Random Thoughts Put Together

We have had low numbers here at TLC the past week. The public schools are year round schools. They take 4 breaks throughout the year. There is a 3 week break happening right now. Since the older school kids are not in school, they often keep their younger siblings at home during this school break. This makes low numbers at our Day Care. To take advantage of the low numbers, the teachers have been taking turns having a day off. I’m loving the low numbers for several reasons.
One: The children are better behaved (because there are fewer of them and we catch them misbehaving easier).
Two: It's easier to spend more quality time with the children. (Like teaching them the rhyme "Miss Suzy had a baby..." Once they realized what it was about they laughed SOOO hard!)
Three: The rush of every day activities has slowed down a lot. This has given me the chance to get some work done on the curriculum.

The only down side to the school break is that our "after school" kids have not been stopping by. I miss helping them with their homework and playing tic-tac-toe.

The weather has been beautiful since I've been back. Bright and sunny, high 70s. I hope this stretches on for a few months before winter sets in. I'm not looking forward to another South African winter.

We went to a BIG church on the nice side of town on Sunday night. The worship team did a great job. The bass guitar player was wonderful! And the message was good. But it was such a vivid contrast to the church I usually attend. The size of the church, the color of the people, the socio-economic status, and level of education were all very different. Not to mention the differences in the sound system, size of the building, organization and appeal of the physical building. The people at the BIG church give their money and time to help the less fortunate people in the surrounding communities. They give from the excess that they have and seem to give gladly from the number of out-reach/help programs they have going on. But the people from Troyeville give sacrificially of their money and time in their community. They have so little, but are often willing to give until it literally hurts to help others who are less fortunate. They understand the needs around them, because they have lived through them. When I see people at church with no job and little money place what they do have in the offering, I am humbled.

Are both churches serving God with their money and talents? Absolutely. Are both churches blessings to their communities? Absolutely. Are both churches meeting the needs of God's people through prayer, Bible study and community outreach? Absolutely. I don’t want to suggest that one church is better than the other. I'm only trying to point out how amazed I am that God's people can be so diverse. I'm so glad He loves us ALL! Rich and poor, black and white, old and young, big and small. I'm so glad our God is a God of diversity.