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T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
November, 1937
Junior King's Business By MARTHA S. HOOKER
CH ILDR EN 'S MEETING IN C H IN A
• Gathered with Chi nese children like these, Shiu Lin heard from a missionary the story of the love of the Lord Jesus. The chi l dren shown in this picture are listening to a young C hr i s t i a n C h i n e s e woman who formerly was a ki nder gar t en teacher.
Courtesy, “ Young China”
SHIU LIN’S JOYOUS THANKSGIVING* By S tella M. R udy
T HERE was to be no feasting of tur key, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and all the other good things that we enjoy at a Thanksgiving feast, for this feast was being held in China. The family and a few friends gathered around little square tables, which were steaming with stewed goose and other good things that well-to-do Chinese people enjoy. Lotus buds and barley were cooked with the goose. Roast pigeon and baked fish followed the goose. Each was served in a pretty blue and white bowl filled with rich gravy. Dainty little bowls of hot flaky rice were served to each person. Little dishes of melon seeds were in front of each guest, so that the people might nibble at the seeds between courses. Everybody thoroughly enjoyed the good things, for was it not a real Thanks giving feast ? And did they not come together to give thanks to the true God in heaven ? Out in the courtyard were the ashes of Buddha and of the goddess of mercy, the kitchen god, the god of riches, and the god of long life. All these idols had been burned, and now the family and a few friends had gathered together to rejoice that th£y had come to know that the idols were false, and that there was only one true God, One who loved and cared for them. * * * It all had come about through Shiu Lin, the little ten-year-old daughter of Mr. and * Adapted from the Sunday School Times.
to them, and to expect blessing and pro tection from them. Hjow can a piece of wood hear you when you pray?” Shiu Lin sat on the end of the bench and listened eagerly. “But we have a shelf full of all sizes of idols in our home,” she thought. Some of them were little, and were not more than six inches high. Others were two and a half feet high. “And Father bows down every day before those idols and prays to them,” she thought. “And they are false! They cannot see or hear or think! It is vain to worship them!” Shiu Lin sighed, and tears filled her eyes. As soon as the meeting was over, Shiu Lin hurried home. For several days she was very thoughtful. She hurried through with her work each day, and then she went to the meetings for children. As she heard more about the true God, she was convinced in her heart that the idols were false. “ If only Father would not worship these false gods!” she sighed. One morning Shiu Lin watched her father worship the idols. He placed incense before them, poured out tea, served rice and vegetables to them, and bowed down before them, bumping his head on the ground three times! Shiu Lin watched him, and to herself she said, “These idols cannot see my father. They cannot help him. I must ask Jesus to help him see that it is useless to pray to these gods of wood, clay, and stone.” Shiu Lin dropped to her knees beside her father. She was careful not to face the idols. Then she prayed in a low voice, yet
Mrs. Low. “ Shiu Lin” means “Lotus Flower.” Shiu Lin was a small, timid Chinese girl who had learned to love Jesus. Only a few weeks before, she had never heard about the Lord Jesus. She had always been taught to pray to the many gods on the idol shelf, in the hope that they might help her. One day when she was walking along the street, she heard sweet singing in the mis sion chapel. She decided to go in to listen to the songs. She slipped into a front seat and thought she had never heard anything so beautiful in all her life. How she wished she could sing as the other children did! The missionary smiled into the bright little face, and when she urged the children to learn the song, “ I Am Jesus’ Little Lamb,” Shiu Lin felt encouraged to try. It wasn’t nearly as .hard to learn to sing the words as she had thought it would be. Shiu Lin had a sweet little voice, and very soon she was able to join the others in the song. She decided to return every day. She was a very ambitious little girl, and before long she learned to read as well as to sing. How she enjoyed hearing the stories of the Lord Jesus! One day the missionary showed the children an idol and told them that it was only a piece of wood. “ The idols,” she said, “ are only made of wood, paper, stone, or clay. They are lifeless, and are all false. Although they have eyes they cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear; mouths but cannot talk; feet but cannot walk; and hands but cannot work. Neither can they eat or drink. It is vain, it is useless, to pray
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