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
HARRIET
ELIZABETH
AND
ROBERT
INTRODUCTION
For many years it has been my custom to give, every Sunday morning, a
brief sermon to the boys and girls of my congregation. This sermon is
never more than six minutes, often only three. As a result there has
been a growing attendance of young people at our morning worship. They
are thus made to feel that they are wanted, and have a part in the
Church which all too often is looked upon as a Church solely for the
grownups. No part of my ministry has given me greater delight and
satisfaction than the thought that I am helping to establish in the
lives of many boys and girls that habit so indispensable to a steady
Christian 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 boys
gladly do memory work if it is definitely assigned them.
CONTENTS
HAPPY NEW YEAR 12
GROWTH 14
SNOW 16
KINDNESS 18
GOD'S CALL 20
A HAPPY HOME 22
SYSTEM 24
A BOY FROM THE COUNTRY 26
THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE WORLD 28
EASTER LIGHT 30
APRIL 32
HELPING FINGERS 34
TWO R'S AND AN A 36
CANDLE CHILDREN 38
ALAS, THE MARKS 40
A BLIND MAN WHO SAW 42
CHOOSING A KING 44
WORSHIP AND TOIL 46
GOD'S CLOCK 48
THE HUMAN KODAK 50
WATCH LESSONS 52
WHAT DID YOU SEE? 54
KNIFE LESSONS 56
LETTERS 58
A UNIQUE PSALM 60
THE FATHER'S CARE 62
YOKES 64
GOOD ADVICE 66
IF I WERE A BOY AGAIN 68
ONE BY ONE 70
COME 72
LOVE AND LOYALTY 74
KUMMOGOKDONATTOOTTAMMOCTITEAONGANNUNNONASH 76
WHAT THE TREES SAID TO ME 78
BANKS 80
WORK 82
THE BIG STORE 84
BREAD 86
GOD'S MEASURE 88
SLEEP 90
ON TIME 92
DOORS 94
CHEAPEST AND BEST 96
IN THE DARK 98
THE STILL SMALL VOICE 100
THANKSGIVING 102
MARBLES IN THE POCKET 104
THE FIRST MONTH 106
HIM AND HYMN 108
THE CHRISTMAS TREE 110
THE BEST WORD 112
LAST 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. We
see who will be the first to give that day's greeting. Before I was
awake 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 speak
out 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 page
let us write it straight up and down.
H stands for Helpful. You cannot have a happy year unless you are
helpful. 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 will
be able to skate and slide down hill many days this winter, and that
you 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 want
to do something other than play, of course. You will have some home
responsibilities, but sandwiched in with the work may there be a good
measure of play.
P for Purposeful. Yes, early hi life you should form a purpose. Two
questions will help you gain that purpose. 1st--What is it that I want
to 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 about
growth. The most important holiday afterthought is the thought of
growth. You are going to grow every day of this year. Whenever I see a
boy on his way to school, or on the field or gymnasium floor, running,
romping, playing, I say to myself, "Can it be possible that this
restless, energetic lad was ever a quiet, helpless little babe in the
cradle!" Yes, he was, but he has grown, and he is going to keep right on
growing.
It was said of the boy Jesus, "He grew." His growth was natural. There
was nothing of precociousness in the childhood of Jesus. He grew, just
as 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 on
through boyhood, youth and manhood he kept growing. Best of all his
growth was balanced. He grew physically, mentally and spiritually. He
had a sound body. He loved the out-of-doors. He companionshiped much
with 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 like
your Master who grew inward, outward, and upward; selfward, manward, and
Godward. "How can I grow?" you ask. I will tell you by passing on to you
the 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 yesterday
morning. I think there were many other homes in which this shout of joy
ushered in the day. It being Saturday the day was mostly free for
playing in the snow. What did you do? You made a snow man. You built a
snow fort or house. You had a snowball battle. You slid down hill. You
played fox and geese, tracking one another across white fields and
through 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 is
formed high in the air, from vapor, and comes down from the clouds, just
like rain. Snowdrops are like people in one respect, no two are alike.
