A dog chasing a hawk.
When lying quiet it was amusing to see how quickly he would jump up and bark when any one would say, “Hawk!”
“Wee pretty kitty,With nothing to do,Only to takeLittle naps in a shoe.You look very niceWhile lying in there,With never a thoughtOf sorrow or care.Yet I am so gladThat I am not you,For I can love Jesus,Which you can not do.”A kitten asleep in a slipper.
“Wee pretty kitty,With nothing to do,Only to takeLittle naps in a shoe.You look very niceWhile lying in there,With never a thoughtOf sorrow or care.Yet I am so gladThat I am not you,For I can love Jesus,Which you can not do.”
A kitten asleep in a slipper.
Two fish jumping out of the water.
FISHES are queer creatures that live in water. Men catch them with hooks and lines or nets and use them for food.
A tank of guppy, with males and females marked.
THE GUPPY
Some fish are very large. We read in the Bible of a man named Jonah. He was trying to run away from the Lord, who had called him to a work. While on a ship, during a storm he was thrown into the water. But he did not drown, for a greatfish swallowed him, and carried him ashore. He then knew that God meant what he said, and so did as God had commanded.
There are hundreds of different kinds of fishes, and many, many men earn their living by catching and selling them for food.
Some of Christ’s disciples were fishermen when he called them. He told them that he would make them fishers of men. This meant that he would prepare them to help other people to become Christians.
Two little girls sit picking flowers.
THERE are some kinds of animals that are tame, as the sheep, hog, cow, horse, dog, and cat.
A cat sits looking up at a little girl, who is holding a bowl.
The horse is a faithful beast and does much work for man. He draws the heavy loads on the road and works in the fields. We hitch him to a wagon or a carriage and enjoy a ride, or we can put a saddle upon his back and ride there also.
The cow gives us milk for our food, and from the milk we get cream, butter, and cheese.
The flesh of the hog is valuable for food.
The dogs are useful to guard our homes, and cats catch mice and rats. Both dogs and cats make good pets.
Sheep have long wool all over their bodies, and men cut it off and use it to make clothes to keep us warm.
Young sheep are called lambs. They like to run and play very much. In the picture we see a lamb that has fallen into the water. The mother sheep stands close by and watches the man trying to pull the lamb out.
I suppose the man had missed these two from the flock. He was in search of the lostones, and seeing the mother standing near the water, he came and found the lamb nearly drowned. The mother would not leave her babe, but waited a long time until help came.
A boy leans over a bank reaching for an object in the water.
Lambs are innocent-looking animals, anddo not make a noise when hurt. Jesus said that children are his lambs.
FOXES are wild animals. They live in the woods and swamps, in places where not many people live.
They are very cunning and sly, and catch young chickens, ducks, turkeys, and geese whenever they can.
Night is the time when they slip around and catch these barnyard fowls. They carry the fowls off to their holes in the ground, and eat them there.
Little foxes are very destructive, and often spoil grape-vines. In the Bible we read that it is the little foxes that spoil the vines.
This also means that our little unkind words and actions spoil the peace in our lives and make us feel bad.
Let us be careful that our words and deeds do not make ourselves or othersunhappy. If we live to please God, we shall please God’s people, and we shall not have to feel sorry on account of some bad words said or deeds done.
A little boy and a little girl feed a pony.
THE PET PONY
WHEN the frosts have colored the leaves of the trees of the woods with many hues, and the nuts have ripened and fallen to the ground, it is then that the squirrels gather a good supply of the different kinds of nuts and acorns into their little homes in the hollow trees, to be eaten during the many long days of winter.
Have you ever seen a squirrel? They love to play in the woods, and run among the branches of the trees, and jump from one limb to another.
God made the squirrels to enjoy the woods, and he has provided the nuts for them to eat.
A little girl feeds two squirrels.
FEEDING THE SQUIRRELS
ASHEPHERD is a man who takes care of sheep. During the day he watches them while they are eating grass, and in the evening he takes them to their fold or barn.
Now, we read in the Bible that an angel of the Lord appeared to some shepherds in the night. The shepherds were very much afraid, but the angel said to them:
“Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling-clothes, lying in a manger.”
An angel appears to the shepherds.
THE ANGEL’S APPEARANCE
“And suddenly there was with the angela multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
The babe’s name was Jesus, who came as a Savior to all the world.
Shepherds sit on the ground; some lambs are nearby.
GOD, who is in heaven, was full of pity for the unhappy people of earth. He loved them so much that he sent his Son to the earth in the form of a child, a baby in his mother’s arms. He came to earth to show us how to obey God—how to live so as to do good in this life and be happyboth in this life and in the life to come.
