She Cast an Influence Over Me Which Has Lasted All My Life

May 11, 2026

The New York Times was asked to help a women’s club decide on the twelve greatest women in the United States. After due consideration, the editors replied, “The 12 greatest women in the U.S. are women who have never been heard of outside their own homes.”

For example, who was greater, Thomas A. Edison or his mother? When he was a young lad his teacher sent him home with a note which said, “Your child is dumb. We can’t do anything for him.” Mrs. Edison wrote back, “You do not understand my boy. I will teach him myself.” And she did, with results that are well known.

Thomas Edison once said, “I did not have my mother long, but she cast an influence over me which has lasted all my life. The good effects of her early training I can never lose. If it had not been for her appreciation and her faith in me at a critical time in my experience, I should never likely have become an inventor. I was always a careless boy, and with a mother of different mental caliber, I should have turned out badly. But her firmness, her sweetness, her goodness, were potent powers to keep me in the right path. My mother was the making of me. The memory of her will always be a blessing to me.”

This past weekend I did my traditional Mother’s Day focus on some aspect of love. Most people will agree that the greatest lessons they have learned about love have often come from their mothers. The opening illustration was in the sermon, and when I read the words, “she cast an influence over me which has lasted all my life,” the tears flowed, and I had to get someone else to read the story. In an instant I was overwhelmed by the shadow of influence my own mother has cast over my life. I think those tears of joy were influenced by the likelihood that my mom’s life seems to be winding down, but it was a precious moment, made more meaningful because I was worshipping God at the same time, and He has been the author of my wonderful life with my mom.

My favorite thing about my mom is the way she blesses people with her words. Too often, I have used words to hurt people. So much so, that one of my memory verses is, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” She started building others up when she was a young mom. Today, she has no memory, but God puts the words in her mouth, and she builds people up with the most amazing compliments.

In the hospital my dad barely survived a complicated medical event. The physical therapists played a key role in keeping my dad exercising, which was key to his body rebounding from his malady. As we prepared to leave the hospital my mom saw a young lady that she somehow recognized as a physical therapist. She went to the therapist and said, “Please tell all your friends that you saved my husband’s life. The way you worked with him, and cared for him, he wouldn’t be here today if it hadn’t been for the physical therapists.” The young lady had tears streaming down her face as she promised to tell everyone.

The amazing thing is, thirty seconds later my mom had no memory of saying anything to that young lady. She was being used by God to do what she had been doing all her life. The way we live our lives today will be amplified as we get older. Choose wisely the person you want to be when you age by choosing wisely how you live today.

I have a “Mother’s Day Challenge Exercise” to help you grow in love. In I Corinthians 13:4-7 is the greatest definition of love God has ever revealed. Replace the word “love” with your name and then write down if that is true or what you need to do to make it true. Carefully go through each verse and write down all your feelings, thoughts, celebrations, and concerns about how loving you are.

For example, I would take the first phrase, “love is patient,” and read it, “Al is patient.” Then I would reflect on whether that is true or not. Maybe I am not patient at all. Maybe I feel like I am very patient, and this is one of my strengths. Answer it for you, and then go through the rest of the verses. If this test helps you be more loving, then God is better glorified through your life. (To learn more about Al Earley or read previous articles, see www.lagrangepres.org. You can purchase my book, My Faith Journal, at Amazon.com, a compilation of 366 articles as a daily devotional. Check out my podcast on YouTube, called “My Faith Journey”).