Big John Scott

My mom got pregnant with me in the spring of her senior year. It was 1974, times were hard in rural Mississippi. Still 17 years old, instead of doing the ‘convenient thing’, she listened to the voice of God and a few friends and family who encouraged her to continue the pregnancy.

With her whole life in front of her, she chose to love the tiny life inside her.

Around 34 years later, I stood on stage Mother’s Day and read this scripture from Jeremiah 1:5

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew ^[a] you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

Then I began to choke up at the end of it. Just a few days earlier, the ladies who worked our nursery for our women’s conference the previous week had a story for me. They told me that they had checked in a baby boy that they nicknamed ‘Little Big John’ because he looked like me. He even had a little cute belt buckle, which thanks to my pal Charles Lee, has become my ‘trademark’ …to go along with the bald head…maybe that’s why they said the kid looked like me…

On stage, I began to choke up as I said I was so thankful to be part of a church that values and speaks into women. Just like people valued and loved my mom and in their own unique ways said, “Go ahead, have this baby, you’ll be a great mother”, I’m so grateful to be in a place where we tell thousands of women the same thing.

“Go ahead. You can do this. We’re here to help.”

And my hemotions boil over. thanks Mom. Your mom died when you were 10. But you knew what you were doing. You knew how to love this ‘little big John’.