Over the last few months my mama’s Bible has become one of my most treasured possessions. I brought it back to Birmingham after she passed away, and every morning, after I make a cup of coffee and sit down at our kitchen table, I open her Bible and immediately feel connected to her memory and her legacy. The pages even smell like her hand lotion—she flipped through those pages for more than twenty years, after all—and since Mama liked to underline as she read, her Bible is like a journal of what the Lord was teaching her. No matter what verse I look up, my eye goes straight to whatever Mama underlined in red or black ink (sometimes both—if she revisited a certain passage).
I don’t have any reason to believe that she planned it, but Mama’s faithful Scripture reading and underlining has brought me such comfort after her death. It’s made my confidence that she’s with her heavenly Father even sweeter. And there’s been an additional blessing I never expected: certain themes have emerged as I’ve read the verses Mama underlined. It’s fascinating, really. Over and over Mama underlined passages about the assurance of salvation, the power of the tongue, and the necessity of humility.
And here’s what occurred to me a few days ago: Mama is still teaching me.
Now there’s no doubt that our parents spend their whole lives teaching us. It starts early, too, when they plead with us not to run around the pool or stick our finger in the light socket or put glue in our hair. Then we learn to play fair at sports and obey our authorities and honor our elders. As we get older we hear admonitions to look after our friends and drive carefully and work our hardest at everything we do. Then we leave home and get out on our own and the lessons keep coming: always put God first, spend and save wisely, and invest your time in your community. It doesn’t matter how old we are or how old our parents are, that dynamic is almost always there.
I just never expected how rich it would continue to be—even after Mama went to heaven.
But in the Lord’s kindness, I reacquaint myself with Mama’s legacy every single morning when I open her Bible. I see the notes she took, the passages she loved, and the lists she made. I see that her relationship with the Lord was more intimate than I ever imagined, and her trust in the righteousness of Jesus was rock solid. I see that she faithfully prayed for her family and friends. I see that she truly enjoyed life with Jesus while she was here on earth, but her deepest desire—expressed over and over again on the pages of her Bible—was to enjoy eternity with Him in heaven.
When I consider how I’ve been schooled by grief over the last few months, it’s no wonder every single one of these lessons has been beyond precious to me. I had no idea how much I needed to learn them. I had no idea how the Lord would use that knowing to give me peace.
No matter how much you may think you wish otherwise, you are never, ever too old for the wisdom of people who faithfully speak into your life. You can’t even imagine how you’ll treasure it down the road and how you’ll continue to seek it when they’re no longer in your life on a daily basis. In so many ways I never anticipated, my mama’s wisdom is a priceless gift that, thankfully, keeps on giving.
1. Do you have any treasures that belonged to older relatives or loved ones? Maybe a Bible, old letters, or journals?
2. Have you ever been surprised by anything you’ve learned about older relatives or loved ones? Explain.
3. At this point in your life, whose legacy means the most to you? Who is the older person in your life who seems to have passed on the most wisdom or encouragement to you?
4. What will you want to tell your children about your parents? Your grandparents?
Today’s Prayer