Saying Thanks

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Va'eira (Exodus 6:2-9:35 )



Life was getting really hard for the Jews in Egypt. Pharaoh, the wicked king, had forced them to be his slaves, and he kept thinking up more and more ways to make their lives miserable.

They cried out to God, and He listened and sent Moses and his brother Aaron to tell Pharaoh to set the slaves free.

But the Pharaoh was stubborn and wouldn't listen.

So that Pharaoh would know He meant business, God told Moses to take his stick and hit the mighty Nile River. When Moses did that, God would turn the whole river into blood!

But Moses said, "How can I hit this river? It was good to me when I was a baby. My mother put me in a basket and floated me down the river to escape from Pharaoh, who wanted to kill me. This river saved my life!"

"You are right," answered God. "Tell Aaron to hit the river instead of you."

We learn from Moses how important it is to be grateful to anyone who ever does something good for you.

 


Moses was able to appreciate the good he had received from others. In this story a young girl learns how to be grateful to someone who helps her every day.

"STREET WISE"

Mrs. Walker was the crossing-guard in front of Anne's school.

One rainy day Anne looked out her classroom window and saw Mrs. Walker helping kids cross the busy street in front of the school building. "Wow," thought Anne. "That must be a hard job to be out there every day, rain or shine."

Anne also noticed that all the kids seemed to ignore Mrs. Walker as she helped them, as if she wasn't there.

The next day after she and her friends crossed the street and headed into the school, Anne suddenly told her friends, "Wait a minute, I forgot something."

"How could you forget something? You weren't even carrying anything!" said her friend, Bev.

"That's not what I mean," answered Anne with a smile. And she quickly ran back to the crosswalk.

"Mrs. Walker?" Anne called out.

The crossing guard looked up in surprise. "Yes, child?"

"Mrs. Walker, I just wanted to thank you for working so hard to keep us kids safe."

Anne noticed tears well up in Mrs. Walker's eyes as the older lady answered her with a big smile. "Bless you, my dear," she stammered. "In all my years on the job you're the first child who ever thanked me!"

 


Ages 3-5

Q. Why did Anne thank Mrs. Walker?
A. Because Mrs. Walker helped the kids cross the street every day.

Q. How did Mrs. Walker feel when Anne thanked her?
A. She felt really happy and appreciated.

 

Age 6-9

Q. What are some ways we can show our gratitude to others?
A. We can thank them, we can give them a gift, we can try to help them in any way we can.

Q. Why was Mrs. Walker so happy just because Anne thanked her?
A. Because it's so important for people to feel appreciated. It can make a person's day to be told that the good things he or she did were noticed by someone else.

 

Ages 10 and Up

Q. What kind of a job do you think most people would rather have -- one where they are payed less but are appreciated, or one where they are payed more but are taken for granted? Why?

Q. Why do you think we tend to take people and things they do for granted?

Q. Do you think when we show gratitude to others we only give them a good feeling, or do we also feel better? Why?

 

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