A child of God

She is and always will be a child of God.

Originally posted November 3, 2011, at Stories in Faith. Republished with permission of the author.

We have these two kids at church. Their parents have made it a priority for them to be here. The kids have learned how to be in Sunday school each week, sit through worship when necessary and how to survive an adult-orientated event. They are not perfect. But they are children of God, and they know that.

Last week, one of them impressed me beyond measure and proved that she knows what being a child of God means.

Linda is 8 and in the third grade. A friend of mine, also from church, babysits her and her brother once a week or so. I happened to be at his house while he was sitting last week. Linda was asking for chores so she could earn some cold, hard cash.

The last time she did this, she was angling for book-fair money. This time, she was raising money for God’s Global Barnyard, an ELCA World Hunger program.

She proceeded to tell me and my friend what the money was for (with exact detail) and why it was important to her. Simply stated, God asks us to help each other. She proceeded to mop and vacuum and dust.

I was so very excited to see what I thought was a little girl asking for pocket money actually be God’s kingdom at work.

I am proud of what Linda learned in Sunday school, glad of the continued conversation that happened with her mom and dad, and glad that there was encouraged and enthusiastic action behind those conversations.

Linda is not perfect. I’m sure she will continue to bug her brother when her mom is not looking, forget to feed her guinea pigs (Baby and Bella) and may even get a lunch detention later on in life, but she is and always will be a child of God.

Find a link to Abby Triebel’s blog Stories in Faith at Lutheran Blogs.

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