Messages of God's Love: 1985

Memory Verse: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24

Eight-year-old Kevin squirmed with delight as he heard his good-friend Carol promise that he could spend Friday night and Saturday at her apartment on the beautiful, modern college campus where she had just enrolled. Carol was eager to show the modern buildings and grounds of the school to Kevin’s family who always cared so much about how she was getting along.

Finally Friday afternoon rolled around. The guests had arrived and enjoyed a tour of the campus and Carol’s warm hospitality. Goodbyes were said, and at last Kevin had Carol all to himself. He happily ran here and there over the lawns just like a young colt, jumping over anything in his path. A friendly voice called to Carol from a window above, and she stopped to chat. Hardly a moment or two had passed when a sense of urgency caused her to remember Kevin. Whirling around, she saw him... in the act of running up a slope to jump over a little wall at the top. But on the other side there was an 18-foot drop to the street below!

“KEVIN, STOP!” she shouted the order!

Do you always obey when you are given a command? Would Kevin be like some boys and girls we know who first do what they want and then ask “Why?” or “Who said so?” Had he been such a boy, he could have been seriously injured. Kevin, however, had learned to obey. Skidding to a stop just this side of the wall, he turned questioning eyes to Carol.

Running over to him with a face drained of color, she scooped him into her arms exclaiming, “Oh, Kevin! Thank you for obeying me!” When he saw what was on the other side of the wall, it was Kevin’s turn to say, “thank-you.”

Of course, we expected Carol to stop her young friend, even though she had to speak sharply. Suppose you had a friend who saw you in serious danger but refused to say anything for fear of upsetting you or “butting into your business.” “No friend of mine!” you’d say.

Now before you put this paper down, PLEASE STOP! You are about to be warned of certain disaster ahead — on the “other side.” “The other side of what?” you ask. The other side of time, of life on planet Earth. Do not continue to refuse the message God has sent to us concerning our future, our sins and life after death. Clearly in God’s Word, the Bible, we read, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23. But, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31.

“Turn ye, turn ye... for why will ye die?” Ezekiel 33:11.

ML-01/06/1985

What Does Your License Plate Say?

License plates are a very important part of every car. In fact, in most places a car must have a license plate to be on the road. It is interesting to notice the colors and designs on license plates from different parts of the country. They often try to pass on a message about that area.

Have you ever watched for other license plate messages? I often see a small red car with the license plate RED DOT. Recently, I saw a convertible with the message BREEZE! Others I have spotted have been THE GEM, MY HUNY and D-LITE. These people must really want others to know they like their cars!

What would your license plate say if you could wear one — HAPPY? MEAN? GLAD? SAD? Many times the way we are acting passes on a message just like a license plate would. Our actions often are easy to read and sometimes, sad to say, the message is not a good one. For Christians a good license plate to wear would be one that says I’M SAVED. But wouldn’t it be even better if our actions showed that we were saved? “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16.

ML-01/06/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Big-Beaked Pelican

“The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.... He hath made His wonderful works to be remembered.” Psalms 111:2,4.

Both the white and the brown pelican live in America, and other species are found throughout the world. Huge colonies nest on ocean islands — others prefer inland lakes or ocean bays and beaches. Their nests may be made of water plants, mud or even stones and sand. The pelicans don’t seem too particular.

The white pelican is as much as five feet long and has a ten-foot wing spread; the brown pelican is somewhat smaller. Its heavy body is supported by strong, short legs and large, webbed feet. It has a long neck with a big head which is mostly a long flat bill, the upper half having a sharp hook on it. The lower portion is equipped with an elastic pouch which stretches out, forming a big scoop. After scooping up a fish (water and all), the pouch is contracted, squeezing out the water before the fish is swallowed.

Spotting a fish from the air, this big bird drops like a bomb, stretches its neck straight out, and with folded wings enters the water with a great splash, shortly reappearing with one or more fish in its pouch. At other times a dozen or more work together. Landing in a semicircle on the deep-water side of a school of fish, the pelicans beat their strong wings in the water, driving their prey to the shallow shoreline where they are easily caught. Who taught them this clever trick? No one but God, their Creator, who also provided them with air pockets under their skin and hollow bones, so they are never in danger of sinking. How wonderfully He adapts every creature to its manner of life!

Young ones are born with bare, pink skin, but are soon covered with down and later by true feathers. The parents carefully protect them from the hot sun when they are first hatched, always standing over them in such a way as to keep them in the shade of their big bodies.

Once in the air this otherwise clumsy bird becomes a graceful flier and can fly long distances. When taking off from the water, it must first run along the surface, beating the air with its powerful wings in order to lift off. When several fly together they fly in a V-formation and beat their wings in unison. The Creator has given them this instinct, because flying in this manner produces air currents which make flying easier. The air pockets beneath their skin and the lightness of their bones are great helps in their ability to fly so well.

Pelicans may seem like strange birds, but they are part of the “works of the Lord” stated in our verse. Whenever we watch them, as well as every other creature, we should consider how He not only made them, but watches over them with loving care, as He does with every one of us.

ML-01/06/1985

Kittens in the Hayloft

Memory Verse: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” Galatians 6:7

Kittens! Who does not love them? Certainly boys and girls do. Our kitten story took place on a farm where kittens were often seen tumbling about in the barn. Daddy had remarked that morning in the children’s hearing, “I think Tabby might have a nest of kittens up in the hayloft.” Naturally, when Ned and Polly were free they climbed right straight up the hayloft to see. They could hear Tabby’s cozy “pr-ow” as she “talked” to her babies. Very small answering mews indicated that Daddy had been right—there were kittens here somewhere in the hayloft.

“But it’s so dark!” little five-year-old Polly complained, “and Tabby’s way far back. I wanna see ’em, Ned.”

Now Ned was only six, but he thought seriously as to how they could get to see the kittens. “Wait, Polly! I’ve got matches in my pocket. I’ll strike one and then you can see.”

“Oooh, no, Ned! Mamma said you should never, ever take matches! Maybe I’ll tell Mamma.”

“You dare and I’ll — I’ll never show you the kittens!”

So naughty Ned struck a match and carefully directed its light into the little tunnel Tabby had made. But somehow in the excitement, well, need I tell you the sad story? Within moments the loft was ablaze. Ned and Polly tumbled back and half fell down the ladder, clothing torn and singed. Poor Daddy’s nice barn — all the hard-worked-for hay, harnesses for the horses — all, including dear old Tabby cat with her babies, were tragically swept up in the flames. All because of disobedience.

Now, when God instructs children in Ephesians 6:1 to obey their parents, it is true wisdom. It is not a tiresome rule designed to take the fun out of life. God knows all about children and takes great care that they might have the protection they need. But His goodness goes much further. He wants to draw us with cords of love to His dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ (John 6:37,44) that we might be forever happy in His own beautiful house called heaven. If you say “No” to Him because, like Ned, you want your own way, there is fire reserved for you — the everlasting flames of hell. We learn more about hell from the lips of the Lord Jesus Himself — He who suffered the awful punishment for the sins of those who would accept Him as their Saviour so that they might never feel a single flame. Because God is holy never accuse Him of being unfair or cruel for sending rebellious sinners to those flames. What more could God do for you and me than to give His own Son to be our substitute? He will not permit anyone to scorn His gift. “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?” Hebrews 2:3. “Believe on Him [God] who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; who was delivered for our offenses [sin] and was raised again for our justification.” Romans 4:24,25.

ML-01/13/1985

How Ed Was Saved

When I was in high school I often studied in the cafeteria before school started. One morning while sitting alone at one of the tables, Ed, another student, sat down beside me. Right away he started asking me questions about how to be saved. He knew that I carried a small Bible with me. I was happy to read several verses to him such as, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:30,31. “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9.

While he carefully listened to those and other scripture verses from God’s Word, four or five other students known to both of us came over. They started teasing Ed and even tried to distract him by stuffing some prickly holly leaves down his back. Undisturbed, Ed became more and more intent as I explained the way of salvation as plainly as I could. Tears began to fall, not from the prickly holly but as a result of God’s Spirit working in Ed, showing him that he was a sinner and that he needed a Saviour. He soon saw that it was only the Lord Jesus Christ and His work on the cross that could provide salvation. He accepted God’s love. Ed was then born again — he passed from Satan’s darkness into the light of God’s love and grace. His face lit up with a smile while his tormentors went their individual ways. The first period bell rang, but Ed had already heard the gospel bells just a few minutes before, which made him a new creature in Christ Jesus.

Dear boy or girl, let me ask you a question. Have you heard the good news that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners? (1 Tim. 1:15) Will you meet Ed in heaven along with all the others who have accepted the Lord Jesus as their Saviour? Have you ever confessed your sins to God and asked Him to wash them away in the precious blood of Christ? Remember, there is no salvation other than recognizing your need as a sinner in God’s sight and in faith turning to the Lord Jesus. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. Won’t you do it now?

ML-01/13/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Tough Zebra

“A wild ass used to the wilderness ... snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure.” Jeremiah 2:24.

The Bible does not refer to zebras by name but they, being somewhat similar to the wild ass referred to above, also “snuff up the wind” and enjoy their wilderness life, watched over by a kind Creator.

Among all the animals of Africa, the stripes, stiff mane, soft black muzzle and erect ears of the zebra make it outstandingly beautiful, with each zebra’s stripe a little different from any other. There are three principal breeds. Most common is the mountain zebra dressed completely in velvety-black and creamy-white stripes, except for a plain-white underpart. Another, the Burchell’s is the tallest. Its stripes are irregular and there are none on its legs. The third one is called Grevy’s, having the most stripes, but these are narrower and it is not as handsome as the others.

The Creator provided these stripes as a wonderful means of concealing them from their enemies. The stripes blend so well with grass, trees and brush that zebras are not easily seen. Even in broad daylight a group standing together presents such a mixed design of black and white that a hunter is confused and cannot easily pick one out as a potential victim.

These animals have excellent sight, hearing and sense of smell and are seldom caught unawares. Their bands are always headed by a fierce stallion. When a group is attacked they all turn their heels to the enemy. A kick from any of them can break a jaw or cause other injury, convincing the attacker to give up the fight.

Out on the African veldt (prairie) grass is the principal food for many animals, and the Creator has provided an excellent way for some to share it. Zebras eat only the tops of certain tall grasses; after them come the gnus which prefer the middle of the stems; finally the lovely springboks finish it off down to the ground, after which the area is left to grow tall again. This is another evidence of God’s special care of all His creatures. Sadly, many zebras are killed by predators when they carelessly separate themselves from the herd. This reminds us of the need of every believer in the Lord Jesus to share his or her life with others who also love the Saviour, to help one another from our “adversary the devil, [who] as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8.

The Bible says “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.” Ecclesiastes 4:9,10. It is the desire of the Lord that His people help and encourage one another in a happy Christian life. Is this the kind of friends you have?

ML-01/13/1985

The Cookie Man

Memory Verse: “By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8, 9

Four years ago Danny and his family moved from Cleveland to Chicago. Since Danny’s father was transferred by his employer, they were given no choice — the whole family had to move. Even though Danny was only four years old at the time, he had been very unhappy about leaving his grandmother behind in Cleveland. The family had lived close to Grandmother, and he just could not imagine life without seeing her almost every day.

Every week since they moved four years ago, Grandmother has sent some of her homemade cookies to Danny and his family. Chocolate chip, peanut butter and sugar cookies are some of Danny’s favorites. Every week the big United Parcel Service truck would pull up to Danny’s house in Chicago to deliver the box of cookies from Grandmother. Danny was too young when the cookies first started coming, to understand about UPS, so he called the delivery man “the cookie man.” That happy name stuck even though Danny is now eight years old.

Now once again Danny’s father is being transferred, but this time it is to far-off Puerto Rico. Danny thought about leaving all the friends he had made in Chicago, and he felt very sad. That week when “the cookie man” arrived with his weekly delivery Danny suddenly had a terrible thought — did “the cookie man” go all the way to Puerto Rico? “Mr. Cookie Man,” he said, “do you deliver in Puerto Rico?” and the sad reply was, “No, Danny, we don’t deliver there.”

Poor Danny would not be able to receive his grandmother’s “box of love” from the cookie man after he moved to Puerto Rico. Isn’t it good to know that God’s gift of love is available anywhere in the world. It does not depend on a UPS delivery man. God’s gift of love is His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. “The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23. No matter where we live we can receive God’s gift simply by accepting the Lord Jesus as our Saviour.

Jesus loves the little children

All the children of the world,

Red and yellow, black and white

All are precious in His sight,

Jesus loves the little children of the world.

ML-01/20/1985

The High Climbers

One morning about seven o’clock, Robert had quite a surprise when he went out to do the farm chores. “I heard this funny noise,” he said. “I looked up and was amazed to see two raccoons on top of my silo!” The two masked creatures didn’t seem to be uneasy about their perch, but Robert was concerned. He was not sure they could figure out how to get back down.

A little later Robert heard an awful crash! He hurried outside to see what had caused it and found that one of the raccoons had fallen, landing on the metal roof of the feed shed below. Robert thought that a fall that far would surely have killed the raccoon, but it didn’t. He watched amazed as the raccoon shook himself, looked around and climbed right back up the side of the silo! Both raccoons stayed up there all day. During the night the farmer heard chattering and thumping off and on. But the next morning the two daring raccoons were gone.

In telling the story Robert said he wondered if the two raccoons were trying to climb to heaven. What a foolish thought! We read in the Bible that many, many years ago there were people living on the earth who got the idea they would build a tower “whose top may reach unto heaven.” Genesis 11:4. The Lord God saw what these people were doing, and He was not pleased about it. He did not permit the people to continue all speaking the same language, “that they may not understand one another’s speech.” Genesis 11:7. This made it impossible for them to go on working together. So in the next verse we are told they had to stop building that city and tower called Babel.

Even today people have some confused ideas about getting to heaven. Some boys and girls, and even grown-ups too, think if they are kind and helpful, doing good or even going to Sunday school every week, that for sure God will take them to heaven. However, God has only one way for us to reach heaven. The Lord Jesus tells us, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6. God’s way to heaven is by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour — your own Saviour. The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, was shed to wash away sins (1 John 1:7). Have you ever asked Him to wash away your sins? This is the only way to reach heaven, God’s way, and be with the Lord Jesus Christ forever in that wonderful place called heaven. “In Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Psalms 16:11. Will you be there?

ML-01/20/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Submissive Eider Duck

“He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust.” Psalms 91:4.

People who live in Iceland and many other northern islands are well acquainted with the eider duck. They are seen each May and June when large numbers of them migrate there to nest and raise their young. These pretty marbled-brown birds, with a gentle disposition, weigh about five pounds and live entirely on seafood while in the breeding grounds. They are wonderful divers, their big webbed feet propelling them down through the water to the bottom where they find crabs, mussels and oysters to eat.

On these far-northern islands there is no brush, trees or swamps in which to make nests — only level ground. At this time of year great areas are covered with low green grasses in which their shallow nests are made. These are cleverly hidden, so that a person walking in the area needs to keep a sharp lookout to avoid stepping on a mother duck sitting on her yellow eggs. Because there are so many present at one time, they nest close together. It is interesting that they never make the mistake of going to a wrong nest. During the four weeks of incubating her eggs, the mother duck never eats and only leaves the nest for a short time each morning to take a bath.

The Creator has provided the eider with warm feathers and down to preserve it from the intense cold of the northern climate. After laying her eggs (often in the same nest year after year) the female plucks a large quantity of this fine down from her body with her broad bill and makes an eiderdown “comforter,” covering the eggs with it. If she did not do this the eggs would chill and spoil when she took her morning bath, and the little ones would never hatch. Isn’t it wonderful how the Lord God, the Creator, has taught them to do this? There is always a market for the soft down (which sells for about $300 a pound), for it has better insulating quality than any manmade fibers. Warm blankets, jackets, lining in outdoor clothing, etc. are made from it. The mother duck is very gentle and allows men to lift her off the nest and remove the down. After she is replaced on the nest, she plucks more down from her breast and makes a new covering for her eggs. During the nesting season she allows this to happen twice, but will desert her nest and its eggs if it’s done a third time. The down is so light that it takes three-dozen nests to make a pound.

The Bible verse at the beginning of this article likens the Lord’s care over His own to that of birds such as the eider. But His love and care are far greater than that of the most loving bird. His expression concerning it is “I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.” Jeremiah 31:3. He has fully shown this love by giving His life on Calvary’s cross to wash away the sins of all who will accept Him as their Saviour. Are you sheltered “under His wings"?

ML-01/20/1985

Caught by the Tide

Memory Verse: “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat.” Matthew 7:13

Many years ago a young man named Art was working his way through school by selling books. He lived in England and, although only 15 years old, he was sent to a group of islands off the west coast of Scotland to sell to the few people who lived there. There, in what is known as the Outer Hebrides, he rode a beaten-up bicycle day after day around the barren, windswept islands, trying his best to interest people in the books that he carried.

For some weeks he lived in the town of Stornoway on Lewis Island. Every day he would ride all the way across the island to the villages on the other side. What a long tiring trip that was — 12 miles without passing a single house and sometimes riding into the rain and wind the whole way. Each day he traveled a little farther trying to sell his books until finally he got to the most northerly point. Beyond that point was only a lighthouse no more people interested in his books.

He then moved his few belongings (bike and all) by boat to the next island, called North Vist, where he found a small room he could rent. On this island he again followed a circular road, riding and walking through villages he never knew existed. What an adventure for a 15-year-old!

Are there any reading this who are looking for the “adventure” that this world has to offer? Be careful, because there are many dangers! The prince of this world is Satan, and he is always trying to trap people. He does everything he can to keep them from being saved. The Bible says that Satan “hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” 2 Corinthians 4:4. Don’t let Satan do this to you. Turn to the Lord Jesus Christ, accept Him as your Saviour, and then trust Him to guide you along His chosen path to His home above.

Art finished on North Vist Island and decided to go to South Vist Island. He was told that it was possible to walk between the islands on a sand strip that was above the water level at low tide. He liked that idea, because it would save him having to pay boat fare to make the short trip. Leaving his bike behind one morning, Art walked to the beach when it was low tide between the two islands. Sure enough, there was a sand strip going straight out toward South Vist Island. Looking it over carefully, he decided that it wasn’t going to be quite so easy. Running through the sand were channels of water 10 to 20 feet wide, but there was no way to tell how deep they were.

As he was taking off his shoes he saw two men begin to cross, coming toward him. He watched where they hurriedly crossed the channels. It looked easy, so he started off.

Crossing the first channel was simple since he could see the footprints where the two men had crossed. The water was only a few inches deep. But when he reached the second channel he was not as sure where he should cross. He stepped in and discovered that it was much deeper than he had expected. He backed up, went to another spot, rolled up his pant legs, and stepped in again. Although the water reached his knees he had no trouble crossing this channel either.

When he reached the third channel, about halfway between the two islands, he began to worry. The channel was much wider than he had first thought, “but,” he thought to himself, “the other men crossed it so I can too.” He had not yet realized what a dangerous thing he was attempting, and there was no one to warn him of the danger.

The Bible gives clear warning to any who have not accepted Christ as their Saviour of the danger facing them. Matthew 7:13 says, “Broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction.” God will punish those “with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord” (2 Thessalonians 1:9) who refuse His offer of love and salvation. Don’t continue on the path you are following and become one of these. Turn around and follow the Saviour. He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6.

Art stood at the edge of this wide third channel looking for the place where the men had crossed, but he could not find it. Then he realized that the water in the channel was no longer still. It was moving, and quite rapidly, too. Bits of seaweed, pieces of wood and sea foam were floating by. The tide was coming in! Looking around him, Art was horrified! Instead of a large area of sand, there was water. It looked like the whole Atlantic Ocean was rolling in on him! The island of sand where he stood was shrinking fast. Every moment the channel was getting wider and deeper. Within a few minutes his patch of sand would be covered with the incoming tide. He had to do something fast!

The question was, what could he do? If he couldn’t find his way when the channel was shallow, how could he find it now when already it had become twice as deep and was spreading out over the sand in every direction.

His answer was that he had a Guide. Art had accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour. Now that he knew he was in danger, he quickly prayed for help, then plunged into the channel.

He didn’t worry about his pants now. The water was soon above his knees... his waist... higher and higher....still his feet took him down the slope into deeper water. For a moment he wondered if he had made a mistake. Should he have turned back crossing the same channels again? Looking back he saw that it would have been impossible. Everything behind him was covered with water. He could only go forward. He could still see some areas of sand between the channels ahead.

Still the water got deeper and deeper. “Will I make it?” he wondered.

But then the bottom began to rise again. He was past the halfway point. At last he made it to the next patch of sand.

There were other channels to cross, each one difficult as the tide continued to flow in. Afterward he couldn’t remember clearly how he got across. At last he crawled onto the island to which he had set out so confidently less than an hour before.

He was helped by a man on the island who had been watching him but could do nothing to help him until he reached the island. This man found someone who took Art back to North Vist Island in a boat. How thankful Art was to be safely home. Can you, like Art, thank the Lord Jesus for saving you and caring for you each day?

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalms 50:15. “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.... For I am the Lord thy God... thy Saviour.” Isaiah 43:2,3.

ML-01/27/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Astounding Ways of a Certain Wasp

“Seek the Lord and His strength.... Remember His marvelous works that He hath done, and His wonders.” 1 Chronicles 16:11,12.

The black wasp caterpillar hunter is a most interesting creature. The female has an amazing habit when making a nest for her little ones. First she digs a hole several inches deep in hard-packed sand. She carries one load after another of sand between her front legs and chin. Backing out of the hole, she flies off and dumps the sand some distance away so there will be no clue that a nest is nearby. Isn’t that a remarkable performance?

After finishing the hole, she hides it by pulling a pebble over the entrance, brushing sand over the pebble to hide it as well. However, she herself, through God-given ability, always returns to the exact spot. Now she is ready to prepare further for her young. Hunting out a well-fed caterpillar, she pricks it in several places with her stinger — not enough to kill, but paralyzing it so it will never move again. Where did she learn to do this? When the Creator designed this arrangement the skill was given to this specific type of wasp and has been passed on to all generations ever since.

With a surprising show of strength, she drags the captive to her burrow, removes the pebble, pushes the caterpillar down the hole, and then replaces the pebble. This process is repeated until there are several caterpillars down in the hole. Then she deposits her eggs alongside the caterpillars. This accomplished she fills the hole with sand, and tamps it down firmly with a pebble held in her mouth and front feet. Her work is finished, and she flies off and forgets about her brood.

But the Creator does not forget them. Soon the warmth of the soil causes the eggs to hatch into larvae which feed on the caterpillars (but not causing them any pain because they are still paralyzed). Soon turning into mature wasps, they work their way to the surface and soon join others of their kind. What are we to learn from these interesting wasps? First of all, that the Lord God delighted in creating many wonderful things; then to observe that everything He created (except mankind) obeys the instructions implanted in them and they do not try to change their ways, as evolution falsely teaches.

By this we learn that God is pleased with the obedience of His creatures. How it must please Him when we voluntarily desire to obey and serve Him.

The Bible tells of some people asking, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered...This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent.” John 6:28,29. When you truly believe on Him as your Lord and Saviour, you receive a new life and nature that, is happy only when doing what is pleasing in His sight. Is this true of you?

ML-01/27/1985

Teeny

Memory Verse: “In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” Ephesians 1:7

She was named Teeny. Now that would be a good name for a pet gerbil or rabbit or maybe a pet bird. But who would give that name to a pet cow — one that weighed 1,500 pounds? Of course, the answer is that Teeny wasn’t always that big. In fact, when Ted first saw her she was just a newborn calf, barely able to walk. “I don’t know if she will make it or not,” he was saying. “She is very weak, but she is worth trying to save.” The little black and white calf was lying in the corner of the barn. She lay there helpless without any strength in her legs.

“Keep giving her the medicine every day,” advised the vet. “It will take time, but with good care and lots of love she might make it.”

“Can I take care of her myself?” asked Ted. He had looked at the weak little calf with her big black eyes, and he wanted to help her so much.

“Yes, you can,” Dad said. “And if she lives she will belong to you, and any calves she might have will also be yours, Ted. But it’s not going to be easy. She’s just a teeny thing and terribly weak.”

So that is how she got her name. From that time on the little calf was called Teeny.

Several days passed and there did not seem to be much improvement in Teeny. Ted continued giving her the medicine, making sure she was warm, helping her get up to walk a little, and getting milk from her mother and feeding it to her from a nippled bucket. But most of all Ted talked to her, coaxing her to get better and scratching her head to show her he really loved her.

At last after several weeks, Ted could see she was improving. His kind treatment was working, and soon Teeny was not only standing up but running around just like any other frisky calf. The vet had said she was worth it. Now as Ted hugged his little calf he knew that she was worth all the loving care he had given her.

In the Bible we read, “He [the Lord Jesus Christ] is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.” Hebrews 7:25. There is no one whom God considers not worth saving. The Lord Jesus Christ came so that you might have everlasting life if you will accept Him as your own Saviour. God loves you so much that He did everything He could to save you. He sent His only Son, the Lord Jesus, to suffer and die on the cross for sinners. All you have to do is accept His love by confessing that He died for your sins and believing that He is your Saviour. According to Romans 10:13, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Won’t you call upon Him right now?

Teeny grew into a large cow, but she still was always called Teeny. Ted continued to give her lots of love and attention. He could still hug her around the neck, but he could no longer pick her up or hold her in his lap.

One day when Teeny was about two years old she had a new little calf of her own. What a cute calf he was, so lively and frisky. Ted was so happy with the new calf. He spent lots of time thinking about a good name for him.

Teeny’s calf was lively all right too lively for his own good. Before he even had a name he scooted under a fence and ran out onto the road and was hit by a pickup truck. Little calves, like little children, do not realize the danger of running off... and this calf was killed. Of course, Ted was very sorry about it. And so was Teeny! She bawled for her calf for several days.

Ted and his dad decided to go to a cattle sale barn not far from them. There they found a day-old calf that was for sale. It was black and white like Teeny’s own calf that had been killed. They bought it and brought it home to Teeny.

Teeny looked it over and took one sniff. Would she accept this little calf who needed a mother? No, she knew it wasn’t her calf. She chased it away and kept on bawling and mooing as loudly as ever.

Ted’s dad came up with an idea. They had saved the hide of the calf that had been killed. Dad punched holes in the edges of the hide and wrapped it around the new little calf, tying it securely with rope strung through the holes in the hide. Then he brought the calf back to Teeny. This changed things right away. Teeny sniffed the calf over a few times and then began licking it. The little calf was accepted.

Are you an orphan? Even though your mother and father are living you could still be an orphan. Your sins make you an orphan. You cannot be accepted as one of God’s children as long as you still have your sins. God loves you very much, but since He hates sin you cannot be accepted as one of His own children until those sins are covered over.

Wouldn’t you like to be accepted knowing that all your sins are gone forever from God’s sight? How can this be done? It is not by being as good as you can be and hoping in the end that the good things in your life will outweigh the bad things. God says, “all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” Isaiah 64:6. In other words, in God’s eyes our good deeds are worthless! Adam and Eve tried to cover themselves by making fig-leaf aprons, but that did not hide their sin from the all-seeing eye of God. Instead, God provided them with coats made of animal skins, showing them that the only way they could stand before Him was with their sins covered over through the death of another. Of course we know that the death of an animal could never put away sin, but it pointed ahead to what the death of the Lord Jesus Christ would do for sinners. He was the true Lamb of God who shed His precious blood on the cross of Calvary to wash us from all our sins. Teeny would only accept the substitute calf when it was covered with the skin from her own calf. This is a picture of how God will accept you as His own child when your sins are covered by the blood of His own Son, the Lord Jesus. He wants you to accept Him as your Saviour. Won’t you come to Him right now? “To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved.” Ephesians 1:6.

ML-02/03/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Ungainly Manatee

“For He looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven.... And unto man He said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding” Job 28:24, 28.

Few people have ever seen a manatee, because they live only in tropical waters along the southern Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States, in South America and a few other places. These mammals spend their lives under water, coming up only to breathe with only the nostrils at the top of their snouts surfacing.

Their skin is dark brown or blackish, without fur and when mature they may be ten feet or more long. They are quite gentle and affectionate toward each other, even exchanging kisses while swimming side by side and readily sharing any available food supply. Because they are clumsy and slow moving, they are unable to come out on land to enjoy the sun’s warmth like a hippo can. However, the Creator has given them thick flesh and heavy layers of insulating fat which protect them against the cold waters.

Manatees look like inflated dirigibles, all the way from their big, bristly mustached mouth to their huge, flat, horizontal tail. Because of their appetite for underwater grass and plants they are sometimes also referred to as sea cows. Heavy and bulky, they are supported by an extremely large muscle along the whole length of their body as well as by a framework of strong heavy ribs. Movement through the water is done with their big tail and hind quarters, assisted by flippers up front. The flippers are paddle shaped and used to maintain balance as well as for digging plants from the ocean bottom.

The Creator has given them everything needed for their unusual way of life, including the replacement of teeth so vital to them. As their front teeth wear away from constant cutting and chewing of sea grasses, they drop out. Promptly all those behind move forward, and additional new ones soon fill in at the back of the mouth. Isn’t that interesting? Evolution couldn’t arrange that, but we know it is part of God’s wonderful creation.

A female will have just one calf a year, born underwater and immediately taken to the surface for its first breath of air. She will often assist in this until it learns to go up for air without help. Holding the little one close to her breast with a flipper, she also brings it to the surface for nursing, keeping its head above all the while. Attentive to and protective of her baby, she occasionally gives it the treat of a “piggy-back” ride through the water.

Does God care about manatees? Yes, they have been under His watchful care ever since the time of creation. Did you know you are always in His care, too? The Psalmist was thinking of this when he wrote, “Happy is he... whose hope is in the Lord his God: which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is.” Psalms 146:5,6. Are you one of these happy ones whose hope and trust are in Him?

ML-02/03/1985

Stranded on Egg Island Rock

Memory Verse: “Boast not thyself of to-morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Proverbs 27:1

“Hang on!” called John above the noise of the wind and pounding waves. Timing his jump from the pitching boat, John leaped... and landed on the rocks of Egg Island Rock. Even though the rocks were covered with ice from freezing spray, he got a foothold and climbed up to higher rocks. In his hand he held the rope attached to the front of the boat he had just left. His wife Marge was still in the boat, holding on tightly as the boat pitched with the pounding waves. Bracing himself, John worked the 14-foot open boat around so that it was facing into shore. Then working with an onrushing wave, he pulled on the rope as hard as he could. The boat surged toward shore and got close enough so that Marge could leap onto the ice-covered rocks.

As John struggled to help her while still holding the rope, the receding wave and a gust of wind caught the boat. It was flung violently around, tearing the rope out of his numb hand. In a moment the wind had carried the boat away and with it their small amount of food and emergency gear.

John and Marge Fairservice were lighthouse keepers. Their house was the only home on Outer Sambro Island just off Nova Scotia’s Halifax Harbor. There they took care of the lighthouse whose revolving light warned ships coming in and out of the harbor of the dangerous rocks.

That morning in early January John and Marge had taken their three children to the mainland to go back to school after their year-end holidays. While on the mainland the children lived at the home of their friends Alfie and Helen Gray. After visiting and then shopping for groceries, John and Marge started on the three-mile boat trip back to their home on the island. The weather, which had been clear that morning when they left, was now turning bad with heavy clouds rolling in from the southeast.

The normal 15-minute trip started fine. But as the boat met the full force of the wind funneling between Outer Sambro and Egg Island Rock, the motor suddenly stalled. Immediately they were at the mercy of the wind which swung them around, almost tipping them on the reef that ran out from Egg Island Rock. John tried to stop the boat by throwing out the anchor, but the water was too deep for the anchor to catch. Their only hope was to wait for the wind and waves to take them close enough to the granite shoreline of Egg Island Rock, where hopefully they could get out of the boat and perhaps get the motor started again.

Now that they had gotten safely on the small island, they were stranded only 40 feet from their home island. It was very cold, and this looked like a winter storm blowing in.

John and Marge knew that they were in a very dangerous situation and that they had to have help quickly. There are many people today who face the possibility of death each day and never think about their danger. God is absent in their lives, so they are still responsible for their sins. Anyone who dies in this condition faces punishment for their sins in hell forever. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” Hebrews 9:27. How serious and frightening to be facing an eternity in hell where the Bible says “there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 13:42.

Only 40 feet separated John and Marge from the warmth and safety of their home. Yet they faced freezing to death if they could not reach it. It was now dark, and each swing of the revolving light briefly lighted their house. It was so close... yet so far away.

Those who have died without accepting the Lord Jesus as their Saviour are called “lost” sinners. They are lost forever — they have no hope of escaping or being saved. “There is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence [here] to you cannot.” Luke 16:26. The gulf is fixed — permanent and there is no crossing it!

John knew they must not stay on that small island through the night because the waves were getting higher. Already they were breaking at their feet. They had only one hope — John would have to swim across the 40-foot channel to Outer Sambro Island. If he could reach the small gravel beach and get to the house, he could radio for help.

Using his “floater” jacket as a life preserver, John slipped into the icy water at low tide, when the water distance would be the shortest. The cold was far worse than he had imagined. Waves kept washing over him, but he struggled on, stroke after stroke. His hands and arms soon turned numb. He didn’t think he could make it!

Are you still struggling to reach heaven in your own weak power? It can’t be done. The longer you struggle the more your sins will drag you down. But there is help for you. The Lord Jesus longs to rescue you, if you will accept His outstretched hand.

God saw our hopeless condition, and because He loves us He provided a way to save us. He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to die for our sins so that we could be saved. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. It is only by confessing our need of a Saviour and accepting the Lord Jesus as our Saviour that we can be saved. On the cross He was punished for the sins of any who would believe in Him. The salvation plan is complete, except for your part — realizing your need of a Saviour and accepting the Lord Jesus as your Saviour. It’s just as if a life ring were thrown to John which he would have immediately grasped. In the same way the life ring of God’s love and mercy is being offered to you now. Won’t you accept if before it is too late?

Although it seemed like hours John was only in the water a few minutes before his feet touched bottom. He had made it! Struggling to shore nearly exhausted and frozen, he stumbled and clawed his way up the icy, rocky path which led from the shore to their house. The light from the lighthouse lighted the way for him.

As he clawed at the unlocked door with hands too numb to work, he wondered if he would be able to turn the knob. By pressing the knob between both hands he finally heard the welcome click as the door opened. Stumbling into the warm house, he headed straight to the radio, fumbling with the dials.

“This is an emergency!” he called weakly across the emergency channel, which was being monitored at the local Coast Guard station.

The Coast Guard quickly moved into action, getting the exact details of Marge’s location and alerting a crew for the rescue. Within minutes the cutter was pulling away from the dock in the harbor. But would they make it in time to rescue Marge?

The time has almost come to an end when God’s offer of mercy to lost sinners will still be available. Very soon now the door of grace will be closed permanently, and if you are not on the inside you will be too late. Your opportunity to be saved is right now. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

As the cutter’s powerful engines brought it close to Egg Island Rock, a bright searchlight was turned on. It swept along the small rocky island. Was Marge still safe? “There she is!” one of the crew called.

With much difficulty Marge was rescued by two of the crew using a small rubber boat and then a lifeboat. They came to where she was stranded and rescued her.

The Lord Jesus Christ has come to where you are stranded and is waiting to save you. All you have to do is accept His offer. He is ready right now... are you?

“Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” Hebrews 9:28.

ML-02/10/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Glowing-Tailed Comet

“And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: He made the stars also.” Genesis 1:16.

Astronomers tell us that there are innumerable comets throughout space — more than a trillion in our Milky Way galaxy alone and millions more circling the sun. Many of these, in elliptical orbits, take thousands or even millions of years to complete their circuits. Some comets have heads 50,000 miles in diameter and tails 100 million miles long.

However, from these many comets there are only about two dozen which are known whose circuit brings them close enough to earth that we can see them. One of these, Encke’s comet, appears every third year; Biela’s and Brooks are two that show up at about seven-year intervals; Halley’s comet, which is the most well known of all the comets, comes within sight at 76-year intervals. It is the only one generally seen without special telescopes.

Halley’s is thought to weigh about six billion tons and is distinct from all the others with its great fiery tail streaking across the sky. During its path near earth it attracts untold numbers of people across America, Europe and other countries who watch it with amazement and awe from open fields, hillsides or out on the seas. It is due to appear next in February 1986, just a year from now. Plans are well under way for astronomers with their instruments to go up in a space ship for a closer look, hoping to learn more about it.

No one seems to know what Halley’s comet is really made of. Some think of it as solar dust and gases squeezed tightly together, and others guess it is a great frozen ball of ice mixed with dust. But whatever it may be, it is evident that as it draws near the sun the intense heat breaks some of it down into great volumes of vapor. This vapor trail streaking out behind it as a tail millions of miles long and which is exposed to the sun’s brilliance, provides the wonderful exhibit admired by so many. Actually, only a small part of the comet is drawn off each time, so its life will continue for whatever period of time the Creator has determined for it.

It is the gravity of the sun that keeps Halley’s and other comets in their orbits, drawing them close and then swinging them out great distances into space on precise schedules. This is another example of the wonders of God’s creation, for although the sun determines the orbits, it is God who controls them, just as He controls the untold number of stars throughout space.

As David gazed with wonder at the starry skies he exclaimed, “Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad.” Psalms 96:11. “The heavens declare His righteousness, and all the people see His glory.” Psalms 97:6. When you think of all this glory, what does it mean to you? Is the One who made and controls it your Saviour as well as your Creator? Can you say, “This is my Lord and Saviour. I have put my trust in Him"?

ML-02/10/1985

Winter Rescue

Memory Verse: “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1

Tim was visiting his cousin Stan who lived on a cattle ranch in Montana. Both boys were on their holiday break at the end of the year. His first day there Tim was shown the new snowmobile that Stan had. “We use it to check cattle... and to have fun on.” Stan explained smiling.

And fun they did have. The new snowmobile was a big, powerful machine that could carry the two of them over the rugged winter countryside. They were able to make accurate counts of the cattle, too. Even this was fun, because it meant another ride.

One cold morning the two boys went over to the north pasture to check the cattle there. They stopped and turned off the snowmobile. Then they walked down toward the trees that followed the creek. There they found the cattle in the shelter of the trees. All seemed to be doing fine.

Returning to the snowmobile, they were walking close to the road. Suddenly Tim asked, “What was that?”

“It sounded like a groan coming from over there — where the sharp curve in the road is,” Stan answered pointing.

As they ran to the road they could see that part of the fence had been knocked down. Tire tracks went down the bank, and at the bottom they saw a car lying upside down by the creek.

Sliding down the embankment, they found a lady lying on the ground beside the car.

“I wonder if she’s alive?” asked Tim.

“She must be,” answered Stan. “We both heard her groan.”

It was then that the injured lady weakly opened her eyes. “Oh, finally help has arrived,” she said, and then her eyes closed again.

“You stay with her, Tim. I’ll go get help,” said Stan as he climbed back up the bank. Less than two minutes later Tim heard the roar of the snowmobile starting and moving at full power off into the distance.

At some point in our life, each of us must come face to face with our sins and their result — they will keep us out of heaven. The Bible explains that each of us is a sinner (Rom. 3:23), and God cannot accept us with our sins. But if we admit our need to be free of those sins and call to God to save us, He will hear. “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1.

Believing in the Lord Jesus Christ is the only way we can be saved. In the Bible He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6.

Being a sinner, you must have your sins washed away before you can have everlasting life. You may have your own ideas of how you’ll handle your sins, but there is nothing you can do yourself to get rid of them. God says all your honesty and goodnesses “are as filthy rags.” Isaiah 64:6. The only way to be free from your sins is to believe what the Bible tells us that the Lord Jesus Christ was punished for sin and that it was His blood shed on the cross that can wash them all away. Then, according to Isaiah 1:18, “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” This is what God’s love in providing a Saviour can do for you. You are just like the lady in our story. You are helpless and you need someone to rescue you. The Lord Jesus is that One.

The lady opened her eyes again. “Help is coming soon,” Tim assured her as he tried to keep her hands warm in his.

“The road was icy and it was so late,” she weakly said, and slowly she told Tim the story. She had been able to get out of the car but could not climb up the bank. “I think my leg is broken,” she said.

Just about then Tim heard the sound of the snowmobile returning. It came right to the top of the bank and stopped. Stan’s father was driving, and Stan was on the back clutching a bundle of blankets. “We’ve called an ambulance,” he said as they worked their way down the bank.

Using the blankets, they wrapped the lady carefully. Within 15 minutes an ambulance from town was there. They put her on a stretcher, and with all of them helping, they were able to get her up the bank and into the ambulance.

“If she had been in the cold any longer she would have died,” remarked one of the paramedics. “She will make it now, thanks to you boys.”

We who have been saved by the Lord Jesus Christ can say, “Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.” 2 Corinthians 9:15. “The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23. Won’t you accept this gift and be rescued from your sins and be included with those who have everlasting life?

ML-02/17/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Unlovely Crow

“He [God] giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.” Psalms 147:9.

The Bible does not mention crows by name, but speaks of “every raven after his kind,” which includes the crow family. So our opening verse assures us that the Creator cares for crows and even hears the cries of their little ones.

When full grown these jet-black birds weigh about three pounds. Always hungry, they eat just about anything that can be swallowed, including corn and other grains from farmer’s fields, mice, grubs, eggs, even small birds and small, dead animals. In fact, they have been seen gulping down pieces of plastic and rubber, no doubt thinking them to be food.

It is no secret to those living near crows, especially just after sunrise, that they do not hesitate to announce their presence with loud annoying “caws.” But, in spite of this bad habit, they are very clever and seem almost intelligent at times. Captive crows quickly perform tricks and, like parrots, can even learn a few words (although not knowing what they mean). They are clever in imitating other bird sounds, too.

