Five years ago, the woman who brought me into the world left this world.
Five years ago, our last words were,
“Love you, Mom.” “Love you too, Jackie. Keep your prayer life up.”
Mom always—always—always ended our conversations with those words, “Keep your prayer life up.”
Mom was also a gentle inspiration to more people than I could count. She knew the necessity and strength of prayer, embodying the words recorded in I Thessalonians 5:17, NLT: Never stop praying.
My mother understood that the power of prayer lies not in the one praying but in the ONE who hears our prayers and always—always—always responds in His time.
I think of my mother countless times every day, and I cherish my memories of her.
Five years after my mother offered me one last reminder, I understand and value the power of a praying mother even more. As Paul reminded the Ephesians, we should Pray in the Spirit on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests (Ephesians 6:18, NIV). No request is too large or too small for God.
Realizing the legacy my mother passed on to me caused me to ponder the question, “What legacy do I want to leave?”
As I held the sheet music my mother played for me as a soloist, it became clear that I needed to share my story of God’s faithfulness in my life and my grief journey. My first devotional, Keep a Song in Your Heart, Musical Notes for Daily Devotions, is somewhat autobiographical and invites you to witness God at work throughout my life.
You will learn that music flowed and coursed through my life even before I was born, thanks to the incredible musician I called Momma. Joy Thomas Price was well-named. Joy filled her life – and mine – with joyful praise and worship songs. My earliest memories center on Momma sitting at her upright piano as she played selections from the old Free Will Baptist Hymn Book and the stacks of sheet music piled nearby. Momma and her gospel songs taught me Scripture, God’s deep and abiding love for us all, and a reverence for Christian music’s awe-inspiring power and beauty.
That piano bench never could contain all Momma’s music. Nor can it possibly contain all the memories I cherish of my mother and her love for music and the Lord.
Keep a Song in Your Heart, Musical Notes for Daily Devotions is a legacy project inviting you to join with the generations of my family as we explore the wisdom those Southern gospel masterpieces impart.
As Momma played and I sat beside her and sang, I was mesmerized by the magic I was witnessing, Gospel music makes memorizing Scripture easy, and gospel music clarifies and highlights Scripture’s wisdom in new and exciting ways. Scriptures come alive in everyday circumstances and paint them with the joy of the Lord. In these devotionals, I share how the greatest gospel works inspired my family – and I hope it does the same for you.
My goal is to make Scriptures come alive in everyday circumstances and paint them with the joy of the Lord.
To learn more about my journey through grief and finding new joy, click the Joy Journal graphic below.
Love you, Jackie. I will see you Friday.
Marci, I wish we were meeting in different circumstances. I’d much rather meet you, Paul, Harold, and Von in one of the watermelon fields.
I am so grateful for the people Ann introduced me to, who I now consider my friends.
You mother sounds like a wonderful woman. What a sweet testament to the legacy she left.
Candyce, you would have loved my mother. She was a friend to everyone she met.
What a marvelous legacy your mother left, and what a gift you have passed on to others, Jackie! Thank you.
Cindy, I wish you had met my mother; she would have told me, “Oh, Jackie, I like Cynthia. You two are going to be such great friends.” And she would be right!