Over a year ago, my son's bike was stolen (and remember the music is on over there) from our front porch. He was crushed - at that age a bike is your ticket to freedom and fun. But his faith was rewarded. He just knew that his bike would come back to him.
This weekend he rode his Ripstick to a church activity. They were leaving to attend the temple so he stashed it behind a brick pillar at the church entrance thinking that he would just ride it home when they returned. Unfortunately, they were gone much longer than expected.
Mr. O and I were away at a birthday dinner for my parents when I received a phone call from Spielberg explaining that he'd ridden it over and that it was now missing. Again, he was crushed. I resisted the impulse to tell him how foolish it was to leave something so valuable (at least to him or any other adolescent) out in plain sight) and instead told him how sorry I was and how awful it is to lose something you enjoy so much.
You know what he told me? "I'll find it mom, it will come back to me just like my bike did. Heavenly Father did it before He can do it again. I've looked everywhere and I couldn't find it, I've called ____ (one of the neighbor boys who innocently thinks that anything left out is community property) and offered him a $5 reward if he happens to see it and bring it back to me. I'll look again tomorrow. I just know it will come back to me."
I suggested to him that he pray for help in finding it. He said that was just what he was going to do as soon as he hung up the phone.
Saturday he looked around the surrounding neighborhoods, hoping to find it. No dice. He still told me last night that he knew it would come back to him. "I know it will, mom."
I sure hoped so for his sake, but a big part of me doubted in the likelihood of the Ripstick's return. I wondered how many times will the Lord bail a person out when they obviously mess up?
And today, at church as I was standing in the foyer I happened to glance over at the coat rack in the vestibule to see a blue Ripstick peeking out from under a child's coat. I flipped it over and sure enough, his name was on the bottom.
It turns out that my boy's faith is a pretty strong thing and he is teaching me to perfect mine.
