Anthony

Okay, I just had to post this...

With her hands clasped a few moments ago, Emily just prayed the most precious prayer I've heard in a long time. She's 3.

Dear God, Thank you for Anthony. Please help him to be safe, and help him to be good. Amen.

Anthony is a homeless man who the kids and I gave water and a bag of toiletries to this summer (see a previous post back in August I think.) He was under an awning of an old building at the corner of Hargrove and something in downtown Dallas. He had stacks and stacks of papers, manila folders, etc. as if he had raided someone's filing cabinet. He was working away on something when we handed him the offerings we had. I had tried to make conversation, but barely got a smile. It was obvious he had some mental ailment. I didn't know his name then.

Then this past Tuesday we went to the Farmer's Market for an outing with my MOPS group. Since we were going downtown anyway, I packed up some water bottles and fruit cups and we handed them out to some homeless folks while we were down there. Emily was excited and gave them the spoons and napkins. Anthony was in the same spot he was this summer, still with his stacks of paperwork around him, still "working" away. (It really shocked me that he was still there. That was two months ago. My mind has wandered and wondered about his life since then. He must leave that corner sometimes, but it must be the place he calls home.) This time when I gave him the water and the fruit cup, I asked him his name and I got a smile out of him.
I told him I'd pray for him.

Emily heard me, and remembered tonight.

I don't know how she knew just the right thing to pray, but I'm pretty sure the Holy Spirit was prompting her. Emily is my most challenging kiddo. She makes me earn my stripes or gold stars or whatever moms get. But you know what?

I love that little girl!