Back To School!Sample

Do Your Best

Today let’s meet Mariela from Guatamala. She was abandoned by her parents at 10 months old and was left with her grandmother. Their home was made of tin sheets, plastic tarps and mud floors. Mariela and her grandmother would walk to a river to bathe and wash their clothes. Life was very difficult. Her grandmother wanted the best for Mariela so she enrolled her in their local Compassion center.

Because of Compassion, Mariela was able to attend a good school for many years. When she graduated, she worked really hard to earn a certificate to teach high school. Now Mariela and her grandma live in a home with concrete walls and floors, and a tin roof! They are very thankful to God.

She says, “It wasn’t until I was in college that I realized how much the [Compassion] project had sown into my heart. I particularly remember how one of our teachers would tell us, ‘You were created to accomplish something big because God is big.’ Those word are engraved on my heart forever.”

Life was difficult for Mariela, but her goal was to do her very best. That’s what God tells us in our verses for today. God says to work at it with all our heart. That includes school too!

Take time to write out some goals for this school year. Include goals for your grades and activities, but don’t forget goals like these:

• Do something nice for another person each day.
• Be a good friend.
• Encourage my teacher.

Learn more about Mariela’s journey!