THE CHILDREN'S SIX MINUTES

BRUCE S. WRIGHT

THE CHILDREN'S SIX MINUTES

BY

BRUCE S. WRIGHT

NEW YORK

GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY

COPYRIGHT, 1922, BY GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY

THE CHILDREN'S SIX MINUTES. II

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

TO

HARRIETELIZABETHANDROBERT

INTRODUCTION

For many years it has been my custom to give, every Sunday morning, abrief sermon to the boys and girls of my congregation. This sermon isnever more than six minutes, often only three. As a result there hasbeen a growing attendance of young people at our morning worship. Theyare thus made to feel that they are wanted, and have a part in theChurch which all too often is looked upon as a Church solely for thegrownups. No part of my ministry has given me greater delight andsatisfaction than the thought that I am helping to establish in thelives of many boys and girls that habit so indispensable to a steadyChristian experience, namely--the habit of Sunday morning worship. 

The Memory Texts and Memory Hymns, from the Methodist Episcopal Hymnal, suggested with each sermon are given for the reason that girls and boysgladly do memory work if it is definitely assigned them. 

CONTENTS

HAPPY NEW YEAR 12GROWTH 14SNOW 16KINDNESS 18GOD'S CALL 20A HAPPY HOME 22SYSTEM 24A BOY FROM THE COUNTRY 26THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE WORLD 28EASTER LIGHT 30APRIL 32HELPING FINGERS 34TWO R'S AND AN A 36CANDLE CHILDREN 38ALAS, THE MARKS 40A BLIND MAN WHO SAW 42CHOOSING A KING 44WORSHIP AND TOIL 46GOD'S CLOCK 48THE HUMAN KODAK 50WATCH LESSONS 52WHAT DID YOU SEE? 54KNIFE LESSONS 56LETTERS 58A UNIQUE PSALM 60THE FATHER'S CARE 62YOKES 64GOOD ADVICE 66IF I WERE A BOY AGAIN 68ONE BY ONE 70COME 72LOVE AND LOYALTY 74KUMMOGOKDONATTOOTTAMMOCTITEAONGANNUNNONASH 76WHAT THE TREES SAID TO ME 78BANKS 80WORK 82THE BIG STORE 84BREAD 86GOD'S MEASURE 88SLEEP 90ON TIME 92DOORS 94CHEAPEST AND BEST 96IN THE DARK 98THE STILL SMALL VOICE 100THANKSGIVING 102MARBLES IN THE POCKET 104THE FIRST MONTH 106HIM AND HYMN 108THE CHRISTMAS TREE 110THE BEST WORD 112LAST BUT NOT LEAST 114

THE CHILDREN'S SIX MINUTES

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Happy New Year, Juniors!

The morning of the first day of every year we enter into a contest. Wesee who will be the first to give that day's greeting. Before I wasawake this morning my boy ran into my room shouting, "Happy New Year!Happy New Year!" He won in the contest. 

Now, however, you are in Church and it is not proper for you to speakout loud, so I am able to get ahead of you. A Happy New Year to you, every one. 

Well, what will make this year a happy year for you? I will tell you. Let us take this word Happy, and instead of writing it across the pagelet us write it straight up and down. 

H stands for Helpful. You cannot have a happy year unless you arehelpful. He who does not try to be helpful is never very happy. 

A for Active. I want your year to be full of activity. I hope you willbe able to skate and slide down hill many days this winter, and thatyou will enter into all the spring and summer sports with zest and joy. 

P for Playful. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. You will wantto do something other than play, of course. You will have some homeresponsibilities, but sandwiched in with the work may there be a goodmeasure of play. 

P for Purposeful. Yes, early hi life you should form a purpose. Twoquestions will help you gain that purpose. 1st--What is it that I wantto do? 2nd--What is it that God wants me to do?

Y for Youth. 

 Helpful Active Playful Purposeful Youth. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 19: 14

 "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer. "

MEMORY HYMN, [572]

 _"Break, newborn year, on glad eyes break. "_

GROWTH

This second Sunday morning of the New Year I desire to talk to you aboutgrowth. The most important holiday afterthought is the thought ofgrowth. You are going to grow every day of this year. Whenever I see aboy on his way to school, or on the field or gymnasium floor, running, romping, playing, I say to myself, "Can it be possible that thisrestless, energetic lad was ever a quiet, helpless little babe in thecradle!" Yes, he was, but he has grown, and he is going to keep right ongrowing. 

It was said of the boy Jesus, "He grew. " His growth was natural. Therewas nothing of precociousness in the childhood of Jesus. He grew, justas every boy grows. 

 "A simple-hearted child was he, And he was nothing more; In summer days, like you and me, He played about the door, Or gathered, where the father toiled, The shavings from the floor. "

His growth continued. It did not stop with childhood, but right onthrough boyhood, youth and manhood he kept growing. Best of all hisgrowth was balanced. He grew physically, mentally and spiritually. Hehad a sound body. He loved the out-of-doors. He companionshiped muchwith nature. Most of his graphic illustrations were taken from living, growing things. He talked, almost chiefly, about seeds, grain, harvests, trees, birds and living waters. Boys and girls, strive to grow. Be likeyour Master who grew inward, outward, and upward; selfward, manward, andGodward. "How can I grow?" you ask. I will tell you by passing on to youthe secret as given by Maltbie Babcock. 

 Go Right On Working

MEMORY VERSE, _Luke_ 2: 40

 "And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon him. "

MEMORY HYMN [681]

 _"Brightly gleams our banner. "_

SNOW

"Goody, goody, it's snowing!" This is what I heard early yesterdaymorning. I think there were many other homes in which this shout of joyushered in the day. It being Saturday the day was mostly free forplaying in the snow. What did you do? You made a snow man. You built asnow fort or house. You had a snowball battle. You slid down hill. Youplayed fox and geese, tracking one another across white fields andthrough the woods. You had a happy, wonderful day, I know you did. 

Have you ever thought how snow is made, and whence it comes? It isformed high in the air, from vapor, and comes down from the clouds, justlike rain. Snowdrops are like people in one respect, no two are alike. If you will look at the snowflakes through a magnifying glass you willsee a great variety of shapes. And all of them are beautiful. We talkabout the sparkling beauty of diamonds and other precious gems; crystalsnowflakes are more beautiful by far. If only we could keep them frommelting what a necklace or a setting for a ring a collection ofsnowflakes would make!

God's love is shown to us in the snow. For a fall of snow is like agreat blanket, covering the tender roots and seeds, keeping them fromfreezing, assuring us of another harvest. As to-day you walk homethrough the snow let it speak to you of your Father's love. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Job 38: 22_

 "Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow?"

MEMORY HYMN [355]

 _"Love divine, all loves excelling. "_

KINDNESS

One day last week I saw a huge pair of bobs, heavily loaded with coal, being pulled up the street by two big, fine-looking horses. There weretwo men on the load. Their faces were black, but it was the dirt ofhonest toil, it was coal dust. They stopped the horses in front of thehouse directly across the street from me. I watched them with interest. The first thing one of the men did was to get down, take a board, goaround to the front of the horses, lift up the heavy wagon tongue, placethe board underneath it as a brace that the necks of the horses might berelieved of the strain of the wagon tongue. At the same time the otherman took two warm blankets and covered the horses with them, tucking inthe corners beneath the harness to make them tight and warm. Then themen set to work to carry the coal, basket by basket, into the cellar. That was kindness, was it not, to see that the horses were so well caredfor on a cold winter day!

To my mind one of the finest acts of our city government is the way weare taught kindness to dumb animals and birds, by permitting them tomake their homes and nests in the public park. What a delight it is towalk through the park and have the squirrels come running up so close, to eat from one's hand! That is kindness. 

How about kindness to people? Have you ever seen an older person walkingalong the street with a little child of three or four years of age, thechild reaching up as far as he could to take the hand of the olderperson, the older one jerking, pulling, yanking, all the while saying, "Come now, hurry up, hurry up. " That is not kindness, is it?

 "Howe'er it be, it seems to me 'Tis only noble to be good; Kind hearts are more than coronets, And simple faith than Norman blood. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Ephesians_ 4: 32

 "Be ye kind to one another. "

MEMORY HYMN [554]

 _"How sweet, how heavenly is the sight!"_

GOD'S CALL

God calls each one of you. He asks you to give your life to him. He hasa special work for you to do. You have heard of Wendell Phillips who didso much to make slavery unlawful in America! Once, when Wendell was aboy fourteen years of age, he heard Lyman Beecher preach. In the courseof his sermon the preacher said, "You belong to God. " The boy Wendellthought that the preacher looked straight at him when he said that. Hewent to his home at the close of the service, climbed the stairs to hisroom, shut the door, knelt in prayer, saying, "O God, I belong to thee, take what is thine own. " He heard and answered God's call. 

Many, many years before Wendell Phillips lived there was another boy. Heworked in the temple. He was a youthful assistant to the minister. Isuppose he ran errands for him, and performed any and every serviceabout the temple the minister desired. One night, as usual, the boy wentto bed and fell asleep. As he slept he heard a voice calling him. Now hewas an obedient boy, and though it was hard for him to rouse himselffrom a sound sleep and leave his comfortable bed he did so. He ran tothe minister saying, "Here I am, you called me, what do you want?" Theminister said, "No, my boy, I did not call you, go back to bed. " The boyreturned to his bed and again went to sleep. A second time, and even athird time he was called. Each time the faithful, obedient lad leapedfrom his couch and ran to the minister. The third time it dawned on themind of the minister that the voice the lad heard was the voice of God, calling him to himself and to his special service. Being a wise andloving man he said to the boy, "Return to your bed, and if you hear thecall again, say, 'Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth. '" The boy did asinstructed and that night was forever memorable in his life, for thatwas the night God called Samuel and Samuel answered. 

