My mother is a strong willed devoted mother and Seventh Day Adventist Christian. Unlike my father, she is anchored in her beliefs. She has no doubt in her mind that her faith is founded in truth, which is the Bible. She knows that she is right. As she prayed for me this morning she mentioned that she knows that she raised her children, including her new prodigal daughter, myself (lol) in the truth and so she is not guilty(whatever that means?). Nevertheless, her strong faith has provided me some amazing lessons.

1. Pray without ceasing
This morning my mother laid her hands on me and prayed for my spiritual well-being (it was more of her prayer that I would come to my senses). Despite how annoying the situation was, I learned something from her. She is obviously saddened by my decision to leave the church so she comforts herself through prayer. Prayer is so important because it brings peace. There is something powerful about speaking out your worries and concerns and letting it go to God or the unknown. Prayer helps you let go.

And what I love about prayer is that you can pray about absolutely anything! While she was praying that I come to my “senses”, I was praying that God would help me bear this long ass prayer!

2. Have strong unwavering faith in something

What I love about my mom is her strong belief in the Bible. Yes, it can be annoying at times but I think that it is a testament to how important trust and faith is in life. It keeps you steady. It provides peace and a sense of security. She may not see this but I hope to be like her. I want to be so sure about my faith, my beliefs and myself that worrying and indecisiveness would seem absurd.

3. Don’t let your heart be troubled

Yesterday, while my youngest sister was complaining about getting braces, my mother quoted a verse from the Bible ,

“Don’t let your heart be troubled.”

She said it simply like it was the easiest thing in the world. But she had a great point.

Don’t stress out about things! Don’t worry! Realize you have little control over certain things and that figuring out how to control it troubles the heart. Keep that heart healthy and happy!

4. Peace only comes from God
While my mother was praying, she asked God to help her daughter (me) realize that peace only comes from God.

I think she is partly right. I believe she has peace from God not because God has given it to her but because she has found a way that is unique to her attain peace with her relationship with God.
So I hope to do just that. First find and connect with God so that I have peace.

I’ve already started.

What have you learned from your mother?