Happy Mother's Day!

Here’s a month of May quiz for you—see if you know what happened on the following dates:

●May 7, 1915 (The ship Lusitania was sunk during WW I)

●May 8, 1945 (VE Day—Victory in Europe, the end of WW II in Europe)            

●May 14, 1948 (Israel became an independent nation)                                                                                                ●May 16, 1974 (Barb Larson became a mother) 

Now, you may be thinking, that last May event can’t quite be considered as momentous a day as the others in the list. But, ahhh, to me it can. And is. 

On that day in what was then West Berlin, Germany, Angela Jean Larson became the fulfillment of a long-held dream, a gorgeous gift from a most loving Heavenly Father. At 7 lbs. 4 oz., she technically missed Mother’s Day that year by 4 days but began what would come to be a most welcome every-day-is-mother’s-day for me.

Angie was my mother’s first grandchild. Those thousands of miles between her home in Wisconsin and Angie’s in Europe (courtesy of the US Army) made my skittish “I can’t possibly get on a plane and fly anywhere” mother into a very brave woman. She persuaded her mother, then about 76 or so, to accompany her “across the pond” and up six flights of stairs (no elevator) to see this new miracle of life. I remember like yesterday watching my mom catch her first glimpse of her first grandchild. Tears streaming down her face, she grabbed my child from my arms and clutched the babe in hers. I was not at all sure she was going to ever give her back!  

In May 2002 our pastor assigned the congregation a task: write a letter to your mother, telling why you’re grateful she was yours.  Here’s part of what I wrote: “I’m sure you’ve heard the old Jewish proverb, “God could not be everywhere so He created mothers.” Well, we know that’s not true, for God is everywhere; He created mothers to help demonstrate His love, to be His hands, to show His care. You have done that for your children.

Because of you, your children came to know Christ. I’m sure it wasn’t easy to take us to church alone every week. While Dad supported you in your resolve, it was you who had to get us all up, not listen to any excuses and get us there on time each week. We knew that was where we belonged, that unless we were too sick to stand we were getting up and going! And I thank you for that.

Thank you, too, for not just letting Jesus show on Sunday morning, but during the rest of the week as well. Certain principles like respecting other people’s property, the need for truth telling and working at a task until completion are important to me because you demonstrated that importance to you.”  

I hope I’ve let “Jesus show” to my first Mother’s Day gift and to the 2 precious gifts who followed. I pray they can say of their mom, “Her children rise up and call her blessed,” (Proverbs 31) as I do of mine.

Happy Mother’s Day!