"I had an inner certainty that I was on the right path in my life—the path God had chosen for me. Great things were going to happen in my life, and I had to do my part by preparing myself and being ready." ~Ben Carson What if we just assumed that God has a specific path for us? What if we knew that "great things were going to happen in our lives"? Would we see our lives differently? Would we see ourselves differently? By the time Ben Carson was in his early 20's, there was no question in his mind that God had big plans for him and that it was his job to put in the work and prepare himself thoroughly. How as this made possible? Because of his mother! Ben could never have become the man he became or had the influence in the world he now has without the determination, vision, encouragement and hard work of his mother.  This family is an incredible model for us to follow through all the 7 Laws of Life Mission -- as they devoted their lives to God, cared for themselves, embraced truth and educated themselves out of poverty and into the highest offices in the country! Listener's Guide: Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast.  2:27  Sonya Carson's early years 9:37  How Sonya handled opposition 14:00  How Sonya became self-reliant 20:02  How Sonya parented her boys and helped them get world-class educations 26:25  Carsons and the 7 Laws  29:18  Ben's spiritually transforming experiences   Quotes from this episode (all quotes from Ben Carson): “Part of mother’s strength came from a deep-seated faith in God and perhaps just as much from her innate ability to inspire Curtis and me to know she meant every word she said.” “Mother never let on how it hurt her, but her treatment in a mental hospital provided neighbors with a hot topic of gossip, perhaps even more because she had gone through a divorce. Both problems created serious stigmas at the time. Mother not only had to cope with providing a home and making a living to support us, but most of her friends disappeared when she needed them most…'I just decided that I had to go about my own business,’ Mother once told me, ‘and ignore what people said.’ She did, but it couldn’t have been easy.” “Of course, mother worked. Constantly. She seldom had much free time, but she showered that time on Curtis and me, which made up for the hours she was away…No matter how tired she was, if we were still up when she got home, mother didn’t fail to ask about school.” “‘That’s what I want to do,’ I said to my mother as we walked home. ‘I want to be a doctor. Can I be a doctor, mother? ‘Bennie,’ she said, ‘listen to me.’ We stopped walking and mother stared into my eyes. Then laying her hands on my thin shoulders, she said, ‘If you ask the Lord for something and believe He will do it, then it’ll happen.’ ‘I believe I can be a doctor.’ “Then, Bennie, you will be a doctor,’ she said matter-of=factly, and we started to walk on again.” “Mother had a goal in mind…she planned to go back and reclaim the house we’d lived in…’Boys,’ she told us as the weeks and months passed, ‘just wait. We’re going back to outhouse on Deacon Street. We may not be able to afford living in it now, but we’ll make it. In the meantime, we can still use the rent we get from it.’ Not a day passed that mother didn’t talk about going home. Determination burned in her eyes, and I never doubted that we would.” “My mother worked two and three jobs at a time…She was especially interested in the people, because most of the time she worked for the wealthy. She’d come home and tell us, ‘This is what wealthy people do. This is how successful people behave. Here’s how they think.’ She constantly drilled this kind of information into my brother and me. ‘Now you boys can do it too,’ she’d say with a smile adding,