I can't even begin to imagine how Mary
must have felt on the day the angel told her
the Holy Spirit would come upon her and that
she would become the mother of the Messiah.

No doubt many Jewish girls dreamed of
being chosen for such an honor, but they had
no idea of what price would have to be paid
by the maiden who became the mother of
Jesus. How many virgins would have had the
faith and steadfastness in God to receive this
unique ministration of the Holy Spirit? And
how many would have had the strength of
character to endure the shame of being found
with child before her marriage?

What a remarkable person Mary must have
been. No doubt she was the ultimate of
womanhood or God would not have chosen her to
bear His Son. And surely her unswerving
faith and devotion to duty are unexcelled in
the pages of human history.

What a profound inspiration and influence
her life of humble trust in God must have been
for the boy Jesus as He increased in wisdom
and stature (Luke 2:52) during His growing-up
years in Nazareth. The Lord must have
come to know His mother in a very special
way during the nearly 30 years He lived with
her and Joseph.

At the end of His life and ministry, Jesus
must have remembered many things about His
mother. No doubt He recalled her loving con-
cern and patience when she traveled back to
Jerusalem to find Him, at age twelve, still in
the Temple with the elders.

And He must have remembered her trusting
faith and her recognition of His divine
nature at the wedding in Cana. Although He
did not promise to remedy the shortage of
wine (fruit of the vine), Mary confidently told
the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do
it (John 2:5).

Jesus knew Mary's gracious spirit all of
His life. With His divine nature, He could
also see her heart, for He knew all of mankind.
And yet Mary continued, with dignity, to be
His mother. What a pure life she must have had.

Jesus remembered and respected His
mother. On the cross just before He died, He
looked down and saw her there, when so many
others had forsaken Him. And in the hour of
His greatest agony, carrying the awful burden
of the sins of the world, He remembered Mary
and made provision for her care. Seeing the
Apostle John near her, He said, Woman,
behold thy son! And to John, Behold thy mother!
(John 19:26,27).

Precious memories

I remember my mother with every bit of
admiration and respect that I think Jesus had
for His mother. So much of who I am and
what I am is a result of her loving guidance
and positive influence. I first learned love at
Mother's knee through her touch, her care.
Then she pointed me to the love of Christ, and
I was reared in a Christian home.

It was from Mother's voice that I first
heard music, which has been such an
important part of my whole life and ministry. In one
of my earliest childhood memories, I am in
her arms and she is singing! I have no doubt
that my love for music came from her -- I started
singing when I was 5 years old.

I learned the discipline of my life from
Mother. She never allowed me to sing in
public unless I had my song memorized. I did not
play the piano for others unless I had
practiced.

Humility was a quality Mother taught me
by example. To this day she has the most
beautiful, unassuming spirit of anyone I know.
To me she is a perfectly blended combination
of the biblical sisters, Mary and Martha. She
always spent time worshiping the Lord -- I've
walked into her bedroom many times and
found her on her knees or reading her Bible.
But her personal devotions were always
balanced with service to others.

My Mother was -- and is -- a servant of the
Lord and people. She goes out of her way to
help, and nothing is ever too much for her to
do. I've watched her bake for her friends, do
laundry for a sick person, or make phone calls
to encourage others when she was weary
herself. She always would take time to send
cards for funerals, birthdays, or other
occasions when a friendly note would be appreciated.

I remember Mother taking me to church
revivals where I had been invited to sing.
When we walked inside together, she would
say to me, "Go ahead, honey, serve the Lord."
And she would stay near the back of the
church, not wanting to be noticed.

To this day, at age 83, Mother stays busy
serving the Lord. The staff at our Jack Van
Impe Ministries office love to have her come
around. "Things are just better when she's
around," they say. "She lightens the day and
brings an extra measure of love and harmony."

Inner beauty

From Mother, I learned the secret of inner
beauty -- of filling my heart and mind with
love and wholesomeness and letting them
permeate my entire being. And I also learned the
importance of always trying to look my best
and having my home clean and in order.

Mother always kept herself beautifully
groomed and modestly dressed, and her home
immaculate. She taught me that appearance is
important because it reflects the kind of
person one truly is inside...and is a testimony --
good or bad -- for the Lord.

There are so many other qualities my
mother taught me -- tenderness, a sense of
duty, a living expression of the gifts of the
Holy Spirit. Space doesn't permit a listing of
even half the good things she imparted to me
by instruction and example.

But I must mention one more -- I learned
wisdom through my mother. Wisdom comes
from the Lord, according to the Book of
Proverbs. But Mother certainly was a living
symbol of that divinely-given quality. She
almost always had the answers to my
questions, always knew the right thing to do in
every situation, always seemed to know when
to act and when to wait.

