Faithful 31 MomsFaithful 31 Moms

Today I’m sharing a personal story about my son Jake

and two quick challenges for all of us as moms!

Listen to this story as an audio PODCAST HERE

This may be one of my most favorite moments EVER, thus far, to share about since becoming a mom..

This is a story from this past Christmas Winter break 2022-23, that I have not been able to get over and had to share!

Jake, my oldest son (9 yrs. in 3rd grade) was saved at a young age, and has always been sensitive to the things of the Lord from a small child. (Click here to listen to an interview I did with Jake the summer before 1st grade, back in 2020, when I was first starting this podcast and he was newly saved.)

Over the last few, he’s has grown lots of inches, but also has grown in his knowledge about the Lord…But as we all do, he has really started to care a lot more about what his friends think of him and is distracted with school work and sports and so many things. Knowing this, one evening during our devotion time, he readily admitted he was guilty of wanting to please people…aren’t we all?!

My husband and I had really tried to challenge him throughout the fall seeing this in him, to not keep his faith to himself, even though it can be hard to share with your friends.

Well, he really took that to heart, because over the Christmas break, at home in our garage, that kid led our neighbor to the Lord. He is a boy that is is Jake’s class at school and they play a lot outside together. We have taken him to VBS with us several times and our Christmas service at church…just whenever his parents would let him come because they do not go to church..

To make a long story short, Jake and I have had several gospel conversations with this boy over the last two years, but he was not ready to accept Jesus and still processing everything. However, on Christmas Day, one of our sweet neighbors passed away suddenly, and it shocked both our neighbors and our family. Sad situation–she lived alone, not kids or spouse. And Jake’s friend and his family had known her a lot longer than our family.

So this little boy was pretty upset about it all, and had a lot of questions related to what happens to us after we dies, etc. Totally normal question for both adults and children after something like this happens, and he ended up talking to Jake about it.

Unknown to me at the time, in our garage one day outside, on a break from a nerf gun war, this boy told Jake, that even though his mom and dad didn’t think God made the world or that you have to know Jesus to go to heaven, that he knew you did need Jesus..

He told Jake that he didn’t want to keep worrying about whether he would go to heaven or hell..

He wanted to know that he had Jesus in his heart for sure!

Jake could have come and got me..

He could have said you have to know Jesus and got distracted as kids often do..

But that child flat led this boy to the Lord in our garage!

Not only that, he first quizzed him on what he knew about the gospel that Jesus had done for him on the cross. Then led him in a prayer ask Jesus into his life, and assured him that believing in Jesus, asking for forgiveness and having a relationship with him, would now bring him the peace this young boy was looking for!

WOW! When Jake told me this story that evening before bed, I didn’t know whether to cry or jump for joy…I think I did both!

I asked him questions about what all he did and said to his friend, and he proceeded to tell me what I just shared with you…He didn’t even come inside and get me to help—I was blown away!

And then He told me: “Mom I knew what I was doing. I listened when you shared with him in the car on the way home from VBS, and I knew the how to ask him questions about what Jesus had done for him, because you did the same thing with me when I got saved.”
-Jake

I share that story to leave you with these two things today moms:

#1 Your kids are listening! Just like Jake told me he had listened to me above–Whether they have accepted Jesus or not, they are listening…to every Bible Story…to every prayer you say with them….to every gospel conversation you have with them or with their siblings & friends, just like we did with this neighbor of ours. They are listening to all of it. They even listen when you have gospel conversations with other moms or adults, when you think that they are just playing or not paying attention…so keep it up moms!

BOTTOM LINE: they are listening, so stay consistent! First I got to see the fruit after 6 years of planting when Jake asked Jesus into his life, and on this day, I got to see him make fruit after 9 years of planting Jesus into his life…It is such a joy to see the Lord work in our kids lives!

#2 This is a challenge ALL of us as moms—If a 9 year old can do it…so can we!

Some background to this story: I have tried to share Jesus with this boy’s mom several times in the past, and if I’m honest, I had kind of given up. But after this, the Lord really lit a fire under me, that if my 9 year old could be this bold, then so could I!

So I took this boy’s mom to lunch and shared with her again a few days later. And then another time since then. And it’s still a work in progress, but I will not give up!

And I’m trying to actively look for other moms on the playground too or wherever I go, that I can share Jesus with…

WE CAN’T ASK OUR KIDS TO DO SOMETHING THAT WE ARE NOT WILLING TO DO OURSELVES!

So that is the challenge I will leave with you: Who are you actively sharing Jesus with besides your children? If you can’t think of anyone…it’s time to change that today!