This Fruit Was Not Forbidden
By Sam Venable
Knoxville News Sentinel
Knoxnews.com
The Rev. Jerry Russell admits it's not the sort of thing he learned in seminary. In fact, he seems to recall a certain passage in the Bible about the fate of moneychangers inside a house of worship.
Nonetheless, he figures the Lord is willing to grant exemptions at the right time and for all the right reasons.
Such was the case a few Sundays ago at Fairview United Methodist Church when a 4-year-old boy showed everyone how to give from the heart.
Like many other churches in United Methodism's Holston Conference, Fairview has been participating in an African relief project. All summer, parishioners and their families have been gathering money, clothing and school supplies for children in Kenya. Among these families are John and Kelly Tate and their son Zachary.
"We were able to put together 180 boxes of shirts, blouses, backpacks, shoes, socks and school supplies," said Russell, minister of the Blount County church. "About the time they were ready for shipment, Zachary realized he'd left the socks out of his box."
It just wouldn't do, Zachary reasoned, for a Kenyan boy to be without socks.
Everyone in church knew that Pastor Jerry was going to accompany the shipment to Africa, so Zachary hatched a plan of action. "He wanted to raise money on his own and have me buy socks with it," Russell said. "His mom gave him chores around the house and garden, and he was able to make $4.35."
Zachary sealed his earnings in a plastic bag and delivered it to the minister. But he didn't stop there.
"He told me he was growing cantaloupes and wanted to sell them for the Africa project," said Russell.
That's exactly what he did. Just as it says in Proverbs 3:9, Zachary honored the Lord with the first fruits. The Sunday after his first cantaloupe ripened, he carried it to church and offered it to the preacher.
Immediately, Russell decided to alter his order of worship. He auctioned the cantaloupe. From the pulpit. No, not with raucous auctioneering banter. Instead, this was literally a silent auction.
"I told Zachary's story and asked folks to write down what they'd be to give for it," he said.
Quite a lot, apparently. When Russell started leafing through the papers at the end of his service, $500 was the high bid. Immediately, it was matched. Then 10s and 20s began showering in. And by the time the dust settled, that single cantaloupe had generated $1,500.
Russell used $500 to buy children's socks, which he took to Africa in late August. The other $1,000 he gave to a public school in Meru, Kenya.
"The building had seven classrooms, a dirt floor, no blackboards and no plumbing," said Russell, who recently returned to Tennessee just in time to preach on Sunday morning. "The only modern convenience was an electric fence in the back to keep out the wild elephants."
Of course, Russell was moved by the poverty he saw in Kenya. But he will forever be brightened by what he calls the "marvelous innocence" of Zachary's gift.
Which reminds me of another bit of biblical verse. Something about how a little child shall lead them.
Sam Venable's column appears on Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays in the Knoxville News Sentinel www.knoxnews.com. He may be reached at (865) 342-6272 or by email. Used with permission.
top
|
|
|
|
