[This is designed especially for use in Junior Christian Endeavor societies, and other children’s organizations that use a pledge; but it may be changed slightly and used to teach promise-keeping in general.]
“Frank,” said a certain junior’s mother, “I want you to go down to the grocery and get me a dozen eggs.”
“Yes, mother dear, I will,” says Frank, cheerfully.
Now Frank has made a pledge. Let us see how he keeps it.
The first thing that happens, as soon as he gets outside the gate, along comes Will, going in the wrong direction.
“Hullo!” says Will; “come along to the post-office, Frank, and get your folks’ mail.”
Now Frank knows that his folks would like the mail, but then his pledge said, grocery and eggs. So, though the other thing was good, and all right, he left Will, and went after the eggs.
The next thing that happened, Frank tripped and fell. What did he do? Did he say, “There! I have done my best to get to the grocery. Now that I have fallen, my promise is at an end.”
No, he picked himself up, brushed off the dirt, and went right on. He knew that a promise is binding, no matter how many times we fail to keep it.
As Frank went on he fell to thinking. “Now, I went to the grocery yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that, and every day I can remember, almost, except Sunday. And I presume I’ll have to keep on doing it all my life. And I’m so tired. I guess I’ll stop going to the grocery, and go home.”
But Frank soon remembered his promise, and his dear mother, and knew that she loved him so much and did so much for him that he never could be happy unless he did something, though it was little, for her. So Frank went on and got the eggs, and came back whistling.
Our pledge, juniors, is a promise to do just a little for God in return for all he is doing for us. Let us do just what we have promised, even though there is no harm in the other things we are tempted to do. Let us try again, even if we fail. And let us keep bravely at it, even if it does seem a long and hard undertaking.