The children had been exploring. With compass in hand and a clearly marked trail they made their way through the woods. They had traveled this path many times before and they were surprised when they noticed a brightness through the trees, a signal from the sun that there was something beyond their gaze that needed to be investigated.

     They followed the light to a clearing. The ground there was not like the leaf strewn forest that they had been traversing. Instead, they beheld an emerald carpet of moss that glimmered like velvet in sunlight that was streaming through the trees.

     To their delight, the children discovered a delicate brook trickling through the clearing and the sound it made was soothing like lovely woodland music. They quickly gathered along the bank of that flowing water and shoes were shed to enable their toes to be massaged by the stream’s gentle current.

     They relaxed upon the moss by the water’s edge feasting their eyes on the lush beauty of the forest that surrounded them. A shaft of light suddenly broke through the shimmering birch leaves above their heads, and to their amazement, directed their gaze to a rock in the middle of the stream several yards from where they were sitting. The light centered itself upon the object that was perched upon the rock.

     “What’s that?” one of the children wondered out loud.

     “I’ll go see,” one of the boys answered.

     He rose to his feet and carefully waded out into the stream toward the rock.

     “It’s a book!” he exclaimed in astonishment when he was close enough to see.

     “What’s a book doing way out here in the woods?” one of the girls asked.

     “Somebody must have left it here,” another answered.

     “Maybe a bird dropped it, ha, ha,” chortled another.

     “Bring it over here and let’s see what it’s about.”

     The book was opened to a place in the middle, and the boy carefully lifted it from its rocky perch and carried it back to his friends.

     “It was opened to this place here,” he said as he laid it upon the moss.

     The children gathered around it to see what it said. Written in large letters that covered both pages were the words, “Seek the Lord and you will find Him when you seek Him with all of your heart.”

     “Wow!” one of the girls exclaimed, “nobody told us that before.”

     “How do we seek God?” This question was proposed by one of the boys.

     “I think we should pray and read the book,” a little girl answered.

     “We’re in a good place to start here, it’s so quiet and peaceful,” another answered.

     The boy who had waded out into the brook to retrieve the book was chosen to read it to them. They all sat down on the moss around the book and its reader. The boy turned a page and read, “The Lord is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him.”

     There were some serious contemplative moments of silence before one of the girls asked, “I wonder what the reward is that God is going to give us for seeking Him?”

     The boy who had been reading thought for a moment. The sound of the brook’s music lilted in the air as the summer breeze encircled them like loving, invisible arms.

     “The Lord rewards those who diligently seek Him,” he repeated, “and the reward of seeking Him - is to find Him!” he finished joyfully as if the answer had been given to him like a gift.

     A choir of chickadees suddenly began to sing in the branches above their heads as if they were cheering.

     Seek the Lord, children, - and anticipate your reward.

Seek ye out of the Book of the Lord and read, no one of these shall fail – Isaiah 34:16

     But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. - Hebrews 11:6

Copyright 2015 by H. D. Shively

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