While relaxing and enjoying the beach one afternoon, we noticed a dad and his son (guessing the little boy was probably 5 or 6 years old..we’ll call him Ben for the sake of the story) come up and put their towel in the sand. They began to build sand castles, make “sand angels” (like you do in the snow by lying on your back and flapping your arms and legs for the wings), take a few pictures here and there, and would cheerfully go cool down and rinse off in the ocean. Over and over again. (Makes you tired just thinking about it, doesn’t it?)
A couple hours later, Ben was down at the ocean’s edge while his dad was taking a break. A non-English speaking mother and her very timid son slowly walked down to the ocean, right next to where Ben was playing. It looked as if this little boy (also about Ben’s age…we’ll call him Sam) was being introduced to the ocean for the first time. Sam was definitely unsure of the ocean and its waves.
Ben started jumping the waves that were crashing against the shore. He was laughing and having a good ole time by himself. Some waves would knock him over, and others he jumped over easily. Next thing we knew, Sam started jumping waves, too, holding his momma’s hand still. Ben walked over, tried to talk to Sam and his mother, and grabbed Sam’s other hand. About 10 minutes later, Sam had let go of Mom’s hand, and just Ben and Sam were playing together…laughing, smiling, making sand castles, running back and forth between where the two families had their stuff, and had a grande time together the rest of the afternoon.
As we were sitting there, God whispered, “How cool is that? What if we shared our Joy like Ben shared his joy. We aren’t talking about the ocean now, but what about sharing our Joy of Christ? Ben couldn’t wait to take Sam’s hand and share the fun of jumping the waves and playing in the ocean. Our relationship with Jesus is so much more exciting than that so why aren’t we as excited as Ben was to share this gift with someone else? Why do we let fear or worry get in the way? Why does “sharing your story” turn into such a big deal instead of easily flowing from our mouths? God’s word states in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
The kids made it look so easy that day…didn’t even speak the same language yet they talked through their actions. All languages exchange smiles and laughter. Jesus calls us to share Him through our actions, lives, and stories. What are my actions showing others? Let’s get out there and share our stories with hope of bringing others to Christ! When was the last time you shared part of your story? If it’s scary at first (like Sam was to the ocean), know that God will speak through you.
