“So soldiers cut the lifeboat and let it drift away.” Acts 27:32<\/i><\/b>
\nThe other day while I was studying I read the story of Paul’s shipwreck. \u00a0It’s a good read, Acts 27: 27-42. \u00a0This verse jumped out at me, I’ve been thinking about it for days. \u00a0The sailors are freaking out, so they put out the lifeboats “just in case”. \u00a0Paul tells them if they jump ship they will surely die. \u00a0They trust him and they cut the lifeboats and let them drift away.
\nThe first thought that entered my head was, “What is my lifeboat that I need to cut away?”. \u00a0It just struck me that what Paul was asking them to do was to cut their ties to what the world would have them do and trust God. \u00a0I started thinking about all the “lifeboats” we have. \u00a0Things, people, places we cling to because we think they will keep us safe. \u00a0We think they will protect us. \u00a0But they won’t, they can’t. \u00a0Only God can do that.
\nToday is Mother’s Day. \u00a0I think for the majority of us, our Mom’s were or are our first lifeboat. \u00a0They picked us up when we fell down. \u00a0They kissed our boo-boos and told us everything was ok. \u00a0When our heart was broken for the first time, they held us as we cried. \u00a0When we accomplished anything, from taking our first step to graduating, they were and are our biggest cheerleaders.
\nMy Mom was my hardest lifeboat to cut. \u00a0It’s not a cutting from your life, but it’s realizing she can’t protect you from the storms of life. \u00a0No matter how hard she wants too. \u00a0I think our storms are harder for her to bear than her own storms. \u00a0Watching your child suffer has to be the hardest thing a person can endure.
\nWhen I was in second grade I found a poem in my Mom’s Bible. \u00a0It had been read at her brother’s funeral. She had written on it that she wanted it read at her funeral. \u00a0It made me so sick to my stomache that day I missed school. \u00a0The thought of life without my Mom was unbearable. \u00a0I could live without a lot of things, but I couldn’t imagine living without her.
\nI was incredibly blessed. \u00a0My Mom and I had a very close relationship. \u00a0By the end of her life, she was more than my Mom. She was and always will be my best friend. \u00a0It has been three years since she passed. \u00a0I feel closer to her now than ever.
\nGod helped me cut the lifeboat that was my Mom, but in true God fashion. \u00a0When I cut the rope, I didn’t lose her, I found her.
\nIt was March 6, 2010 when we found out my Mom had Pancreatic Cancer. \u00a0She had a blockage in her colon and they were able to remove it. \u00a0The cancer had grown down into her colon instead of up through her body, which is what pancreatic cancer typically does. \u00a0She was 7% of the people that could have it surgically removed. \u00a0That gave us another 4 and 1\/2 years with her.
\nDuring that time God transitioned my life. \u00a0I was 41 years old when that happened and had never been married. \u00a0On Oct. 21 of that year he brought my husband into my life. \u00a0My Mom was able to watch our relationship grow. \u00a0She was there the day we were married. \u00a0He was there the day she died. \u00a0God gave me a new lifeboat when He took away the old. \u00a0Or that is what I thought, until I started thinking about this verse.
\nThe truth is God is all I need. \u00a0The people He gives us in life, they’re not lifeboats, they’re blessings. \u00a0It isn’t fair to put that much pressure on one person, even your Mom. \u00a0God gives us people to help us in life. \u00a0He gives us things that make life easier. \u00a0He creates places where we feel safe. \u00a0All of those are gifts from God, to be treasured.
\nIt was because of God in my life I could accept my Mom was dieing. \u00a0It was because of God in my life, instead of fearing the future without her I enjoyed the days I had with her. \u00a0One of my most precious memories of my Mom is holding her hand as she went to meet Jesus. \u00a0I still see the smile on her face as she slipped away. \u00a0I didn’t cut a lifeboat, I let my friend enjoy heaven.
\nOne of the things I know my Mom is most proud of me for is reading the poem at her funeral. \u00a0The same one I found in her Bible when I was in second grade. \u00a0The same one that made me realize she would one day die. \u00a0The same one that made me appreciate how great she was.
\nNow, when I think of my Mom I smile. \u00a0She is evident in every part of my life. \u00a0I hear her words come from my lips daily. \u00a0I watch her actions play out in my life. \u00a0I love my husband because she taught me how. \u00a0More than anything, I have a rich and full life because she introduced me to Jesus. \u00a0She set the example with her actions, not her words. \u00a0St. Francis of Assisi quoted, “Preach the Gospel always and when necessary use words.” \u00a0My Mom did that incredibly well, he would be proud.
\nI always say, if I can be half the woman she was, I’ll be doing alright. \u00a0Well Mom, you taught me how to do that by leaving me with your favorite Psalm. \u00a0A fitting way to end this post dedicated to her:<\/p>\n
Psalm 121<\/i><\/p>\n
1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains\u2014
\nwhere does my help come from?
\n2 My help comes from the Lord,
\nthe Maker of heaven and earth.
\n3 He will not let your foot slip\u2014
\nhe who watches over you will not slumber;
\n4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
\nwill neither slumber nor sleep.
\n5 The Lord watches over you\u2014
\nthe Lord is your shade at your right hand;
\n6 the sun will not harm you by day,
\nnor the moon by night.
\n7 The Lord will keep you from all harm\u2014
\nhe will watch over your life;
\n8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
\nboth now and forevermore.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
“So soldiers cut the lifeboat and let it drift away.” Acts 27:32 The other day while I was studying I read the story of Paul’s shipwreck. \u00a0It’s a good read, Acts 27: 27-42. \u00a0This verse jumped out at me, I’ve been thinking about it for days. \u00a0The sailors are freaking out, so they put out… Continue reading Ode to Mom!<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","without-featured-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1610,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42\/revisions\/1610"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}