Fall Tip #5--An Interview with B. A. C. Pack

By Mary Vee


Last week a TV reporter named Alice Ask-a-lot decided to take her cameraman and microphone to a local school to interview students.  "Be on the look out for an interesting idea."  She glanced to her left and noticed a boy lugging a heavy backpack into the school. 

"Role the camera and follow me. I think I found a story."  She ran toward the boy. "Ummm excuse me, I'm Alice Ask-a-lot from Q2 TV, could I ask--"

"Am I on TV?"

Miss Ask-a-lot held the microphone closer to the boy. "You might be.  Can I ask you a few questions?"

"Sure, awesome." 

"First question. What is your name?"

"Benjamin Adam Charles Pack, but every one calles me Bac."

"OK, Bac, I see you have a heavy backpack. Does it hurt your shoulders to carry it?"

"No. Not at all.  I got a new one this year.  See these pads, they fit on my shoulders. My shoulders are fine." Bac let his arms slide out of the straps then swung the backpack to the front.

"Looks like you bag is heavy today.  Do you have a lot of homework?"

Bac slid the zipper then pulled the opening wide.  " Last night I did.  I'm careful to set my heaviest books on the side that goes near my back on days like this.  Next I put medium and light weight things like spirals, and stuff."

Miss Ask-a-lot motioned to the camera person to zoom in on the backpack.  "But doesn't your back hurt from carrying such a heavy pack?"

"Nope. On days that I need to take home lots of books, I use the strap that buckles around my stomach.  The weight stays close to my back." 

The school bell rang.  "I need to go. Nice to meet you Miss Ask-a-lot."

"Nice to meet you too, Bac Pack.  And there you have it ladies and gentlemen  easy steps to carry a backpack safely--see you next time." 

Miss Ask-a-lot dropped her microphone to her side.  "Well, I didn't expect to do an interview on the safety of backpacks--but I'm glad I did."

Fall Tip #4--The Pauper

By Mary Vee

The last three weeks we've talked about Super Heroes, Kings, and Princes.  You can click on the word to go back and read any of these stories.

This weeks fall tip takes us to one of the citizen's home in the kingdom.  Can you figure out what the tip is?  Write it in the comment section.

The Pauper

One day a pauper walked along a road.  He hummed a tune along with the birds.  "I have been blessed today.  A family from the hut down the road shared their breakfast with me, a boy shared his lunch, and now I am entertained by the song of birds." 

The pauper's stomach grumbled and growled. "Hush. You have been blessed today.  Don't complain."

A little ways down the road his stomach mumbled and moaned.  "Hush. You have been blessed. Be content."

He took a few more steps, whistling along the way. He didn't know how far he'd travel today. This was a day to notice blessings.  A small flock of birds swooped up from an apple tree down by the curve in the road.  "There. You see, my greedy stomach.  Another blessing. The birds have led us to your supper."

Once at the tree, the pauper realized he'd have to climb to the highest branches to find fruit. He patted his belly.  "You must learn, Stomach, the importance of working for your food."   With those words he pulled himself up from one branch to the next. 

He plucked a bright red apple, sank his teeth deep inside, and savored the tangy flavor.  "Are you happy now, Stomach?"

Moments later a carriage rumbled along the road.  The pauper gazed at the markings on the side and realized the king, himself, was about to pass by.  "Oh, I am so blessed!"  He waved his arm to greet the king.

After the carriage drove by the pauper took the last bite of his apple.  He gazed at the road and noticed the vehicle came to a stop.  Guards leaped to the ground. Then, before his eyes, the king stepped out of the carriage.  "You, Pauper, come down here."

The pauper trembled.  "I fear, Stomach, we have tasted our last meal."  He slipped down the tree, dropped the apple core to the ground, and swiped his face with his sleeve.  A guard stomped over to him and slapped his hat off. 

The pauper lowered his head. "Beggin' your pardon, your Kingship, I was eating my supper and felt honored to have you ride by at the same moment. I couldn't help but wave."

The king walked close to the pauper, sniffed then jumped back.  "Your dinner is one apple?"

The pauper's eyes jumped. "I hardly need more, your kingship.  But sometimes I find a pear, or carrot, or broccoli. The good Lord plants quite a garden! Would you like some dinner?  The best apples are at the top."

The king scanned the apple tree.  His stomach growled loud enough for everyone to hear. "Would you mind sharing your dinner with all of us?"

The pauper smiled. "I'd be delighted, your kingship."  He shimmied up the tree to pick a handful of apples. The guards held out their hands inviting him to toss down their supper. 

The king crunched into an apple and spacked his lips.  "Delicious!"  Once the apple disappeared, he rubbed his stomach.  "I'm not hungry anymore."

"You sound surprised, your kingship." The pauper patted his own stomach.  "The dinner meal should be small and satisfying, it'll help you sleep better."

The king nodded. "I see.  Would you mind if I came for dinner again sometime?"

"My king, I haven't much to give, but what I have I will gladly share with you."

"Because of your kindness, you are invited to my table for breakfast where you shall feast as a king, to my sons' table for lunch where you shall dine on a medium size meal, and then we shall join you for a pauper's dinner."

Three weeks later, the king noticed his son's healthy appearance. They told him he looked healthy too.  "Well, my sons...


I have learned to eat breakfast as a king
to eat lunch as a prince
and to eat dinner as a pauper.

And..
I have learned to share what I have (the pauper taught me this)
and to visit with my people.

Fall Tip #1--Super Heroes

By Mary Vee

I think deep down we all like
 super heroes.  

Can you guess who these super heroes are?

1. God gave this man super strength.

2. God helped this young slave girl become a queen and save an entire nation.

3. God gave this man the knowledge to build a boat strong enough to survive the world's greatest flood.

4. God gave this man strength to survive the bite of a poisonous snake.

5. God helped this man walk on water.

6. God helped this man to survive when he was trapped in a den of lions.

7. God helped these three men survive a mighty fire that killed all the brave and strong soldiers standing nearby.

The answers are at the bottom of this post :)

None of the people listed above could have done what they did without God's help.  If we want to do super things, we need to trust in God and be willing to obey Him.  The Bible says God searches the face of the earth looking for those who will follow Him. He searched and found Noah, Job, and many others.  Men, women, boys, and girls like them have had the chance to do super things.  You don't think so?  Well, let's try to name some...

Men:  Gideon, shy, afraid, but willingly obeyed God and led his tiny army of 300 men against thousands of Midianites.

Women: Deborah, used by God to be a judge of Israel. She helped lead the Israelites in a mighty battle.

Boys: Young Samuel who help Eli in the temple. He grew up to be a great prophet. Boy kings Josiah and Joash who were both only eight years old.

Girls: the Hebrew slave girl who saved her master, General Naaman.  The general had leprosy.  She told General Naaman to go to the Hebrew prophet Elisha. She said this prophet could ask God to cure him of his leprosy, and, because of God, he did. Without her help, the General would have died.

There are many other superheroes in the Bible.

How can you be a super hero?

1.  Read your Bible every single day.  The more you know about God, the better you can obey Him.
2.  Pray to God every single day.  Daniel prayed to God even when he was taken as a slave to another country.  God rewarded Daniel by letting him help the King.  Everyone knows Daniel prayed every single day.  Don't be shy.
3.  Obey God's Word.  Sure it's hard.  You will make mistakes.  That's OK.  Ask God to forgive you and try again.

You can be a super hero--for Jesus!  Go for it:)

Answers:


1.  Samson
2.  Esther
3.  Noah
4.  Paul
5.  Peter
6.  Daniel
7.  Shadrach, Meshach,  and Abednego