November, 1941
TH E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
421
“Flowers don’t cost much in Los An geles, and Mother would love them. We can’t get her anything to eat ’cause she has to eat hospital food until her in sides get straightened out. But she could enjoy flowers. And I know some thing else. We could write her a letter —not just an ordinary letter, but a really happy Thanksgiving letter. Let’s think about what we will write between now and tomorrow.” The next morning Jack and Virginia tried hard not to think of what Thanks giving would be without the family din ner they ha.d hoped to have. About ten o’clock they set off for the little church near the auto camp. They had seen in the paper that there was to be a Thanks giving service there, and they thought it would please Mother if they attended and could irrite that in their Thanks giving letter. Daddy had said they might go. It was just a small church, but it looked friendly, its whiteness standing out against the shining dark orange trees in the background. The two chil dren went in and sat down. At first their attention wandered as they watched the people and wished they knew some of them. Back borne they knew every one. Suddenly Vir ginia’s interest came back to what the young minister was saying. Why, he was telling it just like a storj», a story she knew, too! But he was making it very exciting. “Paul, after one of thè most adven turesome of journeys,” the minister was saying, “a journey toward Rome whicn meant prison and hard circumstances, found reason for thanksgiving on the Appian Way. “We are told in Acts 28:15 that when the brethren heard Paul was coming, some met him at the Appli Forum which was thirty-nine miles from Rome. Oth ers, who were eager to meet Paul but were not able to make the longer jour ney, tarried at a place called the Three Taverns, nine miles nearer Rome.” As the minister talked, Virginia could just see the Appian Way, the Forum, the Three Taverns, and the brethren going to meet Paul. She wished she could have been there—she would have taken a gift to Paul! "And when Paul saw them, he thanked God and took courage,” the minister went on. “Paul’s first reaction was to look out—he saw the brethren. Then he looked up—and thanked God. And then he took courage.«. Some people recognize the fact that it takes courage to live. Others,, like Paul, take the courage. Do we walk the Appian Way?” During the closing hymn and on the walk home, Virginia was u n u s u a l l y thoughtful. The sermon had been for the older folks, but children could walk the Appian Way, too, she thought. “Let’s have an Appian Thanksgiving, Jack,” she suggested suddenly. “A what?” Jack asked.
JUNIOR KING’ S BUSINESS New K. Y. B. C. Members
“Like Paul,” Virginia explained pa tiently. Jack was smarter than she was in some things, but sometimes he did seem a little bit dumb! “Paul was on an adventuresome?’ she stumbled a little over the big word but got it out, “journey, and I guess his shipwreck wasn’t) any more fun to him than our car wreck, was. But the Lord saved him and the Lord saved us. Even Mother, who was hurt so bad, is going to get. well. And Paul was going to prison and we’re not going to have any thing like that. We have to go home without Mother, though. The minister said that some folks know it takes courage to live. Before last Week I wouldn’t have understood that, but I do now—a little bit. But he said others, like Paiii, take the courage. And I guess even boys and girls can do that. Let’s take the courage to live the way Christians ought to live.” “Why that might be fun,” Jack joined in eagerly. He had been much impressed by the minister’s sermon, too, though in a different way. Paul was one of his Bible heroes, and if Paul found Thanks giving on the Appian Way, why they could try to do the same. • “Now we have something real to write Mother for her Thanksgiving sur prise,” Virginia finished happily. A car was drawn up before the cottage at the auto camp when they reached it, and Daddy was standing on the tiny porch watching for them. “Who could it be?” Jack asked won- deringly. “We don’t know anybody here.” “Well, let’s find out,” Virginia sug gested, and away they raced to arrive rather breathless, but happier than Dad dy had seen them for some days. “You’ll never guess who is here, so I’d better tell you and save you all the wasted effort of guessing,” Daddy teased them. “When Word of our accident and changed plans reached home, Mr. Stanton immediately w r o t e to some friends of his here, Mr. and Mrs. White,” and he stopped to introduce Jack and Virginia to the friendly look ing couple seated in the only two chairs the cabin contained. “And they have looked ms up and insist on our coming home with them for Thanksgiving din ner—a turkey dinner, they say. What do you think of that?” “ Oh, boy!” Jack shouted, and then looked confused’ as Virginia nudged him. “They came to meet us on the Appian Way just ljjse the brethren did for Paul,” Virginia exclaimed eagerly. “What’s that?” Daddy asked. And then Virginia had to explain. “ I think we would all do well to walk the Appian Way, Virginia,” Daddy re plied gently when she had finished. But Jack and Virginia were already planning another addition to Mother’s Thanks giving letter—about the “brethren” who came to meet them with an invitation to Thanksgiving dinner!