Spotting a lone owl trying to hide in a tree, a group of crows soon get together and with loud and raucous cawing gang up to chase it out of the area. However, they know better than to get in the way of its sharp beak and claws. Another of their annoying tricks is to snatch a hooked fish from the end of a fisherman’s line before he can reel it in.

No bird is hated more than the crow. Yet in spite of efforts to wipe them out with poisons and guns, their numbers continually increase. In many places they are now protected by law, because the tremendous amount of harmful insects and small rodents they eat more than makes up for their bad habits, so there is no danger of them becoming extinct. It is understandable that crows may not appeal to many people, but they are part of God’s creation, and their unusual instincts and cleverness have been provided by Him so they can perform their part of His purposes in the bird world.

The Bible tells us that every living creature is in the hands of the Lord. Isn’t it wonderful to learn of His care over all things, including crows. But it is especially important to know His watchfulness over every boy and girl, every man and woman, as the Bible verse says, “His eyes are upon the ways of man, and He seeth all his goings.” Job 34:21. He wants us to draw near to Him and so He declares: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you... thoughts of peace, and not of evil.” Also, “Ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11,13.

Have you gone to Him and proved His love for you and the peace that He alone can give?

ML-02/17/1985

"Stay on the Bus"

Memory Verse: “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.” 1 John 4:9

“Stay on the bus,” were the last words the school bus driver had said as he stepped out into the whirling blizzard. Almost immediately he was out of sight, and the children on the bus were alone. “I’ll be able to follow the fence line back to the last crossroad,” he had explained to them. “There is a small store there where I can call for help. I’ll be okay, and you will be too, if you just stay on the bus.”

The blizzard had hit suddenly with almost no warning in this farming area of Canada. It was snowing hard when the busload left school, but that wasn’t unusual in this part of the country. However, soon after they got out of town the full fury of the blizzard had made driving farther impossible. When the driver had pulled over to the side of the road, the bus had gotten stuck. Even with the help of the bigger boys, no amount of pushing could move it. The only thing left to do was to go for help.

Being alone on the bus was fun for the children for a while... that is, until it got cold. The bus driver had shown Mark, a junior in high school, how to start the engine to run the heater. He did this when it got really cold, but he was being careful so that they wouldn’t run out of gas.

Hour after hour passed with no one coming to their rescue. Some of the younger children got scared after it got dark and started to cry. The older ones tried to calm their fears by telling stories and singing songs to get their minds off the problem. But when it got to be nine o’clock and there still was no sign of help, even the older children were beginning to worry. And by then everybody was hungry and thirsty. It had been a long time since lunch.

However, they had not been forgotten. It was just that this was the worst blizzard in many years. Although the driver had finally gotten back to the store, he discovered the phone was out of order, so he couldn’t call for help.

There were many worried mothers and fathers who had called the school and then the police when the bus did not arrive. But since no one knew where the bus was, no one could help.

Neither the police nor the parents could help the children since they didn’t know where they were. But there is Someone who knows not only where you are this very minute, but He knows everything about you. He can see what you are doing and knows what you are thinking right now. This Person is God. When He looks down from heaven at you, what does He see? Does He see a boy or a girl still having their sins on them? He does if you have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour. The Bible says of the sinner, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.” Jeremiah 17:9. Is this what He sees? If so there is a way this can all be changed. The Lord Jesus wants you to believe in Him, to accept Him as your Saviour and then know that your sins are all forgiven. All this is possible because of what the Lord Jesus has done for sinners like you and me. He loved sinners so much that He was punished on the cross for all who would trust Him. His blood shed there can wash away all your sins. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7. If you will ask the Lord Jesus to wash your sins away, then you will not have to be punished for them since He already was. It was the bus driver waiting in the store who first heard the noise of the powerful snowplow above the roar of the storm. He ran out to the plow and told the men driving it exactly where the bus was stranded.

“I’m glad you heard the plow, because in this storm we can’t find a thing,” the snowplow driver said. “Come with us to make sure we find the bus. We have blankets and food.”

The snowplow moved slowly down the road to where the bus was stuck. Even the plow kept getting stuck and had to keep backing up and lunging forward to break through the drifts. Finally the almost-hidden shape of the bus at the side of the road could be seen. If the bus driver had not been with the plow, they probably would have passed it.

It was a happy bunch of children who welcomed the driver back. He passed out the food and blankets, and soon they were all feeling better. “We will still have to wait out the storm here on the bus,” he explained to them, “but now we will wait together.”

It was a long night for the children, but at least they had something to eat and could keep warm and protected in the bus.

The Lord Jesus Christ has promised never to leave us or forsake us (Heb. 13:5). He tells us in John 10:28, “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish.” These are wonderful proses. They can be yours if you’ll accept Him now as your own Saviour.

“The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which lost.” Luke 19:10.

ML-02/24/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Playful Seal

“Seek the Lord and His strength, seek His face continually. Remember His marvelous works that He hath done.” 1 Chronicles 16:11,12.

Seals live both in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, mostly in cold northern waters, but many migrate thousands of miles south in the winter. Others never go north, but are quite content to remain year-long in warm southern climates.

A mother seal usually has just one pup a year, born on land because it cannot swim until she teaches it.

She nurses it for about four months, and during this time she frequently leaves it for several days while she goes after her own food shrimp, clams, fish and other seafood. At these times her pup joins hundreds like itself, all temporarily left alone. When she returns she barks loudly and a number of these youngsters come to her. But she is only interested in her own, and the Creator has given her the ability to pick it out by its individual odor and its tiny bark which she recognizes. Its hunger is soon satisfied with her rich, nourishing milk.

The first three weeks of the gray seal’s life are very dangerous. Hunters kill them in great numbers for their soft, woolly, pure-white coat. But, thankfully, many people are now trying to stop this cruel practice.

The Creator has provided seals with nostrils and ear openings that close automatically when they go below the surface as well as special lids that protect their eyes underwater. They don’t even need to think about these things. It all happens automatically.

In ice-covered waters they make air vents with their sharp teeth. They poke their heads through the vents for fresh air about every 15 minutes. They also crawl out of the same hole to rest occasionally. But this is dangerous since an Eskimo or a polar bear may be waiting to catch them when they show up.

A seal is graceful in the water, but its travel on land is another story. There it has to lift itself up on its webbed flippers, arch its back, push with its hind flippers, and in great jerks move forward. This looks awkward, but they can move fast when necessary. They are considered to be very intelligent and are quick to learn tricks such as balancing a ball on the tip of their nose, leaping out of the water on command, jumping through fiery hoops, etc. They are always popular actors at aquariums.

These creatures with such interesting habits are another example of the wonders of God’s creation. The Bible gives good counsel when declaring, “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth.” Ecclesiastes 12:1. Pay no attention to the false teachings of evolution, but rather be as the Psalmist who did not hesitate to say, “I will show forth all Thy marvelous works. I will be glad and rejoice in Thee.” Psalms 9:1, 2.

ML-02/24/1985

The Stained Tablecloth

Memory Verse: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

Uncle Mark was coming for dinner! How happy the children were since he was their favorite uncle. Mother was also glad to have her brother visit them while he was on business in their city. He lived so far away that they didn’t get to see each other very often any more.

Mother was preparing Uncle Mark’s favorite dinner. She was having roast leg of lamb, mashed potatoes and gravy, homegrown corn on the cob and fresh blueberry pie.

“Oh boy, is that lamb I smell?” asked Uncle Mark coming in the front door.

“We have lots of surprises for you,” answered Mother. “You just wait and see.”

“Ummmm, it sure smells good,” Uncle Mark said as he took another deep sniff.

Soon dinner was ready and they were all seated at the table. Daddy gave thanks to God for the food and for His care over them through the day. Then they had such a happy meal. (Having a thankful heart makes everything taste even better.)

When Mother served the blueberry pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, Uncle Mark’s eyes lit up. “Wow, another favorite of mine!” he exclaimed. “You sure are good to me.”

As they were eating and talking Uncle Mark accidentally dropped some pie on the white tablecloth. It made a big purple splotch. But everyone was so busy eating their own piece of pie that no one even noticed what had happened. Uncle Mark easily could have moved his plate over to cover up the stain. Then Mother would have been the only one to notice it when she cleared the table. That would have saved Uncle Mark some embarrassment.

However, Uncle Mark didn’t do that. Instead, he moved his plate the other way so everyone at the table could see the bright purple stain. Then he said to Mother, “I spilled some pie on your nice white tablecloth. I’m really sorry about it. I’ll be glad to buy you a new one if it is ruined.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m sure it will come out when I wash it,” Mother reassured him. Uncle Mark was not the least bit embarrassed. He looked at his four nieces and nephews sitting around the table and said to them, “Look at the mess I made, but notice how quickly your mother forgave me when I told her what I had done. Now I won’t have to worry about that blueberry stain. But if I had tried to hide it, I would have been uncomfortable as long as we sat at the table. If I had moved my plate over to cover it, I would have been afraid someone might lift my plate and then everyone would see it. But since your mother knows all about it and has forgiven me, I don’t need to worry about it anymore.”

Daddy suggested Uncle Mark explain how the same lesson applies to Christians when we sin.

So Uncle Mark went on to explain, “The sooner we tell God what we have done and get everything cleared up with Him, the sooner we are happy again. We should try not to do anything to displease or dishonor Him, but sometimes we do anyway. For those times God says, ‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’ 1 John 1:9. Trying to forget about or cover up our sins will not work. God knows exactly what we’ve done, and He has written it down. But because of the Lord Jesus Christ having died on the cross, those of us who are saved are forgiven. However, we are not happy or comfortable in His presence until we tell Him we are sorry and ask Him for help not to do it again.”

We never forgot Uncle Mark’s “blueberry pie on the tablecloth” story. Each of us who was there now have children of our own. They have also heard the story and the advice Uncle Mark gave us... usually when someone has spilled something on the tablecloth. It is still good advice. In fact, God gives us the same advice in Proverbs 28:13: “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”

ML-03/03/1985

The Two Debtors

In Luke 7:36-50 we read about the Lord Jesus Christ being invited to dinner by one of the religious leaders of the Jews named Simon. The invitation seems to have been prompted by Simon’s curiosity about Jesus, rather than because he loved Him. When Jesus arrived at Simon’s house, He was not treated the way most guests would have been treated. It was the usual custom for the host to welcome his guest with a kiss. Then he would order his servants to wash his guest’s feet and anoint his head with oil. But Simon did not welcome Jesus into his home the usual way.

While Jesus was sitting at the table, a woman from the street who heard that Jesus was there came into Simon’s house and knelt down at Jesus’ feet. Tears flowed down her face and fell on Jesus’ feet. She wiped them away with her lovely, long hair and kissed His feet over and over again. Then opening a beautiful alabaster box which she had brought with her, she poured the sweet-smelling, expensive ointment it contained over His feet.

What brought this woman to Simon’s house? She had heard that Jesus was there. She probably had heard about, or maybe even had seen, Jesus healing people and had seen the change in the lives of those to whom He had said, “Thy sins be forgiven thee.” This woman had lived a sinful life, and her longing now was for Jesus to forgive her sins. She had come to the only One who could give her troubled heart the peace she wanted.

Meanwhile, Simon watched with disgust as she showed her love for the Lord Jesus by her actions. He said to himself, “This man, if He were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth Him; for she is a sinner.”

Jesus knew what Simon was thinking and said to him, “Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee.” Then Jesus told him a story as He so often did to teach a lesson.

“There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell Me therefore, which of them will love him most?”

“I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most,” answered Simon.

“Thou hast rightly judged,” said Jesus, and then He went on to teach Simon a lesson that each of us should learn.

The Lord Jesus turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest Me no water for My feet: but she hath washed My feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. Thou gavest Me no kiss: but this woman, since the time I came in, hath not ceased to kiss My feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed My feet with ointment. Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.”

Then turning to the woman Jesus said, “Thy sins are forgiven.”

Simon and the other Pharisees with him at the table could only see how bad the woman was. But in God’s sight it does not matter how bad or good you and I may think we are. It only takes one sin to keep us out of heaven. Proud Simon, the sinful woman, and you and I are all the very same — we are all sinners. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23.

Notice again in the parable in verse 42, “And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both.” Yes, the wonderful thing about God’s love is that it is great enough to save poor sinners like us. “Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace,” He said to the woman in verse 50. But for Simon there was no peace nor forgiveness, because he would not admit he was a sinner and needed the Saviour.

Are you willing to admit you are a sinner and need the Saviour? “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28.

ML-03/03/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Cuddly Koala

“All Thy works shall praise Thee, O Lord.... Thou openest Thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.” Psalms 145:10,16.

The koala, also known as the Australian Bear (although not a bear at all), is considered by many to be the world’s most charming wild animal. This is easy to see since it looks just like a live teddy bear. It is also gentle and lovable and is often raised as a household pet.

Although the favorite and most numerous koala is about the size of a raccoon and weighs about ten pounds, there are several species, the smallest not much larger than a rat and the largest close to five feet long. Part of their charm is their inquisitive expression, their small head topped with big tufted ears, their woolly, gray coat and soft arms with which they hug anyone holding them. Their little mouth always seems to be smiling as their round eyes look you over while wrinkling their shiny, black nose.

Baby koalas weigh just a few ounces at birth and spend almost half a year in the mother’s pouch, well fed with her rich milk. At the end of that time they climb onto her back and ride there for about a year, holding on with hand-like paws. During this time the mother introduces them to a diet of eucalyptus leaves. It is interesting to see how the Creator has given them wisdom to know to eat from only about a dozen kinds of eucalyptus rather than the 600 varieties that are not suitable as food, with some actually being deadly poisonous. While riding the mother’s back the little ones learn which of these are safe, but the ability to tell one from another is really given by the One who created both the trees and the koalas. Actually, in spite of being so lovable they are rather lazy animals. Finding a good tree, they are quite content to stay in it, seldom coming down while tender leaves are still there. Life in these tall trees again shows the special provisions of God for His creatures. Sharp claws and rough padded feet are just right for climbing and holding onto branches when they are feeding. Hind legs that are long and strong also provide support for them while gathering food. Their bodies are so much a part of the tree that it is often difficult to find some of them.

In the hot, dry climate of Australia, what does the koala do for water? Here is another wonder of God’s creation, for He has given them special stomachs that not only enable them to get nourishment from the bitter eucalyptus leaves, but also to get from them all the water they need.

The koala does not know of God’s care over it, but we can know His care over us. The Bible tells us “the Lord searcheth all the hearts... if thou seek Him He will be found of thee.” 1 Chronicles 28:9. If you, through His grace, have accepted Him as your Saviour, then you can say with the Psalmist, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits.” Psalms 68:19. Can you thank Him like this?

ML-03/03/1985

Water Rescue

Memory Verse: “When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:6

Jacques Scalabrini was loading his gear into the back of his pickup truck after a day of fishing with his two small boys. The truck was parked on the sloping boat ramp by the Mattagami River near Timmins, Ontario. It had been a cold, windy day, and the three of them were cold and tired. The two boys, Marc 5 and Luc 3, were already in the cab. Soon they would be back in their warm house for a hot dinner, Jacques was thinking.

He slammed the tailgate of the truck closed and turned to make one last check to see if anything had been left. Hearing a noise, he turned to see his truck rolling backward down the ramp and right into the swiftly flowing river!

Calling for help from others along the river, Jacques plunged into the river to try to rescue his children. The truck had floated about 30 feet away from shore and was sinking.

Jacques swam out to the truck and somehow got into it and pulled both children out. He struggled to return to shore with a child in each arm. “The current was so swift,” he said later in an interview, “I just couldn’t make it with both of the kids. We were all going to drown!”

Although Jacques desperately wanted to rescue his children and tried his very best, he found he could not do it. All three of them were about to drown.

Like Jacques struggling alone, some of us have our own ideas about handling the sin in our lives. However, if our ideas do not agree with what the Bible says, we are in deep trouble! In Proverbs 14:12 God says, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” The Lord Jesus Christ said, “He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.” John 6:47. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can give hope and everlasting life to a sinner who is struggling to get to heaven. A sinner cannot make it on his own. The Lord Jesus saw us struggling alone and came to earth so that all who accept Him as their Saviour can be saved. “Whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:15.

What about you? Are you going to go on struggling alone with your own ideas and hope you’ll make it to heaven? Wouldn’t you like to know for sure that all your sins are forgiven? In Acts 13:38 and 39 the Apostle Paul says, “through this man [the Lord Jesus Christ] is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: and by Him all that believe are justified from all things.” Yes, it is only the Lord Jesus Christ who can rescue (save) us. He says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6. Won’t you accept His offer to save you?

It was Roger Francoeur who came to rescue Jacques and his children from drowning. Perhaps as a father he was thinking of his own three little children and how much he loved them. When he saw Jacques struggling, holding the two children, he plunged into the icy river and swam out to Jacques. He took Luc out of Jacques arm and swam to shore with him. He handed Luc to someone on shore and then swam out to Jacques again. As he was trying to help Jacques with Marc, Roger suddenly went under and was swept downstream and drowned. Jacques did finally reach shore safely with Marc, but he gives Roger Francoeur the full credit for having saved them. Without Roger’s unselfish help Jacques and his two sons would have drowned.

The Bible tells us that the Lord Jesus Christ “gave Himself a ransom for all.” 1 Timothy 2:6. Although His salvation is offered to everyone, it has to be accepted before a person can be saved. If Jacques had refused Roger’s rescue there would not have been any hope for Jacques or his children. He knew that without help from someone else all three of them would have drowned.

Each of us needs to understand that our sins not only have put us in “deep water,” but are dragging us down. The Lord Jesus has unselfishly offered to rescue us by removing our load of sins permanently. We only need to accept His kind and loving offer by believing that He died on the cross to wash away our sins. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7. The Bible also says, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13. “The Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1. This is the only Saviour who can rescue you. Turn to Him now while there is still time.

Roger gave his life to save Jacques, Marc and Luc. The Lord Jesus Christ gave His life so that all who would trust Him would be saved and have everlasting life. He loves you and is waiting to save you. All you have to do is to reach out your hand in faith and accept His salvation.

“What must I do to be saved?” “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:30,31.

ML-03/10/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Seaweed - Pest or Blessing?

“Every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving.” 1 Timothy 4:4.

Did you ever hear someone say, “We can’t picnic on that beach; it’s covered with seaweed,” or, “There’s a good fishing spot, but too much seaweed,” or, “Don’t swim there; you’ll get caught in seaweed"? To ocean shore visitors such statements are common. Yet the good things about these rather ugly plants outweigh their problems, and their part in the ocean is in accordance with the Creator’s plans when He made the world and the seas in it.

There are many kinds of seaweed, the most common being the brown kelp. This is a giant species which in Pacific coast waters grows as tall as a 20-story building. Another is known as rockweed. Dulse, in several red-brown varieties, is another, and one drifting around the Sargasso Sea in great masses is called sargassum. In this variety live the millions of small eels that are born each year.

Seaweed can be a problem to someone cruising offshore when it gets tangled in his outboard motor. A homeowner gets upset when he discovers his ocean view is spoiled by dark-brown patches hiding the blue water. But it is very welcome to a sea otter, attaching itself to a strand to keep from drifting while napping, or to a fish escaping from a shark.

The above Bible verse stating “Every creature of God is good,” refers to all created things (including seaweed) which, in one way or another, are beneficial to mankind if used properly. Do you know that thousands of tons of seaweed are harvested and sold for millions of dollars every year? It is used by a variety of industries, as well as appearing on the tables of people in many countries as an attractive and healthful food.

Seaweed is often an unseen but important part of glass, soap, vitamin pills and important medicines. Your toothpaste probably has some in it, as well as the pudding and pie your mother makes from store-bought packages. Shaving cream, cosmetics and paint, too, as well as chocolate goodies, ice cream, some candies and a long list of other products have seaweed as one of their ingredients.

Next time you visit the seashore and see whip-like or fan-shaped pieces of seaweed washed ashore, think how the Lord God has made this lowly sea plant a part of His benefits to you, and then thank Him for it.

Seaweed nourishes our bodies, but it is even more important to accept the spiritual food God provides through His Word, the Bible. In it He invites you to “taste and see that the Lord is good” and promises “blessed is the man that trusteth in Him.” Psalms 34:8. A man who did so exclaimed, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart.” Jeremiah 15:16.

If you have not received this joy in your heart, read the Bible and find that you, too, may "taste and see that the Lord is good.”

ML-03/10/1985

Two Minutes From Home

Memory Verse: “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13

“Kirk to Cordova; Kirk to Cordova; come in Cordova,” radioed the pilot of the small plane flying toward the town of Cordova, Alaska.

“Cordova to Kirk,” came the reply from the radio operator Kelly Anderson. “Where have you been, Kirk?” he asked. “You should have been here an hour ago. Any trouble?”

“We had to go around a storm near Teakle Canyon. The wings are icing up pretty bad, but I’ll make it,” answered Kirk. “I’ll be there in about ten minutes.”

“I’ll be listening for you. It’s overcast here, but there is a high ceiling,” Kelly advised.

Flying planes in Alaska is a dangerous job, but Kirk Peters was one of their best pilots. Many times he had been able to do almost the impossible. Icing up of the wings was no major problem to Kirk who had flown in all kinds of severe weather in his years of flying. Even Kelly was not worried as he finished logging in the call. Putting on his coat, he leisurely walked out of the radio room into the hanger.

After talking briefly to one of the mechanics, Kelly left the hanger and went outside to listen for the drone of the single-engine plane.

Scanning the overcast sky for a glimpse of the bright orange and white plane, he glanced at his watch and saw that it was already 20 minutes since Kirk had called.

After watching and listening for another ten minutes, Kelly hurried back to the radio and called Kirk.

“Cordova to Kirk; Cordova to Kirk; come in Kirk.”

Not a sound broke the stillness except the click of the earphones.

“Cordova to Kirk; come in Kirk.” This time urgency and anxiety were in his voice. No answer came from the overdue plane. Although concerned, Kelly still was not terribly worried. Kirk was such a good pilot that he could land almost anywhere. He reported the plane as missing, but assured others that he was sure Kirk was okay. He had probably landed someplace, and his radio wasn’t working.

The Cordova Daily Times carried the headline the next morning: “PLANE DOWN BETWEEN TEAKLE AND CORDOVA.” Search planes were sent out, and the area was thoroughly searched. It was one of these planes searching the Orca Inlet that spotted the oil slick. The plane was found in about 30 feet of water with Kirk still strapped in the seat. Just two minutes more... and he would have landed safely at the air strip. Two minutes more... almost... but lost!

Perhaps you have heard the gospel story many times, how that “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” 1 Corinthians 15:3. You also have heard that “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2. Tomorrow may be too late.

Even though the wings were icing up, Kirk evidently decided not to make an emergency landing. He had confidence that he would make it.

Perhaps you, too, think that you have plenty of time to accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour. You are confident you will make it. Be careful... you may come up short. If you do not accept Him as Saviour for yourself while there is still time, you will be lost! Don’t let it be said of you, “Almost... but lost!” The Bible warns, “Boast not thyself of to-morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Proverbs 27:1.

ML-03/17/1985

A Foolish Man - Luke 12:13-21

Would you like to be called a fool? I don’t think any of us would. I expect, though, that each of us can remember when we did or said something foolish. Even though we all have to admit that we have done foolish things, none of us would like to be called a fool. And we probably aren’t, either... unless we go on acting foolishly.

In the Bible there are at least three places where God calls someone a fool. Two of these are in the Old Testament — “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God” (Psa. 14:1); “Fools make a mock at sin” (Prov. 14:9). A third is in the story we read in the New Testament in Luke 12.

As we think about the two verses in the Old Testament, we can easily see why these people are called fools. To act as if there were no God is really foolish. And if people laugh at the thought of sin, they also are fools. Unfortunately, young people as well as older folks are often guilty of both of these things. How sad it would be if God had to call you a fool.

The farmer that we read about in Luke 12 was called a fool. Let’s look for the reason why God called him that.

This farmer was a hard worker. He must have been a good farmer, taking care of his land so that his ground produced fine crops. (Now this doesn’t seem like a reason to be called a fool, does it? If you have ever lived on a farm or worked on one, you know how hard farmers have to work to get good crops from their land.)

So this farmer in the Bible became rich, and he had earned his riches honestly. He also had made sensible plans for the future. (Nothing wrong with that, was there?) This particular year his harvest was so good it broke all records, and he found he did not have enough space to store his grain. So the sensible thing to do (we might think) was to build a bigger barn and storehouse. Very likely, in the eyes of his neighbors he was a good, honest, hard-working, prosperous farmer. I doubt if God condemned him for that.

Then why did God call him a fool? He had made one great, tragic mistake. He sat back and said to himself, “I can take it easy; I have everything I’ll need for many years to come, so I can just relax, spend my money, and have a good time.” He told himself that now he had everything he needed.

God called him a fool because he had prepared for this life only! He had left God completely out of his plans. He had made himself rich with the things of this world, but he hadn’t made preparation for the next. He was planning to live for many more years, but God told him he would die that night. He had forgotten that he could not take his riches with him when he died. What is important after we die is not what a person has, but if he knows the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour!

Remember that not one of us can be sure if we will be here tomorrow. But there is one thing that we can be sure of if we have accepted Christ as our Saviour. That is, if He were to come today or if we were to die suddenly, we would be taken to heaven to be with Him for all eternity.

Because you are young you may be tempted to tell yourself, “I’ll worry about those things when I’m older.” STOP AND THINK! God called that farmer a fool for doing that very thing. Be wise and accept Him now.

“Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth.” Ecclesiastes 12:1.

“Boast not thyself of to-morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Proverbs 27:1.

ML-03/17/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: A Lesson From Bluebirds

“Ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee.” Job 12:7.

Bluebirds are a real favorite with many people. They are gentle looking, have a sweet song, and like to live near people who often provide nesting boxes for them. There are only three varieties of true bluebirds, all of which live in North America or Mexico. These are the eastern, between the Rocky Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean; the western, in the area from the Pacific Ocean to the Rockies; and the mountain, which lives as far north as Alaska.

Most bluebirds migrate south in the early winter where food such as insects, seeds, berries and many fruits is plentiful. Those that bravely stay in the cold areas through wintertime live in big flocks. At night several crowd into a nest, snuggling together to keep warm.

In early springtime as the migrators return, they all select mates and build grassy cup-shaped nests (unless they find a nesting box provided by some bird lover). Eggs are laid and soon hatch out. Raising the chicks is a real chore since they have tremendous appetites, keeping both parents busy. One birdwatcher reported that throughout daylight hours food was brought to a nest by one or the other of the parents about every three minutes! My, what love they show, to work so hard for their young. Here is another example of the way the Creator has provided faithful instincts so the babies will be well taken care of.

The chicks grow quickly and within two or three weeks fly from the nest, often perching in a nearby tree where the father still feeds them and teaches them to care for themselves. Meanwhile the mother has cleaned up the nest and laid more eggs in it. When the new family hatches, the parents get busy feeding them, just as they did the older ones. But here is where the lesson we mentioned in our title, may be learned. When the birds already raised and living on nearby limbs see how busy the parents are and how hungry their new brothers and sisters are, they often help in bringing food to the new arrivals. Isn’t that a kind thing to do? Only a very few other young birds are known to do this.

Here is a good example of how boys and girls can be helpful to their parents. This doesn’t necessarily mean feeding babies, since there are other ways to show love. This can be done by doing dishes, making beds, weeding the garden, keeping the yard clean and many other things that show Mother and Dad your love in a real practical way.

When things like this are done in a happy spirit, they are always pleasing to the Lord. The Bible tells us, “Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right.” Proverbs 20:11. Do you please the Lord as well as Mother and Dad by helping them as young bluebirds help their parents?

ML-03/17/1985

What Is a Watchman?

Memory Verse: “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2

Most mornings on the farm were rather hectic as the children all were getting ready for school. They hurried to be ready in time to catch the bus that came out into the country to pick up the children.

Jamie discovered that they could see the school bus coming over a distant hill before it made the last few bends in the road. The time it took the bus to get from that hill to the farm allowed them just three minutes to get ready. Jackets were quickly zipped, lunches and books were gathered up, and with a good-bye kiss they dashed out across the road, usually just as the bus was pulling up. This worked pretty well, so Mother decided they should keep someone by the back bedroom window as a watchman. Since Sharon was the oldest of the children not yet going to school, she was elected to be the watchman.

At first she rather liked this idea... and her sharp eyes were keen, watching for that fleeting glimpse of the big yellow bus, signaling their three-minute countdown. She would run full steam out into the kitchen and shout its arrival just like a train conductor — “HERE COMES THE BUS!” This was quite a game, and she was an important part of all the activity, so she liked it.

However, after some time the “new game” wore off, and she found the waiting and watching rather boring. One morning as she was watching, the kitty wandered into the bedroom to find Sharon. Sharon began to play with her. Happy was her favorite pet, and Sharon liked to drag a string around in circles and have Happy chase it. They played with the tie on her housecoat and were having such fun. Suddenly Happy scooted under the bed, and Sharon dived after her. They crawled clear to the other side, and Sharon, forgetting all about her watchman duties, was determined to catch the little scamp.

Just then Sharon’s baby sister Anna toddled into the bedroom, still in her sleeper. She saw Sharon’s toes sticking out from under the bed where she was still trying to catch Happy. Anna pulled herself up to the window, stood on her tiptoes and rested her chin on the windowsill. Just then she saw the distant school bus appear for a moment at the top of the hill before it dipped out of sight again. How much she understood about this situation would be hard to say, but she turned around and toddled off to the kitchen, and there she raised her voice as loud as she could, “HEAH CUM DA BU!” After all this mighty effort she lost her balance and fell down in the middle of the floor.

Everyone stopped in their tracks and looked at her.

“Does she know what she’s talking about?”

“She’s probably trying to copy what she sees Sharon do.”

“Isn’t that cute!”

But they weren’t doing anything about it — none of them believed what the little “watchman” had said! As she sat there with her finger in her mouth, she pointed a chubby little finger in the direction of the bedroom. Jamie glanced at the clock and said, “Hey, look what time it is; we’d better be gettin’ out there!” So everyone hustled into their jackets, snatched up their books and lunches and made a fast exit... just as the bus rounded the corner.

“I wonder what happened to Sharon?” Mother wondered when things grew quiet. She picked up Anna and went to the bedroom. There was Sharon still playing with the kitty, unaware that she had failed as a watchman.

Did you know that God has watchmen? In Isaiah 21:11 He asks, “Watchman, what of the night?” The watchman answered, “The morning cometh, and also the night.” For those people who have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour, they are still in the darkness (night) of their sins. Those sins will take them into the everlasting darkness and punishment of hell. But for those who have accepted Christ as their own Saviour, the “morning” that the watchman saw tells of the soon coming of our Saviour. Then all who accepted Him as their Saviour will be immediately brought into His presence in heaven.

We should be faithful watchmen to warn others that the Saviour will be coming soon and the time to get ready is right now. “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2. The warning call has been given: “Behold, the bridegroom [the Lord Jesus Christ] cometh.” Matthew 25:6. Prepare to meet Him. Accept Him as your Saviour today. If you are not saved when He comes, you will not have another opportunity.

“Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.” Isaiah 21:6.

“What I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.” Mark 13:37.

ML-03/24/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Likable Desert Fox

“The glory of the Lord shall endure forever: the Lord shall rejoice in His works.” Psalms 104:31.

All foxes are pretty, but the little desert kit fox is the most likable of them all. It is only the size of a large house cat and so gentle and full of curiosity that it is sometimes discovered following people who are walking in the desert. If seen it does not run off unless threatened. It makes a lovely picture with large, pointed ears standing alert, button nose sniffing the air, and its round eyes watching everything that’s going on.

The desert kit fox has fur which is usually gray with patterns of yellow and black. It has a typical fox’s bushy tail, which is about half the length of its 20-inch body. Its short legs are well muscled, and although it cannot run fast for long distances, it can make quick turns to scoot into brush or behind rocks when it’s necessary to hide.

When Jesus was on earth He said, “Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay His head.” Matthew 8:20. How sad to think that the One who was the very Creator of the world had no place to lay His head! But He has provided such a place for the foxes.

Dens of the kit fox are usually made by digging a burrow in firm sand or dirt, or under the big roots of a tree, or it may move into one abandoned by another animal. If taking over an abandoned den, the kit fox cleans it out first, then she may have to enlarge it to provide a nest for the soon-to-arrive little ones. These burrows are usually six or seven feet long, dropping steeply from the surface, and they almost always have more than one opening for emergency entrances or exits.

Normally four of five kits are born soon after the den is completed. Then the father fox brings food to the mother while she stays with the babies. Gradually she acquaints them with the outdoors, teaching them to catch rodents, rabbits, lizards, insects and even birds. She also teaches them how to protect themselves from enemies.

The Creator has well adapted these desert citizens to their surroundings with coats blending in with the desert. The soles of their feet are covered with fur, but the toes remain bare so they can dig in the ground and also move freely over desert surfaces. Scorpions abound in such places, and their bite would be deadly to most foxes, but God has given the desert fox an immunity to the poison so it does not affect them at all. He has also given them keen hearing and vision, and an excellent sense of smell, all to help them find food as well as to protect them from their enemies.

The Bible expresses this well: “The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.” Psalms 145:9. But there is more than this in His love for every person who will respond to Him. Of this the Bible also says: “Oh how great is Thy goodness, which Thou hast laid up for them that fear Thee; which Thou hast wrought for them that trust in Thee.” Psalms 31:19. Have you found this happiness of truly trusting in Him?

ML-03/24/1985

The Test

Memory Verse: “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” Psalm 53:1

Competition ran high in Janet’s sophomore class, and now during final exams it seemed to be even greater. Mr. McGee, their English teacher, announced as he was passing out the test papers that he had purposely made the exam hard — so hard he didn’t really expect anyone to get 100% on it. There were some groans and knowing glances, as he was famous for his tough grading. Even Kelly, one of the top students, gave a loud groan as he glanced over it. This boy liked to boast that he didn’t believe in God, stating that there wasn’t a God. Whether he had received this teaching at home or not, Janet didn’t know. But as she tried in a quiet way to be a light for the Lord Jesus, it seemed only to antagonize Kelly.

Mr. McGee was not kidding, Janet soon realized. Every detail of the semester project was reviewed with the essentials left for them to fill in or apply. Janet sent up a silent prayer asking the Lord Jesus to help her remember what she had studied. She worked hard at the difficult grammar and literature questions.

The bell startled her as she finished the last answer. There wasn’t even time to check anything over before the papers were quickly collected. They got their books together and headed for the next class.

It was about three days later, after they had settled into their seats in the English class, that Mr. McGee passed out the corrected exam papers. It was quite a moment of suspense as everyone wondered how they had done on the test. The professor smiled when he said, “Well, there was an A out of the whole class ... in fact, an A +.”

“Who rated an A?” asked one of the students.

“Janet,” he answered.

“That’s not fair!” exploded Kelly.

“And what’s unfair about it?” questioned the professor.

Kelly’s expression was very serious as he pointed one

finger heavenward and protested, “She had help!”

Yes, Kelly admitted that God had answered Janet’s prayer and helped her to pass the test. Is this surprising? To a Christian it shouldn’t be since we read in Colossians 2:3, “In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Kelly had been very bold about saying that there is no God. But like many others who say this, when they get into a time of trouble they admit that God exists. The conscience of every person acknowledges that there is a God. The Lord Jesus Christ “was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” John 1:9.

Although the Light (Christ) has shone on all, not everyone will accept Him as Saviour. This is your responsibility if you haven’t done so. Turn to Him now. Remember, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” Psalms 53:1. Don’t be a fool. Accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour today.

ML-03/31/1985

The Great Supper - Luke 14:12-24

What different kinds of stories the Lord Jesus Christ told while He was here on earth. Each one was used by Him to either teach a lesson to those who were listening, or to make them think about something they should do.

In Luke 14 the Lord Jesus Christ was sitting at the table in a home where He had been invited for a meal. Quite a number of other people were there, too, and He taught them through a parable about being invited to a supper.

A man had prepared a great feast and had sent out many invitations. When the feast was ready his servant was sent out to tell the guests that it was time for them to come. But they all began to make excuses why they couldn’t come. One said he had bought a field, and he wanted to inspect it. Another guest said that since he had just bought five pairs of oxen he had to go try them out. And another guest had just gotten married and for that reason said he couldn’t come. When the servant reported back to his master, the master was angry, and with good reason.

The master of the house told his servant to go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and invite in all the beggars, the crippled, the lame and the blind. But even then there were still empty seats. He was then told to go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and ask anyone who could be found to come, so that the house would be full. The master told the servant that since the invited guests had refused his invitation that they were not going to even taste his supper.

What was the Lord Jesus teaching here? Well, He was certainly agreeing with the man who said in verse 15 that it was a great honor to dine in God’s kingdom. But also He was telling them that there are those who do not value this great honor and refuse God’s invitation. The feast in the story cost a great deal of money and took a long time to prepare. But finally the master said, “Come; for all things are now ready.” verse 17.

The feast that God has prepared for those who accept His invitation was also very expensive. It cost the Lord Jesus Christ all that He had to provide it — it cost Him His own life! This was the only way that sinners like you and me could enjoy God’s blessings for all eternity.

We hope you won’t be like so many who have received the invitation to come to the Saviour, but have “weak excuses” for not coming, like those in the parable. Some have said, “Oh, I’m way too young,” or “My friends will laugh at me if I become a Christian.” Maybe you have a different reason, but whatever reason you give, it is still just an excuse. Remember, none of those invited guests who refused the invitation in the parable went in to the feast.

More invitations were given out. The master’s house was going to be full for the feast. What a poor group of people came in answer to that invitation — the crippled, the lame and the blind. Oh, but what a welcome they received and what a great honor and blessing were theirs! They came without giving excuses, because they knew they could well use the master’s abundant supply of food, even though they had done nothing to deserve it.

These poor people are a picture of each of us as needy sinners. Each one of us — man, woman, boy or girl — who has responded to the gospel invitation has received the forgivess, salvation and cleansing that only the Lord Jesus Christ can give. He can supply all our needs and is at this moment preparing a special place for us in His Father’s house in heaven. He is coming back very soon for those of us who have accepted Him as our Saviour. He will take us to be with Himself forever. After that it will be too late for those people who have made excuses to change their minds. The door of heaven will then be shut. The Bible says that all can come and that the time to come is now. Do not be like those foolish people who gave weak excuses. Accept today His invitation to come and be saved, and all the blessings of His free salvation will be yours.

“Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

ML-03/31/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Purple Martin

“For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come." Song of Solomon 2:11,12.

Martins return each spring to North America, and their cheerful chirping, added to that of other birds, makes a pleasant atmosphere for all. How good it is to remember that each one of these is a part of God’s wonderful creation, just as we are. He watches over and cares for them, as His Word, the Bible, tells us, “Ye are of more value than many sparrows.” Matthew 10:31. Each one of us should thank Him for His loving care.

The forked tail and wide wings of martins, as well as the way they catch food on the wing, identify them as part of the swallow family. There are several species, including the house martin, the sand martin and others, but we will just take a quick look at the largest — the purple martin. The males of this variety are colored all over with pretty purple feathers including their tail and wings. The female is much the same, but the underside of her body is light colored.

Because they are great insect eaters they have earned the friendship of farmers as well as those who live in the suburbs, many of whom place “martin houses” on tall supports near their homes or barns. Some of these houses allow space for 100 nests or more. But there is one problem in these “apartment houses” which have adjoining balconies where the birds like to perch and alight before entering their nests. The baby birds, able to hop about but not yet ready to fly, sometimes come out of their nests onto the balcony. After exploring around they forget which hole they came from and so are likely to enter a neighbor’s house by mistake. Strangely enough, parent martins do not seem to be able to recognize their own chicks. When returning to their nests after this has happened, they have no way of hunting them out from their newly adopted home, where they are accepted as part of that family.

Although martins do not like other birds as close neighbors, sparrows don’t share these feelings. If there is an opportunity a sparrow will move into the martins’ “housing project” and even chase a true owner away. If this happened to most birds, they would work together to keep the intruder out, but the martin is not a fighter so meekly accepts the loss of its home to the smaller thief.

Our opening verse speaks of the happy season of the year when winter’s cold, dark days are over, flowers are showing their pretty colors, and birds are returning from their migrations. It is a good deal like that, too, when a boy or girl learns to put his or her trust in the Lord Jesus. The dark times are put behind and the reality of being a Christian brings a joy many times better than even the yearly return of springtime. Has this been your experience?

ML-03/31/1985

The Call of the Wild

Memory Verse: “By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” Romans 5:12

Deep in the still of the night a coyote raised a shrill howl followed by the high-pitched yappings of others in the pack. It was cold and dark, broken only by an occasional gleam from the moon which was partially hidden by clouds. Then I heard a closer howl. My dog Andy shook himself and answered, not with his usual bark, but with a raised nose pointed toward the moon he gave a long, quavering howl. I had never heard him do this. Then he trotted off toward the road. Once again the wailing of the coyotes and shrill yappings disturbed my sleep, and I caught that same long howl... and then silence.

Was Andy answering the call of the wild?

Andy was a show dog — a beautiful blue merle collie that had been well trained and groomed. We had hesitated to accept him as a gift, but his master said he was too confined in the big city. He had to be locked up all day while his family was at work and at school, and his master wanted him to have more freedom out in the country. Still we hesitated, because it would be such a drastic change for a show dog.

However, we decided to try him out, and though he definitely missed his master he was very obedient and stayed near the buildings without being chained. It wasn’t long before the beautiful white ruff around his neck was tangled with cockleburs and his tail wagged with foxtail and thistle caught in it. He seemed to enjoy the outdoor life and explored the bounds around the house and barns and proved to be an alert watch dog.

He still liked to come into the house, especially when he smelled a roast cooking, and would be very polite in spite of his enthusiasm and expectation of a good bone to gnaw on. Sometimes he would find my bedroom slipper and tease me by circling round me with it in his mouth, hoping I’d play with him. He was definitely a people’s dog and liked us to return his affection. We grew to love Andy and appreciate his good qualities.

