Second-hand Knowledge - A Tribute to My Mother

This time I’m writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts.

I’ll be their God, they’ll be my people. They won’t go to school to learn about me, or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons.

They’ll all get to know me firsthand, the little and the big, the small and the great. They’ll get to know me by being kindly forgiven, with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.

Hebrews 8:10b-12 The Message

To say that my mother was a strong woman of faith would almost be an understatement. I cannot begin to tell you of the adversity and trials of her life and yet, her faith and trust in God remained the ultimate driving force in her life. As it turned out, that was her greatest witness.

As a teenager, I didn't understand it. I remember more than once demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?" From an early age, I was a 'big picture' kind of girl, but I didn't recognize or acknowledge it as it truly was - a gift from God - to be used to edify and to build up the body of Christ. I thought my mother suffered from tunnel vision and a one-track mind. I did not know or understand that Mom was the living illustration of Psalm 121.*  

I only had second-hand knowledge of who God was and is. I didn't know HIM. I thought I did - I'd been in church every time the doors were opened from the time I could remember - but the truth was, I only knew OF Him. 

Through my own adversity and trials and the working of God's grace in them, my mother's God became my God. I came to know Him in His fullness. I learned first-hand of His love in spite of my failures. I experienced His peace in the midst of the storms of life. Over and over, His provision. Making a way through those storms, when there was NO way. 

There isn't time nor space right here to tell of all that God has done to reveal Himself so I could have first-hand knowledge of Him. I have faced the next generation and now the third generation of teenagers demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?" I pray to have the same "tunnel vision" and "one-track mind" that my mother had. And I pray that my faith in God during the tough times will be my greatest witness.

Prayer:

Father, 

         Thank You for my mother. For all the years I did not appreciate her, her faith in You, and You Yourself, please forgive me. Let me be a faithful witness to those You have given me. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen

* Psalm 121 NLT

I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. 

The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.

Thinking about my mother...

I wrote this several years back about my mother. She's been on my mind a lot recently. Please bear with me for a repeat.

This time I’m writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts. I’ll be their God, they’ll be my people. They won’t go to school to learn about me, or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons.

They’ll all get to know me firsthand, the little and the big, the small and the great. They’ll get to know me by being kindly forgiven, with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.
Hebrews 8:10b-12 The Message Bible

To say that my mother was a strong woman of faith would almost be an understatement. I cannot begin to tell you of the adversity and trials of her life and yet, her faith and trust in God remained the ultimate driving force in her life. As it turned out, that was her greatest witness.

As a teenager, I didn't understand it. I remember more than once demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?"

From an early age, I was a 'big picture' kind of girl, but I didn't recognize or acknowledge it as it truly was - a gift from God - to be used to edify and to build up the body of Christ. I thought my mother suffered from tunnel vision and a one-track mind. I did not know or understand that Mom was the living illustration of Psalm 121 (included below).

At that time, I only had a second-hand knowledge of who God was and is. I didn't know HIM. I thought I did - I'd been in church every time the doors were opened from the time I could remember - but the truth was, I only knew OF Him.

Through my own adversity and trials and the working of God's grace in them, my mother's God became my God. I came to know Him in His fullness. I learned first-hand of His love in spite of my failures (or perhaps because of them). I experienced His peace in the midst of the storms of life. Over and over, always His provision. Making a way through those storms, when there was NO way.

There isn't time nor space right here to tell of all that God has done to reveal Himself so I could have first-hand knowledge of Him. I have faced the next generation and now a third generation of teenagers demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?"

I pray to have the same "tunnel vision" and "one-track mind" that my mother had. And I pray that my faith in God during the tough times will be my greatest witness to those He has given me.

Prayer:

Father,
           Thank You for my mother. For all the years I did not appreciate her, her faith in You, and You Yourself, please forgive me. Let me be a faithful witness to those You have given me. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen

* Psalm 121 NLT
I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps.

The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.

* Comfort in Knowing

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
2nd Corinthians 1:3-4 NKJV

The Message offers our Promise for Today in this wording, All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.

The tears were real. The angst and fear were evident in the choked-out words of the telling. There wasn't one physical thing anyone could do to change the circumstances, but God...

The power of love with great compassion and understanding poured out from those who had faced the same battles and WON through Christ, our Lord! Declarations, testimonies and affirmations of only some of the times God had come through in the same situations were witness to His tangible triumphs! It is a beautiful thing to witness fears dispelled by faith rising in response to the high tide of praise.

...that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble... He brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us.

There's comfort in knowing what God has done. It builds our faith and trust to know a never-failing God. Never miss an opportunity to tell of His greatness toward you. There's comfort in knowing...

Prayer:

Father,
             Open our eyes to see Your handprint on all that is good in our lives. Give us time and space to walk back through the pathway and remember all that You have brought us through, building up the holy faith that You have provided. Give us a holy boldness to proclaim praise at every opportunity for all that You've done in our lives so we may bring comfort to those who need to know. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* Second-hand Knowledge

    This time I’m writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts.

     I’ll be their God, they’ll be my people. They won’t go to school to learn about me, or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons.

     They’ll all get to know me firsthand, the little and the big, the small and the great. They’ll get to know me by being kindly forgiven, with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.

Hebrews 8:10b-12 The Message Bible

To say that my mother was a strong woman of faith would almost be an understatement. I cannot begin to tell you of the adversity and trials of her life and yet, her faith and trust in God remained the ultimate driving force in her life. As it turned out, that was her greatest witness.

As a teenager, I didn't understand it. I remember more than once demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?" From an early age, I was a 'big picture' kind of girl, but I didn't recognize or acknowledge it as it truly was - a gift from God - to be used to edify and to build up the body of Christ. I thought my mother suffered from tunnel vision and a one-track mind. I did not know or understand that Mom was the living illustration of Psalm 121.*  

I only had a second-hand knowledge of who God was and is. I didn't know HIM. I thought I did - I'd been in church every time the doors were opened from the time I could remember - but the truth was, I only knew OF Him. 

Through my own adversity and trials and the working of God's grace in them, my mother's God became my God. I came to know Him in His fullness. I learned first-hand of His love in spite of my failures. I experienced His peace in the midst of the storms of life. Over and over, His provision. Making a way through those storms, when there was NO way. 

There isn't time nor space right here to tell of all that God has done to reveal Himself so I could have first-hand knowledge of Him. I have faced the next generation and now a third generation of teenagers demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?" I pray to have the same "tunnel vision" and "one-track mind" that my mother had. And I pray that my faith in God during the tough times will be my greatest witness.

Prayer:

Father, 

         Thank You for my mother. For all the years I did not appreciate her, her faith in You, and You Yourself, please forgive me. Let me be a faithful witness to those You have given me. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen

* Psalm 121 NLT

I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. 

The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.