The Best TREAT Ever – Happy 96th Birthday, Mom!

Molly and David fell in love, were happily married, and then on October 31st, 1922 God gave this happy couple a precious gift from heaven. It wasn't a pumpkin or a ghost or a goblin, or any other TRICK. They must have been very, very good because He gave them a very special TREAT! And their TREAT was a precious little baby girl who they named “Lydia". “Lydia” means “worshipper of God“! And true to her name, she has been, and is, a true worshipper of God. You'll find her at any given time with her Bible in hand, reading and praying for her family and friends.

Mom met Dad, Herb, when she was 23 and six weeks later, they were married. Talk about a whirlwind courtship! Dad was a young, itinerant minister who was speaking at Mom’s church. I love hearing her tell the sweet details of their first meeting when he and her met on the way to the restrooms, and a day later showing up at her home and asking her parents if he could date her, to the 55 years that ensued to his passing, They had two children, Ronald (Ron) and Karen. This precious lady, "Mom", means the world to me, because were it not for her, my life would have never been filled with such love, joy, and happiness from having her son as my precious husband. I celebrate her and her life of giving, loving, and caring for so many. She has been a true gift to all who know her. She has left her mark on so many lives, including mine. Though she is actually my mother-in-law, it has always been so natural to call her "Mom", because she's always treated me like her daughter. She loved me when I was just 12 years old when I met her for the first time and has continued to love, support, pray for and encourage me all these years.

I know there are funny and often "catty" remarks about "mother-in-law’s". Not in my case. I know that were it not for her, I would have never been blessed with my sweetheart. I am so grateful for her and I appreciate, respect and honor her. And, that's the kind of "in-law" I desire to be for my children and grandchildren's spouses.

Fortunately, I’ve been here in Tulsa since Saturday and each day I’ve had the opportunity to go and sit with her. Yesterday when I showed up, she was standing erect, beaming from ear to ear with excitement that her two sisters-in-law and brother-in-law from Dallas were coming in town to see her and celebrate her birthday with her. How wonderful that there are those who desire to show up and express their love while their loved one is still on this side of heaven.

Just being in Mom’s presence brings peace. In our conversation on Sunday, I said, “Mom, what piece of wisdom would you give for your long and peace-filled life?” Without hesitation, she said, “1) Stay busy; 2) Help others whenever you can; and 3) If there’s somebody you don’t like, just let it roll over you.” Those words aren’t earth-shaking, but I’ve seen them played out in her life. Still, at 96, she stays busy. She stays busy with the office work she does for Karen & George’s business and she’ll either be reading her Bible, praying or on the phone to encourage someone. And, that part about not liking someone and letting it roll over you, she’s referring to cranky, bitter and hateful people. She’ll get pretty frustrated with them, but then, she’ll realize their attitudes are not hers, so she gives them to God to deal with them. She literally lets it roll off her shoulders to His.

On this 96th birthday of Lydia Wuerch, I pay special tribute to a beautiful, thoughtful and devoted Mom, Granny, and friend to so many. God must have loved us so much, that He gave her to us as the best TREAT ever. I celebrate this special day, I honor her with my greatest devotion and thanksgiving to God for her life, her continual prayers for us for so many years and for the living example she is of knowing God, His faithfulness and His love. Happy "96th" Birthday, Mom!

The Wide Eyed Wonder of a Child

Over the river and through the woods to Austin from Texas.....now it's play time with my Southern Texas Fam!!! Oh the miles I'm putting on my car....but every mile brings with it so much gratitude and thanksgiving. I delight in these precious times of family focus -- especially here during the Christmas season.

While my grandbabies are no longer babies, this time of the year -- more than ever -- we're reminded of the joys of being a child. Week before last, I was staying with my mother-in-law for a few days to finish up some scheduled activities, and one of the pleasures of spending time with her is the weekly visit of my niece (Mom's great-grandchild, Anna). Anna is three now and, without a doubt, her little life has added to the life of Mom in ways beyond we could count. Mom is radiant when Anna visits her and she will sit and watch every move Anna makes during the time she's there. She is "entertainment" personified!! And she's added to my life, because it brings me so much joy to hang out with her, too. My sis, Karen, bought a big doll house for Mom's house and the room that it's in is designated by Anna, as "Anna's Room". While with Mom, I purchased some doll-sized, Christmas decorations and dolls for the little house. I had it all decorated when Anna came over, and when she went into the room to the doll house, she put her hand over her mouth and was in awe. She looked at me and said, "What did you get these for me?" I said, "Because I love you so much!" She replied "I love you so much too!" She played with those dolls and decorations all day long.

