Happy Mother’s Day! To all the mothers, grandmothers and mother figures out there, we give thanks for the countless blessings you bring to our lives. I am so exceedingly grateful for the gift of a wonderful mother, a fabulous mother in law, my amazing aunts and my incredible grandmothers. Oh, what a glorious gift it is to know the love of a good mother!
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I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you…
1 Corinthians 1:4 – NLT
What does love taste like? Ask anyone in the Sherer family, and you will get the same answer…Grandma’s cookies. Now we might disagree on which one is the best, but we will all agree that Grandma’s cookies are filled with love.
For more than 60 years, my mother in law Liz has maintained a baking ministry. Now she wouldn’t call it that, but time and time again, I have watched her share the love of Christ through her baked goods. At Christmas, she shows her love for her friends and neighbors with a loaf of her homemade oatmeal bread. Throughout my son’s growing up years, she rarely darkened the door of our home without a made from scratch apple pie in hand.
And the cookies…oh my, the cookies! There are chocolate chip, peanut butter chocolate chip, molasses raisin, peanut butter, and oatmeal raisin, just to name a few. My all time favorite are the chocolate crinkles…yum!
Liz makes so many cookies that when she moved to her new home in the retirement facility near us, we had to buy a small chest freezer just to accommodate all the varieties. We then had to buy a second freezer to fit all the homemade bread and other freezer items. That’s a lot of cookies!
Her cookies have been the highlight of birthday parties and retirement celebrations, rehearsal dinners and wedding feasts. They have comforted the mourners at funeral gatherings and cheered the sick and injured. Grandma’s cookies have traveled all over the country in highly coveted care packages. When my son Jonathan’s roommates started placing cookie orders for the next care package, well, then you know they are a big hit!
Liz knows everyone’s favorite kind and ensures ample supplies are available for take home packages at the conclusion of any friend or family visit. Now that Liz lives across town, Eric and I love raiding the freezer whenever we drop by for a visit. I imagine that I can credit the chocolate crinkles with a few of those extra pounds I carry these days.
As amazing as those cookies are, the hands that bake them are the real treat. From the moment I met Liz nearly 42 years ago, I knew there was something truly special about her. Her bright eyes shine with a zest for life that few can match. Her ever present smile is like a warm blanket that wraps you in a cocoon of love. She is open and honest, kind and generous. She has a heart for service, continually giving her time and talents to her family, her friends, her church and community.
She is our rock. The whole family depends on her steady counsel and loving support. Just being in her presence lifts your spirits.
Many people speak of love, but Liz lives it. She loves everyone, and you can feel that love. It’s palpable. No small wonder that she has made countless friends in her new surroundings or that she has maintained a wide circle of lifelong friendships. Even the dogs in her community think she’s special. They get their own version of her cookies in the doggy treats she carries in her pocket.
Liz may be my mother in law, but that title just doesn’t do the relationship justice. She has been my chauffeur and confidant, my anchor and delight. She has been my caregiver on all those trips to NIH for my yearly eye exams. We faced the perils of 9/11 together stranded on the streets of Washington, D.C.. She and I have shared a love for travel, enjoying amazing trips all over the world together. From the streets of Graham to the streets of Paris, we have walked side by side with never a shortage of conversation. We have floated lazily together on the waters of the Great Barrier Reef and wiggled our toes in the sand of Australia’s Kangaroo Island.
She has taught me so much about love, life and selfless giving. She has been a role model of strength, integrity and perseverance. Above all, she has been my friend. No, not just a mother in law, I cherish Liz as “my other mother.”
If you have been blessed to know Liz, then you have tasted of her love. Like the sweet chocolate of her cookies, it’s a taste you will never forget.
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Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.
1 John 4:7 – NLT
PRAYER
O Heavenly Father, thank You for the good mothers, grandmothers and mother figures in our lives. What a blessing it is to know these amazing women and to feel their incredible love. Thank You for the tremendous impact they have upon our homes and our lives. Lord, You commanded us to love one another even as You have loved us. These good women role model that kind of love. Lord, let us learn to love well, so that through our love, others will see You.
In the Loving Name of Jesus, we give thanks and pray,
Faith Beyond Sight 
What a beautiful tribute to Liz!!
Sent from my iPad
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