Very Good
God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.
God made salt plains and forests.
He made squirrels and elk.
God made cotton fields and lemon trees.
He made saguaros and irises.
It seems to me that God likes variety. Short, tall. Blue-eyed, brown-eyed. Outgoing, shy. Confident, unsure. Do any of these descriptions fit your children?
In December our daughter Mary Evelyn and I spent two weeks with almost one hundred precious homeschooled children. As you see, they are short, tall, blue-eyed, and brown eyed.
During that two weeks, we discovered who was outgoing . . . shy . . . confident . . . unsure.
And we watched God blend these faces and personalities. Together they made a street on the Lower East Side of New York City come alive, and they told the story of Fiona’s Gift.
Meet our director Mary Evelyn and her husband Nate, mastermind behind the sets.
Meet Mary a frightened and homeless child of the streets.
Meet the staff of McGrath’s Butcher Shop. Mr. McGrath dispenses meat, encouragement, generosity, and the love of Jesus from his butcher shop. So does his clerk Helen, but clerk Margaret (when playing her role) is mad at the world.
Meet the Sloan family. Muriel is very sick. Granny is blind. Granny, Fiona, Marga, Eilene, and Danny make flowers to sell. Husband and father Dugan Sloan is a drunk who comes home occasionally to throw his weight around, but does nothing to contribute to the family’s survival. Oldest daughter Dorene works at a shirt factory to support the family while she harbors anger at her father.
Back Row: Fiona, Dugan, and Dorene
Meet Nurse Katherine who comes once a week to care for Muriel and who teaches Fiona how to give.
Meet Fiona. She has a gift.
And so does every child onstage, every parent who supported them, every volunteer who worked backstage, and every patron who sat in the audience. I have been wanting to share photos of Fiona’s Gift with you, but it has taken me a few weeks to gather and organize them. I hope to share more on Wednesday and Thursday as I tell you this story of sacrifice, encouragement, repentance, and redemption.
Celebrate God’s variety today, especially the variety He put in your house. Remember:
God saw all that He had made,
and behold, it was very good.
Genesis 1:31, NASB