Child Hero

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33)

Have you heard the news a few days ago? A 12-year-old boy, John Farrar of Arkansas, became a child hero when he gave up a personal dream for higher purpose.

John has been saving money for a trip to see the New York Yankees, his favorite baseball team. Even though he considers baseball his life and has big league dream, John did something extraordinary for his age. In January, after finding out that his middle school would be closed due to budget shortage, John donated $1,000 (his saving) to keep his junior high school open. Motivated by John's sacrificial giving, townspeople around raised $400,000 in 30 days.

When interviewed, John's mom said, "I told him he really needed to think about this and pray about it. He told me that he just thought this was the right thing to do." If the story ends there, John Farrar has already accomplished what he set out to do and his parents would be proud of him.

Nevertheless, his act of selfishness caught the attention of the owner of the New York Yankees. George Steinbrenner wrote to John and invited him to New York for a personal tour of Yankee Stadium. He would have time on the field during practice as well. Pretty amazing! Isn't it?

Copyright © 2006 Winnis Chiang, Parenting ABC