He came as a child, so as to show children how to live. He came like other children, and grew up as other children do, only better and wiser.
When God sent his Son to the earth, he gave him into the care of two good people who lived in a small town called Nazareth.
THE BOY CHRIST WITH THE WISE MEN
When Jesus came to them, they were in Bethlehem. They had gone there on a journey. There was no room for them in the inn; so they had to stay in a place made forcattle. God was not ashamed to place his Son in the care of poor people. He was not ashamed to have him born in a stable and cradled in a manger.
A bright star appeared over the place where the young child lay, and by this sign the wise men that came from the east seeking him were enabled to find him.
JESUS once lived on this very same earth on which we live. He walked through grain-fields. He climbed mountains. He noticed the birds and flowers, and watched the fishermen and farmers and shepherds. He used the things he saw to teach lessons to his disciples and others who came to hear him.
Jesus and three others look towards some buildings.
In the land of Palestine, where he lived,sheep-raising was very common. He said at one time: “I am the good Shepherd, and know my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and they follow me.”
Jesus, as a shepherd, carries a lamb and is followed by two sheep.
He was trying to show the people that he was just as anxious to help people live right and to keep them from danger as the kindshepherds who watched over their flocks upon the hills of Palestine were anxious to keep their sheep from harm at all times.
Jesus speaks to a woman.
JESUS TEACHING THE WAY OF SALVATION
At another time Jesus spoke of the lambs and compared them to children.
Jesus went into meeting-houses and taught the people. Many times he brought joy to the hearts of fathers and mothers by healing their sick children. He did good wherever he went. He was always trying to help those in trouble. He was the best and greatest man who has ever lived.
Jesus as a shepherd, carrying a lamb and followed by several sheep.
Reading and studying about him will help us to stand for the right and to do good, kind deeds.
We are his sheep if we are Christians, and the way we follow Jesus now is by reading the Bible and living a Christian life.
A young shepherd sits under a tree, playing a harp; sheep graze nearby.
Jesus gave his life for his sheep while he was here on earth. Now he is up in heaven, but he loves the people who follow him, and is still our Good Shepherd.
A woman sits at Jesus's feet; another woman sets out food and drink behind them.
LEARNING OF JESUS
JESUS taught many spiritual lessons by parables, that is, by stories about the common things people could understand.
A man sowing seeds in a field.
One day as he sat by the sea of Galilee, he told the people the parable of the Sower. The sower cast some seed by the wayside,that is, along the edge of the field or road-side. Some seed fell upon stony ground, some among thorns, and some on good ground.
The people did not know what he meant till he explained the lesson to them.
The great sower is Jesus, but all Christians are sowers under him. The seed is the Word of God. People’s hearts are the four kinds of soil.
AMONG the stories that Jesus told was the parable of the leaven.
A woman put leaven in the flour as a baker puts yeast in his bread dough. The leaven kept working until it affected all the dough and made it rise and become light.
As the yeast or leaven goes through all the dough, so the gospel of Jesus will go to all the nations in the world.
Each one who believes on Jesus enters thekingdom of God. The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy, which we get when we become Christians.
A woman kneading a bowl of dough.
JESUS told another parable, a story of the laborers in the vineyard. You can turn in your Testament to Matthew 20:1-16, andread about the man who hired laborers to work in his vineyard.
A number of men outside a building wait while two other men talk together.
He had agreed to pay the laborers a penny a day. The men who worked all day thought they should receive more than those hired later in the day, but the master paid them all alike. Just so those of us who have been Christians only a short time will receive the same heavenly reward as those who havelived a Christian life for years. Salvation is just the same to all—it takes sin out of our hearts and fills them with the love of God.
We must not put off getting saved; for Jesus said, “Watch, for ye know not the hour when your Lord doth come.” This means that we are liable to die without a warning, and we should always be ready.
ANOTHER parable is about a man who had a vineyard and let it out to husbandmen. When the time for gathering grapes came, he sent his servants to the husbandmen that they might receive the fruit. But the husbandmen took his servants and beat one and killed another. He sent other servants, and they were treated in the same way.
Last of all he sent his son, thinking theywould honor him, but they caught him and killed him.
A group of three men, one holding a club, wait for another man.
Jesus spoke this parable to the wicked people about himself at that time. Christ himself had been sent to the Jews, who had been the people of God for ages past, but who had wandered into sin. From time to time God had sent good prophets to warnthe Jews, but often the prophets were persecuted.
