As the firstborn child of Nancy Sossomon DeMoss, I have been blessed to bear the name and many of the characteristics of a remarkable woman. My mother’s example has shaped how I view my calling as a woman, how I relate to men, and, most importantly, how I relate to my heavenly Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus.
Growing up, I didn’t realize that my mother’s view of her role as a wife and mother was terribly out of sync with our times. Though an extraordinarily gifted woman in her own right, my mother willingly laid down a promising career as a sacred vocalist to adapt to the heart and calling of her husband. Rather than expecting her husband’s life to revolve around her needs and interests, her life revolved around her husband’s.
In the early days, my dad dreamed of selling insurance through direct-mail marketing. Mother worked with him at the kitchen table to design the ads, write the letters, and process the responses. He also dreamed of inviting business and professional men and women to dinner to hear a gospel presentation—first a small handful, and ultimately thousands. She maintained the list of names and addresses, and sent out the invitations. The day of each event she supervised the meal preparation and service, stood by his side to greet the guests (he depended on her incredible gift of remembering names), and stayed up to put the house back together long after the guests left and the family went to bed.
This helper role was not something my dad demanded of my mother; neither was it a position she accepted grudgingly or reluctantly. She truly adored this man and found delight in walking through life as his partner and encourager. To this day, I can never remember her speaking negatively about him to us or anyone else. It’s not that he didn’t have some glaring weaknesses, but she was scarcely conscious of the negatives because of her deep, genuine admiration for him.
My mother considered it the highest honor to be Mrs. Arthur DeMoss. She imparted to me a vision of a woman being a cheerleader for the men in her life. Her example has caused me to look for ways, even as a single woman, to be an encourager and to accentuate the godly qualities in the lives of pastors, Christian leaders, and the men I serve alongside in ministry. It has given me the wisdom to counsel women with difficult husbands to make allowances for their husband’s rough edges and to verbalize only his positive qualities to others.
Above all, her model has led me to revere, honor, and joyously obey the Lord Jesus, the supreme love of my life. I long to be attentive to Him, to serve Him, to fulfill His wishes, to be by His side, and to let others know of my deep admiration for Him. These longings were first planted in my heart from the heart of my mother.
