Mining for Gold
A mom is a chauffeur … a doctor … a chef … and a teacher.
A mom often acts as referee … a budget control specialist … and a tailor.
She is a maid … a beautician … an interior designer … and a comedienne on any given day.
A mom is. She does it all. Night and day. Sick and healthy. Tired and awake. Single or married. Rich or poor.
A mom is. She does it all over and over and over again.
I have discovered, in my years of raising 5 children, that one of the very most important roles that a mother plays in the life of her child is the role of being an expert and tenacious miner. It is the call of a mom to go searching for gold that lies deep within the soul of each child. It is up to the mom to bring out the very best in her children day after day after day.
This job of searching for gold in the heart and life of a child does not terminate when a child is 18 and about to leave for college … or when your dearly loved child is now a proud college graduate and is working in corporate America … or even when your incredible child is married with children of their own. This job of discovering gold in the lives of our children continues until the day the irreplaceable mom, the miner with great skill and experience, leaves the atmosphere of planet earth and lands on the streets of pure gold in heaven.
Being a mom is not an assignment of drudgery of making PBJ’s, wiping noses or enforcing bedtime. If that is all that motherhood was, then a maid or a hired surrogate could tend to the tasks.
However … being a mom is the hardest … the best … the most fulfilling job in all of history and it takes someone with a heart filled with the love of Mother Theresa and with the tenacity of an Olympic athlete to get the job done.
One of the many ways that a mother goes searching for gold in the life of her children is by the words that she chooses to say.
Oh … it’s easy to say positive and encouraging words when one of your progeny brings home an all “A” report card … or makes his or her bed in the morning … or is kind to a frustrating sibling.
But I have discovered in my 34 years of parenting, that my words have had more impact and life-changing power in the most difficult moments of each of their growing hearts than they did in the all “A” moments.
The words of a parent carry life-changing weight when a child strikes out at the bottom of the ninth inning … when the perfectly memorized piano piece is completely forgotten during the end of the year recital … and when a best friend has decided to be best friends with someone else.
And so … as you determine to go mining for what is valuable in the heart of your child … let me encourage you to never, ever forget the power of your words when one of your children is in pain.
The pain that your child is experiencing may be self-inflicted, others-inflicted or just because life is hard. It is in those moments of tears and disappointment that a mother’s words can remind the child of the treasure that he or she holds.
“You are incredible! There is absolutely no one like you!”
“You were made for greatness! God has something awesome for your life!”
“Don’t give up! I know that you can do it!”
“Keep dreaming … keep hoping … keep planning! We are all cheering for you!”
“Thanks for being so kind to difficult people. God is so pleased with you and the choices that you are making!”
There is a vein of gold so rich and so rare in each of your children’s lives that heaven stops to applaud. Your children were fashioned in the heart of God before the beginning of time for purpose and for destiny. You, as the God-appointed parent, have been entrusted with the most valuable commodity in the economy of God. You are the mom … of a boy or a girl … made in the very image of God Himself. Imagine that!
You, as the mother, have been given the responsibility and privilege of nurturing … discipling … believing in … and discovering what is rare and beautiful in the lives of each of your children.
This gold that is hidden deep within the recesses of your child’s personality and bent is not dependent upon IQ, athletic prowess, musical talent or breathtaking beauty. This gold is in the DNA of your child because the fingerprint of God is on the DNA of your child.
I am praying for you today, mom. You might be worn-out, burned-out and ready to throw in the towel. But what you do matters. It matters very, very much.
Keep your eye on the assignment … you are mining for gold! You have been appointed to raise the world-changers of the next generation. Use your words to fan the flame of greatness in each of your children.
“There is no one like you who has ever lived at any moment in history!”
“You are enough! You are more than enough!”
“I am so thankful that God gave you to me.”
“The very best part of my day is when I am with you.”
“You are going to change the world someday!”
“You are valuable to me and to so many others.”
“I love being your mom.”
