Christian Living

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The Girl And The Turtle—Special Delivery
©
by

Stephen A. Peterson


On a hot July afternoon in Shawnee, Oklahoma, an elderly Native American man made his way to the North Canadian River as was his habit to write poetry. As he sat down on a nearby bank to begin writing his thought on paper, he saw what appeared to be a young girl dancing. She seemed to enjoy herself.

“Why would anybody want t dance on such a hot day,” he thought. Getting up, he entered a shallow end of the river to cross over and talk to this young girl. “Maybe,” he thought , “I might be able to come up with a poem out of this.”

As he came closer, he could see that it was a young girl, Native American, maybe 9 or 10 years old but she was not dancing as he had previously thought. What the young girl was doing was reaching down and picking newly hatched turtles and gently putting them near the water.

“Good afternoon, young lady! I was on the other side of this river. I thought I saw you dancing so I wanted to ask you why on such a hot afternoon. Now that I am closer, I can see that you’re not dancing but you’re putting turtles near the water. Why are you doing this anyway? Are you not causing these animals more trouble?”

The young girl looked up at the elderly man and said, “Sir, it’s over 100 degrees out here and if I don’t help these newborn turtles out, they’re going to die.”

The elderly man smiled and said, “Young lady what if there are other turtles along this river bed, are you going to try to do the same? The North Canadian River is full of turtles, you know!”

The young girl simply smiled, “Sir, these little turtles are creatures of God and has something to do with making life in these parts better. All I’m doing is making a difference. Who knows, I may improve the life of this river with this these 5 or 6 turtles!”

Each person who call themselves a Christian is called in some way, big or small, to make a difference in this world for the Kingdom of God. Whether it is to improve our environment, to mentor a troubled teen or provide a hot meal to a sick person in their home.

This young girl’s calling not only influenced the environment but also the elderly man. What have you done this day to make a difference for the Kingdom of God? Your work whatever it may be is special in God’s Kingdom. Make a special delivery this day!

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