StoryTime Adventures

<p>Leslie had everything that she could possibly imagine, but when she met Sally her idea of happiness was about to be challenged.</p>

<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

AudioVerse

Michelle Song

StoryTime Adventures: Season 1

01 - The Indian’s Revenge

02 - Another Commandment

03 - The US Marine and the Grand Weaver

04 - Coals of Fire

05 - Leslie’s Gratitude Lesson

06 - The Growing Lie

07 - Tom’s Trial

08 - Mountain Miracle

Why hello there. Audio first welcomes you to Storytime Adventures. I miss Michelle and I invite you to travel with us through stories that teach important lessons along the way. Meet Sifer, our traveling book companion and other adventuring young friends while we journey into stories that teach the importance of forming good habits and making wise choices while we're young. So sit back, make yourself comfortable, and join us as we travel through each story time adventure. Hi Elena. Welcome to Storybook Manor. Come on inside. Hi Miss Michelle. I'm so happy to be here. Wow. Storybook Manor is a lot bigger than I imagine it would be. Yes, it is pretty big. We have so many special rooms here, rooms that take us on special adventures to special places. So I was keeping track of all the adventures you've been on so far, and it seems like we've visited three of your rooms. The Room of Virtues, the hall of mirrors, and the map room. That's right. So Claire came with me to the Room of virtues. Tyson came with me to the Hall of Mirrors. Kiana visited the map room and Joshua got to visit the room of virtues again in our last adventure. Are we going to one of those three rooms again today? No. Today we are going to be visiting a different room. One we haven't visited before yet, and it's actually one of my favorite rooms. Yay. I'm so excited. Me too. Come along. It's in this direction. Here we are. Step inside. What a beautiful room. What kind of room is this? Look at that small waterfall in these lovely roses. In all these butterflies in the sunshine pouring through the classroom is making the water glow and look at that beautiful swing. May I sit on it? I've never seen a place like this before. Yes, have a seat and I'll give you a push. You'll see that when I push you far enough. You can see your reflection in the pool of water below. Yes, I see my reflection and the reflection of the light in the flowers all at once too. That's why I call this my reflection room. This is a place that I come to whenever I need to reflect on something in my life. I come to this room to think, to pause and to pray. It's a really great place to do that. I feel so peaceful here. So I'm guessing our story today is one that will require us to do some reflecting and thinking about our lives. That's exactly right. We all need time to stop, think, and reflect on the way that we are living our lives from day to day. And today's story definitely makes us do that. You are right. Even us kids, sometimes our lives can get so busy with school, sports, music lessons, you name it, that we don't really get a chance to stop, pause, and reflect. I'm looking forward to today's story. Oh, is that Seifer over there? Yes, he is waiting and ready. Sefer open up to today's story. Alright, Elena, are you ready? Ready. Okay, let's go. Miss Michelle. Did we just land in a school hallway? I feel like it's Monday already. Yes, it is a school hallway. Our story takes place here among a bunch of teenage students. Actually, It sounds like school's about to start and yep, here comes all the students. Where's my book bag? I feel like I should go to class two. Hi Leslie. Hey Leslie. Hi girls. Leslie, Who's She? She's really pretty. She is our main character and we are going to follow right behind those girls as we begin our adventure listening. Friends, you follow along too. I call today's story Leslie's gratitude lesson. Leslie was one of those girls everyone wished they could be. She literally had everything her heart could desire. She lived in a huge mansion that had an elevator inside the house. She had a pool in the backyard that had a cascading waterfall that dropped down into a smaller pool, and during the cold winter months, the entire pool was heated so that she and her family could enjoy it All year round. She had a walk-in closet that was larger than a normal sized bedroom with a wardrobe that looked like it was straight out of a designer magazine. Did she play any sports or music you ask? Oh, her parents wanted to make sure that their daughter would be well-rounded. So she took tennis lessons, golf lessons, piano, violin, cello and voice lessons. She even took art classes and cake designing classes as an only child. Leslie's parents were thrilled to fulfill her every little whim. Leslie's mom grew up in a poor family, so she knew what it was like to not be able to have all those things that the other kids wanted. Maybe that's why she tried to make sure that life would be different for her own daughter. But she would always say, Leslie, If there's one thing I want you to remember as my daughter, it's this