April 29, 2010

Verse of the Day
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength." March 12:30

Song of the Day
"Look Me in the Eye" by Margaret Becker
http://s0.ilike.com/play#Margaret+Becker:Look+Me+In+The+Eye:2822641:s34521313.9637967.6125552.0.2.135%2Cstd_15b4b34ecf6f4785bc49eb7ffc92ee36

My Thoughts
I always learn the darnedest things in Joke-A-Lots reader, McGuffey's Third Eclectic Reader (as seen on Little House on the Prairie)
Copyright originally 1879
The title was "Courage and Cowardice"

Robert and Henry were going home from school, when, on turning a corner, Robert cried out, "A fight! Let Us go and see!"

"No," said Henry: "let us go quietly home and not meddle with this quarrel. We have nothing to do with it and may get into mischief."

"You are a coward, and afraid to go," said Robert, and off he ran. Henry went straight home, and in the afternoon went to school, as usual.

But Robert had told all the boys that Henry was a coward, and they laughed at him a great deal.

Henry had learned, however, that true courage is shown most in bearing reproach when not deserved, and that he ought to be afraid of nothing but doing wrong.

A few days after, Robert was bathing with some schoolmates, and got out of his depth. He struggled, and screamed for help, but all in vain.

The boys who had called Henry a coward, got out of the water as fast as they could, but they did not even try to help him.

Robert was fast sinking, when Henry threw off his clothes, and sprang into the water. He reached Robert just as he was sinking the last time.

By great effort, and with much danger to himself, he brought Robert to the shore, and thus saved his life.

Robert and his schoolmates were ashamed at having called Henry a coward. They owned that he had more courage than any of them.

Never be afraid to do good, but always fear to do evil.

So, this story led to a great discussion about who we are on earth to please- Our Lord! I explained that we often go to activities with expectations. We usually judge them on how well it went, how excited we felt, how much fun we had, when really we should look at them and discern if our behavior was pleasing to God. So, even if a particular activity wasn't a blast, if we pleased God with our behavior than it was a success for that is to be our primary goal. I also made sure she knew her own Mommy could use this advice very much as well.