When You Wish Upon a Star.....

Did anyone see the Perseid Meteor shower last week?

I really wanted to see it for myself but according to internet reports it would be best viewed in a dark sky around 4am and since our suburban neighborhood is fairly well lit and I am "out like a light" by 10:30 I decided to forego the shower-show this year.

My family, however, was a little more adventurous and as I headed to bed they planted themselves on the deck in hopes of catching a glimpse of a falling meteor.

Just as I was about to doze off Quin ran into the room, and with the enthusiasm unique to a 7 yr. old boy, he told me he had not only seen a shooting star but he had made a wish upon it! His wish (also unique to 7 yr. old boys) was that he would have "super powers". I asked which super power he hoped for and he listed 3:

1) Speed

2) Moving things with his mind

3) Super strength

He went back to re-join the family and I turned the light off again to go to sleep. A few minutes later he was back and this time his little lip was quivering. Apparantly his older brother and sisters had informed him that because he had "told what his wish was" it would not come true. His hopes for super powers had been crushed by his (evil) older siblings and this "mother's heart" broke to see him so sad.

I pulled him onto the bed next to me and as we lay there in the dark I told him that he already had super powers. Because he has accepted Jesus as his saviour he now has the power of God living inside of him through the gift of the Holy Spirit. This means that he "can do ALL things through Christ"!

What better power is there than that? And unlike wishes made on a shooting star the power of the Holy Spirit just gets stronger (and shines brighter) when you tell others about it!

I was feeling really good about this lesson (and being able to put a smile back on my son's face) when suddenly I felt more than a little convicted:

--What kind of powers are important to me?--money, material possessions, status....

--Am I "wishing upon a star" (worldliness, others, self efforts...) or am I placing my hope in God alone?

--What kind of witness am I to the power of God in my life?

--Do I share with others where my help (power) comes from?

Quin has spent the last few nights looking up at the sky, just in case he sees another shooting star to wish upon but this morning, as we prayed, he "thanked God for the Holy Spirit and the power it gives him. Now that is what I call an "Aroma of Joy"!