And although she didn't have the opportunity
to complete school when she was young,
later in life she went back to school and took
some business courses. She did it on her own,
just because she wanted a little better formal
education -- and because there were still some
things she wanted to know about!

Like Ruth and Naomi

Not only was I blessed with a wonderful
mother, but my mother-in-law and I had a
beautiful relationship as well. I appreciated
her so much. We never had the conflicts that
many women seem to experience. We had
more of a Ruth and Naomi relationship.

My mother-in-law has a very keen sense of
humor and a love of life, which my husband
shares. And she also displays a sweet sense of
trust and faith.

My husband's parents returned to
Belgium, their homeland, as missionaries, when
their only child, Jack, was 17. He had just
entered Bible school to prepare himself for
the ministry. There were no other Van Impe
relatives in America, and my in-laws had no
money to leave with their young son.

It must have taken a tremendous amount of
faith for Mother Van Impe to leave her only
child and go so far away. She had to commit
him into the hands of God and trust that he
would be all right.

I've also respected the fact that my
mother-in-law was never concerned about earthly
possessions. As missionaries, their income
was very limited, requiring many sacrifices,
but she was content. No one ever heard her
complain, or express a desire for a better
house or home furnishings, or clothing. Her
priorities were straight -- she was working for
eternal rewards. She has always been precious
to me personally.

A legacy of love

What a tremendous legacy both Dr. Van
Impe and I have received from our mothers.

Each Christmas season when we celebrate
the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, I especially
remember Mother. Let us all remember our
mothers, how they have helped the living
Christ to be born in our hearts.

We can never forget what she has meant to
us. Every day in some way her positive influence
lives on in our lives. As the Prophet
Isaiah wrote, And thine ears shall hear a word
behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in
it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye
turn to the left (Isaiah 30:21).

I've been doing some crying, lately.

Many times in the past several months,
I've wept over the suffering and physical
deterrioration of my beloved father-in-law, Oscar
Van Impe. Seeing this dedicated, once-strong
man of God (who prayed five hours a day for
the needs of others) lying weak and helpless
really tears my heart out. Repeated strokes
and heart attacks confine him to bed...and
he can barely speak. When I see him -- often
when I simply think of his condition -- I cry.

My own precious mother, who is perhaps
one of the few saints I know on earth, also has
been stricken with a very serious problem,
accompanied with excruciating pain. Mother
has been graced with many gifts from God --
among them the gifts of help and encouragement.
The morning I took her to the hospital
for diagnostic x-rays, she asked two favors of
me. "Please turn in my donation check for the
ministry, and would you mind taking me by
the post office so I can mail some get-well cards?"

She has been the most unselfish, thoughtful,
and Christlike person one could ever meet
in this world. Our family of employees tells
me that when she is in the office, she exudes
the fruits of the Spirit to such a degree that the
very atmosphere is charged by her joy and love.

Doctors discovered that Mother has a
noncancerous brain tumor and an inflamed major
artery in the brain. They feel that at her age,
surgery or other aggressive treatment is not
the best treatment for her, so they are trying to
control the pain and make her comfortable.

Seeing her pain makes me cry. What a
comfort it has been to have a precious husband and
dear friends who have wept with me during
this trial.

A while back I noticed that a young
waitress who often serves Jack and me when we
go out to eat seemed unusually quiet and
withdrawn and there was a strain on her countenance.
When I went to wash my hands in the
ladiesí room, I had a chance to pull her aside
and ask if something was wrong. Tears spilled
down her cheeks as she told me her husband
had just asked her for a divorce.

Imagine the pain of having your husband
or wife look you in the eye and say, "I don't
love you anymore -- I want out of this marriage."
I can't even begin to comprehend the
shock, sorrow, and grief one would feel in
such a situation.

I didn't know what to say to this poor girl
-- but I put my arms around her and comforted
her the only way I knew how...with my tears.

Also in recent months, I have felt an
increased burden for my unsaved friends and
loved ones. Bible prophecy makes it so clear
that time on this old earth is running out fast
and that surely Jesus is coming soon...perhaps
today! So I have been praying...and weeping
...for my unsaved loved ones. It is the only
way I know to minister to them!

What is a tear?

The great preacher, T. DeWitt Talmage,
once wrote, "Help me explain a tear. A chemist
will tell you that it is made up of salt and
lime and other component parts; but he misses
the chief ingredients -- the acid of a soured
life, the viperine sting of a bitter memory, the
fragments of a broken heart. I will tell you
what a tear is: it is agony in solution."

These are powerful, moving words. And
perhaps all of us have either witnessed or
personally experienced the truth Talmage sought
to convey.

But I suggest to you that there is more to
tears than sadness, sorrow, regret, and pain.
Tears can be a release from stress and anxiety,
a vent for frustration, a safety valve for
overpowering emotions. Tears can be the most
sincere expression of compassion and love.
And just as raindrops wash the smoke, smog,
and impurities from the atmosphere, so tears
can wash away the stains of bitterness and
disappointment from our souls.