Anna runs blissfully about, filled with happy freedom from care and concern. What joy it is to watch her and hear her talk. Matthew 18:4 says "Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of God". When Jesus urged us to become like little children, He was saying He wants us to regain some of our childhood innocence and awe. When we were young, it was easy to believe in a good God Who watches over us and Who has a band of angels to protect us. I love how my two youngest grandsons make sure we pray for the angels to encamp around them while they sleep. They MUST have that prayer, and we're delighted that when we pray, they are comforted and then sweet sleep.

But as we grow older, some of those comforting images fade and we gradually lose that sense of security. Of course, as adults, we face many variables in life -- pressures, responsibilities, transitions, ups and downs in "life", and then we fail to remember the freedom and abandonment of worries as we did as children.

But let's change that. Let's revive the innocence and joy we knew as children -- not dependent on just our own efforts. The fact is -- maturity isn't being independent from God -- it's a deeper dependence more than EVER! We're DEPENDENT on His mercy and grace. God IS our DADDY, and from our first breath -- to our last breath -- He has a watchful eye over us and His plans for us include His very best. Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Let's continue on into this beautiful season of Christmas with wide-eyed awe and wonder -- like we had as children. And, when "stuff" is chasing us down and we're about to be CAUGHT UP in the frenzy and stress that often comes with this season, let's look up and say, "I love you too so much!" God loves it when we become like little children reaching out to Him. I promise you, He'll reassure you with his love, support AND open arms!

Tis' So Sweet To Trust in Jesus

How sweet it's been to spend the week with my precious mother-in-law. This trip to Tulsa gave us the opportunity to share and visit about so many things. I was able to query her about her early years of love and marriage and life -- something I should have asked about long ago. FYI -- loving means eye-to-eye contact and REALLY being interested in what matters to someone else. We've had some sweet conversations about the challenges she faced over the years and the victories that she won in the process.

I feel like I've been incubated here in this home where there is such a sense of peace, comfort and rest. In fact, it is in this home that my Sweetheart would come to pay Mom a visit. The only problem was....he'd get here and spend a few minutes in conversation with Mom, but in just a few short minutes, you'd find him in one of her recliners.....sound asleep. That's what peace can do for us.

Mom, at age 94, has well established routines -- I've witnessed them and you'd be highly advised not to mess with those routines. It's clockwork -- from getting up every morning at a specific time, going through the morning rituals of getting her aching body moving by stretching and bending, opening all her blinds and curtains, then drinking her instant coffee and eating her yogurt sprinkled with cheerios and a piece of toast. If I stopped there, you'd think "what a monotonous existence", but you'd have to know Mom and her desire to be a witness of God's love to see that she's no slacker.

She believes that God still wants to use her. She's still here on planet earth, so she's not done. Daily, people call her to pray for them, and she does. She also has a daily habit of making telephone calls to people to just encourage them with an I love you and I'm praying for you. No big deal to some, but in the light of eternity, she's laying up treasures. And, we know that every breath she breathes, she moves steps closer to those treasures in heaven. Once I heard a well-known televangelist speak about those who pray for him, and he said, "I know those little grandmothers who pray for me will be at the front of the line in heaven AND will receive the greatest rewards."

I was the recipient of those prayers many times over, but none were sweeter than last night when I needed a Mama's touch and Mama's encouragement. Yes, I am a warrior, but sometimes the warrior is a child and there's nothing like hearing a veteran warrior's words of "Tis' so sweet to trust in Jesus. Just to take Him at His word. Just to rest upon His promise. Just to know 'Thus says the Lord'. Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him. How I've proved Him o'er and o'er. Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus. Oh for grace, to know Him more."

In any given day, you could walk into Mom's home, and more times than not, you'd find her at her kitchen table -- reading her Bible, praying or visiting on the phone with a soul who needs her words of encouragement. She knows she's on assignment and being God's spokesperson is her greatest heart's desire. If you're really on queue, you might also be able to draw a promise from her "Bread of Life" promise box that's filled with single verses from the Bible. That 70-year-old box was a wedding gift to her and Dad, and those words proved so true in the many years of life together. No doubt -- those scriptures will point you in the way you should go, too!

