****Memory Verse***

“Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” –Galatians. 1:10*

Dear Grandchildren,

After coming to live in the orphanage, I heard more and more about Jesus whom my mother loved so much and about whom she liked to sing all the time. I loved Him too. Whatever I did, I could always feel that Jesus was seeing me; and He knew what I was thinking all the time. It helped me to be a better girl. Many times some of the girls would take advantage of me, because I would always do little favors like cleaning their room before Mamochka’s inspection, or sweeping the hall, or peeling potatoes when it was their turn to do it. They many times would promise to do something for me too, but I don’t remember that they did. Anyway, whenever I did anything like that, I thought about how I could please my Jesus, not thinking of being repaid.

Our breakfast ordinarily consisted of tea and bread with butter, or oatmeal cooked with half water and half milk. The oatmeal was so thin that many times we laughed while trying to count the oatmeal flakes that were in it. But one morning something different happened. The cook brought out a big plate with something that looked like a delicious pastry. Without saying anything she set it at my place! I looked at her and wondered why she was doing it, but then Mamochka explained. She said that today the adults were honoring the best of all girls. They wanted to show that they noticed how we behaved, when we obeyed, and how helpful we were to others. She said, “We decided this honor should go to ‘Jadzia.’” (That was the name they called me in the orphanage.)

I just could not believe what I was hearing! I was the girl whom they wanted to honor? How could that be? But I was overjoyed! I divided that lovely pastry with all the rest of the girls (at that time there were only about 15-18 girls altogether). From the joy of it, I forgot to save a bite of it for myself. To this day, I don’t know what it tasted like, but it was the honor in front of the group that really counted the most. I was happy.

At the beginning it was not always like this. I remember another breakfast, not too long after I came to the orphanage. We had pancakes that morning. Several pancakes were left over, but not enough to go around, even if divided in half. Our Mamochka was going to give the two extra pancakes to the two most popular girls. She went around the table and asked each of the girls whom they liked the most. Some of the girls were mentioned several times and most of them were the ones that were very cute and pretty. I wasn’t cute and far from being pretty. No one mentioned my name even once. I felt very sad about it, but didn’t want to show anyone how I felt. Some children never think that the less cute boys and girls want to be liked by others and need friends too. At that time, I thought that nobody really loved me or even liked me, and it made me sad for a little while.

But children don’t dwell on their misfortunes too long. Sooner or later, somebody shows how much they think of you and everything else is forgotten. That happened to me too. And it was not just anybody—it was really somebody!

Mr. Goetze was the orphanage director and he began to show favoritism to me. Every time he came to visit us from Warsaw where he lived, he’d come and call, “Gdzie jest moja cora,” which in Polish means, “Where is my darling daughter?” The strange thing about it was that none of the girls minded it. I was definitely his pet, but it was okay with them.

Questions:

*It is pleasing to God when you serve others to glorify Him.

1. Can you think of a time when you did what other kids wanted instead of what God wants?

2. Was this because you wanted their approval?

3. What does it mean to be a servant of Christ? For example, Nadzia helped others to please Jesus. When you serve others, who do you try to please?*