He also liked to follow the tractor when the men were working the fields, but unless it was near the house he was told to “stay home,” because there were coyote dens in the hills near the canyon, and coyotes were not to be trusted since they usually hunted in packs.

The next morning we went about our usual tasks and the events of the night before were forgotten, until I went out the back door. On the ground I saw the sorriest-looking dog I had ever seen. He tried to get up, but dropped back down. What animal was this? Had someone dropped off some strange, sick dog? He raised his head when I whistled. It had the long contour of a collie... I went closer. Could it be? Yes, it was... poor Andy, so totally covered with blood he looked all brown! He was so far gone he could scarcely move.

I put some warm milk into his bowl, but he didn’t even try to drink it. I examined him for wounds, but found only a small one on his side. “Someone else got the worst of the fight,” I informed my husband.

Did you know that each of us who is saved has two natures? The nature we are born with answers to the call of sin — in fact, it does nothing but sin. But when we come to God as a sinner and accept His Son as our Saviour, we are given a new nature from God. This nature delights to please Him and seeks to follow His Son, the Lord Jesus, who came into this world to seek the lost and to save man from his sins.

Sometimes Satan tempts us, as he did the Lord Jesus, with some glory or fame in this world, but the Lord answered, “As it is written,” and did not respond to his suggestions. Sometimes the gang says, “Oh, just this once, it won’t matter.” But don’t be lured into the paths of the world of sin.

If you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, this story about Andy should remind you to follow in the Lord’s footsteps, not in the path that your friends want you to follow. How can you know what is the right path for you? By reading the Bible and obeying what it says you will find the path that is pleasing to your Saviour. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalms 119:105.

Andy is fine now, and we never have heard the coyotes come close to the house or road again. I think he defended his territory and taught them that they were to stay away.

“My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.” Proverbs 1:10.

ML-04/07/1985

"I Am the Light of the World"

John 1:1-9; John 3:18-21

Have you ever been suddenly in the dark? It can be a frightening experience. Darkness has a power of its own. It is often cold, gloomy and unfriendly. The world that the Lord Jesus Christ came into was a dark world. It was not the natural darkness (night) that He came to deal with, but darkness in the lives of people. It is the darkness of our hearts that needs the light that only the Lord Jesus Christ can bring.

There are many different kinds of lights in this world. One kind is from lighthouses that are along the seacoasts. These usually stand as a warning near dangerous rocks which threaten the safety of ships coming into port. The rocks cannot be seen — they are underwater, so they are dangerous.

Just as the lighthouse is a warning light to help ships avoid crashing on the rocks, so the Lord Jesus Christ stands as a light to help us avoid those things that would wreck our lives. Satan makes sin attractive sometimes, but the dangers are there like hidden rocks. The Lord Jesus warns us of these evils in the Bible.

What about another kind of light? Have you ever tried to find your way in the dark without a light? You feel your way, but stumble along without knowing for sure where you are going. It takes much longer. How much easier it is when you have someone in front of you with a light. You need a light to guide you.

The Lord Jesus is a light to guide us through life. There are so many wrong paths that can lead us the wrong way in our life that we need the Lord Jesus to guide us safely. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalms 119:105.

When the dentist examines your teeth he has a bright light that helps him see if there are decay spots hidden in your teeth. It is a light used to examine.

The Lord Jesus came into the world as a light to show how sinful men’s lives are. If we are willing to accept what He shows us, He will lead us in ways that are pleasing to Him.

“I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12.

ML-04/07/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: A Skunk - Be Careful - Part 1

“The Lord of hosts... is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working.” Isaiah 28:29.

Would you like a skunk for a pet? Probably not, yet many people have made pets of them... after removing the scent glands. They find they are just as nice as a cat or a dog.

These animals make their homes only in North America. There are about a dozen species, all having many similarities. Although often seen in daylight, they are most active at night, usually hunting in groups that travel single file through fields or brush. All are black and white and have long, plumed tails. Perhaps the Creator gave them these distinctive features so they may be recognized and avoided, even in the darkness.

Skunks have a very effective chemical weapon called mercaptan which is produced inside their bodies. Since they are shy and gentle, they are reluctant to use it, preferring just to be left alone. However, any animal or person whose curiosity brings them too close or who threatens them, will first be met by a cold, unblinking stare, thumping of feet on the ground, and shaking of the head all seeming to say “you’re too close; you’d better back off.” If this is not done the skunk turns its back (not to run away, for it never does that) and promptly lifts its tail over its back, lowers its head, raises its hind quarters, and without further warning lets loose a blast of the worst-smelling spray imaginable. Not only does it smell terrible, but it burns skin and can cause temporary (or sometimes perment) blindness. An animal or person who has had this experience will usually stay far away from skunks!

The most common skunk is the striped skunk (nicknamed wood-pussy). They are about 30-inches long including their 10-inch tail and have fewer white markings than most other kinds. They are right at home in the forest or brush, near farms and even by city residences. Sometimes they will make a nest in a barn or under a porch, where they become a real problem. Getting rid of them is usually done by trapping.

During the springtime their food is mainly mice, but by summer they switch over to grasshoppers, beetles and other insects, often ripping rotten logs open to find them. They are also fond of fruit and berries, but since they cannot climb trees they have to take what can be reached from the ground.

The care given to these animals by the One who created them is expressed in Psalms 119:64: “The earth, O Lord, is full of Thy mercy.” We should think, too, of a companion verse which says, “Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding.” Psalms 119:73. It is good to ask for an understanding of His love, to know the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour, and to thank Him for all His kindness.

(to be continued)

ML-04/07/1985

Teddy's Disaster

Memory Verse: “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us.” Titus 3:5

Teddy and Candy were two lively cocker spaniel dogs who lived on a farm in Manitoba, Canada. They were well fed, got lots of exercise and had a shed to live in during the cold winter. Both dogs grew thick coats of hair during the winter which helped protect them from the cold.

The two dogs would often spend the day roaming through the fields and pasture near their home, but usually returned before the day was over... at least in time for supper! One cold Saturday in December when the temperature was only about 20°F, Teddy and Candy wandered off. Later that afternoon Candy came home alone. She seemed troubled and restless. As she rubbed against farmer Smith’s legs she almost acted as if she were trying to tell him something, but, of course, she was not able to. Because of the bitter cold weather, the Smith family was very concerned about Teddy when he did not return. They were sure he could not survive the whole night with the temperature getting even colder.

Teddy did not show up all the next day, nor the next. The Smiths had just about given up hope that Teddy would ever return. By the third morning they felt sure he must have died. How surprised they were when just a few hours later Teddy came hobbling into the yard on three legs. One of his hind legs was very sore. Farmer Smith did not have to guess where Teddy had been since there was a note attached to his collar which said, “GO HOME FIDO. LEAVE FOX TRAPS ALONE.” Poor Teddy had been caught in a neighbor’s fox trap for over three days, out in the cold without food or water.

Do you know that you, too, are caught in a trap, unless you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour? It is not a fox trap, but the trap of sin. Satan has set these traps and has caught you! But just as there was a way out of the trap for Teddy, there is a way for each sinner to be released from Satan’s trap of sin. In Acts 26:18 the Bible tells us that if we accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour we will be turned from darkness to the light, and from the power of Satan (his trap) unto God and receive forgiveness of sins (being released from the trap).

The Smiths were very thankful that their neighbor had released Teddy from the fox trap, and how thankful we who are saved should be for our being released from Satan’s trap. But the Lord Jesus Christ not only saves us from our sins, He also cares for us and someday soon will take each of His own home to heaven. We don’t have to find our own way home like Teddy did. The Lord Jesus said, “I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:3.

Teddy needed some special care for a few days and a little extra food, but it wasn’t long until he was running around the farm again. Because Teddy is a dog he was not able to thank the Smiths or their neighbor, but have you ever thanked the Lord Jesus Christ for saving you? Perhaps we each should sing the lines of this little song every day:

Thank-you, Lord, for saving my soul,

Thank-you, Lord, for making me whole,

Thank-you, Lord, for giving to me

Thy great salvation, so full and free.

ML-04/14/1985

Have You Ever Given Out a Tract?

The following letter was received from a dear Christian lady who, although she is over 90 years old, still loves to tell people about her Saviour. This letter especially shows the value of passing out Sunday school papers and gospel tracts.

Dear friend,

If every Christian would try to make the gospel known to the people they meet each day, some of these people might feel their need of having their sins cleansed and forgiven. How can Christians do this? One way is by giving out “silent preachers” – tracts and Sunday School papers.

May I tell you a little of my experiences. Though small indeed, they have given much joy. How very much the Lord Jesus did when He left His home in glory to come to earth and suffer untold misery which I deserved!

Tracts and gospel papers are light in weight and can be carried in pockets and purses. Going into a store, I handed a tract to the cashier who waited on me. “Are you a Christian?” she was asked. “No, I’m a Buddhist,” she replied. Since then she has accepted more tracts. In the same store another cashier received a Sunday school paper with a smile and shook hands, saying, “I am a Christian too!”

Going into a large shopping plaza presented many opportunities. While sitting down to rest and after reading a Sunday school paper, I left it on the bench hoping someone else might also enjoy it. This is just what happened. Later I saw a man reading it as though he enjoyed it also.

Going a little farther, a girl refused a pamphlet when she read the title. Another person who looked so sad also refused it with a strong, “NO,” when he saw the title. So you can see that they are not always accepted.

I asked several happy boys if they would like to read about a girl who got lost in the woods. They all nodded their heads, and each took a Sunday school paper. But another boy said, “No, I’m a Jew.”

A tract put at a telephone booth might give a persona chance to read while waiting to make a call, and laying one down at a cashier’s desk when she is too busy to accept it will let her read it later.

A bus driver has been receiving such papers for a long time. When asked if he enjoys them, he avoids the question by saying, “I read them all; I have a big stack of them.”

In a laundry that does our bedding there are only Spanish-speaking people. Several times they accepted used clothing along with Spanish tracts. The head girl said she would give them to poor friends. This was an occasion to make known the gospel of God’s grace through Spanish tracts.

Once in a while when we have gone to a restaurant that employed Spanish bus boys, they received them with surprise, because they were written in their language.

These are just a few of my experiences with papers containing many Bible verses. Though there is some reproach connect with passing them out, the joy received overbalances it. As prayer is made the Lord guides and we trust blesses. The only regret is that I pass them out too seldom.

Sincerely

Many people that we meet each day are on that “broad way” that we read about in Matthew 7:13 and 14. “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

Have you been a messenger of God’s wonderful love?

ML-04/14/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: A Skunk - Be Careful! Part 2

“God Himself... formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain. Isaiah 45:18.

In the preceding article on skunks we spoke about the striped skunk. The spotted skunk, sometimes called a civet, is another major species. It is among the smaller species, having habits much like the striped species. Some consider it the prettiest of all skunks with its soft, glossy fur and white-tipped tail proudly held over its back. The white portions of its fur form many patterns over its body — no two skunks looking alike.

This skunk is most likely to make its den in a burrow or under a boulder, but sometimes invades barns or crawl spaces under houses. Its musky spray is not as strong as others, but it is still effective. Unlike the striped skunk, it can easily climb trees for fruit and bird nests, and will even go into water for frogs and crayfish.

The hooded skunk is the least numerous of skunks and does not have the prominent markings of the other species, although displaying a nice range of designs. It prefers to make its home in abandoned burrows.

It is found only in the states of Arizona and New Mexico and in the country of Mexico. Its name comes from the long white hairs that stand up on its head like a pretty hood. Living in the desert, its choice of food is limited to rodents, beetles and other insects. It uses its long claws to dig them out of the ground or to overturn stones where they hide. Occasionally it will add to its diet an unwary bird or its eggs, as well as fruit from desert plants.

The hognose or badger skunk has coloring which is different from the rest. The entire top of its body is usually white, as is its long tail, but the rest of it is brown or blackish, spotted here and there with white. Its snout is bare accounting for the name hognose. It is sometimes also called a badger skunk because its claws are so much like that animal’s. Its back claws are dark and short while its ivory-colored front claws are strong and long, provided by the Creator for digging. Its food is similar to that of the hooded skunk.

There is not enough space to tell about all of them, but skunks should speak to us of the Creator’s wisdom in providing for all of their needs and giving them such an unusual means of self-defense. They have no way of knowing of the One watching over them, but the Bible tell us “The works of the Lord are great.... He hath made His wonderful works to be remembered: the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.” Psalms 111:2,4.

It is compassion which has provided a Saviour to redeem from their sins all who call upon and trust in Him. Are you among the great number who have done this and can look forward to being with Him in heaven?

ML-04/14/1985

Tsali

Memory Verse: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13

Tsali was a Cherokee Indian who is remembered in history because of his love for his people and the sacrifice he made for them.

The Cherokee Indians lived in the southern Appalachian Mountains in what is now the state of North Carolina. There they developed to a high cultural level and had the first written language of any of the American Indians.

As farmers and hunters the Cherokees defended their lands against the colonists in the middle 1700's. They even joined with the British against the Americans during the Revolutionary War, because the American colonists kept taking their land.

When gold was discovered on their lands, the United States government forced them to sell their lands, and in 1838, 17,000 Cherokees were forced by General Winfield Scott to walk from western North Carolina to the new Indian Territory, which is now the state of Oklahoma. The conditions of this march were so difficult that nearly 4,000 Indians died, and it is called the “trail of tears” in Cherokee history.

It was during the conflict with the American army before their move to Oklahoma that this story about Tsali takes place.

Tsali’s wife had been murdered by a drunken soldier who was then killed by Tsali and his sons. They and about 1,000 of their followers then hid for two years in the mountains which they knew so well. They stayed in the mountains even when the rest of the tribe had to march to Oklahoma.

Finally, General Scott got word to Tsali through a trusted friend that if Tsali and his sons would surrender to be punished for their crime, the remainder of the tribe could stay in the North Carolina mountains.

Tsali decided that, although it meant death for him and his sons, to save his people he would surrender. Tsali and his two sons were convicted and shot. It was love for his people that brought him to die.

Tsali loved his people but he, like you and me, was just a poor sinful person. The Lord Jesus Christ loved everyone in the whole world and came to save them. He died on the cross because of the sins of those he loved. He had committed no sin, nor was He even capable of sinning. Yet we read in the Bible, “Christ died for our sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:3. Can you say that He died for your sins?

Today the eastern tribe of Cherokees whose descendants still live in the southern Appalachians, honor the memory of Tsali. Do you honor the Lord Jesus Christ who is many times greater than Tsali? He died, rose from the dead, and now is waiting to return for those who accept Him as their Saviour.

“If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9.

ML-04/21/1985

Eddie's Heart

Tick! tock! Tick! tock! Tick! tock!

All was silent in the big country house. Even the grown-ups had all gone to bed. Outside, not the slightest breeze rustled through the leaves of the tall maples and oaks which surrounded the house. No sound of any kind could be heard anywhere but the steady tick! tock! tick! tock! of the old grandfather clock downstairs.

Eddie sat up in bed and looked around him.

“I don’t like this quiet,” he whispered to himself. “It feels like there is no one else in the whole world but me.” From his bed he could see their backyard bathed in silver moonlight.

Suddenly Eddie’s attention was drawn to a little different noise downstairs.

“What’s that?”

“Tick! tock!” then more slowly,

“tick tock,” then “tick-tick-tick.” This was followed by a dull “whir-l-l-l,” a thud, and then... silence!

For a few moments Eddie did not move a muscle. He could not believe his ears. What had happened? He could feel the silence. Every nerve in his body was tingling. That friendly tick! tock! of the grandfather clock which he had heard his whole life had stopped, stopped!

Through the stillness there seemed to come to Eddie another sound — regularly it beat, “tick, tick, tick, tick.” This held his attention and he strained his ears to listen. Then he felt a curious little thump going on inside himself, and he put his hand over his chest.

“It’s in my chest!” he exclaimed. “It’s my own heart beating, and it sounds just like a clock!” Eddie lay down again, and he began to think.

“Has that grandfather clock got a heart, too, I wonder. It ticks just like I do, only louder because it is bigger, I suppose. It has ticked for seven years, Daddy told me, and now it has stopped. I must have ticked for seven years, too. Will I stop? Will my heart stop ticking? What will happen if it does? I suppose I’ll die, and what will happen then?”

Quite suddenly, Eddie began to think about sin. He knew that he had never come to the Lord Jesus Christ to ask Him to wash his heart clean of sin and make it white as snow. He knew that sometimes he disobeyed and did things that were wrong. And he also knew that the Lord Jesus had said, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37. He seemed to hear a still, small voice saying, “Eddie, if you want to know that some day when your heart stops beating you will come to live with Me in heaven, you must come to Me now and confess your sin, and I will forgive you and wash your sins away.”

Without waiting another moment, Eddie got out of bed, and in the quiet stillness of the night, kneeling beside his bed, he accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour.

From that happy moment he never doubted that when his heart stopped beating he would enter heaven, which the Lord Jesus has prepared for all who trust in Him.

“What must I do to be saved?” “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:30,31.

ML-04/21/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Peculiar Aardvark

“Thou hast made... the earth, and all things that are therein... and Thou preservest them all.” Nehemiah 9:6.

The four to six-foot, 150-pound African aardvark is unlike any other creature in the world. Its nearest relative might be a pig; in fact the name aardvark, given to it by the natives, means “earth pig” in their language. But its similarity to a pig is mostly in its long snout, nostrils, brown body and bristly hair. Its long upright ears are more like a donkey’s, its tail is something like a kangaroo’s, and its arched body is not too different from a hyena’s.

There are two things the aardvark is specially good at doing. One is finding termites’ nests, which in their part of Africa stand out in the open like concrete mounds. Approaching one, it listens carefully to determine if termites are inside. Hearing their movement, it tears into and opens the mound with powerful claws. Then, with a foot-long sticky tongue it laps them up.

But don’t think termites don’t fight back... they do, just like ants fight when their nests are entered! Both insects have “soldiers” with sharp mandibles and they attack the intruding aardvark, but find that its skin is so tough they cannot bite through it. In addition, the Creator has provided nostrils and ears that seal tightly when in the insects’ nests, so these are protected too.

It is also an expert at digging. Their dens are in tunnels about ten feet long with half a dozen entrances, and this requires lots of digging. No problem! Their strong front legs and sharp claws, kicking the dirt out behind them, go through even hard dirt faster than men with shovels. For the most part they stay in these dens through the day and come out at night to raid ant hills and termite nests, adding other insects and fruit and gourds to their menu when available.

Babies, born in the den, have skin so loose and full of wrinkles that it appears to be several sizes too big, but they soon fill it out. To keep her little ones hidden, the mother moves into a new burrow about once a week. Before long they are taken out to learn the fine points of hunting, and within a year’s time they are on their own.

For all the strange appearance of these animals, they represent one of God’s creatures and indicate His pleasure in placing such a great variety of life on the earth at the time of its creation. For each creature He has provided what is exactly right for its way of life, and He watches over it all its days.

The Bible tells of something else that brings pleasure to Him: “I know also, my God, that Thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness.” 1 Chronicles 29:17. Is your life pleasing Him? It can please Him only if you have confessed your sins, have asked the Lord Jesus to forgive and cleanse you, and have accepted Him as your Saviour. If you have not done this yet, why not do it right now!

ML-04/21/1985

Ginger's Trick

Memory Verse: “Without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6

Peter and Joy were spending their summer vacation at their aunt and uncle’s farm in the country. During breakfast one morning Aunt Margaret told them some sad news. She said that their Uncle Bob had had to let his hired man, Joe, go because he had left the field gate open for the third time in two weeks and the horses had gotten out onto the road. The children were quite disappointed as Joe was their special friend on the farm.

When they prayed together after breakfast, the children added a special request that Joe would be able to come back to the farm.

As they walked across the farmyard, Joy said, “I’m sure Joe is being blamed for something he didn’t do.”

“I agree,” replied Peter. “He’s always careful about all the gates. In fact, he’s gone back lots of times to make sure that they were fastened.”

“Look, Peter! Here comes Joe!”

Both children waved to the young man who was coming down the road carrying a basket. He told them he was sure he had fastened the gate each time and that he would like to know how it opened by itself. Joe seemed unhappy and the children tried to cheer him up.

“We believe you, Joe.”

Then Peter told Joe about their prayer and asked whether he had prayed about it, too. Joe smiled and said that he did not believe in prayer.

This came as a surprise to Peter and Joy. They told him that they prayed about lots of things. They shared with him some of the answers they had gotten to their prayers.

“Well, guess I’d better get busy. I’m going to pick blueberries,” Joe said as he jumped off the gate they had all been sitting on.

“Sounds like fun! Can we come along too?” asked Peter.

“Sure, but you’d better ask your Aunt Margaret first.”

In a flash Joy swung off the gate saying to Peter, “You wait here. I’ll run and ask Aunt Margaret if we can go.”

Peter sat on the fence watching Ginger and Clover, Uncle Bob’s two horses in the next field. Then something strange happened. The horses came up to the gate and Ginger put his head over it and began to work on the latch with his mouth. Imagine Peter’s surprise when the gate opened and out trotted the horses down the road.

The children’s prayer had been answered. Thy mystery of the open gate was now solved. But Peter realized he’d better do something quick — the horses were out and headed down the road!

He called over to Joe who was picking blueberries, and he came running. Peter told him what had happened, but Joe didn’t wait to hear much. Telling Peter to go get his uncle, Joe took a short cut across a field hoping to catch the horses.

Ginger and Clover, who were enjoying their freedom, were surprised to find Joe waving a stick when they turned the bend in the road. They stood still for a moment, and then turned obediently and trotted back. They had not gone far when they met Peter and his uncle in the pickup. They followed the horses home and locked them up in the stable.

Later, back at the house, Peter explained to everyone what Ginger had done.

When Uncle Bob heard, he laughed and said, “Now I know why Ginger was sold so cheaply; mine aren’t the only gates that horse has opened.” Then he turned to Joe and said, “I’d like to thank you for your promptness in getting the horses. And I’m sorry for blaming you wrongfully. I hope you will continue to work on my farm.”

Joe thanked him and said he was glad it was all straightened out and that he would like to continue working on the farm.

Peter and Joy were so pleased. Everything had come out as they had prayed it would. They explained to Joe that God was answering their prayer at the very moment when Joy told Peter to wait at the gate while she went to ask Aunt Margaret about picking blueberries. If Peter had gone with her, he would not have seen Ginger open the gate.

This impressed Joe very much, and he thought to himself how he wanted to learn more about the children’s prayer-answering God.

Wouldn’t you like to learn more about the God who has promised to those who believe in Him, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalms 46:1. It is only by admitting that we are sinners and accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour that we can have these promises: “The Lord is my helper " (Heb. 13:6) and “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5. Won’t you accept Him as your own Saviour right now?

“But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” John 1:12.

ML-04/28/1985

One Word Answer

“Who can tell me in one word the way to get to heaven?” the Sunday school teacher asked her four and five-year-olds. Several hands went up.

“Okay, Peggy?”

“Sunday school,” replied Peggy promptly.

“What do you say, Nancy?”

Nancy suggested, “Praying,” and Margie added, “Being good.” But not one of these answers was the correct answer the teacher was waiting for.

Then small, brown-eyed Megan shyly put up her hand and whispered, “Jesus.”

“Not by works of righteousness [good things] which we have done, but according to His [Jesus'] mercy He saved us.” Titus 3:5.

ML-04/28/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Charming Finches

“He sendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills.... By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.” Psalms 104:10,12.

The finch most commonly seen in America is often called a wild canary, because its pretty yellow coloring is so similar to the caged pets in homes. These were brought to America from the Canary Islands many years ago, which is why they have that name.

Actually, it is only the male American finch that is golden yellow with a black skull cap, black wings and tail. The female has a grayish-green body with black wings edged in white. But both male and female are delightful little birds.

We can name here just a few of the many varieties of finches. One is the blue finch. The male is bright blue with red and pink on his wings while the female is plain brown on top and tan underneath. The cactus finch, which makes its home in the Galapagos Islands, has the remarkable ability to move large stones to get at seeds and insects under them. In Asia and Europe bird lovers are fond of snow finches, which are found mainly in the mountains. These have pretty light-blue heads, white throats and underparts, and brown and white wings.

All finches have beautiful songs, especially when nesting. They all eat great quantities of seeds; the larger the bird the larger the seed or nut it prefers. The Creator has given each species a special bill. The sharp edge of the lower part fits into the upper part so that when a seed is plucked and the tongue places it in the right spot, the bill closes, the shell falls away, and the edible part is promptly swallowed. These birds, like chickens, have no teeth, but swallow food whole. Then their gizzards, which contain grit, grind it up for digestion. A crop in their throat stores undigested food for later use.

A favorite food is thistle seed. Eating this and weed seeds is valued by farmers, but they do not like them eating grain crops or visiting their strawberry fields.

Females build cup-shaped nests so tightly woven that if rain water gets in, the little chicks can sometimes drown. The male’s responsibility is to keep his mate well fed while she is incubating the three to six eggs.

These birds are another example of the way the Creator has designed each creature for its way of life. We may be sure, as our opening verse indicates, He not only delights in providing food and drink for finches, but finds their sweet songs pleasant to His ear as well.

Another Bible verse says, “All Thy works shall praise Thee, O Lord; and Thy saints shall bless Thee. They shall speak of the glory of Thy kingdom, and talk of Thy power.” Psalms 145:10,11. Does your voice praise Him?

ML-04/28/1985

Sharing a Lion's Bedroom!

Memory Verse: “Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalm 50:15

How would you like to spend a night in a lion’s bedroom?

“I wouldn’t!” would probably be your answer, but that is just what happened many years ago to Jack. While in the army he was sent to Africa where this adventure took place. This is how it happened.

One night when he was out with some other soldiers he somehow got separated from his friends. After some time he realized that he was lost. He was very tired so he looked for a safe place to sleep until morning when he hoped he could find his way back to the other soldiers.

As he made his way down the dirt path, he noticed a cave. Thinking to himself that this would be an ideal place to rest for the night, he decided to go in and get some sleep.

He had not been sleeping long when he suddenly woke up. He wondered what had wakened him, and then he heard the roar of a lion not far from the entrance to the cave. Fear gripped him! How could he get away? Would the lion smell him and come into the cave?

He did not have long to wonder because to his horror he saw a big shadowy shape block the entrance to the cave, and he knew that the lion had discovered him. All he could think to do was to lie still and pretend to be asleep. The lion came over to him and sniffed him all over, then laid down beside him and went to sleep!

Jack remembered that David, the king of Israel, had been delivered out of the paw of a lion. And so lying there on the sandy floor of the cave with the lion beside him, he cried to God to save him as He had saved David.

Before long the lion was in deep sleep and breathing heavily. Still praying, the young soldier crept softly from the cave. After going a safe distance he climbed a tree and stayed there until morning came. In daylight he soon found his way back to the other soldiers. What an amazing story he had to tell them! God had certainly delivered him.

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee.” Psa. 50:15.

ML-05/05/1985

Speechless

Have you ever thought how hard it would be if you could not talk for one whole day? What if you lost your voice for 12 years?

Marie’s mother had made a delicious pudding for dinner and had followed a family custom of putting coins in the pudding. What fun it was for the children as they discovered some money in a mouthful! But, after the pudding was finished no one noticed that one coin was missing.

Marie, then a healthy 13-year-old, got severe bronchitis and laryngitis soon after she ate that good pudding. It took about six weeks for her problem to go away — but so did her voice. The doctors were puzzled and finally decided that the loss of her voice was from a virus and that her voice probably would return as suddenly as it had disappeared. Marie finally was well enough to return to school, but she just could not get used to not being able to talk. It was so hard for her at school that she finally just quit.

Just a few weeks ago Marie, who is now 25 years old, was at work when her throat began to get sore. Then she started to choke and coughed for a long time. Suddenly up came a little black lump! When Marie took the strange black lump to the doctor, he found it was a coin. “The doctor sent me to the speech therapist and soon I started to talk again,” Marie said. The thin coin had gotten stuck between her vocal cords which stopped the vibrations needed to make speech possible. For some reason the coin had not shown up on the X-rays.

Marie’s first phone call was to her shocked parents who almost could not believe it was Marie. Her mother was just thrilled that her daughter could speak again — and, of course, so was Marie.

Did you know that the Bible tells of some people who were speechless? In Matthew 22:12 a man tried to go to the wedding of the king’s son without wearing the right clothes. When the king asked him why he came without his wedding clothes on he was “speechless.” Boys and girls, if you have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour there will be a day when you will stand before the King, the Lord Jesus Christ, and you, too, will be speechless. Get ready for that all-important day right now by accepting the Lord Jesus as your own Saviour. Then instead of standing speechless before Him, you will join in singing His praises.

Around the throne of God in heaven

Will many children sing,

Children, whose sins are all forgiven,

Will heavenly anthems bring,

Singing, “Glory, glory,

Glory be to God on high!”

In Luke 1:11-22 we read of another man who became “speechless.” An angel from God brought a very important message to Zacharias, and he did not believe what the angel told him. Even though Zacharias loved God (Luke 1:6) he just could not believe the miracle God promised in giving him and his wife a baby boy when they were very old. So, God made Zacharias speechless until their baby boy was born. Have you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour and yet really don’t believe some of the things we are told in the Bible? That would be very sad as God has given the whole Bible for each Christian to learn from and live by. In 2 Timothy 3:16 we are told that all Scripture is given to us by God and it is good for us. Then in 2 Timothy 1:13 we are told to “hold fast” (believe, hold on to) the sound words in the Bible. A line from a hymn says, “Every promise in the Book is mine.” How very important that we each believe all of God’s Word, the Bible.

ML-05/05/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Those Annoying Barnacles

“And God created... every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind.” Genesis 1:21.

Any swimmer who scrapes against a barnacle-covered object knows how tightly they hang on. Not only are they annoying, but they can cause damage. There are over a thousand species of barnacles in the oceans glued to rocks, pilings, driftwood, boat hulls and other objects. Even many living creatures, such as whales, dolphins, turtles, crabs and large fish, cannot stop them from attaching to their sides, heads, and backs. All operating ships in the ocean waters, even great liners, find barnacles a pest and expense, requiring frequent scraping of their hulls if the ships are to operate well in the water.

The most common barnacles are cone shaped. One variety is called acorn shell; another is called the upright goose. Most are only about one-eighth of an inch wide while some weigh as much as three pounds.

One barnacle can produce 10,000 eggs at a time. These move freely in the ocean for long periods of time until they change to free-swimming larvae and after several moults make a final change into true barnacles. Once they find a surface that appeals to them they cement themselves firmly to it in a head-down position with a self-made glue. Once the glue sets firmly they are attached for life with a bond so tight that storms and waves will never move them, even after they die.

Scientists would like to know how to make this glue, but in spite of great effort and expense they have not yet been able to make anything to compare with it. It is another wonder of God’s creation.

The hard, rough shells of barnacles, growing in layers year by year, represent the protection their bodies need so as not to be eaten by fish and also provide a shelter from the sun when they are exposed at low tide.

Barnacles catch food using six pairs of tiny feathery feet called operculum cirri. These continually weave back and forth in the water from the top, open end of the barnacle’s shell. Tiny particles of food, that are so small it would take a microscope to see them, are caught by these cirri and passed on to their mouth.

Does the Lord God care about barnacles? He certainly does. The Bible says, “Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did He in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.” Psalms 135:6. We may not understand why He made them, but we know that as the Creator of all things He has a purpose for them and they are a pleasure to Him.

Remember, too, that He also has made you and watches over you. Is He happy when He sees your life? The Bible tells us, “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” Romans 14:12. Have you admitted to Him that you are a sinner and accepted His Son, the Lord Jesus, as your Saviour?

ML-05/05/1985

The Dangerous Ride

Memory Verse: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

It was a cold March afternoon, and Carol Ann and her friends Clarissa, Mark, Natalie and Ryan were walking along the banks of the river. The river had frozen solidly during the cold winter months. But now the ice was breaking up and floating downstream in huge chunks. As they looked at the huge pieces of ice, one of the children had an idea — a rather dangerous idea. “Just for fun, let’s climb onto the biggest chunk we can find and use this long pole to push ourselves along. Then we can float across the river to the other side!”

It sounded like a good idea! So taking their pole with them, they climbed aboard a large piece of ice, and began to pole themselves out into the river. Almost at once they found themselves in trouble. Their pole which had touched bottom near shore just wasn’t long enough in the deeper water, and they began to be swept down the river. To make matters worse the cake of ice on which they were floating began to melt, and pieces started to break off.

The five children were in real danger! Carol Ann and Natalie could not swim, and the other three children realized that they would freeze to death if they tried to swim to shore in the icy water. Wisely, they did the only thing they could possibly do... they began to scream for help!

Have you boys and girls realized that you need help just as much as those five children did? I know you are not floating down a river on a cake of ice right now, but you still have a need that is even more serious than that. You are a sinner and cannot do anything to get rid of those sins by yourself. The only way to have those sins removed is to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour. He loves you and died on the cross so that you could have those sins forgiven. He promises that “whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13.

The children’s screams were heard. Jason was near enough to hear them, but he knew he couldn’t help. He ran his fastest to Mr. MacDonald’s house and asked him to please come help his five friends. Mr. MacDonald was a fisherman who owned a small rowboat called a dory. He dug his dory out of the snowbank beside his house as quickly as he could and headed for the river.

Because of the strong wind that was blowing that day, it took Mr. MacDonald almost half an hour to reach the children. His little dory was built to hold only two people, so he had decided to take some of the children back to shore and then return for the rest. But when he reached the children he saw how dangerous their situation was. The ice cake was melting and full of holes. It was so thin that the water was up to the children’s ankles.

The children were so frightened that when they saw the dory coming they wanted to try to swim to meet the boat. Mr. MacDonald called to them to stay where they were until he reached them.

The children thought they could help themselves a little by trying to get to the boat on their own. There are boys and girls who feel that they can help themselves get to heaven by some good things that they can do. They know that the Lord Jesus loves them and died for them. But instead of just accepting the salvation He offers and thanking Him, they think they can help by going to church, or reading their Bible, or being kind to others. The Bible tells us that these things are good, but they won’t help us get to heaven. We need to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 16:31), and to believe that “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7. That is all we need — our “good works” will never wash our sins away.

Mr. MacDonald decided to try to take all of the children at once. So he told them to crouch down and crawl carefully into the boat. Then, warning them to remain very still to avoid capsizing the overloaded dory, he began the long trip back to shore.

The trip back took an hour and left Mr. MacDonald almost worn out. But all six of them landed safely on the river bank.

The children thanked Mr. MacDonald for risking his own life to save them. The children’s parents also thanked him for rescuing their children. Have you ever thanked the Lord Jesus for dying for you so that you might be saved? He loved you so much that He left His home in heaven and came down to earth to die on the cross so that you might have your sins forgiven. Won’t you accept His loving offer today and thank Him?

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

ML-05/12/1985

Who's the Driver?

Mrs. Williams was crossing the road on a steep hill when she saw the car hurtling down the hill toward her. She quickly ran toward the other side of the road, but to her alarm the car swerved violently toward that side of the road.

“What is that driver doing?” she screamed out loud.

With a desperate leap she made it to the sidewalk an instant before the car shot by. It only missed her by a few feet. Then to her horror she saw there was no driver at the steering wheel! Faster and faster the car flew down the hill, zigzagging first to one side and then to the other, until it finally reached the bottom and crashed into a wall.

A life without the Lord Jesus Christ “at the wheel” is like a car without a driver — a danger to itself and to everyone else. Have you given the steering wheel of your life to the Lord Jesus?

ML-05/12/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Big Trees From Little Seeds

“But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth... [God’s] word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit.” Matthew 13:23.

The size of the seed from which a tree grows has no relationship to the size of a tree. Douglas firs in Oregon and Washington may grow 200 feet or higher and eight to twelve feet in diameter. Yet like the redwoods and sequoias in California, they start from a very small seed. The largest of all trees, a sequoia known as General Sherman, started almost 4000 years ago from a seed so tiny (1/16 of an inch long) it takes 3000 of them to weigh an ounce! Although lightning knocked about 100 feet off its top, it is still 275 feet tall and more than 30 feet across at the base perhaps twice the width of the living room in your home.

Other parts of the country have big trees, too. For instance, the 400-year-old, champion white oak near Chesapeake Bay in Maryland spreads its branches 158 feet across. Like all oaks it began as a little acorn, perhaps buried by a squirrel and forgotten.

A tree seed, like all other seeds, is a storehouse of all the parts that will grow from it. Nothing can Change it to anything else. As it germinates, new cells form the parts of the plant that will develop from it. These cells take over their individual work as if told what to do, which is exactly the case as God the Creator has arranged the work of each. Some form bark, some wood tissue, some branches; others produce leaves, fruit or more seeds and some form roots. This process continues until a full-grown tree will contain billions of cells, each faithfully doing its duty. Evolution could never bring such a wonderful thing into being. It is the Creator’s creative design.

Where sliding soil causes a young tree to tip outward, a special message is given to certain cells to make an “elbow” so it will grow straight up again. When this happens the trunk stops growing on the inside while the outer part keeps growing until the straightening is completed and then they work together again. The next time you see a tree this shape think how wonderfully God arranged this growth correction. Actually the trunk becomes stronger at this point than the rest of the tree, just as a boy or girl who admits his or her mistakes to the Lord Jesus and asks His help to correct them becomes a stronger person. The Psalmist said, “I will confess my transgressions [sins] unto the Lord; and Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.” Psa. 32:5.

The Bible also speaks of those who love the Lord in this way: “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hone the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river.” Jer. 17:7,8. If your trust is in the Lord Jesus, then this is His description of you, too.

ML-05/12/1985

"Please Make Them Snore!"

Memory Verse: “Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.” Hebrews 7:25

Lee Wong lived many years ago in one of the small villages in central China. He had been brought up to worship idols. But when some missionaries came to his village he heard of the Saviour who could deliver him from his sins. Lee accepted God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as his Saviour, and from that time on he shared this good news with his friends.

A few months after Lee Wong became a Christian, news came that a group of bandits was on its way. The news had barely gone through the village when the bandits appeared. They seemed to be in a hurry and only stopped to seize all the young men they could find. They bound them securely together and led them off as prisoners.

Lee Wong found himself being tied tightly to Chang, one of his friends whom he had often had long talks with about the Lord Jesus.

They reached the town of Hi’shien just before it got dark, and, as there was little resistance from the townspeople, they soon occupied the place. The bandits decided to stay there for the night. They checked the prisoners and tightened the ropes which bound Lee and Chang. The ropes cut into their flesh and they were thrown roughly onto the ground in the dark inner room of a small house.

Later on that night four bandits came into the room. After locking the door they began to play a game. Lee lay in silence watching his captors, and as he watched he was busy thinking. Some weeks before he had been reading a story in the Bible that one of the missionaries had given him. It was about a man named Peter who had been shut up in prison, but who had had a remarkable escape. Now Peter’s God was Lee’s God, and the missionary had said that He was “the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever.” Heb. 13:8. And so Lee began to pray, “Oh, Lord,” he said, “when Peter was in prison you made the chains fall off. Lord, do it again please.” He also prayed for his friend, asking that he also might be set free and that he might come to know the Saviour.

The soldiers soon tired of their game and began to yawn. One by one they lay down ready for a snooze. Every now and then one of them would sit up and take a look at the prisoners who lay as still as they could.

While he prayed Lee worked his hands gently up and down and soon found, to his delight, that he had worked his ropes loose. Before long one hand was free and he knew it would not be long before he was completely free. Very quietly he stretched out his hand and touched Chang only to find that he also had loosened his ropes, although he was not yet free.

Lee began to pray again. “Oh, Lord, when Peter went out of the prison the soldiers fell asleep. Do it again, Lord; make these four soldiers fall asleep.” Then he lay very still listening. The soldiers were breathing deeply, but every now and then one of them would move, and Lee knew that if it were discovered that they had loosened their ropes, they would be beaten and probably tied back to back. “Oh, Lord,” he prayed earnestly, “please make them snore so I will know that they are sound asleep.”

Then one bandit after another began to snore! Lee and his friend worked hard at their ropes until at last they were both free. They stood trembling on their feet. They had been tied so tightly that it was some moments before they could move, and when they could they held their breath in fear as they turned the heavy key in the lock of the door. It made such a noise that they were sure it would waken the men... but no, they continued to snore loudly.

Very softly the two prisoners crept out, closing the door behind them. They had to cross another room, but it was empty. And when they reached the outer door they found to their relief that it was open! Quietly the two went down the dark street, keeping as much as possible in the deepest shadows. Chang knew the town well, so he guided them out to the farmland, and soon they found themselves back in their own village.

“Your God really answers prayer!” Chang exclaimed as they walked down the deserted village street. “I want to know more about the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Just then they saw a light streaming out into the night from a window down a side street. They turned and walked down to see where the light was, and then Lee saw that it was the room where the missionaries had been meeting the night he had first heard about God’s way of salvation. As they came closer they could hear the sound of voices. The Christians of the village were praying for Lee and Chang to be released! What happiness there was when Lee and Chang walked into the room!

Lee Wong never forgot the wonderful deliverance the Lord Jesus had given him, and from that day on he was known as “Peter.” Chang accepted the Lord Jesus as his Saviour and from then on he, too, spent his time telling others about Jesus.

Just as God delivered Lee and Chang from being prisoners of the bandits, He is able to deliver you from being Satan’s prisoner. Each man, woman, boy and girl is bound by the cords of sin and held by Satan. The Bible describes this: “The god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” 2 Cor. 4:4.

As sinners each of us needs to be rescued by One who is stronger than Satan. That One is the Lord Jesus Christ. “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Rom. 5:6.

