Sunday, October 9, 2011

7. Makin' a Darla


Sunday evening Pastor Tony stood in the foyer warmly greeting the families and folks coming to worship the Lord and enjoy down-home style fellowship. To stress the point, last year he put an honest-to-goodness rain barrel right next to the podium and preached about rain barrel rejoicin’ his grandpa would’ve been proud of. It must’ve been just about that time that Dewey and Larado started attending.

One of the smaller children came through the door and shot right past him – with a box in his hand, headed for Sunday Evening Children’s Church on the lower level.

Every so often other children scooted past him with empty boxes in their hands and faces all lit up and laughing.

Tony’s curiosity just couldn’t stand it another second. He decided he was going to question the very next kid he saw with a box. The greetings continued and shortly the door opened and in came Dewey and his best friend Larado. Pastor almost did a double take when he saw them both carrying an empty cardboard box. The young pastor asked Dewey, “What are all these boxes for? I’ve just seen quite a number of kids bringing them in and I sure would like to know what gives.”

In a hasty tone Dewey told pastor, “Me and Larado are going to make a Darla with the kids in Jr. Church. Beggin’ your pardon pastor but we don’t want to be a minute late. See ya!” Tony thought to himself, “OK they’re all making a Darla… so what’s a Darla? Does she talk or sing or cook or clean? What’s a Darla do? What’s she look like?” As he headed for the sanctuary with all his questions and no answers, he switched off his cell phone, straightened his tie in the mirror and set his mind on all the needy folks he’d be facing in a minute.

As the offering was being taken up, pastor quickly glanced at his message notes and the text he wanted to plant deeply in the hearts and souls of all those before him. He read them to himself again for focus:

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

As the time for the message was at hand, Pastor Tony stepped to the podium as the sound booth video recorder was focused in on his first statements. Tony looked into the eyes of all the young families, the young adults, and a large group of silver haired folks, most of who had trusted Christ as Savior even before Tony was born. He felt so inadequate, so unqualified to advise these precious worshipers with all their burdens and bruises.

Almost without thinking, Pastor Tony blurted out in a stern tone, “WHO’S RUNNIN’ THIS PLACE, ANYWAY?” Like a little child running home he opened God’s precious word and with great tenderness read for all to hear: I’m reading in Isaiah 55:8-12:

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

After the closing of the service and thanking the many folks for joining the service, Pastor Tony headed for the Jr. Church room where the kids were putting finishing touches on their Darlas before taking them home. Tony hadn’t noticed it before now that the group of excited youngsters included several children he was just sure had never been here before.

It took just a minute to see what they were doing with their Darla boxes. With a few quick answers from some of the builders it started to come together. Darla is the fictitious name of the cardboard desktop computer the children were making. So now it comes to light. Each box is a homemade Darla Desktop Computer. The small children will be learning next week how to use the computer to do fun things with their neighborhood friends and siblings.

Darla is no more fancy than Larado’s four-legged tongue and tail friend. It’s a tool. It’s a tool with a computer flavor to turn grade school and preschool children into missionaries. It is created with almost no cutting or other dangerous operations.