Melissa Small supports her husband, Rusty, in his ministry as a pastor at Liberty Baptist Church while raising her 2 boys, James and Thomas. She also serves as the women’s ministry leader and on the worship team at her church. She has a passion for women growing deeper in their knowledge of God’s Word and fostering a supportive Christian community among women. A doctorate in Education and Christian Leadership aids in accomplishing these goals through teaching, mentoring, and Bible study.
Our youngest son, Thomas, has no unspoken thought at the age of six. Our oldest son, James, tends to reserve his words for things that really matter to him. He is also quieter and won’t fight to be heard over others.
As time has passed from their younger years of sharing the same bedtime, our youngest now goes to bed earlier while our oldest has a slightly later bedtime. Because of that, I put each of them to bed separately. James looks forward to that extra half hour with Mom. It’s a time when he processes his day and gets things off his chest that have been on his mind. We call them our “Night Chats,” and we both love them.
Sometimes the topics are questions about his own judgment.
“Mom, this happened today…did I do the right thing?”
Lately, the conversations have become spiritual and theological.
“Mom, can you lose your salvation?” “Mom, will our pets be part of the rapture?” “What will our bodies be like in eternity?” “What age will we be in our resurrected bodies?”
Initially, I am so very grateful that his mind is on eternal things and that he is working out his salvation while deepening his understanding of Christianity.
Then, another secondary thought crosses my mind: Why are these questions coming to me and not his dad, who is the in-house theologian??
But the Holy Spirit quickly and gently reminds me that He is my helper (John 14:26), that God equips all the saints with what they need to live a godly life (2 Peter 1:3), and that His Word is sufficient.
God has used motherhood to further impress upon me the importance of having an answer for what I believe (1 Peter 3:15). It pays dividends into the mainstream public, and even the church community, looking for answers to life’s deepest and often most difficult questions. Some of those questions wrestle with the problem of evil and pain under a loving God. Others involve God’s timing, His will or plan for our lives, His character, or how we can know that His Word is true.
Spending time in God’s Word strengthens our understanding of Him. It keeps His truth fresh in our minds and opens the door of communication that keeps us in fellowship with Him.
I am grateful for God’s Word and for the Holy Spirit’s guidance as we work through these questions, come to our own understanding, and grow in our ability to give an answer for the hope we have—so that we can disciple others.
May we continue to learn and grow, trusting that His Word does not return void and prepares us to minister and disciple those around us that God bring across our paths.
