God Always Keeps His Promises – with Renee

By Rebecca Holsapple

Renee was walking home from the bus stop by herself today, her sister Addison was at their grandparents’ house for the week. They would each do that once a year. It was always a wonderful time. Grandpa and Grandma would always plan a couple fun outings and make sure they had her favorite foods in the house. They would spend evenings catching up and playing fun board games. It was a time to reconnect with them since they lived several hours away and the girls only saw them a few times a year.

Renee would get to go in 2 months and she was really looking forward to it. It also meant missing a week of school, and just bringing some work along to do at Grandma and Grandpa’s kitchen table with some milk and the best homemade cookies anyone ever tasted.

 Renee reached the front door and she heard music coming from the house, mom must be washing the floors, she always listened to her favorite CD when she did that.

“Hey mom!” Renee got to the edge of the kitchen

Mom greeted her with a big smile.  “Don’t you just love the smell of freshly washed floors?” “I’ll be done in just a second; I put a snack on the dining room table for you.”

“It does smell great, so lemony! I’ll go get that snack, I am famished!” Renee walked to the dining room table.

Beside her snack was a letter from her friend Cassandra. Renee opened in quickly, she hadn't heard from her in months. Cassandra and Renee had met at summer camp 3 years ago; they had shared a cabin and become instant friends. On the last day of camp they promised to write each other at least once a month from that point on. They had both kept that promise until recently, Cassandra’s letter had stopped coming as often, Renee had only received 2 letters in the last 6 months. She kept writing faithfully but without answers from her friend it was hard to know what to write about. Renee was saddened by that, and wondered if their friendship would last.

Renee read the letter but it was very short and lacking any details about what was going on in Cassandra’s life. Renee put it down, letting out a sigh. Mom walked into the room at that moment.

“What was that giant sigh about sweetie?” Mom had a frown on her face; she could tell something was wrong.

“Oh Cassandra finally wrote…” Renee took a bit of the piece of pie in front of her.

“And that’s a bad thing?” Mom asked

“No, I guess not…” Renee said. “But do you remember when she would write once a month and her letters were so interesting?”

“Yes, you were always so excited to get them!” said mom with a smile.

“Well… they aren’t like that anymore. Her letters are kind of boring, not even half a page and nothing about how she is feeling or what is going on, just a few random facts about the weather and her cat.” Renee sighed again.

“I’m sorry sweetheart. Maybe there isn't much happening.” Mom said trying to make Renee feel better.

“What bothers me the most is that she promised she would write once a month and her letters are getting further and further apart! She isn't keeping her promise” Renee was on the verge of tears. She hadn't realized how much the letter meant to her until she started talking about it.

“Do you always keep your promises honey?” Mom asked.

Renee didn’t answer right away, she thought about the time she had promised Addison she would clean the bathroom for her so she could study for an important test and didn't do it, or the time she promised mom she would pick up a book from the library and didn't do it. The more she thought about it the more she realized she had broken several promises.

“I guess not…”said Renee.

“Do you know what? Promises are a good thing, but it’s not fair to expect for someone to be perfect. It will ruin your friendship. The only person that will never break a promise is the only person that is truly perfect. Do you know who that is?” Mom was looking at Renee with kind eyes.

“Do you mean God?” Renee smiled.

“That’s exactly who I mean. We all make mistakes, we all sin, and we all break promises. Is it a good thing? No. Is it disappointing to others? Yes. Do you need to ask them and God for forgiveness? Certainly. But is it likely to happen again? Of course. Do you see where I am going with that?” Mom asked Renee.

“Yes, I need to forgive Cassandra…”said Renee.

“That’s right.” Mom smiled. “When I was your age, or maybe just a bit older, my best friend moved away to another state. I was devastated; I remember spending a few nights crying into my pillow. It seemed no one understood how upset I was. My mom promised me that we would go visit her that following summer. But a couple months later my dad lost his job at the plant and money got tight. By the time summer came, there wasn't enough money to go visit my friend. My mom and dad wanted to keep the promise they make me, but couldn't. Do you think it would have been OK for me to hold a grudge?"

“No! They didn't mean to break their promise!” Renee answered.

“Exactly, but it my young upset mind, I didn't want to forgive them. I wanted to be mad. So I was for a while until God convicted me. I apologized and a few months later, my dad got a new, better job and we went to visit my friend for a weekend during the school year. That experience made me realize that even when we have the best of intentions, we are only human and we all fall short”, Said Mom.

“Everyone except God!” said Renee with a smile.

“I’m sure you remember the story of Noah, it had rained for 40 days and 40 nights. And the water didn't go back down for 150 days. That’s a long time. God cleaned the earth, and when Noah and his family finally got out of the ark, they made an altar and offered a sacrifice to God. And what did God do in return? Do you remember?”  asked Mom.

“Do you mean the rainbow?”said Renee.

“Yes, sweetie. God put a rainbow in the sky as a promise that he would never again flood the earth.” Mom smiled. “Did he keep that promise?”

“Yes, I haven’t heard of any worldwide floods lately” Renee giggled at her own joke.