At last God sent Jesus, his only Son, and him they killed.
Two people unload sacks from a cart.
Two people gather tares to throw onto a fire.
CHRIST told another parable. It was of a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while the servants slept, an enemy came and sowed tares, or weeds, and thenwent away so that the servants knew nothing of it.
When the wheat grew, the tares also grew. When the servants noticed the tares, they asked the owner what it meant, as they sowed only good seed. He answered that an enemy had sown the tares. But he said that they should let both grow till the harvest, and that then the tares would be gathered and burned, but the wheat gathered into the barn.
A wheat field, half of it cut and stacked in sheaves.
Jesus explained this: The field, he said, means the world; the owner means Jesus himself; the wheat means the persons who become Christians; the tares are sowed by Satan; and the weeds are wicked men.
The wicked men and Christians are together here in this world, but at thejudgment-day the righteous will go to heaven and the wicked will be punished.
A number of people gathered for a feast.
ANOTHER parable was of a king’s marriage-feast.
The king invited certain ones to the feast, but they would not come; so he made an open invitation and sent his servants intothe highways to invite as many as they could find, and these people came.
God sent Jesus to the world, and he invited the Jews to accept the kingdom of God, but they would not. Though some Jews accepted Jesus, yet as a nation they did not, and God was displeased with them for it. When the Jews would not accept Jesus, God extended the invitation to the Gentiles, or all other people.
God now has the feast prepared. He invites people to come to Jesus and have their hearts made pure and enjoy the rich blessings of the kingdom—righteousness, joy, and peace. He extends the invitation to all.
If we will not give heed to his invitation to accept Jesus, we shall be left out of the kingdom, and others will take our place.
Four lambs.
A man kneels before a king sitting on a throne; a group of guards are in the background.
THE man kneeling in the picture owed the king hundreds and hundreds of dollars. He had no money to pay the king. The king said that this man and his wife and children must be sold and the money used to pay the debt. The man begged the king to wait a while, promising that by andby he would give him the money. The king then felt sorry for the poor man and said the man would not need to pay him any money. The man arose and walked away.
Soon he met a friend who owed him a little money. He spoke harshly to the friend and told him to pay the money. The friend did not have any money. He kneeled down before the man and said, “Wait a while, and by and by I will give you the money.” But the man seemed to have forgotten that the king had been kind to him. He had the friend put in jail. When the king heard about this, he did not like it, and he punished the hard-hearted man.
We are like the man in the picture. We ask God to be good to us and forgive us when we do wrong. Then, maybe, we are not good to our little friends when they do wrong to us. If they do a bad thing to us, we want to pay them back. We should not do this way. Jesus said that if we would not forgive others, God would not forgiveus. To forgive our friends means to be just as good to them when they do wrong to us as when they do good to us.
Jesus sits, surrounded by children, while their mothers look on.
AT ONE time when Jesus was teaching the people, some women brought their children to him for a blessing. The disciples thought the women should not do this, andthought Jesus did not wish to be bothered with the children.
Jesus said, “Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” He loved them and held them upon his lap and blessed them.
A group of men listen to Jesus.
At another time he said that unless people become converted and become as little children, they can not enter the kingdom of heaven. This means that it is necessary for them to have their sins forgiven and to be pure and innocent and free from sin in order to be in God’s church in this world and to go to heaven after they die.
JESUS spent his whole life doing good. He always helped those who were in trouble. He seemed to know of the sick and suffering of the land and was always anxious to heal them.
Jesus talks to the man with the withered hand; other men look on.
At one time he went into the meeting-place of the Jews and saw a man there who had a hand so withered that he could not open it or stretch it out. Now, there was a Jewish law that said no work should be done on the Sabbath. The wicked people watched Jesus to see if he would heal this man on the Sabbath-day.
Jesus heals a blind man.
HEALING THE BLIND
Jesus knew their thoughts, and so he asked the people, “If any of you had a sheep which should fall into a pit on the Sabbath, would you not help it out?” Then he saidthat if it was right to help a sheep, it was much more so to be good to man.
After that he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand,” and he stretched it out.
Jesus, followed by some of his disciples walk along a road.
ONE day Jesus and his disciples were on their way to a great city. This city was Jerusalem. Jesus told them that there many cruel things would be done to him and that he would be killed.
The disciples did not think this would happen to Jesus. They thought he would be a great king and sit on a throne. Two ofthese men were James and John. They came with their mother and bowed before Jesus as you see in the picture. James and John wanted to be great. They asked Jesus to let one of them sit on the right side and the other on the left of his throne. Jesus told them that the way to be great was to do good, kind deeds.
