Joyful Transformation

Twenty years ago I started attending East Cullman. I came to church alone with my son who had just turned five and my daughter who was two years old. I came from a small church full of relatives, including my parents. I was used to having lots of help handling these two, but I felt that I needed to make the change to give them more opportunities to make friends. I also had hoped that a wider range of people our age would encourage David to come with us to church. Well, whatever the reasons those first couple of years was sometimes very challenging. My daughter had a wonderful couple who taught her Sunday school class. She never minded staying with them. She loved them because they loved all of the kids in their class. I am not sure how it happened, but looking back I am sure they were watching me, but we ended up sitting close to them during worship services. Diana was a bit of a wiggle worm, but this kind man could calm her just by tickling her arm with a pencil. I truly don’t know how I would have survived those early years without this wonderful couple. I guess this is one reason I am a proponent for children’s Church. It would have been easy for me to quit in those days, but if there had been an alternative for the children it would have been easier on all of us.

Yesterday after church, this same sweet lady made a bee-line for me. She wanted to tell me that she and her husband had decided that they would do something every month for the triplets. I was speechless. To know that they had sat down together and decided to do something special for my child was overwhelming to me. This during a time when they have struggled with their own health issues and knowing that they have a grandchild who has special needs; truly filled my heart with love and appreciation for the wonderful spirit of this couple.

You cannot express love to me in any greater way than by loving my children…..

Don’t you think this is what God was trying to tell us in Matthew 25?