Lifestyle blogger Stacey Philpot had taken a break from social media. She wanted to get away from the toxic comments and constant negativity that she felt she was seeing all too much of.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before the stressed out mom was drawn back to social media, after a text from a friend stopped her in her tracks.
When she logged on and saw the picture of her son that was quickly spreading across the internet, she was stunned.
Like many parents, Stacey Philpot often felt like she didn’t spend nearly as much time as she wanted with her children. As a full time stay at home mom, she already had enough on her plate. But when you add a chronic illness and writing career into the mix, it’s easy to understand that the day-to-day often caught up with Stacey.
“There is never enough of me to go around. I never feel present enough,” she writes in a blog post in 2017. “There is never a time in which I can offer as much of me to my children as a long to.”
Urgent text
With all this in mind, it’s not suprising that Stacey felt the need to take a break from social media. She needed a break from the “heated political discussion, the finger-pointing, and name calling.” With her usual relentless notifications switched off, Stacey was looking forward to some much needed peace and time with her family.
Then she received a text from a friend that stopped her in her tracks.
“At first, I couldn’t understand why she felt it was so vital I see this particular thread,” Stacey explains in her blog post. “It was about a young man who’d stood alone that morning around his school’s flag pole.”
Her son’s school – Lake Minneola High School in Florida – held an annual See You at the Pole day, where students are encouraged to gather around the school’s flag pole and pray for their loved ones and people in need. But this year, the turn out was causing people to stop, stare – and then talk…
Standing up for what he believes in
This year, one student stood alone and prayed at the flag pole. Stacey read through the comments praising the boy and his parents… and then finally, it hit her.
“As I scrolled through the pictures it hit me—-the boy who stood alone at the pole was my boy. They were talking about my son,” Stacey explains.
Stacey’s son had turned up to the flag pole prepared to pray with his classmates. At first, he stood alone, figuring he’d just pray until everyone else turned up.
“Eventually, he realised no one else was coming. Then the cry of his heart changed,” Stacey writes. “He asked that God would do something with his standing alone.”
Stacey was overwhelmed by the thousands of positive comments on the post, praising her son and Stacey’s parenting.
“I texted my son and told him, ‘You should know that people in our community are going crazy about a young man who stood at a flag pole alone and prayed this morning,” Stacey writes.
“They are talking about what an amazing young man he must be and how proud his parents must be. And I want you to know that your parents are so proud of you. You are an amazing young man.”
A message to everyone standing alone
The image of Stacey’s son has moved many people, and it’s hard not to be encouraged by his conviction. Stacey has some words of encouragement for anyone else who feels that they often have to stand alone:
“To you, wherever it is in your life you stand alone, be it a flag pole or a marriage, a place of work or a seemingly impossible situation, I believe my son would like to remind you God can do big things with your standing alone.”
We’ve all had times where we’ve felt completely alone, and I love Stacey’s message of support. What an incredible example her son is to all of us.
Help us share Stacey’s message, so that others can be encouraged to stay strong, even when they feel alone.
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