SermonStudio

"Suddenly it's September, which for many of us brings the beginning of school," I begin. "Are any of you starting or going back to school this week?" About half of the children indicate they are.

"Well, tomorrow is Monday. I guess that will be your first day."

Several children look surprised and tell me school doesn't start until Tuesday.

"Why is that?" I ask.

"Because Monday's a holiday," they answer.

"Oh?" I question. "What holiday is it?"

"It's Labor Day!" they reply.

"Labor Day ... Oh yes, that's the day we take off from work to celebrate work. I suppose the reason you get the day off is because your work right now is school.

"You know, whatever work we do is often made easier when we use tools. For example, what types of tools might a carpenter use?"

"A hammer!"

"Nails!"

"A saw!"

This is a question the children can sink their teeth into. I ask another.

"What tools might a painter use?"

"A brush!"

"Rags!"

Children often make the most interesting observations.

"What tools might a teacher use?" I continue.

"Chalk!"

"A ruler!"

"Many of you will be seeing your teachers on Tuesday, and you will be using tools yourself, won't you? What are some of the tools you use in school?"

"Crayons!"

"Pencils!"

"Paper!"

"Scissors!"

"Books!"

"You all have come up with some great ideas and the list could get even longer, but let's think about pencils for a minute. Pencils come in lots of different colors, don't they? I picked up a few of the pencils I had at home this morning and brought them with me. Just look at them! Why, besides their many colors, they come in all different shapes and sizes too. We have short ones, long ones, fat ones, skinny ones -- yet they are all pencils. Some of them are wooden; some are mechanical. Some of them have erasers; on some the eraser has been worn off. Some of them have a point; others are dull or have had the point broken off. But in all this variety, all of them are still pencils.

"When the point is broken off we have to sharpen a pencil before we can write or draw with it, don't we? A pencil has to have a point in order for us to use it. And if we make a mistake, what do we use?"

The children's answer is immediate: "The eraser!"

"Yes, the eraser. So it helps if the pencil we are using has an eraser. If it doesn't and we make a mistake, we have to find another eraser before we can make a correction.

"You know, people are a lot like pencils. We come in lots of different colors, and all sorts of sizes and shapes -- tall people, short people, fat people, skinny people, medium-sized people. But regardless of our color, our size, or our shape, all of us are still people.

"And just like pencils, sometimes people are not understood because they haven't 'sharpened their point.' Beating around the bush instead of speaking with one another directly is often about as successful as using a pencil without a lead.

"Now, what about mistakes? If we make a mistake with a pencil, we can usually find an eraser. But what about mistakes we make with people? Where is the 'eraser' in that situation?"

The children think about this, but no one has an answer.

"That's a tough question, isn't it?" I ask. "The answer lies in the teachings of Jesus, who taught us to love one another and to forgive one another, again, and again, and again. Sometimes we make the same mistake a number of times and need to be forgiven many times for the same thing. And sometimes, where forgiveness is concerned, we are hardest on ourselves. Even though others forgive us, it's as if our own 'eraser' is all used up. That's when we need to remember that God loves us just as we are, even with our mistakes. And if God can love us just as we are, that's how we need to love ourselves and one another too.

"Now, I've got a pencil here to give each of you as you go back to your seats. These pencils don't have points yet. I'm leaving it up to you to see that they each get one. As you sharpen and use these pencils, perhaps you will remember what we talked about today. Perhaps you'll remember how much like pencils people are. You may make mistakes sometimes, but mistakes can be forgiven. Just remember that no matter how many 'erasers' you wear out or how often your point gets lost, no matter what color you are, how tall or short you are, how plump or skinny you are, that you are a wonderful, lovable person. You are children of God and God loves you. I do too."