I pray that one day you'll meet up with a saint like Mom -- but if not, maybe you and I can be that saint to others in our world!

Happy Birthday, Mom! You Sure Make Me Want to Up My Game!

Today is my sweet mother-in-law's 94th birthday. It's such a good time to express my love and gratitude for her -- especially because if it weren't for the love that she and Dad had for each other, then their precious gift of their son to me would never have been. Mom's life represents my life with the most precious, loving, tender and giving man I ever knew. Was he a perfect man? No. But he was perfect for me.

Oh how I thank Mom for the MANY prayers for us right from the very beginning when I was 12 and he was 13 -- when we were just kids and didn’t know about life and responsibilities and what true love was all about. I thank her (and my mom) for praying us together.

I will always love the story of her turning her little ceramic Holland boy and girl away from each other when we had a spat, and when we made up, she put them back together again. That story tells a lot about her encouragement, her prayers and her support of us for so many years. I thank Mom for instilling such strong faith in her son, for the man of God he was, for the sense of humor, and, even for those “perfection” qualities that made him so detailed, always expecting excellence from all of us. I thank her for instilling in him his musical gifts that gave so many people such encouragement and joy. I thank her for everything about this precious man that filled my life, and so many others, with love and joy.

Our love for each other stood the test of time, the test of raising kids, the test of tough times and the good times, the test of sickness and in health, the test of trusting God through every challenge and the greatest test of all -- the test of "till death do us part". She never wanted to see her son go to heaven before she did, but her resilience, strong faith and trust in God during those times even gave me the fortitude to carry on strong.

I share Mom's 94th birthday with you, my FB friends and family, to show you an example of what a mother-in-law should look like -- oh, not the exterior, though she is and always has been a beautiful, stately woman, but she did the best of what God called her to do -- to be a Proverbs 31 woman -- the one that her children ALL rise up and call her blessed. Sure makes me want to up my game!

Mom, I celebrate the gift of you into my life and to so many others who have been impacted by your grace, dignity, and beauty for so many years! I love you so much......Donna

They Opened Their Mouths With Wisdom

One of the greatest joys in life is to be a mother....to my own children AND to those God put into my life "to mother". Nothing is so dear as the results of a hug or a word I shared with someone who needed that hug or word. There is something unique and special about how God designed a woman’s heart to love tenderly, teach wisely, and nurture selflessly.

I left home when I married my husband at such a young age of 17, so there were sure a lot of things I still needed my mother for. Besides washing clothes and cooking tips, I remember the time I wanted to run "back home" to her because of what seemed to be the biggest "spat" EVER with my husband. I'm so glad she wouldn't let me. She reminded me that I HAD left "home", and my new home was with the man I loved and "this little spat would pass". It did. I still needed my Mama's wisdom and instruction. Then, just one year later, I gave birth to our son and I found myself in this same spot several times: the times he got sick (AND, the times I got sick), the times when, as a couple, we hit a rough patch and life seemed so out of control, the times when I needed her voice to comfort me. In God’s sovereign plan for motherhood, He gave me a mother that was my mentor, my best friend and my confidant. And, not only did He give me my mother, but He gave me the dearest mother-in-law EVER (those two women are pictured here on Mother's Day, 2002). God also gave me other older women in age and in faith (and continues to do so) that have come alongside and loved me “like a mother.”

Our stories are all different. No matter what our stories are, our Heavenly Father desires to meet all our needs so that whatever we lack, He will provide. And, after all these many seasons of my life, watching and learning from my resilient, strong, and determined Mom during the time of my Daddy's long illness, and then as a single mom after he graduated to heaven, to my own learning to be a Mom to my children and to other young women, I can assure you that God has special plans for women. He gave us life to give life to others. God's plans for us ensure that we are "mothered" and that we "mother".

Is your Mom with you today? Treasure her. I heard someone talk negatively about their mother who was most certainly a less-than-perfect mom, and she asked me, "What did she ever do for me?" My reply: "She gave you life!" Not only is today a day of celebrating our moms, but perhaps we might consider being “like a mother” to a younger woman the Lord is leading us to mentor. Just maybe we are the answer to someone's prayers.