If you will look at the snowflakes through a magnifying glass you will
see a great variety of shapes. And all of them are beautiful. We talk
about the sparkling beauty of diamonds and other precious gems; crystal
snowflakes are more beautiful by far. If only we could keep them from
melting what a necklace or a setting for a ring a collection of
snowflakes would make!
God's love is shown to us in the snow. For a fall of snow is like a
great blanket, covering the tender roots and seeds, keeping them from
freezing, assuring us of another harvest. As to-day you walk home
through 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 were
two men on the load. Their faces were black, but it was the dirt of
honest toil, it was coal dust. They stopped the horses in front of the
house 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, go
around to the front of the horses, lift up the heavy wagon tongue, place
the board underneath it as a brace that the necks of the horses might be
relieved of the strain of the wagon tongue. At the same time the other
man took two warm blankets and covered the horses with them, tucking in
the corners beneath the harness to make them tight and warm. Then the
men 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 cared
for on a cold winter day!
To my mind one of the finest acts of our city government is the way we
are taught kindness to dumb animals and birds, by permitting them to
make their homes and nests in the public park. What a delight it is to
walk 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 walking
along the street with a little child of three or four years of age, the
child reaching up as far as he could to take the hand of the older
person, 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 has
a special work for you to do. You have heard of Wendell Phillips who did
so much to make slavery unlawful in America! Once, when Wendell was a
boy fourteen years of age, he heard Lyman Beecher preach. In the course
of his sermon the preacher said, "You belong to God." The boy Wendell
thought that the preacher looked straight at him when he said that. He
went to his home at the close of the service, climbed the stairs to his
room, 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. He
worked in the temple. He was a youthful assistant to the minister. I
suppose he ran errands for him, and performed any and every service
about the temple the minister desired. One night, as usual, the boy went
to bed and fell asleep. As he slept he heard a voice calling him. Now he
was an obedient boy, and though it was hard for him to rouse himself
from a sound sleep and leave his comfortable bed he did so. He ran to
the minister saying, "Here I am, you called me, what do you want?" The
minister said, "No, my boy, I did not call you, go back to bed." The boy
returned to his bed and again went to sleep. A second time, and even a
third time he was called. Each time the faithful, obedient lad leaped
from his couch and ran to the minister. The third time it dawned on the
mind 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 and
loving man he said to the boy, "Return to your bed, and if you hear the
call again, say, 'Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth.'" The boy did as
instructed and that night was forever memorable in his life, for that
was 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 time
ago, so long ago that we can scarcely realize how long, more than
twenty-five hundred years ago. Well, once upon a time there was a
home--homes then were quite the same in most ways as homes are
now--there were children in that home. They played and were happy. And
too, I suppose they had their misunderstandings, and sometimes the
children quarreled. One day the children heard music. Looking up the
street they saw a great company of men marching right toward them. They
were soldiers. There were thirty thousand of them. In the center of the
marching army were some oxen. The oxen were harnessed to a fine, new
cart. On the cart was a chest, most beautifully carved and decorated. On
the soldiers came. What was the amazement of the boys and girls when
they stopped right in front of their house! Then the king, majestic in
his bearing and gorgeously arrayed, came to their father and said, "I
want to leave this chest here in your house. Take good care of it." The
king'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. Three
months passed by. Then one day the king came again and took the chest
away. But peace and happiness did not depart with the chest. The home
was as happy and peaceful and free from bickering through all the coming
months 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 is
not orderly.
Here is a little box. Inside are letters, such as you see on the sign in
front of the Church. Each letter has a space all its own. Now if A were
put down at M, M at Z, and E at X, what a task it would be to pick out
the letters and make a sign!
One day I visited a Chinese school. Such lack of system, such
disorderliness I never did see! Such noise I never did hear! They were
all studying at the tops of their voices, sitting around in all sorts of
ways, each trying to out-shout the other. Another day I went into a
school 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 a
larger desk, for the teacher. All was quiet and orderly.
