Whitestone Girls

<p>What do you do when you see your daughter struggling in her friendships? When everything in you wants to scream, “Not her! Don’t be friends with her!”, how do you exert your influence, while empowering her to make good choices on her own? How can you help her develop confidence in herself, create meaningful relationships, and invite God to sit on the throne of her heart… without her realizing you’re doing it?<br>
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What began as a desperate plea to God from a panicked mom, ended with a ten week curriculum straight from heaven. I was prompted to read in Revelation - a book of the Bible I usually like to avoid, purely because it confuses me. My eyes were drawn to the verse that says, “I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it”, Revelation 2:17(NIV). I knew in that moment that I wanted my daughter, Julia, to feel the joy that comes with knowing her heavenly Father has a special name just for her. That no matter what struggles she may face in life, she is loved personally, by the One who created her.<br>
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In this book you’ll find ten lessons. I chose a small group of girls that Julia enjoyed spending time with, and with whom I was comfortable having in our home every Thursday night, for ten weeks. You might use a different venue to meet in, and gather a larger crowd, depending on your desired outcome. Each week contains:<br>
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a. a theme with a key Bible verse<br>
b. an activity or object lesson<br>
c. a fill-in-the-blanks worksheet<br>
d. a chapter in the life of Zoey &amp; Summer<br>
e. discussion questions and Bible verses to look up<br>
f. A challenge to complete before the next meeting<br>
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We had SO much fun with this! It’s been 5 years since the original Whitestone Girls group was established, and we still talk about those special weeks together, and sit in awe of what God did in and through those young girls. One of the girls made a personal commitment to Jesus on week number eight! My hope is that you will see Him work in the ones you’ve chosen for your group, and that they, AND YOU will experience His personal love!<br>
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In this with you,<br>
Tanya Schulz<br>
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Zoey and Summer used to be in the same class at school, but for some reasons only her parents knew, Summer became a home school student this year. Both of the girls were unhappy about this decision. Zoey had lots of friends in her school, but no one understood her like Summer. Who would she play with at recess now? And why did she feel like no one really wanted her around? It was hard for Zoey to be her peppy self, when inside she felt self-conscious and unsure of herself without her closest friend around.<br>
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Summer was upset too. She loves her mom and all, but she wasn’t super keen on being with her ALL day EVERY day. What about her friends? Would they forget about her? And how is she supposed to be a “light” in her school if everyone around her already knows Jesus?<br>
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The girls were swinging together in Summer’s backyard, sharing their frustrations. Zoey dragged her toe until she stopped swinging and said,<br>
“I think we should pray about this. Maybe God will let us go back to the way things were.” So they prayed. They asked God to make their situation better... to fix it so they could be themselves again.<br>
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A few days later Summer was sitting by the window in her living room, trying to do her math work, when she noticed her old neighbor from across the street start walking toward her mailbox. At the same time, Summer saw a teenaged girl walking her chihuahua straight toward that same mailbox, and texting at the same time. The collision happened before Summer could get to the door to warn her neighbor. The elderly lady tripped over the little dog and landed right on her knee! The teenaged girl apologized and then scurried away, her yappy dog in tow. Summer yelled to her mom for help, then rushed to her neighbor to help her up, but she was in too much pain to stand. Summer’s mom called for an ambulance to take the poor woman to the hospital, and they later found out her knee was broken!<br>
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A few days after the dog-tripping incident, Summer’s neighbor was brought back home. Summer watched her awkwardly make her way on crutches from the car to her front door. She felt bad for the lady. How would she take care of herself? Maybe there was something Summer could do to be helpful. She asked her mom about this and they came up with a plan and put it on paper. Within 20 minutes, Summer was skipping across the street, excited about her idea. She knocked on the door and waited for, what seemed like a long time for the woman to answer. When the door finally opened, Summer said, “Hi! I’m Summer from across the street. I’m home schooled now and have a pretty flexible schedule. I was wondering if I could help you with a few things while your knee is healing?” She handed the piece of paper to the woman, and as the woman read all the items on the list that Summer wanted to help with - taking out the trash, vacuuming the house, collecting her mail, and feeding the cat - tears welled up in her eyes. She smiled at Summer and said, “You are such an angel! My kids live far away and I have no one to help me. I was JUST praying to God for help... and here you are!”<br>
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Meanwhile, at Zoey’s school, another adventure had begun...</p>