MEMORY VERSE, _I Samuel_ 3: 10

 "And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak, for thy servant heareth. "

MEMORY HYMN [674]

 _"Hushed was the evening hymn. "_

A HAPPY HOME

This morning, the first thing, my boy said to me, "Tell me a story. "This is the story I told him. Once upon a time, it was a long, long timeago, so long ago that we can scarcely realize how long, more thantwenty-five hundred years ago. Well, once upon a time there was ahome--homes then were quite the same in most ways as homes arenow--there were children in that home. They played and were happy. Andtoo, I suppose they had their misunderstandings, and sometimes thechildren quarreled. One day the children heard music. Looking up thestreet they saw a great company of men marching right toward them. Theywere soldiers. There were thirty thousand of them. In the center of themarching army were some oxen. The oxen were harnessed to a fine, newcart. On the cart was a chest, most beautifully carved and decorated. Onthe soldiers came. What was the amazement of the boys and girls whenthey stopped right in front of their house! Then the king, majestic inhis bearing and gorgeously arrayed, came to their father and said, "Iwant to leave this chest here in your house. Take good care of it. " Theking's men brought the wonderful chest within, set it down, went out, and the army marched away. From that hour the home was a different home. There was joy, and peace, and an utter absence of quarreling. Threemonths passed by. Then one day the king came again and took the chestaway. But peace and happiness did not depart with the chest. The homewas as happy and peaceful and free from bickering through all the comingmonths as through the three when the wonderful chest was in the house. What was the chest? It was not the king's chest; it was the ark of God. You will find this true story in Second Samuel, the sixth chapter. 

Memory Verse, _II Samuel_ 6: 11

 "And the ark of the Lord continued in the house of Obededom the Gittite three months; and the Lord blessed him, and all his household. "

MEMORY HYMN [671]

 _"O happy home, where thou art loved the dearest. "_

SYSTEM

Here are three books. I put them down like this, one beside the other, that is system. I throw them down carelessly, that is not system, it isnot orderly. 

Here is a little box. Inside are letters, such as you see on the sign infront of the Church. Each letter has a space all its own. Now if A wereput down at M, M at Z, and E at X, what a task it would be to pick outthe letters and make a sign!

One day I visited a Chinese school. Such lack of system, suchdisorderliness I never did see! Such noise I never did hear! They wereall studying at the tops of their voices, sitting around in all sorts ofways, each trying to out-shout the other. Another day I went into aschool here in our city. I saw the desks arranged in systematic fashion, each child with a desk all his own. In front I saw a platform, with alarger desk, for the teacher. All was quiet and orderly. 

Here I have a package of envelopes. There are fifty-two envelopes, onefor each Sunday in the year. Each envelope is divided in the center. Onone side I read, "For others. " On the other half I read, "Forourselves. " I need not tell you that these are church envelopes. In thisway, this systematic way, we support our local church and pay tomissions. We like to have the girls and boys, as well as older people, use these envelopes. The financial secretary of your church is just aswilling to keep the records of young people who give but five cents ineach side of the envelope as he is to keep the account of the man orwoman who places five dollars in each side of the envelope every Sunday. You see we want you to grow up systematic and orderly in all yourreligious life. Our Master is pleased when we do our religious duties"decently and in order. "

MEMORY VERSE, _I Corinthians_ 16: 2

 "Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him. "

MEMORY HYMN [631]

 _"Jesus shall reign where'er the sun. "_

A BOY FROM THE COUNTRY

Once upon a time there was a boy who lived in the country. It was saidof him that he was "ruddy and withal of a beautiful countenance, andgoodly to look to. " I think that description fits a country lad. Well, this boy had brothers who were away from home in the army, fighting. Oneday the boy's father said to him, "I wish you would go down and see howyour brothers are getting along, and take with you this present. " Theboy started on his journey. Now when he came to the place where thesoldiers were encamped he saw a strange sight. A giant, from theopposing army, came out, blustering and issuing his challenge to any onewho would dare come against him. All seemed afraid of him. Even the big, strong soldiers would not do battle with him. Therefore this youth fromthe country volunteered saying, "I will go out and fight him. " Theytried to dissuade him, but he insisted. Now he was a perfect shot withthe sling. He chose five smooth stones from the brook. With one ofthese he prevailed over the giant. 

This lad, however, had some other things which stood him in better steadeven than the sling and the stones. What were they? First, he hadcourage. He possessed what all the others lacked. Second, he had theability to do one thing and do that one thing well. He could use a slingwith the utmost accuracy. Third, he had confidence in himself and faithin God. He was not conceited, no, we do not like that. Rather he hadself-confidence. Above all was this--"I come to thee in the name of theLord of hosts. " So said the lad from the country as he went to fight thegiant. What was his name? It is a good name--David. 

MEMORY VERSE, _I Samuel_ 17: 45

 "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield; but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts. "

MEMORY HYMN [416]

 _"Faith of our fathers. "_

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE WORLD

The most beautiful thing in the world! Now what is it? If you will liftyour eyes just a little you will see the flowers on the table, but liftthem higher than the flowers, higher than this pulpit, higher than thepipes of the organ, above the lights, above the arch, you will see themost beautiful thing in the world. Do you see it? It is the Cross. 

Do you know, girls and boys, that long ago the cross was the mostrepulsive thing in the world? It was odious. It had none of the charmand beauty that is now woven about it. But from the day that Jesus wascrucified on the cross it took on new meaning, and it has grown in charmand power until I think we all agree that it is the most beautiful sightin the world. 

Out in Colorado, high up the side of a mountain, where the snow nevermelts in the crevices, may be seen two long ravines, one straight up anddown, the other straight across. The snow is packed into those ravinesall through the year, and lifting the eyes one may see upon the loftymountain side the Holy Cross. 

In the summer seas, one of the things that mariners are guided by andthat tourists look for, is the Southern Cross. There it is, fashioned bythe position of the stars in the clear skies of the tropics. 

There are many men who wear a cross as a watch fob. There are women whowear a cross as a pendant about the neck. This is an outward sign of aninner devotion. The important thing, my dear young Christians, is tohave the cross, its power and meaning, stamped upon one's heart. Is thatwhere you wear the Saviour's cross?

MEMORY VERSE, _I Corinthians_ 1: 18

 "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto them which are saved it is the power of God. "

MEMORY HYMN [143]

 _"In the cross of Christ I glory. "_

EASTER LIGHT

This glad morning, when the world is so bright and beautiful, I want totalk to you about Easter Light. 

One of the most interesting men in our city is a man who goes about ourstreets with two long sticks. He is the lamplighter. Here he comes downthe street! See how he pauses at each lamp post. With one stick he pullsthe little chain that turns on the gas; with the other he sets the lightgoing. He walks into the dark, but he leaves behind him miles of lightedstreets. I hope we shall have always many streets lighted with gas, forI love to see the lamplighter dot his way along the streets and avenueswith lighted periods. 

In the center of our city is the tall Electric Light Building. On thevery tip of the tower is a high power electric light. It is lightedevery evening from eight to eleven o'clock. Children, looking out oftheir windows as they go to bed, think that it is another star in thesky, it is so bright and steady. 

More wonderful than any of these lights is the source of all light. Itis the light that God provides for all of his children. The sun warmsour fields, makes our gardens grow, and causes our harvests to prosper. The sun never fails us. 

Now there is another light, a light that is above even the sun. That isthe light of Easter day. The tomb of death is no longer dark, for theresurrection light brightens every corner and shines in radiance throughthe open doorway. The light of Easter also lights up the windows of ourheavenly home. When you are out of an evening it is not pleasant toreturn to a dark house. There is a wondrous welcome in lighted windows. That welcome God gives us in the light of Easter day. Christ, and hisresurrection, shine in the windows of heaven to greet us when we gohome. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 28: 1

 "In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. "

MEMORY HYMN [156]

 _"Christ the Lord is risen to-day. "_

APRIL

I have in my hand a small branch from a big tree. This branch is from anapple tree. Here are seen the tiny buds, the promise of the blossom, andafter that the fruit. Have you ever seen an apple orchard in blossom?People rave about the cherry blossoms of Japan, and the fire trees, flaming red, of the Philippines. I have been in both countries, but Ithink there is no more beautiful sight in any country than theblossoming apple orchards of America. 

As you came to church this morning you saw all along the streets andavenues hundreds of trees like this branch, sending forth their firstbuds. What do these buds tell us?

First of all they tell us of God. I do not see how any one can livethrough the awakening spring season and not think daily thoughts of God. Most people remember the Creator. Only one person has ever denied God. "The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God. " He said it tohimself, he did not dare speak it out loud. 

In the second place, this branch tells us of God's Love. He, the lovingFather of all people, makes blessed provision for the care and nurtureof his children. He reminds us each year, in seedtime and harvest, ofhis boundless love. His love never fails. There have been many hundredsof years in the history of the world, yet each year has had its spring, its seedtime, and its Resurrection. Young people, let God's April speakto you. 

 "When I am gone, somehow I hope that April Will typify my life, my faith, My hope of victory through the years, My steadiness of step, my clear and visioned eye. The early flowers, the birds Singing in the rain, The increasing light, the slowly opening buds, The almond blooms, the trees in vernal dress Are like the silver crown upon the head; A prophecy of heaven's summer time. Yes, even now it is the April Of my great immortality. "

MEMORY VERSE, _John_ 11: 25

 "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life. "

MEMORY HYMN [389]

 _"Sow in the morn thy seed. "_

HELPING FINGERS

For three years I lived in Manila, Philippine Islands. Not far from myhome was an orphanage for children who were deaf and dumb. Frequentlythese children were seen at different entertainments that were givenabout the city. One evening I went to attend a lecture in the Y. M. C. A. Right in front of me sat three children. They were very quiet andorderly. When the lecture began the boy who sat in the middle began tomake his fingers go as fast as he could, the two children on either sidewatching him intently. That center boy could hear, the other two weredeaf. So he heard the lecture for them and told it to them by the fingerlanguage. 

