A Tribute to My Mom

“In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.” – 1 Peter 5:10

Over the past ten years, my mom endured much suffering—both hips broken, a broken leg, a broken face. Two years ago, she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. A week ago, she had a stroke.

She suffered for “a little while,” but now she is completely restored.

Saturday, September 20th, around 5pm, surrounded by most of her immediate family, she slipped from this broken world into her perfect eternal home.

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What Mom Was Not Good At

Could your mom make a feast out of a box of Rice-A-Roni? Mine could.

When I was eight, Mom and Dad moved our family from California to Virginia. Our hotels were KOAs, and our restaurants were roadside rest stops—if we were lucky, a picnic table might be nearby. Mom used a little camp stove to prepare meals as though she were cooking in a Michelin-starred kitchen. Hunger, I discovered, really was the best seasoning.

Once, on a trip moving her sister to Washington, Mom stacked rocks into an oven to bake a birthday cake.

She could fix just about anything. I once had a porcelain eagle that shattered into hundreds of pieces. I was heartbroken and brought it to Mom. She took the shards, glued them back together, and somehow restored it so you couldn’t even see the cracks.

Mom was good at putting broken people back together, too.

She could organize events, people, things, and her home.

But she was not good at resting. Rest went against every fiber of her being. If she was sitting still, she was reading.

Today, though, I can say with certainty: Mom’s soul is at rest.

She is sitting in the presence of Jesus. Her heart, mind, body, and soul are beautifully and eternally restored. She does not have to fix a thing or solve one more problem. She can sit and sing praises to her heart’s content—which will take all eternity.

I imagine her soprano blending with her own mother’s rich alto, accompanied by Grandma Willis on the piano. Any worship service she attended here on earth pales—PALES—in comparison with the one she is participating in this morning.

She is singing with the heroes of the faith.
🎶 Worship link

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From Prayers to Praises

Yesterday, as I scrolled through my prayer list, I grew teary. Over the past ten years, as Mom’s needs grew, so did her presence in my prayer time. But now, I began deleting entries—prayers I no longer need to pray.

Instead, I found myself turning them into praises.

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Prayer: Please help my mom not be in pain.
Praise: Thank You, Lord, that my mom is no longer in pain.

“There will be no more pain.” – Revelation 21:4

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Prayer: Please heal her body—her hips, her shoulder, her knee, her mind.
Praise: Thank You, Lord, for giving her a new body.

“For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down… we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands… God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.” – 2 Corinthians 5:1–5

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Prayer: Please help her to be able to exercise and walk.
Praise: Thank You, Lord, that like the lame man You healed, Mom is “walking and leaping and praising God.” – Acts 3:8

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Prayer: I pray that the fruit of the Spirit will be abundant in her life. – Galatians 5:22
Praise: Thank You, Lord, for the testimony of her caregivers, who told me of her joy, kindness, gentleness, and encouragement even in the midst of brokenness. Thank You for letting me share that her joy was because of You.

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Prayer: Please provide the finances we need to care for Mom.
Praise: Thank You, Lord, for providing a special place for her in her final month, and for giving the exact time and resources needed.

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Prayer: Please provide a home where she can be safe and cared for.
Praise: Thank You, Lord, that Mom is finally Home. Safe. Whole. Restored.

“So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord… We would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.” – 2 Corinthians 5:6–8

Though my prayer list is shorter, my gratitude list is longer. The petitions I once prayed for my mom are now answered in heaven’s fullness.

And in that, I rest—with tears, yes, but more so with thankfulness.