Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.  

Deuteronomy 5:13 (NIV)

This year, I will celebrate Mother’s Day with my children, but not my mom. She passed away before Christmas of 2010 and it will be sad to not talk to her, send her flowers and recall fond memories.

But for those of you who still have your moms, this is a time to honor her and make it a special day. I know that honoring mom will be easy for many of you and more difficult for others. Some of you will read through Mother’s Day cards and feel tremendous loss and sadness because of the difficult relationship you have with mom.

Instead of focusing on the times our moms let us down, or didn’t give us exactly what we thought we needed, let’s look for ways to strengthen this important and powerful relationship since it impacts all our other relationships.

In fact, the more we work things out with mom, the better we will be at working things out in any intimate relationship. It is so important to strengthen the mother-daughter bond and find a way to do what God commands–honor our moms. And remember, this commandment comes with a promise.

So, here are ten ways to think through how to honor mom:

1. Tell her one thing she did right. Write it in a card or on a note or simply tell her.
2. Recall happy times and loving memories. Again, think through the positive times of your relationship and be ready to talk about those times.
3. Resolve past hurts and start fresh. You go first! Apologize, offer forgiveness and do what it takes to put the hurts behind you and move forward.
4. Write a short story about you and mom and share it. Yes, this would take some effort but what a great memory maker this would be for both of you.
5. Send a card. Express thanks. Make the card personal by adding words of fondness, admiration or what she means to you. In order words, send a message to mom, one of thanks and what she means to you.
6. Put together pictures of you and your mom in a scrapbook. Or give her a photo that brings to memory a happy moment. You can post it on social media, print it out and put it in a frame.
7. Buy her dinner or bring her special treats. Moms love to be the target of pampering as they are usually the ones giving to others. Mother’s Day is her turn to be the recipient of good things.
8. Tell her you love her and appreciate all the sacrifices she has made through the years. The words, “I love you,” are powerful and need to be said often.
9. Extend grace. If you have a difficult mom, extend grace this holiday and pray for a moment of happiness. If you are estranged, extend the olive branch and let her know, you want to try to have some type of relationship.
10. In the most difficult relationships, honor her for giving you life. Buy a blank card and simply write, “Thanks for choosing life and bringing me into this world. “