mm K 1
Oltïistmas in TìlaL
a\xa
A true story of Kong Yeong and a Book that changed his life forever
By A nn e H azelton
I t was the day after Christmas and the sun rode high in a brilliant blue sky above the dark green of the Malayan jungle. In one of the villages surrounded by its intricate barbed -w ire entanglement, Kong Yeong huddled in the shade of the small tin-roofed house which was his home. The day was very hot, and it hurt just to lift his hand to wipe his face, but his heart ached much more than his body. Last year Kong Yeong had said good-bye to his jungle home and moved with his family to the new village.. This new life was strange to the boy at first but soon he grew to like their small house and garden. But especially he liked the school. Already he had learned to read. If he hadn’t been able to read, would he have asked for the Book? And if he hadn’t accepted the Book would he have been beaten yesterday? So he remembered his meeting with the Indian bookseller. “ Please, sir, I have no money but I would very much like to read one of your books. Could I borrow one? I will touch it with great care and will return it on the day you come again,” Kong Yeong said. “ I will make a bargain with you,” answered the Indian. “ If you take this Book home and promise to read it, I will give it to you for nothing. When I meet you again I will ask you to bring it back to me if you have not read it.” Kong Yeong accepted it and ran quickly home. His mother didn’t seem to share his enthusiasm. The book was called the Happy Sound of Mark and every spare.moment since then the boy had read over and over again its wonderful words. One day some missionaries came ¡to the village. They had books just !like the one Kong Yeong had only they were in Chinese characters. He spoke to them in the Chinese he was 30
learning at school and they under stood him. Soon Kong Yeong was a frequent visitor at their home. His mother often asked him why he went to the foreigner’s house. He always replied carefully that he went to study and his mother said no more. As he read and studied he was convinced that one must worship the true God and none other. It puzzled him when he saw the worship table outside his house with its burning incense to appease the gods. As he became more and more troubled he told his parents about the true God and read to them from the precious Book. After a while of this, his parents ordered him to leave this foreign re ligion and told him to “no longer read from books that teach you to forsake the gods of your parents.” One night his father took his books and cast them into the fire where the evening rice was being cooked. That was the night before Christmas. Kong Yeong had been asked to help trans late the message into the language of the children and now he was for bidden to attend the service! All night long the boy tossed and turned. He did not know the right thing to do. Christmas in Malaya is just as hot as any other day and the morning dawned bright and beauti ful. Kong Yeong had then made up his mind that he would go to the Christmas service, come what may. When it was his turn to give a short message, he stood and saw his mother standing in the background. Very bravely he gave the story of the birth of the Saviour. He finished and sat down and it wasn’t long before he felt himself jerked from the bench and marched from the meeting hall by his mother. His father was wait ing at home—waiting to beat the boy for his stand for Christ. Now it was the day after his hu miliation. It was noon and time to go in the house. Then he heard his name called.
“Kong Yeong, are you home?” Fearfully he peeped around the comer of the house and then his heart lifted with joy. It was the Tam il colporteur. Kong Yeong was glad to see him but he remembered that he could not give his book back for it had been burned. He told him the story of what had happened. “You kept your part of the bar gain, did you not?” he asked him. “Then the Book was yours. I am sorry, too, that it was burned, but you must not feel bitter toward your parents. They do not understand. You have believed in God and noth ing can take that away from you. Perhaps He has chosen you to win them. Obey them in this thing. Even though you cannot go to the hall for worship, be true to God in your heart. Do not be surprised that you have to suffer for your faith. I have been thrown into cesspools and into rivers that swarmed with crocodiles. The Moslems have done all they could to break my faith, but God has kept me through it all.” The old Indian colporteur told him that his question that day was one he had asked a bookseller many years ago when he was about Kong Yeong’s age. He had believed at the time and God gave him the privilege of seeing another brought in the same way. The old man bowed his head in a brief prayer and then left. Kong Yeong stood and watched his bent figure make its way slow ly down the dusty road. He was not unhappy now. He still ached from the beating, but his heart was light and happy as he went in to help his mother. Perhaps some day when he was a man he could travel ’round and tell others of the Lord Jesus. In the meantime he must pray and work that his parents might come to know Christ too. His mother’s surprise and the thoughtful look in her eyes when she saw his cheerfulness was a little sign that the colporteur was right. THE KING'S BUSINESS
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs