It was October 31 one year, and our tentative plans weren’t sitting well with me. Besides the fact that Eden was getting over a little cold, the idea of how we would spend the evening was still unsatisfying to me. Mason and I had a lunch break conference on the back porch in which we both shared the sense of extra spiritual heaviness we’d been feeling already that day. Recent events around the world, in addition to some warnings from redeemed ex-psychics and ex-satanists about the importance of holiness and obedience to Christ, contributed to the extra sense of weightiness.
That’s when Mason presented an inspired idea: we could make a new tradition by filling our Operation Christmas Child boxes tonight! We informed the kids of our changed plans, then headed out that evening to eat dinner at Chick-fil-a before going to Hobby Lobby to fill our shoeboxes. But when we were about halfway through our meal, an encounter began that would make this possibly my favorite October 31 ever…
A young man approached our table, surprising Mason and me from behind.
“Excuse me, are you believers?” he asked, with reservation and boldness mixed together.
“Yes,” I quickly exclaimed, knowing only good things could come from this.
The man continued, “I was just sitting there, and I felt the Holy Spirit telling me to get up and do this. He told me to plant a seed in each of your children’s lives, so, here you go!”
With that, he forcefully handed two ten-dollar bills directly to Ezekiel, two ten-dollar bills to Eden, and two twenty-dollar bills to Isaiah.
We were all sort of stunned at this moment. I urged the kids to say thank you, and then we introduced ourselves to him: I’ll call him LJ. He was in his thirties, not a college student as I had assumed at first glance. Mason, never the first to speak but always thoughtful about his words when he finally does, invited LJ to sit down at our table and share his story with us.
LJ had been fatherless from an early age, abused, hurt, and passionately committed to the homosexual lifestyle. But he had also been prayed for by a faithful mother. He shared his testimony of Christ setting him free from trauma, shame, and sin, and giving him a new life. He had been present at the Pulse nightclub shooting of 2015 in Orlando, an event which God used to turn his life around!
LJ excitedly shared that he was now leading worship at his church, dating a woman he could potentially marry, and living in step with the Spirit.
We praised God with him about Christ’s redeeming work! Then we told LJ about our plans to head to Hobby Lobby to fill three Operation Christmas Child boxes tonight, and that his seed of generosity would fill those three boxes with tangible evidence of God’s love this Christmas.
Ezekiel, Eden and Isaiah watched and listened to the entire thing unfold. (Ezekiel observed afterward, in his inimitable way, “That was weird.”) When we introduced them to LJ, he asked if we had any other kids, clearly wanting to make sure he obediently planted the seed with each child in this family, as instructed. The seed he planted was also a seed of obedience.
In parting, I shared with LJ about how earlier that day, Mason and I had been talking about the feelings of heaviness we had, and our awareness of some increased spiritual activity on this day. His obedience to do exactly as the Spirit prompted was hugely encouraging to us: GOD’s redeeming work through Jesus Christ is more powerful and pervasive than anything the enemy is up to, today or any other day of the year!
We thanked God for His faithfulness and tender love, to see and know us each so intimately. Is this something that could only happen at Chick-fil-a? No; God can work anywhere. But still, I have to admit, there’s just something special about Chick-fil-a.
Christen 🙂
Each Word a Gift 