|
A DEVOTION:
Thanks to Mary Jameson for
passing this along from the Daily Guidepost.
I John 4:21
And this commandment we
have from Him. That he who loveth God love his brother
also.
We’d
had a pleasant drive through the West Virginia hills, an
area with few jobs and much poverty, but a land with a
great tradition, history and people. This journey through
the mountains had begun several months earlier, when I
received a call from World Vision, which distributes
thousands of Guideposts Knit for Kids sweaters to needy
children. “Would you and the outreach staff be interested
in bringing sweaters to the small mountain town of
Philippi in West Virginia?”
I
gratefully accepted this opportunity to experience
firsthand the joy of giving the sweaters knitted by our
readers, but I wasn’t sure what to expect from the kids.
Would they sit quietly and listen to me? How would they
feel when they got their sweaters?
The
children sat on the floor, excited and eager. I stood next
to a long table displaying the sweaters. The boys and
girls sat and gazed at the array of colors. The collage of
sweaters looked like a rainbow.
While
I was talking, Christopher, a little boy who sat in the
front row, raised his hand. His big smile and the sparkle
in his eyes got my attention. “Can I take a sweater home
for my baby sister Katie?” he asked.
“We’ll
find something for her”, I told him.
When
it was Christopher’s turn, I got on my knees and helped
him into the sweater he’d chosen. He popped his head
through the neck hole, beaming with joy. Then he jumped
and gave me a bear hug that toppled us both to the ground.
His smile spoke volumes as he clutched the stuffed animal
we’d found for Katie.
We’d
gone to Philippi to spread God’s love. But it was already
there, in the heart of Christopher.
Lord, bless all of the
Knit for Kids knitters and all the children for whom they
knit with so much love.
-
Pablo Diaz
Carmel, New York
Reprinted from Daily
Guidepost 2007
|
