Footprints in the Sand: 1st Timothy 4:12

1 Timothy 4:12  "Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

My Son walking along the beach Not too long ago, I walked along the beach with my youngest son. As the wet sand squished between our toes and we stared at the horizon together, I began to speak with my son about how to inspire others by his faith. I said, "Son, all you have to do is possess good moral character, strong faith and endless amounts of loving kindness. Just show them the light in you." My son replied, “I know Mom. I try all the time to talk about God and how much I love Jesus.” My heart felt warm. We continued to walk together along the shore. Later, I looked down at the sand in an attempt to find seashells. I noticed that with every step, my son was pressing each foot into the sand. I grabbed his hand asked him to pause for a moment. Then, I placed my hands on his shoulders and gently turned him around. Now, we were both facing in the direction we had just walked. The sun was shining on the trail of footsteps my son had made with each purposeful step. I just knew that had the perfect opportunity to share the following poem with my son.    Footprints in the Sand-Mary Stevenson         One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.              Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.                   In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.                        Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,                            other times there were one set of footprints.                                   This bothered me because I noticed                                 that during the low periods of my life,                              when I was suffering from                          anguish, sorrow or defeat,                      I could see only one set of footprints.           So I said to the Lord,       "You promised me Lord,          that if I followed you,              you would walk with me always.                    But I have noticed that during                           the most trying periods of my life                                  there have only been one                                        set of footprints in the sand.                                            Why, when I needed you most,                                           you have not been there for me?"                                  The Lord replied,                           "The times when you have                   seen only one set of footprints,           is when I carried you."                                                                After I had finished summarizing the poem, I said, “Son, remember this, “God is always by your side, no matter what!” My son grabbed my hand and we turned around. We began to walk along the shore together again. With his head still bowed, my son replied, “God is always by your side too, Mom!” I began to cry.

Please share your thoughts in the comments section below!  To read this author's personal testimony please go to: http://dlouyoung.blogspot.com/p/store.html