One day a girl, coming out from school, got on a street car to go to herhome. The car was crowded. She found a seat next to a woman who washeavily laden with bundles. She had all she could do to hold thosebundles in her lap and keep them from falling and scattering theircontents on the floor. Then a string about one of the packages becameuntied. She struggled to get that string fastened securely. She had somany packages, her fingers were numb with cold, and again and again thestring slipped just at the crucial time. Finally this school girl, whowas an attractive, well-dressed girl, reached over and placed her nicelygloved finger on the obstreperous knot. There was a grateful smile fromthe troubled woman and a hearty "Thank you. " The next stop was thegirl's home. As she went to the end of the car she passed a schoolfriend who had watched the little incident. She said to her, "I see youbelong to the helping hand society. " "No, " replied the girl, "not thehelping hand, just the helping finger society. " This is a great society, girls and boys. Admission to it requires no initiation fee, no dues, simply the desire and the will to be helpful wherever you are. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Ecclesiastes_ 9: 10

 "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might. "

MEMORY HYMN [349]

 _"Saviour, thy dying love thou gavest me. "_

TWO R'S AND AN A

Do you know what week this is? We have all sorts of weeks, don't we!There is Sunday School week, Go to Church week, Boy Scout week, RedCross week, Social Welfare week, Hospital week, Y. W. C. A. And Y. M. C. A. Week. Sometimes we wish we could have one week all to ourselves. 

Well, this is a special week. It is called Good Literature week. I wantto tell you about Good Literature week by the use of these threeletters, two R's and an A. 

The first R stands for Read. By all means read. There is no excuse fornot reading, there is so much to read. Indeed I think that is the chiefdifficulty, we have too much, at least too much of that which is notgood to read. Here's the bulky daily paper. When it is delivered thereis a rush for it. The children want the comic supplement. So do some ofthe grownups. 

 "A little nonsense now and then, Is relished by the wisest men. "

That is true, and all right, but read something beside the comics. 

The second R is Remember. You cannot remember all that you read. You canremember much. You should train your mind to remember the best. JohnRuskin, one of the most gifted of Englishmen, said, "To this I owe allthat I have of power, to the fact that when I was a boy my mother mademe learn, every day, and remember, a verse of the Bible. "

Now the A. The A stands for, can you guess? It means Action. Read, remember what you read, and then apply it, put it into action. It is afine thing to read a story like Pollyanna and get all excited over it. It is much finer to read Pollyanna and then put her spirit into actionin the daily life of the home. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 119: 11

 "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might; not sin against thee. "

MEMORY HYMN [201]

 _"How precious is the book divine!"_

CANDLE CHILDREN

What is this I have here? It is a candle in a candlestick. There issomething about a candle we all love. We have our clear gas lights andour still more brilliant electric bulbs, but when the birthday comes wewant a cake with candles on it. Think of this as a birthday candle andlet it speak to you. 

First of all this candle speaks of Symmetry. How perfectly formed isthis candle! It is smooth, there are no rough places that stand out likean ugly wart on one's face. Your life should have symmetry. God asks youto give heed to your physical, your mental and your spiritual dutiesthat your life may be well rounded, a life of beautiful symmetry. 

Second, this candle stands for Fragrance. This is a fragrant candle. Itis what is known as a "barberry" candle. There are some children we donot like to have around, they are surly, sulky and mean. There areothers we dear love to have with us at all times. They have what I callfragrance. They have the fragrance of thoughtfulness, the sweetness ofunselfishness. 

In the third place this candle means Erectness. How straight it standsin the candlestick! Stand up straight, girls and boys. Do not stoop. Donot hump yourself over your school desk. Walk erect. It means so muchnow, it will mean much more in later years. Some day, if you heed myword, you will be grateful that the preacher once said to you soemphatically that you could not forget, "John, Mary, stand up straight. "

Fourth, the candle stands for Light. It is useless until the wick islighted. It burns for others. Your life is a light. Jesus wants allChristians to think of themselves as lights in the world. "Let yourlight shine. " Be a lighted candle for the Lord. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Proverbs_ 20: 27

 "The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord. "

MEMORY HYMN [84]

 _"The spacious firmament on high. "_

ALAS, THE MARKS

There is an old, old story about a father who had great difficulty inmaking his boy obey. The boy did wrong in spite of all that the fathercould say or do. One day the father said to the boy, "Here is the sheddoor, now every time you do wrong I am going to pound a nail into thedoor. " One by one the nails were pounded into the door, until it wasliterally filled with nails. The boy did not like the looks of the door, the thought of it began to trouble his conscience. So he spoke to hisfather about it. "Well, " said his father, "I'll tell you what we willdo. Every time you are obedient, every time you do a good deed ratherthan a wrong one, we will pull a nail out. " The bargain was struck, andas, one by one, the nails were driven in, so, one by one, they werepulled out. 

Finally the day arrived when there was but one nail left. You canimagine the joy of the boy when he and his father went together to pullthat nail out. With great glee the claws of the hammer were fastenedabout the head of Mr. Nail and, jerk, out he came. "Oh, " exclaimed theboy, "the marks are left. " Yes, it was true, for every nail driven inand pulled out a mark was left, and it was an ugly looking door. "Thatis the sad thing about it all, " said the father, "every time you do anevil deed a mark is left upon the life. It is never the same as if theevil deed had not been committed. It is fine that we have all the nailsout, but it would have been much better had they never been driven in. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Jeremiah_ 2: 22

 "For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much sope, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord God. "

MEMORY HYMN [348]

 _"Take my life and let it be Consecrated, Lord, to thee. "_

A BLIND MAN WHO SAW

Once upon a time there was a boy who had a call to be a preacher. Nowthis boy was Scotch, and the fondest ambition of a Scotch mother is thather son shall become a minister. You may believe that this particularlad's mother was very, very happy. So George (George was his name) wentto school. He was not a brilliant student, but he was faithful, he didhis work well and passed his grades. One day he noted some difficultywith his eyes. The trouble increased rather than diminished. Before hehad finished his education, while he was yet a young man, he becametotally blind. He was greatly discouraged. He was tempted to give upentirely, stop trying to do anything. Certainly he could not be asuccessful preacher if he was blind. Who would listen to him? How couldhe do his work?

However there was another voice inside him, the voice of courage, hopeand faith. It was the voice of the Lord that bid him go right on withhis plans. He heeded the urge of the inner voice. He was ordained. People loved him, and flocked to hear him preach. Though his naturalvision was darkened, his spiritual vision was so much brighter. Thoughhe could not look upon the beautiful sights of the world, he had eyes tosee more clearly the wonderful things of the soul. His fame spreadthroughout Edinburgh, Scotland, England, and all the English-speakingworld, and everywhere he was known and loved as the blind preacher. 

This blind preacher wrote many hymns. The greatest hymn he ever wrote, and one of the finest in all the English language, is the Memory Hymnfor to-day. 

His name? Well, I almost forgot that. His name is George Matheson. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Isaiah_ 42: 16

 "I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them. "

MEMORY HYMN [481]

 _"O love that wilt not let me go. "_

CHOOSING A KING

What would you do if you were asked to select a young man who shouldsome day be president of the United States? What tests would you apply?Would you look upon the clothes that he wore? Would you consider thecolor of his hair? Would you insist that he should be of a certainheight? Once upon a time there was a good and wise man who was asked tochoose a king for his people. He started on his journey in search of themost promising youth he could find. By and by he came to a home wherethere were many boys. One of these boys stood before him. He was tall. He was well formed. He had a good bearing. Surely, thought theking-chooser, here is just the man. But something inside him, "the stillsmall voice" I think it was, said to him, "No, do not choose him, he isnot the one. " The father then called a second son. Like the first he wasgoodly to look upon. The great man commissioned to choose a king wasabout to select this one when the same voice inside warned him to wait. A third son was summoned. A third time the voice said, "No, he is notthe one. "

How chagrined the father must have been to have all seven of hissplendid sons rejected! All? No, not all. For the king-chooser said, "Have you no more sons?" "Yes, I have one other, but he is young and thekeeper of the sheep. I am sure you would not think of him as a king. ""Nevertheless, " said the prophet, "send for him. " And he came, theyoungest, the most unlikely one of all, at least so the father and thebrothers thought. But the voice within said, "This is the one, choosehim. " You will want to read all of this wonderful story and you willfind it in your Bible, First Samuel the sixteenth chapter. 

MEMORY VERSE, I _Samuel_ 16: 7

 "And the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for the man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart. "

MEMORY HYMN [354]

 _"O for a heart to praise my God. "_

WORSHIP AND TOIL

One day about one hundred years ago a little boy named Jean stood by hisfather's side watching the setting sun sink into the waves of the sea. The glory of the scene stirred his boyish enthusiasm and he poured outhis heart in an ecstasy of joy. The father reverently took off his capand said, "My son, it is God. " The boy never forgot that word, "It isGod. "

Jean came of a peasant family, so he had to take his place in the fieldand earn his bread "by the sweat of his brow. " On Sundays the fieldswere forsaken and the family went to the village church where the fatherwas the leader of the choir. After church friends and relativessometimes came home to spend the afternoon with the family. One Sunday, soon after the return from church, the bent figure of an aged peasantslowly made his way along the road. There was something about the figurethat struck the boy Jean. He took a piece of charcoal and hurriedly drewa sketch upon the wall. Every movement and attitude was so perfectlydepicted that everybody laughed--everybody but the father. He sensed thegift possessed by his boy, whose growing talent he had been watching. "My Jean, " he said, "I will no longer hinder you from learning thatwhich you are so anxious to know. "

Jean Francis Millet, for such is his full name, became the artist ofpeasantry. He never made any other boast. His character was of thehighest. He had a firm faith in God. He believed in the Bible as theWord of God. He looked upon his use of the brush as preaching uponcanvas the purity and truth he believed. 

"The Angelus" is the name of the best known picture that he painted. Itshows two workers in a potato field, a man and a woman, who hear fromthe near-by village the faint tones of the Angelus bell calling them toprayer. They pause, stand erect, bow their heads and worship. It is abeautiful picture. I hope you have a copy framed in your room. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Luke_ 11: 1

 "Lord, teach us to pray. "

MEMORY HYMN [495]

 _"From every stormy wind that blows. "_

GOD'S CLOCK

Do you own a watch? If you do not now you will some day. I have a friendwhose watch came to him in this wise. His father said to him, "When yougraduate from High School I will give you a watch. "

Is there a "town clock" where you live? Is it dependable? Do men settheir watches by it? Do people, passing it, glance up to see if they arelate? In the village where I began my ministry the Baptist tower heldthe town clock. I lived but a few doors away. I went to bed by it. Istudied by it. I was wakened by it. Even now, and many years have passedsince then, I can hear its clear bell strike the hours. 

