Carol and Anna

I recently spoke at a "Ladies Brunch".  My dear friend, Carol, was in attendance along with her  little girl (I want to say she is 6 years old). I was worried.  I had prepared a talk to inspire women.  What would poor Anna do while I spoke?  I dug into my bag and retrieved a handful of colored pens (I never leave home without them) while her Mama found some plain paper.  We had a plan.

As I began to speak, my attention moved from my 6 year old hearer and steadied on the women who I knew God had a message for.  Afterward, many of them thanked me, encouraged me by their words, and affirmed what God had been speaking to them.  However, the biggest blessing I gained that day was from little Anna.  I made my way toward her while she held out a picture she had drawn of me.  As I stooped down to her level to say a proper, "thank you", she said something else. "You know when you were talking about doing things that God tells you to do?  My Mommy does that."

You see I had challenge the women, and myself, to get back to the basics of our faith.  Are we responding to the promptings of God through the Holy Spirit?  How God wants to bless us when we give our lives away for someone else!

 For the next few minutes, Anna recounted a time when she and her Mama were in their car.  Her Mama spotted a women who needed a ride.  She gave the woman a lift.  Because Anna was taught to never talk to strangers, she said she didn't talk to the woman while she was in the car (insert me smiling here!).  She could not understand why her Mama would pick up a stranger.

Anna came to the conclusion of her story.  After the woman was transported to her destination, and normal activity began in her car , Anna asked her Mama, "Why did you pick up a stranger?"  You know what her Mama said?  Carol simply told her precious Anna, "Because God told me she needed a ride."  Story was over.  Anna skipped away.

My dear Carol is a young Mom with three kids.  I'm sure she doesn't do everything right (although you'd be hard pressed for me to find something wrong!)  According to my brief encounter, she's doing the important stuff right!  Carol modeled for her daughter what it looks like to have an encounter ... in a car and with a stranger ... with God!

Blessed by a young Mama,
christina