Today, I honor my Mom, my sweet Mother-in-Law, and all the beautiful and selfless ladies that "mother" those around them with God's love that is unconditional, kind, tender-hearted, caring and loving. Happy Mother's Day!

Proverbs 31:26 "She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue."

The Best TREAT Ever

 Day 298 of Photo Inspirations -- The Best TREAT Ever
Once upon a time there was a beautiful lady named Molly who fell in love with a handsome man named David.  They were happily married for many years and then on October 31st, God gave this happy couple a precious gift from heaven.  It wasn't a pumpkin or a ghost or a goblin, or any other TRICK. They must have been very, very good because He gave them a very special TREAT!  And their TREAT was a precious little baby girl who they named “Lydia".  “Lydia” means “worshipper of God“!  And true to her name, she has been, and is, a true worshipper of God.  You'll find her at any given time with her Bible in hand -- reading and praying for her family and friends.

This precious lady, "Mom", means the world to me, because were it not for her, my life would have never been filled with such love, joy, and happiness from having her son as my precious husband. I celebrate her and her life of giving, loving, and caring for so many. She has been a true gift to all who know her. She has left her mark on so many lives, including mine. Though she is actually my mother-in-law, it has always been so natural to call her "Mom", because she's always treated me like a daughter. She loved me when I was just 12 years old and has continued to love me, support me, pray for me and encourage me all these years.

I know there's lots of funny, and often "catty" remarks about"mother-in-laws".  That's too bad, because if it weren't for our in-laws we would never have been blessed with our sweethearts.  We need to appreciate them, respect them, honor them and give them our gratitude.  And, isn't that the kind of "in-law" we want to be for our children's and grandchildren's spouses?

On this 93rd birthday of Lydia Wuerch, I pay special tribute to a beautiful, thoughtful and devoted Mom, Granny and friend to so many.  God must have loved us so much, that He gave her to us as the best TREAT ever.  I celebrate this special day, I honor her with my greatest devotion and thanksgiving to God for her life, her continual prayers for us for so many years and for the living example she is of knowing God, His faithfulness and His love.  Happy "93rd" Birthday, Mom!

Happy Mother's Day to My Two Mothers

Day 124 of Photo Inspirations - #TBT -- Happy Mother's Day to My Two Mothers
These two precious women, on the left -- my mother-in-law, Lydia Wuerch, and on the right, my Mom, Edna Wheat -- were my mentors and the greatest influences I could have ever had as Godly women and mothers. Best friends, they were also visionaries.  They KNEW that their two kids were meant for each other.   I owe so much of who I am to them.   They were prayer warriors who didn't stop until they had an answer.

They literally prayed my husband and I together -- and those prayers kept us together.   We watched their own example as they went through tough times, and came through them because of their unwavering faith.  They impressed upon us that tough times don't last, but tough people who believe in commitment, keeping their promises and vows -- that they'll be honored for keeping them.  How I thank them for their unwavering support and relentless prayers for us.  They not only talked the talk -- they walked the walk in their own lives. My Mom is heaven.  Mom2 at age 92 is still here to celebrate this Mother's Day with me.

So on this Throwback Thursday, I honor them and all they've stood for, lived for and set the example for.  By their example, I've learned that:

A mother is someone who loves unconditionally and places the needs of her children above her own, and not only with words, but also actions.

A mother is someone who loves and cares for you in every way -- even when you don't deserve it.

A mother is the woman who raises you, who is there to hold and comfort you when you are sick or hurt, the woman who laughs with you, who cries with you, who loves you, even when you aren't exactly lovable.

A mother goes to whatever means it takes to instill in you that there isn't anything that you can't accomplish.  

All that I am and ever hope to be.....I owe it to my mothers!  Happy Mother's Day, Mom and Mom2!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

It's October 31st and the official day when Mom, Lydia Wuerch, made her official debut to this world. I celebrate her today and her life of giving, loving, and caring for so many. She has been a true gift to all who know her. She has left her mark on so many lives, including mine. Though she is actually my mother-in-law, it has always been so natural to call her "Mom", because she's always treated me like a daughter. She loved me when I was just 12 years old and has continued to love me, support me, pray for me and encourage me all these years. On this very special day, I want to say, "Thank you, God, for blessing my life and the lives of so many others with beautiful and precious Lydia, Mom, Granny and Friend." Happy 92nd Birthday, Mom!