Boisterous stepped out of the van, shooting a pain through my (apparently) aging head. Seventeen sixth grade girls giddy to be together, anxious to be heard, and amped up on a gifted box of cupcakes. Conceding to the noise, I attempt to help Shaun rally them together. His megaphone voice quiets the crowd with greater ease and success than my mousier voice ever could! Another reason I'm thankful we do this together!
Dividing into clusters, we each grab a goody bag and scatter to the designated sections of our town's main drag. Stepping across the threshold of our first stop was like witnessing a mute button being pressed on a hurricane passing through! My little cluster of girls pulled in tight, wildly gesturing who was NOT going to be the first spokesperson. Finding my way inside, I caught a glimpse of the look in the shop keeper's eyes. Her sharp gaze and defensive stance was hard to miss. An impatience in her welcome revealed an attitude of something more being expected of her. Trying to coax one of the girls to find her voice, I smiled as warmly as I could and began the introductions. As our mission became clear, I watched as the wall of defenses dropped from her face like snow off a thawing roof. She lit up in smile as the girls expressed thanks for her hard work in our community and handed her a bag of goodies. Watching from the side, I saw the girls go from deer in the headlights to giggly things on legs. They were proud of themselves for surprising this hard-working shopkeeper with a little unexpected goodness. They saw the difference they had made in her whole person. They experienced getting outside of themselves, if only for a brief moment, to reach out to someone else.
In the end, they are just a crowd of sixth grade girls who love to play frogger on the playground, giggle at nothing and talk incessantly. They have their own struggles, heartaches and pressures. But these girls piled in that van, overcame their fear and shyness, and delivered sacks of homemade goodness just to make a little difference in their world.
Little things are the big things. People don't expect the good in life. They assume the worst. Isn't it time for the Jesus crowd to surprise the world with His goodness?!