Sunday, June 6, 2010

The Coat of Many Colors

Dolly Parton wrote a song, "the Coat of Many Colors" about a coat her mother stitched for her out of assorted rags.  Dolly felt special, that is, until she went to school and the other kids made fun of her.  Even though she had no running water or electricity, her mother told her that the family was rich.  Their wealth came from the love they had for one another.

Dolly's mother was able to share the Good News with Dolly by relating her coat of many colors to the character, Joseph (Genesis 37:11), who was given a special coat from his father, Jacob.  Dolly followed her mother's example and retold the story, first to her classmates, and then to the world in her autobiographical song below.  It was the kindness of a neighbor that gave Dolly's mother all the material she would need to make clothes and quilts out of rags.

Do you have anything in your closet that a neighbor could put to good use?  No matter how small it may appear to you, it could become a coat of many colors for someone in need...

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