Have you admitted to God that you are a sinner and that it is only His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who can save you? Have you said, “Lord Jesus, save me,” realizing that you cannot save yourself? The Lord Jesus is ready and able to save all who ask Him to be their Saviour. He died on the cross for your sins if you believe Him and accept Him as your Saviour. Turn to the Saviour right now and believe His promise “That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:15.

ML-05/19/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Sociable Weaver Birds

“God Himself... formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited.” Isa. 45:18.

Those interested in birds find a never-ending pleasure and amazement in discovering the great variety God has made and provided for. The weaver birds of Africa, Asia, India and Java, represent an interesting species and are noted for their intricate nests, braided by their beaks and feet from grass, bark strips, plant stems, etc. Each group has its own design, some looking like haystacks suspended from tree branches, others securely tied to a tree trunk. Openings are always either at the side or bottom through which they enter, climbing a long tube to the nest above.

One variety, the sociable weavers, form colonies of several hundred nests around a large tree trunk. When the nests are completed they work together to build an umbrella-shaped covering over the whole colony. Another species, the village weavers, also form colonies, but these hang a great number of nests from a single tree without building a covering. From a distance their nests look like great pieces of fruit hanging from the limbs.

The Jackson’s weaver’s nest is unusual. An extra-long home is made from thin strips of palm leaves, and then suspended from a branch with its opening at the bottom. The tube inside goes part way to the top, ending at a point where a huge bulge forms the nest, off-center and to one side only. A black-headed species, the baya weaver, with a mixture of dark brown and yellow feathers, also builds an unusual nest which looks like it has a large ball crossing its center, making it bulge far out on both sides.

Most weavers are about the size of robins and are equipped with short, strong bills. Males are often bright red, orange, yellow and black, although some are all black. Females are plain brown, the Creator’s way of concealing them from enemies.

When seeking a mate, the male bird often makes several nests, and when a companion is found he lets her choose one of them. Usually after she has chosen one he tears down the others, but sometimes he’ll find more mates to fill the unused ones.

An amazing thing about weavers (and many other birds too) is that if the eggs are hatched artificially and kept away from their parents until mature, the offspring have no difficulty building nests identical to those of their parents! Where do you think they learned this? This is another example of the wonders of God’s creation, the One “In whose hand is the soul [life] of every living thing.” Job 12:10.

In the same book of the Bible we are instructed: “Hear My words, O ye wise men; and give ear unto Me.” We should certainly do this, “For His eyes are upon the ways of man, and He seeth all his goings.” Job 34:2,21. We also are given the wonderful promise, “He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life.” John 5:24. Are you among those who have both heard and believed?

ML-05/19/1985

Koko and All Ball

Memory Verse: “Our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world.” Galatians 1:3,4

Koko is a most unusual gorilla; she is probably the most unusual gorilla-in the world... because Koko talks. “Talks!” you say. Well, not exactly like we might talk with words you can hear, but Koko talks with Ameslan, the hand language of the deaf. Over the years a woman by the name of Penny Patterson has been instructing Koko to talk with her hands, and Koko has learned a vocabulary of over 500 words. As part of her lessons, Koko’s teacher would read stories to her. Among Koko’s favorite stories were “The Three Little Kittens” and “Puss in Boots.”

Considering Koko’s lessons, it is no wonder that one day Koko asked her teacher for a favor. She asked for a kitten of her very own! Gorillas, being vegetarians, even in the wild have been noted for their gentle behavior towards small animals. Koko’s teacher, thinking something less than the real thing would do, brought her pupil a stuffed toy kitten. Well, Koko made it very plain that she did not have a toy in mind at all — she wanted the real thing! So her teacher found a litter of kittens and brought them to Koko to let her choose her own kitten. Koko picked out a boy kitten that had no tail, to be her very own pet and named him All Ball.

All Ball became Koko’s constant companion and best friend. Koko loved her furry little friend. Although All Ball was a feisty, rollicking, playful little kitten who loved to bite everything that moved, including gorillas, the two became very attached. Koko would hug and kiss and fondle the little kitten as though it were her own baby. All Ball must have felt very safe and secure when Koko would pick him up in her large, powerful arms and hold him tucked up very close to herself. In such a position All Ball did not have a fear in the world.

One day All Ball wandered out of the gorilla cage into the street where he was struck and killed by a car. Poor Koko wept when she heard the news. How she had loved her little friend. Had she known what was happening, she would have used all her strength to prevent All Ball’s death.

Koko would have prevented her kitten’s death if she could have, but she was unable to. The Lord Jesus loves every one of us. He knew that we were headed toward certain death — “For the wages of sin is death,” and “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Rom. 6:23 and Rom. 3:23. But unlike Koko, the Lord Jesus is able to save every one of us. He can do this because He went to Calvary’s cross to pay the penalty for sin, which was death. It is there at Calvary that we learn the terribleness of our sins and also the wonderful grace of God. God is now able to offer to the guilty world the free forgiveness of sins, because His Son, the Lord Jesus, died to bear the punishment for those sins. God is now justly able to offer everlasting life to every man, woman and child who will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. If you haven’t believed on Him yet, won’t you believe on Him and receive everlasting life today?

All Ball must have felt very safe in Koko’s arms, but we can be safe forever in the arms of Jesus. What a very happy, joyous thing it is to know the Lord Jesus’ love and tender care in this life right now.

Safe in His arms!

So we never need fear,

E’en when beset by harm

If to His heart we’re held near.

Oh what a happy place!

If on His breast we lean by faith.

Every child should learn to taste

The sweetness of Christ’s love.

In His arms — what strength!

That e’en death can’t wrest away

His beloved from His embrace,

But only brings them nearer.

“The Lord seeth not as man seeth; or man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” 1 Sam. 16:7.

ML-05/26/1985

The Pillow Mishap

There is almost nothing better when you are a nine-year-old boy than to have your best friend over for the night and have a good, rowdy pillow fight! Mark was delighted when his mother said, “All right, Danny can spend the night, but you’d better behave!”

It wasn’t long after supper until the two boys were having fun throwing pillows back and forth in Mark’s bedroom. The pillow fight soon moved out of Mark’s room, and led from one room to another ... until the boys found themselves in Mark’s sister’s room. The door had a sign on it which said “MARY JANE’S ROOM,” with another sign below that which said “KEEP OUT,” but it was too late for the boys to pay much attention to the second sign.

This is the way it is with sin sometimes we get carried away doing something which may not be wrong in itself, but it may lead us into a place where we don’t belong.

The Bible tells us that “A prudent [wise] man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple [unwise] pass on, and are punished.” Prov. 27:12.

Mary Jane’s room was pink and ruffly. There were white shelves on the walls which were full of trinkets — little glass animals and other ornaments she had collected. “Dust collectors!” her brother called them.

The pillow fight raged on, and Danny threw one at Mark, who ducked. The pillow sailed right towards one of those pretty white shelves and knocked down a glass elephant. The boys stopped and stared. The elephant had broken into three pieces! “Oh no!” said Mark, “now we’re really in for it!” But wait... Danny had an idea. He had heard that nail polish was good to use to stick things together if you were out of glue. And there was a bottle of nail polish right there on Mary Jane’s desk. This sounded like a good idea to Mark, so they put the three broken pieces together with nail polish.

Once the little glass elephant was back in one piece, the boys realized they had made a mistake — the elephant was white and the nail polish they had used was bright red! Now Mary Jane would know for sure! Mark knew they would have to explain what had happened and tell her they were sorry it had happened. And that is just what they did. Mary Jane did not stay mad for very long.

As Christians, we know from God’s Word, the Bible, that it never pays to try to cover up our sins, for God sees everything and we cannot hide our wrong doings from Him. However, if we confess our sins He is always ready to forgive us. It is much better to be honest and admit when we have done something wrong.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9.

ML-05/26/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Armor-Plated Pangolin

“Neither is there any creature that is not manifest [visible] in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” Hebrews 4:13.

The pangolin lives in Africa and Asia and looks something like a cross between an armadillo and an anteater, with an armored coat of sharp-edged plates from the top of its head to the tip of its long tail. Although its tail is a helpful prop while breaking open termite nests as well as a weapon against attackers, the pangolin’s main defense is to roll into a tight ball with only the tough armor exposed. This makes it almost impossible for anything to get at them.

Pangolins usually sleep all day, the small varieties on tree limbs and the larger in deep burrows. God has well equipped them to hunt at night. He has given them sharp beady eyes to penetrate the darkness and a keen sense of smell to lead them to their food, which is almost entirely ants and termites. The larger varieties use their long, strong claws to break into ant hills and cement-like termite nests where the insects live. When their homes are disturbed the ants or termites race furiously about. The pangolin pushes its head into the opening of the nest, flicks out its long, sticky tongue, and laps them up, a quart or more at a time.

Termites and ants bite viciously, but that doesn’t bother the pangolin. Special provisions given to him by the Creator include transparent eyelids too tough for these insects to bite and openings in his nostrils and ears that automatically shut to keep the insects out. Even those furious ants that get on his body, looking for tender spots to bite, are flicked off the scales by a shake of his body.

Another interesting thing about these strange animals is that they have no teeth, but keep pebbles in their stomachs which grind all food swallowed into a digestible form, We might wonder why God made this odd creature. Adapting all His creatures to their place in nature is often referred to as “the balance of nature,” but it is really “God’s order.” He has created each for their special place on earth. Even ants and termites are included, and He has arranged for them to recover rapidly from raids and to rebuild quickly their large colonies. At the same time the work of the pangolin keeps such insects from multiplying too fast and doing much damage to forests, buildings and farmer’s crops. In the coming millennial time all life will be in harmony and no killing of one another will take place, but meanwhile we see His wisdom in putting all things into proper balance.

But His plans for you are greater than that. The Lord Jesus said to those who loved and trusted Him, “I go to prepare a place for you. And .. I will come again, and receive you unto Myself, that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:2,3. Does that promise apply to you? It does if you have accepted the Lord Jesus as your Saviour.

ML-05/26/1985

"I Knew You'd Come"

Memory Verse: “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” 1 Timothy 1:15

In the wilderness of northern Canada where the great fir trees grow thick and the winds howl on winter nights, there were two clearings in the woods, about a mile apart. In the two clearings stood two log cabins. In the two cabins lived two nine-year-old boys, one named Jean and the other named Pierre. Jean’s mother and father were Christians, and Jean, too, had accepted the Lord Jesus as his own Saviour when he was very small. They read the Bible together each morning after breakfast and prayed around their big oak table. Pierre had only his father, as his mother had left years before. Pierre’s father had never asked the Lord Jesus to be his Saviour, and he would often come home drunk. As you can see, Pierre’s little home was not as happy as Jean’s. However, the two boys were friends, since there was no other family for miles around.

One afternoon in early spring, Jean walked the mile-long path through the woods to Pierre’s cabin. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer. “Pierre?” he called, giving the door a little push. It opened, but no one was inside. So Jean thought he would just wait in the cabin for his friend to come home... it probably wouldn’t be long. The afternoon hours went by quickly as Jean played on the cabin floor. Finally, he looked up at the window and was surprised to see the sun already low behind the fir trees. The March wind blew hard through the cracks between the logs, and the boy shivered. When he pulled at the door he could feel the force of the wind push it wide open.

Jean stepped outside, wondering if he should walk home alone in the dusk. His father had often warned him against going out after dark alone. Cougars and lynx roamed that part of the woods looking for food. As he stood there deciding what to do he heard a rustling in the bushes at the edge of the clearing. He looked and saw two lean cougars pacing there... watching him! Tears of panic filled his eyes as he ran quickly back into the cabin and pushed the door shut behind him. However, to add to his terror, he found the door latch had loosened and the door would not close tightly. All he could do was to lean up against it and pray to his Saviour, the Lord Jesus, that He would save him from these wild animals.

Do you know Jean’s Saviour? He says in the Bible, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee.” Psalms 50:15.

As bad as poor Jean’s situation was, there is a worse danger in store for anyone who still has not accepted the Lord Jesus as their Saviour. That danger is an awful place called hell, where all who do not have their sins forgiven will spend eternity. Turn to the Saviour to have your sins forgiven right now — before it is too late!

Just down the path from where this was happening, Jean’s father was returning home from checking a trap line. Approaching the clearing of the first cabin, he thought he heard a boy crying. “That’s strange,” he thought, “why would Pierre’s father have left him alone?” He passed the clearing to continue on his way home when something made him go back... something was not right. Arriving once more at the clearing, Jean’s father gasped when he saw two hungry cougars, one circling the cabin and one with his paw on the door, ready to push it open with his powerful foreleg. The startled man grabbed his shotgun and aimed at the beast on the door. With one shot the cougar fell backward, dead. The other, confused and furious, ran circles around her mate and then leaped forward at Jean’s father. Again, a shot rang out through the woods, and the second cougar fell heavily against the man, knocking him down. But Jean’s father was not hurt, and he thanked the Lord Jesus for helping him to kill both animals with only two shots. Now, he rushed toward the cabin. His heart froze — there was his own son bursting through the doorway!

The next moment the man was hugging his own little boy as Jean’s arms wrapped around his father’s neck. Who can tell the thoughts in the father’s heart when he discovered that it was not Pierre, but his own Jean whom he had saved.

“Thank God I came,” he said. “Daddy, I knew you’d come,” his son replied, still trembling.

How wonderful is the faith and trust of a little child. May we have that kind of faith, too — the faith that calls upon God and waits for Him! Any who have put their trust in Him will never be disappointed.

Being just a child, Jean could not understand how much his father loved him. We, too, cannot understand how much God loves us. But we do know this much, He loves us so much He sent His only Son into this world to die to save us and bring us home to Himself. He is going to fill heaven with sons and daughters who have accepted His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as their Saviour. He wants us there so He might shower His love upon us for all eternity.

These are the last days in which the gospel will go forth. Night is coming quickly, and punishment is near for those who refuse God’s salvation. Satan, as a roaring lion, is going about seeking those he may devour. The Lord Jesus is still willing and able to save any who call to Him.

“Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13.

ML-06/02/1985

"Planting Seeds"

“God has given us the privilege of telling others about Him,” Mr. Frederick explained to Roger, his son. “If you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you will want to tell others about Him. It’s just like getting a present that you like very much. You don’t keep it a secret... you show it to your friends and tell them about it. Well, having the Lord Jesus as your Saviour is the most wonderful gift you could ever receive. Why not tell someone about Him?”

Roger thought about what his dad had said for a few moments and then asked, “But what about somebody like Mike? He’s the toughest kid in school! Do you mean I should talk to him about the Lord Jesus?”

“Only the Lord Jesus can answer that question for you, Roger,” answered his dad. “You should ask Him, but be ready to talk if He says ‘yes'.”

“But, Dad, it’ll be hard to talk to Mike!” exclaimed Roger. “All he’s gonna do is laugh and make fun of me.”

His dad pointed to the hillside. “Look at those huge rocks up on the hillside. Do you see the one with a tree growing out of it? How do you suppose the tree got there?”

“I guess a seed from another tree fell there and found a soft spot and took root,” Roger answered.

“Right,” answered his dad. “And do you think the parent tree worried about how hard the rocks looked when it let the seed drop? No, it just let it fall, and God did the rest. That’s what we need to do let the Word of God fall and don’t worry about whether or not it will take root. That is God’s work, and He can handle it.”

“Even Mike?” asked Roger.

“Even Mike,” answered his dad. “Is he any tougher than that rock? Remember, the Word of God can soften hearts. It has the power to save even Mike. Don’t let him scare you. If God tells you to talk to him, you do your part and God will do His.”

How about you? Are you afraid of being laughed at if you talk to someone about the Lord Jesus? Do you think your friends won’t listen to you anyway? Remember that your job is to spread the seed of God’s Word. The rest Isaiah 1.11D to God.

“Ye are My witnesses, saith the Lord.” Isaiah 43:10.

“Behold, a sower went forth to sow... some seeds fell by the wayside... some fell upon stony places.... some fell among thorns... but other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit.” Matthew 13:3-8.

ML-06/02/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Jupiter - The Colorful Planet

“The heavens declare His righteousness, and all the people see His glory” Psalms 97:6.

High in the sky, 267-million miles from the earth, is the planet Jupiter. This largest of all planets (that we know about) makes its orbit 480-million miles away from the sun at a speed of 28,000 miles per hour. It is heavier than all the other planets put together, as large as 13 earths, and its surface is 120 times as great. Its night and day of only about ten hours contrasts with the earth’s 24-hour revolution.

In 1979 the American “Voyager” spacecraft flew by this great planet and discovered that its actual surface could not be photographed because a thick covering of clouds always hides it. In 1986 another spacecraft is scheduled to examine it more closely.

Jupiter can be seen from earth by using a strong telescope. Its pink and salmon clouds are a beautiful sight as it shines brightly on a clear night. Perhaps the most interesting and puzzling thing about Jupiter is its 20,000-mile long red spot which seems to drift and change color from time to time and even temporarily disappears. Scientists think it may be caused by volcanos, but do not really know. It may be caused by the 300 mile per hour whirling storms that scour its surface.

Because Jupiter is almost five times as far from the sun as is the earth, it is extremely cold, and nothing could live on it. No water could exist in its 200° F. temperature. Also, its atmosphere (poisoned by chemicals that erupt from inside it) could never support life even for one moment. Men, properly dressed in space suits, have walked on the moon, but none will ever walk on Jupiter!

This reminds us of the wisdom of God, the Creator, in placing the earth at exactly the right distance from the sun (approximately 93 million miles) to provide the correct amount of heat and light for all the creation He has placed here. David, no doubt thinking of this, said “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge.” Psalms 19:1,2.

Jupiter is one of the four, major outer planets of the sun, the others being Uranus, Saturn and Neptune. Not one of them could sustain any form of life. Only the earth was formed for that purpose. Jupiter’s attractiveness as a marvel of God’s creation includes one large ring around it, discovered by Voyager’s trip, plus the fact that it has 16 moons circling it, some with volcanos erupting on them. Twelve of them circle clockwise and four counter-clockwise.

As we gaze up into the starry sky, let us always remember that all are kept in perfect order by the One who placed them there. In their beauty and the pattern of their orbits, which is always the same, He has taken great pleasure. We are privileged to share their beauty with Him in a small way.

ML-06/02/1985

A Trapped Skunk

Memory Verse: “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36

One Saturday in early spring Ronny and Jimmy were exploring in the woods near their home. They were looking for skunk cabbage plants... not for skunks.

Following the creek, they came across a skunk caught in a steel trap by its front foot. The two boys figured the trap had probably been set for muskrats, but it had caught a skunk instead. The skunk must have been searching for something to eat in the winter’s litter that had washed up along the water’s edge when it stumbled upon the trap.

Ronny decided he’d try to free the skunk, but Jimmy wasn’t too sure he wanted to get involved. As Ronny slowly inched his way toward the skunk, Jimmy stayed up on the bank, well out of the way... and held his breath. “Watch out,” Jimmy warned, barely talking out loud. “You’re going to be sorry, Ronny.”

But Ronny kept right on, talking gently to the skunk. He finally got close enough to reach forward and close his hand around the trap. Meanwhile, the skunk had pulled as far away from Ronny as the chain would allow, never taking its little black eyes off Ronny. The trap had caught the skunk’s front paw just above the wrist, but the bones didn’t seem to be broken.

Moving very slowly, Ronny grasped both sides of the trap. The skunk stayed perfectly still, but its black eyes watched every move.

Now Ronny was holding his breath, too. Slowly he pressed down with both hands until the spring catch released.

Suddenly the skunk’s leg came free and it tumbled backward because it had been pulling away the whole time. It quickly got back on its feet, but just stood there, holding up its injured leg. It looked at Ronny for a long time and then finally turned and hobbled away. In talking it over later, Ronny and Jimmy both felt this was the skunk’s way of saying “thank-you.”

A skunk might be one of the last animals anyone would want to release from a trap. In fact, most people would leave it alone. But Ronny was determined to free that trapped skunk. Some people might think that they are too bad for the Lord Jesus to save — that He’d rather not bother with them. But that is not the case at all. Everyone is a sinner, and it doesn’t make any difference if you are a big sinner or a little sinner. The Bible tells us “there is no difference: for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:22,23. The good news is that Jesus loves each one of us so much that He died on the cross, bearing the punishment for sin. “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8. No matter how bad a person you might be, Jesus loves you and will save you from sin’s deadly trap. All you have to do is ask Him.

The skunk seemed to show its thanks to Ronny. After you have asked the Lord Jesus to save you, it will be such a relief to be rid of your sins and you will have such peace, that you will thank Him the rest of your life.

ML-06/09/1985

The Garden Gate

Tracy had noticed the gate for some time. It was made of iron and was built into the high stone wall she passed every day on her way to school. Through the gate she could see a beautiful garden of flowers. Oh, how she wanted to walk through this garden sometime. But the gate was always closed and locked whenever she went by it.

One Sunday in her Sunday school class Miss Morton, Tracy’s teacher, talked to her class about the “gate of salvation.” She drew a word picture of a gate through a wall. The Lord Jesus Christ was the only person who had the key to this gate. She said He was willing and waiting to open the gate for anyone who asked to go through it.

“That’s just like the gate in the wall that I pass on my way to school,” Tracy thought to herself.

About a week later Tracy was peering through “her gate,” as she called it, when an old man walking down the road stopped beside her.

“You seem interested in that gate,” he remarked.

Tracy was too shy to reply.

“Do you want to go into that garden?” he asked, smiling warmly.

Now, although Tracy knew nothing about the garden, she did know that rich people lived in the area and that the garden belonged to one of them. Looking at this man, she did not think he was one of those rich people, so she was sure he would not have the key to the gate. It bothered her to think that he had found out her secret wish.

She didn’t answer him, and being a little frightened, she ran down the road as fast as she could.

The next Sunday Miss Morton told her class that she had a surprise for them. Mrs. Sanderson, who lived in the area where the garden was, had invited them all to come for lunch at her house the following Thursday, a school holiday.

“You will like Mrs. Sanderson,” Miss Morton told them. “She is a very nice Christian lady.”

Tracy was excited. She did not often go to someone’s home for lunch, especially someone as rich as Mrs. Sanderson.

When Thursday came it was a sunny, warm day, and the six girls in Miss Morton’s class were all excited. Mrs. Sanderson’s home was very beautiful. But the girls thought the garden where they were going to have lunch was much prettier.

When they were finished eating lunch Mrs. Sanderson said her husband wanted to talk to them for a few minutes. Mrs. Sanderson went into the house to get her husband. When she returned Tracy was startled and felt her face get red, because Mr. Sanderson was the same old man who had talked to her by “her gate” the week before. She sat very still, hoping that he would not recognize her.

He came up to the table and spoke to the girls. “And now, my young friends, I want to talk to you for just a minute or two,” he began, smiling as he looked from one girl to the next. “The other day I was walking down the road. I had a key in my pocket. It was the key for an old gate which leads into a garden at the other end of our property. It is my own garden; I take care of it myself and grow the kind of flowers we used to have in our garden when I was a boy.

“I saw a little girl standing by the gate to the garden. I knew by the way she was looking through the gate that she really wanted to go into the garden. I spoke to her and asked her if my thoughts were right, but I knew by her silence and by the way she looked at me that she was pretty sure I could not open the gate for her. So she just turned and ran on down the road.

“I think a lot of us are like that little girl. We don’t realize that we are being given an invitation. God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, is inviting us to come to Him so that He may open the “door of salvation” for us. We just turn our back on Him and run away.”

Mr. Sanderson went on to explain how the Lord Jesus had said, “I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved.” John 10:9. As he spoke Tracy suddenly knew that she wanted to have the Lord Jesus open the “door of salvation” to her, so that she might enter in.

After Mr. Sanderson stopped speaking he asked the girls if they would like to come to see his little garden. Five of them got up quickly, but Tracy sat still in her seat.

“Don’t you want to go, Tracy?” Mrs. Sanderson asked, but Tracy could not answer.

Miss Morton came over beside her. “What’s wrong, Tracy?” she asked.

“Oh, Miss Morton,” she said, “I’m the girl Mr. Sanderson met. I wish I hadn’t run away... and I — I don’t want to run away now if only the Lord Jesus will open the door for me...”

Miss Morton put her arm around Tracy and assured her that the Lord Jesus was still waiting for her, so right there in the Sanderson’s garden Tracy accepted His invitation.

Won’t you accept His invitation right now so that you, too, can be saved?

“Strait [narrow] is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Matthew 7:14.

ML-06/09/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Your Amazing Brain

“Thus saith the Lord... I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them.” Ezekiel 11:5.

Your brain is a three-pound bundle of gray and white matter, so wonderfully made that only God knows how it works. Medical men and scientists try to understand it, but will never be able to know all about it, for it is God’s special creation. People marvel at the things computers can do, but all the computers in the world put together could not match the things your brain can do.

Men have learned many things about the brain’s construction. They know its 30 billion nerve cells are all interconnected; they know that almost every act of your body takes place only after it’s been instructed by the brain; they know that what your ears hear and eyes see are sent to your brain to make sense; they know that your brain lets the taste buds in your tongue tell you if what you’re eating is sweet, sour or bitter. They also know that our brain, when necessary, sends messages to your heart or lungs to work faster or slower, and innumerable other actions. Yes, researchers may learn much about the cells and nerves of your brain, but they cannot explain how each of them has its individual part in forming the way of your life.

It is these processes, among other things, that set human beings apart from animals. When God made man’s body He made his brain distinct and superior to all other creation. Nothing else but God could produce language, music, technical skills, etc. Did you ever see a cow enjoy a beautiful view; a horse study a sunset; or a sheep consider the beauty of a flower? Did a monkey ever invent a piece of machinery, or a hog compose a lovely melody? Of course not! Such things are true only of mankind, whom God has made in His own image.

Scientists are just beginning to understand the workings of your brain. They have determined which part controls thought, memory and function. But they cannot explain how just hearing a certain tune will remind you of something that took place years ago; or how the odor of a flower will perhaps instantly remind you of a long-past picnic in the woods.

In other words, although we can see the brain we cannot see the mind. Like our verse says, only God sees the mind, because it-is one of the invisible wonders of His creation. It is through the mind (sometimes referred to in the Bible as the heart) that we see that we are sinners, responsible to God and needing to have those sins forgiven. It is through the same mind that, when we read the Bible, we understand what we read. With it we understand that the Lord Jesus died for our sins and that He will forgive and cleanse us if we accept Him as our Saviour. “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Romans 10:10. Have you done this?

ML-06/09/1985

Scamper and Scooter

Memory Verse: “God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:17

Scamper and Scooter were two cats that belonged to six-year-old Ann. Ann loved her two cats, and they seemed to love her just as much. How they enjoyed playing together both in the house and in the backyard.

One day, however. Scamper seemed to be sick. She would not touch her bowl of food and didn’t want to play. Later on in the day Ann found her lying under a bush in the backyard mewing sadly.

Ann ran into the house as fast as she could. “Mommy!” she shrieked, bursting into the kitchen. “Come quick! Scamper’s very sick, and I’m afraid she’s going to die!”

Mother quickly went outside to see Scamper. Looking down at the little furry body lying limp on the grass, Mother had to agree. “Oh my, Ann, she doesn’t look very good. We’ll do everything we can to help her get better.”

Scamper was laid in a big basket in the kitchen, and Mother coaxed her to drink a little warm milk. But when bedtime came she was no better. Poor Ann was so upset at the thought of Scamper dying. Even Scooter seemed to mope around, without his playful companion.

Ann’s bedtime story from the Bible was about the man sick with palsy who was brought sad and sick to Jesus to be healed and went away happy and well. As she listened Ann got an idea.

“Mommy,” she said, “if Jesus can make sick people get better, don’t you think He could make Scamper get better too?”

“I’m sure He could, honey,” was her reply, “if it is His will. Why don’t we ask Him?”

So at the end of Ann’s prayer she added, “Please, Lord Jesus, don’t let Scamper die, but please make her better again. In Jesus name, Amen.”

Ann got out of bed early the next morning and ran down to the kitchen to see Scamper only to find the basket empty. What had happened? Was her kitty dead? A loud mew came from under the table, and Scamper walked out, stretching sleepily, and coming to Ann to be petted, apparently better again.

Mother came in during Ann’s and Scamper’s happy “reunion.” “You won’t forget to thank the Lord Jesus for answering your prayer, will you?” she said, reminding Ann.

So right there in the kitchen Ann and Mother knelt down by the kitchen chairs while Ann thanked the Lord Jesus for making Scamper all better again.

Does the Lord Jesus hear a child’s prayer? He certainly does, and his answer will be whatever is best, as He is the only one who knows what is good for us.

Wouldn’t you like to have the Lord Jesus help you each day? Then come to Him now, admitting that you are a sinner, and accept Him as your own Saviour.

“Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near.” Isaiah 55:6.

ML-06/16/1985

The Crossword Puzzle

Jenny was propped up in bed looking out of her bedroom window. If only she could be outside playing with Patty and John, instead of having to stay in bed. Although she wasn’t really sick she had been in bed for several days now, and she was bored. Over and over again she asked herself how she could have been so clumsy as to have fallen out of the oak tree. She had climbed the tree so many times before, and she knew every branch of it, and yet one little slip, and she ended up with not only some bad bruises, but a broken leg! And the doctor said she had to stay off the leg for a whole week, even though it had a cast on it.

She had read all the books her mother had gotten for her, but she was still bored. She looked out the window again. A pair of robins had built their nest under the eaves outside her window. She watched as they made trip after trip with their beaks full of insects for the baby birds. Watching them caught her interest, and she began to count the number of times they flew past her window. Then she picked up the book she had been reading and tried once more to get interested in the story. But she soon tossed it aside, exclaiming, “I’m tired of books. I wish there was something else I could do for a change.”

Just then her sister and brother came racing in. “Anything we can get for you, Jen?” Patty asked.

“Yeah, I am so bored! I don’t want to read another book for a whole year!” Jenny said disgustedly.

Patty looked around the room for an idea. “What about putting a puzzle together?”

“I’ve done all of them,” stated Jenny.

“What about doing a crossword puzzle?” suggested John.

“Okay,” agreed Jenny, brightening up.

John ran and got the puzzle they remembered seeing in the kitchen. “Here it is, Jenny. It’s a Bible puzzle. It says you’ll need a Bible to look up the answers. Where’s yours, Jenny?”

“In the bookcase over there,” replied Jenny, “and I think there’s a pencil on the table.”

Patty and John left as Jenny was trying to answer the question: “Can you give the name of the brother of Caleb who judged Israel forty years?” She turned to the reference — Judges 3 — and after a few minutes discovered that Othniel was the answer.

Sometimes there was no need for her to search through her Bible to find the right word. For instance, the clue to "34 across” was: “The Lamb of God, which taketh away the ____ of the world.” Jenny knew very well that the answer was “sin.” She had heard Miss Peters in her Sunday school class talk about how the Lord Jesus had died on the cross so that our sins might be blotted out. Just last week Miss Peters had talked about 1 John 1:7: “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

As she searched for other answers a card slipped out of her Bible. Jenny looked at it and then felt ashamed. She had forgotten that several months back Miss Peters had given each of them a card with a chapter listed on it for them to read each day. Once they checked them all off she would give them a special reward. Had it really been that long since she had last read her Bible? She decided to start reading it again that very day.

The next day who should come visit her but Miss Peters. It was not long before Jenny was telling her all about the puzzle and how the card had fallen out of her Bible, reminding her of how she had not been reading her Bible for so long.

“I remember forgetting to read my Bible, too,” Miss Peters admitted to Jenny. “You know what my mother did to teach me a lesson? Well, one day I came down for breakfast as usual, and when I looked at the table there was no place set for me! In surprise I turned to my mother, who was watching me to see what I would do. Then she said to me so kindly that the spiritual part of me, that part of me that loves the Lord Jesus, needed food as much as my body did. She said that reading the Bible was breakfast to that part of me. I had always eaten my breakfast before going to school, but for days and weeks I had gone without my ‘spiritual breakfast.’ That taught me a lesson, Jenny. Perhaps your experience will teach you the same.”

“From a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 3:15.

ML-06/16/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Ear-Splitting Howlers

“God Himself... formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain.” Isaiah 45:18

Equipped with spider-like limbs, a long tail and a deep-red-colored body the red howler monkey lives in the forests of Central and South America. Like many other monkeys with long tails, they use them as an extra hand, often hanging upside down by them while picking a meal off the underpart of a branch.

Their homes are high in tree tops where they eat leaves, flowers and fruit. The moisture received from these, plus what they get by licking wet leaves, takes care of their thirst so that no other water is needed. This is one of the provisions of the Creator for this interesting animal so that they do not have to come out of the safety of the trees.

Red howlers are not peaceful and continually fight for leadership. However, they do stay together in small groups and move through the trees at a slow pace so all can keep together. In fact, this monkey is not known for speed or activity, but is quite slow in all its habits. That is why the native people call it flojo, which means lazy.

Unusual vocal cords and a large round mouth allow them to make howling noises that pierce the forest and can be heard for a mile or more. Individuals may howl for no apparent reason, but when the whole troop joins in, the resulting racket is hard to describe, unforgeable to any who have heard it. This howling is done almost every dawn, pausing only so they can listen for answers from others. In howler language they seem to be saying, “Don’t cross over into our territory!” But they are ready to howl at any time, especially when there is a full moon. At other times they also purr, grunt or squeal at each other.

A mother, when moving from one spot to another, first waits for her baby to climb onto her back. There it enjoys a piggy-back ride, which must be thrilling as its mother leaps from branch to branch. The little ones, incidentally, are more lively than the adults, having mock battles and squealing with pleasure while the parents nap, which they do a good part of the day.

We enjoy watching monkeys, realizing they have been created in their special way by a wise Creator who also cares for them at all times. But He has not given them a nature such as He has given to us. When we think of His special care for us we have to say, as the Bible does, “Great things doeth He, which we cannot comprehend.” Job 37:5.

Animals know nothing of God’s love, but the Bible tells us of this wonderful love that goes out to every person. God invites each of us to listen and to come to Him by confessing ourselves to be sinners, believing His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, died on the cross to put these sins away, and accepting Him as Saviour. When this is done in true faith, God declares, "[I] will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters.” 2 Corinthians 6:18. Have you accepted this wonderful invitation?

ML-06/16/1985

Where Do You Keep a Loon?

Memory Verse: “Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before Me, saith the Lord God.” Jeremiah 2:22

Mr. Rood was a biology teacher known for taking in injured animals and caring for them until they could be released safely back into the wild. One day in February he got a telephone call from the Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation in New Jersey saying they had found a bird floundering around in a patch of oil near the plant. They wanted to know if somebody could come rescue it.

At noontime Mr. Rood and his friend Mr. Stephens, who was a bird specialist, headed for the Fairchild plant. A workman led them out to a ramp and showed them the sorry-looking bird which looked like nothing more than a large, soggy mass of oily feathers with a six-inch beak.

It didn’t take Mr. Rood and Mr. Stephens long to determine that the bird was a loon. They decided it had gotten confused by a winter storm. It must have spotted the oil-slicked asphalt and thought it was water.

Once it had landed it couldn’t get off the ground again, since loons need a long stretch of water to get flying speed. It had been floundering around on the asphalt, getting its feathers covered with oil.

The two men threw an old blanket over the bird before picking it up. Its feathers were cold and hard with grease. Taking it back to school with them, they gently set the loon in a box in a warm room.

After school Mr. Rood decided to take the loon home with him to try to clean it up. Although Mrs. Rood wasn’t terribly thrilled about the new addition to the family, after seeing the poor bird all covered with oil she felt very sorry for it.

Now, in the middle of February most homes don’t have much to offer in the way of water deep enough for a loon to be comfortable in... except perhaps for the bathtub. A few minutes later the loon was sitting in six inches of warm water in the bathtub while Mr. and Mrs. Rood tried to figure out how to clean the oil off the bird’s feathers. They decided to try some laundry detergent for a start, so they poured a little in the tub. Then using a brush and washcloth, they worked gently on its feathers.

Three changes of water later the bird was fairly clean. By now the Roods’ three children were home from school and had been watching the cleaning process. They, of course, wanted to keep the loon for a pet. Their dad explained that this kind of bird would not be happy living on their wooded land. It required a lake or large pond and would have to be returned to the wild in a few days. They would have to keep it in their bathtub until the natural oil got back into its feathers, otherwise it couldn’t stay afloat and would drown in deep water.

The next problem to solve was what to feed the loon. A library book came up with that answer live fish. A tackle store not far away had a supply of live killifish. They bought a handful and dumped them into the bathtub with the loon. They had found the right answer as the loon cocked an eye, took aim with its beak, and ate every one of them!

After a few more days of this loving care, the loon’s feathers looked much better. It preened itself, threading its natural oil through its feathers. Soon it was time for the loon to be returned to the wild. They carried the big bird to a large pond not far away and set it right in the water. The loon seemed glad of larger waters as it swam off across the pond.

In some ways we are very much the same as this loon. We don’t have gummed-up feathers, but every one of us has had our life gummed up with sin. Sin is a stain we can’t wash off with just soap and water and be done with it. There is only one way to have our sins removed "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7. Any kind of laundry detergent would have worked for the loon. But the only blood that has power to wash our sins away is the blood of the Lord Jesus shed on Calvary’s cross, because He is the Son of God. And it only takes one washing with His blood for our sins to be gone forever. That poor loon had to be washed three times to get clean, and then it took further special care before it could get back to living normally. This is not the case when your sins have been washed away. The Lord Jesus immediately gives you a new life that loves to please Him. “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17. There is also the happiness of knowing that you will spend eternity with the Lord Jesus in heaven.

For those who choose to remain in their sins, the future is frightening. When you die, you will have to bear the punishment for your sins in hell forever. God makes this very clear: “Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:15.

We are glad our loon story has a happy ending. Will your life have a happy ending?

“Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity [sin] is marked before Me, saith the Lord God.” Jeremiah 2:22

ML-06/23/1985

Closed Eyes

Alice was too young to be able to read the directions on the tube of glue she found in her brother’s room. She did not know that a warning on the super glue read “Avoid contact with skin and eyes,” and in large print “KEEP OUT OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN.” Alice started squeezing that little tube of super glue and rubbing it on her face. At first this seemed like fun, but very quickly she had a sticky face and her eyes were stuck closed. She could not open them no matter how hard she tried.

Have you ever read the directions that God gives you in His Word, the Bible? “Come unto Me.” “Ye must be born again.” “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.” These are important directions — directions that if we believe and follow them will save us from everlasting punishment in hell.

Alice was frightened when she found out she could not open her eyes. She rubbed her eyes and cried, but that did not help at all. When Mother heard her crying and came to the room, she was quite concerned. Mother had read the warnings on the super glue label and she knew how dangerous it was to get glue near the eyes.

Perhaps your parents or your Sunday school teacher have explained the way of salvation to you many times — they have given you the directions to heaven. Alice did not understand the dangers of super glue. She did not know the directions. Do you know the way to be saved but are not following the directions? That is terribly dangerous.

Mother and Alice made a fast trip to the nearest hospital. Even the doctors and nurses in the emergency room were worried when they saw Alice’s eyes. It took them over four hours using different solutions on the glue before they found one that softened the glue so Alice could open her eyes again. How happy everyone was when the doctor examined Alice and said he did not think there was any injury to her eyes. She could see again without any problem.

Have your eyes been opened to take in God’s Word? — not just to read it, but to follow it. In Psalms 119:18 there is a little prayer that says, “Open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold [see] wondrous things out of Thy law [word].” This is a good prayer for each one of us first that our eyes will be open to see our need of the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour, and then to accept Him in faith as our Saviour. When we know Him as our Saviour, we will want to read and study all the things written in the Bible about Him.

ML-06/23/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Beware the Tornado!

“The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.” Ecclesiastes 1:6.

Wind (movement of air) is a very necessary part of God’s wonderful creation. It is the means of keeping air fresh, moving heat from the tropics, and exchanging it with cooler air from elsewhere. This is a benefit to all God’s creatures. Even fierce storms serve a purpose by bringing rain to quench the thirst of dry lands and relief from droughts. But such storms are not something to fly a kite in, but rather a time to go into a secure place until they blow over.

A tornado, sweeping across the sky in a threatening pitch-black funnel, is frightening to see. Where the funnel touches the ground anything in the way is destroyed. Homes and buildings are flattened and automobiles are thrown around like toys. Sometimes big boxcars are lifted right off railroad tracks and carried away. But strange things happen, too. Babies in their cribs have been picked up by such winds and later found, crib and all, safely resting in the fork of a tree, or some other place. Often a tornado will pick up a shed or barn, but skip right over the house next to it. We hope people who have such experiences thank God for His preserving care.

The two places that experience tornados most frequently are the midwestern United States and Australia, but they occur in other parts of America and the world as well. Sweeping across the ocean, the force of these funnels can lift great amounts of water to form spectacular waterspouts.

A tornado is apparently caused by the collision of great masses of cold and warm air mingling in the sky, forming something like a whirlpool. As this swirling mass of air grows larger and larger, it begins twisting violently about. The visible funnel soon forms, and where this touches ground the severe damage occurs.

These storms are a picture of Satan and his power of destruction in people’s lives. The Scriptures tell of instances in Bible days where people threatened by the wind were saved when they cried to the Lord. One instance is in Mark 4 when the Lord saved several boatloads of people from a fierce storm on Lake Galilee; the grateful passengers said, “What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” Mark 4:41.

The Lord still delights to save all who call on Him when Satan attacks. This is referred to in Isaiah 25:4: “For Thou hast been a strength... to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm... when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.” Do not try to fight Satan by yourself. That is as useless as trying to stop a tornado by blowing on it. Go to the Lord Jesus with your troubles; ask Him to take your sins away, to shield you from Satan, and you will find Him willing to do so immediately.

ML-06/23/1985

Mackinac Bridge

Memory Verse: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31

When we consider the great height from which God’s love flows down to this earth, our hearts fill with wonder. We learn how far down sin has brought us when we see that God gave His own Son, the Lord Jesus Christ the Creator of the universe, to be born in a manger and then to die on the cross — all to rescue us from sin’s grip. The Lord Jesus had to die to bring us back to God. He had to shed His precious blood to cleanse us from our sins. He is now seated at God’s right hand in heaven. He is able to save every sinner.

