The sweetest thing happened last tonight after my daughters soccer practice. It was a rough night. These precious little six year olds were calling each other names and hitting each other all practice. It became exhausting trying to tell them to be nice to each other and splitting them up. After practicing my heart was sad and very irritated about how practice went. My kids and I headed to HEB to get some groceries because apparently, I put my order pick up for today and not yesterday! HA!
I opened the car door and started walking to get a double steering wheel grocery cart, that my twins spotted. Two, 18 year old boys started walking toward me. We made eye contact and I saw they were carrying a bin of popcorn. My thought was “Oh no. I don’t want to buy anything! I need to get in and out of the store.” But the Lord said—Wait hold up and stop. I took a breath as I saw my kids getting out of the car and waiting for me on the rocks. It was late and their bedtime. These young men handed me a flyer and said, “We are with an organization that has a home for boys who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. Do you know anyone who is struggling?” My kids rushed over and wanted to know who were my “new friends.” These teenage boys laughed saying, “Oh wow, you have a whole soccer team!” These two young kids who were eager to talk, told me about this organization helping them find a job and prepare them for the future—while sharing Christ and helping them be disciples to further His kingdom. They respectfully asked, “would you buy some popcorn to help support this organization?” Then, the asked if they could pray for me. I paused and said, “You know, let me pray for you.” It was so sweet. My kids, these two strangers, and I stood hands folded and prayed in the middle of the HEB parking lot.
These two young kids touched my heart. Yesterday morning as I studied Acts 4, Peter and John had just been arrested for healing a lame man, in the name of Jesus. People were all amazed and it caused an uproar, to what had happened seeing two men so bold to tell the lame man to get up and walk. Peter and John had Faith and wanted to show who Christ was to the world. However, were forbidden to speak in Jesus’s name again. These two Faithful men could not think of such a thing—They went and returned to other believers, and they all gathered in prayer.
Acts 4:29-31 says,
“And now, O Lord, hear their threats and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done thought the name of your holy servant Jesus. After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness.”
Yesterday morning I read Acts 4; I began to think how am I praying for my kids? Is it protection from our evil world or boldness to speak the Gospel in a world that is going far away from it. I desire them to have boldness in a world that is so dark and for then to have a reverent faith that is unshakable; to be life changers. As I prayed for these two kids last tonight, for God to use them to spread the Gospel. I prayed for boldness in sharing the Gospel and for our Marker to continue to use them to share to share their story. These sweet boys shook my hand and said goodbye to us. I watched them as they approached others in the parking lot and I prayed “Lord, give them perseverance to continue this race and may they not discouraged in the actions of others or be swayed.” Dawson looked at me and asked, “What ministry are they helping?”
I told my kids, that these boys made the wrong friends and were involved in things dishonoring to God, but were turning their life around to Glorify God and help others going down the same path. I love how Go can give us many opportunities to plant seeds of Character and Faith in our children. I am not sure if these two strangers will remember our “prayer meeting” but I will. God shook the meeting place for Peter and John as they came together and prayer. There is power in Prayer. Do you believe this? Acts 4 reminds us that prayer is a powerful practice that connects us to a powerful God.
Acts 4: 11b-12, “The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone. There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we much be saved.”
