Thanks, Mom

Today is my mom’s birthday. (One of the lessons she taught me was to not say “which” birthday this is!) One of the greatest blessings God has given to me is the home in which I was raised. My parents, together, worked very hard to raise both Amber and me. (Parents…please read that last sentence again, slowly, and you will have an outline on parenting.)

There is no way I could write a blog post that truly expresses my thankfulness to my mom, but I wanted to share just a few reasons why she is so special to me.

1. God is first in her life. If you spend more than about 45 seconds with my mom, she will remind you of something good that God has done, or of a promise He has made, or of something she has learned from His Word. It doesn’t take long at all to figure out that He is the central focus of her life.

2. Dad was placed before us…but we were next! And that’s the way it should be. It’s hard to say “Jim” without thinking his last name is “and Donna.” Mom always put dad and his work on a pedestal, but she made sure that we were loved and that what we were celebrating or struggling with was right at the top of the priority list.

3. Lots of chocolate was always around the house! (Yummmmmmy)

4. “Let’s think about this now.” I don’t know how many times I heard that phrase when I was struggling with something, but I would guess it was at least a billion. Mom always made us think through our problems and see that we could work through them if we would just put our mind to it. She truly believed in us.

5. Respect for others. It doesn’t matter is someone is young, old, white, black, rich, poor…or anything else. Mom always shows others respect and cares for them. She is beloved by children and elderly folks alike. Sadly, not many people can say that.

This list in no way is exhaustive, but it reflects some of the things I am thinking of today as I celebrate my mom on her birthday. She is truly a special lady (with emphasis on “lady”), and has many stars in her crown.

Happy birthday, mom….and thank you for all you have done and continue to do for me.

“Her children rise up and call her blessed.”