JOY!

"I remember my mother's prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life."
-- Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

Above: My mother, my brother-Dickie, and me (my sister Laurie wasn't born yet) :)

" Who is it that loves me and will love me forever with an affection which no chance, no misery, no crime of mine can do away? — It is you, my mother."-- Thomas Carlyle

Sunday was a day set aside for Mothers. This special day set me to thinking about motherhood. Here are some of my thoughts...first, I want to say how blessed I am to have my Mom! She's such a wonderful mother to me! She encourages me, prays for me, and helps me in a million ways! And we have a lot of fun together! We like to cook, shop, play games, laugh, and just chat together. I enjoy her company. I love her deeply. She's my mother.

Secondly, I want to thank these two below...if it weren't for them, I wouldn't have earned the blessed title of Mother.

The years have gone so swiftly by! And as I've passed my midlife point already, I can say that being a mother is the highest calling in my life after being a Christian. (I wish I had a big family with 12 children!) But God didn't have that for me.

Mothers have a special way of filling homes with love, and when the home is filled with love -you'll always find God spoken of there.

- Helen Steiner Rice -

Being a mother is an awesome responsibility. It's a job that never ends. It's rewards cannot be measured by monetary standards.

But, I don't just want a mother. A praying mother. I want to be a godly mother.

Attributes of a Godly Mother ...

She has accepted Christ as Savior
And Lord of her whole life;
She has peace with God,
That calms her inner strife;
She knows how to trust
The Father for all things;
She is right and just,
In the guidance she gives.

She knows how to pray
For her family's daily needs;
She can point the way,
Which God wants all to go;
And always seeks to guide
Her family towards God;
For she abides in the Lord,
Walking the way He leads.

She knows how to share
the importance of the Holy Word;
And seeks to reach her child
From the depth of her heart;
She always tries to be
Loving, gentle, and kind;
She helps her child grow
In divine wisdom, insight, and grace.

She takes a house and makes it
A pleasant home for her family;
And if her children stray
A forgiving love they will find.

One who aspires to be all of this,
A Godly Mother she is indeed;
For she has not been remiss,
In reflecting the Almighty God
In whom she believes,
For all her children to see.

-Treasury of Quotable Poems

I still fall very short, but I'm still trying. And, I love my job!