kids' song

When we were in PNG visiting our friend who teaches at Ukarumpa's Wycliffe Bible Translator (-SIL) centre's primary and high schools, we had the opportunity to go to church with the translator and support personnel. The number of people at church constantly fluctuates as the translators and support personnel come and go - both to and from the PNG villages they live and translate in, and to and from their home countries for health trips and particularly furloughs. But I suppose an average number would be 400-500 - including the kids!

On the Sunday we were there, the grade 3 kids featured in the service. (The schools and the church are closely related as most of the school kids are children of WBT-SIL personnel, and there is only one English-speaking church for all these families to go to!) They taught the 10 Commandments with a skit and posters, presented bouquets to and led prayers for their incoming and outgoing school teachers, and sang a song. This is how it went -

Read your Bible, pray every day
pray every day, pray every day
Read your Bible, pray every day
and you'll grow, grow, grow!

(do, do, do, re-, mi, mi, re, mi-
re, re, do, re-, mi, mi, re, mi-
do, do, do, re-, mi, mi, re, mi-
fa, re, do-, ti-, do--)

And you'll grow, grow, grow
And you'll grow, grow, grow
Read your Bible, pray every day
and you'll grow, grow, grow.

And the next verse?

Neglect your Bible, forget to pray,
forget to pray, forget to pray,
Neglect your Bible, forget to pray
and you'll SHRINK, SHRINK, SHRINK!

And you'll shrink, shrink, shrink
And you'll shrink, shrink, shrink
Neglect your Bible, forget to pray
and you'll SHRINK, SHRINK, SHRINK!

It was very powerful - sung simply by 8-year olds with strong American accents (even the Aussies, alas!) - because it's so true!! It hit me between the eyes and I'm glad the tune is one of those easy-to-remember stick-in-your-head-all-day tunes because how often we need the reminder - over and over again.

Hope you manage to hear the tune in your head and catch on - get me to sing it for you if not, or compose your own - and heed these grade 3 kids' good advice!