The strangest clock I ever saw was in China. I went up the West River tothe city of Canton. I was carried through the narrow, smelly, crowdedstreets to the top of a little hill at the city's edge. There, on thevery tip-top I saw the "Water Clock. " I read, "This water clock is amost ancient, authentic, celebrated and sacred relic of Kwong TungProvince, over 1, 300 years old. It was erected on the top story of thenorth Worshiping Tower which was built by Chin To, King of the South ofChina. "

It was a strange, crude affair, run by water. I stood and looked at itand thought, "This clock was running when George Washington waspresident; it was running when Christopher Columbus sailed on his greatvoyage of discovery; long years, long centuries before that it wasbuilt. "

But there is a clock surpassing all others. I call it God's clock. It isthe Sun. Since time began God's clock has kept time. It is the centralclock of our universe. It regulates all others. It does not have to bewound. God has seen to that. How can we help worshiping the God who hasmade such a clock!

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 74: 16

 "The day is thine, the night also is thine; thou hast prepared the light and the sun. "

MEMORY HYMN [47]

 _"Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear. "_

THE HUMAN KODAK

I wonder how many of you have a kodak. Yes, many of you own one. What awonderful little machine a kodak is! First we buy a film, then we openthe kodak and place the film. Now pull the paper over to the empty rolland fasten, close the kodak and begin to wind. Oh, here you are, No. 1. The day is clear, for we must have a clear day to get the best picture. We hold the kodak very steady, then snap, we have it. Next we pull alittle slide in the back, take a pencil and write down the date andname. Let me see, what was that picture? Oh, yes, "Chrysanthemum (isthat the way to spell it?) exhibition. " Next the films are developed, and the kodak pictures are complete, all but pasting them in a big book. 

For all that the kodak is a whole lot of fuss, isn't it? But, do youknow, each one of us has a kodak God has given him which works itself. We have the open circle through which the pictures are taken, our eyes, and beyond the eyes, in the brain, are thousands of films. We start outin the morning and the moment we open our eyes we begin exposing thosefilms. We do not have to do any clicking for these pictures, one afteranother, click, click, click, and they are developed as fast as they aretaken. 

If you should say to a man who has reached three score years and ten, "Tell me the clearest picture you can remember, " he would not show apicture that was taken yesterday, or last week, or last year. He wouldturn back the pages of his memory book fifty, sixty years. The clearestpictures he possesses are those that were snapped in his boyhood. Everyday you are taking pictures that are going to remain with you as long asyou live. Let us resolve, girls and boys, that as we go out each morningand our human kodak begins clicking, we shall take only pictures thatare true, pure and clean. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Proverbs_ 4: 25

 "Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. "

MEMORY HYMN [1]

 _"O for a thousand tongues to sing My great Redeemer's praise. "_

WATCH LESSONS

My grandfather was a foreman in a tannery for a great many years. Finally, as he was approaching seventy years of age, he left the tanneryto retire to a quieter life. The men who worked in his department had areal affection for him. As an expression of that esteem they presentedhim, on his last day with them, a beautiful, solid gold watch. On theinner cover they engraved his name, the date, and the occasion of thepresentation. When my grandfather died the watch became my father'spossession. Then upon my father's death the watch came to me. What a joyit is to carry such a watch! Here are some lessons my watch teaches me. 

The case is but the outside. It is nice to have a gold case, it looks sowell. But that does not make the watch keep any better time. It wouldkeep just as accurate time if the case were iron. You see it is theinside that counts. It is the same with life. The soul is the importantpart of us. 

Now here is the tiny second hand. It rushes around, jumping, hurrying, fussy, as though it were doing the whole job. But you cannot tell timeby the second hand. Knock it off and the watch goes right on running. 

Here's the minute hand. How big, and solemn and serious it looks! Surelythe minute hand is important. What time is it? Fifteen minutes after. Fifteen minutes after what? The minute hand does not say. 

Ah, here's the hour hand. Strong, steady, dependable. The hour hand doesnot move very fast, you cannot see it move. It makes no fuss at all, butyou can tell time by the hour hand. Let your life be like the hour handof the watch, so true and steady that other girls and boys who dailywatch you may know life's time, may never be led astray. 

MEMORY VERSE, I _Corinthians_ 15: 58

 "Therefore, be ye steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. "

MEMORY HYMN [385]

 _"Soldiers of the cross, arise_!"

WHAT DID YOU SEE?

A few days ago I made a trip on the train. When I returned home one ofthe first questions my little boy asked me was, "What did you see?" Ishall tell you what I told him. 

Looking out of the car window I saw an immense field, acres and acres, and in that field were planted hundreds, yes thousands, of little trees. I inquired of the man who sat next me, "What are those little treesfor?" He said, "They are growing those little trees to reforest thedesolate, burned over regions of the Adirondacks. " I said to myself, "That is just what we are doing in my church. We are growing girls andboys to reforest the needy places of the earth. " I inquired, "How longdo they keep those little trees there?" "Not very long, " said he, "justlong enough to give them a good start. Then they transplant them. " AgainI said to myself, "That is exactly what we do. We keep the girls andboys only a little while, then they are transplanted. "

I had another question. "When they transplant these little trees how dothey plant them, haphazard, every-which-way?" "No, indeed, " was hisanswer, "they are planted in rows, and close together. " Exactly what weare doing in our church, I thought. We are growing our girls and boys, and we are keeping them close together, because they are such a help toone another, and there is great inspiration in numbers. 

Looking out of the train window at those trees of future forests, Ithought of the verse in Isaiah, "The mountains and the trees shall breakforth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall claptheir hands. " I can hear the mountains and the hills of the Adirondackssinging because of the growing trees, and I hear the mountains and thehills of earth singing because of the millions of growing girls and boyswho shall reforest the desolate places of earth. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 92: 13

 "Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. "

MEMORY HYMN [677]

 _"Saviour, like a shepherd lead us. "_

KNIFE LESSONS

I have here a knife. It was given me by a friend, a token of hisaffection and esteem, when I went aboard the steamer in Manila, Philippine Islands, to return to the homeland. All these years sincethen the knife has been on my study desk, daily teaching me. Whatlessons does this knife teach?

First of all the knife tells me of Strength. The most important part ofthis knife is what _I_ call the backbone. It is the main portion of theknife to which all the blades are fastened, as well as the polishedpearl handle. This would be a weak and useless knife did it not have abackbone. It says to me every day "Be strong, stand up, haveconvictions, be steadfast. "

Lesson number two, Discipline. This knife has been subjected to manytrials and tests. The steel of which these blades are made had to gothrough a hard, hot, trying process before they were tempered and fit totake an edge and hold it. Sometimes I rebel about certain processes ofthe days, then I think of my knife and learn from it the lesson ofdiscipline. 

The third lesson this knife teaches me is Neatness. Now I can picturethe man who bought this knife. As he went into the store, he stoodbefore the glass show case wherein were displayed scores of differentkinds of knives. There were dark knives and light knives, big knives andlittle knives. His eye caught this knife, with its graceful lines, itssmooth pearl handle, and he said, "That is a neat knife, I'll take thatone. " People are attracted to you by your neatness. 

The fourth lesson is Usefulness. Really it is quite wonderful thevariety of uses to which this knife can be put. Here is a big blade, anda small blade; here is a blade with a file; folded in the back is a tinypair of scissors. So the great test of life is its usefulness. 

MEMORY VERSE, _I Corinthians_ 9: 22

 "I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. "

MEMORY HYMN [545]

 _"Jesus calls us. "_

LETTERS

Who is the most popular man in your town? The Postman. Who is the manwho is most eagerly looked for as he comes down the street? The Postman. Who receives, at every door where he stops, a most cordial welcome? ThePostman. I wonder if the thrill of getting a letter will ever pass away. When you come home from school the first thing you do is to look on thehall table to see if the Postman has brought you a letter. It is thesame when we grow up. No matter how many letters we may receive we neverget over the keen delight at having the Postman bring us letters. 

Last Sunday afternoon you wrote your grandmother. You said, "Only twomonths more of school and then I am coming to see you, and all thesummer vacation I am going to play around your big house, and in thebarn, and across the fields, and through the woods. " On your way toschool Monday morning, you posted that letter. Monday afternoon youbegan looking for an answer. Tuesday you were impatient that you hadnot received a reply. Wednesday you were almost in tears, though, hadyou only stopped to think you would have known that it takes two daysfor a letter to get to your grandmother, she lives so far away. Thursdaythe answer came. "I am eager for vacation time to come so that you, mydear grandchild, may be here with me. "

I have here an unusual book. It is a book of letters. All the letterswere written by a big man, a father, to little children, his children. The man who wrote them was Theodore Roosevelt. What fortunate childrenwere his! Not many fathers take time to write to their children as didour great president. Oh, for more fathers like Roosevelt! Oh, forappreciative children, who will not only gladly receive, but cheerfullywrite, letters of love!

MEMORY VERSE, _I John_ 2: 12

 "I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. "

MEMORY HYMN [544]

 _"I love to tell the story. "_

A UNIQUE PSALM

I want to tell you about a unique Psalm. Which Psalm is it? It is the119th. 

The 119th Psalm is unique because of its length. It is the longest ofthe Psalms. It has one hundred and seventy-six verses. 

It is unique because of its arrangement. It is divided into twenty-twoequal parts. Each part contains eight verses. 

Again, the 119th Psalm is an acrostic, or an alphabetical Psalm. It isbuilt around the Hebrew alphabet. Each of the twenty-two portions beginswith one of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. 

The Psalm is unique because of its content. It is given over entirely toa consideration of the law and commandments of God. Indeed, if you willread the Psalm, you will find that every verse says something about theprecepts, or the statutes, or the commandments, or the word of God. 

