Thanks, Mom

I've been one who for years have felt that the church spends much more time and prayer trying to keep Christians out of Heaven than we do trying to get unsaved people into Heaven. After all, if we really believe that at the end of this life the believer inherits eternal life with no sickness or tears, then death is not a defeat; rather the departure of the believer is a graduation and a reward. Now I understand that we miss those who go on before because in this earthly body the relationships we have with one another as we live in community with one another are the best approximation we have at our disposal down here. So, when my mom passed away several years ago, sure I was sad, but after seeing her live her last few years with sickness and disability, I was also happy for her since I knew that she was now in the sweet presence of God, something she spent her entire life preparing for. Most of the time when I think of Mom I think of the times when she was healthy and full of fun. I don't really spend much time missing her; mostly I just think fondly of the many good memories.

But today something happened that caught me unexpectedly. Today I was visiting with some new friends and one of them had a picture of a church gathering. The picture was taken in 1954, which was two years before I was born. My mom was in the picture, but what got me was when I turned the picture over and the names of the folks in the picture were written on the back. In my mom's unmistakable handwriting she had written her name. I was surprised at the effect this had on me, but when I thought that I was holding a picture that my mom had held in her hands and written on some 56 years ago was a little overwhelming. Later, as I sat alone and reflected, I thought of the heritage that was delivered to me. The picture was of a Vacation Bible School held in Guthrie, and my older brother Greg was also in the picture. Before I was born, Mom was giving herself to ministry in the ways she could, and she always modeled that for us boys. I am over the emotion of it now, but I am still overwhelmed with the great gift I was given by parents who made their relationship to God as something that was a priority in their lives and who stressed to their children that it should be a priority in theirs.