Elisa and David Froehling have been teaching the 5th and 6th grade Sunday school class at New Testament Baptist Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, for the past five years.

Every year during the holidays, their class of about 10 children packed shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child. But in 2007, they wanted to do more to teach the boys and girls about the importance of giving.

“We were trying to explain that there are different ways you can help the church,” Elisa said. “It was hard for them to understand the concept, so we tried to show them something physical they could see their money going to.”

They brought in the Samaritan’s Purse gift catalog and showed it to the students.

“What do you want to give to someone who needs it?” Elisa asked them.

The kids were drawn to the animal gifts, but were still unsure of what they should raise money for.

It was missions’ conference week at their church, and a missionary family from Mongolia, Bob and Marilyn Hutton, spoke during one of the services. The Huttons said that a goat in Mongolia is a valuable commodity and can be used for many things, including milk and warm clothing. After hearing that, the Froehlings and their class knew they wanted to buy a goat from the gift catalog.

Once they raised the money, the kids presented a certificate to the missionaries.

“We were so successful, and the kids were so jazzed that they came back and said they wanted to do more,” Elisa said. “Their fire was lit. They had a global perspective of what their little bits of money here could do for someone across the world.”

Giving the goat through Samaritan’s Purse sparked so much interest in the Sunday school class that the next year, they raised money for another Christian organization.

As the Froehlings’ classes moved into the high school youth group, they continued to participate in mission projects. Youth Pastor Derrick Marrs said he could tell they were not your average kids.

“They already had the mission mindset and were eager to get involved in a cause,” Derrick said. “They knew that in doing these things they were contributing to the kingdom of God, and that’s an important mindset for kids.

“Samaritan’s Purse is so good for children to get involved in because it’s hands-on. It’s something tangible, and it’s different than just giving money to a missions fund.”

Giving a goat through Samaritan’s Purse not only helped instill the practice of giving in the children, but it also helped Elisa understand what it truly means to serve God through missions.

“I had never been exposed to missions,” she said. “I was raised Jewish. I knew about helping people, but I never had a global perspective of missions.”

Her first exposure was watching a video of a church group giving donuts to children living in poverty. Elisa said she was completely turned off by it, and was hesitant to get involved in missions from then on.

“Then I heard about Samaritan’s Purse,” she said. “They told me, you pick out the items, you pack the shoe box, and we send a Bible tract with it. That to me was missions.”

When the Froehling family and their Sunday school class first started packing shoe boxes, a Samaritan’s Purse staff member told Elisa something that profoundly impacted her.

“She told me to use plastic shoe boxes because in some places the kids don’t have containers for water,” she said. “When I heard that, I was speechless. I couldn’t believe it. So I went out and bought the plastic shoe boxes for our kids because I didn’t want them to send paper ones. It has had a profound impact on me and my husband.”

Elisa, David, and Derrick continue to teach their groups of kids about giving to missions by getting involved in Samaritan’s Purse projects and other ministries like World Vision and Compassion International.

“Children are our future and legacy,” Elisa said. “How we treat them and teach them is important. They will either grow in hate or grow in love. This helps grow them with some love.”

Samaritan's Purse , Instilling a Missions Perspective

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