Here I have a package of envelopes. There are fifty-two envelopes, one
for each Sunday in the year. Each envelope is divided in the center. On
one side I read, "For others." On the other half I read, "For
ourselves." I need not tell you that these are church envelopes. In this
way, this systematic way, we support our local church and pay to
missions. We like to have the girls and boys, as well as older people,
use these envelopes. The financial secretary of your church is just as
willing to keep the records of young people who give but five cents in
each side of the envelope as he is to keep the account of the man or
woman 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 your
religious 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 said
of him that he was "ruddy and withal of a beautiful countenance, and
goodly 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. One
day the boy's father said to him, "I wish you would go down and see how
your brothers are getting along, and take with you this present." The
boy started on his journey. Now when he came to the place where the
soldiers were encamped he saw a strange sight. A giant, from the
opposing army, came out, blustering and issuing his challenge to any one
who would dare come against him. All seemed afraid of him. Even the big,
strong soldiers would not do battle with him. Therefore this youth from
the country volunteered saying, "I will go out and fight him." They
tried to dissuade him, but he insisted. Now he was a perfect shot with
the sling. He chose five smooth stones from the brook. With one of
these he prevailed over the giant.
This lad, however, had some other things which stood him in better stead
even than the sling and the stones. What were they? First, he had
courage. He possessed what all the others lacked. Second, he had the
ability to do one thing and do that one thing well. He could use a sling
with the utmost accuracy. Third, he had confidence in himself and faith
in God. He was not conceited, no, we do not like that. Rather he had
self-confidence. Above all was this--"I come to thee in the name of the
Lord of hosts." So said the lad from the country as he went to fight the
giant. 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 lift
your eyes just a little you will see the flowers on the table, but lift
them higher than the flowers, higher than this pulpit, higher than the
pipes of the organ, above the lights, above the arch, you will see the
most 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 most
repulsive thing in the world? It was odious. It had none of the charm
and beauty that is now woven about it. But from the day that Jesus was
crucified on the cross it took on new meaning, and it has grown in charm
and power until I think we all agree that it is the most beautiful sight
in the world.
Out in Colorado, high up the side of a mountain, where the snow never
melts in the crevices, may be seen two long ravines, one straight up and
down, the other straight across. The snow is packed into those ravines
all through the year, and lifting the eyes one may see upon the lofty
mountain side the Holy Cross.
In the summer seas, one of the things that mariners are guided by and
that tourists look for, is the Southern Cross. There it is, fashioned by
the 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 who
wear a cross as a pendant about the neck. This is an outward sign of an
inner devotion. The important thing, my dear young Christians, is to
have the cross, its power and meaning, stamped upon one's heart. Is that
where 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 to
talk to you about Easter Light.
One of the most interesting men in our city is a man who goes about our
streets with two long sticks. He is the lamplighter. Here he comes down
the street! See how he pauses at each lamp post. With one stick he pulls
the little chain that turns on the gas; with the other he sets the light
going. He walks into the dark, but he leaves behind him miles of lighted
streets. I hope we shall have always many streets lighted with gas, for
I love to see the lamplighter dot his way along the streets and avenues
with lighted periods.
In the center of our city is the tall Electric Light Building. On the
very tip of the tower is a high power electric light. It is lighted
every evening from eight to eleven o'clock. Children, looking out of
their windows as they go to bed, think that it is another star in the
sky, it is so bright and steady.
More wonderful than any of these lights is the source of all light. It
is the light that God provides for all of his children. The sun warms
our 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 is
the light of Easter day. The tomb of death is no longer dark, for the
resurrection light brightens every corner and shines in radiance through
the open doorway. The light of Easter also lights up the windows of our
heavenly home. When you are out of an evening it is not pleasant to
return 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 his
resurrection, shine in the windows of heaven to greet us when we go
home.