Mom laughed. “That’s right! We still see that rainbow and you know every time I see one, I am reminded never to worry, because the amazing God we serve never breaks his promises. He is ever faithful and true.”

“I love that mom, now that’s what I’ll be thinking too next time a rainbow appears in the sky.” Renee was feeling much better.

“You know what mom, I was thinking earlier about how much fun Addison must be having at Grandpa and Grandma’s right now and how I can’t wait for it to be my turn, but I had forgotten how much  I love spending the week alone with you and dad too! For quiet times like this when we get to have a conversation just the two of us.” Renee leaned in and gave her mom a hug.

Mom hugged her back. “I love this too. You are growing into such a sweet young lady.”

Dad walked in the door a few minutes later and suggested they go out to eat and go get some ice cream afterwards to celebrate Renee staying home with them. Renee sent a quite prayer of thanks to God for giving her such amazing parents.

THE END

Bible verse:

“Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;”

Deuteronomy 7:9

                          A lesson on Peacemaking – with Chloe                         

Written by Rebecca Holsapple

Chloe was sitting at the bus stop, it was a snowy Thursday morning but the sun was shining. She was bundled up in her teal coat and was wearing a cute purple and teal hat and matching mittens. She was early, but she didn’t mind, she liked the peace and quiet; it gave her time to think.  Since moving a few months ago, things had really changed, for the good, she felt.  Her family was settling in well…She still missed her best friend Samantha, but not as bad as she thought she would when they first moved.

Chloe and Samantha had been best friends since Kindergarten; they had gone to the same church their whole life and the same school for years. They loved each other very much.  They hadn’t gotten to spend quite as much time together in recent months, mostly only on Sundays, but she had spent the whole last weekend with her and their friendship was as strong as ever.

Chloe saw the school bus pass on the street before hers and her thoughts turn to her new friend, Eliza.

Eliza and Chloe were both very bubbly and had a lot in common. Chloe was very excited because Eliza had been showing so much interest in the Word. She didn’t understand everything but she asked a lot of question and it had really pushed Chloe to study the scriptures more than she ever had before.

At school that week Eliza had asked if Chloe’s offer to go to her church with her still stood. Chloe had asked her a few months ago if she would like to come and Eliza had wanted to but her mom had refused. Eliza decided to ask her mom again, if she could just tag along with Chloe and this time her mom said it would be all right.

Chloe remembered their conversation. She had been so surprised and excited…

“Are you serious?! You can come?? Yay! You will absolutely love it! I have such great friends there, I can’t wait to introduce to you, and Sunday school is so much fun!”

“Yes, Mom said since she didn’t have to come with me, I could go… she is still acting worried about my interest, but she told me it’s up to me…” Chloe knew that Eliza was a bit sad she was the only person in her family that was interested in learning more about God. But it didn’t stop her curiosity.

The bus pulled up to where Chloe was sitting, she got on and took a seat by Eliza. She was ready for what the day would bring.

The next three days went by quickly and it was now Sunday morning… Eliza’s mom dropped her off at Chloe’s house and Eliza ran up to the door as quickly as she could, it was a cold morning. Chloe was waiting for her at the door.

“Come in, come in!!” Chloe giggled as she let her friend in.

“Wow! Could it be any colder outside?!” said Eliza with a big smile. Her cheeks were rosy and her green eyes sparkled. She had done a French braid with her short brown hair and was looking especially pretty. Chloe noticed she was also wearing a beautiful green dress and complimented her on her good taste.

“I love your dress and what you did with your hair! You’ll have to show me how sometime!” Chloe smiled and pointed to her full head of blond curls. She had put a silver flower on the side and was wearing a silver chiffon dress.

Mom walked toward them grabbing her coat and mittens… She gave Eliza a quick hug and smiled. “Are you girls ready? We are going to take the small car and let Dad drive the van with the rest of the family…”

“Oh good! I’ll get my coat, give me just a second!” Chloe ran to the closet.

“Let go!”

The three of them quickly made their way to the car and headed to church, most of the ride, Chloe told Eliza all about church and her friends.

When they got there Chloe and Eliza went straight to the Sunday school class. Chloe could tell Eliza wasn’t exactly comfortable and prayed a quiet prayer that he friend would feel welcomed and at ease soon.

“Hello Chloe! How are you girls this morning?”

“Very well, Sis. Patience” Chloe flashed a big smile at her teacher. “This is my friend Eliza, we go to school together”.

“Welcome to our church Eliza, we are really happy to have you with us” Sis Patience gave her a hug and proceeded to give the girls a paper to fill out.

Chloe and Eliza were the first ones there, slowly the class started filling up. Chloe introduced Eliza to everyone as they came in. Layla, Bridget, Renee and Addison all gave her big hugs and started chatting with her. Chloe had a big smile on her face; she knew she could count on her friends to make Eliza feel like she belonged.  Samantha came in and said hello but quickly went and took a seat on the other side of the class. Chloe would have usually noticed and would have gone and asked her what was wrong but she was too busy making sure Eliza was doing well, that she didn't.