Yet, there are people who think God will accept them into heaven by some way other than through His Son. “Jesus saith... I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6. A substitute (good works, going to church, etc.) won’t do. The following true story illustrates how a substitute will fail.

The Mackinac Bridge in Michigan spans a wide channel of water called the Straits of Mackinac. It is an impressive structure consisting of miles of cable and iron.

When workers were being hired for its construction, Nick McMann and John Dunlite were two steel workers who jumped at the chance to work on what was to be one of the world’s largest bridges.

Nick was a single man, but John was married and had a family. John’s wife knew the danger involved in the work and was scared. “Too many things can go wrong, John,” she pleaded. But John answered, “It is the chance of a lifetime to work on this bridge, and besides that the money is good.”

Weeks and months went by and steady progress was made. Two steel towers were erected, one on either side of the channel. The towers stood 450 feet tall — straight up out of the water.

The next step in the construction was to stretch the first cable from tower to tower. Two volunteers were needed to man the top of one tower. Nick and John both volunteered. They trusted the engineer’s careful planning. A cable of steel one-inch thick was to be stretched across the channel by a ferry boat, and this cable would be used to pull a heavier, stronger cable across.

Nick and John were hoisted to the top of the tower. The blue waters of the straits were far beneath them. They could see Lake Michigan to the west and Lake Huron to the east. They attached their work belts which held their tools weighing a full 40 pounds to their waists. They would have to work fast with these tools once the cable arrived.

At the last moment the engineers substituted a rope for the one-inch steel cable. It came across the tower, but when it started to bring the heavier cable across, the weight was too much for the rope. It broke. The shock wave of the breaking rope sent a violent shudder through the steel tower Nick and John were on. They lost their balance and fell off the tower. People on shore saw them struggling madly to get their heavy work belts off before they hit the water. They tried frantically, knowing the weight of those tools would take them to the bottom of the channel.

Many people in their last moments before death have wrestled frantically trying to get their sins off before they enter into death’s dark waters. There is only one remedy, the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Any other choice will fail, and the person will be banished from God’s presence to suffer in hell rather than to live in heaven. Do you know when you are going to die, so you can accept Christ at the last minute? No, of course not. Don’t take this risk; accept His salvation today.

Nick and John weren’t able to get their belts off in time. They hit the water and were killed instantly.

God has stretched one “cable” from heaven to earth — “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31. It is strong, and for those who have trusted in it, it has never failed! Any substitute for God’s “cable” will definitely break.

When we receive God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as our own Saviour, His blood cleanses us from all sin and we know for sure He will take us to heaven. This is God’s way of salvation. Is it yours?

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24.

ML-06/30/1985

Left Behind

“Val, please take these apples down to Mrs. Lawrence, we have so many!”

“Sure, Mom.”

Valerie took the bag from her mother and walked over to Mrs. Lawrence’s house. She rang the doorbell, but no one answered. She tried the door and found it was unlocked, so she went inside calling for Mrs. Lawrence.

“How strange!” Valerie thought to herself. She looked in the kitchen and bedrooms but could not find Mrs. Lawrence. She searched the whole house and backyard without finding her. A, she found was her cat Blinker, curled up asleep on one of the beds.

“It isn’t like Mrs. Lawrence to go out and leave her door unlocked; she is always so careful. Oh! I wonder — " her heart leaped as she thought, "— has the Lord Jesus come and taken Mrs. Lawrence and all the other Christians up in the clouds to meet Him and left me behind?”

Stunned by this awful suggestion, Valerie sank into a chair. (Everyone knew Mrs. Lawrence was a born-again Christian because she was always talking about her Saviour. She had had some serious talks with Val about accepting the Lord Jesus as her own Saviour, explaining that He was coming one day soon to take all who had accepted Him home to heaven.) Why hadn’t she asked the Lord Jesus to be her Saviour before? She had meant to do it soon, and now... was it too late? Val could hear her heart pounding. She was scared.

A few moments later the front door opened and in walked Mrs. Lawrence. Relief filled Valerie’s heart. There was still time — it wasn’t too late!

“Why, Valerie, how nice to see you!” Mrs. Lawrence exclaimed a little surprised. “How did you get in? I was wondering when I came in why the door was unlocked.”

Valerie told her what had happened.

“Barbara must have misunderstood me when she left for work thinking I wanted it left unlocked.”

“I think God wanted her to leave it unlocked, Mrs. Lawrence,” Valerie said. In her heart she added, “I’m so glad there is still time! I’m going to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as my Saviour today before it’s too late and I’m left behind.”

“Boast not thyself of to-morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Proverbs 27:1.

“We which are alive... shall be caught up together... to meet the Lord in the air.” 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

ML-06/30/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Nimble Fisher-Marten

“Thou, even Thou, art Lord alone; Thou hast made... the earth, and all things that are therein... and Thou preservest them all.” Nehemiah 9:6.

The fisher-marten, which looks almost like a small fox, lives in the cold, densely wooded areas of the United States — Canadian border. Its soft, dark-brown, almost-black coat, frosted with white hairs is a special prize for trappers. It is greatly sought after by the manufacturers of expensive fur coats.

These animals spend most of their lives in trees, climbing with ease and skill and leaping from branch to branch, sometimes as much as 30 or 40 feet between trees. If attacked they are quite capable of defending themselves by arching their backs, displaying sharp teeth, whipping their tails back and forth, and uttering threatening growls. With their sharp teeth and vicious claws they can usually beat off dogs and even bears. But these experiences are rare since the Creator has made them the swiftest animal of the northern woods and they are seldom caught.

Surprisingly, they are one animal that will challenge a porcupine, flipping it over and exposing its unprotected underpart for the kill. In addition they will eat fish, rabbits, beavers, mice, birds, raccoons and occasionally nuts. Some of this food they get by outwitting trappers, stealing bait from their traps.

The fisher-marten does not hibernate, but when snow is deep it may sleep in its den for long periods of time. It’s not too successful when hunting in snow, because its dark color exposes it too much. So it is more inclined under those conditions to lie on a branch and leap on any prey passing by. They are also clever in burrowing through snow to catch mice, kangaroo rats and other rodents that are active below.

Although sometimes making dens in caves or burrows, the mother prefers to find a tree hole high above the ground where she can raise her little ones in the springtime. Blind and without fur when born, their mother nurses them for almost two months and then teaches them to hunt. Within a year they are full grown and go out on their own.

The way of these nimble animals reminds us of the care the Creator shows to all living things. Truly, “The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.” Psalms 145:9. But His mercies are shown to us in ways an animal could never know, for it is His mercy and love that provide redemption and everlasting life to all who trust in Him. This is well expressed in the verse: “For He that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is His name. And His mercy is on them that fear [respect and trust] Him.” Luke 1:49,50. Are you among those who trust in Him?

ML-06/30/1985

The Red Spots

Memory Verse: “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18

“I’ll take this box of scarlet,” Peggy said. “It’s such a deep red. I hope it can dye a gray blouse red,” she commented as she handed the box of dye and her money to the old man behind the counter.

The old man smiled as he answered, “I’m quite sure it will. It’s much easier to dye things scarlet than to get rid of a scarlet stain. Twenty years ago I discovered a scarlet stain on my heart. At first I was scared that nothing would take it out...”

Peggy stared at the old man, and then all at once she understood what he was talking about... and she got a little annoyed. “More talk about religion. Can’t I ever get away from it?” she thought. “At home mother talks about it, and here Aunt Barbara keeps bringing up the subject too... and now this old man in this dinky little store!”

As he handed her the bag and her change, Peggy muttered a quick “thank-you” and got out of the store as fast as she could.

On the way home Peggy thought about the blouse she was going to dye. She had worn it a lot, but at work she had gotten some spots on it she couldn’t get out. She needed a red blouse, and so this would solve two problems at the same time.

Aunt Barbara lived alone and was glad when Peggy could take a few days off to come visit her. Aunt Barbara made Peggy feel welcome anytime by having the upstairs bedroom always ready for her.

Because Aunt Barbara’s house was always so clean and nothing was ever out of place, Peggy guessed that Saturday afternoon would be a good time for her to dye the blouse, when Aunt Barbara was usually out shopping.

Saturday was cloudy and rainy, so Peggy was just as glad to stay inside and work on her blouse project. She decided to dye it in the upstairs bathroom sink.

It took quite a while to get the blouse dyed, because it had to sit in the hot dye water for a long time. At last it was done. But she would not know how it turned out until it dried. Peggy hung the blouse on a hanger over the bathtub to let it drip dry, and then she scrubbed out the pink color left in the sink. She hoped Aunt Barbara wouldn’t need to come upstairs the rest of the day. (Aunt Barbara didn’t use the upstairs rooms except when she had company.)

The next morning Peggy hurried into the bathroom wondering how the blouse had turned out. When she saw the blouse she knew she had made the right decision in dying it red. It looked like a new blouse!

Then she looked down into the bathtub and saw bright red splotches. The blouse had dripped scarlet dye onto the white bathtub. “Oh, no!” exclaimed Peggy out loud to herself. “Aunt Barbara is so fussy about her house... how will I ever clean up this mess?”

It wasn’t until after breakfast that Peggy had a chance to slip upstairs with some cleanser and a rag. Twenty minutes later she was sitting on the edge of the bathtub ready to cry, because no matter how hard she scrubbed, the scarlet spots were still there. She had only managed to lighten them a little. “What will Aunt Barbara say?” Peggy asked herself when she realized that she was not going to get the tub clean. She didn’t know what to do.

That evening she was going with Aunt Barbara to a special meeting. Aunt Barbara gave her no choice. Peggy went and sat beside her aunt, absorbed in her own problems. She was startled back to the present when the man speaking began his talk with, “Though your sins be as scarlet....” He pointed out that no matter how black the stain of sin might be, the blood of Jesus Christ could wash it away if the sinner would come to Him in simple faith.

Half an hour later Peggy held her head down to hide the tears that filled her eyes, bowing her head to the fact that she had found the scarlet stain on her own heart, and the only One who could make it “white as snow” was the Lord Jesus Christ. “Wash me,” Peggy said into His ear which is always open. “Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.”

“Good evening, young lady.” Peggy jumped. Leaving the meeting, she had stepped outside into the darkness of the rainy night. She turned and looked into the face of the old man she had bought the dye from. She wasn’t annoyed with him now. In fact, she had even forgotten about the problem the red dye was causing her.

“I—” she began, but he interrupted her.

“I saw you there in the meeting, but you didn’t see me,” he told her.

To her surprise Peggy found it easy to tell this kind old man of the decision she had just made. As they talked she suddenly remembered the stain on the bathtub. In a few moments she had told him her problem.

“I’m afraid Aunt Barbara will be upset,” she concluded. “She is so careful about her house. I just don’t know how to get rid of those red spots.”

“Well, I won’t promise anything, but I’ll see if we have something at the store that might help. Stop by tomorrow afternoon.”

The next afternoon Peggy ran into the store while doing some errands for her aunt. To her relief her friend was there with a bottle of cleaning fluid that he hoped would help.

Peggy held her breath when she finally got back upstairs to the bathtub and poured some of the fluid on the red spots. As she wiped the tub the stain came off and the tub looked as clean as it had before!

The next afternoon she stopped in the store again before she left for home. “I don’t know how to thank you,” Peggy exclaimed to her friend.

The old man only smiled kindly at her. “Maybe there was a purpose in it, my friend,” he said. “God often makes use of simple things while working with our hearts.”

“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18.

ML-07/07/1985

The Old Man and the Tract

Liz Olson watched the old man walk slowly out of the restaurant. He had given her his usual smiling “Good day,” and when she went to clear off his table, she found his usual tip and one of the little booklets that he would occasionally leave. Recently, the times between his visits had become longer and he looked so old and tired. She missed him coming in and also missed the booklets. She read them over and over. What she had read in them had changed her life and she wanted to tell him sometime. Somehow she felt sure he would be glad to know. But the manager of the restaurant did not want the waitresses to spend time talking with the customers, so the opportunity never seemed to come.

One morning before the restaurant got busy a woman came in and sat at the old man’s favorite table. After Liz brought her order to her, the woman bowed her head and closed her eyes for a moment before eating, just as the old man always did. This was not all. When Liz cleared the table after the woman had left, she found a booklet just like the ones the old man left.

Without waiting to think, Liz ran out of the restaurant and called to the woman. “You left a little booklet behind, it....”

Walking back, the woman smiled and said, “It’s for you, if you will accept it.”

“Oh, thank you, but may I ask you something? An old gentleman used to come here and leave the same kind of booklets. He hasn’t been in for some time. Do you know him?”

“Yes, he was my father.”

“Was?” echoed Liz.

She nodded, “He died a month ago. I am trying to keep up the work he loved. Were you one of those he tried to help?”

Tears were filling Liz’s eyes. “Tried and succeeded,” she answered. “I’d like to tell you about it ... but... I have to get back to work.”

The woman quickly wrote out her address on a piece of paper and handed it to Liz. “Come see me whenever you can.”

Liz did visit her. “The first day he came,” she told her interested listener, “he bowed his head and closed his eyes for a moment. It brought back memories of when I was a child and we would thank God for the meal before we ate. And then he left those booklets. In reading and believing what they said about the Lord Jesus Christ dying on the cross for sinners, I had to admit I was a sinner and needed Jesus as my Saviour. My whole life was changed.”

Yes, the Word of God in those booklets was the seed that was sown by the old gentleman in his gospel work. That seed found a place in Liz Olson’s heart. It grew there and brought forth the fruit that God wanted — her soul’s eternal salvation. Have you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour? If not, then why not do it today.

“He that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit.” Matthew 13:23.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

ML-07/07/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: All-Important Chlorophyll

“O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! in wisdom hast Thou made them all: the earth is full of Thy riches.” Psalms 104:24.

To chemists chlorophyll is the remarkable molecule by which plants convert light energy into chemical energy. If there were no chlorophyll there would be no plant or animal life. Since the cells in all animal life cannot utilize sunlight directly, it is through the chlorophyll in plants that sunlight is absorbed and its energy stored in their cells.

Briefly, here is what takes place: this marvelous compound, which only God can make, absorbs light energy and uses it to combine molecules of carbon dioxide from the air into a simple sugar called glucose. Glucose is further converted by the plant into other starches and fiber, which are the principal components of green trees, plants and grass. Chlorophyll is the means by which the carbon is separated and passed along to make this food.

Now when this process takes place oxygen is produced which the plant cannot use. The Creator has at this point provided a wonderful exchange between animal and plant life. Chlorophyll enables the trees and other plant growth to get rid of the oxygen by releasing it into the air through leaves and other surfaces. Oxygen, as we know, is exactly what animal and human life requires, so the release of oxygen by plants is essential to maintain the amount we need in the air to breathe.

But that’s only half the story. When exhaling, all breathing creatures release carbon dioxide into the air. This completes its cycle when absorbed by growing plants. With the action of chlorophyll the whole process is thus kept in motion, maintaining life all the time. How wise God has been in all His marvelous creation!

Yet chlorophyll, for all its wonders, can only perform when cells are exposed to sunlight. This is evident when a healthy plant is moved into a dark room or basement, soon losing its color and appearing ready to die. But if brought back to a sunporch or bright room, it will once more become green and strong, because chlorophyll can take over its duties again and revive it.

In many ways this is a picture to us — a reminder that the need of every Christian is to “walk in the light” of God’s Word, the Bible. This is the only way we can have joy and happiness, as well as being able to bring others to know the love of God and salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Are you a healthy Christian?

ML-07/07/1985

Kenny's Pocketknife

Memory Verse: “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7

“Wait a minute, Andy!” Kenny ordered his friend, digging one hand into his jeans’ pocket and then hiding something behind his back. “Wanna see what I got? Com’on behind the barn... I don’t want the girls to see.”

The two boys quietly disappeared behind the barn while their sisters continued to play.

“What ya got, Kenny?” whispered Andy, elated that Kenny would share a secret with him. “Why don’t you want the girls to see?”

“Oh, you know now girls are... you’ve got four sisters,” Kenny said. “Thank goodness I’ve only got one!”

Andy laughed and waited to see Kenny’s treasure. “Wow, where’d you get it from?” he exclaimed as he turned over in his hand a shiny new pocketknife, complete with all the various blades and gadgets.

“You know Tiger, Mr. Ritchie’s little dog, don’t you?”

Andy nodded. All the children in the area knew who Tiger was, and they all liked the little beagle.

“Well, Mr. Ritchie told me that Tiger was lost. He said he suspected that Tiger had chased a rabbit down a hole somewhere in the fields and had gotten stuck, and no one had been able to find him anywhere. I told Mr. Ritchie I’d try to find him. He didn’t think I’d be able to, but said I could certainly try. ‘If you do find him, Kenny,’ he said, ‘I’ll give you a nice reward.’ "

“And did you find Tiger?” questioned Andy.

“Yeah, I did. That’s how I got the knife,” explained Kenny. “I started around the first field calling, ‘Tiger, Tiger,’ and then I’d stop to listen every once in a while. But he wasn’t there, so I went around the next field and the next doing the same thing. Then one time when I stopped to listen I heard a funny little yelp and when I called his name again, I heard the yelp again. I followed the sound as best I could and finally found a hole partway hidden by some bushes, and there was poor ol’ Tiger’s tail sticking out. He sure was stuck down that rabbit hole. I tried digging him loose with my bare hands, but the ground was too hard. So I found a stick in the bushes and used that to dig out some of the dirt until I could get a hand in to dig some more. Pretty soon he came wiggling out backwards. I was still sittin’ on the ground and he licked me over and was so excited to see me. I scooped him up and carried him back to Mr. Ritchie. He could hardly say anything, he was so surprised and pleased to have Tiger back. He told me to come by the next day, and when I did he gave me this knife. Neat, huh?”

“Yeah,” agreed Andy, “and I’m sure glad you found Tiger before he suffocated down that hole, Kenny!”

A little disappointed that all of Andy’s interest seemed to have been transferred from the knife to Tiger, Kenny jumped up, put his knife in his pocket, and called Andy to follow him up the ladder.

“Let’s pounce on the girls and scare them!” he suggested.

Appearing suddenly among the girls who had built a house in the bales of hay, Kenny and Andy played “King of the Haystack” before finally leaving the girls and running across the field to play in the creek.

That night when Kenny’s dad came into his room to read the Bible and pray with him, Kenny looked for his knife to show his dad, but he couldn’t find it anywhere. It wasn’t in his jeans’ pocket or anywhere in his room. He must have lost it! He was so upset that he did not listen when his dad read and prayed. Even when he prayed that they might find the missing knife Kenny did not feel better. When his dad left the room Kenny buried his face in his pillow and cried.

Kenny only prayed and read his Bible because his parents made him, not because he wanted to. And so for days he continued to look for his knife, but he did not think to pray about it himself.

Several days later Andy saw him and hearing about his lost knife said, “Hey, you know my mom lost her wedding ring once and she asked Jesus to help her find it, and then she didn’t worry about it any more. A couple days later she found it! Why don’t you do the same thing about your knife?”

In bed that night Kenny thought about what Andy had said. A little voice seemed to say to him, “But you are not one of God’s children.” He knew the way to become one of God’s children was to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour, but until now he had refused to do that. He remembered what his dad sometimes told him the Bible said. It was something like, “If I keep sin in my heart the Lord will not hear me” (Psa. 66:18). This bothered Kenny. For a long time he couldn’t get to sleep.

Finally he got out of bed and knelt down and told the Lord Jesus that he was a sinner and needed to be saved and asked Him to wash away all his sins. Feeling a big load gone, Kenny went to sleep. The next morning he told the Lord Jesus about his knife and asked Him to help him find it.

Kenny looked so happy that day that his parents wondered what had happened.

Often as each day passed Kenny would pray about his knife.

Then on the fifth day just as he was getting dressed, he heard his father calling him. Opening his bedroom door, he answered, and what he heard sent him racing down the stairs three at a time.

“Your pocketknife, Kenny! Here’s your pocketknife!”

“Where was it, Dad?” he asked, taking it from his dad. “I knew I’d get it back,” he added shyly.

“I started to load some hay bales from the barn and had cut about halfway down one of the piles when I found it. I thought it might be the one you lost.”

Kenny, with his face still full of excitement at having his knife back, explained, “I prayed about it, Dad, and asked Jesus to help me find it.”

“Kenny, does this mean you’ve asked the Lord Jesus to be your Saviour?”

“Yes, Dad, I took care of that first,” Kenny explained, and his father understood.

“Thank you Lord, for answering two prayers!” he exclaimed to the Lord as he gave Kenny a big hug.

“All things work together for good to them that love God.” Romans 8:28.

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalms 50:15.

ML-07/14/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Familiar Cow

“He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man.” Psalms 104:14.

As those who live in the country know, there are many kinds of cows on farms, and they are the most familiar of the large animals. Actually it is only the female that is properly called a cow; the males are more accurately referred to as bulls. It’s a very unusual cow that will attack a person, but it is always a good idea to keep a fence between yourself and a bull!

The Bible makes frequent mention of cows. We learn from Genesis 1:25 that “God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind,” which shows that He made a distinction between beasts of the field and domestic animals, the latter being “for the service of man,” as our opening verse states.

A cow’s stomach has four compartments. As a cow grazes in a meadow, each bite is swallowed after a small amount of chewing. This passes along to the first and second parts of the stomach where it is combined with liquids to form a “cud.” Later when resting from its grazing, the cow brings this cud back to its mouth and chews it more completely before finally swallowing it. This time the grass ends up in the third and fourth stomach parts where it is further digested.

Milk is produced and collects in the baglike underpart of the cow’s body known as the udder. When a calf is born it instinctively knows that this is the place to go to satisfy its hunger. After the calf has grown enough to eat solid foods such as grass, hay and grain, the cow continues to supply milk for the dairy man. His family will use some of it, with the rest going to market where it can also be converted into butter, cottage cheese and other dairy products. We should often thank the Lord for these things. What would we do without them?

Besides milk and meat, cows and bulls are a main source of hides from which leather is made, as well as glue, soap, some medicines and other products, most of which are produced from their bones.

In early Bible days God instructed His people how to distinguish between a “clean” and an “unclean” animal, naming two things they were to look for to designate a “clean” animal which they could eat. One was a cud-chewing animal; the second that it must have divided hoofs. The cow meets both of these requirements as do sheep, goats, deer and several other animals.

There are lessons for us in all that the Bible teaches. For instance, a “clean” animal chewing its cud speaks of one who loves the Lord Jesus and spends some time reading and searching the Bible — not just glancing quickly at a portion of it. The divided hoof tells us He wants His people to divide (separate) themselves from the world and live for Him. “Wherefore come out from among them [unbelievers], and be ye separate, saith the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 6:17. Do you fit these examples?

ML-07/14/1985

His Hands

Memory Verse: “I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:3

Mother settled on the couch for her morning break. Little Carla grabbed her dolly and scampered over to join her hoping for a story or just a cozy chat. One thing Carla did love to talk about was the Lord Jesus and His coming. When she was scarcely four years old she had asked Him to wash away all of her sins, and in her fresh young faith she had received and delighted in many of the great promises spoken by our Lord Jesus Himself.

“Mommy,” she asked with wonder in her eyes, “is the Lord Jesus really going to just catch us up to heaven?”

“Why, yes,” Mommy answered. “In John 14:3 Jesus said, ‘I will come again, and receive you unto Myself.’ Then He told the Apostle Paul to write in 1 Thessalonians chapter four just how He will do it. We know He’ll keep His word as He always has.”

“But, Mommy,” she pursued anxiously, “are you sure that every single one in our family will go up? And...and ... you won’t have to get to be a grandma and die first, will you?”

“Now, honey, one question at a time! Yes, Mommy feels sure that everyone in our family has one by one come to the Lord Jesus, just as you did. They asked Him just as you did to wash their sins away, because only Jesus’ precious blood can do this great work. ‘The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin’ (1 John 1:7). You don’t need to worry that Mommy will have to get old and die first. We all expect His coming to be very, very soon.”

Satisfied, Carla enjoyed a few more moments of thought. Then with some excitement she exclaimed, “Oh my, Mommy! The Lord Jesus must have BIG hands!”

“Big hands? Yes He does, Carla! Why, one hand is all that He needs, for we read in Deuteronomy 33:3, ‘All His saints are in Thy hand.’ And Jesus said in John 10:28 that no one could ever pluck one of His children (sheep) out of His hand. So you see, when we’re already in His hand, it would be a sure thing to lift us right up safely to heaven. Just think of His dear hands, Carla.

Always He’ll have those scars from the cruel nails they hammered in them that day when He took our place suffering for our sins. He uses them now, too — lifts them up to God when Satan accuses us of being naughty. Lifting up His hands He says, ‘There is no accusing this one, because he is cleansed by My precious blood.’ "

Are you safe in those BIG, strong hands that can never let you go and will catch you up to heaven some happy day soon?

“The Lord upholdeth him with His hand.” Psalms 37:24.

ML-07/21/1985

A Trapped Snake

Ron and his wife Peg were taking a walk around a small town one fall day. Being a biology teacher, Ron was always looking at nature. He suddenly stopped to investigate something moving under a bush they were passing.

Both Ron and Peg were soon bent over, looking with curiosity. What they found was a garter snake which had gotten caught in the pull-ring from a pop can. The snake must have been poking through the leaves and general litter that had collected in that spot. Somehow it had inserted its head through the pull-ring and crawled forward, passing through the ring until it tightened around the thicker part of its body...and there the ring stayed. Since snakes have backward-pointing scales on their body, there was no way it could have backed up to slide back out of the ring. As they watched, the snake twisted and turned, trying to get rid of the ring around its middle. But nothing worked.

Now, there aren’t too many of us who would do what Ron decided to do for this poor snake. Most of us shudder at the thought of snakes, let alone picking one up! But Ron loved all the creatures of nature and felt so sorry for the garter snake that he quickly and gently picked up the twisting snake and sat down on the ground to figure out how he could get the ring off.

Ron gently smoothed the snake’s body. Then an amazing thing happened. The snake completely relaxed in his hands so that he could smooth out its scales enough for Peg to slide the ring gently forward...until it slid right over the snake’s head and was off! The snake lay in Ron’s lap for about five minutes moving just a little, perhaps testing to be sure the ring was gone. Then it slithered across his lap, lowered itself to the ground, and soon disappeared through the leaves.

The idea of picking up a snake to help it isn’t very appealing to most of us — we would shrink back. But Ron knew all about snakes and how much good they do for men by eating mice and rats and other things. He cared enough for that poor snake to do what he could to save it from that ring. The ring probably would have strangled the snake eventually. Did you know that every person in this world has a “ring of sin” around them? It will slowly strangle them — if someone doesn’t save them.

The Lord Jesus Christ knew all about the problem of our sins. He also knew that it would be impossible for us to get rid of them by ourselves. Even though He hates sin, He loves us and cares so much that He willingly suffered and died on Calvary’s cross to bear the punishment we deserve. “Christ died for our sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:3.

If you will stop struggling with your “ring of sin” and accept His love and offer of salvation, He will gladly remove your sins and set you free forever. I asked Him to remove my sins, and He did. Won’t you do it too?

“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation.” Hebrews 2:3.

“Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13.

ML-07/21/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Swift Cheetah

“For every beast of the forest is Mine...and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.” Psalms 50:10, 11

The cheetah which lives in Africa, Asia and India is the world’s fastest animal, but uses its speed sparingly. When hunting it takes advantage of all available cover and crawls on the ground to get as close as possible to its prey. Then, tail twitching, it suddenly leaps up and runs with lightning speed — up to 70 miles per hour — scarcely touching the ground between its ten-foot leaps. It usually catches its prey in just a few seconds.

The Creator has provided the cheetah with large nostrils and lungs to draw in great quantities of air while running so fast. However, it cannot run at top speed very long, and if it fails to capture its prey promptly, it must give up and rest. Even if it succeeds it needs to rest beside the slain victim for a while, breathing deeply before eating it.

The cheetah has a small head, yellow-green eyes high on its skull, with “tear mark” coloring running from the inner corners of its eyes down its face. Its fur is a very pretty fawn color with nearly round black spots over its whole body and a long, striped tail adding to its beauty. Its long, thin body, mounted on long legs, measures about three feet high at the shoulders and some five feet in length, plus a two-and-a-half foot tail.

Their natural home is in open grasslands. Given excellent eyesight they spot antelopes, elands and other animals from a tree limb, bare hilltop, or even a termite mound. A special God-given feature enables them to go without water for several days.

They have claws on all four feet, but unlike most of the cat family they cannot retract them. One claw on each front foot is extra sharp, strong and higher than the others, never touching the ground. This is its main weapon and is called a “dewclaw.”

Mother cheetahs may have three or more cubs a year which are blue-gray until three months old. The little ones are playful, stalking and pawing one another. In the hot sun they huddle close to their mother for protection from the heat and for safety from enemies. They nurse several months and then, full grown, they are on their own.

Again we are reminded that the One who can rightfully claim (as in our opening Bible verse) that every beast of the forest and field is His, does not neglect these creatures. Through their whole lifetime they are under His watchful care, and He can see them just as He can see each of us, even on the darkest night.

Sin that came into the world is responsible for animals such as the cheetah killing others. But the time is coming when there will be peace again among all the beasts. At that time (called the millennium) those who accept the Lord Jesus Christ now as their Saviour will be with Him in heaven, looking down on that peaceful scene. Will you be there?

ML-07/21/1985

Chasing Butterflies

Memory Verse: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:6

When I was a boy I often spent part of the summer with my grandfather at his cottage. I liked to collect butterflies. I would catch them when they landed on one of the many flowers in my grandfather’s yard. Then I would let them loose in Grandfather’s big screened-in porch. I can remember having many beautiful butterflies flying around on the porch.

My grandfather’s cottage was in a large clearing in the woods of central Pennsylvania.

Being surrounded by woods kept me from wandering too far away while chasing the fluttering butterflies. This was not the case though with a young boy named Rod who also loved to chase butterflies.

Rod lived on a ranch in the western United States. It was in prairie country so the homestead was surrounded by open range and canyons. Behind the house was a fenced-in garden area. This is where Rod spent most of his time playing. There were many flowers planted in front of the fence which attracted butterflies. Rod would catch them and keep them in jars for a while and then set them free again.

One summer day the gate was left open a little. Rod had been told many times that he was not to go out of the yard. But the beautiful fluttering butterfly that he was chasing was now sitting on a wild flower on the other side of the fence.

Rod was watching the butterfly when he noticed the gate was open a little. Pushing it open, he crept up on the still-resting butterfly. Just as he reached for its folded-back wings it flew off. Now the chase was on!

No one had told the butterfly to stay close to Rod’s house, so it fluttered from one flower to another with Rod right behind. Each time he would get close the butterfly would flutter off again. Rod didn’t realize it but the butterfly was leading him farther and farther away from the safety of his home.

Ron finally got tired and gave up on the butterfly and turned to go back home. It was then that he realized that there was no sign of a path or road. Actually he wasn’t far from home, but he couldn’t see the house. He was in a canyon. He started walking in what he thought was the right direction, but it wasn’t. The farther he walked the farther it took him away from home. Although he was trying his best to go home, he was going away from it. He was lost, but he didn’t know it.

Meanwhile, back at his house Rod’s mother soon missed him. A quick search of the buildings around the ranch didn’t find him. A frantic call on the two-way radio brought his dad in from the field. They searched all over, but could not find Rod.

Returning home, they called the sheriff. Within an hour a large search party was formed at Rod’s house. After getting instructions from the sheriff, the searchers moved out in all directions. Neighbors and town-folk joined in the search for Rod. Some were on horseback, some on foot, others were in jeeps. Even a helicopter from the army base joined the search.

The search continued through the late afternoon and evening. With sunset coming on, Rod’s parents got more worried. Questions kept crossing their minds: what had happened?...where was Rod?...was he safe?...had he been attacked by a coyote?...would he be found before night?

Some parents around us may be worried about their sons and daughters. They have raised their children in a Christian home, loved them, read the Bible and prayed with them. Still they worry because they know their child is “lost.” They are lost like the Bible describes: “All we like sheep have gone astray (are lost); we have turned every one to his own way.” Isaiah 53:6.

Stop right now and ask yourself the question “Am I lost?” If you have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your own Saviour, you are lost. Each of us, young or old, have “gone astray” in the eyes of God. We have gone our “own way” which is away from God. He wants to rescue us, but first we must want to be rescued. We must realize that we are lost and call for help. By turning to the Saviour, admitting that we are sinners and asking the Lord Jesus to wash away our sins, we will be saved. His love for us makes this possible. It took Him to the cross where He suffered for the sins of all who would accept Him as their Saviour. Won’t you ask Him to save you right now?

It was close to midnight and Rod was still lost. It had gotten cool after dark and he was shivering. He sat down; he was so tired. He had called and called for help, but no one answered. He had cried and cried and now as he sat on a rock in the canyon, he wished he were safe at home.

The sheriff was still looking for Rod in the canyons west of the house. He stopped his jeep beside a rocky ledge just above a canyon. Slowly he moved the big spotlight mounted on his jeep along the canyon walls.

Suddenly the powerful beam of light shone on a little boy jumping up and down and waving his arms. Rod was soon safe in the sheriff’s jeep.

The sheriff radioed to the others that Rod was safe. After being checked by a doctor, a tired little boy was being held in his parents’ arms. Oh, how happy he was! Oh, how happy they were! He was safe now.

You, too, can rest “safe” in the arms of the Saviour, the Lord Jesus. He loves you and wants to save you. He is waiting right now for your call. Remember, He came “to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10. Why not accept Him as your Saviour right now.

“I love them that love Me; and those that seek Me early shall find Me.” Proverbs 8:17.

ML-07/28/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Always-Hungry Grasshopper

“And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt...and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees.” Exodus 10:14,15.

All who live where there are grasshoppers know about these insects. Even if you can’t see them you know they are there by the noise they make. Although it can be quite irritating it is one of the sounds of summer. Actually, the noise is not made with their mouth, but by rubbing their front wings with their hind legs!

Under a microscope a grasshopper is discovered to be a most unusual creature, with a horse-like head which has two long antennae extending forward. Its head, shoulders and other body parts are protected with tough armor. It has wings which fold smoothly along its back and large hind legs, which show where the power comes from for their long hops.

Locusts are similar to grasshoppers, but that name usually refers to those species that migrate in great swarms and are very destructive to crops — as told in Bible accounts such as in our opening verse. But grasshoppers of the western world are destructive enough, as farmers in the United States and Canada can tell you.

A female, after digging a hole in the ground with what is called an ovipositor, immediately fills the hole with foam and then lays a great quantity of sausage-like eggs in it. The foam soon hardens to protect them. Tiny nymphs, not much larger than a grain of sand, eventually hatch out. They immediately begin feeding on tender vegetation and grow so rapidly that they soon shed their skins (moult). This is repeated five times before they reach full size.

The hinged legs of a grasshopper are very flexible, allowing for great force when hopping and acting as cushions when it lands. When ready for flight with feet firmly on the ground, the hind legs lift into a driving position. Powerful muscles push it off into flight with speed and distance increased by using its wings once airborne.

The Creator has not only provided them with ability to leap away from enemies (ever try to catch one?), but also gives them excellent concealment among the green and brown vegetation that they eat.

Perhaps grasshoppers are given to us as a solemn lesson, speaking of that which is destructive, creating nothing good in themselves, but trying to spoil the truth of God’s goodness. There are many who fit this description around us today, and the Bible warns us about them: “For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers...teaching things which they ought not.” Titus 1:10,11.

How can we keep from being deceived? Those who do not know the Lord Jesus as their Saviour will most easily fall into the snares of such deceivers. But if you have put your trust in Him, a good answer is also provided: “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith...keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Jude 20,21.

If you have not yet accepted Him and His promises, won’t you do this today?

ML-07/28/1985

The Abandoned Well

Memory Verse: “He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.” Psalm 40:2

“HELP! HELP!” the boys called as loudly as they could. “GET US OUT OF HERE — WE’RE SINKING! HELP! HELP!”

Carl and Bruce were in trouble. Returning home from a friend’s home before dark, they had crossed an empty lot. Many children used the lot as a playground. Over the years many hours had been spent hiding, chasing, climbing trees and inventing other games to play.

“I can jump farther than you can,” Bruce had challenged.

“That’s what you think!” answered Carl. “Let’s both run together and jump when we get to the tree.”

They both ran as fast as they could, and when they reached the tree they both jumped. Bruce was taller, but that didn’t make any difference because they both landed together. That’s when their proems started.

As they both landed, the ground gave way under them. They didn’t know it, but they had landed on an old abandoned well. Years before it had been filled in with cans and trash which over a span of time had rusted. The force of the boys’ jump had caused the spot to collapse and sink.

“Hey, Bruce, what’s happening? We’re sinking!” shouted Carl with fear in his voice.

It had happened so quickly, and then suddenly it was dark. The boys realized that they had fallen into a hole.

“Let’s try to climb up the sides,” suggested Carl. But try as they might they couldn’t get out. Everything they touched just fell in. There was nothing to hold onto or step on. They just kept slipping back down and sinking a little deeper.

“What should we do?” asked Bruce.

“Call for help, I guess,” answered Carl. “Maybe someone living near here will hear us.” So they began to call for help.

Have you thought about calling for help? “Why do I need help?” you may ask. Each of us needs help since the Bible says, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23. We cannot come into God’s presence with our sins since He hates sin. Our sins must be gone before God can accept us into heaven. So the help we need is getting rid of our sins.

Sin must be punished, and for sinners that punishment is in the lake of fire forever. Yet there is a way to get rid of our sins. God has given us a substitute to bear our punishment. He is satisfied with this substitute. It is His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ who died on the cross. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

On the cross the Lord Jesus was punished for the sins of all who would accept Him as their Saviour. All that is left for us to do is just to believe it by accepting Him as our Saviour. It was His blood shed there that can wash away all our sins. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7.

“SOMEBODY HELP US!” the boys called again.

Living near the empty lot, Leatha and her mother were sitting in their sun-room reading.

“What was that?” asked Leatha.

“It sounds like someone calling for help,” answered her mother. Getting up she said, “We’d better go see!”

The boys’ frantic calls for help led Leatha and her mother right to the sinkhole. They were surprised at the deep hole and realized they couldn’t get the boys out by themselves. So Leatha stayed and talked to the boys while her mother ran home to get her husband. He brought a long rope and was able to pull the boys out. Neither of the boys was hurt, only scared. Within days the abandoned well was filled with sand and rock so no one else would fall in again.

The boys were rescued because they called for help. They didn’t want to spend any more time in that sinkhole than they had to. They also knew that they couldn’t get out by themselves. They needed someone else to help them, and were not ashamed to call for help.

Are you afraid or ashamed to ask the Lord Jesus to save you? Are you worried about what your friends might think? Don’t let that keep you from asking the Lord Jesus to be your Saviour. Bruce and Carl could only be rescued because they called for help. This let others know about their need, and they gladly accepted the help that was given.

God knows all about you. He knows that you are a helpless sinner, and He loves you and wants to rescue you. He is offering you salvation which can be yours by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour. The substitute God offers will do you no good until you take it. The Lord Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man commeth unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6. Don’t refuse His offer to rescue you. He loves you and wants you with Him in heaven for all eternity.

“Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1.

ML-08/04/1985

Are You Thirsty?

In parts of Egypt and other eastern countries, water does not come out of faucets like it does in this country. It has to be carried to the home from wells or other sources. In larger towns there are water carriers who carry a large tank of water on a cart. They go down the streets selling the water to anyone who will buy it.

To attract people’s attention the carrier will call out in his language, “Thirsty ones, come and drink!” This is much the same as what the Bible says in Isaiah 55:1: “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters.”

But the water carrier sells the water he carries. This is different from what Isaiah says in the last part of the verse — “and he that hath no money; come ye, buy...without money and without price.”

Often the water carrier meets groups of children playing in the streets. They are thirsty, but they don’t have any money to buy his water. Some of us live in cities where the ice cream truck comes down the street on hot summer days with ice cream to sell. But unless we have some money, we can’t buy any ice cream.

Sometimes, but not very often, someone will buy the thirsty children of desert countries water to drink. And sometimes a friend here will buy ice cream for a child who doesn’t have any money. These kind people offer the water or ice cream to the children free! It has already been paid for.

This is the true message of the gospel — Christ has paid the price the water of life that He offers you is free!

“And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Revelation 22:17.

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23.

ML-08/04/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Lowly Sponge

“And one ran and filled a sponge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave Him [Jesus] to drink.” Mark 15:36.

I’m sure when most of us think of sponges we think of the artificial, rectangular sponges which come in all sizes and colors. But the best sponges are still those from the ocean, and they still have many uses because the artificial ones are often too hard and scratchy.

Surprisingly, sponges are not plants but animals, although in the simplest form. Their bodies are made up of millions of cells honeycombed with tubes, but unlike most other animals they have no blood vessels, nerves, brain, stomach or other organs.

Small hairs on the surface draw large amounts of water through millions of pores into a hollow center where tiny plants and sea life are strained out to provide nourishment. This goes on 24 hours a day.

There are over 4000 kinds of sponges, from pinhead size to some six-feet tall. The more common ones have a dull black color, but some are quite pretty. Among the many kinds, finger sponges look like long pink fingers. Others also have names to fit their appearance, such as breadcrumb, horny, elephant’s ear, etc. Some look like large vases and are prized by collectors, especially those colored bright yellow, pink, red, purple or green. Still others, called glass sponges, are equally as pretty, looking like feather dusters, umbrellas, unusual carvings, or long embroidered tubes.

Having no physical way to defend themselves, sponges would soon be destroyed by fish and animals, but the Creator has not left them helpless. To discourage raids by hungry prowlers, they give off a bad odor that keeps most of these enemies away.