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 an
apple tree. Here are seen the tiny buds, the promise of the blossom, and
after 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 I
think there is no more beautiful sight in any country than the
blossoming apple orchards of America.
As you came to church this morning you saw all along the streets and
avenues hundreds of trees like this branch, sending forth their first
buds. What do these buds tell us?
First of all they tell us of God. I do not see how any one can live
through 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 to
himself, he did not dare speak it out loud.
In the second place, this branch tells us of God's Love. He, the loving
Father of all people, makes blessed provision for the care and nurture
of his children. He reminds us each year, in seedtime and harvest, of
his boundless love. His love never fails. There have been many hundreds
of 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 speak
to 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 my
home was an orphanage for children who were deaf and dumb. Frequently
these children were seen at different entertainments that were given
about 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 and
orderly. When the lecture began the boy who sat in the middle began to
make his fingers go as fast as he could, the two children on either side
watching him intently. That center boy could hear, the other two were
deaf. So he heard the lecture for them and told it to them by the finger
language.
One day a girl, coming out from school, got on a street car to go to her
home. The car was crowded. She found a seat next to a woman who was
heavily laden with bundles. She had all she could do to hold those
bundles in her lap and keep them from falling and scattering their
contents on the floor. Then a string about one of the packages became
untied. She struggled to get that string fastened securely. She had so
many packages, her fingers were numb with cold, and again and again the
string slipped just at the crucial time. Finally this school girl, who
was an attractive, well-dressed girl, reached over and placed her nicely
gloved finger on the obstreperous knot. There was a grateful smile from
the troubled woman and a hearty "Thank you." The next stop was the
girl's home. As she went to the end of the car she passed a school
friend who had watched the little incident. She said to her, "I see you
belong to the helping hand society." "No," replied the girl, "not the
helping 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, Red
Cross 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 want
to tell you about Good Literature week by the use of these three
letters, two R's and an A.
The first R stands for Read. By all means read. There is no excuse for
not reading, there is so much to read. Indeed I think that is the chief
difficulty, we have too much, at least too much of that which is not
good to read. Here's the bulky daily paper. When it is delivered there
is a rush for it. The children want the comic supplement. So do some of
the 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 can
remember much. You should train your mind to remember the best. John
Ruskin, one of the most gifted of Englishmen, said, "To this I owe all
that I have of power, to the fact that when I was a boy my mother made
me 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 a
fine 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 action
in 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 is
something about a candle we all love. We have our clear gas lights and
our still more brilliant electric bulbs, but when the birthday comes we
want a cake with candles on it. Think of this as a birthday candle and
let it speak to you.
First of all this candle speaks of Symmetry. How perfectly formed is
this candle! It is smooth, there are no rough places that stand out like
an ugly wart on one's face. Your life should have symmetry. God asks you
to give heed to your physical, your mental and your spiritual duties
that your life may be well rounded, a life of beautiful symmetry.
Second, this candle stands for Fragrance. This is a fragrant candle. It
is what is known as a "barberry" candle. There are some children we do
not like to have around, they are surly, sulky and mean. There are
others we dear love to have with us at all times. They have what I call
fragrance. They have the fragrance of thoughtfulness, the sweetness of
unselfishness.
In the third place this candle means Erectness. How straight it stands
in the candlestick! Stand up straight, girls and boys. Do not stoop. Do
not hump yourself over your school desk. Walk erect. It means so much
now, it will mean much more in later years. Some day, if you heed my
word, you will be grateful that the preacher once said to you so
emphatically that you could not forget, "John, Mary, stand up straight."
Fourth, the candle stands for Light. It is useless until the wick is
lighted. It burns for others. Your life is a light. Jesus wants all
Christians to think of themselves as lights in the world. "Let your
light 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 in
making his boy obey. The boy did wrong in spite of all that the father
could say or do. One day the father said to the boy, "Here is the shed
door, now every time you do wrong I am going to pound a nail into the
door." One by one the nails were pounded into the door, until it was
literally 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 his
father about it. "Well," said his father, "I'll tell you what we will
do. Every time you are obedient, every time you do a good deed rather
than a wrong one, we will pull a nail out." The bargain was struck, and
as, one by one, the nails were driven in, so, one by one, they were
pulled out.
