Waiting...

So, I finally ordered my camera! I've been waiting for this day for about a year now. Well, today is the day it's supposed to arrive. I've been on Amazon every day (sometimes twice a day) checking the order status. I'm counting down the hours till the mailman usually gets here. 3 hours left...

Does god do that? Is he counting down the years, days, hours, minutes until He can sent Jesus to bring us home to heaven? Just a thought...

Children's Story Tomorrow!

Don't you love last minute notice?? Like getting an email asking you to do the Children's Story on Sabbath - but you got the email on Thursday... and you completely forgot about it all day Friday. Then at 6pm Friday night you remember... This had happened to me twice. Thankfully I had a story partially ready:

Motorboat Miracle

"Good morning! How many of you like boats? Well, today I have a story about a mission boat."

It happened during the war in the south pacific. The motorboat, a fine mission launch was taken over but the military soon after the war was declared.

Naturally the missionary in charge was sorry to give it up, but there was nothing he could do, since the enemy was getting closer every week.

The native Christians were also sorry because they know this boat well, and to them it was a messenger of light, going from island to island to visit the people with the good news of God’s love.

Some time later, when the Allied troops were forced to leave the islands,

the military decided to destroy the mission boat in order to keep it from falling into the enemy’s hands. So they sent someone to pour gasoline over the little vessel and set a match to it.

There was a sudden explosion and a spurt of flames. But a sharp gust of wind blow out the flames, and the boat, though slightly burned here and there, was left unharmed.

Soon only the islanders were left. Those belonging to the mission decided that they would try to save the boat. So they towed it away and hide it far up a little creek. Then they planted bushes and fast-growing vines on its deck so it couldn’t be seen by enemy planes.

Then, to make absolutely sure that the boat would be useless to the enemy even if it was found, they decided to remove the engine and scatter the part all over the island.

With wrenchs and pliers and screwdrivers they took that motor apart until they had changed it into a pile of nuts, bolts, screws, rings, pistons, spark plugs, and all the rest.

Next they had to hide all the parts so that the enemy couldn’t possibly find them, yet in such a way that the pieces could be easily gathered together again as soon as the missionary returned.

Some of the larger parts, like the cylinder block and the crankcase, they buried in the sand. They tied the crankshaft to the branch of a tall tree. Then they carefully tied the nuts, bolts, washers – and little things like that – into little bunches and hung them around the necks of the Christian believers.

They guessed that the Japanese would think they were just wearing charms like the heathen natives, and they guessed right. The Christian believers wore those “charms” around their necks until the war ended. Not once did an enemy spy suspect what they really were.

At last the tide of war turned; the Japanese fled, and the Allies came back. Shortly after that the missionary himself returned.

When the local believers saw him, they greeted him with great joy. Then they asked him if he would like to see the mission boat.

“The mission boat?” he said, “But that was burned and sunk long ago! Our mission board received official word about in from the government.”

“But it didn’t burn,” they told him.

So they took the missionary up the little creek, and there she was, still riding the water, all covered with greenery.

They cleaned off the bushes, the vines, the moss, and the rest of the camouflage, and the marveling missionary went aboard.

“Look the engine’s gone!” he cried. “We can’t use her now. Why, they’ve taken every bolt and nut.”

“Yes, sir,” said the leader. “We took it apart to save it from the enemy.”

“You did!” exclaimed the missionary. “And where are the parts? Can you find them?”

“Just wait and see.”

Then the drums sounded and the church bells rang, and the message echoed up the valleys and over the mountains: “The missionary is back. Bring the parts for the mission boat!”

In response, a most amazing procession began. Two men staggered up with the crankshaft. Men and women came from far and near with their strings of “beads” of “charms”, and placed them before the missionary.

When it was over, there was a pie of parts big enough to frighten the most skilled engineer at General Motors.

Fortunately the missionary was something of a mechanic. Believe it or not, two months later he had that engine going again, purring like a Persian cat after a good, satisfying meal.

Not a single part was missing! There were even a few parts left over ..... that the missionary didn't know what to do with. Each part had been kept safely as something sacred and precious.

SLOW.......

No wonder all the people in the area rejoiced as the launch sailed out to sea once more. It had been saved by a miracle - a miracle of faithfulness and love.

"When we share God's love with others, we may have troubles, but God will help us through it all."

-Autumn Mott