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June 2002 Table of Contents
Petite Praisers
A Cheerful Giver
By Pam Andrews
2 Corinthians 9:7 "Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
Matthew 25:35-40 "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me." "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"
Evangelism is a wonderful thing. Sharing the message of Jesus to others is truly a glorious experience. And, if that person comes to know Christ, there is eternal joy. But, evangelism does not stop with the message of Jesus. What we as Christians need to share is the Jesus way of life. We need to share with others the blessings that accompany any person who has the love of our Lord in their life. There are many such blessings that our Lord gives us with salvation.
First, there is the blessing of joy. Lots of people confuse happiness with joy. Happiness comes and goes. It can be influenced by circumstances. But, joy is ever constant with Jesus. Even when hard times come, Jesus can bring you a spirit of joy in the midst of a trial.
Second, every believer has a great, new family. The family of God is the most blessed family in the world. I know when I was going through breast cancer a few years ago; my church family literally came to our rescue with food and support for me and my personal family. The prayers prayed for us all across the country helped us make it through the day. I travel all across the country. It is so wonderful to find my Christian brothers and sisters everywhere I go. My family is everywhere...from New York to California. We all have the same Lord and Savior. We are all alike. We are family.
Thirdly, there is the blessing of power given to new Christians. We as Christians can actually change the world. We have the opportunity to lead others to Christ and make their world wonderful, too. We can meet the needs of others by showing our love, by our willingness to give hard work, and by our willingness to give to others. I love the scriptures that are at the top of this article because they remind us of our responsibility in the Lord to help our fellow man.
There are so many needs in this world. There are people who have little or no food. There are people that have no clothes to wear. There are people who have no house in which to live. As I go through my day living this lovely life the Lord has given me, sometimes I forget there are such needs. As I prayed about what the Lord wanted me to share with His children this year for Christmas, 2 Corinthians 9:7 and Matthew 25:35-40 kept popping into my head. The Lord wanted me to remind children to give! Asking people to give when the economy is not doing very well seemed a little scary to me. I thought, "Could the Lord really want me to tell people to be giving at this time in our world?" I called one of my children's ministers at my church and asked her if she thought a children's musical about giving would be a good idea for children. She exclaimed her enthusiasm for the idea with a huge thumbs-up. She said that the most important time to give is when there is a great need. We all need to help that stranger and learn to give with a cheerful heart...even when times are hard.
Thus, A Christmas Carol was created. With this musical, I hope the Lord brings the idea of giving to your children. I hope you will show the message of giving to your community by sharing with those in need. Use this musical to take the emphasis away from receiving gifts and place the emphasis on giving to others. Do mission projects for others as you learn the songs. Have the children do a penny drive for food baskets. Bring to life in the eyes of children the scripture that says..."For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."
God has already had His hand on this musical. It was performed at MUSICalifornia this year and received a great response. The hand of God is working. The praise and worship your children will feel as they sing "Hallelujah to the Lamb," that great Don Moen tune, will lift their hearts to the Lord. This musical has great songs which, as in any Pam Andrews musical, "rock!" At MUSICalifornia, I asked the performance choir which song was their favorite, and it was really wonderful when they mentioned almost all the songs. I really loved that. Our Lord writes the best songs!!! Also, in A Christmas Carol you will find many traditional Christmas carols. These carols help hide the glorious past in Christmas music in the hearts of our children while mixing with the contemporary sounds of today.
This Christmas teach the children to give. Give Jesus. Give love. Give time. Give music. Give money. Give what you have to further the cause of Jesus. Remember our Lord's words..."I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." Give to others this Christmas and make this Christmas the best ever.
And...God bless us everyone!
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