James and John, with their mother, kneel before Jesus.
Jesus was the greatest person who has ever lived, and he spent all his life doing good to those who were in need of help.
The blind men, with some others, wait by the roadside as Jesus approaches.
As Jesus and his men went toward the city, many people went with him. Two blind men were sitting by the road. They heard the crowd coming. When they knew that Jesus was coming, they asked him to open their eyes. Jesus was always ready to help those who were in trouble. He opened the eyes of the two blind men so they could see.
MANY little boys and girls kneel down at mama’s knee or by the bed in the evening and pray to God. Often Jesus wentup on a high hill to pray. In the picture Jesus is on a hill-top. He went there to pray. He took three of his disciples with him. They were Peter, James, and John.
The three disciples kneel in front of Jesus and the two men with him.
See the two men by the side of Jesus, and see how bright Jesus looks. The two men came from heaven to talk with Jesus. Peter, James, and John had never seen Jesus lookso beautiful before. The Bible says that his face shone like the sun and that his clothes looked bright like snow when the sun shines upon it.
The three disciples heard God’s voice. The voice said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.” When they heard it, they fell on their faces, for they were afraid.
Soon the two men went away, and Jesus looked as he did before. He touched his disciples and told them not to be afraid.
Then they went down the hill. They found many people. They saw a poor boy who was sick, and Jesus made him well.
WHEN Jesus was here on earth, he preached to the people, and many listened to his words. He went from place to place talking of God, healing the sickand lame, and doing much good everywhere he went.
At one time when he had been preaching to about five thousand people for a long time, they all became hungry. There was no food for the people to eat, except five small loaves of bread and two small fishes.
Jesus with the multitude.
But Jesus blessed the bread and broke it and gave it to the people. They all had all they wanted, and there was a good portion left.
Jesus was the Son of God, and anything he said would be done. So it was with thebread. He multiplied it, so that the people were all satisfied.
Jesus walks along, talking with some of his disciples.
In the Bible we read: “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” This means that he has just as much power today and can do as much for us as he did when he was here upon earth.
MANY were the good deeds done by Jesus while he was here on earth, and many people believed on him and followed him.
Jesus kneels, hands clasped as if in prayer.
Some very wicked men did not like Jesus and abused him whenever they could. Just before they killed him, they put a crown of thorns on his head, and the sharp points pierced his brow and were very painful.
He was nailed to a large cross, and was left there until he died. Some good men buried him in a stone tomb,but in three days he arose and afterwards he went up to heaven.
Jesus on the cross; two men sit and talk in the foreground.
He died for our sins, so that we can be saved from our sins in this life and go to live with him when we die.
OUR Savior is Jesus. He died to save us from our sins in this world, and to save us from eternal death when we die.
Suppose that a girl should be out on the water in a boat and should fall out of it into the water, and some men close by with a large boat would get to her right away; they would save her life, would they not? Yes.
Just so Jesus came to save us. We werelost because we all have sinned and disobeyed God, but we can be saved from our sins if we ask Jesus to forgive us. He will forgive our sins and will not hold them against us any more.
When our sins are forgiven, we are Christians, and Jesus will help us to live right from that time on.
Jesus, surrounded by his disciples, ascends to heaven.
GOING UP TO HEAVEN
We shall not have a desire to do the bad things which so many boys and girls do, but we shall want to live right and be good.
He can keep us from sin every day and hour if we trust him. So Jesus is our Savior.
HOW good it is that all can pray! The Lord is always waiting to hear and answer our prayers. When we pray, we talk with God; we must listen closely when he talks to us and do whatever he says.
A little girl and a little boy kneel in prayer beside a bed.
When we get ready for bed in the evening, we should not forget to pray. We should remember that the Lord has been good to us all the day long. He has keptus from all harm, and given us food and clothes. We should also thank him for a home and parents and friends. Even the air we breathe comes from him.
Then in the morning we should again kneel down, and thank God for his care through the night. The Lord loves to hear children pray.
After we pray, we should try hard to be good. The Lord will surely help us if we ask him. Then, do not forget to pray.
'We reap what we sow'. Evil has twisted thorns, good has wheat.
A child kneels in prayer.
Father dear, I humbly bowBy my little bedside now.Thou hast kept me through the night,Till the morning, clear and bright;Thou hast given rest and sleep;Thou dost e’er a vigil keepThrough the silent hours of nightWhile the stars and moon are bright.Blessed Father, through the stormThou hast kept me from all harm;And thy loving hand is near,Guarding me from harm and fear.Help me now, I ask of thee,That my daily walk may beLike a little Christian true,In my words, and actions too;Keep me from all harm againAs thou didst last night. Amen.
