"I Will Make My Hands Like Those of Galilee"

Last night I substituted for our Achievement Day teacher at church. I chose to teach on Service and wanted to bring that into light by focusing on the girls' hands. (I like for my lessons to involve activities that teach and are attention grabbers. My philosophy is if I do better with lessons with activities or visual aids, I can only imagine how much better a child does in the same scenario).
We began by giving ourselves manicures...

The finished manicures, (minus the french white tip painted on since my white nail polish pen dried out, grrr!).

While we waited on their nails to dry I read them one of my favorite songs, "His Hands". It just so happens that this song coincides perfectly with Mark Mabry's photography from his book Reflections of Christ, so I flipped through that at the same time.

From there the girls wrote down as many items of service as they could think of that they themselves could do this next week. Whoever named the most got a bottle of hand sanitizer reminding them that just as hand sanitizer purifies your hands, so does a loving act of service purify a heavy soul.
We discussed how service made us feel and why we like to do it, but also that it's not always easy. I reminded them that Christ's life was engulfed in Service, including His ultimate service of the Atonement.
The lyrics to my favorite song are as follows:
"From the days on His mother's knee,
like no other before,
He was all that a boy should be.
Then, the boy became the man.
Hosanna to God and the Lamb!
His hands, tools of creation, stronger than nations,
power without end. And yet through them
we find our truest friend.
His hands,sermons of kindness, healing men's blindness,
halting years of pain.
Children waiting to be held again.
His hands, warming a beggar, lifting a leper,
calling back the dead.
Breaking bread, five thousand fed.
His hands, hushing contention, pointing to heaven,
ever free of sin.
Then, bidding men to follow Him.
His hands would serve His whole life through,
showing man what hands might do.
Giving, ever giving, endlessly.
Each day was filled with selflessness
ad I'll not rest till I make of my hands
what they could be,
'till these hands become like those of Galilee.
His hands, clasped in agony as He lay pleading,
bleeding in the garden,
while just moments away, other hand betray Him
out of greed, shameful greed.
And then His hands are trembling, straining to carry
the beam that they'd be nailed to.
As He stumbles through the streets, heading for the hill
on which He'd die, He would die,
they take His hands,
His mighty hands,
those gentle hands,
and then they pierce them.
He lets them because of love.
From birth to death was selflessness
and clearly now I see Him with His hands calling to me.
And though I'm not yet as I would be,
He has shown me how I could be.
I will make my hands like those of Galilee."

I had fun teaching the girls again (this used to be my calling before I was called to Seminary teacher) and I hope they walked away with an invigorated excitement for service.
Or at least with a better understanding of the great service that was given to them long before they were ever born.