The class was fun and they learned new things about the Lord. Eliza was fascinated and asked questions all the way home from church, Chloe and her mom were happy to answer them all. Eliza spent the rest of the day with them , they played a couple board games and played hide and seek with the whole family. It was a lot of fun!

The next morning Chloe woke up bright and early and decided to go to the bus stop early. As she sat she replayed the previous day in her head. It was then she realized something had been off with Samantha. What could it be?

The week went by and the next Sunday Chloe made sure to sit by Samantha and ask if anything had been wrong the week before…

“You acted kind of strange, but I didn’t realize it until later…” Chloe looked at Samantha to see if her face gave away anything.

Samantha looked kind of ashamed “This is going to sound silly, but I was jealous… I don’t really like the idea of Eliza being your friend. “

“Oh Samantha! You need to give her a chance! She is so nice, I’m sure you two would get along really well!” Chloe could tell Samantha was not really listening and she had made up her mind not to like Eliza.

Chloe was a bit sad all the following week by the way Samantha was acting, but she was excited because Eliza had asked her mom is she could go to church again the next Sunday and she had accepted. Chloe hoped that she could get the girls to spend some time together they would become friends.

It didn’t work out as expected. The more Chloe tried to get Samantha and Eliza to interact and spend time together the less they got along. Eliza decided that Samantha was a snob and Samantha would not even make an effort to be nice to Eliza.

After 3 weeks of this, Chloe was at her wits ends and decided to tell her mom what was going on. It was Saturday afternoon and mom was sitting on the couch folding laundry. Chloe went and sat by her and started helping out and told her everything that had happened.

“Oh honey, I’m glad you told me… said mom. It’s never easy to know how to handle situations like this… but do you know what I've learned?”

“What?” said Chloe.

“You should never try to handle things on your own… have you prayed about this?”

Chloe bent her head feeling a bit embarrassed…she hadn’t even thought about it. “No…”

“It doesn’t matter how big or small your problem is you always need to give it over to God and he will handle it. But do you know what else you need to pray for?” asked mom.

Samantha shook her head no.

“Wisdom… In the Bible we learn that God told Solomon he would give him anything he asked for.  Solomon had become king after his father David and realized he didn't know how to handle the responsibility of judging the people and knowing right from wrong on his own. So he asked God for wisdom. God gave it to him and because he asked for that and not for riches or a long life, God also gave him those things. Solomon had to resolve a lot of conflicts while he was king, and he couldn’t have done it without the wisdom of God in him.” Said mom.

“I never thought of asking God for wisdom, it makes sense.” said Chloe.

Mom picked up the family Bible that was sitting on the coffee table. “Here is a verse for you to memorize, so you never forget.  “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. James 1:5”

“Thank you so much mom… I really should have been praying about this from the very beginning. Trying to handle anything on my own without God’s wisdom was not a good idea.”

They hugged and Chloe decided to go to her room for a while…she really needed to spend some time in prayer.

The next morning was Sunday school and Eliza was coming along again. Chloe felt a new sense of peace about her two friends not getting along. After her time of prayer she had talked to her mom again and they had decided it would be a good idea to have both girls come over for a sleepover the next weekend. Chloe and mom both felt that if they got the reasons for their dislike of other out in the open it would be easier to solve the issues.

On the way to church Samantha asked Eliza over for the following Friday and she took Samantha aside at Sunday school and asked her as well. By Tuesday morning everything was settled they would both be at Chloe’s house around 5 pm on Friday.

Chloe kept praying throughout the week for God to give her wisdom to handle the situation the right way, for Him to give her the right words and the right attitude.

It was Friday evening, Chloe and her mom had made lots of yummy snacks and planned some fun games. Dinner was on the table and they were only waiting for her friends to arrive to start the festivities.

 Samantha was the first to arrive; she had a big smile on her face and her pink sleeping bag under her arm. Chloe helped her to get her things into the house. They were just getting ready to go into the kitchen when the doorbell rang again. It was Eliza; she had a big smile on her face as well until she spotted Samantha, whose expression was less than happy.

Samantha couldn’t help it; she let out “What is she doing here?”

Chloe tried to remain as calm as possible and told Samantha. “You girls don’t get along, and I can’t really understand why, so I prayed about it and felt like we just needed to get whatever is bothering you out in the open, so it can be resolved.”

Samantha and Eliza both looked rather sheepish.

Mom walked up to them.

“Why don’t you girls go into the living room and talk… I’ll keep your food warm. The rest of us will go ahead and eat, and you girl can have your meal when you are done.”

Neither of the girls had good reasons not to like each other. Chloe shared with them how uncomfortable she was with the whole situation what her mom had told her about Solomon. The girls both agreed to make and effort. They went into the kitchen enjoyed a yummy meal and played a lot of games. By bed time Samantha and Eliza were thick as thieves and couldn’t believe they used to dislike each other. Chloe couldn't be happier.

Before falling asleep that night she prayed to thank the Lord for the wisdom he had given her. She also thanked him for her wonderful godly mother and for her awesome friends. She fell asleep thinking about the Bible verse her mom had asked her to memorize and about how God is so faithful.

The End