When I was first married, my husband preached for a small church in West Tennessee. It was out in the country. In fact, they still had an outhouse!

They were wonderful people, mostly from two families well respected in the community. They were so good to us, someone taking us home with them every Sunday for lunch.

The church building was nothing fancy, but it was adequate. We had two large heaters that sat on either side of the pulpit. Before they turned them on in the winter, they served as a great place for the mice to play. We didn’t see them often, but we knew they were there.

One Sunday, as the song leader stood up to direct the singing, a little mouse came out from under the heater to the left of the pulpit and scamper across the room to the steps leading to the pulpit. He had to get up three steps to get to the podium area. This was no easy task.

I remember watching the little guy work and work to get himself up to the podium, falling several times before finally reaching the top. Once he was up there, he ran around the feet of the song leader in circles. The song leader never noticed him. The congregation, however, did.

After a few minutes of entertainment, he scampered across the pulpit and down the steps on the other side. I wondered where he went, because he seemed to just disappear.

After the worship service was over, I found out where he went. He had made his way down the aisle where I was sitting and was running in circles around my feet. I had no idea! It is probably a good thing, since I am not a fan of mice or rats. (I have other stories.)

My husband and I recently drove by this little church building, and the mouse adventure was one of the memories that came to mind.

That little mouse made me think about something related to our Christianity. If you think about it, it is the little things people do that really bring back the most memories, good one and bad ones. The little acts of kindness as we live day-to-day are the things that give us the most joy. The little unkind things said or done are the ones that plague us with pain.

Over twenty years ago our house burned. People were so kind to us, giving us gifts, gift cards, food, household items, and money. One of the most precious things that was done was just a simple gesture and one I will never forget.

It was a week before Christmas, and we were living in an apartment while our house was being rebuilt. One afternoon there was a knock on the door, and there stood a lady I hadn’t seen in quite some time. She handed me a plate of Christmas cookies and told me that she knew I wouldn’t be able to bake before my daughter came home from college. She didn’t have money to do what many others had done, but she did what she could.

In contrast, it is often the little inconsiderate things people do that hurt us so much. It is the unkind words that are spoken and cannot be erased that permeate our memories. It is thoughtless acts that often settle into our memories and prevent us from being forgiving and loving to others.

I try really hard to not remember the little hurtful things that have happened to me. I have had to work very hard to learn how to forget those things. It isn’t always easy, but it is necessary if I want to live a Christian life.

Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.” Solomon references perfect fruit presented at the table in a silver basket or silver box creating a beautiful and pleasing ornament. He compares that to words that are pleasing to the ear. Wouldn’t it be nice if all of our words were fitly spoken?

Sandra Oliver