The follow in g1 have read through the Gospel according to John and are now members o f the K now Y our I^ible Club: DALLAS, TEX .: Marv Frnncis B lair; La Verne and Marie B row n; Margaret F ow ler; Helen G oodw in; Frank, May. Dell and W alter H ickm an; Francis L aw ton; Helen and Sara K ennon; Franklin McClanahan; R ay P ayne; C. T. and R obert P irtle; P eg g y R aberge; Bernice R oach; Otto and R oy Lee Voss, and Jim W elch (C. TV Pirtle, leader). DINUBA, CALIF.; Evelyn Mae and Ilean Fay Byrd (Ruth 'Warkentin, leader). K INDER, LA.; John Lew is and M ickie B aker; V irgil Coureillou; W onola D ysert; B obby and Lillian Hanehey; Yvonne H o gan ; W ayne lies: Mary Louise and Nor man Johnson; Ruth Kuntz; Frankie La Ruff; Abner and Y vonne M arcantel; B illy and Sally P itts; Jerry R eynolds; Greta R ougeau : Betty Saylor; ^reston Stagg, J i.; Jimmie and Joe W alker; Bertie Lois W allace, and Bobby and Jackie W eather ford (W anda Kuntz, leader). - LACOMB, ORE.: Dorris, Jean, and L ouise Backm an; Marion B artru ff; Lydia and V irginia B ow en; H alley Burford; L or- aine H oover; Geneva H ow a rd :' Phyllis H uber; Shirley Judd; Donna M ills; Au drey, Neil, and Ruth Vanderburg. and A lice, Ellen, and Erw in W ilkinson (Leland I.4W ilkinson, pastor). LEBANON, ORE.: Clella a n d* Shirley A lexander: W ilm a B urkett: Eldon G roff, and R osalie T yler (Zelda Piper, leader). LILLIW AUP, WASH .: Barbara John ston; Jean L evagood; Jean McCaughan; A rline Schaufler; Mrs. Tuttle; Jean and Mrs. L. K. W ebb; Hazel W erner, and Mildred W oodw orth (Mrs. Sigurd John son, leader). MAHTOWA, MINN.; Harriet Nordstrom. PORT ANGELES, WASH .: Eileen and Gale Dudley (E leanor Alleman, leader). WOOSTER, OHIO: Joan H odge; Bud and Ena Mae W alters; Donald and R oger Varns, and Dean W ilson (Lucille Varns, teacher). back to the office. Now that I-other is out of danger, he can leave, ard that will make it much less expel site. Then when Mother is well he will come for her.” | Virginia thought of return -;g home without Mother, and a great big lump came into her throat. Then she thought of Mother in pain in the hospital, and she swallowed the lump with much dif ficulty. Her voice was a little queer when she spoke again, but Jack did not seem to notice. “What can we do for Mother for a Thanksgiving surprise? After all, she must feel much worse than we do. We were only bruised-vs; didn’t have any broken parts. Ani e !. j must know all about the expense. / nd it was her mother we were going l visit. So, what have we to be cor’pl ining about?” she finished quite cheitlidly. “How much money <’ 1 you have?” Jack asked, exploring his own pockets. “A nickel,” V i r g i n i a a n s w e r e d promptly. Jack produced another nickel. "What can we get with ten cents?” he asked dubiously. “Flowers,” V i r g i n i a said eagerly. THANKSGIVING ON THE APPIAN W AY [ Continued from Page 4 ! 8]
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