Dear Mom

You may be reading this from your hospital bed as many people, including me, pray for your recovery. Or you may choose to not read it at all. I wanted to find a way to reach you quicker than snail mail and I chose my blog because it’s possible this letter to you may benefit others who struggle as you do.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23. This was written by King Solomon and he was speaking of diligently guarding the wisdom in your heart, keeping it safe from being corrupted by evil.

“The Bible warns us to avoid a double heart (Psalm 12:2), a hard heart (Proverbs 28:14), a proud heart (Proverbs 21:4), an unbelieving heart (Hebrews 3:12), a cold heart (Matthew 24:12), and an unclean heart (Psalm 51:10).” (Wiersbe)

So your heart is really important!

My former pastor used to say, “We are always only one heartbeat away from eternity. Do you know where you are going to spend it?”

My husband, Barry, was raised in foster care and he was abused in every single way during a stint with his second foster family that had an alcoholic father. Barry landed in foster care because his biological father wasn’t able to handle three young children and a wife who was mentally ill. He was a teen dad with limited coping skills. Barry’s father would spend many years adrift.

So, you could say that Barry didn’t have an ideal role model with human fathers. But his first foster family brought him to church, where he learned about the love of God – the perfect Father, who sent his son Jesus to die for our sins so that we could have eternity in heaven with Him.

Barry’s biological father would go on to drink excessively, and be homeless under a bridge for many years. Until one day, he had an epiphany. He didn’t want to die in a gutter. So he stopped drinking, got a job, eventually remarried, and then he went to church and learned that Jesus loved him, a broken sinner. He accepted this truth and in so doing, secured his place in heaven for all eternity.

Barry reconciled with his father a few years before his death, enjoying a sweet communion that filled up that hole inside of him. Barry’s father apologized for all his failures. Barry forgave him, knowing that his father was just a broken kid when he became a dad.

These are good memories that he treasures. Barry doesn’t focus on his father’s early failures, but on who he became through the love of Jesus.

Then the day came that my former paster spoke of. The day that my father-in-law stepped into eternity. I took the call from my mother-in-law that Barry’s father’s heart had stopped while he was clearing snow away during a storm. One heartbeat. And then the last one.

There is a man by the name of Bart Millard – he is the lead singer for a band named Mercy Me. Their most well-known song is called, I Can Only Imagine. It details Bart’s thoughts about what his dad must be seeing and experiencing in heaven. Bart’s father was a raging, abusive alcoholic until he accepted Jesus Christ into his heart. And Bart was not only able to forgive him, but bond with him, become ‘best friends’ before his dad passed away. This is detailed in the movie of the same name.

Barry felt that way after his dad died. So very sad that their time as ‘best pals’ had been short but really happy to know that he will see his father in heaven again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_lrrq_opng

I’m writing this letter to you Mom, not because I think I can fix a lifetime of your hurts. I know that’s not within my power. I write to acknowledge that you HAVE been hurt, and your heart has built up thick and dangerous walls. Jesus knows all your hurts, Mom.

Those people may never acknowledge what they did, they may never say they’re sorry. They may be dead already. I may be one of the people who have hurt you, and for that, I’m sorry. I hope you know I love you and have always wanted to see you be happy.

I want you to understand, it’s not too late for you to forgive and be forgiven. Jesus loves you!

” For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

You may have heard this scripture before – but I ask you to replace the words “world” and “whoever” for your own name and see if it changes your viewpoint.

We are all one heartbeat away from eternity – I dearly want you ( and anyone else reading this!) to spend eternity with Jesus.

I have the honor and privilege of being the mother of ten wonderful children, and I have made a million mistakes raising them. But they know I love them, and most importantly that Jesus loves them.

I have made mistakes as a daughter – but I love you – and Jesus loves you. I’d like to see you in heaven.

Guard your heart, but don’t harden it. You are HIS. He loves you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBcqria2wmg

Your daughter, Elle

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