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T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
March, 1933
K ING ’S BUSINESS . . . B y M a r th a S. H ooker
u n i o r
while as though your master might come at any time,” said the traveler in surprise. “I keep it as though he should come to day, sir, today,” explained the faithful gardener. Would the garden of your heart be ready if Jesus should come today? —A uthor U nknown . ££~IT don ’1 wanna be washed,” said *'*' II little George as his mother pre- pared to bathe him. After a while, George became quiet and his mother washed him, but when he came down to breakfast, he sat in his chair and sulked. Did you ever see a boy or girl do that? Henry and Jane, George’s brother and sister, were eating their breakfast when Mother said, “ I am going to tell you a story—George did not want the cold water to come near him this morning. Instead of thanking God for the nice water He has given us, he was acting as if he wished there wasn’t any water in the house. “When I was a little girl, my father started out for the West. W e had a large wagon with room enough for my fa ther and mother and my brother and sis ter and myself, and it seemed as though we had something o f everything in that wagon. At the end o f the wagon, we had a barrel which was filled with water; and every time we came to a river on our journey, Father was very careful to fill that barrel with water. “That year, there was very little rain, and the country was very dry. As we got farther and farther West, we came to many dry water courses, and there was no water to be had. One day we used up the last drop of water in the barrel, and oh, how thirsty we were! “My father had somehow missed the proper trail, and I well remember how we all prayed that God would let us soon come to a place where there was some water. Shortly after we prayed, we found the trail again and soon came to a farm where they had a deep well. How we en joyed drinking that water! And we were so hot and dusty that we were glad to have a wash, too. It seemed as if our very skins were thirsty, and how the poor horses enjoyed a good, long drink!” George was quietly listening and seemed to have forgotten all about his sulkiness. “ Children,” Mother continued, “I have often thought that that journey was like our way through life. A time came in my life when I was thirsty for another kind of water. It was then that I heard the voice o f Jesus say, ‘I f any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.’ ■ I came to Jesus, and He has given me a well of water inside o f me that is ever bubbling. George spoke up, “If I came to Jesus, would He wash me inside so I would not be cross any more?” “Yes, dear,” said Mother, and so it was that George, who did not want to be washed, was washed that day not only on the outside* but on the inside, too. Washed B y N obud E. M uch
GOD THINKING ABOUT US B y I da N ield *
I! ” f you will take .your Bibles, boys and girls, and turn to Psalm 40, y o u will find, in verse 17, these words :H“The Lord thinketh upon me.” The Bible tells us some wonderful things about God’s thoughts of us, and the sweetest of them all is that thought of
tells us that our hearts by nature are evil only, of little worth, proud and deceitful; but it also tells us that when God’s love fills them, His grace makes them clean, new, and full of song. W e say that God is everywhere, but there is one place where He is not. Psalm 10:4 tells us that He is not in the thoughts o f the wicked. God can not dwell in our hearts as His temple un less we keep them fit to be a temple for Him, by letting only the loving, kind thoughts abide there to crowd out the evil thoughts that would drive Him away. Many people have books in which they ask their friends to write their names; perhaps some of you may have such books, or have written your names in some friend’s book of remembrance. God has a book in which are written the names of His friends, those who think loving thoughts of Him. Malachi 3:16 says, “A book of re membrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.” Do you not want your name written in God’s book of re membrance ? Some of you may like to learn the little prayer at the bottom o f this page, that I have written just for you. Ready for the Master’s Coming A story is told of a traveler who hap pened to come to a very beautiful garden.' There were walks with flower borders and beds filled with bloom, graceful groups of shrubs and tall, healthy trees—every bit o f the garden showed the most watchful care of the old gardener. “Does your master come often to enjoy this lovely garden?” asked the visitor. “He has not been here in twenty years.” “And yet you keep the garden all the
, , His heart which we • M rs . N ield . ^ all love. Qne of the most beautiful verses in all the Bible contains only three words: “God is love.” ; His thoughts of us are all loving thoughts. Should we not, in our turn, think back loving thoughts o f God? How much we ought to love Him, because o f His love for us, and how glad we ought to be because we know of His love! Do you remember the story of Nehe-: miah, a cup-bearer to the king of Persia, who was sad because Jerusalem had be come a helpless city since its walls were broken down ? He told the king how much he desired to go to Jerusalem, with an or der to build the walls again. The king was kind to Nehemiah and helped him and gave him a letter to the keeper of the king’s' forest, telling him to give to Nehemiah wood for the building of the walls and the repairing of the t e m p l e , and also for the building of a house. Then that would help him to pass safely through the different provinces; so Nehemiah,with many friends and horsemen, made the long journey to Jerusalem in safety. There he encouraged the people until nearly all the men, and many o f the women, began the work o f rebuilding the walls o f Jerusalem. The enemies of the Jews did not like this at all, for they did not want Jerusalem to become a strong city again; they would not be able then to enter it and rob the people in it. So they all conspired together, the Philistines, the Arabians, and the Ammon ites, and tried to form an army to stop the building. They also watched for a chance to kill Nehemiah, but he prayed, “Think upon me, my God,” and God did think up on him, and kept him safe from harm, so that the walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt, the gates were hung in place, and the city once again was safe from its enemies. I f our hearts are filled with loving thoughts of God, because He first loved us, there will be no room in them for wicked thoughts. Sometimes boys and girls think that if they do not cheat, or lie, or steal, that they do not have wicked thoughts; but they forget that unkind thoughts, angry thoughts, or envious thoughts are just as sinful and wicked in God’s sight as the others. So how pleasant it is to realize that the more we fill our hearts and minds with loving thoughts, the less room there will be for the angry and unkind ones. The Bible ■ Sc^T
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Think Upon Me B y I da N ield Oh, think upon me, 0 my God, This prayer I ask tonight; That I may walk, within Thy love, In pathways safe and bright. For if Thy loving thoughts on me, Thy little one, are stayed; Then naught can harm me here below, And naught make me afraid. And I will try to make my heart A temple fit for Thee, With loving thoughts will drive out ' sin, That Thou may’st dwell in me.
*Mrs. J. B. Nield.
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