One Good Thing

This past Sunday, I was the Sunday School leader and had to lead the group in exploring how God can use the smallest gift dedicated to God’s service to make a big impact in the world. I think the questions in the lesson would be a great discussion to have with students.

The lesson starts with an article, Heart Lady Uses Art to Spread a Little Love Around. It talks about the artist Deirdre Freeman who makes vibrant paper hearts with messages of love and encouragement on trees and telephone poles. Some of these have stayed up for months. Another artist, Kristina Libby creates large floral heart wreaths and places them around the city. These give people a way to grieve, pray, and heal.

The Associated Press shared over 200 stories of people who have given of themselves. The series was called One G

In 200 stories over this pandemic-ridden year, The Associated Press has celebrated selfless people who have given of themselves in trying times. The series call “One Good Thing” was great to read.

Here are some examples.

“The 79-year-old widow battling Stage 4 cancer had planted hundreds of tulips along a road in Spanish Fork, Utah.

Tammi Truax, the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, poet laureate who writes weekly pandemic verses for her community newsletter.

Emiliano Moscoso, a restaurateur delivering meals to poor families in the Colombian capital of Bogota, among them Venezuelan refugees, Moscoso said he closed out 2020 with a little over 40,000 meals delivered.

Bonnie Matthews’ 6-year-old son Chip got a birthday gift of $2 from mail carrier Tawanna Purter after the two struck up an unlikely pandemic friendship.

Former Colorado Rockies and Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle was overjoyed by the response to April’s story on the daily notes of inspiration, encouragement and wisdom he was sending to some 5,000 subscribers.

There was the Texas principal whose school runs a free store providing food and goods to the community”

Now the lesson asked some questions that I thought I’d answer here.

1. What is the impact of small gestures done by others in your life? (I try to pass it on when a stranger does a kindness to me.)

2. How are we changed as individuals when we use our talents for the benefit of others, expecting nothing in return?

3. When, if ever, have you seen God use a person whose gifts were not particularly remarkable to accomplish amazing things? What does that suggest about how God work? (Years ago, I had to place some students with intellectual disabilities in an internship. I worried that they wouldn’t have a lot to offer and that the employer might call me to remove them from this placement. Within two weeks, I heard reports about how much joy these two students gave to the residents in this nursing home. It humbled me to realize that everyone has a gift to share.)

4. Robert Brault said, “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” What are some “little things” that you didn’t necessarily appreciate at the time, that you now realize were really important in your life? ( I look back at the many sacrifices my parents made for me that I didn’t appreciate at the time. Now when I look back and realize that we didn’t have a lot of money and no health insurance so my parents sacrificed a lot of things they wanted so that their children would have what they wanted.)

How would you answer these questions? Please share.