Katie was so excited about her upcoming birthday that she could talk of nothing else for many weeks. She planned her own party - who she would invite, what they would have to eat, and what games they would play.
Finally the day came, and ten little friends arrived at the house. They were all clean and pretty and very excited, and each one brought a birthday gift for Katie. Each mother must have taken special care to be sure her little girl was dressed nicely with her hair neatly combed.
A few minutes after arriving, one of the children noticed a big box containing “dress-up” clothes. There were long dresses, skirts and even a very small wedding dress. There were also fancy hats, gloves and some high-heeled shoes.
In a very short time, almost every girl was changed into an entirely different-looking person! They all pretended to be someone else.
Boys and girls, what does God see when He looks into your heart? Does He see a child who is trying to please Him, or does He see a child who has naughty, angry or selfish thoughts?
The party was lots of fun, but the best part came at last when they had birthday cake and ice cream. Even though they all looked like little ladies in their dress-up clothes, in the end there were tears when the time came to go home. Then they were just tired, normal little girls again.
ML-08/27/2006