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June 1943
ing to whisper with the other boys be fore the service began. He wanted to think. That day he sat spellbound as the teacher told them, once more, of the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross for boys and girls and men and women, that they might be saved from their sins. For the first time since .Chepil had heard about Christ, he seemed to really see. Him hanging on the cross. “He died for you and He died for me,” the teacher was saying. “Did Jesus die for me?" Chepil asked wonderingly. “For an Indian boy? Surely that can’t be true. People don’t .do things like that for Indians. For the Spanish, perhaps . . . still, if it were true . . .” and his eyes widened with the wonder of such a thought. “The Word of God says, “Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely,' ” the teacher went on, his voice t a k i n g on a note of urgency that caught Chepil’^ attention. “That ‘who soever’ means just what it says—each boy and girl, each man and woman, whether he be Spanish, Indian, Ameri can, or of any other race, if he will he may come to Christ to receive eter nal life.” , Then Chepil knew that it was true, for he believed the Word of God. Christ had died for the Indian boys as well as for others. For the rest of the service, Chepil forgot the others in the congregation, forgot, almost, that he was in the h o u s e oi God, as he fought the battle ■in his heart. He wanted to be saved. “Was it possible any one could wish otherwise?” he asked himself. But it would be. hard to be different from Maruch and the oth ers. Chepil knew the cost of the step he would take; he knew that Chris tians were set apart from other people and sometimes they were not treated too kindly, but he was not afraid— except for Maruch. Could he stand it if Maruch were displeased? But before the s e r v i c e was over that day, Chepil had made his deci sion and had accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour. The days that followed were filled with a kind of glory for him, a glory which he was not too young to under stand. Everything suddenly seemed brighter and happier. It was easy to serve his earthly master, now that he knew his heavenly Master. Chepil who once'thought he would never be glad again, had found real happiness. Maruch w a s, not forgotten in his new-found joy. His resolve to find her had been strengthened, for now he had a far more important reason for seeking her. Now he could take to Maruch the story of the Lord Jesus, and he could tell her and Elder Brother the way to eternal happiness in Him.
Parable of the Seed
By ALICE BISHOP KRAMER and ALBERT LUDLOW KRAMER
“ That which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die” (1 Con 15:36).
I suppose s ome of us di e quickly and that it takes others a long time to di®- I am impatient. Will I ever really be an oak? What has become of the Spirit who planted me? He seems very far away. He is in mei It is He who is causing me to grow. I will relax and let Him take me into His marvelous light. I am eme r g i n g from the ground. "I." the acorn, have dis appeared, but it is still "I." Yet it is not "I," but the Spirit that dwells in me. I am indeed a new creation. The Spirit did it all, and now He is filling me with new life. I cannot make myself grow. I cannot become a great tree by my own efforts. I will let Him make me into the kind of oak He wants me to be. I will "let go" and let God do it. Wonderful Spiritl Why You should have done' this for me, I cannot tell. How.You did it for-mb, I do not know. Some day I will have many little acorns. Out of the death of the seed there will be much fruit. Lord Jesusl You were Seed— grain. You fell into the ground and died, and became the Saviour of all who identify themselves with You.
I am an acorn, abiding alone. Today 1 saw a giant oak that was serving as a r e f ug e for many. The Spirit whispered to me: "You can become like the oak." I am all puffed up and work upon myself, trying to change myself, but it 1s in vain. Disheartened, I turn within myself. I find I am deteriorating. Cor ruption is setting in. I am mor tal. I am filled with despair and search with all my heart for the Spirit, fearing that He has been mocking’me. He reaches for me and whis pers: "You must be born again. Except you fall into the ground and die, you can never be an oak. You must lose your little life if you would have the life of a great tree." The ground has alw.ays looked very cold, but I suppose that to take my place in it is better than decaying, so I ask Him to plant me in it. With tender hand. He places me in the earth. Wonderful things are happen ing. I feel the touch of water, and the Spirit of life comes into me. I feel that I myself am dying. Little roots are growing out of me down into the ground, and as they grow, little leaves spring upward.
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