CHILDREN

Sunday morning was a crisp, clear morning in Lower Brule, and Ray and I arrive to find the church warm and inviting. We do not have a van to pick up the children; so we are using our little minivan. We realize that it might soon become impossible to use our van, but we are operating one week at a time. We are happy that some of the children are beginning to attend regularly on Sunday mornings. I drove around and picked up the children and brought them back to the church. They are very enthusiastic children, and they are fun to be with. They had intelligent input while I was teaching them their Sunday School lesson, and it is always encouraging when I realize they are absorbing and processing what they are taught.

"There's a wideness in God's mercy

Like the wideness of the sea;

There's a kindness in His justice,

Which is more than liberty.

There is welcome for the sinner,

And more graces for the good;

There is mercy with the Saviour

There is healing in His blood.

For the love of God is broader

Than the measure of man's mind;

And the heart of the Eternal

Is most wonderfully kind.

If our love were but more simple,

We should take Him at His word,

And our lives would be all sunshine

In the sweetness of our Lord.

Because I wanted to be upstairs to help during the song service, I asked the children if they would mind sitting upstairs during that time. They were very cooperative, and they appeared to enjoy finding the songs and singing them with us. The adults were happy to have the young people upstairs with them, and I saw smiles on their faces. One of the children chose the hymn that is quoted above, and the words spoke to us during the singing of it more than it ever has before: if my love were but more simple, I would take Him at His Word. I miss so much of God's love when I view things through the complicated eyes of this world. This uncomplicated view of life is one of the things that I admire about the people of this culture.

The children missed Esther and her helpers today, but she was in Huron preparing for an afternoon concert with the Huron Symphony. We appreciate the Fort Thompson people allowing us to crash in on their Sunday dinner before we headed back to Huron to enjoy the concert. The symphony did a wonderful job, and they received a well-deserved standing ovation.

Thank you for your interest in the work in Lower Brule, and we appreciate your prayers as we make decisions that will affect the work there.