Father dear, I humbly bowBy my little bedside now.Thou hast kept me through the night,Till the morning, clear and bright;Thou hast given rest and sleep;Thou dost e’er a vigil keepThrough the silent hours of nightWhile the stars and moon are bright.Blessed Father, through the stormThou hast kept me from all harm;And thy loving hand is near,Guarding me from harm and fear.Help me now, I ask of thee,That my daily walk may beLike a little Christian true,In my words, and actions too;Keep me from all harm againAs thou didst last night. Amen.
Father dear, I humbly bowAt thy feet and ask thee now:Keep me through this dreary night,Wake me with the morning’s light;Let no danger hover near,Let no sorrow, sigh, or fearBreak my slumber; but on theeLet my thoughts and dreamings be.Father bless, and may I proveThat I’ve tasted of thy love.Keep my tongue and let me talkOf thy goodness. Help me walkAs a Christian every day;Keep me ever true, I pray.Let no harm or sickness comeNear our happy little home.In thy hands my all I lay;May I never from thee stray.Keep me, Lord, I ask again.Praise the blessed Lord! Amen.
Father dear, I humbly bowAt thy feet and ask thee now:Keep me through this dreary night,Wake me with the morning’s light;Let no danger hover near,Let no sorrow, sigh, or fearBreak my slumber; but on theeLet my thoughts and dreamings be.Father bless, and may I proveThat I’ve tasted of thy love.Keep my tongue and let me talkOf thy goodness. Help me walkAs a Christian every day;Keep me ever true, I pray.Let no harm or sickness comeNear our happy little home.In thy hands my all I lay;May I never from thee stray.Keep me, Lord, I ask again.Praise the blessed Lord! Amen.
A child kneels in prayer, hands resting in her mother's lap.
O Lord, I bowMy little headTo thank thee forMy daily bread.I pray thee blessThis daily food;I pray thee blessIt to my good.Oh, may my soulThis day be giv’nThe Bread of Life,Sent down from heav’n.Oh, keep me nowThis day from sin,From harm and sicknessFree. Amen.
O Lord, I bowMy little headTo thank thee forMy daily bread.I pray thee blessThis daily food;I pray thee blessIt to my good.
Oh, may my soulThis day be giv’nThe Bread of Life,Sent down from heav’n.Oh, keep me nowThis day from sin,From harm and sicknessFree. Amen.
DO YOU not know some one who is sick? Some little boy or girl may be in bed with a fever, and would be so glad to see you come into the room with a bunch of flowers or some other little gift. How happy the sick one would be!
Are you not glad to see your friends when you are sick? It makes you forget some of your pain for a time, does it not?
When we give a bunch of flowers to a friend, a teacher, or some one who is sick, it is the same as saving, “I love you.”
Can you not get a good book and show the sick ones some pictures, or read to them? You can read about Jesus, who had pity on all the sick and healed them.
Jesus was very kind, and was glad to take away the aches and pains when the people came to him.
He had great power to heal all kinds ofsickness, and in several places in the Bible we read that “he healed all the sick” that came to him.
A little girl, carrying a bunch of flowers, presses a doorbell.
TAKING FLOWERS TO A SICK FRIEND
He can heal us now if we trust him andask for his healing power. Jesus can do all things.
He can do many things for us if we live true to him, and ask him for the things that we need as we would ask mama for a piece of bread or cake. Jesus never fails to supply our needs if we are his true children and live for him. Let us have faith in God.
“Do a kindness, do it well;Angels will the story tell.“Do a kindness, tell it not;Angels’ hands will mark the spot.“Do a kindness, though ’tis small;Angel voices sing it all.“Do a kindness, never mind!What you lose the angels find.“Do a kindness, do it now;Angels know it all, somehow.“Do a kindness any time;Angels weave it into rhyme.“Do a kindness, it will pay;Angels will rejoice that day.“Kindly deeds and thoughts and wordsBless the world like songs of birds.”
“Do a kindness, do it well;Angels will the story tell.
“Do a kindness, tell it not;Angels’ hands will mark the spot.
“Do a kindness, though ’tis small;Angel voices sing it all.
“Do a kindness, never mind!What you lose the angels find.
“Do a kindness, do it now;Angels know it all, somehow.
“Do a kindness any time;Angels weave it into rhyme.
“Do a kindness, it will pay;Angels will rejoice that day.
“Kindly deeds and thoughts and wordsBless the world like songs of birds.”