We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19
Through the years, God has shown me the treasure my mom is not only as a mother, but one of my best friends.
The most amazing thing about my mother is something more than the fact she is unconditionally loving and everything else a child needs of a mother. Over time, God revealed to me how He planned to have her specifically be my mom. He knew I would need someone just like her – hand chosen by His grace.
Not everyone gets an opportunity to have a mom who loves and treasures them. For some reason, a mercy God provided me was this lady to be my mother. And God knew every challenge I would face in life before I was conceived, that I would need someone very patient and understanding through many difficult years.
All of this taught me another importance.
What God did through my mother, to provide examples of how He loves, also explained how much He holds close to His own heart every detail of every need we have. This does not mean all goes well or smooth or easy, because many circumstances certainly do not. But God wants us to trust He is in control and has a plan to handle everything we experience. While God does not stop every negative act that happens to us, He knows about it all and is callous to none of it. He will move on our behalf about each challenge at the best time and in the best way that benefits us most and brings Him glory.
Gifts of Opportunity
Gifts of opportunity allowed me to know a sweet friendship with my mother, made precious year after year of growing up and getting to know her.
- I learned to trust God through this friendship.
- I learned about God’s gentleness and strength through the unwavering display of my mother’s perseverance.
- I learned that God would always be by my side at the best and worst of me.
God’s consistent love shown to both my mom and dad was there for me because they both wanted Him in their marriage. This made it possible for them to pass that love along to me with a reminder that He wants to provide His best in every part of my life including sending the right man for me to marry at the right time.
Things we believe should happen in a certain way and time, yet do not, are not evidences that God has dropped us. Instead, He uses our deepest cares to build our trust in Him first and most. It is through my friendship with my mom that God taught me daily these truths about His reliable depth of character.
He proves again and again He hears every prayer about things that matter most to us and that no one else knows about except Him. We must trust Him completely though we have to turn over a particular something in prayer even for a longer time than we want. We must come to understand that He cares about answering our prayers more than we want Him to answer them.
God’s Intentional Ways
His ways of preparing our paths, and guiding us to His will for us, are based on enduring, unconditional love. Though times of preparing include what appears unjust and unthoughtful, causing us to be taken aback, wondering how God could ever choose many of the methods He uses to teach and lead us, He does it with great sensitivity to our condition, and attention to detail.
Carefully.
Thoughtfully.
Intentionally.
With full knowledge of how all He does will affect us.
With full knowledge of how we will respond to Him.
With a plan to never give up on us though He knows our responses to Him before we think of any.
He teaches us and leads us with a perfect, individual, personal, designed plan. And those seeming impossible paths He leads us to? Covered by His grace every step of the way to see us through all of it.
God’s love in my mother and father shows me I can trust His goodness because of the examples He has graciously provided. My parents have loved each other through thick and thin, sickness and health, over fifty years.
God Knows
Because God knows about everything that will come into our lives before any of it ever nears us, He brings the relationships and circumstances that will help us get through the obstacles we cannot fathom ever overcoming especially if we were to have an advance view of them.
Sometimes we are aware of how He handles things, and other times we never see a trace of His work behind the scenes. I can look back and see how, through my mother’s sweet friendship and many times being there for me without words, but just being there, God has brought healing and growth that would drive me to where I could love others. And to have the kind of sensitivity to the needs of others, to pray for them, and bring their concerns, no matter what they are, no matter how immensely painful and unappealing those needs appear, to a God who has proven He will always attend and provide.
He has done this so consistently for me through my mother.
Incredible Difference
No matter how bad things get, I rest on an unchanging truth that God always does good. It is something that never leaves my presence regardless of any rushing waves of trouble that surround me some days.
He continues to show that He does not allow hardships for the purpose of disappointing. He hurts over our pain just as we do. No one is perfect, including parents, but God clearly gave me all I needed growing up to get me through some beyond challenging times that I would not understand until much later.
This all made an incredible difference between my living with God’s love in my life and living without it. Because He gave such a thoughtful gift that my mother accepted from His loving heart, she passed that gift on to me growing up. For this I am forever thankful. A precious gift my Angel Mom is – sent just for me, heaven style, of course.
