O my strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love. (Psalms 59:17 NRSV Bible)
Rep. Maxine Waters, a Congresswoman from Los Angeles, said that one of the first people to make a difference in her life was a fifth-grade math teacher at the James Weldon Johnson Elementary School in St. Louis named Louise Carter.

"Beyond her skill at teaching math, Ms. Carter was a very loving woman," Waters says. She recalls one Saturday morning in particular. Ms. Carter had planned a class picnic. However, Waters' mother had not been able to get her ready in time to go. Waters had 12 brothers and sisters. It was quite a chore for her mother to get them all prepared, especially the girls, because it required that she spend time getting their hair all braided. Her mother was so busy trying to do everything, she just hadn't gotten to little Maxine yet. Waters thought she would be left behind.

"Then Ms. Carter came," says the Congresswoman. "She would not leave without me. She took me to her own home and washed and braided my hair and got my clothes together so I could go on the picnic. And it stayed with me forever that she would do that. If you think that a teacher really cares about you," says Waters, "then you try to live up to their expectations. Ms. Carter had high expectations for me, and--especially after that picnic--I tried my best to live up to them."

Can there be a better picture of our relationship with God? God loves us even while we are unlovable. God takes us home and washes us, as it were. God accepts us just as we are. Because we are loved, we seek to live up to God's expectations.

Dear God, thank you for loving me. Amen.

Ron Newhouse

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