I remember hearing the song “Mary Did You Know?” by Michael English for the first time after becoming a mom. I had always loved the song, but hearing the message as a mom gave me a new perspective.
The song is a series of questions to Mary, the mother of Jesus, asking her things like, “Did you know that your baby boy would someday walk on water?” And, “Did you know that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters?” (See the end of this post for the complete set of lyrics.)
Hearing these questions and having my own little toddler running around, it made brought up a few questions, like:
- How does a toddler without a sin nature behave?
- Did Mary ever have to tell Jesus “no”?
- Did Mary feel as unworthy as I do as a parent? After all, not only was she a new parent but she was also an imperfect human, and her son was the perfect Son of God.
As I laughed and wondered at the possibilities, I had a different kind of consideration. I looked at my own little boy and realized he had a future, as well, and hopefully a future in Christ. I wondered, will someone in the future be asking me, “Sabrina, did you know?”
Obviously, my son isn’t perfect nor the son of God. But there have been many great men in this world, and they all had mothers. I wonder how many times someone said to Billy Graham’s mother, “Did you know … ?” What about the Apostle Paul—he had a mother. I’m sure she raised him the best way she knew how. Did she have any idea who her son would become?
Hearing that song helped me remember I wasn’t just raising a little boy—I was raising a man who will one day have an impact on this world. It made me realize I needed to saturate his life with the tools to influence those around him for the cause of Christ.
It reminded me that it’s important to pray for my children, teach the Bible in my home, sing and celebrate the mercies of God, and keep God’s will the center focus of our parenting each and every day.
No matter what my son becomes—the next Billy Graham or the next-door neighbor, one day he will be influencing others, whether crowds in stadiums or the children he raises in his own home. Like the mothers of the godly men that went before me, it’s up to me to teach him a biblical worldview so he can be the man God called him to be.