Sponges are usually harvested by divers, sometimes in very deep water. All of the outside portion is stripped away, leaving only the clean inside part to be sent to the markets.

The next time you use a natural sponge think how it is among the innumerable things given by the Creator for man’s benefit. Consider, too, that He watches over and delights in every one of them.

The scene at Calvary’s cross, told in our opening Bible verse, reminds us of the cruelty of those who crucified the Lord Jesus Christ and His love in enduring the awful suffering. The offer of a sponge soaked in vinegar was perhaps meant as a little act of kindness. But the Lord did not accept it, choosing rather to pay in full without any relief the load He bore in accepting God’s punishment for our sins.

What does His wonderful love mean to you? Have you personally thanked Him for dying on the cross for you? He longs to hear every boy and girl and every adult not only thank Him, but accept Him as his or her personal Saviour. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

ML-08/04/1985

No Return

Memory Verse: “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man: but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12

July 9, 1960 was a very warm day. Jim Hunnicut took his two friends, seven-year-old Roger Woodward and his 17-year-old sister Deanne, in a motor boat on the Niagara River. The quiet water five miles upstream of Niagara Falls was perfect for the small boat and its 7 ½ HP outboard motor. The two Woodward children thoroughly enjoyed the river and the boat. They did not like the life vests they had to wear, but they had promised their father that they would wear them all the time.

Jim decided to go downstream just below one of the electric generating plants where the water was also quiet. Although the water appeared calm, Jim had under estimated the strength of the current. When he turned the boat around to head back, he found that he had passed the “point of no return” for his small boat and motor. He quickly discovered that instead of making headway, they were being carried slowly downstream toward the falls. Soon they were in the swirling rapids. Then the motor stopped and the boat capsized, throwing the three of them into the water.

Deanne saw Roger and Jim being swept along in the current ahead. She was a strong swimmer and swam toward the shore of Goat Island where crowds of people had gathered and were watching the horrifying scene. Deanne was only a few feet from shore, but still she was being swept toward the falls. A man on shore climbed over the guard rail and was able to catch her outstretched hand only 15 feet from the 162-foot high falls. Another man helped, and they pulled Deanne to safety.

Meanwhile, Jim had grasped little Roger telling him, “Don’t be scared — I’ll hold you!” But the swirling waters tore them apart and both were swept over the falls and lost from view in the spray and torrents below.

Jim was killed on the rocks at the base of the falls. Roger fell beyond the rocks into the water. Down, down under the water he was driven from the fall, but because of his life vest he came up again fast. Moments later the captain of the excursion boat “Maid of the Mist” saw him and was able to throw a life ring out to him. After three tries the ring went close enough to Roger so he could grab it and he was pulled to safety.

Other than a few bruises, neither Roger nor Deanne had any injuries from their awful experience. They were thankful that they had obeyed their father and worn their life vests. Jim had not worn one.

There is no doubt that what helped save both Roger and Deanne’s lives was their life vests. Those of us who have accepted the Lord Jesus as our own Saviour have another kind of life vest that will keep us safe forever. Even if we die we will rise again some day — when He calls all who have trusted in Him to come live with Him in heaven. We have everlasting life now, and as John 5:24 says, “He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”

On the other hand those who do not have Christ as their Saviour do not have a life vest and will be pulled under the waters of death and judgment because of their sins. Do you have the Life Vest on?...have you accepted Christ as your Saviour? Why wait any longer? “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

ML-08/11/1985

A Shepherd to Follow

Over one hundred years ago, Canon Hugh Stowell wrote a lovely hymn for his Sunday School Anniversary. It has four verses, each beginning with the words — “JESUS IS OUR SHEPHERD.”

In John 10, verse 11, HE IS “THE __ __ __ __ SHEPHERD.”

In Hebrews 13, verse 20, HE IS

“THE __ __ __ __ __ SHEPHERD.”

In 1 Peter 5, verse 4, HE IS “THE __ __ __ __ __ SHEPHERD.”

(Try to fill in the words before turning to the verses.)

ML-08/11/1985

Barry

It is an unusual name for a dog, but Barry was the name of a Saint Bernard. He was a famous dog which had been trained to rescue lost travelers or those who had been caught in avalanches in the Swiss mountains.

There is a statue of Barry in the Museum of Natural History in Berne, Switzerland. It was paid for by one of the forty people whose lives were saved by Barry during his lifetime. This is the story of his rescue.

Arthur Chasi had been walking along a mountain roadway when he was suddenly buried by the edge of an avalanche. The major part of the avalanche had roared down the mountain just ahead of him. It had wiped out houses, trees and anything else in its path.

The rescue teams that came to search for buried people concentrated on the major area of the snow slide, looking for survivors buried in the snow and debris. But Art was not buried where the searchers were looking. He was about one-half mile away, unconscious under three feet of snow.

Barry was with one of the rescue teams that had come to the avalanche scene. He and the other dogs would use their keen sense of smell to find the buried victims. The dogs would announce their find by standing over the spot and barking. Then the men would dig through the snow until they found the victim.

At first Barry stayed close to the center of the avalanche disaster area. He had found several bodies of those who had been killed. Then moving farther and farther away, he picked up Art’s scent. He barked loudly, and soon men were there with shovels. They found Art, half frozen, but still alive. He was taken to a hospital where he was cared for until he recovered.

In the Bible we read that the Lord Jesus came into the world to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). There are boys and girls and older people, too, all over the world who are lost in sin with no way to help themselves.

But there are those who already have been rescued — they have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour and know their sins are forgiven. By His death on the cross and the shedding of His precious blood, the Lord Jesus has saved thousands and brought them safe home to heaven.

He is still willing to save any who will trust Him. Has He saved you, or are you still buried in your sins? The Bible says, “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” Hebrews 9:27. If you really want to be saved, you only need to tell the Lord Jesus. He loves you very much and wants you to accept Him as your Saviour. Won’t you do that right now?

“I, even I, am the Lord; and beside Me there is no Saviour.” Isaiah 43:11.

ML-08/11/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Strange Wildebeest

“I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by My great power and by My outstretched arm.” Jeremiah 27:5.

Living in great numbers on the plains of Africa, the wildebeest (wyl-duh-beast), about the size of a horse, is commonly known as a gnu (noo). Looking like a combination of several animals, it does resemble a horned horse or even a buffalo in many ways, but is actually a species of antelope.

Its buffalo-like horns, high on a broad head, spread out saddle-like then curve upward with sharp points that make an effective weapon. Long, scraggly hair hangs below its lower jaw and throat, and a mane atop its head and over its shoulders often drops down to meet the lower hair. The rest of its body has only short hair. A long, rope-like tail, bushy on the end, adds to its odd appearance. It would never win a beauty contest.

Being very playful animals, even adults often kick and jump around for no apparent reason. While they look clumsy on their long thin legs, they can run faster than a racehorse.

Gnus are grass eaters. Those that live in East Africa find a good supply of it during the rainy season. When it turns dry they migrate hundreds of miles in search of more, often in groups of hundreds of thousands, accompanied by other friendly animals and bothered by some not so friendly. Usually they remain away until the last of the year, when fresh rains bring green grass back to the plains they originally left. These migrating groups are quick to stampede if something frightens them. Then they move at high speed, galloping great distances and raising huge clouds of dust.

Bulls sometimes challenge one another, dropping to their knees with heads toward each other, locking horns, each trying to push the other over. Failing, they get up, buck and kick with neither of them seeming to be the victor. Suddenly the fight breaks off and they go quietly about their grazing as if nothing had happened.

Females have just one calf each year, which can stand shakily within minutes after birth and by its second day is able to keep up with the herd. The mother takes good care of it, keeping it clean by licking it and protecting it from lions, hyenas and other enemies.

Although millions of animals on Africa’s plains may never be seen by man, they are always under the watchful care and provision of the One who created them. More important than that, however, is our Creator’s concern for every person on earth. He not only provides for our daily needs, but invites us to know His love and goodness throughout eternity.

Maybe you can recite this verse: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. That is the way to eternal joy and happiness. Can you do more than recite this verse; can you say from your heart, “Yes, I believe; the Lord Jesus Christ is my personal Saviour"?

ML-08/11/1985

"Moose"

Memory Verse: “The Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

In a small town in Ontario, Canada the chief of the volunteer fire department had a nickname. They called him “Moose.” If you had known Moose or had seen him, you would understand why he was called by this name. Moose was at least 61/2 feet tall, he had huge shoulders, and he was very strong.

Moose enjoyed being the fire chief, and he was a good chief. He lived close to the station and was always the first one ready when the alarm rang.

One summer night the alarm rang for a bad fire in a house on the edge of town. Dressing quickly, he drove to the station. Within just a few minutes the first truck left the station with Moose on board.

It was a big fire. Flames were leaping out of the upstairs’ windows in the large two-story house.

Leaping from the truck, Moose called to a neighbor, “Is there anyone inside?”

“Yes, I think there is!” came the answer. “A family with three children lives there. The father works at night, so the mother and children are probably inside!”

Quickly yelling instructions to the other firemen, Moose smashed open the front door with his ax. Flames were everywhere! “Is there anyone inside?... Where’s the family?” his mind raced.

For men, women, boys and girls, the time to be saved is right now! “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2. If you have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, do you realize the danger you are in? “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” Hebrews 9:27. If you were to die today, would you be prepared for eternity? No one likes to think about death, but it is real. For those who face death without having the Lord Jesus as their Saviour, it will be terrifying. They will have to face God in their sins. But for those who know their sins are gone and all trace of sin is washed away by God’s Son, Jesus Christ, the thought of meeting God does not scare them. Being with their Saviour takes away all fear of dying.

How does this happen, you ask? How can I know for sure that I am ready to meet God? The answer is simple. Let Him save you! God is offering to save any who are willing to be saved. All you have to do is admit that as a sinner you cannot save yourself, and believe that Jesus died for you. Don’t turn down God’s offer of free salvation. Just confess to Him that you are a sinner and accept the Lord Jesus as your Saviour. Then you have His promise, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5.

Moose ran up the burning staircase and burst into one bedroom. No one was in there! Then he raced into another bedroom, but no one was in there either! Was the house empty? Flames surrounded him in the hallway. He almost turned back, but then he heard something. He was sure it was a call for help from the other end of the hall. He raced through the flames and found the terrified mother with two children in her arms and her baby still sleeping in the crib.

“Follow me!” Moose ordered as he scooped up the sleeping baby. But the mother did not move. She was frozen with fear!

Moose acted quickly. He picked up the terror-stricken mother, threw her across his shoulders and told her to “hang on!” Then, taking the two older children, one in each arm, he tried to lift the sleeping baby. But there was no way he could hold all of them. Setting one child down, he grasped the clothes of the baby firmly with his teeth, again picked up the child, and started down the burning staircase. Just as he reached the outside door the staircase collapsed behind him. He had gotten them all out just in time! Because of Moose’s quick-thinking bravery, the mother and her three children were saved from a terrible fiery death.

This feat of saving this family on Moose’s part is a picture to us of the much-greater sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. He died to save poor helpless sinners from the everlasting torment of the lake of fire. Why? Because He loves us!

This world will soon be destroyed by the awful judgment of God against sin. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” 1 Timothy 1:15. He is the only hope of salvation, and He waits and longs to save you.

Have you believed on Him? Come to Him now, for “He that believeth... shall be saved.” Mark 16:16.

ML-08/18/1985

Moses and the Ark of Bulrushes

Long ago the children of Israel were slaves in the land of Egypt. Their numbers grew so large that the Egyptians were afraid they might become stronger than themselves and refuse to serve them. So Pharaoh, the cruel Egyptian king, gave orders that every baby boy born to the Israelites should be thrown into the Nile River.

There was great sadness among the parents of all the baby boys who were taken from them and drowned in the river!

There was one mother who feared God and believed that He would help her. When Jochebed’s baby boy was born she just couldn’t let him be taken from her. She hid him in the house for three months, but as he grew older he would cry louder, and she knew she couldn’t hide him much longer.

What could she do? She and her husband Amram probably prayed much to the Lord about it. Finally, Jochebed decided to make an ark (a small floating bed) out of bulrushes. She smeared the outside of it with slime and pitch to make it waterproof. Then she laid her baby in the little ark, carried it to the river, and set it among the reeds that grew in the shallow water. Leaving the baby’s older sister Miriam hidden to watch the baby, she sadly went home.

A little later Pharaoh’s daughter came down to wash herself in the river. She saw the little ark and told one of her maids to get it and bring it to her. How surprised she must have been to find a baby inside. The baby was crying, and this was used by God to make the women feel sorry for the baby and want to save it. Just then Miriam came out of hiding and volunteered to get a nurse to take care of the baby. When Pharaoh’s daughter agreed, Miriam brought her own mother. Now Jochebed could openly take care of her son without being afraid. She could love him as much as she wanted and even be paid by Pharaoh’s daughter for taking care of him. How she and Amram must have thanked God for the way He had arranged things! But is there anything that is too hard for the Lord?

Pharaoh’s daughter named the little boy “Moses,” which means “drawn out,” because she drew him out of the river. He became her adopted son, and when he grew up we see that he was the man chosen by God to deliver His people out of Egypt and to lead them toward the land that had been promised to them. So that is how God honored a mother who trusted Him for the care of her son. Are you trusting in Him?

“Them that honor Me I will honor.” 1 Samuel 2:30.

ML-08/18/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The so-Called Flying Lemur - Part 1

“These wait all upon Thee; that Thou mayest give them their meat in due season. That Thou givest them they gather: Thou openest Thine hand, they are filled with good.” Psalms 104:27,28.

Although called a flying lemur, the cat-sized animal we will learn about today is not really part of the lemur family, but is properly called a colugo. It lives in the forests of southeast Asia where it spends most of its life high in the trees. It is a pretty animal with brownish gray fur, or light brown spotted with white. As the Creator has done for so many animals and birds, the colugo has been provided with good coloring for concealment in the trees.

Colugos are night workers. Resting in daylight, some curl up in holes in tree trunks, and others hang from branches or big palm leaves, gripping them firmly with sharp curved claws. They never seem to have to drink water, securing all the moisture they need either from their food or by licking rain water from leaves.

The colugo has a long tail and, like some monkeys, it can curl it tightly around a tree limb so it can use both hands while eating leaves or fruit, or keep it safe while asleep.

This is the largest of all “flying” mammals. Its long, slender, flexible underbody is covered by loose skin that stretches tight when its legs are spread apart, providing a flat, kite-like area. In this way they travel from tree to tree, gliding swiftly as much as 200 feet. Of course they cannot actually fly, but they appear to as they make frequent trips between trees. In gliding they always land lower on the tree they are going to than the point from which they take off. Since they have to be able to climb trunks and cling to branches, the Creator has given them strong legs and sharp claws.

While gliding through the air, the colugo’s tail acts as a rudder as it leans its body from one side to another to keep a true course. When preparing to land, its tail lifts high, acting as a brake; at the same time it raises the front of its body so it comes in for a perfect landing.

Females have just one baby a year. A short while after birth the baby learns to cling to the soft silky fur under its mother’s stomach and to hang on tightly, upside down, when she glides between trees.

These rather cute animals live in a warm climate and do not need to store food as some others do. They seem happy, rarely fighting, innocently unaware of the way their Creator, the Lord God, cares for them. But boys and girls, as well as adults, are taught in the Bible that He is the loving provider to us of every good and perfect gift. Above all, He has given the gift of the Lord Jesus as Saviour to any who will believe on Him. Animals cannot give thanks, but we have no excuse for not doing so, as the Bible verse says: “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:20. Don’t forget to give thanks to God.

In the next issue we will tell of some of the true lemurs in Australia that also glide between trees.

ML-08/18/1985

Run for Your Life!

Memory Verse: “Flee from the wrath to come.” Matthew 3:7

What a wonderful vacation camping! The national forest near Mount St. Helens was the most beautiful place Mike Moore had ever been. He knew that there had been predictions that the mountain would erupt, but he and his family thought they were a safe distance away. A safe distance?... hardly! At 8:32 a.m. on Sunday morning May 18, 1980 the mountain erupted! Landslides!... hot gasses!... floods!... suffocating ash! These and other experiences faced Mike and his family! They had to get out — but how? The roads were destroyed! There was only one thing left to do... walk.

They trudged mile after mile down the Green River trail — seven miles through swirling, choking clouds of ash. There seemed to be no escape. But then when they had just about given up hope, they heard a helicopter. Frantically Mike and his wife waved their arms. They were seen... and rescued.

Why were they rescued? Because they signaled for help. By their actions the helicopter pilot saw them and knew that they needed to be rescued. He was able to save them.

There is Someone who is able to save you if you will admit you need to be saved and ask Him. The Lord Jesus Christ wants to save you. He is completely able and just waiting for you to ask Him. He wants you to see your great need as a sinner, and that it is only His work on the cross that can rescue you from the punishment you deserve for your sins. Won’t you stop trudging mile after mile in your sins. Look at the cross! Look to the Lord Jesus and accept Him as your Saviour! “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13.

David Johnston was also near Mount St. Helens when it erupted. For him it was a job, not a vacation that put him there. He was a geologist for the United States Geological Survey. He was stationed at a camp six miles away from the mountaintop, and he knew the mountain was a time bomb, ticking away. But his job was to record what goes on just before an eruption so that scientists could learn more about volcanoes. He told his friends, “I’m sitting on a powder keg, but nobody knows how long the fuse is.” To his parents he wrote, “The volcano will give a warning before it erupts, with enough time to evacuate the danger area.” Perhaps that was why there was no panic, only excitement in his call that morning. His last words were, “Vancouver, this is it! This is it!” But there was no time to evacuate the danger area. The super-hot gases traveled at 200 miles an hour. His body was never found.

Reid Blackburn’s job was not so dangerous. He was photographing the mountain from a campsite eight miles away. Surely, that was a safe distance. He took four pictures of the explosion and then ran for his car. But it was too late to escape. Four feet of ash covered the campsite and extended another ten miles beyond it. His body was found later in his car.

But what do the experiences in this story have to do with you and me? David Johnston said that Mount St. Helens was a “time bomb.” We know from the Bible that time is ticking away for this world’s destruction. One Bible verse says, “Flee from the wrath to come.” Matthew 3:7. But where can we flee? How can we escape? There is only one answer — flee to Jesus Christ! Just as the safety of Mike and his family depended on help coming from above, your safety also comes from above — from Jesus who died so that you could be saved. Won’t you accept His salvation now?

“Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” Isaiah 45:22.

ML-08/25/1985

"Look What Followed Me Home!"

One afternoon as Debbie was walking home from school she found a stray puppy. It was just sitting on the grass in an empty lot. She stopped and petted it for a few minutes. It even rolled over and let her scratch its tummy.

Debbie started walking home and only had gone a little way when she noticed the puppy following her. “You’d better go home,” Debbie told him and started on her way again. But when she looked back, the puppy was still following her.

The puppy was lost and did not know which way to go. It followed her all the way home.

“Look what followed me home from school, Mom! Can we keep him?”

Her mother picked up the puppy and looked him over. Then she said to Debbie, “He looks well-cared for, Debbie. Although he doesn’t have a tag on his collar, I’m sure he has a home. He belongs to someone maybe a boy or a girl just like you. Let’s keep him here and see if we can find his owner.”

After giving the puppy something to eat, Debbie put him in the garage to keep him from running away.

“How can we find out who he belongs to?” she asked.

“I guess the best way is to make some signs and put them up where people will see them. You can start making some signs right now, if you want to.”

Debbie sat at the kitchen table and worked on a sign. It read:

FOUND: BROWN AND WHITE PUPPY

CALL: 367-2905

Debbie made up five of these signs and walked back along the way to school. She got permission to put three of the signs in store windows that she passed. Then she hung one sign on an old nail in a tree in the empty lot where she first found the puppy. She took the last sign to school with her the next morning and tacked it on the bulletin board.

Two days passed, and no one called about the lost puppy. But then on the third day the mother of a little boy called. She had seen the sign in one of the store windows. When she described the puppy they had lost to Debbie’s mother, it sounded like the puppy Debbie had found. “We’ll come right over to see,” the lady said.

Fifteen minutes later they drove into the driveway. Debbie was glad to take the little boy out to the garage to show him the puppy. When the puppy and the boy saw each other the boy yelled, “Nickie, I found you!” The puppy barked and wagged his tail with delight and licked every part of the boy he could reach. Soon a happy boy and his puppy were on their way home together.

Like the little puppy, there are lost children. But instead of being lost from home, they are lost in sin and do not know which way to turn. But the Lord Jesus loves big and little children and wants to take them in His arms and save them. He says, “The Son of man [the Lord Jesus] is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10.

When the little boy and the lost puppy found each other, they were happy. When the lost sinner and the seeking Saviour meet, how wonderful it is. The Lord Jesus died so that we can have our sins washed away. God will accept us when our sins are gone. He brings us into His house of love, feeds us, takes care of us and makes us happy. This happiness will go on forever for those who accept Him as their Saviour. They will be with Him in heaven for eternity.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.” John 6:47.

ML-08/25/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: True Flying (Gliding) Lemurs of Australia - Part 2

“Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.” Revelation 4:11.

In the previous issue we learned of an interesting animal in southeast Asia, incorrectly named the flying lemur, because it is not a lemur at all. It is correctly called a colugo.

Australia is the home of most of the true flying (gliding) lemurs of which there are at least five varieties. These are, for the most part, cute little animals with soft pretty fur.

The largest of the lemurs (three feet long) is called the greater glider. These are usually golden brown or cinnamon red set off with a pretty white throat and underparts. Its inquisitive face is topped with wide-spread ears and large brown eyes. It has a pink button nose and a long furry tail with a feather-duster tip. The tail acts as a rudder as the lemur spreads its legs and glides through the air steering and keeping it on course. It glides from one tree to another —sometimes as much as 300 feet, dodging branches along the way. Like the pandas, they mostly eat leaves from certain eucalyptus trees.

The feather-tailed glider is the smallest of all of the lemurs. It has only about a three-inch body and a tail of the same length. This little fellow is very tidy and keeps itself clean by wetting its hands to clean its snout, ears and whole face with long strokes. Whiskers are cleaned by sliding them through its moistened hands. All of the members of the feather-tailed group, both large and small, take long rest periods during the hottest time of the year, living off accumulated fat in their tails.

Another small one is called the yellow-bellied glider and is interesting because of the bubbly whistling noise it makes while gliding though the air.

In addition there are the sugar and squirrel gliders, neatly clothed in gray fur edged in white with black on their underparts. They are very active gliders, but cannot glide as far as the “greater” species. Both the sugar and squirrel live primarily on nectar found in eucalyptus blossoms, which they lick out with their tongues. However, they like other food, too, including large and small insects and fruits.

Some animals, like the sloth, are extremely lazy and do not keep themselves clean. Others, like the wolverine, have mean tempers and like to ruin people’s property and make a terrible mess of it. It almost seems as if they want to insult the One who created and cares for them. But these lively lemurs, with good habits and clean ways, cause us to think of the Lord God’s special pleasure in creating and watching over them, as the above Bible verse expresses so well. We can take pleasure, too, in seeing the wise and loving hand of the Creator in all He has done and is doing.

(Another group of lemurs will be discussed in the next issue.)

ML-08/25/1985

Gertrude

Memory Verse: “Be sure your sin will find you out.” Numbers 32:23

Gertrude was not a girl, or a dog, or a cat, or even a gerbil. Gertrude was the name given to a cow by Gary, the farmer who owned her. How did she get a name like that? Well, it really wasn’t her full name. She earned the name Galloping Gertrude, but she was called Gertrude for short.

How did she earn her name? Well...Galloping Gertrude liked to run. She ran down roads, across fields and over (and sometimes through) fences. She seemed to like running... but never in the direction that Farmer Gary wanted her to go.

Let’s start from the beginning of the story. Gertrude was only one of many cows that Farmer Gary had on his farm. These cows would all have a calf each spring. Gary would keep the calves for a year and then sell them, but he kept the cows. Gertrude had been on the farm for about three years. Each spring she had a new little calf, and she was a good mother.

One day it was time for Farmer Gary to move some of the cows with their calves from the barnyard to a pasture across the road. In the confusion of sorting out some of the cows and their calves, Gertrude’s calf was herded off to the pasture, but Gertrude was left behind with the other cows in the barnyard.

For almost two days Gertrude mooed and mooed in the barnyard. She couldn’t find her calf. She didn’t know where it was.

Hearing her mooing and not seeing her calf beside her, Farmer Gary realized what must have happened. He decided it would be easiest to move Gertrude to the pasture across the road where her calf was. That day some friends were at his house. With their help moving Gertrude should be easy. There would be four people to direct one cow out the barnyard gate, down the lane, across the gravel road, and through the gate into the pasture where her calf was. There was lots of time to move her that evening before it got dark.

Boys and girls, do you know that God has only the best planned for you, if you will follow Him? First and most important, He wants you to be saved from your sins. Even though we are sinners He has provided a way for each of us to enter heaven. That “gate” is by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ, His Son, as our own Saviour. The Lord Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6.

After we are saved we must let Him guide us. Often though, we would rather go our own way, doing what we want to do. We should ask, “How can I know which way the Lord Jesus wants me to go?” We can find the answer in God’s Word, the Bible: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalms 119:105. If we follow the directions that God gives in the Bible, our path in this world will follow what He has planned for us.

The Bible sometimes compares people to sheep — “All we like sheep have gone astray.” Isaiah 53:6. But this story is about a cow that went astray, instead of a sheep. It all began when she headed out the barnyard gate. She was supposed to turn right to go down the lane. Farmer Gary was standing on the left side, blocking her from turning that way. Across the lane from the barnyard gate, he had parked his pickup truck to block the opening into another field. Farther down the lane his wife and their friends would direct her across the road and through the pasture gate. All Gertrude had to do was quietly walk out of the barnyard, down the lane, and right into the pasture where her calf was waiting. It should have been easy because everyone was sure Gertrude wanted to find her calf.

But it wasn’t easy! One thing led to another. First Gertrude ran right around the truck which blocked the opening into the other field. She ran all around that field with Farmer Gary right behind her, trying to get her headed back to the lane. Then things got worse. Instead of going back through the opening to the lane, Gertrude found a break in the fence and got into a neighbor’s pasture. Running in there, she got into trouble. She stumbled headfirst into a creek, then broke through several fences, ending up in the neighbor’s barnyard with their cows!

Sometimes we make our own problems just by going our own way. It may seem small at first, perhaps just one wrong turn. Then, just like Gertrude, we end up in lots of trouble. We may get hurt, we may do things that are wrong, and we may get mixed up with the wrong kind of people. Going astray for Gertrude led her far away from her home pasture. As sinners we also have gotten so far away from God that we cannot find our own way back. God knew this, and because of His great love for sinners, He sent the Lord Jesus Christ into the world to save everyone who would believe in Him. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. As this verse explains, all we have to do is believe, and we have everlasting life. Isn’t this something that you want? Then why not accept the Lord Jesus as your Saviour right now?

Gertrude had more problems now. Her wanderings had taken her into unfamiliar territory. The cows in the neighbor’s barnyard didn’t like her there and kept butting at her. Finally she jumped over the fence. “Free at last,” she may have thought, but she wasn’t! She had jumped out of a cow lot into a pig lot. Gertrude, a clean, beautiful cow, had gotten in with a bunch of dirty pigs!

This reminds us of the young man in Luke 15 who decided to go his own way and ended up not only feeding pigs, but having to eat what the pigs ate. Not following God’s plan will always lead us farther and farther away from Him. If you have not accepted the Lord Jesus as your Saviour, you are headed in the wrong direction — away from God. Won’t you stop right now and ask yourself, “Where am I headed?” You have two choices. You are either headed down the broad way that leads to destruction, or you are on the narrow path (God’s way) that leads to heaven (Matt. 7:13,14).

It was at this point that Gertrude turned back. Farmer Gary was still trying to guide her in the right direction. He patiently tried to direct her out of the pig lot onto the lane again. But Gertrude still wouldn’t co-operate. She jumped another fence, this time back onto Farmer Gary’s farm and galloped across his field, over another fence, and out onto the lane. She galloped across the road and headed right to the pasture where she was to go in the first place. But instead of going in through the opened gate, she jumped over the fence, breaking it in the process. At last, an hour later, she was in her home pasture with her own calf and friendly cows. But what a path of unhappiness and destruction she left behind — fences to mend, apologies to the neighbors, frustrations and tiredness on everyone’s part — all because she wanted to go her own way.

If you haven’t done so already, why not accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour right now. He is patiently waiting for you. He loves you and wants you to be saved. Won’t you let Him save you?

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him.” Revelation 3:20.

ML-09/01/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: More About Lemurs - Part 3

“Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth?” Jeremiah 23:24.

The interesting animals we will learn about today are found only in the deep forests of Madagascar and are not the same as those called flying lemurs in Australia, discussed in our last issue.

The species from Madagascar comes in a variety of sizes, the largest being the indri which has a two-foot-long body with a stubby tail. The smallest is the mouse lemur, just four inches or so, plus a tail of the same length. It weighs only about two ounces and could easily be mistaken for a mouse.

Another large one is the red-ruffed, which is slightly smaller than the indri. Its main characteristic is that it usually walks on all fours with its tail held high. Its silky fur is a rich reddish-orange with contrasting white patches, black face, hands and feet. Its life is spent high in the trees, walking along the branches and making unusually great leaps between trees. The red-ruffed mother parks her little one on a branch while she looks for food, but others take their little ones with them, clinging tightly to their mother’s fur as she travels.

The mongoose lemur, about half the size of the indri, is a pretty combination of white, tan and gray and has unusually strong, flexible hands for gripping branches. The brown, about the same size except for a longer tail, is brown all over except for its black face and tail.

One that breaks the rules and spends most of its time on the ground is the ring-tailed variety, getting its name because of its long full tail boldly marked with black and white rings.

Most varieties have slender bodies and narrow, pointed snouts with eyes that can see on the darkest night. Leaves of trees, fruit, berries, insects, flowers, bark and tree gum represent the average food choices of these appealing animals.

For matters of safety, all lemurs go after their food at night and, as mentioned, God has given them extra-special night vision to take care of this. If they could ever stop to think about it, no doubt they would consider themselves to be well hidden and difficult to see. But there is One who sees them as well in the dark as in the daylight — the One who is their Creator and of whom it is said: “Yea, the darkness hideth not from Thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to Thee.” Psalms 139:12.

They have no way of knowing they are always looked on by One who cares for them. But we know from the Bible that the Lord God not only always sees us, but is “beholding the evil and the good.” This should make us stop to think about what our behavior means to Him at all times, and to ask His help in finding more ways to please Him.

ML-09/01/1985

Saved at Sea

Memory Verse: “The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10

Our story took place during the first years of World War I. England’s factories were heavily damaged, so the United States shipped equipment over to England. The ships carrying the equipment were always in danger, and much depended on the equipment safely reaching England’s shores.

Jamie McClare’s whole life revolved around the sea. When men were urgently needed for the Merchant Marine, he left his fishing boat in Maine and volunteered not only himself, but his Newfoundland dog Blackie as well. The Newfoundland is a remarkable breed of dog known for its faithfulness, good nature and lifesaving instincts.

The captain of Jamie’s ship was glad to have Blackie on board. He had heard of the amazing things Newfoundlands can do, including rescuing drowning sailors. Newfoundlands have been known to dive 20 feet under water to save someone who is drowning. Since they have been bred as working dogs for fishing ships, it is almost as if they have developed a sixth sense for the sea. They are very large and their love for people is just as large. They cannot see a person in danger without coming to their rescue.

Their first Atlantic crossing was almost over, and Blackie had become friends with everyone on board — from the ship’s captain down to the ship’s cook who fed him. They all felt more comfortable with this lumbering giant of a dog strolling the decks in the tense atmosphere of war.

One dark, dreary morning when the ship was 100 miles from England’s shore, the roar of a plane engine was heard. The plane was hidden by the heavy gray clouds until it was right over them. Before the crew knew what was happening they were under attack. In the confusion all the sailors ran for cover... except Tom. A ricocheting bullet struck him in the arm and knocked him off the ship. He fell over the railing into the cold, dark waters of the Atlantic. Blackie saw Tom go overboard. Without waiting for even a moment, Blackie leaped into the water and with powerful strokes swam to Tom just as he was going under. Tom put his good arm around the dog’s neck and held onto him until a lifeboat came about 20 minutes later. Both Tom and Blackie made it back to the ship safely. Tom knew he owed his life to the lifesaving instincts of Jamie’s dog, and he would never forget it.

Everyone of us who knows the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour realizes that He came to rescue us, too. Not thinking of the pain or the agony to Himself, He went to Calvary’s cross. Why did He do this? Because He loved us and saw that we would die in our sins unless He came and took our punishment instead.

When Tom was wounded and fell into the Atlantic Ocean, he knew he could not save himself. Have you ever seen that without the Lord Jesus there is no hope for you? Has the truth that you have sinned ever bothered you? Have you felt how helpless you are before a holy God? Have you ever felt the great depths of everlasting punishment facing you as Tom felt the depths of the ocean pulling on him?

If you haven’t, won’t you think about what God’s Word tells us in Romans 3:23, that “all have sinned,” and that “all” includes you. Having sinned, you have “come short of the glory of God,” that is, you will never make it into heaven as you are.

“Oh,” you might say to defend yourself, “I have sinned, but I will save myself.”

No, God will not accept our “saving ourselves.” We must be saved His way — by admitting that we are sinners and by accepting His Son as our Saviour. Tom was wounded and saw that he could not save himself. If it weren’t for Blackie, Tom would have been lost at sea.

God’s good news is now going out to everyone. Each person who accepts the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour will be safely free from the punishment of his sins in hell and will be in heaven with the Lord Jesus for eternity. Won’t you accept Him as your Saviour today?

“Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” Isaiah 45:22.

ML-09/08/1985

Amy's Kitten

Amy was playing in the yard one summer evening. She was catching fireflies and putting them into a jar. She enjoyed watching them light up in the jar.

As she chased one firefly that was near the back fence, she saw something crawl between the pickets. Looking closely, since it was now nearly dark, she found a little gray kitten. It was a dirty, skinny kitten, but as it rubbed against Amy’s leg she could hear it purring. She felt sorry for the stray kitten. Picking it up, she carried it into the kitchen. “Look what I found,” she announced. “A kitty!”

As soon as Amy’s daddy saw the kitten he told her to take it back outside and let it go. She could feed it something on the porch first, but a cat was not going to live in their house. Amy cried and pleaded with her daddy to please let her keep it. Her daddy loved Amy very much and didn’t like to make her unhappy. But he did not like cats. He told her to put it out on the porch for now, and he would think about it.

How could he keep Amy happy without keeping the kitten, he wondered. He decided that the next day he would take the kitten out to Grandpa’s farm and then buy Amy a new doll. “That should make her happy,” he told himself.

After Amy went to bed Daddy went out on the porch to see if the kitten was still there. When he couldn’t find it he figured it probably had run away. “So I won’t have to take it out to the farm, but I’ll still get her the doll since she will still be upset about it,” he explained to his wife.

She smiled and suggested, “Maybe you’d better look over there in the corner of the porch in Amy’s doll bed.”

There Daddy found the doll on the floor, a saucer of milk, and the kitten sound asleep in the doll bed.

“Amy put it there,” her mother said. “That’s how much she loves that little kitten. She gave it her favorite doll’s bed. Don’t you think you could let her keep it?”

Daddy did think about it. The next morning he went into Amy’s room and gently wakened her. “You can keep the little kitty,” he told her.

Oh, how happy she was! Nothing could have pleased her more, and she threw her arms around her daddy’s neck and gave him a big hug and a kiss.

We may not feel like that kitty, but in God’s eyes we are all like the little stray kitten — dirty, hungry and friendless. Even worse, we are sinners. But God still loves us, and He sent His beloved Son to die for us. “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8. Those who come to the Lord Jesus with their problem of sin will find the warmest of welcomes. He never turns anyone away, and says, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37. He washes our sins away; He comforts and feeds us. He also shows us not only how much He loves us, but that He will never let us go. One day very soon He has promised to come to take us to the Father’s house in heaven to be with Him forever. Oh what a wonderful Saviour He is. Is He your Saviour?

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” 1 Timothy 1:15.

ML-09/08/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Fierce Looking Lobster

“Behold, God is great, and we know Him not... Behold, He spreadeth His light upon [the earth], and covereth the bottom of the sea.” Job 36:26,30.

Lobsters are weird-looking creatures of the sea which are easily recognized by their armor plate, big flat tail, spindly legs and immense pincers. Dark colored (they don’t turn red until cooked), they blend in with the ocean floor. Eyes, with thousands of facets, are atop two stalks, and two wire-like antennae that detect food or danger extend out in front of them. They have only a pinhead-size brain. They do not have ears, but listen through the sensitive hairs on their legs.

Five pairs of legs carry on most of the work. The first pair are also enormous pincers which look too big for their body. The heavy crusher and cutters of these are for defense, but also are used to crush shells of clams, oysters, etc., to get at the meaty parts. The large tail has four pairs of swimmerets, providing power for swimming or scooting away backwards when frightened.

Male lobsters are cranky and hostile, and it is not unusual for them to lose a claw or leg, which amazingly grows back eventually, but until then it looks lopsided.

A lobster never stops growing and reaches thirty-five pounds or more if it lives long enough. But its armor-like shell doesn’t grow with it. Every summer all parts of the shell break open; the occupant then slowly backs out and discards it. Without its shell it is defenseless and hides under a rock or piece of seaweed while its body swells about one-third larger. Then a shell begins to develop again, and before long it ventures out in its new suit of armor.

The female lays thousands of eggs each year, carrying them safely under her large tail for several weeks before releasing them. Hatching from its egg about a year later, each larva floats around in the ocean currents, sometimes traveling great distances before changing into a two-inch transparent body without a shell. It is then very vulnerable to attack by other sea creatures that are looking for such tender morsels. If it escapes all of them and grows to maturity, then it may become a victim of a lobster trap and wind up on someone’s supper table.

The result is that not many have a chance of growing up. No doubt this is why the Creator provided the female with the ability to produce so many eggs. Those that manage to escape all the hazards can live as many as fifty years, but few do.

Some might think God would not be concerned about lobsters on the ocean floor, but the light of His vision goes even to “the bottom of the sea” (see the above verse), and He does watch over all He has created. Just hear what else the Bible says about this: “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest [visible] in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” Hebrews 4:13. This includes each one of us. Have you ever thanked Him for His care over you? But more important, have you thanked Him for offering you salvation through faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ?

ML-09/08/1985

"Hang on!"

Memory Verse: “He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:18

“Hang on, we’re coming!’ yelled Gil to his friends Mitch and Rick. They were clinging to a rock in the middle of the Nacimiento River with their friend Brian Miller who was unconscious. Mitch, Rick and Brian along with six of their friends were spending their spring vacation from school on a camping trip in the rugged wilderness of the California mountains. The three boys, all members of their high school swimming team, had challenged the strength of the Nacimiento River. The river was running full with its ice-cold spring runoff from the melting snow in the mountains. They had challenged the river... and failed.

Their adventure had started about an hour earlier. Wearing rubber wet suits, the three had used their strong, young muscles to battle upstream, walking and swimming against the current to the base of a waterfall. The challenge was fun and exciting — their strength against the roaring power of the river. From rock to rock they fought, until finally they reached the base of the falls where the river poured down the hillside among giant boulders.

They laughed and relaxed while they rested on a boulder, getting their strength back. They looked forward to the “float trip” back down the river. Before they had started upstream they decided for safety reasons to keep themselves roped together. That way they knew that if one of them got carried away by the current, the other two could stop him.

All went well on the way back until they reached a three-foot wide canyon of rocks which channeled the full force of the river through this narrow opening. Coming upstream they had clambered around this chasm knowing that they could not fight against it.

Deciding to ride the river through the rushing chasm, one after another they dove into the water. They quickly found they had underestimated its strength. Slammed and bashed from rock to rock it was all Rick and Mitch could do to come to the surface in the violent water. Slammed against a rock Rick was able to grab it and hold on. Then he helped Mitch to climb on the rock... but where was Brian?

At first neither boy could see him. Then in the foaming current they saw him, pinned face down against a rock, his head under water. They yanked on the rope connecting them, but it was caught on another rock. They both left the protection of their rock and swam to their friend and tried to lift his head above the water, but the rope held it down.

The three boys had challenged the strength of the river and failed. Now they were in real trouble—trouble that they couldn’t get out of by themselves. They needed help, and they needed it fast!

How many of you have realized that you are also in great danger? “From what?” you ask. The answer is, “From your sins.” The Bible says that you are a sinner. As a sinner you are separated from God, because God hates sin and cannot have any sin in His presence. If you should die while still in your sins, you will spend all eternity in the lake of fire, separated from God. There is no greater danger!

But there is a remedy for your sin. Because God loves you so much, He formed a plan to blot out your sins, and that is by accepting His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour. God in His great love for you saw that you needed to be rescued and sent His Son to save you. The Lord Jesus willingly went to the cross and there was punished for the sins of all who would accept Him as their Saviour — their punishment is canceled. “He that believeth on Him [Jesus Christ] is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:18.

Do you want to escape the punishment that your sins deserve? Then come to the Lord Jesus. Confess that you are a sinner and that you need and want to be saved. He will hear you and save you: “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1. “Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalms 50:15.

The boys’ calls for help were heard by the others in their group who were at a campsite near the river. Running to the river, they were able to pass a knife to the boys on the rock who cut the rope, freeing Brian. Pulling him up on the rock, they were shocked at his condition. Bruised and scratched from being smashed against the rock, Brian lay without a sign of life, his face an awful shade of blue. Was he dead?

It was Mitch who acted first. Although they could not detect a heartbeat or a pulse, they knew what to do. Emergency life-saving procedures were started immediately.

Your heart may still be beating quite strongly, but time is quickly passing. Why not take the necessary step for your eternal salvation right now? You only need to ask the Lord Jesus to save you. He is ready right now, willing and completely able to save anyone who in faith turns to Him and says, “Lord, save me.”

