Sunday, January 21, 2007

What's YOUR Story?



Do you enjoy reading? I do. There is nothing that I enjoy doing more than sitting on my couch with the rain falling (it does that a lot here in Oregon) and reading a realy good story. I have had a collection of favorite stories since I was a kid - here are a few of them.


Ping the Duck was my first favorite when I was little. It's about a little duck who lives on a houseboat and is always getting in trouble for being the last one back on the boat at the end of the day. One day Ping doesn't hear the call to go to the boat and is left on his own. I remember thinking what it must have been like to be all alone like Ping was.


Ramona the Pest was another favorite when I was in third grade. Could that kid get into scrapes everyday? We had a girl with "boing boing curls" in our class just like Ramona did and I always wondered what it would be like to tug on her curls and see them bounce...but being a good kid (like you all are) I kept my hands to myself!


Little Women, Stuart Little, Treasure Island, Are You There God, It's Me Margaret and The Pearl were others that I enjoyed in elementary school - then in intermediate school (5th grade)through junior high (8th grade) the reading became more complicated and I was introduced to some classic stories by people such as Shakespeare, Orwell, Huxley and others.


But do you know the most wonderful book that I can't read enough of? It's the Bible. One thing that I know about the Bible is that it is NOT a collection of fairy tales. The stories do not begin with "once upon a time." They are pieces of the world's history - and pieces of instruction on how to live our lives daily.


I think Jesus is one of the best storytellers - he used everyday things such as pearls, fields, bridesmaids, rebellious kids and lost money to help explain God to the people who came to listen. And still today we can understand what Jesus was sharing because we have these or similar items in our lives still!


Here's your challenge for this week - Read Matthew 13:44-46 - the parable about the pearl of great price.


"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field.


When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold
all he had and bought that field.


"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.


When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.


Then...


Create your own parable about the Kingdom of Heaven using one of the following everyday items in your world:




  • An allowance


  • A favorite pet


  • Vacation


  • Video games, systems


  • Snow days


  • Your family


  • Favorite clothes


  • Something special in your world that you LOVE a lot!

Share it here on the blog with us! Just hit the reply button and type in your story. Don't forget to get your parent's permission before you do so!


I can't wait to read your parables!


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