The
Beginners Class, the next Sunday started out a little odd. Seven year
old Dean Miah walked up to Miss Brenny's teacher desk with his usual
limp. That's probably why he got the nickname “KNEE Miah”. He
plopped down a small bag of gum and some small suckers. He had taped
on the bag, a little red heart he had drawn.
With
the class listening, Knee was asked to explain the reason for the
bag. The reply was simple and compassionate. “I don't know who the
person is, pulling the grass to make God's house look nicer. And I
don't know if the person is hungry for supper, but I want to share my
gum and suckers with whoever it is.” Knee Miah returned to his seat
as Miss Prainor finished taking attendance.
Young
Barbara Timms asked if she could start the class with prayer. With a
nod from the teacher, Barbara spoke up with, “Jesus. Help us to
mind our moms and don't let the grass man be hungry or cold. Jesus -
We want you to smile. Amen.”
Miss
Prainor explained that next Tuesday she would put Knee Miah's goodie
bag under the expected pile of grass. She then slid the flannel-graph
figures back in their envelope. The lessons her pupils were now
teaching, in word and deed were certainly making Jesus Christ smile.
Noah
Count (that's the 'grass man') would soon learn that just on the
other side of the wall of God's house was a whole class of young
hearts turning toward his needs. Their first steps began with Knee
Miah's small bag of candy and heart. How many walls are there around
us that prevent love and provisions from getting to the needy, in
Jesus' name?
You'll
want to know the flannel-graph lesson that day was preempted by the
history lesson of how a young boy gave his bread and fishes to Jesus
and provided supper on the hillside for many moms and dads, boys and
girls. The teacher's mind was already racing ahead with juicy lessons
that included the mountain of leftovers from that hillside supper, of
long ago.
Even
the craft time activity that day was preempted. It was the children's
idea to use a large piece of paper and make the outline of a big
heart with a pencil. Glue was drizzled on the outline and everyone
spread their blades of grass on the glue. It was definitely a class
grass heart. Very carefully, each student helped draw a sunny bright
cross right in the middle of the heart.
A
couple weeks later, Miss Prainor got teary-eyed explaining the grass
heart and the preceding events to the attendees in the monthly
teacher's meeting. In those moments the pastor was already forming in
his mind some pieces of next Sunday's sermon – something about 'a
little child shall lead them'.
