Calvin walked down the path toward his home in Parson’s Cove.  He always took a shortcut behind an abandoned house near the lake.  As he passed a grove of trees near the lake, a group of kids jumped from behind an old shed.
“Hi, Calvin,” they said.

He answered, “Hi, guys.  What are you up to?”

“Oh, we’ve been playing in this old shed.  We are thinking about tearing it down and making it into forts.”

“It doesn’t belong to you, so you shouldn’t even be playing in it,” Calvin answered.  “I don’t think that is a good idea.”

“Oh, you’re just a goody-goody,” said Michael.  Michael lived in the house across the cove from him.  He was a big bully.  “But you’re going to help or else!”

“I don’t care what you do, Michael!  I’m not going to help you.  The Lord would not want me to destroy someone else’s property.  So go ahead – give me the or else.”

Calvin closed his eyes, waiting for the punch in the nose.  When nothing happened, he opened one eye slowly.  All the kids were gone.  He slowly turned around to see a man standing behind him.  He was tall with a balding head and small wire-rimmed glasses sitting right on the edge of his nose.

“Well, hello there, young man.  Looks like I got here in the nick of time,” the man said. “My name is Doc Solomon.  I just moved into the house up on the hill.  I want to thank you for standing up for my property.  It seems your friends wanted to tear it down.”

“They are not my friends.  That was Michael and a few of his buddies.  They get into trouble all the time,” Calvin answered.

“I heard you say that you would not destroy the shed because the Lord would not want that.  Are you a Christian?” Doc asked.

“Yes, I am,” Calvin remarked.

“Good, I am, too!”  Doc answered.  “And do you realize that by your very actions here today, God calls you blessed?”

“What do you mean?” asked Calvin.

“The Bible says, Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.  Today, you didn’t go along with Andrew or follow his counsel.  Instead, you did what you knew was right.  Therefore, God calls you blessed or happy.”

“Wow!  I didn’t know that verse.  I know that Michael and his friends are always making the wrong choices.  I just wish that he would listen when he is told about Jesus.  His sister goes to Sunday school with me. She has tried to tell him that Jesus loves him, but he laughs at her.  He calls her a baby.  I’ve tried to share with him that Jesus died for his sins, but he just makes fun of me then hits me in the nose.  Then he says that he is not a sinner.”

“Well, we need to pray for him.  Let’s do that right now.”  Doc bowed his head and prayed with his new friend, Calvin.