Ode To My Mother

On this Mother's Day, I want to take some time to tell my readers about one of the most important women in my life, my mother, Cecilia Jan Morrison. I have been extraordinarily blessed with good women in my life. There have been plenty of great male influences, also, but if I'm honest there have been more women than men. My mother started that trend.

She came from little and had little encouragement as to how to make a way in this world, but she found her path. Perhaps the two greatest lessons she ever taught me was that it was worth it to take a risk and that there is a God in the world. I would probably not be a person of faith today if she had not introduced me to Jesus at a young age. I've seen her face many difficulties and overcome them, and she never allows herself to avoid living life as an adventure and taking risks when she sees the chance to do something positive or have some fun.

My mother gave me a home when I was first getting clean and she helped get me into a business that sustained me for several years before my ministry work took off. She has given me some great advice at important times and she always, always made me feel loved. My mother taught me the importance of SAYING "I love you" and physically showing that love through hugs and physical contact. In this way she gave me a language by which I could talk about love, and she linked that love with faith in God. It is no surprise that "God is love" is the central message of my ministry.

Today she continues to give to me on a number of levels. She is one of my best friends and one of the most important influences in my life. I could live a thousand lifetimes and not pay back the good she has done for me. And not just for me, but for the various customers she services as an insurance agent, and especially to my sister and her children, to whom my own mother is very much a third parent. The good she sends out into the world comes back to so many, myself included. Over and over again she lives life in a way that inspires and moves me. So to my mother, I say thank you, and I love you, and I hope this is better than a card.

God bless you.

Amen.