A time to weep

As Solomon, perhaps the wisest man who
ever lived, once declared, To every thing there
is a season, and a time to every purpose under
the heaven...A time to weep, and a time to
laugh (Ecclesiastes 3:1,4).

We live in a time when everyone wants to
laugh all the time, but no one is willing to
weep. And if someone does cry, it makes
people really uncomfortable. Children are hushed
and told not to cry. Men are taught that tears
don't go with a macho image...that only sissies
cry. And women who weep at some sadness
or loss are interrupted and advised to wipe
their eyes and get control of themselves.

No! No! No! Let me cry. It's all right to
cry. I need to cry. In fact, one of my goals is
to minister to those who are weeping. I want
to do all I can, to say what I can...and when
there are no deeds or words that can help, to
weep with them.

Perhaps my resolution is best expressed
in the words of the late Bob Pierce in his
moving book, Let My Heart Be Broken With the
Things That Break the Heart of God.

When Jesus wept, His tears were for
others. Both Matthew and Luke describe how He
wept over the city of Jerusalem for those who
would not hear and accept the Truth! We, too,
should weep for others.

Weep over souls

Should we be less concerned over lost
souls than our Saviour? Why are we not
crying and praying for the lost to be saved before
it is eternally too late?

I've seen people moved to tears by the
plight of fictional characters in a paperback
book. A melodramatic film may jokingly be
described as a "two-hanky" movie, and it's
perfectly all right. But the same people who
get involved and empathize with artificial
stories can see real live people around them
dying and slipping into eternity without God
and never feel a twinge or shed a tear.

I wonder -- if the unsaved friends and
loved ones I'm praying for don't seem to be
any closer to the Lord than when I first started,
could it be because I haven't shed any tears
for them? The Bible says, They that sow in
tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth
and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall
doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing
his sheaves with him (Psalm 126:5,6).

Weep over sin

Sometimes I can hardly watch the news on
television or read the daily paper without
crying. My heart breaks at what is going on in
our nation and the world today. There is such
evil and perversion, such wickedness and
violence. How long will God allow men's hearts
to be filled with such deliberate, willful sin
before calling them to judgment?

I believe we are to weep over sin, whether
our own, our family's, or our nation's. The
Apostle Paul wrote, For godly sorrow worketh
repentance to salvation (2 Corinthians 7:10).

I am reminded of how Peter, after denying
the Lord during the awful hours before the
Crucifixion, went out, and wept bitterly
(Matthew 26:75). Those tears of repentance
led to his being forgiven and restored.

Weep over sorrow

Just as there is a time to weep over souls
and a time to weep over sin, there is also a
time to weep over sorrow. Do you remember
when Mary and Martha showed the Lord the
tomb where their brother Lazarus was buried?
The Bible says, Jesus wept (John 11:35).

There is a time for sorrow...and when it
comes, tears are appropriate. Paul instructed,
Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep
with them that weep (Romans 12:15).

Notice that the verse did not say to laugh
with those who are laughing and to tell those
who are crying to stop and cheer up. No, it
says to cry with those who are crying! That
means to share their sorrow -- to get down
under the burden with them. And when you
share their tears -- when all you can do is cry
with them -- you'll find it is a tremendously
effective way to minister your compassion and love.

I once interviewed a pastor who had
suffered the traumatic loss of his little son. This
man told me that in the midst of his grieving,
the people of his church did not understand or
know how to weep with him. They would
come to him and say, "Pastor, why are you
crying? Don't you have any faith?"

After a while this minister wrote a book
about what he had learned during his sorrowful
experience. He called it, Jonathan, You
Left Too Soon. But the main lesson I learned
from his experience was that in the day of
sorrow, it's okay to weep. In fact, for most
people, it's a really good way to cope with loss
and grief and begin to heal the broken heart
and crushed emotions. Tears can be
tremendously therapeutic.

I know I have been made acutely aware
of the value of tears. And I pray that God
will make me willing to weep with those who
weep, whether they cry tears of pain,
heartache, sorrow...or joy! I encourage you to
consider whether God can also use you in a
ministry of tears.

Remember, though, that our tears will not
-- cannot -- last long. The psalmist sang,
Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh
in the morning (Psalm 30:5).

I'm here to tell you that a great morning is
coming soon, when we will all be in the
presence of the Lord. Oh, what a glorious promise
and steadfast hope! For on that glad day, God
shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and
there shall be no more death, neither sorrow,
nor crying, neither shall there be any more
pain: for the former things are passed away
(Revelation 21:4).

No wonder Jesus said, Blessed are ye that
weep now: for ye shall laugh (Luke 6:21).