“Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits of all your produce” – Proverbs 3:9
Stacey Achterhoff is a teacher in Duluth Minnesota. Like most teachers she works a busy schedule during the school year, but during the summer she finds other pursuits to occupy her time. A few summers back, after Stacey experienced a death in her family, she decided to do something different with her summer.
Stacey purchased a tricycle-delivery cart and began to sell ice cream. Not long into selling ice cream Stacey experienced something that changed her summers and blessed many lives in the neighborhoods she drives through. A man approached Stacey and purchased several ice cream cones. He then asked her to give them away. Stacey spent her day giving away her delicious treats. It was a blessing for her and those who received the free, delicious gifts.
She was inspired by the beautiful gesture and the joy the free ice cream brought. She took to social media and shared the story. Soon donations began to pour in and now Stacey peddles her bike around Duluth and gives away ice cream. She is known around town as “Mrs. Delicious.” She has become a local celebrity as she gives away free ice cream and takes donations for the next batch of Ice cream sandwiches to give away.
Mrs. Delicious spends her summers bringing smiles to the faces of people of Duluth, but what she does goes far beyond the temporary joy of a frozen treat. Stacey is helping to bring the joy of giving to her community. As people receive her ice cream they continue to pay it forward. As Mrs. Delicious gives her ice cream away, others give their money so Stacey can continue to bring smiles to the people of Duluth.
When we give our time, our money and our recourses we can become a blessing, just like Mrs. Delicious. We can make a difference in the lives of the people in our community and around the world. Stacey Achterhoff did not realize just how big a difference her ice cream would make when she started, but today she reminds us all that what we do can make a big difference. What we do matters.
Rev. Keith King, Online Campus Pastor
