My husband asked me last night to write an introduction to a letter that he had written to his mother a few years ago. And, then to post the letter in its entirety here on my blog.
Many years ago Elsa Wehage left Saskatuan Canada at the age of 19 with her new husband Lawrence to make a home. The permanent home for the family was established in Portland Oregon, some 1500 miles from where she grew up, away from all her family.
Rodger's mother was terribly lonely the first year. It had been the first time in her life that she had lived away from brothers, sisters and her father. Her mother died when she was a very young girl, she never knew her. She was close to her father loving him very much.
Elsa once said to me that she was so lonely that first year away from home she felt she would run away and walk back home to the prairies. She didn't though, she remained with her husband and the many children that would come later. She was a devout Catholic, attending mass nearly every day for years with children in tow.
One of her sons, my husband, grew up and began to question the religion he was raised in. His desire as a small child was to know God, but the only way he knew to find Him was through the religion he was raised with. It was a comfortable place for him as he followed all the rituals and said all the expected prayers.
One day, the Lord opened his eyes to the truth about the Scriptures and his world opened up to a far more excellent way. Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ was a new concept for him, but oh so very satisfying. Truth always fills those empty spaces of our heart. As Rodger grew in his walk with the Lord he became more and more concerned about his family, especially his mother. He had been close to her over the years until the time that he left the Catholic church. The relationship was strained after that, although Rodger still felt a special place in his heart for his mother.
As the years passed, he desired to tell her about Christ's way of salvation outlined in Scripture. Over the years he had mentioned it from time to time, suggesting that she open the Bible that she had in her home. She would never do that and said that she would not ever consider any other religion except the one she was raised with.
Toward the end of her life, Rodger felt so deeply about his mother's salvation that he wrote a letter to her, praying that God would tell him whether or not he should give it to her. After praying about it, he sensed the Holy Spirit telling him not to pass on the letter.
Rodger's mother passed nearly a year ago, and just this week, he found the letter that he had written to her.
Rodger asked me to pass the letter on to others, during this season of Mother's Day so that they can see the foolishness of not receiving Christ, rejecting His Word and spurning His instruction. Elsa's funeral was a sad one, not because she passed, but because we did not know where she went.
Rodger passed a small copy of the gospel of John to her before she died, she said that she would read it but we never knew if she did.
Rodger's Letter
My Mother's Day Gift To You
Dear Mother,
Happy Mother's Day! This is the time of the year when I honor you for your faithful work through your many years as mother.
For a number of months now I have been urging you to read a book. This is not a book that I selected for you. It is not a book that pushes some new-fangled religion. It is a book that has been in your home , the home I grew up in ---from the very beginning, for well over 50 years now. The book I want you to read is the Bible.
Why has this book gathered so much dust?
Let me ask you a few questions. When you were first married, I would guess that some in your family back in Canada wrote letters to you. Some of those letters might have been written by your father. Did you treasure those letters by leaving them unread, sealed up in their envelopes, by storing them away in some safe and secure drawer? Or did you tear them open, anxiously reading and re-reading every word because you knew and loved these people, and so desperately wanted to know what was going on in their lives? Did you save those letters for a long time and maybe even go back and reread them, just so you could feel a little closer to those loved ones so far away?
And, if you did leave them sealed up unread, what did you say to those loved ones when you saw or spoke to them again? "Oh, hi. Say! I got y our letter and I just want you to know that it's in perfect condition, unwrinkled (and unread), stored away in a nice safe place." Would they have felt hurt that you didn't take the time to read their words to you, words where they opened their lives to your mind, words that they took great care in selecting to let you--you know what was going on in their lives?
So it is with the Bible!
These are the words of your Father. These are the words of God Almighty, preserved from ancient days for you---you personally. Our Father in heaven did not exercise such great and loving care to tell you about Himself simply to have you reverently store them away unread. He wrote those words with you specifically in mind because He loves you and wants you to learn firsthand (from His own mind) what He is like. He wants you to read them.
Stop and think. If a messenger brought to you a letter from your father in Canada, would you choose to cast it aside and instead decide to listen to what the messenger had to say about your father? What if that messenger had not had direct contact with your father but instead had been told about your father by another messenger who had heard from another messenger who had heard from another messenger, who had heard from another messenger, who had heard from another messenger (and so on)? Which would you choose---hear-say or your father's own words?
You see, Mom your Father (in heaven) is my Father (in heaven). And in my mind there is no hesitation. I want to read for myself my Father's own words. Just like the tapes I recorded of my earthly father --I can hear his own words.
I know you are afraid that what you may read in the Bible may challenge what you have been taught and have come to believe over the decades. You once said to me, "I will never change my religion." But I'm not asking you to do that. The Bible has always been the foundation of Christianity. It is the basis for our belief in Jesus Christ our Savior. I'm simply asking you to open the book you have always held up to me to be the true word of God our Father. I'm simply asking you to personally seek God through His own words.
I don't use the word "religion" as in "my religion" or "their religion" when I speak of my relationship with Jesus Christ. He is my Savior and I love Him with all my heart and soul. The Bible says in John 3:16, "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." That's all --just believe in Jesus! Not doing this or that special thing. [That comes after you are saved for the bible also says that "a faith without works is a dead faith."] These truths are repeated and reaffirmed throughout the Bible [see Titus 3:4 for another example]. But you have to read to see God's message to you.
So my belief in Jesus Christ as my Savior is a relationship, not a religion. Do you have that relationship, not a religion? Do you have that relationship? Do you believe what it says in the Bible in: John 3:16 and Titus 3:4
It's not me saying these words. It's that book that you have stored in a nice, safe, dust-free place in your home for the last 60 years. Maybe it's time for you to read it. Then, instead of me asking the question, "Do you believe?" you can ask yourself that question.
Your loving son,
Rodger
