Powerful Love

My mother has dementia and as she declines mentally I find myself thinking back on our relationship in order to remember how blessed I have been to be her daughter. Mum and I have had our good moments and our not so good moments but I am confident that she loves me fiercely. I, in return, love her as deeply as I can. 

When I hit my teens and was able to recognize my Mum’s short-comings I came to a crossroads; I could focus on her faults or I could benefit from her strengths. I chose the path of benefit and it has been one of the best decisions I ever made. Mum and I developed a bond that was fuelled not only by a mother’s love but by the kind of love that we read about in the Bible…

Hatred stirs up quarrels, but love makes up for all offenses. Proverbs 10:12 New Living Translation

Above all things have intense and unfailing love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins [forgives and disregards the offenses of others]. 1 Peter 4:8 Amplified Bible

I watched as Mum lived out and proved this Scriptural principle in her relationships with my Dad, my siblings, her mother and her friends. It profoundly impacted me. One of my earliest memories of this verse in action occurred when I was 6 or 7 years old though I did not realize what was taking place till many years later. Mum was preparing an afternoon tea for a special guest. We made cucumber and watercress sandwiches, cinnamon toast and cake. I got to separate the nesting tables so that the cups, saucers, teapot, milk, sugar and various plates could be set out ‘just so’ between two arm chairs in our living room. I pulled up the footstool close to Mum’s chair, ready to participate in the visit with the special guest. 

I remember being mesmerized by the wrinkled old lady who seemed to me to be rather unattractive. I could not understand why Mum was having tea with her but I was intrigued by the interplay between them. It was only when I was in my late teens that I discovered how powerful the love of Christ was in my Mum. The wrinkled old lady for whom we prepared that special tea was the mother of my Mum’s first husband; a man who was cruel and abusive to her and who had abandoned her after only six months of marriage. 

 The power of Christ’s love was further evidenced as Mum told me how, once she became a Christian some eight yeas after her divorce, she began to pray that God would help her to forget the horrible memories she had of her first husband and their marriage. Clearly it worked as she and my Dad sometimes socialized with him and entertained his mother. They also had the opportunity to support and minister to one of his subsequent wives after the demise of their marriage. 

 It should not have been a surprise to me that my Mum was quick to forgive, encourage and overlook my mistakes, but as a teenager it was. I look back on the occasions when she loved me silently rather than confronting, when she lovingly confronted rather than remaining silent, seemingly perfect in her responses as the situation required. 

 One of the most successful ways Mum lived out love covering a multitude of sins was by being honest. She pointed out the mistakes she made and purposely guided me in Godly ways, praying for me to make better choices in those kinds of situations – especially as a mother. I decided then that my Mum was perfect in her imperfection – most assuredly because God’s love in and through her was so powerfully covering a multitude of sins - hers and mine. 

 As we come to the celebration of Mother’s Day I want the Love that is powerful enough to cover sin to be evident in all areas of my life - especially in my role of Mum to my four children.