You Answered my Prayers
It was a beautiful warm day in Hawaii. I was sipping my favorite tropical cocktail and watching my boys, ages 13 and 11, splash in the pool.
We had just started our three week summer vacation.
I should’ve been in the ultimate state of relaxation but, every few minutes, I hear my youngest.
He’s been making his way from pool to pool in an exact pattern for the last half hour and, every time he gets close to my lounge chair, I can see he’s having a rough time.
He loves the water more than anything but, on this day, he’s struggling.
Constantly jumping up and slamming himself down as he makes his way around the pool area, and whining as he goes. I try to pretend that this isn’t happening and pray that he’ll snap out of his funk soon so that all of us can enjoy this paradise as a family.
I know that, if this continues, I’ll be heading up to the hotel room with him while my husband and older son have lots of fun in the sun. With each slam of his body and grunt of frustration, I feel myself tensing up.
I have felt this way so many times before.
Even with my over the top planning skills and my knack for anticipating every possible scenario, I’m constantly in a state of fear, waiting for the ball to drop.
I worry not only about myself in this situation but also that he may be disturbing others while they are trying to relax on their much needed vacation.
I start to wonder if he will be this way the rest of the trip and I begin panicking that it’s going to be a rough three weeks. I try encouraging him to have a “calm body” and “quiet voice” but this only seems to irritate him more.
I feel myself about ready to pull the plug when I see my friends and their son walking into the pool area. I tell them what’s going on and that I may have to leave soon because Jaret is having a hard time.
What happened next completely caught me off guard. Seeing me stressed and wanting to help anyway they could, they said, “I know you’re not religious but would you mind if we prayed on it?”
If I’m being honest, I was thinking this is the biggest waste of time but I agreed to it because I knew they just wanted to help and how could I say no to that?
The next thing I knew, all three of us were standing on the pool deck, soaking wet in a group hug while they said their prayer out loud.
It felt awkward at first but then surprisingly comforting.
They prayed for my son to find peace and to be able to enjoy himself on our vacation. They also asked God to help me find the strength to handle whatever situation came our way over the next few weeks.
I felt a sense of calm rush over me in that moment like a warm Hawaiian breeze.
It wasn’t necessarily that I thought God was going to answer all our prayers but I knew, without a doubt, that my friends were there for me, without judgment and would help me with whatever was thrown our way.
The relief I felt from this allowed me to relax and, almost instantly, my son could feel it. Sensing that my stress level had gone down, he began to relax, too.
We proceeded to have an amazing day that afternoon and for the rest of our vacation.
I doubt they realize how much it meant to me but I truly believe that they answered my prayers that day.
I will always be thankful for that.
Written by, Jenn Wilson
I’m a stay at home mom living in Santa Clarita, CA. My husband and I have been married 20 years and we have 2 amazing boys, Jonah (13) & Jaret (11).
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