Monthly Archives: May 2023

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Happy Mother’s Day

I was talking to our daughter Hannah today – wishing her a Happy Mother’s Day – expressing to her how thankful I am for the mothers she and her sisters are. I sent them these flowers, well this picture of the flowers. 🙂

Hannah thanked me for being her mother, which has been a blessing since the day her smile graced this world. I told her I had a wonderful mother who also had a wonderful mother!

Truth be told, I am not sure about the mothers beyond that. My mother’s mother left Sweden in 1920 – by herself – at 16 to immigrate to the United States. Great Grandma Anderson did something I can’t imagine allowing my daughter do at 16 years old – leave on a ship traversing the ocean not knowing if I would ever see her again!

The mothers in my families’ past (as far as family stories go) share one foundational characteristic – faith in God. I have a picture of my Grandmother Barker as a small child on her Grandmother Brant’s lap. It was taken in 1898 and there are white tents in the background. The family is at a church Camp Meeting in rural Illinois. I have Grandma Barker’s Bible and it is well marked and her notes line the margins.

So, I am the blessed recipient of generations of mothers who have lived with faith in God. They certainly weren’t perfect, nor did they have lives void of pain and suffering. Yet by the grace of God they passed on that faith to following generations including me.

The sermon today included the following passage of scripture about Mary, Jesus’ mother. After the angel comes to Mary to announce that she will give birth to the Son of God by the power of the Holy Spirit, Mary goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth. Luke 1:39-45 says

39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

The last verse – 45 – jumped out at me. Why was Mary blessed? “You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

Mary wasn’t blessed because she was perfect, more intelligent, better looking, or stronger than others. She was blessed because she had faith that God would do what he said. God told her she would give birth to the Son of God, the promised messiah who would fulfill the covenant made to Abraham. God was faithful to his promise.

I will be blessed and my children and grandchildren will be blessed from generation to generation when I have faith and believe that God will do what he said. That is the greatest legacy I can leave as a mother.

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Refuse Pile

I have spent a lot of time in the past three weeks cutting off dead parts of plants so that the new growth is not obstructed. I put all these clippings in my wheelbarrow and haul it to the edge of the yard where I throw it over the bank – out of sight. (we have 5 acres and much of it is very steep)

As I was ready to toss my latest pruning efforts, I noticed something green poking up from the refuse pile. I looked closer.

It was a peony!

Somehow I had dug up a peony tuber and thrown it over the bank. Phil and I had transplanted several plants lately but I don’t recall moving a plant near a peony – yet there it was! There were three fresh green stalks with peony leaves pushing up through the refuse pile. I carefully inched my way down to it – VERY carefully because I have a history of falling down banks that is NOT pretty. (ask my family for the gruesome details) It was easy to remove the plant from the pile because it was growing in loosely thrown leaves, stalks, etc. Apparently the tuber had all the nourishment it needed to send out those new leaves even though it was not planted in soil. Peonies are my all time second favorite flower and I treasure the peony plants I have, some given me by friends.

Here was a plant overcoming all odds and growing in a refuse pile!

I moved it to a prime location near my other peonies in good, well drained soil and watered it well. Peonies do not like to be moved, so it probably won’t bloom this year, but the leaves are looking healthy and are growing well. I had almost buried it by emptying my wheelbarrow on it.

This “peony in a refuse pile” has made me think about the times I have given up on a situation – or a person – maybe myself – and in a sense thrown it away. I have become disappointed or discouraged by someone or something and given up.

How thankful I am that God never gives up on us!

peonies from 2019

We have been studying Acts in our Community Women’s Bible study and I think about Paul who persecuted Christians even facilitating Stephen’s death by stoning. Paul was committed to destroying the TRUTH that Jesus and his followers were spreading. Yet God chose Paul to be his apostle and share the gospel of Jesus Christ with all nations.

1 Timothy 1:15-17New Living Translation

15 This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all. 16 But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. 17 All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.

Paul should have been “thrown on the refuse pile” of truth deniers. Instead God saw in him the potential of new life in Jesus. Paul chose to follow Jesus and each of us is given that same invitation. We must never give up the hope of the new life that Jesus offers.

Only God knows what will “grow” out of the refuse of our lives.

Isaiah 61:2-3

He has sent me to tell those who mourn
    that the time of the Lord’s favor has come,
    and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies.
3 To all who mourn in Israel,
    he will give a crown of beauty for ashes,
a joyous blessing instead of mourning,
    festive praise instead of despair.
In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks
    that the Lord has planted for his own glory.

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Holding Onto Hope

I usually post pictures of beautiful flowers in my yard. This picture is not beautiful, but it is real. This is how my once beautiful camellia bush looks. It is an “evergreen” – although now it is not. It is brown and dead looking.

So I face the decision of whether to cut it way back, wait to see if any new growth emerges, or just cut it down.

I am holding on to hope. I am waiting until May 15th and then I will decide how much to cut back. ANY glimmer of green will be a sign that the bush is not dead.

  • Hope means I don’t give up too soon.
  • Hope means waiting since there may be life lurking in the roots that will spread upward into the stems.
  • Hope means trust in what is not seen. I don’t see life – but it may still be there.’

Isn’t that how I often respond when disappointments occur in life? My first reaction when things don’t go my way is to give up. “It looks dead – what’s the use?” Then, because I tend toward an optimistic outlook of life, I look closer. Yet I still may not “see” a positive outcome. Do I hold on to hope?

Many of my disappointments in life come because a person or group has failed me or let me down. (or I think they have) My thoughts go toward blaming others instead of taking responsibility for what I can personally do. That is more difficult, isn’t it? It is SO much easier to blame others!

Sometimes my greatest hopes aren’t fulfilled. I begin to question my faith and God’s love for me. I must always remember I live in a broken, fallen world and that trials, disappointments, and suffering are part of living on this earth. Yet Jesus came to save this world! My HOPE is in Jesus. I hold on to him.

In Romans 5:3-5 Paul says

3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

Hope in Jesus never fails.

I must hold onto hope and not give up. The outcome may be very different than what I expected or even hoped for. Yet God’s love for me never ends and God is faithful.

I will watch carefully for any sign of life in my camellia bushes. I don’t see any sign of life yet…..but I hold on to hope.