Fact That just because you're rich and you have everything you could ever want, things that other girls could only dream about, It Doesn't give you the right to be stuck Up Or snobby. I remember those girls at school who were rich and popular. Yeah. People were trying to get on their good side and kissing up to them, trying to be friendly to them, but behind their backs, people hated them. They couldn't stand being around them. And I wanna make sure that you don't become one of those kinds of girls. I want my girl to be kind and humble, generous and genuine. Having these things do not make you better than anyone else. Remember that? Yes ma'am. You wouldn't let me forget that fact. Even if I tried mom, I probably could say that whole spiel in my sleep. Actually, I'm serious, Leslie. I know Mom. I'm just kidding. Do you know that I remind myself of your words every time I drive to school. I'm really trying, mom. I really am. And Leslie really did try hard at school. It was apparent by the host of friends that she had. In fact, she was so popular and her friendship was so sought after that the girls would line the hallways just to say hi to her. Well, one day at school, the teacher gave the class a project to work on and split the class into pairs. Everyone wanted to be partners with Leslie and listened for her name to be called. Okay, class. Listen for your names. Now. Callie, you will be paired with Janet Jordan. You are with Jack Louis and Steve will pair up. Jessica and Erin. Jody with Katie. Leslie, let's put you with Sally. Leslie turned toward the girl that the teacher mentioned. Oh, Sally. Sally was the new girl in school. Leslie didn't know her that well, but she did notice one thing. Even though Sally was quiet, she always had a bright, happy smile on her face like all the time. Hmm. Leslie had wondered, I wonder why Sally is so happy all the time. What kind of family does she come from? Maybe she's happy all the time because they're super rich and maybe her house is huge, even bigger than mine, and maybe she just has everything she could ever want. I mean, there's got to be a reason she's so happy all the time. Sally walked over to Leslie after class was over and smiled. Hi Leslie. I'm happy we can work together. Thanks. Me too. Do you want to come over to my house tomorrow after school? We can work on the project together and then if you want, you can join us for dinner. Wow, that's really nice. That'd be great. All Right. I'll see you tomorrow. Okay, see ya. That night, Leslie's imagination was going wild. She was invited over to Sally's house. She was finally going to get a glimpse into Sally's world and figure out why Sally was always smiling after school. Sally's mom came to pick the girls up. She drove up in a modest sedan and got out of the car and hugged Sally tightly. She then extended a hand to Leslie. I'm so happy to meet you, Leslie. I'm Sheila. Hop on in girls. Let's go. Leslie quietly surveyed the car. It wasn't anything fancy at all and looked like it had been well used. Judging from the cracked leather on the seats puzzled. She wondered what kind of a house Sally lived in. She didn't have long to wait. Sheila turned into a neighborhood and stopped in front of a white house. Leslie stared the house was tiny. Come on in, Leslie, we can work on the project. Up in my room. Leslie glanced around at the worn out furniture in the tiny living room. As she followed Sally into her bedroom. Sally opened the door to her room and Leslie's eyes widened. Sally's room was smaller than her closet. As the evening went on, Leslie became more and more puzzled, and when her mom came to pick her up after dinner, she found Leslie strangely quiet. So how did your afternoon and evening go? Mom, Sally is poor. Well, maybe not poor, poor, but she's definitely not rich. Her car is old, her house is small. Her room is tiny like tinier than my closet. Their dinner consisted of biscuits with gravy salad and corn, and I don't think she even has a dad. She doesn't have much. Really? But why is she smiling all the time? Why is she always happy? Leslie's mom thought for a moment and then said, well, no one can Answer that question better than Sally. Why Aren't you ask her? Leslie thought for a moment. I think I will tomorrow. In fact. So it sounds like Leslie finally worked up some courage to ask Sally, are you curious too? Well, we'll find out what happens after the short break. Hey, parents, we know that you love stories just as much as your kids. So we want to tell you about a whole website filled with stories for you too. Journeys unscripted is a place where you can hear real stories told by real people who have experienced the power of God in their lives. You'll find stories of victory, of courage, of hope. If you're looking for answers, needing inspiration or longing for something deeper, take a walk with these individuals on their unscripted journeys and you just might meet the divine author who wants to write your story too. Visit journeys unscripted.com today And now back to today's story. At lunchtime the next day, Leslie sat