‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ John 3:16

Mothering Sunday, a friend used to call it the Hallmark festival.  People would buy cards for mothers and grandmothers and feel that they had fulfilled the obligations of the day.

In the years in ministry, it often seemed a sad day.  There were those whose lives did not correspond to the ideal, those who had no children or grandchildren to send them …