacrifices. The midwives’ barrenness became fertile ground for Israel’s redemption. Their story proves God sees quiet obedience and repays it beyond imagination.

What unseen service drains you? Cleaning, mentoring, or praying for others’ children? God counts every diaper changed, every meal shared. Where do you need assurance your labor matters?

“Because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.”
(Exodus 1:21, NRSV)

Prayer: Thank God for someone who invested in you despite receiving no credit.
Challenge: Bless a caregiver (parent, teacher, nurse) with a handwritten note of gratitude.

Day 4: Mercy’s Dangerous Algebra

The midwives risked death to save babies who’d never know their names. Their mercy defied logic—protecting others’ futures while jeopardizing their own. Yet God’s economy transformed their loss into gain, making them ancestors of Christ through Rahab, a redeemed liar. [53:10]

Mercy often costs comfort. Jesus spent Himself for strangers, trusting the Father’s reward. When we shield the vulnerable, we join His countercultural math: losing to gain, dying to live.

Who in your orbit needs protection—a coworker, immigrant neighbor, or unborn child? What safety must you forfeit to advocate for them? When has mercy circled back to rescue you?

“Whoever seeks to preserve their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life will keep it.”
(Luke 17:33, NRSV)

Prayer: Intercede for leaders tempted to sacrifice ethics for expediency.
Challenge: Donate baby supplies to a pregnancy center or refugee family.

Day 5: Names Etched in Dust

Pharaoh’s name fades, but Shiphrah (“Beauty”) and Puah (“Splendor”) endure. God immortalized these women in Scripture—not for their status but their surrender. Their story whispers: small obedience in oppressive times echoes eternally. [21:09]

God remembers your name when systems reduce you to a number. The midwives’ legacy proves no act of faith is wasted. Your daily choices—to speak, serve, or resist—write His story.

What Pharaoh-like voice belittles your influence? How might today’s faithfulness shape tomorrow’s miracles? What legacy are you building with your fragile hours?

“The memory of the righteous is a blessing.”
(Proverbs 10:7, NRSV)

Prayer: Ask God to make your life a sanctuary for His purposes.
Challenge: Share Shiphrah and Puah’s story with someone feeling insignificant.

Sermon Summary

We gather with thankful hearts to name God as redeemer and sustainer, celebrating fresh mercies that meet us each morning. We practice prayer as a public, living trust, telling stories of a stranger touched by intercession to show how prayer still moves in real lives. We worship through song and confession, asking God to sanctify us as living sanctuaries whose lives reflect holy purpose rather than mere routine. We announce milestones and ministries that bind the community together, reminding one another that shared memory fuels mercy and resists erasure.

We read Exodus 1 where two midwives refuse Pharaoh’s command to kill Hebrew boys, and we hold up their courage as a model of righteous resistance rooted in reverence for God. We insist that fearing God produces moral clarity that outstrips political pressure and personal safety, so that protecting life becomes a deliberate act of worship. We insist that mercy refuses to forget the skin it is in, refusing to disassociate from the vulnerable even when systems pressure people to turn away. We insist that mercy refuses to betray its own calling, so those equipped to bring life must not become instruments of destruction.

We name mercy as active and costly: it asks us to intervene, to risk reputation and comfort, and to act beyond prayers and condolences. We remind one another that God honors that costly mercy by sustaining those who pour out their lives, sometimes rewarding sacrificial service with unexpected provision. We encourage persistent obedience in classrooms, kitchens, hospitals, and civic spaces because we do not always see how God will use our small acts to shape a larger deliverance. We commit to stand on the side of mercy in family, neighborhood, and nation, believing that memory, discernment, and bravery together preserve a future that systems might try to erase. We go from this place sent to embody mercy, trusting that God will uphold those who protect life and serve others in his name.

Key Takeaways

1. Mercy protects life and future We must choose protection over expedience when systems pressure us to destroy what God values. Choosing mercy in small, intimate moments can save a life and preserve a destiny we cannot yet see. Such choices carry communal consequences because original acts of compassion often become the seedbed for future deliverance. [81:20]
2. Fear of God fuels righteous resistance We anchor our moral courage in reverence for God rather than fear of human power or loss of favor. That fear reorders loyalties so obedience to God overrides compliance with unjust commands. When we fear God rightly, we refuse to let authority erode our witness to justice and life. [82:51]
3. Mercy remembers the skin We refuse to detach from the bodies and faces of those who suffer, resisting any tactic that convinces us to disassociate from our own kind. Remembering shared humanity prevents the normalization of indifference and makes mercy a relational discipline, not a sentimental posture. Loving through proximity reshapes communities and breaks cycles of violence and neglect. [93:21]
4. Mercy refuses contradiction to calling We examine how systems try to weaponize our gifts and resist becoming the opposite of our vocation. We hold steady to life-giving identities even when pressure pushes us toward compromise and complicity. Remaining faithful in small duties preserves the possibility that our obedience will bless many beyond our sight. [101:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[25:11] - Call to Praise and Redemption
[27:29] - Prayer’s Power and the Uber Story
[29:49] - "Lord Prepare Me" and Worship
[32:02] - Intercession and Care for Grieving
[45:26] - Announcements and Church Life
[46:11] - Seventy Fifth Anniversary Preview
[49:32] - Pentecost and Red Sunday
[53:56] - Offering and Giving Instructions
[72:49] - Scripture Reading Exodus 1
[80:16] - Pharaoh’s Edict and Midwives’ Choice
[82:51] - Mercy’s Reward and Call to Action
[112:05] - God’s Providence for the Merciful
[129:44] - Benediction and Sending

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Exodus 1:15-21 (ESV)
15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 “When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” 17 But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. 18 So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and let the male children live?” 19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” 20 So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.

