How To Reach Muslim Mothers With The Gospel

As Mother’s Day is approaching, this is a great time to reach out to your Muslim friend who is a mother! To best love your friend, it is important to know more about her background and beliefs. Before we look over ways that we can practically love our Muslim friend, we’re going to learn what life is like for Muslim mothers.

Motherhood as a Muslim woman

Having children is an explicit expectation for all Muslim women, so as girls are raised, they are taught to expect to be mothers. Daughters are valued less than sons in Muslim families, and they are often kept in the confines of the home more than boys, out of fear for their safety and honor, hidden from Muslim men’s eyes, especially in Islamic countries. Daughters are taught to serve their male siblings, making them sandwiches and cleaning their rooms, in addition to helping their mothers doing the laundry and cooking.

When a woman is married, she goes under the guardianship of her husband. The hierarchy of a Muslim family is clear: the husband is above everyone, including his wife. In conservative Islamic communities, the husband makes the decisions, is served faithfully by the wife and children, and is obeyed silently. 

A mother’s role in a Muslim family is to take care of the children and complete all domestic labor tasks. She often raises the children entirely on her own, especially when the children are under five, before school age. Their lives are often isolated; they only grow close to other women in their family: mothers, sisters, and cousins.

Because their children are their main ambition and purpose in life, Muslim mothers have a huge impact on their children. The mother’s influence on her children continues even after they grow up and get married. For Muslims, a mother must be revered and never angered. Mohammad ordered his people in many Hadith references to honor the mothers and provide for them: 

“Verily, Allah has forbidden you from neglecting your duty to your mothers.” Sahih Bukhari 5630

Adult children continue to seek their mother’s approval and blessing for their actions and lives till she dies. It is believed that if a mother dies and she is not pleased with her son or daughter, the guilt of this sin follows them all their lives. This belief is inspired by Mohammad’s several quotes in the Hadith about honoring the mother and providing for her and making sure she stays pleased (Sunan an-Nasa'i 3104).

Disobeying the parents is one of the major sins according to Muhammad in the Hadith:  The major sins are “... associating idols with Allah, disobedience to parents, killing a person, and false testimony.” Source: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5632, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 88

How to celebrate your Muslim friend on Mother’s Day

Taking the time to show a Muslim mother that you see how hard she works will mean a lot to her. Here are some great ways to do this:

• Bring her a meal: Making a dish that you know your Muslim friend loves can make her feel appreciated and take some pressure off her for a night. Make sure it is halal-friendly, which means appropriate for Islamic diet. Instead of surprising your Muslim friend with a meal it might be best to ask her what her family would like for a meal.

• Get her flowers: This is a classic for appreciating women, and getting her flowers gives her a reason to smile. When she looks at them in her house, she can feel loved as she thinks of you!

• Ask her to meet up for coffee: Sometimes, all a mom needs is a break from her daily routine. Make sure you pick a place she is comfortable with and just enjoy listening to her and encouraging her.

You should take time to grow a friendship with a Muslim mother because she does not always have the opportunity to find friends and relationships outside of her Islamic circles. Getting to know her might be a slow process if she is a private woman, but perhaps she turns out to be secretly curious about your life as a Jesus-follower and she will open up quickly!

You can talk to your Muslim friend about motherhood, asking her what it is like to raise her children in Islam. Seek guidance from the Lord as you share with her Bible stories about mothers and connect them to your life and hers. 

Some Muslims believe that Christian women are incredibly immodest and improper in the way they dress and act because they wrongfully think that Hollywood represents what Christianity is all about!  You can show her that you also seek to be humble and modest, but that God looks at your heart first. Quoting important scriptures that have helped you be a God-honoring mother and woman will help your Muslim friend understand biblical motherhood.

“Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she smiles at the future. She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and bless her.” Proverbs 31:25-28

However you feel is best to celebrate your Muslim friend on Mother’s day, make sure that it is done in a way that makes her feel loved and appreciated. This is a wonderful time to share the unconditional love of Christ with her!

Prayer

Dear Lord, I pray that my Muslim friend can feel loved and appreciated this Mother’s Day. Give me the insight to know how to best celebrate her, and let our time and conversation point to you and be honoring to You. Amen.