My Mother's Keeper

Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them. John 14:21 NIV

I don't normally get personal in this blog, but today's post is different. I struggled with what to say about this verse that hasn't already been said, so I'm going to say what's on my heart. My mother. For those of you reading that know her, how she is now is very different than what she used to be. Time and age have taken its toll in a way I never thought it would with her. Her brilliant mind that taught highschool and Sunday school for most of her life has turned against her. But she's still with us and we treasure every day we have with her.

I came along later in life than she and dad probably imagined, so I didn't know my mom before she was a seasoned mom and teacher. And for all the lives she lived, I'll never get to ask her about those now. I want to know the brave young woman who got married at 18 and watched her husband ship off to the Navy to serve on an aircraft carrier during the Korean War. I want to know the high school student who was president of the Latin club - Latin! I want to know the young girl who wore pants (shocking!) and learned to shoot a gun. And I really want to know about THAT NIGHT that everyone in her yearbook wrote about where she stayed out all night long with my dad and they went drag racing in the next town over! My mom! The woman who told me rock music was of the devil. The woman who forbade us to dance at my wedding. The woman who would not let me wear jeans till 10th grade and not out in public.

She was all of those and more. She knew the rules and knew how to break them. She eventually learned that you can't break the rules without consequences and I think that's what she really tried to instill in me. She understood that when you love God you keep his commandments - you follow his rules. I didn't always follow the rules, especially those set by my parents...but hey, what kid does? It's part of growing up. But we eventually come around and know that rules are there to protect us. God's rules do the same thing. His rules bring us to a higher place that will finish our faith. That is our ultimate goal.

Like that old song says, loving God means to "trust and obey, for there's no other way, to be happy in Jesus."