/ r For Boys and Girls E D I T E D B Y M A R T H A HOOKER
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Wi)t Christmas â>torj> AS TOLD TO MRS. ANNA M. DENNIS
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A t t h is time of the year, we are each trying to think of some thing that we can give to folks we love; something that they can touch and see and feel, which will say to them, “ I love you.” When we think of the gift that we would like to give for someone we love very much, we try to think of something that person needs; for if he need it, he will use it. And when he uses it, he will think of the one who gave it. I wonder what you would do if you found that the person you love, needed most, the very best thing you had. Of course, if you loved him enough, you’d give it. That is what our Heavenly Father did on that first Christmas. What we needed most was the very best that He had, His only Son, and He gave Him to us to be our Saviour. When you receive a gift from the one who loves you, what are you go ing to say? You will say, “Thank you,” of course. A long time ago a man tried to say, “Thank you” to the Heavenly Father for the first Christ mas Gift. He couldn’t think of a word that would say how wonderful that Gift was, so he just said a great long word that meant, “ I can’t think of a word.” He said it this way: “ Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” (2 Cor. 9:15) And from our hearts, let’s say it together, “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” And this is the way God sent that “un speakable gift” into the world on that first Christmas. If you had lived in the little city of Bethlehem on the day before the very first Christmas, do you know where you would have spent most of your day if it had been bright and sunshiny and pleasant? Yes, early in the morning you, your mother, and your brothers and sisters would have gone to the garden of your home and up the stairs on the outside of the roof. You would have spent the day on that flat, sunny, pleasant, safe ' place. You and the others would have studied, and worked and played all day long. Mother and sisters had to weave all the clothes for the family. Perhaps big sister on this day would have been weaving back and forth, back and forth on a narrow, soft, white strip of linen cloth. And as she
The Christmas Story as presented on this page not only delights the boys and girls but the mothers and grandmothers as well in the Moth er’s Class of the Church of the Open Loor, Los Angeles, California. For more than forty years, Mrs. Anna M. Dennis has faithfully taught the Word of God in this great downtown church, and has been a teacher, greatly beloved throughout these years. One of the special features of the Christmas season, as far as the Mother’s Class is concerned, is the telling of the lovely Christmas Story to mothers and grandmothers who in turn tell it to their children and grandchildren. Soon after her conversion in 1908, Mrs. Dennis became a Bible woman under Mrs. T. C. Horton’s leader ship. This service was followed by twenty years of teaching on the faculty of the Bible Institute. For several years during the time that Dr. R. A. Torrey was dean of the school, Mrs. Dennis was the only woman member of the faculty. Dr. Torrey held her in very high es teem, both as a friend and teacher, and expressed his appreciation by giving her his own Bible which she considers one of her special treas ures. Biola Alumni around the world and all who have ever sat in her classes remember with thanksgiving the blessings of her teaching of the Word. She is a mother to many spiritual children who “ arise up, to call her blessed.” worked it, it would grow longer and longer. Do you know what she was making? Clothes for the baby — for when the baby was ready for its little dress, you would have seen mother take the end of this swaddling cloth (for that is what it was called), hold it under the little arm, and wrap it carefully round and round the little body to the feet. Then round and round over the little arms and hands — right up to the neck and tuck it in. Thus the baby was dressed in swad dling clothes. During the morning, I know you would have gone to the wall to see what you could see. That would have been just what you had seen many
times before. You would look across the hills and see shining in the sun the round, golden top of the temple of the city of Jerusalem. The temple itself is of beautiful white stone, as are many of the houses of that city. These, with the green of the trees and vines make it a beautiful city of white and green — with its high wall and great gates. In between you see the hills. On the hills you can see flocks of sheep nib bling at the short, dry grass. On one hill a shepherd and his flock, over on this hill another shepherd and his flock, and coming around the hill is a third shepherd leading his sheep. You can see the road winding among the hills from Jerusalem to Bethle hem. There is the well at the gate of Bethlehem, and the high wall around the city. The road up the hill seems to end right at the high gate which leads to the inn where visitors who have no friends in Bethlehem are going to stay for the night. Then you can see houses just like yours, other mothers, other sisters, and other little folks. And sometime during that morn ing, the little people come to mother’s knee and say, “Mother, tell us a story.” Mother hardly needs to ask what story to tell, for it must be the one about King David and how he was bom in this same city of Bethle hem. That is why Bethlehem is some times called the “ City of David.” Sometime during that day, I am sure you say to mother, “Mother, why are so many people coming to Bethle hem today? I have seen more than we have seen on any other day.” Mother answers, “The king has told the people they must pay their taxes. Every one who was bom in Bethle hem must come back here and have their names written in the big book so the king can get their taxes. I think a great many of these people are coming back because when they were little folks, they lived here.” If you stay on that roof until eve ning, when the first stars are twin- CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
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