20. God, I'm Grateful
What may I give to the Lord for all the good things that he has done for me? I will take the cup of salvation, and give praise to the name of the Lord. I will make the offering of my oath to the Lord, even before all his people. -Psalm 116:12-14 (Basic English translation) As I watch my students eat lunch in the high school cafeteria, I sadly witness a great deal of waste. It would not be unusual for a boy to pull out an apple his mother packed for him, take a bite or two out of it, and throw the rest away. It brings to mind a story of an American missionary moving to a poor part of Central America. She brought an apple on the flight, but never got around to eating it. That afternoon, while unpacking in her new home, a neighborhood girl noticed the big beautiful apple in her bag. The missionary realized that the little girl was fascinated by the apple, so she gave it to her. The girl reverently held the apple in both of her hands and slowly walked out of the room, never taking her wonder-filled eyes off her gift. The missionary presumed that the girl went off somewhere to eat it, but she found out later that the girl took it back home, diced it, and walked around the impoverished neighborhood, giving everyone a taste of this rare and precious gift. ...