The 119th Psalm contains some of the verses with which we are mostfamiliar. "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By takingheed thereto according to thy word. " "Open thou mine eyes, that I maybehold wondrous things out of thy law. " "Thy word is a lamp unto myfeet, and a light unto my path. "

The Psalm reaches its highest point, and finds its fullest expression inthe 94th verse, three words, "I am thine. "

Young people, I want you to read this 119th Psalm, and when you come tothe 94th verse I want you to stop and say over very earnestly, veryprayerfully, "I am thine. " And may you be His for all time is my prayer. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 119: 94

"I am thine, save me; for I have sought thy precepts. "

MEMORY HYMN [342]

 _"Lord, I am thine, entirely thine. "_

THE FATHER'S CARE

I have here a nut. It is a pecan. It grows in our southern states. It isa well formed nut with a hard shell. This nut I have is cracked. I openit and I notice just inside a thin, brown coating that covers the meat. I touch this coating to my lips. It is bitter and causes me to pucker mylips. This is the Creator's blessed provision for the protection of thenut in its growing stage. The bitter coating keeps insects and pestsaway. 

On my way to church this morning I looked up and saw a long piece ofyarn flying across the street at a rapid rate. I wondered what couldcause that. Then at the front end of the yarn I saw a bird. The birdflew to the gable of a big house. There, in a protected corner, she wasmaking her nest. The yarn was to be woven into her new spring house. SoGod gives instinct to birds and all his creatures as a mark of hisloving care. 

The most delicate, sensitive portion of your body is the eye. When Iconsider how tender and open to harm the eye is I wonder that so manyof us go through life with our eyes unhurt. But God has provided asleepless protection for our eyes. There is a guard, always on duty. Whenever danger comes near, that guard, our eyelid, closes andeffectively wards off impending trouble. 

We started with the lowest form of life, an inanimate nut. Now we cometo the highest, the soul of man. For in each one of you there issomething eternal, something akin to God himself. The name we give thateternal spirit is the soul. For the protection of our soul God gives usfaith, a sense of right and wrong, conscience, the still small voice. Hesurrounds us with Christian homes, the Church, helpful fellowship, themeans of grace. All these things are a protection for the soul. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 6: 28, 29

"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neitherdo they spin; and yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glorywas not arrayed like one of these. "

MEMORY HYMN [517]

 _"While thee I seek, protecting power. "_

YOKES

A Yoke is a help, not a hindrance. Our first thought is that a yoke isburdensome. A little study reveals to us the great usefulness of theyoke. 

Have you ever seen a yoke of oxen? What heavy, slow-moving creaturesthey are! But they are pullers of heavy loads. These loads could not bedrawn by them were they not yoked together. 

Now there are different kinds of yokes, that is, there are many ways ofrendering easier the carrying of heavy loads. For example, there is theOriental way. First, there is the manner in which one man will carry aheavy load. He takes a pole, on each end of the pole hangs a rope. Thenhe divides his load, fastening half of his load to either rope. He getsbeneath the pole, which is shaped to fit his shoulder, lifts, and off hetrots as easily and jauntily as can be. Sometimes the load is too heavyfor one man. He then summons a companion. They get a longer, heavierpole, with a much stouter rope. This time they do not divide the load, rather they keep it together. They fasten the rope securely about it, and then tie it about the pole. The men stoop, one at each end of theheavy pole. They stand up straight, the load is lifted from the ground, only a few inches perhaps, but enough to clear the ground, then, singingand laughing, keeping perfect time each with the other, they swing downthe street. It is incredible the heavy loads they carry. I could notbelieve my eyes when I looked upon some of them. 

Jesus perfectly understood the helpfulness and value of the yoke. Hemade it most beautiful in that he told his followers that he would helpthem, that he would carry his part of the burden, that he would sharewith them the other side of the yoke. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 11: 29-30

 "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. "

MEMORY HYMN [449]

 _"My times are in thy hand. "_

GOOD ADVICE

Most of us, men and women as well as girls and boys, do not take kindlyto advice. We very much prefer that people keep their advice tothemselves. There are times, however, when we are compelled to listen toadvice, because of the source. Here is a bit of advice that commands ourattention. It is from the great English novelist, Charles Dickens. 

Charles Dickens' youngest boy, Edward, left home when he was sixteenyears of age and went to Australia. His father wrote him a partingletter, which is worth while for all boys, whether or no they leavehome. In that letter the great Dickens said, "I put a New Testament among your books for the very same reasons andwith the very same hopes that made me write an easy account of it foryou when you were a little child. Because it is the best book that everwas or ever will be in the world. And because it teaches you the bestlessons by which any human creature who tries to be truthful andfaithful to duty can possibly be guided. As your brothers have goneaway, one by one, I have written to each such words as I am now writingto you and have entreated them all to guide themselves by this book, putting aside the interpretations and inventions of men. Never abandonthe wholesome practice of saying your own private prayers, night andmorning. I have never abandoned it myself, and I know the comfort ofit. "

Now that we are done reading this letter it does not sound like adviceat all, does it. It is all so wholesome and sturdy that we feel likespeaking right out loud, "Thank you, Mr. Dickens, thank you very much. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 119: 9

 "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his ways? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. "

MEMORY HYMN [205]

 _"Lamp of our feet. "_

IF I WERE A BOY AGAIN

Chicago University, one of the great schools of America and the world, received its impetus from the tireless energy and brilliant leadershipof its great President, Dr. Harper. After his death there was foundamong his papers a memorandum which read as follows:

"If I were a boy again I would strive to find out from goods books howgood men lived. 

"If I were a boy again I would study the Bible even more than I did. Iwould make it a mental companion. The Bible is a necessity for everyboy. 

"If I were a boy again I would more and more cultivate the company ofthose older whose graces of person and mind would help me on in my goodwork. I would always seek good company. 

"If I were a boy again I would study the life and character of ourSaviour, persistently, that I might become more and more like unto him. "

Now President Harper was a great, wise and good man. If he felt that hewould do certain things were he a boy again, surely the rest of uscould improve upon our boyhood years had we the chance. 

If I were a boy again I would be more attentive to Church and SundaySchool and the things that were taught me there. If I were a boy again Iwould get my day school lessons with greater care. If I were a boy againI would be more obedient to and more thoughtful of my parents. 

Why should I talk like this, for I cannot be a boy again? But you boyshave your boyhood. It is a present reality. Let President Harper teachyou. Be the boy he pictures. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 103: 1-5

 "Bless the Lord, O my soul ... Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's. "

MEMORY HYMN [678]

 _"By cool Siloam's shady rill. "_

ONE BY ONE

Here is this great church building. It is a beautiful structure, is itnot? It is so substantial, it has stood here so many years, we take itso for granted that it seems as though it had always been here. Butthere was a day when the ground upon which this building stands wasvacant ground. Then men came with picks and shovels, wagons and plows, and set to work. They laid the foundations, stone upon stone. Then thewalls rose, stone upon stone. Then the spire, stone upon stone, untilthe very peak was reached, for our church is stone from the foundationto the top of the spire. How were these thousands of stones put inplace? One by one. 

Think also of the roof of our church. It is a tile roof. How in theworld did they get all those tiles up on the roof and fitted in place?Did some man who was very strong stand back and throw a handful of tileat the roof? No, it was done one by one. 

To-day it is snowing outside. Some one has figured that in a squaremile one foot of snow would weigh 65, 000 tons. If you should take sledsand horses, and put a ton of snow on each sled, and arrange the horsesand sleds in a procession, the sleds carrying the snow from that squaremile of territory would reach from Philadelphia to New York, and beyondNew York, straight up the Hudson, almost to Albany. That is only onesquare mile, and there are thousands of square miles every wintercovered with snow. How does this snow come? In tiny flakes, one by one. 

It is the same with life. God gives us many days, but he sends them oneat a time. He also sends us many duties, but they do not come en masse. He is good and sends them one by one. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew 6: 34_

 "Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. "

MEMORY HYMN [419]

 _"One more day's work for Jesus. "_

COME

There is not a girl or boy here this morning who does not feel withinthe desire to do good. The drawing power of good--in other words, thedrawing power of God. He it is who says to you, "Come. "

I want to illustrate this by a few things which I have here. The firstis this magnet. And here are some small nails. These tiny nailsrepresent girls and boys of about eleven or twelve years of age. I applythe magnet to these nails and I lift up--can you see me--twenty-five orthirty nails. You see it is a great deal easier to respond to thedrawing power of good, to answer the great "Come, " in girlhood andboyhood. 

Now here are some nails that are a little larger. I can lift up onlyfive or six of these larger nails. They represent young people ofeighteen or nineteen. As one gets older he does not hear as readily, atleast he does not answer, Christ's blessed "Come. "

Next we have some nails still larger. The magnet will lift up only oneor two of these. They stand for men and women in mature life. Oh, if onehas not responded to Christ's call in childhood or youth, it becomesincreasingly difficult as the years pass. How seldom, how very seldom, does an aged one answer the divine call and give his heart to the Lord!

Here is a very large nail, and it is rusty. Indeed it is literallycoated with rust. This represents the life that is deep in sin. For longyears this life has been persisting in his evil ways. As the magnet mustbe very strong to penetrate the rust and grip the nail, so Christ's callmust be strong and loving to reach the sinful soul. Christ can save"from the uttermost, " but how much better it is to say in early youth, "I hear thy voice, my Lord. Gladly I come. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 11: 28

 "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. "

MEMORY HYMN [462]

 _"In heavenly rest abiding. "_

LOVE AND LOYALTY

Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was a man who had a wife and twosons. There was a famine in the land where he lived, so he said to hiswife and sons, "We will journey down to another country where the cropshave not failed. There shall we find plenty to eat, and there will wemake our home. "

So the family moved to the strange land where they prospered and werehappy. In time the boys grew to young manhood and married young women ofthe new land where they dwelt. Then sorrow entered their homes, assorrow comes sooner or later to every home. The father and the two sonsdied, and the mother and her two daughters-in-law were left alone. Themother, whose name was Naomi, said, "I am going back to the land where Ilived in former days, back to the people of my girlhood. " The youngwomen said, "We shall go with you also. " "No, " replied Naomi, "you mustnot do that. Go back to your homes, there you shall be cared for, andmay the Lord deal gently with you. "

The names of these two daughters-in-law were Ruth and Orpah. It wasRuth who then spoke up and said in words that are not surpassed in allthe English language:

 "Intreat me not to leave thee, Or to return from following after thee; For whither thou goest I will go; And where thou lodgest I will lodge; Thy people shall be my people, And thy God my God; Where thou diest will I die, And there will I be buried; The Lord do so to me, and even more, If ought but death part thee and me. "

Great words are these, words of love and loyalty. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Exodus_ 20: 12

 "Honour thy father and thy mother; that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. "

MEMORY HYMN [668]

 _"O perfect love, all human thought transcending. "_

KUMMOGOKDONATTOOTTAMMOCTITEAONGANNUNNONASH

What do you think of this word? It contains forty-two letters. 

