My mother was raised in Milwaukee, WI, by highly committed Christian parents. Her father was a business man whose passion was to help people come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. He made periodic trips back to La Salle, IL, his hometown, to share Christ with his siblings who were not Christians. He and my grandmother started a Christian bookstore to further the cause of the gospel and to strengthen believers. He crossed racial lines to share the good news of Christ long before “reconciliation ministries” came into view. God used him as a layman to start a new church.
Raised in that environment, my mom came to know Christ and began serving Him from a young age. She and her two sisters are musicians and used their talents for the gospel in a variety of ways. All three of them served with their husbands as missionaries in other countries: Brazil, Germany, and, for my mom and dad, Ecuador. Dad preached God’s Word to the Spanish speaking world via radio and mom’s singing and piano playing were also broadcast over the airwaves.
What my mother received from her parents she passed on to her four children. Her life has been a faithful witness of commitment to Jesus Christ and obedience to God’s Word. That witness has been both in her actions and in her words.
When I was fairly young, probably six or seven years old, I asked my mom, “Mom, are we rich?” I don’t remember what motivated my question, but her reply has stuck with me all these years. “We are rich in love,” she said with a kind smile. I was warmed by her words and satisfied.
About forty years later, my mom offered some biblical wisdom she had no doubt learned by personal experience. My family and I were going through a difficult time and as I was talking with mom on the phone one day, she said, “God will provide. It may not be the way you want, but God will provide.” Her words proved true … all of them! God did provide and, no, it was not in the way I would have preferred. But He did provide.
I am grateful for my mother’s godly legacy. Thanks, mom!