A tribute to my Mom…
With Mothers Day fast approaching, I am preparing to spend
some time with my Mom. This past year, she
and I have shared something really dear to me…a love for the Lord.
When I was a little girl, I always remember my Mother speaking
tenderly to me, being patient with me and having so many wonderful talents that
she shared with me. I hoped someday to
be a Mommy just as she was. She always
had a special way about her. She was
good at everything she did. She had a
way of making our house so warm and cozy and a place where everyone wanted to
be. She was always such a wonderful cook
and we had more hot meals than we could have ever asked or prayed for. We were loved and cherished and when you’re a
child you think that everyone has a house that runs the way yours does. I was amazed as I got older just how very
blessed and loved I was.
My parents divorced when I was 6. My brother was a year old and my Mom was left
to raise us on her own. God gave her the
strength and faith she needed to provide for us not only the basic needs to
live, but the upbringing she knew she wanted for us. She taught us responsibility, manners, how to
respect others, work hard and earn what you have but also to know and recognize
that everything is a blessing from God. She instilled in us that who you are on
the inside means much more than who you are on the outside. I became saved at the age of 11 and simply had
no idea what the next decade would bring.
My teenage years were hard.
I pushed away from my mom and from God. Being the amazing woman that she is, my Mom
stuck by me and never left my side. She
gave me space when I thought I needed it but was waiting with open arms when I
realized that space was not what I needed at all (just as God is compassionate
to us).
When I hit my 20’s, I became engaged and got married, she
helped me as I entered womanhood and prepared to be a wife. She became my best friend and walked me down
the aisle as she handed me over to my husband and into the hands of God to lead
me through starting my life as an adult.
A few years later my husband and I were blessed with our
daughter Brileigh. God showed me right
away that even though I had given my life to him many years back, it was time
for me to renew that commitment and to bring more of him into my life, my
marriage, my home and my family. My eyes
were suddenly opened to the reality of what my Mom had given to me and given up
for me over the years. I also noticed
how much I had grown to be just like her in so many ways. Parenthood has a way of waking you up and
helping you see the light…but a lot of that was also the Lord. I realized why my Mom raised us the way she
did and did everything possible to protect us. She and I began a journey together re-committing
our lives to Christ. In the process my husband
and mother-in-law became saved as well.
What an amazing God we serve! He
is faithful even when we are not.
My Mom and I spend so much time together sharing life and
wonderful memories and stories of my childhood, our love for Brileigh, Scrabble, gardening, thrift store shoping, being moms and spending time in the sun, napping, cooking and spending time at home with family...but the one
thing that is more important than anything else is that we share a love for God.
It is one of the most amazing opportunities
in this life to be a Mother and even more so to be a Christian mother. I have the ability and opportunity each day
to show the love of Christ to my child just the way my Mom showed it to
me. To have Brileigh raise a godly
family would be the best gift she could ever give to me and to future generations.
As for me and my house,
we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15.
The world we live in separates us from God if we allow the influences
of this world to determine who we are.
Christian moms who love the Lord and desire to raise their children for
the Lord are one of the most important disciples for Christ. Thank you Mom for loving me unconditionally,
you have supported me, and have had faith in me and in God. Thank you for forgiving me when I was less
than perfect but most of…thank you for showing me what the love of Christ is
like. It does not matter how old I am…I
still want to be like you, because you showed me that what we do each day as earthly
parents (out of love for our children) is what our heavenly Father does each
day for us.
I love you Mom, Happy Mother’s Day
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