SAYING GOODBYE

...surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:20b (NIV)

I stood in the driveway, watching my mother's beloved rust bucket Ford Escort station wagon disappear down Mountain Road. It left an ache in my heart. Hot tears escaped my eyes.

The car was Mother's faithful friend, taking her to church and bringing her home every Sunday for sixteen years.

I worried when Mother drove thirty one-miles to church on Sundays. She told me not to worry, Jesus was co-pilot when she got behind the wheel. I prayed He was there protecting her. After all, she was eighty-four when she first moved here and still drove everywhere by herself until her fatal illness at eighty-eight.

It's a blessing to have the wonderful memories of Mother and her car. I used to tease her and tell her she had wheels for feet. She laughed and told me not to forget it either. We were not going to take her keys away. She would know when it was time for her to stop driving.

Mother became progressively ill during her last year with us. She eventually stopped driving so her car stayed parked. She kept the keys.

Sometimes Mother asked me to read her Bible to her when she grew too weak to read. I checked the chapters and read as she lay back in her rocker, exhausted but content. It wasn't long before my sisters and I had to tell her goodbye. We had faith that God's angels took her to heaven. It gave us a chuckle to think of angels driving her to heaven in her beloved rust bucket.

Thank You, Father, for always being with us, especially in the fond memories of our beloved mother and her trusty old car. Amen.

© 2016 Evelyn B. Ryan

WORRY OR WORSHIP

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you…. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 (NIV)

Worry is a choice! When living in a very challenging situation where fear was a constant companion, I was mentally assaulted with a dread that I would be out on the street. When the tempest enveloped me, I sang praise songs, like “Trust in the Lord with all your heart” repeatedly. Soon I felt relief. I was never homeless.

Recently, I had to drive my daughter from Abingdon, MD. to downtown Baltimore to John Hopkins Medical Center. That concerned me. I felt I’d probably get lost, be stuck in the wrong lane or miss my turn. She insisted I take her car, being newer and more reliable.

Thank God we arrived on time, and at the correct place. Her hand surgery went well and after four hours, she was released to go home. Her husband arrived at the hospital and said he would drive her home, and I’d drive her car home.

I looked outside. It’s snowing. Here I am in the city, in a different car, and its rush hour, and I prayed, “Lord, help me.” I felt His nudge. Worry or worship, entered my mind. How can I stop this trembling? Worry or worship, repeated itself. 

Straightening my shoulders, and taking a deep breath, I drove through the blinding snow singing. “This is the day the Lord has made.” Soon “Trust and Obey” and “Amazing Grace” burst from my heart. I drove home in perfect peace.

Worship is a better choice.

Dear Lord. You are my Shepherd. I shall not want. Your provision is greater than my strongest need. amen

2016 © Lois Gosley

LESSON LEARNED

"You shall not steal." Exodus 20:15 (NIV)

When I was seven years old, Mother allowed me to accompany my friend, Becky to the store. When we got there, Mr. Sam took her list, filling the order. Becky whispered in my ear something that gave me chills. I struggled with my conscience, knowing it was wrong to steal. My mothers words echoed in my head about disobeying God's commandments.

"Come on," Becky urged. "Take a cookie for you and one for me. I'll watch and tell you when Mr. Sam comes back."

My mouth watered in anticipation. I eased the lid off the big jar and took two cookies. When Becky got her order, she said loudly, "Mr. Sam, Bonnie took two cookies from the cookie jar." I wanted to disappear.

Mr. Sam scowled at me but told me to keep the cookies. I left the store and ran all the way home, never looking back at my so-called "friend."

Right away, Mother knew something was amiss. She saw the cookies and asked where they came from.

"The store," I answered meekly.

"Did you steal them?"

"Yes," I said, my head bowed in shame.

Mother was a whirlwind. She grabbed my hand and dragged me back to the store, anger boiling inside her. She made me tell Mr. Sam what I had done. "I taught her better than that!" Mother said vehemently. She took the cookies and threw them in the trash can. That day I got the hardest spanking and most stinging lecture on how God hates stealing.

Lesson learned. I didn't understand then, but my mother loved me more by disciplining me, further enforcing the eighth commandment.

Father, thank You for a mother who knew the Ten Commandments and brought me up by the seat of my panties when I needed it. Amen.

© 2016 Evelyn B. Ryan

A MOTHER’S LESSON

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God. Titus 2:3-5 (NIV)

Mother’s Day is just a day away. I hope to take some time this weekend to pay respects to all mothers. It is not possible to be with my mother since she lives in another state. I can however, pay my respects to someone in my life who embodies the grace and wisdom we associate with Godly mothers.

Growing up I did not have a Godly mother. It was not until I got saved and joined a church that I was able to look to other older women for my example of what a good mother should be. The pastor's wife took me under her wing. Her example encouraged me to be the mother I yearn to become.

The whole goal of a Titus 2 woman is to train younger women in Biblical, Spirit-empowered, love-based lives. This can be accomplished when we seek God first, rather then the counsel of other Godly women life.

Christian principles I have learned from the many other Godly mothers in my life, helped me to pass these lessons to the younger mothers God puts in my path. Now, I seek to be a Titus 2 woman.

Lord, help me to be a Godly mother, grandmother and an example to other mothers.

©2016 Dawn Sexton.