I had the privilege to be in one of the best Christian schools of my country and was blessed to listen to the best of the stories from the missionaries who visited us. One of the best stories I got to listen was this one:
A young boy of a poverty-stricken family was waiting for his mother at the school gate. The mother had promised him that she would come and he would not have to come back alone like other days. The mother worked with a small retail outlet and had been working there since the death of her husband at a salary of $ 10 per day. She could hardly afford feeding herself and her children everyday and anything other than their ordinary meal was a luxury they had never experienced.
The boy was still waiting and felt compelled to move a little ahead from the school gate in a tacit hope that the mother might have reached there. He stood near a roadside vendor who was selling peanuts. The boy had never tasted pea nuts and had no taste towards it. All he wanted was to see his mother. The vendor couldn’t resist asking him why he was there. The boy told that he was waiting for his mother to come.
The boy looked exhausted after his day at the school. His eyes demanded some rest and a good amount of nutrition. The vendor asked him if he would want to buy peanuts. The boy hardly had a penny in his pocket and could not have thought of it. He responded with politeness ” sir, I have no money and I don’t know what that thing tastes like. I am sorry, I can’t buy it.” The vendor felt touched and he offered him to pick as much as he could in both his hands. The boy thought and said that he won’t until his mother comes.
In a while, he saw his mother coming. As she was there, the vendor repeated that he could take as much as both his hands can capture. He stood quiet and looked towards his mother. The mother knew that she would never be able to buy him peanuts, so she asked him to listen to the vendor and fill both his hands. He stood quiet and said nothing. He was looking down at his torn shoes without moving much.
Finally, the vendor got up and filled both his hands with peanuts and handed it over to him by putting it all in one of his school bag pockets. His mother thanked the vendor with gratitude and they started to walk towards their home. On the way back, the mother said “son you know of our financial condition and we aren’t sure if we would get something to eat today or not. Then why did you not avail yourself of the offer given by the vendor with much love and sincerity? “
He said nothing for a while, thought a little as if he was putting it into words and said “Mom, his hands were bigger than mine. Had I taken it myself, it would have been very less. So I wanted him to do it and that is what I waited for. “ His mother was in tears and looked at the boy as if she wanted to embrace him.
So don’t be in a haste. God’s hands are bigger than yours and when he fills it to give it to you, you will end up having more than you could have taken yourself.