What does it mean? What language is it? It means "catechism. " It is theIndian language. 

Now for the story. Many years ago, soon after the landing of the firstPilgrim Fathers in New England, there was a man by the name of JohnEliot, who came to this new and unsettled country of America. He was adevoted Christian, an earnest, patient, persistent missionary. He livedfor sixty years in Massachusetts, and most of those years were spentamong the redskins who inhabited that section. He loved them, workedwith them, learned their language, reduced it to writing, thentranslated for them the Scriptures. He was called, and he is still knownby the name, "Apostle to the Indians. " The word at the head of the pageshows what labors he entered into. All this was made possible throughputting into practice his own motto, "Prayer and pains, through faithin Christ, will do anything. "

What good John Eliot did for the Indians some one must have done for thehuman race. Who invented the first alphabet? Who conceived the idea ofletters? Who planned out the putting of certain letters together to forma word, then placing certain words in a string to form a sentence, thatsentence conveying an idea? Who did all this? We do not know. Theblessed work has gone on, until the knowledge of letters is so taken forgranted that we have a saying, "as plain as ABC. "

The Bible has almost kept pace with language. There are few languagesto-day into which the Word has not been translated. We shall not restuntil every child of every tongue is able to read God's message of loveand salvation in the language in which he was born. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Luke_ 4: 16

"And Jesus came to Nazareth ... And, as his custom was, he went into thesynagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. "

MEMORY HYMN [200]

 _"O word of God incarnate. "_

WHAT THE TREES SAID TO ME

Across the street from my home is a large and beautiful park. It hasinviting, winding paths, great quantities of flowers and many varietiesof trees. Early one summer day, before most people were up, I strolledthrough the park. I thought I was all alone, but suddenly I heard avoice, "Stand erect. Do not walk with stooping shoulders. Head up, shoulders back!" Now I confess I was walking, and thinking as I walked, with shoulders bent and head forward. At once I straightened up andlooked about to see who was speaking. It was the voice of a pine tree, growing hard by the path, tall and straight as a plumb line. "Thankyou, " I said to the pine. 

No sooner had I left the pine, and was again deep in thought, when Iheard another voice. "Be courteous, you can never accomplish anything byscolding, insulting or driving people. Be fair and just. Be like Christ, a Christian gentleman. " Now who in the world is speaking to me? I lookedeverywhere and there was not the sign of a person in all the park. "Here I am, " the voice said. I looked and there, right before me, was agraceful elm tree, smiling and courteously bowing low to me. "I shalltry and heed your word, " I said. 

Going on my way I was no longer absorbed in thought, for I knew thatother trees would have something to say. Sure enough, "Be steadfast, " Iheard. What tree could that be? I should have known at once. The maple, of course. 

Now the white birch beckons. How its face shines in the light of theearly morning! But dark or light I can distinguish it from all itsfellows. Always white of face and clean of life. So I hear it say, "Beclean. "

Turning my steps homeward I said to the kindly trees, "Good-by, andthank you. I shall never forget this morning's walk. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Isaiah_ 61: 3

"To give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, thegarment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be calledtrees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might beglorified. "

MEMORY HYMN [745]

 _"Into the woods my Master went. "_

BANKS

Here is a bank. I have been reading lately about banks. You know that inJesus' day they did not have banks such as we have. People took theirtreasures and jewels and hid them in a vessel, or dug a hole in theearth and covered their valuable possessions with dirt. But now one ofthe most prominent institutions of any community is the bank. 

What does this bank stand for? In the first place it means Strength. Itis made of very heavy, hard material. There is money in this bank. Itdoes not belong to me, it is the property of our Beginners' Department. Each Sunday they put their birthday money in here, then at the end ofthe year they open it and the contents is given to our Sunday SchoolMissionary Society. That the money may be kept safe and sound to the endof the year the bank is made very strong. 

In the second place I notice that there is a single opening and that theopening is made very small. It is meant for small coins, I could notpossibly get a one dollar piece into this opening. No, it is meant fordimes, nickels and pennies. That is, it stands for Thrift. Each littlechild brings his or her amount, small in itself, but when they are alltogether there is a considerable sum. 

Again, I see that this bank is made in the form of a church. It isreally quite a beautiful building. Here is the steeple, here the stepsand the wide entrance doors, and the windows with genuine cathedralglass. I think it is splendid to have a bank look like a church, forafter all a church is a sort of bank. It stands for those treasureswhich Jesus talked about when he said, "Lay up for yourselves treasuresin heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thievesdo not break through and steal. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 6: 21

 "For where your treasure is there will your heart be also. "

MEMORY HYMN [208]

 _"I love thy kingdom, Lord. "_

WORK

This morning I want to talk to you about work. "All work and no playmakes Jack a dull boy. " We are sorry for girls and boys who arecompelled to work, who have little or no time for play. Now that is oneside. How about the other side? All play and no work makes Jack--what?There are many words we can use here. I have thought about this a longtime and I have decided that the best word to put in here is useless. All play and no work makes Jack a useless boy, and of all creatures inthe world who have no place in the scheme of things it is one who isuseless. 

Now the men who are useful, we shall find, are the men who, as boys, worked as well as played. A few days ago I sat at a public dinner nextto one of the best-known men in this city, and a useful man he is. Wewere talking about some of the things boys could busy themselves withand earn a little money. I said, "I carried papers when I was a boy. " Hereplied, "I carried papers on the streets of New York City when I was aboy. " I do not doubt that if we could have gone to all the men who satat that dinner each of the one hundred and fifty would have answered, "Yes, I worked when I was a boy. "

I have here an illustration of work. Here are four nuts, a brazil nut, an almond, a walnut and a pecan. Each morning as you go to school youpass through the park. There in the park the squirrels are always to beseen, and to you they seem to be ever at play. There are days, warmspring days, lovely autumn days, when you do not like to go to school, and I hear you say, "I wish I could be like these squirrels, playingaround all day long. " But the squirrels do not play around all day long. They are at work, gathering nuts and storing them away for winter use. If I should give these nuts to the squirrels they would have to work toopen them. All that is good in life comes through work. God wants us towork as well as play, and play as well as work. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 21: 18

"Son, go work to-day in my vineyard. "

MEMORY HYMN [422]

 _"Work, for the night is coming. "_

THE BIG STORE

Many of the girls and boys who read this little book live in or near oneof the great cities where they have huge department stores. I love tovisit a big store. I have spent hours, more likely days, if I shouldcount up all the time, in Wanamaker's in New York and Philadelphia, Marshall Field's in Chicago, Hengerer's in Buffalo, and Eaton's inToronto. Any season of the year, and almost any hour of the day, thesestores are thronged with people, for people like to go to the big store. 

Now I am thinking of another big store, a truly big store, the great bigstore of Life. We have to visit at this store whether we want to or not. It is not a matter of choice but of necessity. Every morning you visitthe big store of Life. Every evening you return home with what you havebought. 

Not only must you visit this store but you must also buy. When you visitWanamaker's you do not have to buy unless you choose. In the big storeof Life, however, you have no choice in the matter, you must buy. Whatmust you buy? Well, you may buy anything you choose. This is thebeautiful thing about the big store of Life--while we are compelled tobuy we are permitted to choose. We must also pay. 

"Good morning, John, what would you like to buy this morning. "

"I think I'll buy a good geography lesson. "

"All right, you can buy that, but you must pay the price. "

"What is the price?"

"Study, earnest study. Never leave the preparation until the last minuteor trust to luck. "

Yes, it is true, right on through every department in the big store ofLife, you can buy whatsoever you choose, but you must pay the price. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Philippians_ 4: 8

"Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoeverthings are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things arelovely, whatsoever things are of good report ... Think on these things. "

MEMORY HYMN [332]

 _"Thou my everlasting portion. "_

BREAD

I have here a loaf of bread. This is good-looking bread, is it not? Ican almost hear you say, "Please pass the bread. " That is, I hope yousay that. I hope you do not say, "Gimme the bread. "

Now every girl and boy here knows what it is to be hungry, I'm sure ofthat. And when one is real hungry there is nothing that tastes as goodas bread. Of course there should be some butter, or jam, or peanutbutter spread over the top--my, it makes the mouth water, doesn't it!

We speak of bread as the staff of life because we could not be strong inbody if we did not have bread. We love ice cream and cake, meat andpotatoes, and many other things, but our meal is not properly balancedunless there is a plate of bread on the table. 

Jesus taught us to pray, "Give us this day our daily bread. " I thinkthis has a twofold meaning. It refers to our physical hunger and ourspiritual needs. All bread comes from the Father above, our Father oflove. Do you remember those beautiful lines, "Back of the loaf is the snowy flour, And back of the flour, the mill; And back of the mill, the seed, and the sun, and the shower, And the Father's will. "

Jesus once spoke of himself as the Bread sent down from above. OurFather gives us daily bread for our physical needs, and he has also sentus Christ for our spiritual strength. My dear young people, take him asyour Saviour. 

MEMORY VERSE, _John_ 6: 51

 "I am the living bread which came down from heaven. "

MEMORY HYMN [325]

 _"Break thou the bread of life. "_

GOD'S MEASURE

Here I have some measures. This is a rule, we call it a folding footrule. Here is a square. And here is a tape measure. There are othermeasures, quarts and pecks and bushels. Then there are liquid measures, quarts and gallons and barrels. There are also measures of weight, ounces, pounds and tons. Now these different measures are the same allover the United States. A pound of butter in New York is the same as apound of butter in California. There are other countries that do nothave measures like ours. France, for example, has the metric system. Should you go into a dry goods store in Paris you would not ask for ayard of cloth, but for a meter. 

