Keeshana looked at her friend Jordyn who was sitting cross-legged on the bedroom floor. “I don’t know, Jordyn. I really meant it when I said that I want my feet to take me wherever God wants me to go. But I just don’t see how we can possibly be missionaries right here in our own little town. I meant I wanted to go to a foreign land to work for God.”
A slide program on the missionary work in Peru had been the evening feature at the girls’ church, and the memory of those eager faces had made a deep impression on both of them. Now they sat in Keeshana's bedroom, discussing what they had seen and heard.
“Keeshana, you don’t have to go to Peru. You don’t have to go far away at all. Your feet can take you all over our town. There are all kinds of things we can do for the Lord here.” Keeshana still looked dubious. “But Jesus said in the Bible that we should go into all the world and spread the Gospel. Our town couldn’t be what He meant.”
“Why not? Someone has to tell the people here about Jesus. Look at Mrs. Wilson across the street. She never goes to church. I wonder if she knows anything about God at all. And then there’s Mr. Talbot, our Social Studies teacher. He said right out that he had big question marks about the effectiveness of a religious experience. Doesn’t it say somewhere in the Book of James that our faith will show through our works? We should do our best to spread the Good News wherever we are!”
The following week at school, Keeshana dashed up to Jordyn as she opened her locker to get her lunch. “Save me a place in the cafeteria. I’ve got something to tell you!” A few minutes later, between bites of a Nutella sandwich, Keeshana bubbled out her news. “You were absolutely right, Jordyn. Our feet don’t have to take us to faraway places before we can work for God. I decided to watch for opportunities right close to home, and I have two to tell you about.
“The very next day after we talked, I decided to walk over and see Ariel Johnson—you know her, she came to Sunday school once or twice. But I haven’t seen her there in a couple of months. We just chatted for a while and she seemed really glad to see me. After a bit I casually mentioned that we had missed her at Sunday school, and you know what I found out? Her mom got a part-time job on the weekends, so Ariel has to watch her little sister on Sunday mornings. She had walked to church the times she came, but it’s too far for her sister. I told her if that was the problem we’d be glad to give them a ride. We drive, and it’s right on our way. So she is coming next Sunday!”
Jordyn smiled. “Can this be the Keeshana who thought she was going to have to go to India or China? Ariel is only a few blocks away, so you didn’t have to travel far at all, did you?”
Keeshana grinned back. “That’s not all, either. Brother Erik called last night after dinner and invited me to go with a group of young people to the Wygate Nursing Home on 42nd Street. We’re going to sing to the folks there next Sunday afternoon. He asked me to see you at school and ask if you’d like to go too. I guess he called your house, but no one answered.”
Jordyn’s eyes lit up. “Oh, I’d really like to. I’ve never gone before.”
“I did once, and it was really cool. The people there enjoy the singing and visiting with us.”
Jordyn swallowed her last bite of cookie and put her napkin on the tray. “What time do we go? Who’s taking us?”
Keeshana chuckled. “Here’s a chance for us to use our feet. We leave from the church at two and we walk. It’s only sixteen blocks from there to the home.”
“But that’s so far! Why don’t they get someone to drive a van?”
“Oh, Jordyn, the walk will do us good! C’mon . . . you were preaching to me about using our feet for the Lord.”
“I’ll go,” Jordyn said as she stood up. “But right now I think our feet had better carry us to our typing class, or Mrs. Bertram will be marking us tardy!”
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