While Doug, one of the nine boys, was sent back to the truck parked a mile away to get help, the others worked on Brian. Taking turns, they gave him artificial breathing and heartbeat aid.

Once every second they used CPR to artificially pump Brian’s heart. Every five seconds they would blow air into his lungs. Every few minutes they would stop and listen, hoping to hear a shallow breath. But each time Brian only lay still.

Thirty minutes passed, but still there was no sign of life... thirty-five... forty.... Was it too late? Had Brian died?

Suddenly Rick cried, “He moved!”

But had he? The others wondered. Checking his pulse they could begin to feel it faintly. “Keep working on him!”

Every few minutes the boys would again check Brian’s pulse. His heartbeat was gradually coming back, getting stronger. But they knew that they had to get him to a hospital soon. Where was Doug? He was their only hope.

It was two more hours before the boys heard the unmistakable helicopter noise. They waved and cheered when they saw the red cross of the ambulance helicopter above them. The lifeline that was lowered was the means of eventually getting Brian to a hospital. He regained consciousness after another 48 hours and eventually fully recovered.

Calvary’s cross, red because of the blood of Jesus Christ, can be your lifeline — the only lifeline that promises everlasting life. It is being offered to you right now, perhaps for the last time. It would have been foolish for Brian not to have been placed in the helicopter that came to rescue him. It would be far more foolish for you to refuse the salvation offered by God’s lifeline — the Lord Jesus Christ.

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” 1 Timothy 1:15.

ML-09/15/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Marmot - (Mountain Whistler)

“For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.” Psalms 50:10,11.

Hikers, enjoying the quiet of the high elevations of many mountains in the western United States, Canada and Alaska, are sometimes startled to hear a sharp whistle nearby. They will usually stop, thinking someone is trying to get their attention. But if they look closely they are pretty sure to discover that the whistler is a mountain marmot. They will probably find it perched on top of the rock slabs, carefully looking them over.

The marmot is about the same size and appearance as a beaver. It is the largest member of the squirrel family. Short-legged and with its flat furry tail stretched out behind, it looks much at ease with its small ears perked up and its dark eyes closely watching the hiker. But if the hiker should start to climb toward this reddish-furred sentinel, a sharper whistle would warn all other marmots to run into their burrows, which it also would do. Soon it would cautiously poke its head out, and if the danger has disappeared, give an appropriate whistle to let its companions know the coast is clear. If, however, the threat is still there, a final shrill whistle will tell the colony to stay in their burrows for a long time. It is not hard to see why they are called whistlers, is it?

Aside from the warning whistles, large groups communicate with one another in whistle-language (actually just calls that sound like whistles), and it is an unforgettable experience to hear this melody on a mountain slope.

Expert excavators, each family digs its own burrow which is from 10 to 25 feet long. It has an entrance under the shelter of a rock which is big enough to insure that no bear or coyote can shove it aside. At the end of each burrow, a den is lined with moss and grass, and space is reserved to store food for use when retiring in the fall before hibernating. Frequently, two burrows lead to one den which provides a safety factor for quick entry and an extra means of escape if necessary. Retiring for the winter with fattened stomachs dragging on the ground, they are well prepared for hibernation until spring — all these things telling of the Creator’s care over them.

Usually two to six pups are born in the spring and a few weeks later they begin to wander outside. They stay with their parents through the summer and following winter. The youngsters playfully roll and tumble together as parents watch, and all have a happy relationship, nuzzling each other and stroking with their paws.

We read in the Bible, “O Lord, Thou preservest man and beast. How excellent is Thy loving-kindness, O God!” Psalms 36:6,7. The marmots have no way of knowing of the Creator’s watchful care. But we who have been more favored than any other creature are told in God’s holy Word, the Bible, of His physical care. We also read of His love that has provided everlasting life for all who accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their own Saviour. How thankful we should be for such loving care. Have you thanked Him?

ML-09/15/1985

"I'm Alive!"

Memory Verse: “I, even I, am the Lord; and beside Me there is no savior.” Isaiah 43:11

“I wonder why it’s so quiet,” thought Walt Yates as he seemed to waken suddenly from a fitful sleep. “I know, it has stopped raining,” he said out loud to himself.

For the first time since his helicopter had crashed in the wilderness of British Columbia, the rain had stopped. Later that afternoon the sun was shining through the canopy of the black spruce forest.

It had been seven days since mechanical problems with his helicopter had forced him down on a trip from Fort Nelson, B. C. to his home in Texas. Now, perhaps, the search planes who knew his planned course could start looking for him.

The seven days had been very difficult. In terrible pain from broken ribs, he had struggled to construct a shelter from the burned-out wreckage. He had also found a small amount of food and a bucket which he could use to catch rain water.

Walt knew that his rescue would be difficult. The helicopter’s rotors had cut a hole straight down through the 40 feet of dense growth. The search pilot would have to fly directly over the spot to see the wreckage. “I must be prepared to signal,” Walt thought. “It’s the only way they’ll see me.”

Walt recognized how serious and dangerous his condition was. He was lost in a vast wilderness with only the bare necessities for survival. He was injured, and even if he weren’t, the marsh under the trees would not allow him to hike out. He knew he was hopelessly lost and would die if he were not rescued soon.

If you have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you are hopelessly lost in your sins. According to the Bible, God’s Word, each of us is a sinner. “All have sinned.” Romans 3:23. It also says in that same chapter in Romans, “There is none righteous, no, not one” (vs. 10) and, “there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” (vs. 12)

This describes the condition of each person. It describes you if you cannot truthfully say, “Jesus Christ is my Saviour.” You are trapped in the wilderness of sin with no hope of getting out by yourself. What you need is someone to help you. That person is the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus knew that He was the only one who could save sinners. He said while on earth that “no man cometh unto the Father [God], but by Me.” John 14:6. He knew what had to be done to rescue us, and His love caused Him to come to this sinful world. He went to the cross, and there was punished for the sins of all who would accept Him. He did it all! There is nothing left for us to do except to turn to Him and say, “Lord Jesus, save me.” Have you done this? Have you realized just how much you need to be saved and turned to the only Saviour of sinners? “I, even I, am the Lord; and beside Me there is no saviour.” Isaiah 43:11.

Walt had a few matches in his coat that he used to keep a fire going for warmth. He knew that if he could get enough smoke from his fire, it would help attract the search planes. He searched for moss and green limbs that could be quickly added to the fire to get it to smoke. Later in the day, hearing a plane, he mounded his fire to produce smoke. But the wind played a cruel trick. When the smoke reached treetop level the wind currents blew it back down! The planes flew by four times, but did not see the smoke nor the wreckage.

This will not happen when a sinner turns to the Saviour. The searchers for Walt in the plane were only men. They can only see with their eyes. The smoke could not be seen, so Walt was not rescued. But the Lord Jesus is not only a man, He is God. And as God He can see exactly where we are and knows everything about us. It was said of Him, “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1. Turn to the Saviour right now and confess that you are a sinner and accept Him as your Saviour. “He that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” John 11:25.

Six more days of rain and fog kept the search planes on the ground. During that time Walt lived on wild berries and water. He also prayed that the rain would stop. He knew that time was getting short. He could not last much longer. He needed to be rescued quickly.

Fourteen days after the crash he heard a plane. He looked up and saw the aircraft pass directly over him. It circled and came back. Walt waved his arms — there was no time to work on the fire. “I’m alive!” he shouted. “Don’t go away!” The plane dipped its wings, a signal that the crew had seen him. Tears of relief streamed down his face as he kept shouting, “I’m saved! I’m saved!” As the aircraft continued to circle while radioing for a helicopter, Walt lay back and rested.

Fifteen minutes later a large yellow rescue helicopter hovered over him. Two rescue workers were lowered on a cable. These members of the Search and Rescue Squad strapped Walt securely in a basket and lifted him into the helicopter. “You’re okay now,” said one. Walt hugged him and hoarsely said, “Thank you! You saved my life!”

Help and rescue for Walt came from above. That is where salvation for sinners comes from, too. Call on Him right now! “To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” Hebrews 3:7,8.

“For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry.” Hebrews 10:37.

ML-09/22/1985

"My Daddy Knows"

A little boy whose father was a miner was waiting at the top of the coal mine for his father one afternoon. As he waited patiently for the men to finish their work shift, a man walking by the entrance asked him what he was doing there.

“I’m waiting for my daddy to come out of the mine,” he answered.

“You’ll never be able to find your daddy,” the man told him. “There will be 700 men coming out of that mine. All their faces will be black with coal dust and their heads will be covered with helmets. You won’t know which one is your daddy. You’d better go on home to wait for him, son.”

The little boy had a good answer. “But my daddy will know me, mister.”

Sometimes, even as Christians, we get “down in the dumps.” We have problems and worries and then we begin to wonder if God our Father really cares about us or if He really understands. Remember what our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, said in Matthew 6:8, “Your Father knoweth.” Although He was mainly speaking about food and clothing, it applies to everything in our lives. We at all times can trust in those words, “Your Father knoweth.”

In Psalms 103:14 it says, “He knoweth our frame.” That means He knows all about us — how we feel — if we’re tired, sick or upset in any way. He knows and understands everything because “His undetanding is infinite [without limit].” Psalms 147:5.

What a happy thought! We cannot see what is ahead in our lives. We might wonder what is around the next corner or over the next hill. But every step is known to our Father. As we go on we may be sure that He not only loves us, but He understands and cares for us. “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.” 1 Peter 5:7.

ML-09/22/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Water and the Balance of Nature

“For as the rain cometh down, and the snow... and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth.” Isaiah 55:10, 11.

People often speak about “the balance of nature.” Actually it is the Creator of the world who has put all things in balance and holds them there — although thoughtless men often intrude to spoil nature’s beauty and pattern. Lakes and seas, forests, mountains and vegetation, together with living creatures, from the smallest microbe to the largest elephant and whale, all depend on one another. But water is most important of all. That is the “balance” referred to and it only exists because God made it so.

The earth is the only known planet supplied with an abundance of water. In this way God shows His special interest in our world, because in it are the boys and girls, men and women, to whom He has shown His love in providing a Saviour and the everlasting joy of heaven to all who accept Him as their Saviour.

The water cycle in nature begins in lakes and oceans. There water evaporates into the atmosphere. The sun at its hottest can evaporate more than five thousand tons of water from just one square mile of ocean in just an hour’s time! Winds carry this moisture-laden atmosphere to the many parts of the world, bringing welcome rain to take care of the needs of all.

In addition to the benefits of direct rainfall, water formed into snow and ice displays the Creator’s wisdom in storing it on hills and mountains in the wintertime. Then when the summer sun melts it, cool, refreshing water flows down to meet the moisture needs of His creatures during those seasons of the year when there is no rain.

Great quantities of water are used to put out fires. But the interesting fact about water is that it is composed of two parts, each of which by itself burns fiercely or supports combustion. These are hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen burns very easily and oxygen is essential for anything to burn. Yet put together in the form of water as the Creator has done, they make an excellent fire extinguisher. Isn’t that amazing!

Water is certainly a great miracle, necessary for the life of every animal, bird, insect and, of course, all marine life. Plants, grasses and trees would not survive without it, nor could human beings.

Considering its importance we can easily see why the Lord used it as an illustration when speaking of Himself, saying “whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4:14. By this He meant that those who accept Him as their Saviour and Lord will have the “thirst” of their hearts quenched for evermore. Has your “thirst” been quenched?

ML-09/22/1985

One Little Candle

Memory Verse: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Susie and her mother were visiting Grandma. Susie had learned a new song — at least it was new to her. Over and over again she sang:

“This little light of mine,

I’m going to let it shine.”

“I like that little song, Susie,” Grandma said. “Where did you learn it?”

“At Sunday school,” answered Susie.

“Well, well,” said Grandma, “now I’ll sing a song for you that I learned in Sunday school when I was a little girl.”

And Grandma sang just as lovely a song as Susie did. This was her song:

“Jesus bids us shine with a pure, clear light,

Like a little candle burning in the night;

In this world of darkness, so we must shine—

You in your small corner, and I in mine.”

“Do you know what that reminds me of?” asked Susie’s mother. “I’m remembering a little candle that was burning one night a long time ago that saved our lives. Do you remember that candle?” she asked Grandma.

Grandma would never forget! It happened when Susie’s mother (whose name was Jeanne) was a little girl. Jeanne and her parents lived in an area called “Florida Beach.” Florida Beach was a stretch of sand along the east coast of Florida with water on both sides. During severe storms and hurricanes with high tides and high waves, the ocean waves would wash over this narrow strip of sand.

One day the path of a hurricane passed near where they lived. The winds had become very strong and the waves very high. Jeanne and her mother watched the water swirling higher and higher. It felt as if their house were going to collapse and they were afraid. “I wish Daddy were home!” Jeanne could remember thinking: “He would know what to do.”

Finally she and her mother decided to go to Aunt Mary and Uncle Jim’s house which was just up the beach. Although they got soaking wet from the high water and the wind-driven rain, they were able to reach Uncle Jim’s safely.

The four were glad to be together. Soon the high water would be swirling around Uncle Jim’s house, too. They would have to try to get to the mainland!

All four got into Uncle Jim’s car. The waters swirled against it, but they decided they had to try to reach the mainland anyway. They would have to take the road to the bridge which crossed the Inter-coastal Waterway to the mainland. But there was so much water swirling around that they couldn’t see the road; they could only guess where it was. They had made that short trip so many times in good weather; now it seemed to take forever. As the water rose higher and higher Uncle Jim drove slower and slower. They began to wonder if they had made a mistake in leaving home. Maybe they couldn’t make it to the mainland!

They were almost to the bridge when they drove off the road into a ditch. The car got stuck and water started to pour in. It didn’t take long for them to see that if they stayed in the car they would drown. There was only one choice left — leave the car behind and start walking.

The wind tore at them. Palm trees had been blown down everywhere. They waded through water that was nearly two feet deep. They were wet and cold and it was getting dark. They hardly knew where to go.

It was then that one of them spotted a little glimmer of light. It was only a candle, but that candle showed them the way to a house that was still safe. The people who lived there had placed the candle in the window for that very reason — to guide people to their home. Inside there was protection and warmth.

The two songs that Susie and her grandmother had sung were both about a candle. They tell us that those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour should be a light shining out to others. Our light doesn’t have to be a big one. The light shining in the window that saved four people from the hurricane was just one small candle. Even just a small light looks bright when all around it is dark. The Lord Jesus said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12. If we let even a little of His light shine out in our lives, it will be bright in this dark, sinful world around us. Won’t you let your light shine for Him?

Jesus bids us shine first of all for Him;

Well He sees and knows it if our light grows dim:

He looks down from heaven, to see us shine—

You in your small corner, and I in mine,

Jesus bids us shine next for all around;

Many kinds of darkness in this world abound,

Sin and want and sorrow; so we must shine—

You in your small corner, and I in mine.

“I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness.” John 12:46.

ML-09/29/1985

The Stormy Flight

Mr. Ward was returning home from a business trip to the West Coast. The plane on which he was flying passed through a line of thunderstorms. The pilot announced to the passengers that the storms were so severe they would have to change their direction and fly several hundred miles south to avoid them. Even so, the plane was buffeted, tossed around, and it dropped suddenly several times. This along with lightning flashes all around them caused the trip to be a very frightening one. Mr. Ward, who was a Christian, bowed his head and asked his Saviour to keep them safe through the storm. After that he was quite relaxed.

He happened to look at the man just across the aisle from him who was very frightened. He and Mr. Ward began to talk. It didn’t take long for Mr. Ward to realize just how terrified the man was. When he asked Mr. Ward if he were frightened, Mr. Ward simply told him how he had prayed to the Lord Jesus and that he knew that he was safe in His hands.

This opened the way for Mr. Ward to tell the man about the love of God for sinners and that the Lord Jesus Christ died for sinners on the cross. Mr. Ward soon found out that the man was a religious person, but he had never heard of needing to be saved from his sins. Mr. Ward carried a small Bible with him which he pulled out of his pocket and read verses to the man that explain that we are all sinners and need to have our sins washed away to get to heaven. Then he turned to that wonderful verse in John: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

After an hour of reading different verses, the man bowed his head and asked Jesus Christ to be his Saviour. What a peace and calm came over him even though they were still flying at 37,000 feet through the blackness of the storm.

A little while later a stewardess came by and asked if she could speak with Mr. Ward. He went to the back of the plane with her and talked for some time. She told him she had heard him talking to the man, and when the cabin crew was instructed to sit down because of the storm, she had prayed for Mr. Ward and the man. For over an hour she had prayed to the Lord for the man’s salvation. Both she and her husband were Christians, and she rejoiced with Mr. Ward for the opportunity the Lord had given him in the middle of the storm.

We have no idea who might be praying for us. That stewardess had just as much a part in leading that man to the Saviour as Mr. Ward had.

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31.

ML-09/29/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Plump Wombat (Australian Badger)

“Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, who humbleth Himself to behold the things... in the earth!” Psalms 113:5,6.

The wombat is another of the interesting animals found in Australia. It is a marsupial, which means the mothers carry their babies around in pouches until they are able to fend for themselves. With most marsupials, like the kangaroo, this pouch is on the front of the mother’s body, but with the wombat it is on her back. It would seem the Creator did this so that in her frequent digging of burrows she does not throw dirt into the pouch or on the little one inside it.

Wombats, waddling around, are chubby and roly-poly like a bear cub, which they resemble in many ways. Adults are from two to three feet long and may weigh eighty pounds. Their plentiful fur is most often brown, but some have gray, yellowish and some black. They have rather broad heads with snouts like a pig, a very small tail, strong legs and claws. They also have sharp teeth for gathering grass, roots and bark for food, which is done mostly at night. They really prefer to loaf in the early morning and then retire to their burrows to curl up and sleep the rest of the day.

Babies are as tiny as mice at birth and immediately crawl into the mother’s pouch where they develop for about six months. When the mother walks about, her baby may be seen poking its head out, watching where they are going.

One species which lives in the southern forests and grasslands of Australia and nearby islands, has the name hairy-nosed and likes living together in large colonies. Their hair is silky and with their long ears and furry muzzles they are rather cute.

A more common one has the name naked-nosed. This one has much coarser hair, is larger, has short ears and a leathery nose free of fur. These prefer living in smaller groups.

All wombats, like badgers, are powerful and tough for their size. They live in burrows, many of which interlock with several openings. They will frequently move from one burrow to another, perhaps doing this to keep their enemies from knowing exactly where they nest. They are another good example of interesting animals which God created and still cares for.

The pouches of marsupials are another example of how all animals have been created for their individual way of life. This way of life has continued “after their kind” ever since God said “Let the earth bring forth the... beast of the earth after his kind.” Genesis 1:24. This includes the fact that a dirt-digging marsupial like the wombat was always to have its pouch on its back, in contrast to the others having theirs on the front. Don’t listen to evolutionists who deny God’s creation and teach that these things just gradually happened over millions of years’ time. The Lord God did not create that way!

ML-09/29/1985

Smuggling on an Airplane

Memory Verse: “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

Have you ever tried to smuggle a candy bar into class at school or up to your room at home? The reason for smuggling it in is because it is against the rules to have it there. Most teachers have the rule, “NO EATING DURING CLASS!” and most mothers make the rule, “NO EATING CANDY BEFORE SUER!” Candy bar smugglers usually get caught and are punished. Smuggling is a sin — even candy bar smuggling.

In Buffalo, New York, a 16-year-old boy was about to get on an airplane that was going to Chicago, Illinois. He told the ticket agent he had an 18-inch nonpoisonous northern water snake he wanted to take with him on the plane. The agent explained that since they did not have a suitable cage to carry it in, he could not take the snake on the flight.

A little later when the flight was announced, the boy got on after first assuring the ticket agent that he no longer had his pet.

Before the boy sat down in his seat on the plane, he took off his jacket. After carefully folding it up he placed it in the compartment above his seat and latched the little door closed. The plane took off.

A little while later another passenger happened to notice a tail sticking out from under the edge of the overhead compartment door... and it was moving! The passenger pointed it out to a flight attendant who opened the compartment door. The smuggled 18-inch snake flopped out and down onto the lap of the startled lady sitting beside the boy. He quickly caught the snake, and it spent the rest of the flight in a box in the back of the plane.

Airplanes have rules about taking pets on board. They must be in a suitable cage. This boy broke the rules by smuggling his pet snake on board after stuffing it in his jacket pocket. Once the plane took off he figured he had gotten away with it... but he hadn’t. That tail sticking out gave it away!

And you and I cannot get away with breaking God’s rules. When we break any of God’s rules, He calls it sin. Smuggling is just one kind of sin. Telling lies is another.

Disobeying parents or teachers is another. Sounds like we’re all sinners, doesn’t it? Well, that’s exactly right! A verse in the Bible says, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23. So there is no question about it — every one of us is a sinner, including you and me.

When the plane landed in Chicago, the boy and the box with his snake were taken to the airline’s office. He was scolded for what he had done and warned never to do it again. Then he had to sign a paper turning his snake over to the airline. They in turn gave the snake to the Anti-Cruelty Society who would find a suitable home for it.

The Bible warns us about the consequences of sin — sin must be punished, because God is holy and just. The Bible also says that God loves each one of us, and He wants to forgive all our sins. But still, there’s punishment necessary for those sins. Because He loves you and me so very much, this is what He did. He sent His only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to bear that punishment for sin on the cross: “Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many.” Hebrews 9:28. If you are really sorry about your sins, confess to the Lord Jesus that you are a sinner. He promises He will forgive you, and then you will not have to be punished for your sins because He already was punished for them when He died on the cross and shed His blood. Won’t you accept God’s love for you and thank the Lord Jesus for forgiving your sins?

ML-10/06/1985

How a Jailer Found the Saviour

Read Acts 16:25-34

Long ago in the city of Philippi, two men, Paul and Silas, had false charges brought against them. They had been telling the people of this city about the Lord Jesus Christ. However, there were those who were against the work of God, and they brought Paul and Silas to the officials. Many of the people spoke against Paul and Silas and convinced the officials that they were guilty. After severely beating them with whips, they were turned over to the jailer who chained them in the inner prison and locked their feet in wooden stocks. The jailer, knowing that escape was impossible, went off to bed.

Poor Paul and Silas! They were in bad shape. Their backs were cut and bleeding from the beating, and they were locked in a cold, dark prison cell. They were probably hungry, too, since it does not say in the account in the Bible that they were given anything to eat.

There were other prisoners in the same jail who had known something of what had happened to them. They probably expected to hear groans and curses from the new prisoners. But the evening hours passed with no complaints. Instead, at about midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God. Imagine the surprise of the other prisoners. They were actually singing and thanking God! The difference was that Paul and Silas served a wonderful God. They found such joy in serving Him that even prison bars and beatings could not upset them.

God had not forgotten His faithful servants. He had His own plan for that prison and its jailer. Suddenly the ground all around them began to shake violently. Even the prison walls trembled and the gates flew open. All of the prisoners’ chains fell off, and the stocks which held their feet came apart. It was an earthquake! Paul and Silas had no intention of running away, and the other prisoners were probably too frightened to escape.

The jailer, when he saw the doors of his prison open, drew out his sword to kill himself. He thought the prisoners would have fled, and he knew that the penalty for allowing a prisoner to escape was death. But Paul, realizing what the jailer was thinking, shouted, “Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.” (vs. 28)

The jailer more than likely knew about Paul and Silas and what they preached. Perhaps he had even heard Paul preach. He knew that he was a sinner and that he needed a Saviour. After helping Paul and Silas out of the wrecked jail, he asked them, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (vs. 30) Their answer was plain and simple — “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” (vs. 31)

The jailer must have done just that, for we read next of the remarkable change which took place in him. This kind of change takes place by the power of Jesus Christ in the lives of men, women and young people, too. It changes them — it makes them new creatures: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17.

In this chapter we read of the change in this jailer who accepted Jesus Christ as his Saviour. This once cold-hearted, cruel jailer took the two prisoners to his own home. There he washed and treated their bleeding backs and then gave them dinner.

Then Paul and Silas talked more to the jailer and to his family, and during that night all of them were saved — all became Christians by accepting Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

What a wonderful change takes place in those who accept Christ as their Saviour. This jailer was shown God’s power through an earthquake which made him feel his own weakness and see his need of a Saviour. Today God speaks through His Word, the Bible, and the message that was given to the jailer almost 2000 years ago is the same message for us today.

Believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for your sins and trust Him to forgive and save you and He will!

ML-10/06/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Don't Get Near the Portuguese Man-Of-War!

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary [enemy] the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith.” 1 Peter 5:8,9.

The ocean-dwelling Portuguese man-of-war is actually a deadly jellyfish, its beautiful colors being deceptive. Its most visible part, called the crest, is usually a transparent pink with its body being a bright blue, about eight or twelve inches across. Deadly tentacles (unseen from above) hang as long as 60 feet below its body. These are covered with thousands of stinging cells containing poison almost as deadly as a rattlesnake’s.

The air-filled crest provides a sail and also helps keep it afloat. But if frightened, it deflates and immediately the jellyfish drops below the surface. When the danger is past it again pumps air into the crest which rises up firmly, and it continues sailing on its way, propelled by the wind.

Some varieties catch their prey by shooting out stinging harpoons, paralyzing the victim and then disposing of it. The more common ones, however, rely on fish bumping into a tentacle, being instantly poisoned by the stinger, and carried up to the digestive system.

The Portuguese man-of-war is not bothered by many enemies, but big loggerhead turtles are an exception. These turtles are not afraid to swim right into the tentacles, tearing off bites of food which they swallow without harm. The turtle does feel the stingers on the soft parts of its body, but apparently considers the meal worth a little pain.

The man-of-war has an amazing companion that travels with it. A small fish, by the name of nomus, swims among the tentacles without being harmed, picking off the scraps of food stuck to them. Swimming in and out of this den of poison, it tempts larger fish to chase it into the tentacle trap where they cannot escape. The relationship of these two odd companions is another example of how the Creator often uses two dissimilar creatures to help one another.

Swimmers do well to stay away from these vicious things, for they can inflict serious and even fatal stings. Even if a beached man-of-war appears to be dead, avoid it, for it is still dangerous.

This deadly resident of the sea reminds us of Satan, the great enemy of God and man! Just as the man-of-war appears attractive but conceals its deadly poison from view, the devil never tires of trying to deceive every person in one way or another. The Bible warns us that he is capable of appearing as “an angel of light,” deceiving those who discover too late that they are caught in his deadly poison.

What is a safeguard against this enemy? The Bible gives the answer: “The fear [reverence and love] of the Lord is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.” Proverbs 14:27. Trust in Him at all times, and when Satan’s temptations come, ask the Lord Jesus to help you turn away from them. Only He can give you the strength to do so.

ML-10/06/1985

Thundering Hooves

Memory Verse: “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1

Mildred Hansen and her mother know there is a God. They know that God is, and that He stands ready to honor His promise, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalms 50:15. Not only do they know that God is there on duty, but they have learned how much He cares for small children. It all happened on a western ranch when Mildred was only three years old.

The setting was a sturdy ranch house surrounded by grassy lawns and trees and enclosed by a white picket fence. A lane ran alongside the fence on one side leading to the barns and corrals behind. The yard was a perfect place to play. One beautiful day Mother let Mildred go outdoors in the afternoon. She was able to watch her playing through the open kitchen window. She thought she would be safe there. What she did not know was that someone had left a small gate ajar in the fence along the lane. She also did not know that her husband, who had been gone for two days with his cowboys, was approaching the lane from the range with a herd of horses, wild and mean and running like a wolf pack.

Mother heard the rumbling, a muffled thunder that actually shook the house. Running to the window she saw them filling the roadway, charging in a cloud of dust down upon — Mildred! Yes, Mildred had found the open gate and was now sitting in the dusty lane. Father was behind the herd, unable to see her or know the almost certain death he was herding upon his small daughter.

“Oh, God, have mercy! Lord, save her!” the anguished mother cried. There was only time for the cry. She ran out screaming and waving her arms at the men.

In only a few moments the herd of horses had passed over. The stricken parents found Mildred... still sitting, caked with dirt from head to toe, but very much alive and crying loudly. Mildred was not hurt at all! Only God could have done it, and the parents realized that fact immediately. A strong angel? Or did God change the excitable, wild nature of those horses long enough to cause each one to leap neatly over Mildred? He certainly made them, and He could control them. Yes, God cares for children, and He cares for you, too.

Do you want to know how much He loves you? He sent His Son, Jesus, into the world especially to save you from Satan. Satan has lured you to sin many times, for you were born with a nature that loves to sin. “All have sinned, and come short.” Romans 3:23. “The soul that sinneth, it shall die,” we read in Ezekiel 18:4. But “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” 1 Timothy 1:15. He had to die — He had to take your punishment in order to save you. Have you taken His salvation offered to those who receive Him?

ML-10/13/1985

A Lesson From the Bees

A black cloud was rising out of the west. The low rumble of thunder was heard in the distance. As I stood taking note of the signs of the coming storm, I noticed the air seemed full of bees. Each one was flying directly to the hive near the fence. I watched them for some time as they hurried in from the flowery meadows to their home, and this Bible verse came to my mind: “Flee from the wrath to come.” Matthew 3:7 and Luke 3:7.

I thought how much wiser the bees are than the men of this world! The bees could sense the approaching storm. God has given us warning after warning in the Bible of the punishment that is coming on this poor world. But people go on as if all were well, paying no attention to God’s warning, “Flee from the wrath to come.”

“Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained.” Acts 17:31.

How safe the little bees are in their hives! The storm may rage about them, but it does not touch them. And oh, how safe is each one who has fled for refuge to Christ. “A MAN shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest.” Isaiah 32:2. That MAN in, the last verse is “The. Man Christ Jesus; who gave Himself a ransom for all.” 1 Timothy 2:5,6.

Each of you — young and old should be wise as the bees. Hurry to Christ! Don’t let any of the sweet things in the fields of this world tempt you to stay away from Him. He will be your “hiding place” when the great day of God’s wrath comes.

ML-10/13/1985

An Auctioned Bike

At an auction about a year ago in Washington, D.C., the police auctioned off about one hundred unclaimed bicycles.

“Ten dollars,” said an eleven-year-old boy as the bidding opened on the first bike. The bidding, however, went much higher.

“Ten dollars,” the boy repeated hopefully each time another bike came up.

The auctioneer, Mr. Weschler, noticed that the boy’s hopes seemed to soar highest whenever a 10-speed bike was up. There was just one more 10-speed left. The bidding mounted to $28.

“Sold to that boy over there for $30!” said Mr. Weschler. He took $20 from his own pocket and asked the boy for his $10

The boy gave it to him — in single dollars and change — took his bike and started to leave. But he went only a few feet and stopped. Carefully parking his new possession, he went back and thanked Mr. Weschler over and over again.

In Luke 17 we read the story of how the Lord Jesus healed ten lepers, but only one of them returned to fall at His feet and thank Him. The Lord said, “Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?”

Now God gave His only Son in love to be the Saviour of sinners, and the Lord Jesus gave Himself upon the cross to die to put away-sin, and to give everlasting life to all who will believe. Are you like one of those nine lepers who went on their way forgetful of the One who had healed them? Or are you like the boy in our story who returned with a thankful heart. Surely the blessed Saviour and the Father who sent Him are worthy of all our praise.

“Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.” 2 Corinthians 9:15.

“The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23.

ML-10/13/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Anemones - Beautiful, but Deadly - Part 1

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8.

Sea anemones, like the flowers after which they are named, are usually extremely beautiful in their many colors. However, they are not flowers but marine animals, although lacking most features of the animals with which we are familiar. Usually they anchor themselves to a spot on the ocean floor, sometimes alone, sometimes in great numbers. The “flowers” are actually tentacles that usually rise upward to make the colorful display but in some species hang downward or spread out flatly.

The sea anemone is really a living electric battery. The tentacles that sprout from its main body and wave about gently in the water to attract small fish are pretty but contain poisonous darts. When a fish touches one of these, the darts shoot out, exploding like a bomb, injecting their poison into the fish so it cannot escape. It is then placed by the tentacle into the anemone’s mouth and devoured.

Descriptive names have been given to many of the anemones. The aggregated anemone is common along the Pacific coast, and large numbers anchor close together on bottom rocks, looking like a choice garden with their many colors. Another, the snakelocks, is colored either pinkish brown or apple green. Its snaky tentacles spread out in every direction. Since it prefers shallow water, they are often exposed to the air at low tide.

Another one in deep water is called the dahlia. It has a round golden base and short white tentacles, similar to the dahlia flower. Some varieties have a brown base and brilliant red tentacles. Either way they are very pretty. The varieties are too numerous to mention here, but illustrations of many are available inmost libraries for those interested.

In spite of the beauty of sea anemones, they remind us of Satan, the enemy of every boy and girl as well as grownups. He takes pleasure in deceiving people with attractive temptations (like the anemone’s luring fish), but these only lead those who are deceived by him into sorrow and trouble.

The Bible speaks of this danger in many places, as in our opening verse, and warns us that he and his followers pretend to speak truth, but are really false and deceitful. We are warned that at times he can even make himself appear to be “an angel of light.” 2 Corinthians 11:13-15. To resist Satan we are instructed to “Put on the whole armor of God.” Ephesians 6:11. The two most important parts of that armor are “the shield of faith” faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Protector when we commit our way to Him, and “the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God [the Bible].” Ephesians 6:17.

Whenever this armor is used, Satan cannot have his way with us. Have you learned to use it?

ML-10/13/1985

The Phantom Plane

Memory Verse: “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23

“Cessna 218, this is Air Force 163 — do you read me?” “Cessna 218, this is Air Force 163 — do you read me?” Over and over again this question was asked of Cessna 218, but with no reply. Captain Daniel Zoreb of the North American Air Defense Command reported: “I could see the running lights, but the cockpit was dark.” He and several other Air Force jet pilots had been ordered to follow Cessna 218. But why? What was all the concern for Cessna 218?

“We lost radio contact with Cessna 218 about 30 minutes after takeoff,” reported the airport flight controller from Shreveport, Louisiana. “The pilot had requested a new route to Baton Rouge to avoid a thunderstorm. He was given a new heading and told to climb to 23,000 feet.”

Cessna 218 climbed right through 23,000 feet and kept climbing, never veering from its east-northeasterly course. It passed over Memphis, Tennessee at 28,000 feet alarmingly high for a plane that size! Cessna 218 was off-course and out of contact!

There are many today who are “off-course.” They are not proceeding in the course that God desires for them. The Lord Jesus Christ could say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6. Yet man goes on, on his own course “out of contact” with God’s pleading. “God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not.” Job 33:14.

“It was kind of eerie,” said Captain Zoreb. “We found the plane at 40,000 feet over Raleigh, North Carolina traveling at 250 miles per hour. It appeared to be on automatic pilot.”

How like Satan this is, who, as “the god of this world,” has millions on “automatic pilot” and “hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ... should shine unto them.” 2 Corinthians 4:4. They are going through this world ignoring the earnest pleading of the Spirit of God to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour.

Cessna 218 ran out of fuel four hours after takeoff. It was 120 miles off the coast of Virginia over the Atlantic Ocean when Captain Zoreb saw it dive, spinning and tumbling into the ocean! “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12.

“We have no idea what did happen to Cessna 218,” said a spokesman for the Air Force. “It appears that oxygen may have been leaking from the plane and they didn’t know it. It caused them to black out, and the automatic pilot took over.” Lack of oxygen puts a person into a dream-like state, or euphoria, in which he thinks conditions seem to be improving. The person soon loses all sense of direction and then becomes unconscious. Is this what happened to the pilot and passenger of Cessna 218?

Officials can do nothing more than wonder. They know that it was 1,000 miles off-course and out of radio contact at the time it crashed into the ocean. They had tried everything in their power to help the pilot and his passenger, but without success. God, too, has done all that He can for you. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down His life for His friends.” John 15:13. He sent His only begotten Son to this world. The Lord Jesus Christ went to Calvary’s cross to suffer God’s judgment for man’s sin. Yet there are many who ignore God’s warning of judgment and go on in a path that leads to a lost eternity. They go on in the euphoria that “conditions are getting better” and that everything will be okay. They are unconscious of the claims of God’s love, rejecting His offer of mercy until it is too late. Accept Him now into your heart. “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

ML-10/20/1985

The Moose Sanctuary

Tom had not been in Canada very long before his uncle took him on a trip to Jasper National Park. This was a real treat for Tom, and he was excited. He had heard about this wonderful park and how the Canadian government had set aside a huge tract of country called a sanctuary where animals could roam about in complete safety.

Uncle Jim knew one of the game wardens who was happy to take the little group on a tour. Nothing pleased him more than to show off the wonders of the reserve. Then began a happy time for Tom as the game warden pointed out many things of interest as they went along — black and brown bears, buffalo, beavers, sheep with beautiful, curved horns, and goats which roamed high up among the rocky heights. Then Uncle Jim turned to his friend and said, “I’m sure Tom would like to see a moose.”

The warden cupped his hands around his mouth and gave a peculiar call. After repeating it several times, there was a sound of crackling among the brush, and out into the open dashed a great majestic animal with huge antlers.

“It’s all right,” said the warden as he tossed some tidbits to the animal. “What do you think of our moose?”

Tom turned to his uncle in surprise and exclaimed, “I never saw an animal like that before,” much to the amusement of the two men.

Later on their way home, Uncle Jim talked about what they had seen. “The moose is the largest of the deer family, and hunters attract them within gunshot range in much the same way as what you saw the game warden do. They imitate the call of a moose so well that one of them is sure to think it’s one of his mates, and he rushes to investigate. However, in the sanctuary they are safe.

“You know,” Uncle Jim went on, “the same thing is true for anyone who comes to the Lord Jesus and finds safety in Him. Satan will try to attract them to their harm and destruction, but in the Lord Jesus they are safe, because He is much stronger than Satan and He protects them. Remember, Tom, that ‘Whosoever putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.’” Proverbs 29:25.

ML-10/20/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Anemones - Beautiful, but Deadly - Part 2

“Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did He in heaven [the sky], and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.” Psalms 135:6.

In the last issue we learned of the beautiful but deadly character of sea anemones. But there are some kinds of marine life that get along very nicely with them and are not harmed at all.

One of these is the small, pretty clown fish that is immune to the anemone’s poison and lives right within its tentacles, well protected from its enemies. Not only that, but it gets its own food by snatching parts of the anemone’s meals right from its mouth!

Another is the anemone shrimp in the waters off Florida. It doesn’t look like the shrimps that appear on our dinner plates, but is transparent with delicate white lines on its back and colored dots over most of its body. Like the clown fish, it also makes its home right in the tentacles of the larger anemones, but has entirely different reasons for doing so. Protected from attack by its enemies and immune to the anemone’s poison, it attracts passing fish by waving its long white antennae at them. When a fish spots this it moves up close (but out of reach of the anemone). The shrimp then leaps on the fish, picking parasites off its body, providing a tasty meal for itself while relieving the fish of the pests. Some of the fish open their gills wide and the shrimp enters to clean them out, too, going from one side of the fish to the other.

Its work finished, the shrimp returns to the shelter of the anemone and waits for its next customer, while the one it has served swims away, no doubt feeling much better than when it arrived. Many of the large fish serviced this way would quickly gobble up the little shrimp if found anywhere else, but here at its home base among the anemone tentacles it is protected. This is one more example of the Creator’s arranging two different creatures to help each other.

One that is even more amazing is the tiny damsel fish, which is always in danger of being devoured by larger fish. When pursued it heads swiftly to a nearby anemone, dives through its mouth and on into its stomach where it is certainly safe from its pursuer. But how does it avoid being poisoned by the tentacles or killed by the digestive juices of the anemone’s stomach? We don’t know! The wise Creator has made it that way.

These and many other unusual circumstances are examples of the wonders of the Creator, of whom it’ is said, “Thy way is in the sea, and Thy path in the great waters.” Psalms 77:19. As wonderful as these physical provisions for these little creatures are, they do not compare with the eternal safety He has made for those who have accepted Him as their own Lord and Saviour. If your name is written in His Book of Life, that eternal safety is yours.

ML-10/20/1985

Rescued

Memory Verse: “He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32

Six-year-old Tony Bernadino and his eight-year-old brother were flying kites near their home in California. They were in a field where a bridge was being built, and the construction crew had just dug a hole two feet wide and 28 feet deep. The workmen had gone home leaving the hole uncovered.

Tony, unaware of any danger, stepped backward into the hole. His brother’s scream alerted their father who rushed to the spot. Frantically he raced to the telephone, and soon firemen and paramedics were on the scene.

For Tony it had all happened so quickly — one moment he was flying a kite... and then suddenly he was trapped in a deep, dark hole and not able to get out. There are many people in the world today who, like this, are trapped in sin. They are not able to help themselves; they must wait for help from another. “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:6.

Rescue operations started at once. One of the men was lowered into the hole head first. He found the boy alive, but so wedged in that he could not be moved. The rescuer also found that the walls of the hole were not very strong. Fearing that more dirt would fall in on Tony, he signaled to be pulled back out of the hole.

Special equipment from the telephone company was lowered down into the hole. The paramedics and Tony’s father were able to talk with him. They did their best to encourage and assure him that he would soon be rescued.

Then a large drilling rig with a three-foot auger arrived and began to bore down into the earth eight feet from the boy. They went down 30 feet and began to dig a tunnel over to where he was trapped.

Finally at midnight, seven hours from the time Tony disappeared down the hole, he was brought out. The crowd which had gathered at the edge of the hole broke into applause as a rescuer appeared with the boy in his arms. Tony was then laid on a stretcher and carefully moved into a helicopter and was flown to a hospital.

Neither effort nor expense were spared in saving Tony. And no sacrifice was too great for God in His love to save poor fallen sinners, deep down in the pit of sin and despair. “He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32.