God's measures are the same. God has a measure for girls and boys, andthat measure is the same in Ohio, Mexico, England or Spain. If it iswrong to steal in Germany, it is wrong to steal in Brazil. If it waswrong to commit murder in the first century, it is wrong to take lifein this century. The Ten Commandments are some of God's measures for us. 

John, come up here, I want to measure you. Stand there, that's right. Ihave the mark, now let us see how tall you are. Four feet, three andone-half inches. That is fine. You are a big boy, aren't you? I wish toothat I could measure you according to God's measure. But I cannot dothat. You must do that yourself. How tall are you as you look atyourself in the light of the Saviour's life? According to his measure Ipray that you may be tall and strong. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Ephesians_ 4: 13

"Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of theson of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of thefulness of Christ. "

MEMORY HYMN [128]

 _"We may not climb the heavenly steeps. "_

SLEEP

I hope you had a good sleep last night. I hope you sleep well everynight. God's best gift to his children is sleep. You think there aresome better gifts, do you? Name them. Ah, I thought you were mistaken. The more you think about it the more you will agree with me that sleep, the Father's loving provision for tired people, is a most blessed gift. 

Now God gives sleep not only to girls and boys but to all of hiscreatures. Do you know how some of those creatures sleep? I will tellyou. Elephants and horses commonly sleep standing up. How would you liketo hear your mother say to you, "Robert, it's time to go to bed, standin the corner there and sleep. " Most birds sleep with the head turnedtoward the tail and the beak poked in under the feathers. Storks, gullsand all other long-legged birds sleep standing on one leg. It would bemore difficult to sleep that way than just standing in the corner, wouldn't it? The fox and the wolf sleep with the tip of the nose and thesoles of the feet close together, and the big, bushy tail covering allto keep them warm. Owls sleep in the daytime. They have eyelids, andover the eyelids, curtains. These curtains are drawn across the eyes, sideways, and keep out the strong light of the day. Hares, snakes andfish sleep with their eyes open. 

Why does God give us sleep? Is it for the pleasure of sleeping? No. Hegives us sleep that our bodies and minds may be refreshed. The strengthwe have expended during the day is repaid us in the sleep of the night. Be grateful to your heavenly Father when to-night you kneel to pray:

"Now I lay me down to sleep. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 127: 2 "So he giveth his beloved sleep. "

MEMORY HYMN [541]

 _"Of all the thoughts of God. "_

ON TIME

I once lived in a town of some five thousand population. In the centerof the town was a public square, and at the most prominent corner of thesquare was a jeweler's store. In the window of the store was a clockwhich regulated the coming and going of nearly all the inhabitants. Yousee the children on their way to school had to pass this store, and theyalways glanced in the window to see if they were on time. People goingaway had to pass this store to get to the depot; they too looked at thejeweler's clock to see if they had plenty of time to make their train. The men who worked in the main factory of the town went by this corner;each man as he passed would pull out his watch and set it by thejeweler's clock. 

Now one morning, for some reason or other, the clock was fifteen minutesslow. Children, hurrying to school, looked in at the window, and, seeinghow much time they had they loitered and were late. Men and women, goingto the train or work, glanced at the clock, as was their custom, and, finding that they did not have to hurry some missed their train, whileothers were behind time at work. 

We are all human clocks. We set the time for others. Your example, girlsand boys, has much to do with the way other young people, yourcompanions, act. If you, Mary, fail to get your lessons, some of yourfriends are going to say, "Mary doesn't study much and I'm not going toeither. " Robert, if you indulge in some bad habit your chum is going tosay, "Robert does this and I guess I can too. " Is your life clockrunning true? Are you on time?

MEMORY VERSE, _I Peter_ 2: 21

 "For hereunto were ye called; because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow in his steps. "

MEMORY HYMN [420]

 _"True-hearted, whole-hearted. "_

DOORS

This morning, after you were awake, you passed through your bedroomdoor. Then you went through the bathroom door. Later you entered, through a door, the dining room. After a time, with your father andmother, you left the house through the outside door. You walked down thestreet and here you are in church, having entered through yonder door. Every day you are passing through various doors. What wonderful thingsdoors are! I wonder who invented doors. What would we do without doors?

There are doors to houses and there are doors to life. Let me tell youabout them. A door is made of wood. What beautiful wood is in thesechurch doors! The doors of life are made of our will. By the exercise ofour will we open and close whatsoever doors of life we choose. 

The doors of our houses swing on hinges. Heavy doors seem as light as afeather because they are so delicately hung upon hinges. The hinges ofthe doors of life are made not of brass or iron, but of love. 

When, in a little while, you leave this church you will take hold of aknob and pull open the door. The doors of life have knobs. Those knobsare called courtesy. You can open well nigh any door you choose if onlyyou will use the knob courtesy. 

What about the lock? Yes, doors have locks. So also have the doors oflife. Can you guess what locks the door of life? It is faith. If youhave faith, faith in God, faith in the Saviour, faith in things that aretrue and pure, you need never fear that your house of life will bebroken into by burglars. You are secure if you have the lock of faith. Now here is a strange paradox, namely--you lock your door only byopening it. Open your door to the Master. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Revelations_ 3: 20

 "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him and he with me. "

MEMORY HYMN [282]

 _"O Jesus, thou art standing. "_

CHEAPEST AND BEST

A business man would not consider this subject a very goodadvertisement. He believes that the best things are never cheapest. There are a few instances however in which that is not the case. 

First, the air we breathe. It does not cost us anything, it isn'tmetered out to us, so we have a saying, "as free as air. " You go down tothe drug store and buy a bottle of perfume. A good perfume will cost notless than a dollar a bottle. The air we breathe is infinitely purer andbetter than the costliest perfume. 

Second, the water we drink. Do you like ice cream soda? I am sure youdo. If you do not you are not a normal girl or boy. How much do you haveto pay for a good ice cream soda? That depends; some places it is tencents and some fifteen cents. You think you might like to have ice creamsoda every meal, but you would soon tire of it. The water you drink isnecessary, and it costs you nothing. 

Third, a book, that is this book, the Bible. If you wish to buy anup-to-date book of fiction it will cost you anywhere from $1. 00 to$3. 00. But here is a book, the most popular, the most wonderful bookthat was ever written. You can buy a Bible for a few pennies, and if youdo not have the pennies there is a great Bible Society that will giveyou a copy, that none may be without the Word of Life. 

Finally, the things that are cheapest and best are the things of thesoul, the spiritual ministries and influences of life. They are worship, communion, faith, hope, prayer and love. No one stands at yonder doorand demands a dollar of you as you enter. The seats in this church arefree to rich and poor, aged and young. These free seats typify thesalvation that is here proclaimed. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Isaiah_ 55: 1

 "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. "

MEMORY HYMN [304]

 _"I heard the voice of Jesus. "_

IN THE DARK

I have here what are commonly known as Chinese lilies. Two weeks agothey were only two or three inches high. Now they are between two andthree feet. How rapidly they have grown! I How can we account for it? Ican give one reason. It is because they had adequate preparation. Thebulbs from which these lilies grew were kept in the dark for ten days. There, in the dark, they stored up strength and energy for the work thatwas before them. 

Many years of our Saviour's life were spent in obscurity. They wereyears when, as far as the world is concerned, he was in the dark, preparing for the great work of his public ministry. My dear youngpeople, do not be fretful over the days and years you have to go toschool. They are not simply days of waiting, they are days ofpreparation. 

Again, these lilies come from dark and humble surroundings. Here is avery plain dish. In the dish are a few ordinary stones; picked up inour yard. Water is poured upon the stones. Among these stones the lilybulbs take root. Girls and boys, it does not matter a great deal whatsort of a home you have, if only it is a good home. John Wesley's youthwas hid away in a poor Methodist parsonage. Abraham Lincoln was born andgrew up in the dark and humble surroundings of a log cabin. Our Saviourhimself was born in a manger, and his boyhood home was far from being apalace. Make the best of what you have and all will be well. God willtake care of you and bring you out of the darkness. 

How fragrant these lilies are! Faith, hope, love, patience, strength andtruth, these fragrant qualities of life often grow best in the dark. Mayour good Father make your life fragrant is my prayer. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 139: 12

 "Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee. "

MEMORY HYMN [460]

 _"Lead, kindly light. "_

THE STILL SMALL VOICE

What is the loudest noise you ever heard? Did you ever hear an immensecannon fired? Of course you have heard thunder. The loudest, mostterrifying noise I ever heard was a boiler explosion. The town heatingplant was only three doors from my home. The whole plant blew up oneprayer meeting evening. The church building was plunged into darkness, the walls shook, windows were broken on every side. In terror people gotdown on their knees and crept toward the door. That was the loudestnoise I ever heard. 

Now I have here a hammer. I will drop it to the floor. Listen. Is thenoise very loud? Here I have a heavy railroad spike. Hear the noise thismakes as it is dropped. And now I shall drop this large nail. The noisethat made is not nearly as loud as the noise occasioned by the fallinghammer. Here is a small nail. You will have to listen very carefully ifyou hear the sound of the nail as it strikes the carpet. Have you goodears? Let us test them. Here is an ordinary pin. If you keep very quietyou will be able to hear the falling of this tiny pin. Do not move inyour seat. Every one, attention! Listen. Did you hear it? Yes, most ofyou did. 

That pin did not make much noise. No sound could be more subdued than adropping pin. Ah, but there is a sound that is infinitely more quiet. Atthe same time it is louder than the roll of thunder, or the firing of ahuge cannon, or the explosion of a great boiler. Some call it"conscience. " I like to think of it as a voice. It is the still, smallvoice within. When you go to do wrong this voice speaks to you. Hear thevoice, and give good heed. 

MEMORY VERSE, _I Kings_ 19: 12

 "And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. "

MEMORY HYMN [320]

 _"I want a principle within. "_

THANKSGIVING

What does Thanksgiving mean to you? I hear one boy say, "It means a bigdinner. " I think we all agree with him. Who does not welcome and enjoy agood dinner! I hear Mary say, "Thanksgiving means a day off fromschool. " I guess you are right too. School is not such a charming placethat girls and boys are unwilling to have an occasional holiday. 

