Heroes come in all sorts of forms. Some wear capes like Superman. Some wear masks like Batman. Some aren’t human like Lassie (bit of a flashback for you there). Others aren’t well known, don’t have films or franchises and make up a significant percent of Britain’s population. I’m talking about single mothers.

According to the Office of National Statistics:

Of the 2.9 million lone parent families in the UK in 2016, the majority (86%) were headed by a female lone parent, the remaining 14% were headed by a male lone parent. These percentages have changed little over the 20 years since 1996. This could be associated with women being more likely to take the main caring responsibilities for any children when a relationship breaks down and therefore becoming lone parents.

A lot has changed since 1996.

You had no concept about what Google was – it arrived in 1998.

No one had an iPhone – they made an appearance in 2007.

Titanic hadn’t been released, that didn’t happen until 1997.

What hasn’t changed, it seems, is the amount of single mums in the UK. Single mothers carry a tremendous burden: filling the role of Mum AND Dad. Having to provide financially whilst also being available. School commitments, church commitments, family commitments, work commitments, the list goes on. It gets overwhelming and pretty quickly, it can get discouraging.

The book of Isaiah was written by, unsurprisingly, a prophet called Isaiah. He wrote it in Israel, somewhere around the 8th Century. What might be surprising is that this book is filled with promises, promises that seem particularly encouraging for single mums.

Here’s some for you:

Isaiah 54:13: “All your children will be taught by the Lord, and great will be their peace.”

Isaiah 41:13:  “For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”

Isaiah 61:7: “Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.”