388 When Lowl y Tasks ‘Is there an extra iron? I want to help!’
o f the year. That surely was a case of ‘Before ye call, I will answer.’ You know, I really believe that if the Lord has called us here, He will keep us here— some way— until His purpose has been served.” There were happy murmurs of assent as the group broke up— some to study, some to work, all to wonder and to praise the One whose guiding hand they saw in the little things o f life. In another corner of the building, a Hopi Indian lad, back at the Institute for a third year, was telling, with humility and native reserve, how the Lord had met his needs. For two weeks, he had had no work, and he had needed it desperately. One morning, he had p rayed -^ earnestly and believingly—had told the Lord that he was willing to do absolutely anything, and had arisen from his knees with the sweet assurance that the answer was on the way. It was, at that very moment! “ Daniel,” a voice far down the corridor was calling his name. “ How would you like a dishwashing job ?” Like it? He would love it— for it was God’s own answer to his prayer! Shyly now, with no trace of self-aggrandizement, he told to the little company of fellow students, how man after man had held that job, and had quit, after a day or two, because it was too hard and too altogether unpleasant. But the son of the mesa had stayed, working his three and a half hours a day for meals only, because, to him, it was God’s provision for his need. Later, God led to something better. “ Sundays I usually didn’t eat,” he explained, “ because the place was closed.” But, lest unwanted sympathy should be aroused, he added, “ I made up for it on Mondays!” The men where he worked would often taunt him. “ You ’re a pretty good Indian,” they would say jocularly. “ You speak good English. With your education, you could get rich in the show business. Why don’t you don the feathers and make some money?” Under coarse black hair, two dark eyes look out
i h e l i t h e , sunny-faced girl who asked the question was already gone, like a bright streak, down the corridor toward the Institute laundry. The answer came winging its way to her -—a simple, girlish answer, “ Oh, thanks a million!” and the tone, even more than the words, plumbed the depths o f gratitude. “ What does all this mean, anyway ?” a
third friend had stepped up, laughingly, curiously. “ Oh, Alice is helping me with the shirts today,” “ The shirts ?” “ Yes, I do them for the students for ten cents each, you know, to help pay my board and room. They really Can’t pay any more”— the apology was added in a brave effort to shield one’s own. “ Well, that’s a new one,” her friend chuckled. “ It’s a good thing we’re willing to do anything here at B. I., isn’t it? How many shirts do you get to launder?” “ I could have twenty-five a day, I suppose. Only— the work is a little hard— doing it all by hand.” “ I know.” There was finality and sympathy in the answer. “ Mine is, to o ! I have the same position I had before I came to the Institute, only I ’m working nights now, operating a printing machine. But I ’m so glad to be here! When I saw what the Institute had done for the other young people from my church who had been here, I thought I just had to come, but it seemed impossible, right up to the last minute, until the Lord changed my hours and gave me the promise of a shorter shift.” “ He’s a precious Saviour.” The words were scarcely audible, reverently beautiful, as they came from the quiet, dark-haired student who .had joined the group. She went on, speaking softly, as though telling a very dear secret: “ Last year, when I was working so hard, doing housework in a private home, and when I thought I could not continue
there for even one more hour, He showed me that I could (she smiled meditatively over the choice lesson that had been learned), and at the same time, through T h e K in g ’ s B u s in e s s , He laid it on the heart of a dear Christian woman in Vermont to pay my expenses for the remainder
^ The contributions t<& in the September KING ’S BUSINESS O . Howard Lucy on “ How D , L . Nfq of God , reached a sum exceeding |5, that the article on these pages, whicifd students to continue their training, w fund of $ 1 5 ,0 0 0 needed for operatin
Center —Whether in deal ing with machines or souls, skill is required. Left —A le rt at clerical tasks, •students prepare T he K ing ’ s B usiness for mailing. Right —The “ Martha” in many a home is a stu dent with a “ Mary” heart.
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