Happy Mother's Day, to all Mom's

Thank God for Moms:

My grandmothers raised families during the Great Depression. Granny, Dad's mom, was widowed with three boys to raise. Dad was just a toddler when his dad died. I grew up hearing stories of heads nearly crushed by wagons backing up, an old mule who suddenly came to life when a young Audley, my dad. dug into her side with an old spur he had found. Did I mention dad was carrying a basket of eggs to take to the store to trade for needed supplies? No doubt dad embellished the tale, but I'm sure the feat of riding a run-away mule without breaking any of the precious eggs, came nowhere near the real difficulty of being a single-mom long before that term had ever been invented. She saw all three boys go to war. One didn't return, another returned with a complete disability. Granny helped nurse Uncle Mc back to health.The third moved an all-day train-ride away to raise me and my siblings. Never the less granny was a prime influence in my life. When I visitied, Granny took me fishing, played dominoes and Rook with me, and I won't begin to guess how many puzzles she and I put together. I'll never have raisin pie as good as she made until I get to heaven. Grandma married Grandpa when she was but a child. She managed a household funded by money made from breaking mules--on occasion, she sewed up the gashes opened by mule hooves on grandpa's head--from the sale of country hams, and from the proceeds of a succession of small farms where she and grandpa raised mom and six siblings. Every bowl of vegetable soup I have ever had, is but a poor substitute for the real thing, which Grandma Hargrove served with cornbread still hot from the oven. I have two sons who serve the Lord with distinction, and seven grandchildren who love Jesus. Often people say, that my sons are following in my footsteps. Perhaps, but a much more important influence is their mom, whom they saw reading her Bible and praying every morning. She continues not only to be "Mom" to her boys, "Ma" to her grandkids, but now "Momma Kat" to a group of young adults from the far side of the world. You know my Daughters-in-law (second and third in the picture abave) must be great moms. They are the mothers of seven wonderful kids. I think both have learned about being a ministry wife from their Mother-in-law. They love my boys, my grandkids, and Jesus. One hauled two little ones to the other side of the world and back. She runs a household that is open to a steady flow of  mostly college students, and does it with grace. The other like the lobster for dinner was dropped into the caldron of a fully formed family, and began pulling together the pieces of lives torn by divorce and abandonment before her wedding album had arrived from the photagrapher. My family is greatly enriched by Nancy and Tanisha. Beyond my family, I have been enriched by moms who loved sick children--some who were never well for their way-too-short lives--others who again and again embraced children who went astray, and brought a semblance of order to homes made tumultuous by maladies physical, financial, natural, and emotional. In his book about sin, Not the Way It's Supposed to Be, Cornelius Plantinga points out how sin takes the Shalom (peace) out of the world. Moms are like the Shalom Brigade. They push back the chaos, often literally, bring the light and warmth of love into a world made cold and dark by hatred, and carve out havens of peace in a world torn by strife. Manay of those, I seek to honor, this Mother's Day, aren't mothers in the biological sense of the word. I think of those who adopted children as well as those who mothered those of us who needed a mom that day. Even though we are in our grandparenting years, Kathy and I currently have some women in our lives who mother us. I even have in mind some guys who step into the role of mom. For a while my son was Mr. Mom. To all of you moms, in whatever sense of the word, Happy Mother's Day. It's STTA. (The STTA link above will take you to an archive of many Things to Think About. Enjoy & Think.) If you would like to watch some of Mama Kat's kids go through an important step in their lives click here. It will take you to a site where you'll find a link to a video of PIU's graduation and a table of contents to help you navigate to particular points in the ceremony.