Finally the day arrived when there was but one nail left. You can
imagine the joy of the boy when he and his father went together to pull
that nail out. With great glee the claws of the hammer were fastened
about the head of Mr. Nail and, jerk, out he came. "Oh," exclaimed the
boy, "the marks are left." Yes, it was true, for every nail driven in
and pulled out a mark was left, and it was an ugly looking door. "That
is the sad thing about it all," said the father, "every time you do an
evil deed a mark is left upon the life. It is never the same as if the
evil deed had not been committed. It is fine that we have all the nails
out, 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. Now
this boy was Scotch, and the fondest ambition of a Scotch mother is that
her son shall become a minister. You may believe that this particular
lad's mother was very, very happy. So George (George was his name) went
to school. He was not a brilliant student, but he was faithful, he did
his work well and passed his grades. One day he noted some difficulty
with his eyes. The trouble increased rather than diminished. Before he
had finished his education, while he was yet a young man, he became
totally blind. He was greatly discouraged. He was tempted to give up
entirely, stop trying to do anything. Certainly he could not be a
successful preacher if he was blind. Who would listen to him? How could
he do his work?
However there was another voice inside him, the voice of courage, hope
and faith. It was the voice of the Lord that bid him go right on with
his plans. He heeded the urge of the inner voice. He was ordained.
People loved him, and flocked to hear him preach. Though his natural
vision was darkened, his spiritual vision was so much brighter. Though
he could not look upon the beautiful sights of the world, he had eyes to
see more clearly the wonderful things of the soul. His fame spread
throughout Edinburgh, Scotland, England, and all the English-speaking
world, 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 Hymn
for 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 should
some day be president of the United States? What tests would you apply?
Would you look upon the clothes that he wore? Would you consider the
color of his hair? Would you insist that he should be of a certain
height? Once upon a time there was a good and wise man who was asked to
choose a king for his people. He started on his journey in search of the
most promising youth he could find. By and by he came to a home where
there were many boys. One of these boys stood before him. He was tall.
He was well formed. He had a good bearing. Surely, thought the
king-chooser, here is just the man. But something inside him, "the still
small voice" I think it was, said to him, "No, do not choose him, he is
not the one." The father then called a second son. Like the first he was
goodly to look upon. The great man commissioned to choose a king was
about 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 not
the one."
How chagrined the father must have been to have all seven of his
splendid 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 the
keeper 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, the
youngest, the most unlikely one of all, at least so the father and the
brothers thought. But the voice within said, "This is the one, choose
him." You will want to read all of this wonderful story and you will
find 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 his
father'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 out
his heart in an ecstasy of joy. The father reverently took off his cap
and said, "My son, it is God." The boy never forgot that word, "It is
God."
Jean came of a peasant family, so he had to take his place in the field
and earn his bread "by the sweat of his brow." On Sundays the fields
were forsaken and the family went to the village church where the father
was the leader of the choir. After church friends and relatives
sometimes came home to spend the afternoon with the family. One Sunday,
soon after the return from church, the bent figure of an aged peasant
slowly made his way along the road. There was something about the figure
that struck the boy Jean. He took a piece of charcoal and hurriedly drew
a sketch upon the wall. Every movement and attitude was so perfectly
depicted that everybody laughed--everybody but the father. He sensed the
gift possessed by his boy, whose growing talent he had been watching.
"My Jean," he said, "I will no longer hinder you from learning that
which you are so anxious to know."
Jean Francis Millet, for such is his full name, became the artist of
peasantry. He never made any other boast. His character was of the
highest. He had a firm faith in God. He believed in the Bible as the
Word of God. He looked upon his use of the brush as preaching upon
canvas the purity and truth he believed.