Observation Questions

What specific command did Pharaoh give the midwives, and how did they respond?
How does the text explain the midwives’ motivation for disobeying Pharaoh?
What reason did the midwives give Pharaoh for not killing the boys, and what does this reveal about their courage?
What two outcomes resulted from the midwives’ actions (vv. 20-21)?

Interpretation Questions

Why do you think Pharaoh targeted midwives (life-givers) to carry out his plan? What does this reveal about how evil systems often operate?
The sermon says, “Fear of God reorders loyalties” [01:22:51]. How did the midwives’ fear of God reshape their priorities compared to societal or political pressures?
The midwives lied to Pharaoh to protect lives. Does this mean God approves of deception in certain situations? How do we reconcile this with biblical calls to truthfulness?
The text says God “gave them families” as a reward. Why might this detail matter in a culture where barrenness carried stigma?

Application Questions

The sermon says mercy “asks us to intervene, not just pray” [01:21:20]. Where in your daily life (work, family, community) are you being nudged to take active, risky steps to protect someone’s dignity or future?
“Mercy refuses to forget the skin it’s in” [01:33:21]. How can you intentionally stay connected to the struggles of people in your own community rather than becoming indifferent?
The midwives’ small act of obedience preserved Moses’ life. What “ordinary” responsibility (e.g., parenting, mentoring, your job) might God be using to shape a bigger story you can’t yet see?
The sermon warns against letting systems “weaponize your gifts against your calling” [01:41:50]. Are there areas where societal pressure (political, cultural, or workplace) is tempting you to compromise your values? How can you resist?
God rewarded the midwives’ costly mercy with provision. When have you experienced unexpected blessings after choosing integrity over convenience? How does this encourage you?
The Uber driver’s story [27:29] showed prayer breaking isolation. Who in your circle needs tangible relational mercy (not just words) to feel God’s presence?
The sermon says, “Memory fuels mercy” [01:18:10]. What practices (journaling, storytelling, etc.) could help you remember God’s past faithfulness to sustain courage in hard choices?

Sermon Clips

35s

#WombMercy

“And the Old Testament language where mercy carries the image of a mother's womb, that it's deep rooted compassion on the inside where you feel another person's vulnerability like it's your own. That's why these women didn't kill these children, church. The deep compassion that they had would not allow them to detach themselves from the skin of their humanity. They said whether or not these are Hebrew children or Egyptian children, we can't kill them because they're God's children.”

55s

#FreshDailyMercy

“Blessed are the merciful. The scripture says, for they shall be shown mercy. I'm telling you how you're making it right now. I'm I'm telling you how you're making it right now, mama. Every morning you wake up, god says, here goes a fresh order of mercy that's gonna get you through this day. I know you didn't get all the sleep you wanted to get, but here goes some new mercy. Just enough energy you need to get to 05:00. I know you woke up to bills, but here's some new mercy. You stand in mercy, God's mercy stands with you.”

32s

#MercyCallsYou

“And that principle shouldn't be ignored, but here's the promise. The promise of the text is this, that the favor of god is manifested in the lives of those who align themselves with god's mercy because the text says god dealt with the midwives well. So here's my question. What what what where is mercy this morning calling you to stand in your home, in your family, in your community?”

44s

#StewardshipMatters

“Mercy says, if god trusted my hands with something, I cannot become so careless or irresponsible because everything I do with what god gave me carries consequences that go beyond what I can see right now. I I I see this. You don't believe me, so let me help you. The midwives had no idea that one of the boys that they were gonna help save would eventually become the leader, the liberator, and the law giver of their entire race.”

41s

#MothersOfMercy

“And on this Mother's Day church, this is what makes the response of Shipra and Pua so relevant because we recognize that what they embody reflects something deeply spiritual. Hear me. They are not the biological mothers of these children. But because they have a spiritual consciousness, they step into the work of protecting lives beyond themselves. They become what I call mothers of mercy. They become caretakers of a future they they did not create.”

36s

#ResistUnjustSystems

“Whenever power feels threatened, it often responds by targeting the vulnerable and the unprotected people to make itself feel great again. What do you do, child of God, when the system around you, political, social, family, and otherwise, demand something from your spirit that you can't agree with? What what do you do when you are legally permitted when what you are legally permitted to do is not the most righteous option?”

42s

#DangerousMercy

“It is likewise our call to become people whose instincts are and impulses are shaped by the mercy we imitate from the god we've come to know in very personal ways. We gotta move beyond this kind of mercy that just sees something wrong and say, I'm a just offer my thoughts and prayers. Now we gotta intervene, overstep if we need to, if that means being obedient to God. So what does that mean about mercy then? To be a person who extends mercy. It means that mercy can be dangerous spiritual work.”

47s

#RememberHistory

“And because this pharaoh does not remember Joseph, he has no regard for Joseph's people. This is a little plug to let us know and always be mindful of the fact that history matters. It matters, history does, because it feeds into memory, and memory, for the sake of our time today, is what keeps mercy alive. When memory is erased, people become disposable. And as the text shows, eventually, when memories when memory is erased, policies toward those people can become predatory.”

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Bella Vista MBC This sermon · AI assistant

What motivated the midwives to disobey Pharaoh?

How should Christians respond when power demands compromise?

What blessing follows faithful acts of mercy?