TAKE MY LIFE AND LET IT BE; ONLY, ALWAYS, ALL FOR THEE! (1/26/12)

 Do you remember as a parent waiting with great anticipation for your child to articulate his/her first words, and the joy that your heart felt when you heard that first "mama" or "dada" escape from his/her lips? As time progressed, so did sentence formations, and your heart continued to leap when the phrase, "I love you" was expressed.   However, as a parent, one of the greatest joys is hearing your child express his/her faith.

Last week, one of our Kindergarten moms shared the following story about her daughter. As a Kindergarten student, one of the most exciting factors about staying all day is eating lunch at school, especially on days when ice cream is sold. This family had established a routine allowing for certain days this little Kindergarten girl was able to purchase ice cream. However, when cleaning out her lunch box one evening, the mom noticed that the little girl's ice cream money was still in its container. Curious, the mom inquired, "Why is your ice cream money still in here? You love buying ice cream. Did you not have enough time to eat it?"

The following response is such a beautiful testimony of this little girl's heart. Knowing that our Chapel project this month is going to the Heifer Project with the hope of purchasing a cow for a needy third world family, she declared, "I decided not to buy ice cream, and I'm going to give my ice cream money to help buy a cow for poor people." Despite how important ice cream was to her, she was willing to sacrifice her enjoyment to help someone in need.

The Bible tells us about a widow who put two small coins into the temple offering. To the rich, it did not look like a very generous gift, but Jesus recognized and acknowledged the extreme sacrifice and faith that this woman expressed through her gift as she gave all that she had. This little Kindergarten girl expressed that same sacrificial heart when she gave her ice cream money to help those in need. What is even more exciting is to see how the Lord will bless the efforts of not just adults but little children, including Kindergarteners, as well.

As the Heifer Chapel Project will be concluding next week, our Student Council would like to provide an additional avenue to help raise funds to cover more spots on Geraldine the cow. On Tuesday, January 31, the Student Council will be hosting a popcorn sale at 2:30 p.m. Students will be able to donate any amount and receive a bag of popcorn and a juice box.

May you have a week filled with many of those "child-like faith" moments!

In His love,

Mrs. Palka