"The Angelus" is the name of the best known picture that he painted. It
shows two workers in a potato field, a man and a woman, who hear from
the near-by village the faint tones of the Angelus bell calling them to
prayer. They pause, stand erect, bow their heads and worship. It is a
beautiful 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 friend
whose watch came to him in this wise. His father said to him, "When you
graduate from High School I will give you a watch."
Is there a "town clock" where you live? Is it dependable? Do men set
their watches by it? Do people, passing it, glance up to see if they are
late? In the village where I began my ministry the Baptist tower held
the town clock. I lived but a few doors away. I went to bed by it. I
studied by it. I was wakened by it. Even now, and many years have passed
since 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 to
the city of Canton. I was carried through the narrow, smelly, crowded
streets to the top of a little hill at the city's edge. There, on the
very tip-top I saw the "Water Clock." I read, "This water clock is a
most ancient, authentic, celebrated and sacred relic of Kwong Tung
Province, over 1,300 years old. It was erected on the top story of the
north Worshiping Tower which was built by Chin To, King of the South of
China."
It was a strange, crude affair, run by water. I stood and looked at it
and thought, "This clock was running when George Washington was
president; it was running when Christopher Columbus sailed on his great
voyage of discovery; long years, long centuries before that it was
built."
But there is a clock surpassing all others. I call it God's clock. It is
the Sun. Since time began God's clock has kept time. It is the central
clock of our universe. It regulates all others. It does not have to be
wound. God has seen to that. How can we help worshiping the God who has
made 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 a
wonderful little machine a kodak is! First we buy a film, then we open
the kodak and place the film. Now pull the paper over to the empty roll
and 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 a
little slide in the back, take a pencil and write down the date and
name. Let me see, what was that picture? Oh, yes, "Chrysanthemum (is
that 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 you
know, 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 out
in the morning and the moment we open our eyes we begin exposing those
films. We do not have to do any clicking for these pictures, one after
another, click, click, click, and they are developed as fast as they are
taken.
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 a
picture that was taken yesterday, or last week, or last year. He would
turn back the pages of his memory book fifty, sixty years. The clearest
pictures he possesses are those that were snapped in his boyhood. Every
day you are taking pictures that are going to remain with you as long as
you live. Let us resolve, girls and boys, that as we go out each morning
and our human kodak begins clicking, we shall take only pictures that
are 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 tannery
to retire to a quieter life. The men who worked in his department had a
real affection for him. As an expression of that esteem they presented
him, on his last day with them, a beautiful, solid gold watch. On the
inner cover they engraved his name, the date, and the occasion of the
presentation. When my grandfather died the watch became my father's
possession. Then upon my father's death the watch came to me. What a joy
it 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 so
well. But that does not make the watch keep any better time. It would
keep just as accurate time if the case were iron. You see it is the
inside that counts. It is the same with life. The soul is the important
part 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 time
by 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! Surely
the 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 does
not move very fast, you cannot see it move. It makes no fuss at all, but
you can tell time by the hour hand. Let your life be like the hour hand
of the watch, so true and steady that other girls and boys who daily
watch 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 of
the first questions my little boy asked me was, "What did you see?" I
shall 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 trees
for?" He said, "They are growing those little trees to reforest the
desolate, burned over regions of the Adirondacks." I said to myself,
"That is just what we are doing in my church. We are growing girls and
boys to reforest the needy places of the earth." I inquired, "How long
do they keep those little trees there?" "Not very long," said he, "just
long enough to give them a good start. Then they transplant them." Again
I said to myself, "That is exactly what we do. We keep the girls and
boys only a little while, then they are transplanted."
I had another question. "When they transplant these little trees how do
they plant them, haphazard, every-which-way?" "No, indeed," was his
answer, "they are planted in rows, and close together." Exactly what we
are 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 to
one another, and there is great inspiration in numbers.
