A federal judge ordered New Orleans to open its public school to African-American children. The white parents decided that, if they had to let black children in, they would keep their children out. They let it be known that any black children who came to school would be in for trouble. So the black children stayed home, too—except six-year-old Ruby Bridges. Her parents sent her to school all by herself.
General Booth told of a man leaving Australia who had been working in the gold fields, and had acquired a fortune. He was on a ship, when a leak was sprung. The life-boats were lost, and the people were without hope. This strong man thought he could fight through the waves to the island, and he was about to spring into the water when a little girl, whose mother had been lost in the storm, asked him, “Sir, can you save me?” He looked at his belt of gold, and then at the child, and then at the belt, and then at the child again.
A farmer found a little girl that was lost in his meadow. The farmer said to her, “Do not cry; I’ll take you home.” The little child snuggled up to him, and with a smile, said, “I knew you would; I was waiting for you.”
“Waiting for me?” said the man. “What made you think I was coming?”
“I was praying you would.” she said.
On February 24, 2001, a one-year old Canadian girl named Erika wandered out of her house and spent the entire night in the Edmonton winter.
When her mother, Leyla Nordby, found her, Erika appeared to be totally frozen. Her legs were stiff, her body frozen, and all signs of life appeared to be gone.
Erika was treated at Edmonton’s Stollery Children’s Health Center where she was resuscitated. To the amazement of all, there appeared to be no sign of brain damage, and doctors gave Erika a clear prognosis.
Celeste Sibley, a columnist for the Atlanta Constitution, took her three children to a diner for breakfast one morning. It was crowded and they had to take separate seats at the counter. Eight-year-old Mary was seated at the far end of the counter and when her food was served she called down to her mother in a loud voice, “Mother, don’t people say grace in this place?” A hush came over the entire diner and before Mrs. Sibley could figure out what to say, the counterman said, “Yes, we do. You say it.” All the people at the counter bowed their heads.
A little girl got home from Sunday school, where she had been taught Matthew 5:16: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” She asked her mother what the verse meant. Her mom said, “Well, it means that when you are good and kind and thoughtful and obedient, you are letting Christ’s light shine in your life before all who know you.”
A twelve-year-old boy was saved at a revival. Later, his friends questioned him about it. One said, “Did you see a vision?” Another said, “Did you hear God speak?” The boy answered all of these questions with a simple no.
“Well, how did you know you were saved?” they asked. The boy replied, “It’s like when you catch a fish, you can’t see the fish or hear the fish; you just feel him tugging on your line: I just felt God tugging on my heart.”
Romans 8:16 “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”
A mother gave her little girl a quarter and a dollar before church, “Put whichever one you want in the collection plate and keep the other for yourself,” she told the girl. When they were coming out of church, the mother asked her daughter which amount she had given. “Well,” said the little girl, “I was going to give the dollar, but just before the collection the man in the pulpit said that we should all be cheerful givers. I knew I’d be a lot more cheerful if I gave the quarter, so I did.”
By the time young people reach the 10th grade, only three in ten are non-drinkers. Results of a study indicate that about a third of high school students are moderate to heavy drinkers in the classification of scientists who organized students into six categories: abstainers, infrequent, light, moderate, moderate-to-heavy, and heavy drinkers. Ease of availability is related to heavier drinking. Those states that allow 18-year-olds to purchase alcohol have heavier drinking.
One little boy gave an interesting answer when his Sunday school teacher was talking about the difference between sins of commission and sins of omission. Derek explained to his teacher that the sins of omission are, “Those sins that we want to do but we just haven’t gotten around to yet.”
A little boy was in a heated argument with his sister about who was going to get the last brownie. His mother overheard the loud discussion in their kitchen and came in to resolve the conflict. Her two children were obviously very distraught about getting that final treat. Sensing the need to teach a deeper truth, the mom asked her children that ever-relevant question: “What would Jesus do?” The older sibling immediately answered, “That’s easy, Jesus would just break the brownie and make five thousand more!”
A young boy sat in church and watched as the offering plate was being passed. Wanting to give something, he reached inside his pocket for something to put in. To his dismay, he had nothing inside. As the plate was passed down the row and came to him, he put the plate on the ground and stepped inside. He had nothing monetary to give, but he gave the most important thing he had—himself.
Three-year-old Shawn accompanied his dad to church on Easter. The father wanted his son to understand the meaning of Easter, so he tried to explain the significance of the cross which hung at the front of the church. He said, “Jesus died because people nailed him to the cross.” The little boy’s eyes widened as he scanned the church. He asked his dad, “You mean these people?”
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.—Isaiah 53:5
Finding the Ten Commandments can be a challenge for many adults (Exodus 20). Imagine the looks a Sunday School teacher got when she inquired of their whereabouts in a class for five-year-olds. After a few moments of blank stares she asked again, “Can anybody tell me where to find the Ten Commandments?” Finally, a little kid offered, “Have you looked them up in the Yellow Pages?”
A teacher gave her class of second graders a lesson on the magnet and what it does. The next day in a written test, she included this question: “My full name has six letters. The first one is M. I pick up things. What am I?” When the test papers were turned in, the teacher was astonished to find that almost fifty percent of the students answered the question with the word Mother.
A lady once took her children to a restaurant. Her six-year-old son asked if he could say grace. As he bowed his head he said, “God is good, God is great. Thank you for the food, and I would even thank you more if Mom gets us ice cream for dessert. And Liberty and justice for all! Amen!”
Along with the laughter from the other customers nearby, a woman remarked, “That's what's wrong with this country. Kids today don't even know how to pray. Asking God for ice cream! Why, I never!”
Three boys gave their definition of faith. One said, “Faith is taking hold of God.” The second said, “Faith is holding on to God.” A third said, “Faith is not letting go!” Each boy was right.
A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door! He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown. The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, “What was that all about and who are you?
One ingenious teenager who was tired of reading bedtime stories to his little sister decided to record several of her favorite stories on tape. He told her, “Now you can hear your stories anytime you want. Isn't that great?” She looked at the machine for a moment and then replied, “No. It hasn't got a lap.”
A Sunday school teacher was telling the story of the rich man and Lazarus. She said that Lazarus sat outside the rich man's gate covered with sores and begging for food. And that the rich man passed Lazarus without even seeing him. But when they both died Lazarus went to Heaven, while the rich man found himself in hell, which the teacher described most graphically. When she had finished, she asked the children, “Now which would you rather be—the rich man or Lazarus?” One little fellow answered, “I would like to be the rich man until I die and then Lazarus afterwards.”