I believe that as we watch them grow, we are tested, we are
taught, and we are stretched, all the while we are brought more joy than one
could ever believe possible.

Then one day they grow up, and when they grow up we can only
hope and pray that everything we taught them will hold to their lives as an
adult. We can only hope that they love Jesus just as we prayed they would for
so long. We can only pray they will be a better man or woman than we are. That
every mistake we made didn’t harm them. For every time that we tried it made a
difference. We can only hope that as we look at our child in the future we see
someone who is living for God just as we spent hours on our knees praying.

We had a rocky start. You were young, you were trying to
figure out how to be an adult, how to take care of yourself, and how to be a
mom all at the same time. The road was a little bumpy for you. You were on your
own. Life wasn’t that stable at first, it took awhile for it to begin to get a
little smoother.

You never gave up.

Even when things were hard, even when tomorrow seemed
hopeless, even when you had one of the most strong willed daughters, you tried.
You did it on your own for a long time, but I think that makes you superwoman.

You are superwoman.

You’ve been through some tough stuff the past few years. If
being a single mom for many years wasn’t enough, you’re walking through the
trenches again. I can only imagine how tired and exhausted it makes you. It can
cause you to question many things that got you to this place.

But don’t.

You are an amazing mom. What makes you amazing is you never
gave up. You pushed. You fought. You hit the bottom and gave every ounce of
your being to your Heavenly Father and allowed Him to transform you as a
person, and as a mother. You prayed for me. You prayed for your other kids. You
got on your knees and cried out to God to help you be the best mother to your
children, to take back the years you lost, and to give us what you never had.

 I think you did a great job. No one taught you how, or what,
or when. No one told you the right way or the wrong way, but you figured it out
mom.

When I look at you I see a fighter. I see a woman who never
gave up. I see a woman who continues to fight. I see a woman who even though
she found herself late, she made a difference in my life.

You’re a great mom.

I pray that one day I will look back and realize I taught my
kids in the same ways you taught me. I pray that one day I will hear them say
that I did a good job. I pray one day I will see them serving God. I pray that
they will be better than me, because you would only hope that I would be better
than you. That’s how it works, isn’t it?