Looking out of the train window at those trees of future forests, I
thought of the verse in Isaiah, "The mountains and the trees shall break
forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap
their hands." I can hear the mountains and the hills of the Adirondacks
singing because of the growing trees, and I hear the mountains and the
hills of earth singing because of the millions of growing girls and boys
who 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 his
affection and esteem, when I went aboard the steamer in Manila,
Philippine Islands, to return to the homeland. All these years since
then the knife has been on my study desk, daily teaching me. What
lessons does this knife teach?
First of all the knife tells me of Strength. The most important part of
this knife is what _I_ call the backbone. It is the main portion of the
knife to which all the blades are fastened, as well as the polished
pearl handle. This would be a weak and useless knife did it not have a
backbone. It says to me every day "Be strong, stand up, have
convictions, be steadfast."
Lesson number two, Discipline. This knife has been subjected to many
trials and tests. The steel of which these blades are made had to go
through a hard, hot, trying process before they were tempered and fit to
take an edge and hold it. Sometimes I rebel about certain processes of
the days, then I think of my knife and learn from it the lesson of
discipline.
The third lesson this knife teaches me is Neatness. Now I can picture
the man who bought this knife. As he went into the store, he stood
before the glass show case wherein were displayed scores of different
kinds of knives. There were dark knives and light knives, big knives and
little knives. His eye caught this knife, with its graceful lines, its
smooth pearl handle, and he said, "That is a neat knife, I'll take that
one." People are attracted to you by your neatness.
The fourth lesson is Usefulness. Really it is quite wonderful the
variety of uses to which this knife can be put. Here is a big blade, and
a small blade; here is a blade with a file; folded in the back is a tiny
pair 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 man
who 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? The
Postman. 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 the
hall table to see if the Postman has brought you a letter. It is the
same when we grow up. No matter how many letters we may receive we never
get over the keen delight at having the Postman bring us letters.
Last Sunday afternoon you wrote your grandmother. You said, "Only two
months more of school and then I am coming to see you, and all the
summer vacation I am going to play around your big house, and in the
barn, and across the fields, and through the woods." On your way to
school Monday morning, you posted that letter. Monday afternoon you
began looking for an answer. Tuesday you were impatient that you had
not received a reply. Wednesday you were almost in tears, though, had
you only stopped to think you would have known that it takes two days
for a letter to get to your grandmother, she lives so far away. Thursday
the answer came. "I am eager for vacation time to come so that you, my
dear grandchild, may be here with me."
I have here an unusual book. It is a book of letters. All the letters
were written by a big man, a father, to little children, his children.
The man who wrote them was Theodore Roosevelt. What fortunate children
were his! Not many fathers take time to write to their children as did
our great president. Oh, for more fathers like Roosevelt! Oh, for
appreciative children, who will not only gladly receive, but cheerfully
write, 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 the
119th.
The 119th Psalm is unique because of its length. It is the longest of
the Psalms. It has one hundred and seventy-six verses.
It is unique because of its arrangement. It is divided into twenty-two
equal parts. Each part contains eight verses.
Again, the 119th Psalm is an acrostic, or an alphabetical Psalm. It is
built around the Hebrew alphabet. Each of the twenty-two portions begins
with one of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
The Psalm is unique because of its content. It is given over entirely to
a consideration of the law and commandments of God. Indeed, if you will
read the Psalm, you will find that every verse says something about the
precepts, or the statutes, or the commandments, or the word of God.
The 119th Psalm contains some of the verses with which we are most
familiar. "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking
heed thereto according to thy word." "Open thou mine eyes, that I may
behold wondrous things out of thy law." "Thy word is a lamp unto my
feet, and a light unto my path."
The Psalm reaches its highest point, and finds its fullest expression in
the 94th verse, three words, "I am thine."
Young people, I want you to read this 119th Psalm, and when you come to
the 94th verse I want you to stop and say over very earnestly, very
prayerfully, "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