Little Women
• Mar. 17, 2006 - a tale of 2 fourth graders
I got a chance, the other day, to talk to a young lady who had been in a 4th grade Sunday school class I taught 16 years ago. She has gone on to be very involved in short-term missions, as well as working with the youth at our church. What I did NOT know, at the time, was that her family was all unbelievers at that point. They were just visiting our church, but wound up staying. Her mom soon came to the Lord, and her dad eventually followed. A second sister is also involved in a short-term mission/discipleship training school, right now. I had no idea of any of this, when I was teaching that 4th grade class.
I have another friend, a young lady from my old neighborhood. She's a couple years younger than the first young lady. She started coming over to my house and we'd bake cookies, when she was about 6 years old. (I can't imagine what her parents were thinking. They did not know me whatsoever!) I invited her to a good news club that was in my neighborhood, and eventually, she came to church with me a couple times, particularly, it turns out, when she was in 4th grade.
For some reason, it happened that, in those days, we had a couple of twins in that class, and they were very cliquish. My 4th grade friend never felt she could break into the group, and after about a month, she stopped coming. She went on to drop out of high school (as her mom had done before her), live with a guy (which her mom, by the way, approves of!), and have a baby. I haven't talked to her for a couple of months, but she is pretty cold to spiritual things.
I recognize that there are a lot of other issues involved, including the degree of interest the Mom had in the gospel. But I am really struck by the contrast--the difference that a Sunday school class can make, and really, the difference the kids themselves make, as early as 4th grade.
Teach your kids to look out for the outsider, because you never know where they are coming from, or where, by the grace of God, they may be going.
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