down next to Sally who smiled up at her. Hi, Leslie. Hey SALs. Thanks for letting me come over yesterday. I had fun. Me too. SALs, can I ask you a question? Promise you won't be offended. Of course You can. You can ask me anything. So when you first came to our school, I thought that maybe you were secretly a rich kid that had everything you could possibly want because you were so happy all the time and always smiling. I thought there had to be a good reason for anyone to be that happy. But after going to your house yesterday, I know that it's not because you're rich that you're always smiling or because you have the nicest car or clothes or things. So I'm dying of curiosity here. Why in the world are you so happy? All the time? I have so much compared to you, but I'm not even half as happy as you are. Sally looked at her friend thoughtfully then at her sandwich. My dad died three years ago from cancer. A few months before he died, my dad, mom, and I began to play a game together to help us get through those hard times. We called it the Grateful Game. Each day we would talk about three things we are grateful for and why we are grateful for those things. Even though we are going through one of the hardest times of our lives, and I knew that I could possibly lose my dad looking for three things to be grateful for every day and sharing about it together gave us so much strength. We found so many blessings to be grateful for, and so many things to praise God about. Sally wiped her eyes and continued The day before my dad died. Do you know what his three blessings were? He was thankful for each minute that he was given. He was thankful for a daughter and a wife who had learned how to praise even while going through the hardest time of their lives, and he was thankful that we could go on living and praising even if he had to die. By this time, Leslie's tears were pouring down her face. Sally put her hand on her friend's shoulder. That's why I'm happy all the time because I've been given life. I've been given time, and I've been given a chance to be grateful every single day. Those words made a lasting impact on Leslie. She lived every day from that point forward, truly grateful for every small and big blessing that came her way. I totally get why this story started out in the reflection room. Wow. Talk about a lot of things to think about. Yes. What were some thoughts that came into your head as you were listening, Elena? Well, for starters, my dad actually had a similar story to Leslie's mom. He works really hard to pay his own way through school without any kind of financial support from his parents, and he's always telling us how lucky we are that we have pretty much everything we want. But you know, I think when you grow up having everything you could ever want and need, it's really easy to start taking things for granted or start feeling entitled. It's also really easy to start comparing yourself with others and to keep wanting more and more things because you're not satisfied. But in Sally's case, when she went through that hard experience with her dad, her entire perspective changed. She realized what the truest blessings in life were, and she lived every day so gratefully. Wow, Elena. You nailed it. You know, Sally learned the meaning of true contentment. Instead of turning bitter at the sufferings and loss of her dad, she chose to remember the lesson her father taught her about being truly grateful. No matter what happens in life, there's a verse in the Bible that talks about this. It's found here in Philippians four 11. Can you read that first? Elena <unk> Michelle. It says, I have learned in whatsoever state I am the with to be content Philippians four 11. That verse is essentially saying that whether I am going through a happy time or a very difficult time, I can choose to be content. My outward circumstances or situations don't determine my happiness or contentment. I do. I'm the one that can choose to be grateful no matter what kind of crazy or unfair situation I find myself in. But even that happens only with Christ's help. Hmm. I think now is the perfect time to head over to our studio because our song today is actually the verse. Philippians four 11. I What? What I There be content. I have what? What There have what? Thanks for the great lesson today, miss Michelle. I'll be sure to remember the story and sing the song often. Well, thank you Elena for joining us on today's episode, and thank you listening, friends for coming along as well. Our next episode takes place in another new room at Storybook Manor, so make sure you stay tuned for our next Storytime Adventure.

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StoryTime Adventures: Season 1

05 - Leslie’s Gratitude Lesson

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Other Teachings in Series

01 - The Indian’s Revenge

02 - Another Commandment

03 - The US Marine and the Grand Weaver

04 - Coals of Fire

05 - Leslie’s Gratitude Lesson

06 - The Growing Lie

07 - Tom’s Trial

08 - Mountain Miracle

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