Things that need to be said about my Mom

God pursued her

Theologians would reason that all of us are pursued by God and I would agree. But God pursued her while she was a child living in a non-Christian home. At an early age, she went by herself to the church down the street and God has been her number one since.

I’ve heard her describe times when she said no to fun weekends with friend’s families because she didn’t want to miss church. To sit and imagine such a child…makes me love that little girl to pieces. She was strong in faith and she knew early on who to depend on and who holds tomorrow.

And that big faith in a little package soon was hit with some tragic events.

She knows suffering

At age 11, her family was in a car accident that killed her dad and her 9 year old brother. Her and her mother survived the crash and her 16-year-old brother was not in the car.

That was 1960 and it was not common for women to be single mothers and be employed. In addition to the emotional tragedy, what followed was financial hardship. Her brother left for the military within a few years. Her mother, my grandmother, got remarried when my mom was 14. Finances got better. They moved out of town to a farm. Life just kept changing.

My mom’s faith did not change.

She married my dad

They met in high school. He was a new student, a junior. She was a freshman. He was the people person. She was the quiet type. My dad was raised in a Christian family. He left for college. She finished high school.

The story that stands out to me from this period is a big decision they made together before they got married. Most of us talk about having children and how many. This was the late 60s, before abortion was legal. There were a lot of abandoned and neglected children, and not enough foster and adoptive families. It was a social problem that my parents wanted to help solve with God’s love and provision in their home. My parents decided to have two children and then adopt. And they did exactly that. They adopted my 3 brothers and fostered many other children over the years.

She reads the Word daily

If my mother would have a legacy to leave, it is that she puts God first. And not just in words and decisions and how she lives…she decides every day to have an intimate relationship with God through His Word. When I was young, every morning she would wake up before any of us, sit in her chair in the living room and read the Bible, read a short devotion, and pray. And she still does it. He is her first love.

She has a lot to say and not many listeners

Just because she is the quiet type, doesn’t mean she doesn’t have much to say. My mother has deep beliefs and some opinions too. And she wants to be heard like any of us. But…

My dad…he talks and everyone listens. Maybe it is just his gregarious personality, or the confidence and authority that he gives off. He is listened too. Even when he babbles on…because he does sometimes. People just give him the respect of listening. And when you are married to that, you just talk less.

My mom doesn’t have a lot of listeners. She makes us (her kids) listen when she needs to get her point across. But I wish, that she would have had more…recognition or position in the community…something that would have benefitted from her wisdom and made her know her worth.

She leads with service

She is a quiet servant. She is the one serving when asked and she is serving when no one asked. She has served in the church teaching children, making food, cleaning, and helping in any way that is needed.

She has served the people in need in her community. She has sacrificed money and possessions to help others. She desires to show the love of Jesus through service.

These are not the typical leader things you see. She is not a leader in charge. She knows that she serves at the pleasure of her Lord. She doesn’t need for people to recognize her.

Her name is Kathy Kaser

I have to make her name “google-able” so that in generations to come, her descendants can search the internet and read about the little girl that God loved and the woman who loved her God every day of her life.

Happy Mother’s Day Mom

I love you. I thank God for making you my mother. The best thing you have ever done is love your Savior and provide an example to us of His grace. Your heart is beautiful. You are a living example of God’s provision and protection and love through our suffering and sorrow and worries and disappointment. And that example is a gift that I treasure.