Now I am going to ask some of the older people what the day means tothem. There is a young woman. She is a stenographer. She says, "Thanksgiving means a day away from the office. I am at the office everyday except Sunday, and I do appreciate, now and then, a day that isreally my own. " Yonder is a traveling salesman. What does Thanksgivingmean to you? He says, "It means a day at home. Last year I spent onehundred and sixty-nine nights away from home. I have three children. Ishould like to see them every day. There are times when many days passand I do not see them. Thanksgiving week I plan to be at home. "

There are others I could ask. Each has his answer. But Thanksgiving hasa special meaning for us. It is the Harvest time. I have here an apple. Isn't this a beautiful apple? What color! Who mixed the paints, whohandled the brush to give such color to this apple? God. He, in hisinfinite love and wisdom, has provided, through the unfailing laws ofnature, for the growth, sweetness, coloring and beautifying of all theproducts of the fields. This apple is but one of many kinds of fruits. 

Praise, then, is the great meaning of Thanksgiving. God, our heavenlyFather, sends us every good gift. From his bountiful hand come our dailyand nightly mercies. We should praise him every day. But the day for theunited chorus of praise is Thanksgiving. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Psalm_ 150: 6

 "Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. "

MEMORY HYMN [717]

 _"Come, ye thankful people, come. "_

MARBLES IN THE POCKET

Do you know what a Missionary Box is? Well, I will tell you. It is a boxor barrel sent from a missionary society in a city or town to amissionary family or school on the frontier. The box contains clothing, bedding, and sometimes toys, dolls and picture books if there arechildren at the frontier end of the journey. 

In a certain city one Christmas season the children of the Sunday Schoolbrought gifts to fill a box. Some brought clothes they had outgrown. Some who had two coats decided they could give one. Others broughtbooks. One little girl brought a beautiful doll. She had other dolls, and this one she dearly loved, but she said, "I want some other littlegirl to be happy, and I think I can get along without this doll, thoughI shall miss her dreadfully. "

One day the committee came together to sort the gifts and pack the box. One woman picked up a boy's coat. She felt something, hard in one of thepockets. Another woman said, "Better look all through those pockets;you can never tell what a boy will use his pockets for. " So she went allthrough the pockets. In one of them she found a soiled handkerchief tiedin a knot. With much pulling, for it was a hard knot, she loosed thelittle package, and there she found five marbles. With the marbles was anote scrawled in a boy's hand--

 "DEAR BOY WHO GETS THIS COAT, I have eight marbles. First I put in four for you. Then I put in another one. I hope you will like the coat, and the marbles. 

 From your friend, JOHN MASON. "

Now what do you think of that? Isn't it glorious? To give more to theother fellow than you keep for yourself, especially when that otherfellow is some one you have never seen, is Christlike. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 7: 12

 "All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them. "

MEMORY HYMN [411]

 _"O Master, let me walk with thee. "_

THE FIRST MONTH

What month is this? December. It is the first month in the year. "No, no, " you say, "December is the last month. " I cannot entirely agree withyou. December is last on the calendar but first in importance. Now youagree with me, do you not?

How many days has December? One day. "No, no, " I again hear you say, "December has thirty-one days. " I think we can reach an agreement onthis point too. There is one day in December of unexcelled importanceand loveliness; that day is the twenty-fifth. Yes, we all say there isbut one day in December. How readily we agree when we understand oneanother!

What is the twenty-fifth? It is the pivotal day in the history of theworld. It is the day upon which the King of Kings and the Lord of Lordswas born. Jesus, son of man and son of God, came into the world as weall come, as a tiny babe. It brings him much nearer to us, does it not, to think that our Saviour was once as we are? He grew up as a child, aboy, a youth, a man. It is the birthday of Christ the Saviour wecelebrate on the twenty-fifth of each December. 

To whom did Jesus come? He came to a lowly people. He was revealed firstof all to the shepherds. The shepherd's task was not an enviable one. Hewas out in the open, subject to storms and winds and wild beasts. Hisbusiness was to shepherd the sheep, to lead them to good pasture, toprotect them from all harm and danger. The shepherd's task was lonely aswell as lowly. His days and nights were passed in solitude. Occasionallya group of shepherds would come together, but for the most part theywere alone with their flocks. God chose these people, whose minds wereclear, whose lives were pure, to be the first messengers of the gladtidings of great joy. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Luke_ 2: 8

 "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night. "

MEMORY HYMN [115]

 _"While shepherds watched their flocks. "_

HIM AND HYMN

I want to tell you to-day about two "Hims. " The first is a man "Him. "The second is a song "Hymn. "

The man "him" is Phillips Brooks. He was born in 1835 and died in 1893. He never married, so he had no girls and boys of his own. But he lovedall children. He had a great, warm heart, and in that heart was a bigcorner for all young people. He became a minister. His first church wasin Philadelphia. Later he moved to Boston. He had not been in Bostonvery long when, one night, about midnight, the people saw flamesbreaking out through the roof of the church. A sorrowing congregation, with their pastor, watched their loved church as it burned to theground. 

When, after the fire, they came together, they inquired, "What shall wedo? Shall we rebuild here or shall we take another location?" Finally itwas decided to build a new church on Copley Square. That was many yearsago. They built a beautiful temple of worship. It is still knowneverywhere as "Phillips Brooks' Church, " so wonderfully did hispersonality enter into the project. 

Now the second "hymn. " When Phillips Brooks was a young man inPhiladelphia he made a trip to the Holy Land. As Christmas drew near hewrote and sent back to the girls and boys of his Sunday School, aChristmas poem. The organist of his church composed music for the words, and this hymn was sung for the first time in Trinity church, Philadelphia. It is a beautiful Christmas hymn. Yes, it is my favorite. 

 "Oh, little town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie. "

MEMORY VERSE, _Matthew_ 2: 6

 "Thou, Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: For out of thee shall come a Governor that shall rule my people Israel. "

MEMORY HYMN [121]

 _"O little town of Bethlehem. "_

THE CHRISTMAS TREE

For a few years I lived in a country where "December is as pleasant asMay. " The weather was warm all through the year. The ground was neverfrozen, for there was never any frost. I never saw a snowflake in allthe years I lived in the tropics. The trees were trees of the hotclimate, mostly palm, bamboo and acacia trees. When Christmas drew nearI thought the day would be a very dreary day, and wholly unChristmaslikebecause there would be no snow, and we would be without our accustomedtree. 

A few days before our first Christmas in the tropics a friend said tome, "I am sending a tree down from the mountains for your children. " Indue time the tree arrived. You can imagine the joy of our entirehousehold when they looked upon a genuine, evergreen, Christmas tree. Weset it up in our big "sala, " that is our living room, and there itremained for many days, the delight of our eyes. 

The tree of the Christmas season has some specifically Christmasmessages. First, it is evergreen. That reminds us of the eternalSaviour, "the same yesterday, to-day and forever. " At the very tiptop ofthe tree we place a star. There it shines, high above all else, reminding us of the higher, holier life to which we are summoned. Thestar beckons us to loftier aspirations. Christ came down from heaven. Hebecame one of us, sharing our human life. But he is ever above us aswell as with us, luring us on to the life of God. The Christmas tree isablaze with lights. Jesus brought light into the world. How dark theworld would be without him! About the base of the tree, and suspendedfrom the branches are many gifts. They are tokens of the love and esteemwe hold for each other, and remind us of God's great gift of love, Christ himself. 

MEMORY VERSE, _John_ 3: 16

 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. "

MEMORY HYMN [112]

 _"There's a song in the air. "_

THE BEST WORD

What is the best word! I think I can hear each of you as he answers. Onesays "Mother is the best word. " Another says, "Father. " Still another, "Daddy. " A fourth one answers, "Home. " Now I hear a voice that says, "America. " Another voice shouts, "Friend. " Yes, there are many, manywords to which we might rightfully give the title "best word. "

But for this season of the year, and for this particular Sunday, thereis one word that stands out from among all the others. That one word is"Christmas. " To-morrow will be Christmas day. I think this word"Christmas" is the best word because it includes all the other goodwords. 

In your home you have a rug. There are many colors in that rug, yet itis all one fabric. The many colors are skillfully woven and beautifullyblended to make the one fabric. Think of this word Christmas as a rug, made up of many words of many colors. We see in this rug the word"mother. " What would Christmas be without mother! We see also the wordfather, and the words sister, brother, grandfather, grandmother, aunt, uncle, friend, home. Then clearest of all in this wonderful rug is theword Christ. Christ is Christmas. Yes, Christmas is the best word for itgathers within its meaning all other good words. 

 "This happy day, whose risen sun Shall set not through eternity; This holy day, when Christ, the Lord, Took on him our humanity; For little children everywhere A joyous season still we make; We bring our precious gifts to them, Even for the dear Child, Jesus' sake. "

MEMORY VERSE, _John_ 1: 4

 "In him was life; and the life was the light of men. "

MEMORY HYMN [107]

 _"Joy to the world!"_

LAST BUT NOT LEAST

How often have we heard this phrase! You girls and boys use it, "Here Iam, last but not least. "

When Jesus was on earth there was often a discussion among the disciplesconcerning rank among them. Some were fearful that they would be last. One day a mother, very proud of her two sons, as mothers are apt to be, asked Jesus to grant permission that her two sons might sit, the one onhis left hand, the other on his right, in the kingdom. Then He made avery beautiful as well as perfectly true statement, "Whosoever will bechief among you, let him be your servant; even as the Son of man camenot to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life aransom for many. "

There was another time, when Jesus sat at supper with his disciples, wishing to show them, by example, the utter worthlessness of station, for station's sake, rose from the table, took a towel and basin, andbegan to wash the disciples' feet. Peter objected, but when heunderstood, he said, "Not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. "At the last Jesus said, "Verily I say unto you, the servant is notgreater than his Lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that senthim. "

Girls and boys, if you desire a high place in life, begin low. If youwant to occupy a leading place you must be willing to serve in theleast. It always has been so, it will never change, this great law oflife, that he who would be first must be willing to be last. It is theeternal law of service. 

MEMORY VERSE, _Mark_ 10: 31

 "... But many that are first shall be last; and the last first. "

MEMORY HYMN [402]

 _"Hark, the voice of Jesus calling. "_

THE END