Learn the 4 lessons my mother never taught me, and why I’m glad she didn’t.
Have you ever really pondered all the things that you learned from your mother? When I try to make a list, I always sum it up into one phrase.
She taught me to be a good person and everything else just fell into place. She taught me to love, she taught me to laugh, and above all she taught me to respect.
But, there are several things my mother didn’t teach me….
Many of you that know me, would think that my mom taught me how to cook. I have to give credit to the very good timing of the door-to-door encyclopedia salesman. But, that is a story for a different day.
The very definition of a mother can be as generic as the “female parent”. That can be expanded to the female parent that leads by example, bringing up a child in care and affection. How can there be things that she did not teach me?
I could give you the excuse that she worked a full time job and had 4 other children while I was growing up. But, there are several things that come to mind that my mother never taught me.
4 Things My Mother Never Taught Me (and you shouldn’t teach your kids)
1. My mom did not teach me to be lazy.
She taught me to work hard every day to make a difference. She taught me to give 100% of myself to everything I am involved in. I have always heard the phrase “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop”.
In 2 Thessalonians, Paul writes that if we do not stay busy in our own tasks, we can easily stray into sin.
2. My mom did not teach me to be boastful.
With her around, there is really no reason for me to talk about myself. She is going to tell every accomplishment any of her children or grandchildren have made.
Luke 14:11 reads “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted”. We are to live our lives humbly so that we will be exalted in the end.
3. My mom did not teach me to hear. She taught me to listen.
The only way that you can truly empathize, relate, or assist is if you truly listen to what is being said.
One day I was having a particularly hard day and I actually received a card in the mail at work from my mom. On the cover, it had a lady holding two cups of coffee and it read, “Sometimes it helps just to have someone who’ll listen.”
The inside read “Other times, it helps to have someone with secret voodoo knowledge and a doll.” This is my mom, and she always listens to me whether in person or over the phone. And sometimes she just knows when you need a funny card.
Proverbs 27:9 reads, “Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel”. Oh, what great counselors we can be to one another by just listening.
4. My mom did not teach me to be a Christian. She led by example.
In the end, we desire to hear the Lord say, “Well done thy good and faithful servant.” But, on this earth I strive to live by the words written in Proverbs 31:29, “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” I learned to surpass from my mother.
I was reading a book a few years ago, and there were several celebrities that shared their goals in life. These really resonated with me, and I have had them posted at my desk for the past several years.
They are:
- Try to be a better person than I was last year.
- Give more of myself personally.
- Let the people I work with know that I care about them.
- Make sure that the people around me succeed.
It was Terry Bradshaw that penned these. But my mother lived by all of them, and without her, I would not be the person I am today.
Being a Christian mother is a wonderful accomplishment with immense responsibility.
Having your daughters follow in your footsteps…. Well, again, that is another article. Remember, you are forever a teacher.
Kitty Lewis is a Christian wife, mother, grandmother, sister, daughter and friend. She is the oldest of 5 children and wonderfully blessed to have a large, loving family. She is also the mother of 5 children and two sons-in-law that she loves dearly. Kitty is also blessed with two perfect granddaughters that have stolen her heart forever, as well as the most wonderful circle of friends that anyone could ask for. God took favor on her when he instilled in her a love for cooking. It is her favorite pastime and she uses it to serve the Lord in every way possible.
Leave a Reply