She’s the first person I remember teaching me about Jesus. Well, other than my parents, of course. She’s taught Jesus to two generations in our church. If you grew up attending the same church that I attend, or if you’ve had a child there in the past twenty or so years, you know exactly who I am talking about.
Nancy Mabry.
I honestly can’t remember ever not loving Ms. Nancy. She is part of my earliest childhood memories. I was a very shy child and I always remember Ms. Nancy being so kind to me and not embarrassing me or making me feel bad about being shy. She always encouraged me and loved me just the way I was. I will always be thankful to her for that.
Ms. Nancy is what most of us would call, “old-fashioned.” She grew up in what she refers to as a “different world.” A world that was perhaps, a bit more structured and polite than the frenzied time in which we live now. She has lived her entire life in the same community and was baptized in our church many years ago, although the physical location of the church was just a few yards down the street from the current location.
Ms. Nancy had two brothers who were stillborn. As a result she was very close to her parents and thinks she is most like her daddy. He taught her that rules were to be followed and to remember her good name and not “mess it up.”
Ms. Nancy has two great loves in her life. One is animals. If a stray animal happens to wonder anywhere near Ms. Nancy’s house, it will have a home for life. There is no telling how many animals, especially cats, that have been rescued by Ms. Nancy. The other one, and something she inherited from her daddy, is her love for children. She hasn’t met a child yet that she didn’t love. Oh, no doubt, there have been some that have been hard to love, but never impossible for her. She has lived a lifetime of ministering to children. I am thankful to God that I was one of those children.
Ms. Nancy says that she never really thought very much about working with children when she was young. It just sort of happened. In her late twenties she decided she wanted to be more involved in the church. One of her friends was teaching the 4 and 5 year old class and needed a co-teacher. Eventually, as a result of the church’s bus ministry, that class grew to the point where they needed two classes. At the same time, the friend had a baby and took some time off from teaching. Ms. Nancy found herself with her very own class and hasn’t stopped teaching yet. Oh, she’s not in a classroom anymore. She had to give that up a couple of years ago, but she has never and will never stop teaching. Even though she isn’t formally teaching anymore, she wants kids to know that she still loves them. Even us older ones.
There are so many things I could tell you about her. She has influenced so many young people. I often wonder how many people have heard the Good News from one of Ms. Nancy’s students. How many young men that she taught became preachers, elders or teachers? How many young women are now teaching young children because of her example?
I know at least one.
What I really want to share though, is some advice from Ms. Nancy. Here are some of her words of wisdom:
“We need to learn as much as we can while we are here to learn it.”
“You are always an influence on someone whether good or bad. That carries into adulthood. Go in the right direction doing good. Someone is always watching.
“Be more helpful and less critical.”
“Be kind and compassionate. Put God first. God is in control.”
And finally, the best advice from one of my best teachers:
“Serve God and keep his commandments and teach others to do the same thing.”
I love you Ms. Nancy!!
