Mom died many years ago. There are many things I wish I could ask her now, but one thing she shared with me has always remained.
She was a faithful daily Bible reader, starting with the King James Version. Then, as other translations came out, she read them, also.
One day I asked, “Mom, what is your favorite verse?” She didn’t just pop one out; she gave it some thought.
I pressed on, “Do you have one?”
She replied, “I have several.”
“OK, what is your absolute favorite?”
She quoted the King James Version of Psalm 119:165: Great peace have they which love thy law: And nothing shall offend them.
When I mentioned it to one of her parishioners after mom died, the woman said, “Yes, I once asked your mom that question, and her answer to me was the same.”
The word “offend” has always stuck out to me. Offended people can be angry, exasperated, short-tempered, or impatient with people, but I never saw Mom react to parishioners in any of those ways. As a minister’s wife of fifty years, there must have been plenty of opportunities to be offended.
I have compared that verse in many translations, but the KJV remains my favorite. The New King James Version, the Amplified, the New Living Translation, and the English Standard Version each indicate that nothing causes them to “stumble.”
God sets the example through His personal “steadfast love and faithfulness.” Those two qualities are listed in tandem over and over in the Psalms
Today is Mother’s Day. Once again, my prayer is this: “Thank you, God, for Mom’s example of a Christian life well-lived.”
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