Bo Berries and the Holy Spirit

BOJANGLES. Welcome to the South. We have three kids who are always hungry, and Bojangles Bo Berries are some of our favorites.

One day, we were headed home from a long trip and stopped at Bojangles to go inside and eat. After ordering our food, the kids and I grabbed a table while my husband stood a little further down, waiting for our food to be ready. As we sat at the table, I watched him chatting with an elderly gentleman, which honestly isn’t out of the norm. Blake talks to people like he has known them all of his life.

Finally, he received our food and joined us at the table. As soon as he sat down, he started rattling off jokes.

“What do you call a cow that just gave birth?……….de-CALFinatted.”
“I finally found out why people like a lot of bananas…..because they are so A-PEELING.”  

Last but not least, he showed us a trick where you hold up both hands and bend your thumb, making it look like the tip of your thumb is coming off. Before we knew it, all three kids were trying to do the trick, and we were laughing so hard we were crying. Our oldest finally asked Blake where he got the jokes, and he responded that they were from the man he had waited with in line.

Looking across the restaurant, we saw him sitting alone, grinning from ear to ear, watching our family laugh hysterically. As we prepared to leave and discarded our trash, Blake and our boys began walking out the door; however, I noticed our daughter wasn’t with us. Turning to look for her, I saw her standing in front of that elderly man’s table chatting away. Once again, he was grinning from ear to ear and asking her if she liked the jokes. She politely said, “Yes, sir, thank you for sharing them with us.”

I cried – in the middle of Bojangles AND in the car.

I’m not normally one for hysterics. But in that moment, I felt the overwhelming presence of the Holy Spirit making a move.

Of course, we are teaching our kids to be respectful and kind. But when my daughter made a move of empathy, kindness, tenderness, and gratitude without being prompted, it overwhelmed me. I’d like to tell you that it was all because of great parenting, but trust me, it’s not. That was the Spirit at work in our child, reaching out and touching someone else, then bouncing back and touching us.

Yes, the Spirit came to convict (John 16:8 – “When He comes, He will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment”), but He also came to keep us connected to Jesus and the Father and to see others through His eyes, even in our day-to-day stops.

Since the Holy Spirit lives within us and others, one of His main purposes is to connect us with one another on a spiritual level. I’m pretty sure this is important if this verse is to be true. Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”  

There will always be aspects of the Holy Spirit that are mysterious and hard to fully grasp. At times, that can leave us feeling overwhelmed, uncertain, or even tempted to ignore His role in the Trinity altogether. As believers, it’s often easier to connect with the image of a Father, a Son, or even a Brother—those roles feel more tangible, more relatable to our human understanding.

For me, the Spirit can represent all of the beautiful feelings and emotions we have when life is going well. But man, when life takes a turn for the worse, with grief, exhaustion and a lot of questions, He is the first One I want to pull away from. In those moments, I find myself shutting down what’s going on inside of me because it just feels like too much. Crying out to the Father or pleading with Jesus to take the pain away feels easier than letting the Spirit meet me in the middle of those messy, unfiltered emotions.

But when I only allow the Holy Spirit to work in the areas I still feel in control of, I limit the full power of the Trinity—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—to transform me. I miss out on the peace, perspective, and healing that can come even when nothing around me changes.
 
The same Spirit of God who is responsible for the miracles and healings of infertility, addiction, and heartbreak is also the Spirit of Truth and our Defender on every front. He is the protection of things unseen, the keeper of every emotion that threatens to take us under, and the One that revives us when our eyes connect with His.

If we can let the Spirit of the Almighty God comfort, sustain, and direct us, the ability to see His goodness around us becomes illuminated. The more we become aware and practice being tuned into His Presence, the more familiar and confident we are in walking with Him. Yes, there are big moments and revelations; but for me, it’s in my kids fishing on the dock and reveling in the fish they’ve caught that have wild colors. It’s my husband choosing me when he could’ve chosen work. It’s friends like family who show up and out when I don't ask. The Spirit is at work IN us. Most of the time, we just need a reset or slowdown or both, to hear and see Him.

Paying attention to Him in the small things throughout our lives, sets us up for peace when the storm comes. It doesn’t mean my emotions and feelings won’t get rattled; it just means I have a greater chance to land where He intends since He knows what's best for me.

If you don’t acknowledge His Spirit in everyday small things, the big things will overwhelm you or be missed because you haven’t trained to look for them. Walking with the Spirit shouldn’t be about which gift He may give US or how He wants to use US. It should help us to have eyes to see the unseen, walk in victory for those downtrodden, and cry tears of joy when we see our kid take a step WITHOUT me, but WITH Him.

I pray that the Spirit will show up in your mundane tasks, bring new insight into the direction you are going, and slow your mind and heart enough to let Him make a move no matter the size.

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