November, 1944
863
fATlf- ER *l£ TBANKT«Et FOR J£ - SK OUR lORD, AND THANK. YOU. FOR VOIt-li TO RAKE IN THIS SONG OH.
# 1 Beulah • A * Oraitt^
THANKS FOR THE 51 • RLE THINE OWN WRIT- TEN WOW AW , MAY- Wt KEEP PRAK-ING HIM All THE YEAR K
Giving God
THAN« FOR OUR. PARENTS WHO TAU6RT US TO PRJkY ANO EY'-RY PAY TILL- WG SOME ONE OF UK ¡OVt.’ A§?
By
MARGUERITE GOODNER OWEN
THAN« FOR THE CHURCHONTHIS TRANKS-GIV- INC* DAY* POINTING THE WAY TO THE MAN-SIONS A • BOYt
PH I l H M I N S ' * A 61 v t C t e r t i g
A S PAO LAN and her mother set out to visit her aunt and uncle j L V on the far side of town, the streets of Peach Blossom Village were filled with gaily dressed women and children. Pao Lan was wearing her new padded gown. It was the first long one she had ever had. She also had on her beautifully embroidered slippers, and she hoped her playmates and neighbors would see her. It was the third day of the Chinese New Year, the most important holiday of the year. For three days no shops had been open, and there had been deli cious feasts. Everybody was having a good time going to some one else’s house to eat. The day was clear and sunny, even , though it was cold. Many of the women were on their way to visit relatives and friends. They wanted to show them the gay clothes on which they had worked so many days and weeks. The tiny children had on bright caps trimmed with flowers or embroidered with tigers’ faces. They thought the tigers’ faces would keep away the demons. The whole town looked like a fair, with men selling sugar canes, rice cones, peanuts, and small candied red apples on sticks. There was so much to see that Pao Lan was sorry when she and her« mother arrived at the home of her aunt. She went in, bowed politely to the old people in the home, and then
scampered away into the courtyard with her cousins. As the children played near the gate, they heard strange sounds and ran out into the street to see where they came from. Down near the well, under a big tree, they saw two people. The children crept closer, curious to see these strangers. They .were tall with yellow hair. The c h i l d r e n thought: “Surely these must be the foreign devils we have heard about.” Were they men or women? They had big feet as men had, but after staring at them for a time, the chil dren decided that they were women. Pao Lan’s cousins were not interested, and they wanted to go home. They said to her: “Lai pa! (Come on.)” But Pao Lan was not ready to go. She wanted to listen to the song the foreigners were singing: "There is only one God; our heaven ly Father He; He gives us food; He gives us clothes. Our Protector He."
Pao Lan edged nearer until she could ^lmost touch the woman who was singing. She had such a kind face, jand when she smiled, Pao Lan smiled back at her shyly- But Pao Lan was puzzled. Who was this God about whom the strangers were singing? No god that she knew ever gave her anything. Just three nights - before, she had helped her mother smear the lips of the paper kitchen god with molasses’ so that he would give a good report of them1 when he returned to heaven. Then they had burned him and pasted up a new picture of him where the old one had been. She had watched her mother offer food to their gods and bum incense and paper money; but she had never heard of a god who gave gifts to people. The tall lady stopped singing and unrolled a brightly colored picture. She tacked it to a tree. Then she be gan to talk about the heavenly Father who gives sunshine and fain and causes the grain and cotton to grow for food attd clothing. She turned to Pao Lan and asked
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