Once upon a time there was a teacher named Sophia. Sophia had been a teacher in the town where she lived for so long that the kids she first had in her class grew up and had kids of their own and sent them to her class too. Nearly everyone in the town knew Sophia and loved her because not only was she an excellent teacher, but she was also very kind.
One day when Sophia got to work, she found a note on her desk. The note read:
Dear Sophia,
I will be around tomorrow.
I wonder if I might stop by your house for tea tomorrow afternoon.
Your Friend,
God
At first Sophia thought it was a joke. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized that if it was a joke, it wasn't a very funny joke. And she couldn't think of anyone who would play a joke on her like that.
Then she thought: what if it wasn't a joke? What if God really was going to come to her house tomorrow afternoon? Sophia thought she should get ready, just in case.
On her way home from work, she stopped by the store and bought one of those mats people put on their porch that says, in big letters: WELCOME!
When she got home, she cleaned her house from top to bottom. She brought in fresh flowers from the garden and put them in a vase in the living room. She cleaned and cleaned until everything was sparkly.
In the morning, Sophia realized didn't know what God liked to eat, so she baked bread and made a casserole and fruit salad, and baked some cookies too. And what about the tea? Did God like hot tea or iced tea? She thought she better make both. And what if God's favorite thing in the whole world was lemonade? She thought she should make some of that too.
She was so nervous! She didn't know what to expect.
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Sophia's heart went pat pat pat.
She took a big breath, opened the door slowly, and on the other side was...the Mayor of the town.
"Hello Sophia! I was walking by and smelled the delicious fresh baked bread!"
Sophia said, "I'm so glad you're here, come in, come in! I am expecting a very important visitor who you might want to meet! Please come in and make yourself at home."
Sophia and the Mayor sat, having a nice discussion when there was a knock at the door. Sophia's heart went pat pat pat.She took a deep breath, opened the door slowly, and on the other side was...a group of children from her class.
"Hello Miss Sophia! We were walking by and noticed the smell of fresh baked cookies!"
Sophia said, "I'm so glad you're here, come in, come in! I am expecting a very important visitor who you might want to meet! Please come in and help yourself to some cookies."
The children were giving the Mayor some much-needed advice when there was a knock at the door. Sophia's heart went pat pat pat. Deep breath…open door… It was...the entire women's covenant group from church!
"Hello Sophia! We heard the tea kettle and laugher and thought you might be having a party!"
Sophia said, "I'm so glad you're here, come in, come in! I am expecting a very important visitor who you might want to meet! Please come in and make yourself at home."
ll afternoon people stopped by Sophia's house, lured by the yummy smells and happy sounds. The townspeople filled her house, upstairs and downstairs and overflowed into the back yard and the front yard. As they got hungry, they made dinner together and ate as the sun set and the moon rose.
It was a great party. People were playing games and telling stories and baking and playing music and talking together. Sophia had such a nice time that she completely forgot about her very important guest. Even as she waved goodbye to her friends at the end of the night, she felt only contentment at having such a lovely party.
In the morning, though, Sophia woke up and remembered everything. She was confused. Whatever had happened to God?
All during her walk to work she tried to figure out what had happened. Along the way she smiled and waved to the people she ran into who had been at her party. She thought to herself that she really should do that again sometime.
When Sophia arrived at work she was surprised to find another note on her desk. It read:
Dear Sophia,
I had such a wonderful time yesterday. The bread was delicious, the cookies were divine! Tea mixed with lemonade is my very favorite! Thank you for being such a wonderful host!
I hope we can do it again soon!
Love,
God