God sent His dear Son down to this world to rescue us, trapped by Satan, not able to help ourselves. The Lord Jesus did not hesitate to go down into those deep dark waters of death to save and to lift us up. “He sent from above, He took me, He drew me out of many waters.” Psalms 18:16. “He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.” Psalms 40:2,3.

But only those who have trusted in Christ can speak of this wonderful deliverance. Those who do not know Him as their Saviour are still in the pit of sin, though they may not be aware of their hopeless condition. If this is your case, you can be saved today. “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13.

ML-10/27/1985

Prized Possession

“But I have no money to pay you!” said the mother tearfully as she faced the great doctor.

As she waited for his answer, the mother felt that this was her last opportunity. Would the famous surgeon help her daughter, Carol, to see again? Could any doctor help her? She had been to so many, and now her money was gone.

Someone had told her of this well-known doctor and the new skills that he had developed. But they were so poor she had nothing to offer him for payment. Then she heard him say, “I will see your daughter. If I can help her, I will operate.”

This famous and skilled doctor could say, “I will if I can.” The Great Physician could say, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37. The best doctors in the world can only cure up to the level of their skills. The Lord Jesus Christ has given the promise of eternal life to “whosoever believeth in Him.”

Carol hugged her teddy bear tightly as they wheeled her into the operating room. She was asleep when they removed it gently from her arms. When she awoke hours later in her hospital room with bandages covering her eyes, her teddy was snuggled close in her arms again.

During the days of waiting and pain she talked to Teddy and told him all about it, for he seemed more than just a plaything to her. He was the only treasure she had, and he seemed like a dear friend to the little girl.

Then one day there was excitement in Carol’s hospital room. A nurse was removing the bandages from her eyes with hands that trembled just a little. Carol held Teddy and her mother’s hand tightly. The doctor was speaking quietly. “Carol, the last bandage will soon be taken off, but don’t open your eyes right away. When they become accustomed to the light coming softly through your eyelids, I will tell you when to open them.”

It was hard to wait. The room was so quiet. Then the doctor was saying, “All right, Carol. Open your eyes and tell us what you see.”

Slowly her eyes opened and focused on the face of her mother. “Mother! Mother! I can see you... oh, I can really see you!”

Too happy to speak, her mother held Carol closely in her arms for a few moments. Then she said softly into her ear, “Carol, there is someone in this room who is far more important than I am right now. It is this doctor who operated on you and has given you your sight. What do you say to him?”

For a long moment Carol looked at the doctor who stood smiling at her. She held her teddy tightly, and then she held it out to the doctor.

“Please take my teddy,” she said simply. “I want you to have him.”

Years later the doctor told some friends about the little girl. He said, “I will never part with that little old teddy bear. It came straight from the heart of a little girl who gave me all she had!”

A far greater Physician has given everything for you and for me. Our Great Physician, the Lord Jesus, has given His life for us so that the eyes of our hearts might be opened.

What will you give Him? Won’t you give Him your heart, yourself, your life?

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1.

ML-10/27/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Two Big, Strong Buffalo

“I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by My great power and by My outstretched arm. " Jeremiah 27:5.

One of America’s wild animals is called a buffalo but it is not a buffalo at all, but a bison. The true wild buffalo live in the grasslands, swamps and mountains of South Africa and Asia. Domesticated species live in Egypt, Europe and South America. All range in size from 450 to 1500 pounds and are three to five feet high at their shoulders. They have short, thick necks, broad heads, long tails, short legs and long, pointed horns curving outward.

All buffalo are good swimmers, and they are never found far from rivers or water holes, where they graze in early morning or during night hours. They also enjoy neck-deep mud-baths, often shared with hippos, to escape the hot sun and relieve the bites of pesky insects. Let’s consider two kinds:

The coal-black Cape buffalo of South Africa is the largest, about five feet tall and weighing over half a ton. It is a terrifying experience to have one of these charge at you. It can run at more than thirty miles an hour and fears neither man nor beast. It is not a very charming animal with its huge, low-slung, ivory-colored curved horns worn like a helmet, draped from the top of its massive, ugly head.

But it does have some friends. Robin-sized oxpeckers perch on its back and sides, making their living on ticks and insects picked from its hair and skin. These red-beaked birds are equipped by the Creator with special claws for holding onto the animal’s sides while feeding, just as a woodpecker clings to the side of a tree. Both animal and bird find this a great convenience, and the relationship between the two is an example of how God frequently arranges for two entirely different creatures to help one another.

Another species, the water buffalo of India, somewhat smaller, has an entirely different character. Given a chance it seeks marshy localities and lies in the water when chewing its cud. Large numbers are tamed and pull carts, drag plows through rice paddies, and carry loads on their backs. Although fierce looking, they do not attack men, and when tamed even little children can handle them easily.

The Lord God has taken delight in creating even these buffalo, some of them serving mankind and others just filling their place in His purposes of creation. The Bible reminds us of this in these verses: “Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul [life] of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.” Job 12:9,10.

ML-10/27/1985

The Indian Interpreter

Memory Verse: “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9

When David Brainerd went to preach to the American Indians in 1744, he could not talk to them in their own language. He lived with them, ate the same food, and did his best to talk to them, but could not. “How could he tell them about God’s love if he didn’t know their language?” is a question you might well ask.

Well, until he could speak to them in the Indian language, he used an interpreter. An interpreter is someone who listens to what you say in your language and tells it to others in the language they can understand. We read of Joseph speaking through an interpreter in Genesis 42:23. The Indians among whom David Brainerd worked had never heard of the “one true God.” They still worshipped many gods. They had learned very little except wickedness from their white neighbors in the Delaware Valley. The only Indian he could find who could speak English at all was Tinda Tautamy, a thief and a drunkard.

Tinda Tautamy did try to stay sober while he interpreted for David. However, he was not interested in the gospel of God’s grace which he heard and translated to his own people. He was not suitable for this work, and he took little interest in making the Indians understand God’s message to them.

One day Mr. Brainerd was speaking to an audience of English men and women. Tinda Tautamy was there but was not needed to translate, so he had nothing to do but sit and listen. And he did listen. The Holy Spirit used the message Mr. Brainerd was bringing to those unsaved English-speaking people to awaken the conscience of that poor Indian. He became deeply certain of his sin and its consequences, and for many days he was greatly burdened knowing that he needed to be saved.

One night in a fitful sleep he dreamed that he was trying to climb a steep mountain up to heaven. The way was covered with thorns and he could not find a path. He tried climbing again and again, but he kept slipping back. He made no progress and there wasn’t anyone around to help him. He was ready to give up when he thought he heard a voice speaking to him quite plainly — “There is hope; there is hope, but you must come My way.” He woke up and knelt right down and accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour, confessing his sins, and the burden was lifted and he had peace. “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9.

After that Tinda Tautamy was more than an interpreter. He was active and eager to tell others about his Saviour. When David Brainerd spoke to the Indians about salvation through Jesus Christ, Tinda Tautamy would put his own heart, his own faith and love that he now had into the words. The Indians who listened, knowing what kind of sinful man he had been, knew now that Tinda was a new man in Christ. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Each one of us, like Tinda Tautamy, is an interpreter. If we know the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour, our lives as well as our mouths should be telling others about Him. Are we telling the story well, or do we sometimes cause others to misinterpret it? Does what we do each day tell others that we belong to Christ? “Ye are our epistle... known and read of all men.” 2 Corinthians 3:2.

ML-11/03/1985

The Earthquake

It was a terrible earthquake! The building seemed to jump and then roll back and forth. Pictures, dishes and plaster came crashing down! The terrified children alone in the fifth-floor apartment huddled under the table. Ten of them, ranging in age from four to twelve, had been left alone for just a few minutes. Then the earthquake occurred.

When the building stopped shaking, the children ran to the door to go down the steps. They pulled open the door and stopped. The stairs had fallen! There was nothing but a big open space. Frantically they ran to the balcony and called for help. “Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalms 50:15.

Rescuers arrived at that time and quickly understood the problem. They radioed for ladder trucks but were told that roads to that area were blocked. They found ropes and ladders in the basement of a hardware store, but the ladders were too short to reach the balcony. An after shock from the quake caused the building to rock again. It appeared as if it were about to collapse. Leaking gas in the basement burst into flames, causing the younger children to panic. The men shouted to the older children to find some string and lower it while holding tightly onto the other end. The children found a ball of twine in the rubble, and while quickly unwinding it, lowered it to the men below. The men tied a strong rope to the string which the children then pulled up and tied tightly to the railing of the balcony.

One of the rescuers immediately began to climb up the rope. It was dangerous, but up he went to save those children at the risk of his life. Reaching the balcony he shouted down, “There’s a ton of them up here! I can’t manage to save them alone.”

Without any hesitation another man climbed up the rope. Together the two men made a slip knot at the end of the rope and lowered one child down to safety.

How this reminds us of the Lord Jesus who came to save sinners. But He did not say, “I can’t save them alone.” There was no one but He who could save us, and He went into death all alone. He could say, “Of the people there was none with Me.” Isaiah 63:3. “I, even I, am the Lord; and beside Me there is no saviour.” Isaiah 43:11. The children had faith in the rope, faith in those strong men, and it is just such faith or trust that we must have in the Lord Jesus, the Saviour who is mighty, if we are to be saved.

One, two, three, four children were lowered. How many more? Five, six, seven, eight reached the ground in safety. Breathlessly, friends watched below as the ninth and then the tenth were safely lowered. At last, all the children were saved — saved from the fire that was quickly spreading. What a salvation!

But their salvation was not so great as that which saves us from sin and death and everlasting judgment. What a Saviour Jesus is!

When all were down, the rescuers quickly slid down the ropes themselves as the onlookers cheered and thanked the men who were only too glad to have saved so many young lives. How thankful those children were! But our Saviour deserves far more from us, for He has given His life to save us. He died that we might live.

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Psalms 50:15.

ML-11/03/1985

The Long-Nosed Narwhal

“For the Lord is a great God.... The sea is His, and He made it: and His hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” Psalms 95:3-6.

Only a few hundred people, known as Polar Eskimos, live in the snow and ice-covered regions of Greenland. This is farther north than where any other people of the world live! They patiently wait through the cold winter for the return of the short June-through-August summer when they can fish and hunt again. They catch many fish, seals and an occasional polar bear, but what they look forward excitedly to each summer is the return of the gray and white narwhals. These, because of their long, lance-like horn carried in front of them, are called “the unicorns of the whales.”

A big narwhal may weigh more than a ton and measure 20 feet long (not counting its horn). They are hunted, not only for their delicious vitamin-rich meat, but for the valuable oil in their bodies. Of greatest value are the long ivory horns (or tusks) of the males which may measure eight or nine feet long, spiraled all the way from the upper jaw out to their pointed tips.

A choice horn will weigh as much as twenty pounds and is not only a trophy for the hunter, but can be sold for a high price. If it’s in good condition such a prize will sell for nearly one thousand dollars. This means a great deal to the Eskimos, who, except for the fish they sell and a few furs, have little opportunity to earn money.

In the short summer there is a very rapid growth of aquatic life in the salt water on which many kinds of fish thrive. In ways which only He could devise, the Lord God, the Creator, lets the narwhals know when this will take place. They gather in great numbers at the edges of ice-bound bays and fiords, waiting for the ice to break up so they can get at this food. At such times the Polar Eskimos make the most of their hunting skills in thrilling, dangerous hunts.

Like porpoises, narwhals are peaceful, lively and playful and are not known to do any harm with their pointed horns. But they are also wary and swift and easily escape when alarmed. So when going after them in kayaks (Eskimo boats) absolute silence is needed no outboard motors are allowed or any talking above a whisper. But even so, most narwhals escape being caught by the hunters.

If these Eskimos read the Bible they will find in its very first chapter that fish and narwhals are all part of God’s creation. In further reading they will find that mankind is more important to Him than anything else. Reading on they will come to this wonderful verse: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

We hope that many of these hardy Eskimos have accepted this loving invitation. What about you?

ML-11/03/1985

The Johnstown Flood

Memory Verse: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12

In May, 1889, a terrible flood, known as the “Johnstown Flood,” swept across much of Pennsylvania and the surrounding areas. Although many lost their lives, many acts of heroism were performed by brave men and women in rescuing victims of the flood.

Alice, a girl ten years old, had been trapped with her baby brother when the flood waters reached their house. It was lifted from the foundation and carried downstream. Alice knew that the Lord would take care of her, and kneeling down she prayed to Him to save her and little Robert from the flood.

A group of people had gathered on high ground above the flooded river. They were horrified at the destruction caused by the swirling waters. As the house with Alice and her brother inside floated by, they heard her calls for help. Seventeen-year-old Charles Hepenthal decided to try to help Alice. Those with him tried to discourage him, saying it would be impossible to survive in the surging waters.

However, Charles went right ahead, jumped into the river and swam toward the house. Reaching it he was able to tie the baby onto his back and swam back toward higher ground. With shouts of encouragement from those on shore, he reached the higher ground. As they helped him up he cried, “Wait! There is still another in the house! I must save her, too!” Grasping a plank to use as a support, he plunged again into the waters; but his struggle this time was harder because the water was even higher and the current more swift.

As he fought his way toward the house, Alice saw him and prayed for help for him. When he finally reached the house he took her, and using the plank as support, they slowly made it back to higher ground. Both had been saved from certain death!

This story reminds us of a greater deliverance — the death of the Lord Jesus who saves all those who trust Him by faith in His precious blood. We were helpless, lost in sin and without hope until He came to seek and save us, and to “give His life a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:28.

Have you called to the Lord Jesus Christ to save you, or are you still drifting with the current of this world and going on to eternal punishment because of your sins? The Saviour has said, “Come unto Me.” Do not put Him off another moment. If you do, He may turn away and never call again; then your last hope of being saved will be gone forever.

“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?” Hebrews 2:3.

Jesus said, “He that heareth My Word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24.

ML-11/10/1985

Just in Time!

The 5:03 p.m. commuter train was right on time. On this beautiful summer afternoon Mrs. Griffin could see the rotating headlight of the engine as it rapidly approached. How surprised her husband would be to be met by his wife and two young sons. The walk home together would be fun. Two-year-old Kevin was especially excited about meeting his daddy’s train. Ten-month-old Steven was asleep in the stroller, and Kevin sat behind him in the tandem seat.

The train was about a quarter of a mile outside the station as the small crowd that was waiting pushed ahead slightly to get a better view. Just this little movement pushed the stroller over the edge of the platform down onto the tracks right in the path of the train. The crowd gasped, but nobody moved! The stationmaster saw what happened, but was frozen with fear. Were those two little children going to be killed under the wheels of the train? No!

In a flash Mrs. Griffin jumped down onto the track, quickly threw Kevin up onto the platform, and in one movement grabbed Steven and leaped back up herself, just as the train roared in and crushed the empty stroller!

What made Mrs. Griffin risk her own life to save her two little boys? It was a mother’s love. The love that she had for her two sons was instantly shown. I am sure you would have remembered the sight for the rest of your life if you had seen it happen.

There is another, greater love that was shown nearly 2,000 years ago. It was the love of a Father who offered up His Son as a sacrifice for the sins of this poor world. It is all told in one wonderful verse: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. That word “whosoever” means you and it means me. It means every boy and girl who will put his or her trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

ML-11/10/1985

Can God See Us?

“God can’t see us in our house,” said three-year-old David as he looked at the star-filled sky above him. His grandmother had just reminded him of his Sunday school memory verse — “Thou God seest me.”

“But He can,” said Grandmother, “even at night.”

“But we close the curtains on our windows at night,” was David’s reply.

David’s grandmother patiently explained how God can see everything we do, hear everything we say, and knows everything we think, so there is no hiding from Him. These thoughts of hiding from God are not just those of a three-year-old. Teens and adults both sometimes think this way about their sins. But God has said, “Be sure your sin will find you out.” Numbers 32:23. God does not want us to hide from Him, but to admit our sins openly before Him. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9.

ML-11/10/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Unusual Yak

“And to every beast of the earth ... I have given every green herb for meat [food]: and it was so. And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good.” Genesis 1:30,31.

Sometimes called “grunting ox,” yaks are very large animals. They may measure six-feet high at their shoulders and weigh almost a ton. They are clumsy and have black and white long hair hanging almost to the ground from their whole body. They have sharp, curved horns which are two to three feet across. They live in high, cold areas like on the slopes of Mount Everest. Large numbers also live in Tibet at altitudes of 14,000 to 20,000 feet where few other animals could survive. Various species are also in the East Indies, central Asia and China.

Female yaks and their calves form herds of 100 or more, often feeding in deep snow, brushing it aside with heads and hoofs to get at the grass underneath. When water is scarce they eat snow. Most of the year the males live alone or in small groups. When wolves or any other threat comes, adult yaks, whether in large or small bands, will quickly form a circle with lowered heads and threatening horns turned outward. This is a defense taught by a wise Creator who cares for all His creatures.

During wintertime a soft dense undergrowth of hair appears beneath the coarse outer hair. As the weather warms, this sheds, chunks of it hanging from their bodies before dropping off.

In spite of their peculiar looks, some yaks have been tamed as beasts of burden. These are the smaller species, but still strong and able to carry heavy loads over mountain passes. They can do this even in the most ice-covered or snowbound places, and they do not hesitate to travel through deep snow or ford icy water when necessary.

They also supply milk, hair, hides for leather, and meat which tastes like beef since they are distantly related to cattle. An interesting item secured from a yak is called a chowry. When one is butchered, the lower end of the tail is cut off and dried. The coarse hair on the end of the tail and the natural round handle make an excellent fly swatter, which the natives call a chowry. Tourists like these for souvenirs.

The yak is another example of the wonders of God’s creation and reminds us that “The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.” Psalms 50:1. He has adapted the yak perfectly to its cold homeland.

But the thoughts of God toward each of us are deeper and more loving than toward any other creature! Just hear what the Bible says: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me, and I will hearken unto you.” Jeremiah 29:11,12.

Have you accepted His kind thoughts? Have you ever prayed to Him and admitted that you are a sinner and accepted Him as your Saviour? If not, He waits to prove His love to you. You will be eternally saved and have real happiness if you accept Him as your Saviour right now.

ML-11/10/1985

Kia

Memory Verse: “Redeemed ... with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” 1 Peter 1:18, 19

Kia was the most wonderful puppy in the whole world. To anyone else he might seem like just an ordinary dog, but to Robbie he was everything. Daddy had brought home the playful black and white puppy for Robbie’s eighth birthday, and a new world opened up to him.

Robbie and Kia were soon almost inseparable. Even running errands for his mother was fun when Kia was along. When he came home from school, Kia was always waiting to meet him. But one day Kia was not waiting when Robbie came home.

“Where’s Kia?” he asked his mother.

“He’s probably curled up in a corner sleeping somewhere,” she replied. “I’m sure he’s around here somewhere.”

When Daddy came home, Robbie still had not found Kia. “Where did you last see him?” he asked Robbie.

“He followed me part way to school this morning. Do you think he could’ve gotten lost and can’t find his way home?”

“We’ll go out and look for him after supper,” his father promised.

But when bedtime came, Kia still had not been found, and Robbie cried himself to sleep. Long, lonesome days followed, and still no trace could be found of the little dog.

“I’m afraid a car has run over him, Rob,” his father said. “But never mind, we’ll get another puppy for you.”

“Another puppy?” Robbie felt as if his heart would break. There would never be another dog like Kia!

Several weeks later Robbie was on his way to the store to buy a quart of milk when suddenly a low whimper caught his attention. Peering through a hedge he saw Kia straining on a rope that was tied to his collar. Quickly Robbie opened the gate going into the yard and began untying the knot that held Kia.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing to my dog?” demanded an angry voice. Robbie looked up and saw a big boy several years older than himself.

“This is my dog,” answered Robbie. “I lost him a few weeks ago. How did you get him?”

“Since when is he your dog?” sneered the older boy. “That’s just tough; he’s mine now, and don’t try to take him!”

Robbie could hardly keep from crying and he was really scared, but he didn’t want to leave Kia there. Suddenly he had an idea. “Would you sell him to me?” he asked.

The boy thought for a minute. “How much is he worth to ya?” he asked finally.

“Well, I’ve only got seven dollars, but I’ll give it all to you.”

“Okay, tell you what,” said the boy, “you give me the seven dollars, then I’ll untie the mutt, and if he wants to go home with you, you can have him. But if he wants to stay with me, then he’s still mine.”

As Robbie ran home to get his money, a question kept racing through his mind — what if Kia had forgotten him? What if he stayed with the other boy? He ran back as fast as he could with his wallet and gave all his money to the boy.

“Okay, mutt, it’s up to you,” said the boy as the knot was untied. With one excited bark Kia raced through the gate to Robbie, jumping all over him, and together they ran home.

“You know, Rob,” said his father, “that reminds me of what the Lord Jesus did for us. We really belong to Him because He made us. But we were lost, just like Kia was and tied up in our sins. But the Lord Jesus loved us so much that He came and paid the price to buy us back. It cost Him all that He had He gave His life to buy us back. And now, those whom He has purchased with His precious blood He has set free to follow Him and to be His forever.”

Whenever Robbie thinks of the time that Kia was lost, he remembers that he himself was once a lost sinner, that the Lord Jesus bought him back with a great price, and that now he belongs to Him.

The Lord Jesus saw us in our sin and came down here to redeem us. All who put their trust in Him and accept Him with their hearts as their Saviour will be among those who in heaven will sing, “Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.” Revelation 5:9.

“None... can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.” Psalms 49:7.

ML-11/17/1985

The First Step

It was a warm summer evening, and Mr. Hughes felt like taking a walk before turning in for the night. Down the street he met Mr. Ripley, a neighbor who was also out for a walk.

“Hello, Mr. Ripley,” said Mr. Hughes.

“Good evening,” answered the old man, and they both stopped to talk.

Now Mr. Hughes was a Christian. He loved his Saviour, and he loved to tell others the way to heaven. So after they had talked about the nice weather, Mr. Hughes brought the conversation around to the more important and eternal things. He asked Mr. Ripley if he knew Jesus Christ as his Saviour and was on the road to heaven.

“You know, that’s the very thing I’ve been thinking about lately,” confessed Mr. Ripley. He wanted to come to Jesus and be saved, but he didn’t know how.

“Mr. Ripley,” said his friend, “do you remember when you were just a little fellow, how your mother set you alone on your feet in the middle of the room, and kneeling down several feet away with her arms reaching out to you, she said, ‘Come on, Tommy."'

Old Mr. Ripley replied that he was too young back then to remember, but that’s probably how it went.

So Mr. Hughes went on: “For a few moments you stood there on your little feet wobbly and afraid, but your mother encouraged you saying, ‘Come here, Tommy, come over here to Mommie.’ Then suddenly you stepped out and the next moment you were safe in your mother’s arms.”

The old man was deeply impressed. The memory of childhood days brought tears to his eyes. Was the way of salvation as simple as that? Could someone as old as he come to Jesus as simply as a child would? Yes, Jesus had died to put his sins away, and now He called him to come and trust Him as his Saviour. Has He not said, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37.

He saw it all so clearly now. That night on their street, out under the starlit sky, old Mr. Ripley took that step of faith. He came to Jesus and found himself in those everlasting arms of love that would never let him go.

“Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28.

ML-11/17/1985

Samuel

The words with missing letters in the following story are the same as those in the crossword, only in the crossword they run in two directions, across or down. Try to fill in the missing letters in the squares.

This story is found in 1 Samuel 13. There was a man in Israel who went up with his wife, __ __ N __ __ H, to Shiloh to worship before the Lord. Now Hannah did not have any children. She P __ __ Y __ D to the Lord, promising that if the Lord would send her a __ __ N, she would give him back to serve the Lord in the temple. The Lord heard Hannah’s prayer, and gave her a son. Hannah named him S __ M __ __ L. True to her word, Hannah took Samuel, when he was still a child, up to Shiloh and brought him to __ L __ the priest. She said, “I have L __ N __ him to the Lord; as long as he liveth.” And so Samuel served the Lord even when he was a child. Every Y __ __ R Hannah went up to see Samuel, and she brought him a little C __ __ T which she made from year to year. One N __ __ __ T when Samuel was __ __ L __ __ P he heard his name called. He went to Eli, but Eli had not called Samuel. Eli told Samuel that it must be the Lord, and the next time he heard his name called he should say, “S __ E __ __, Lord; for Thy S__ __V__ N__ H __ A __ __ __ H.” Samuel did this, and the Lord spoke to him about the things He would do in Israel. Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him. All Israel knew that he was a P __ __ P __ __ T of the Lord.

ML-11/17/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Charming Barbets

“He sendeth the springs into the valleys.... By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.” Psalms 104:10,12.

There are about 75 species of barbets, all having colorful and powerful bills which make them look like miniature toucans. In relation to their size, these birds have large heads and are short-tailed. The smallest variety is about three inches long and the largest close to twelve inches. They are tropical birds which do not migrate. They live in the forests of Africa, Central and South America and other parts of the South Pacific.

All barbets have bright colors mixed with white and dark, and many bird lovers consider them the most beautiful of all birds. Each species bears a descriptive name, but we have space to mention only two. One is called the crimson-throated. It is strictly a fruit eater and is especially fond of wild figs. Another is called red and yellow, although it is almost entirely green except for a red crest on its head, a blue throat and yellow on the sides of its neck. All the others, of course, are equally interesting.

The Creator has provided barbets with strong legs and feet having sharp claws, enabling them to climb and hold securely to the side of a tree while feeding or digging a nest out of a rotten area of the trunk. Males and females work together, their big beaks pulling out the rotten wood. They make a nest with a small opening, but large enough inside for both of them and their young, which usually number four. They are tidy housekeepers and promptly discard all foreign objects that get into the nest.

The lives of almost all barbets are spent in the trees, and they seldom go to the ground. Resting after a search for insects, lizards, rodents and fruit, they often sit on a limb for hours without moving. There they call back and forth to one another in sharp, ringing tones which have no real melody. It is “just everybody for himself,” and it is amusing to hear their happy but discordant notes when a pair sits cozily side by side, bursting into ringing chirps, not being at all concerned that they do not harmonize.

These lovely birds remind us of the Lord’s pleasure in His creation; as a Bible verse says, “He path made His wonderful works to be remembered: the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.” Psalms 111:4. That gracious compassion is toward everything He has created, but is especially extended to all the people of the earth. Jeremiah, one of the Bible prophets, wrote, “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is [His] faithfulness.... Therefore will I hope in Him.” Lamentations 3:22-24.

Have you accepted Him as your personal Saviour?

ML-11/17/1985

A Train Without an Engineer Is Like …

Memory Verse: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27

Mr. Cowdery couldn’t believe his eyes. As he glanced up from his work, he saw train 634 slowly leaving the Caterham station south of London. “She’s a runaway,” he thought. “I’m sure there’s no one aboard that train.” Mr. Cowdery rushed to the telephone and got in touch with the signal man. Soon the alarm had been passed from station to station down the track.

Ahead at the East Croydon station they decided to try to jump on the moving train and stop it. When the train reached the station, it was going at least 20 miles an hour. The train thundered past, but the attempt to jump on was just too dangerous.

Ahead, train after train was turned off onto sidings to allow the runaway to pass safely through on the main line. The driverless train hurtled for nine miles at speeds up to 40 miles per hour through south London suburbs. At one time it rushed along the busiest line in the country at the beginning of the rush hour. Everywhere in its course there was chaos and a frantic attempt to clear other trains out of the way.

The train was going too fast to jump. No other trains were close enough behind to catch up with it. What could be done? At last they switched the train onto a siding at Norwood. There it smashed into the buffers and was derailed.

A train without an engineer is like... WHAT? It is like a boy or a girl who does not have an engineer in their lives. And who is the Engineer? The Engineer is the Lord Jesus Christ. A boy or a girl who does not have the Lord Jesus in his or her life is bound to end up with a wrecked life. The Bible says, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12. We may think that we know the best way, but if our way is not God’s way, it is the way of death.

“Jesus saw a man, named Matthew... and He saith unto him, Follow Me. And he arose, and followed Him.” Matthew 9:9. Each of us should be like Matthew.

Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.” John 10:27,28.

ML-11/24/1985

Scared by the Buffalo

Ben was a soldier stationed in Viet Nam. Many times he and others from his unit went on patrol. This always meant wading through big fields of muddy water in which rice was growing. This made the walking very difficult, especially in the hot summer sun.

One day as the company of men reached the center of a big field of rice, the command was given to “halt.” All the soldiers sat down on the dike, tired from wading through the water, and began to talk about going back to camp. They noticed a herd of twenty huge, black water buffalo standing at the edge of the field. The buffalo had stopped their grazing and had turned to watch the soldiers.

“Look at all those buffalo,” Ben said.

“Yes,” replied his friend, Mike. “I sure hope they don’t cause us any trouble.”

Ben and Mike remembered seeing buffalo in the villages they had been through. The animals usually became very uneasy at the appearance of the soldiers, and the owners had to run out and quiet them or they would tear down their small corrals trying to get out.

“Oh no, they have all turned and are walking this way!” exclaimed Ben. Sure enough, the buffalo began walking very slowly towards the soldiers. As they walked they formed into a group with the biggest and strongest bulls leading the advance. Ben and Mike were a little concerned, for though the buffalo were still some distance away, they moved steadily forward — directly toward them.

“It looks like they mean business,” said Mike. “You’d better tell the lieutenant, and ask what we should do.”

As the buffalo drew closer they lowered their broad heads and stuck their noses straight forward snorting.

“Lieutenant, those buffalo are coming this way!” shouted Ben. “What should we do?”

“If they get too close shoot them!” came the stern reply from the lieutenant.

Ben and Mike knew what they had to do. The soldiers had to be in that field, and if the buffalo started to charge, they would be shot. Though the buffalo were big and strong, they were no match for the powerful rifles carried by the soldiers.

Ben and Mike reluctantly raised their rifles ready to fire, still hoping that the animals would not come closer. Step by step they advanced, snorting and pawing the ground. The soldiers aimed at the nearest one and began to squeeze the trigger. Suddenly, they heard the high, shrill voice of a small child and saw the buffalo stop. A small child was running toward them yelling something in the Vietnamese language and frantically waving a small, short stick at the buffalo. Much to the surprise and relief of the soldiers, all the buffalo immediately turned and ran off.

How this reminds us of the lost sinner traveling the dangerous path of self-will, little realizing the great danger which lies ahead. The Word of God tells us: “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12. “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:6.

How often men choose for themselves paths which only bring sorrow, and don’t listen to the voice of God speaking to their souls. God bids all to follow the path which leads to everlasting life. Listen to the voice of Jesus and come and live. As the buffalo were saved by obeying the words of the little boy, so should you

“Heed the warning voice,

Make the Lord your happy choice,

Then all heaven will rejoice;

Be in time!”

“Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” Isaiah 45:22.

ML-11/24/1985

A Few Facts About the Oceans

“All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full: unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.” Ecclesiastes 1:7.

It was a wise observation of Solomon expressed in the above Bible verse. How marvelously the Creator has arranged through the inflow of rivers and evaporation of ocean surfaces, that all continues the same since the Lord God first established it. About three fourths of the earth’s surface is covered by its oceans, just the right amount to bring the greatest benefits to all.

Rain, as we know, is necessary for life to exist, and most of it comes from evaporation of sea water into the atmosphere. Winds carry this moist air over the land where the moisture drops as rain or snow. Much of the snow dropped on mountains remains until the summer sun melts it. The melting snow fills streams, lakes and wells with sweet water for all living things during dry, hot summer months. This should always be a reminder of how God cares for us and all His other creatures.

The oceans, together with the sun’s warmth, combine to make the world a livable place. The great amount of water helps moderate the earth’s temperatures. In summer the water absorbs heat from the sun and stores it until wintertime when it is released to reduce the chill of the air over the land. In the summer this storehouse of water is cooler than the land air and, blown by the wind, again adds to the comfort of all.

Many things besides fish are in the oceans. Chemicals and minerals, for instance, continuously deposited by the rivers bring untold millions of tons of gold, silver, manganese, iron and innumerable other things into it, some of which are recovered for man’s use. For instance, the salt in the shaker on your dining room table probably has come from the ocean. The saltiest water of all is in the Red Sea and the least salty is in the polar seas where huge icebergs form.

The sea is more than five miles deep in some places in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and many high mountains rise from those deep floors. The tips of some come above the water to form islands, such as those in Hawaii, the Aleutians, the Marianas, etc., many of them making lovely home sites.

Solomon, as indicated in our opening verse, was familiar with many of the wonders of the oceans and left this message for us in the Bible: “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth.” Ecclesiastes 12:1. It is important to know Him as the Creator, but more important to know Him as your Saviour! Is this true of you?

ML-11/24/1985

The Colonel's Donkey

Memory Verse: “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck out of My hand.” John 16:28

Colonel Beckwith was a retired army officer who had made his home among the people of the Vaudois Valleys in France. His purpose in being there was to serve the Lord by helping the believers there who were poor and by preaching the gospel of Christ.

One day he met a poor man named Botalon who was well known in the area. Botalon made his living by delivering coal and wood on the back of his donkey, which was also well known as “Botalon’s donkey.” This day Botalon was without his donkey and was weeping.

“What is the matter, Botalon?” asked Beckwith.

“Sir,” replied the poor man, “they are going to take away my donkey, and without it my family and I will die of hunger.” Then he told how a man he owed money to had taken his donkey, intending to put it in his own stable and keep it.

Beckwith felt sorry for Botalon and asked him how much he owed. When told the amount he said, “Well, my friend, would you mind selling me your donkey and then you can pay your debt with the money I give you for it?”

Botalon was willing and bought back the donkey. After giving the donkey to Beckwith, he turned away still sad. But then the Colonel said, “Oh, you may take the donkey with you for now and make use of it until I claim it. However, you must understand that the donkey is mine, and that I can allow no one to take it for any reason whatsoever.”

The surprise and joy of the poor man when he heard this can be better imagined than described.

ML-12/01/1985

Beached Whale With a Red Iron Stomach

The crew aboard the Japanese ship, the Lee Wang Zin, all died, and no one may ever know why. The 30-man crew disappeared when the huge freighter loaded with iron ore hit a reef just off the coast of Alaska and capsized. In answer to a final radio distress signal, rescue ships were sent to try to rescue them. When the freighter was finally sighted bottom up, it looked like a beached whale with a red iron stomach. There was no sign of life. What about the crew? Had they all died and gone into eternity?

Since there was no sign of survivors or life rafts, the rescuers made every effort to determine if any of the ship’s 30 crewmen were still alive inside the ship. With difficulty, they were able to climb onto the bottom of the overturned ship. They tried to make contact with any of the crew who might be trapped inside.

Being trapped with no possibility of escape must be a terrible experience, yet many in the world today are trapped in Satan’s chains. Men and women, boys and girls go through this world without knowing that they are slaves of sin and Satan. Then suddenly, unprepared, they come face to face with death. “Prepare to meet thy God.” Amos 4:12. But what about the crew? Were they still alive, trapped in the hull, or had they already gone into eternity?

The courageous efforts of the rescuers were useless. “After five minutes we knew we were the only men alive on that ship,” said one of them. Another rescuer dressed in diving gear was able to get into the hold of the overturned ship. When he came back up to the surface he said, “There are no pockets of air anywhere... there is no hope.” No hope! What a grim statement. There was no hope for the lives of the 30 crewmen. The life rafts were right there, fully equipped, but they had not been used. “The whole thing is strange, very strange,” said Lt. Ensley of the Coast Guard. “I doubt we will ever know what happened to doom her.”

For the 30 men of the Lee Wang Zin, it is now too late. They have passed from this world into eternity. Only God knows whether they are with Jesus Christ in heaven or are in a lost eternity with “no hope.” If you had been one of the crew of the Lee Wang Zin, where would your never-dying soul be now? The Bible says, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2. It also tells us to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31. Believe in Him now; accept Him as your own Saviour and be sure your sins have been forgiven.

ML-12/01/1985

Walking Chocolate Bars

A recent major fire in the Bloomer Chocolate Company made a sweet but sticky mess. Chocolate powder in 100-pound bags was stored in the area where the fire broke out. During the fire the chocolate melted and formed puddles big enough to wade in three feet deep and 30 feet wide. Firemen waded through the mess, getting chocolate on their coats, hands and faces. They joked about being “walking chocolate bars.”

For those of us who love chocolate, this picture is one that brings both smiles and sadness; smiles when we think of what those firemen must have looked like, but sadness when we think of all that delicious chocolate sweetness going to waste.

There is another picture that brings only sadness to our hearts: all the sweetness of God’s love and grace that is being rejected by men and women, boys and girls. God showed His love in sending His Son; “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son...” (John 3:16), yet man rejected Him; “He came unto His own, and His own received Him not.” John 1:11. Have you accepted Him as your Saviour? If not, why? God’s love is being offered free “without money and without price.” Isaiah 55:1. Now is the time to accept Him as your Saviour.

“Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near.” Isaiah 55:6.

ML-12/01/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Delightful Plovers

“Seek the Lord and His strength, seek His face continually. Remember His marvelous works that He hath done.” 1 Chronicles 16:11,12.

Some 65 species of long-winged plovers, in a wide variety of colors and sizes, live throughout the world. Most of these birds are found near lakes or oceans where they find food along the beaches. It is interesting to watch them looking for food along the shore. They run fast and then abruptly stop to look for a bit of food. Or they follow an outgoing wave, looking for pieces of fish, oysters, etc. left behind, but then scoot rapidly back before the next wave catches them.

These water lovers nest on beaches, scraping out saucer-shaped nests in the sand or gravel. The speckled eggs, the nests and even the birds themselves blend in with their surroundings so well a person could pass close by without being aware of them. This protection is just one of the benefits provided by their Creator.

An interesting species is the Egyptian plover. In the oppressive heat of summer, the mother bird carries water in her beak, trip after trip, to dampen the young ones and keep them cool. This is the same plover that hops into a crocodile’s open mouth, picking food particles from its teeth. The crocodile naturally enjoys this and never harms the bird. Who do you think taught them these things?

But it is the golden plover that captures the interest of most bird lovers, for it is one of the world’s greatest travelers. In the springtime it nests and raises its young in the far north on the shores of the Aleutians and the Bering Sea. When the little ones are able to care for themselves, the parents leave them, taking off on a non-stop 2500 mile flight to Hawaii without the help of a map or compass. Isn’t that amazing! Most of us couldn’t even run one mile without stopping, but they fly that great distance without eating, drinking or stopping to rest. What surprising strength the Creator has given them!

But here’s something even more amazing: their young ones, left behind to mature, take off a few weeks later on the same trip, even though they have never done it before and with no apparent guide to show them the way. Their Guide, which was the same One for their parents, is the very Lord who created them and provides strength and guidance for them to make it safely to their journey’s end. Like their parents, after resting a few weeks in Hawaii they then fly southeast to South America and other places in the South Pacific to spend the winter. The following spring they fly north along the eastern shores of the Pacific Ocean to their former nesting grounds, completing a round trip of about 8000 miles.

The Bible informs us that the Lord Jesus wants to be our Guide and strength, too. The verse at the beginning tells us this, as well as Psalms 32:8, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with Mine eye.” Are you asking Him to guide you through your life as He invites you to do? Following His directions is the only safe and happy way.

ML-12/01/1985

Zip to the Rescue

The children loved Zip their collie-dog friend. But sometimes he was a bother. He had to go everywhere they went since he seemed to feel it was his job to take caw of them, especially when they were in swimming. Again and again they would chase him out of the water, because he would grab their bathing suits in his teeth and tug them toward the shore. From the shore he would watch them playing in the water with a worried-dog-look in his eyes.

One day while the children were swimming, Freddie found a sun-dried log that floated like a cork. He could swim a little, and a good log was actually more fun than an inner tube. He paddled with his hands and feet and soon was out beyond the rest of the children who were in swimming. It made him feel brave to be out where the water was deep, and out there he could have his log all to himself.

But after a while it did not seem so much fun to be alone. The others seemed to be having fun playing a game of water tag together. So Freddie rolled off his log and began to swim toward shore. He swam until he was tired, and it seemed to him that he should be in far enough to touch bottom with his feet. He stopped kicking and let his feet go down.

Blub-b-blub... oh-oh! Where was the bottom? There was nothing to stand on! Not just his feet had gone down, but his head had gone under, too. He splashed hard with his arms and tried to kick with his feet. Slowly his head came up out of the water, but just long enough for one good breath of air! Down he went again! He splashed hard again, but he just wasn’t able to make any progress.

Up and down he struggled in the water until he was so tired. Down... down... down... how could it be so deep! Freddie had never been so frightened in his whole life. Was he drowning? With eyes wide open he saw big bubbles churning in the water around him.

He was coming up again, slowly. What was that... something reddish brown was in the water beside him... it looked like Zip’s tail!

Freddie grabbed it and held on with all the strength he had left. Zip seemed to understand. Straight to shore he swam with Freddie clinging to his tail.

Freddie loved Zip even more after that. He had saved his life! He never would forget the awful feeling of reaching for the bottom of the lake with his feet and finding nothing to stand on!

Is that a little bit like the way people will feel who someday will stand before God to be judged for their sins? Because Freddie was a Christian he could say, “He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God.” Psalms 40:2,3.

Freddie had learned when he was just a little boy that he was a sinner and could not save himself. He had read, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My Word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24.

Reaching out by faith, he had taken hold of God’s promise just as simply as he had taken hold of Zip’s tail, and the Lord Jesus had “rescued” him. Freddie was saved, and God’s Word, the Bible, told him that his feet were safely upon the Rock — Christ Jesus.

Someday will you have to face God with nothing to stand on? Excuses, good works, friends none of them will help you when that time comes. Reach out by faith today and accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour.

ML-12/08/1985

The Dangerous Secret

Many years ago Queen Mary made a law that no one was allowed to read or own a Bible. However, in the town of Harrant a blacksmith lived who loved the Lord Jesus and His Word. He kept his Bible hidden in a wall of his home. He and his little daughter, Elsie, would spend many happy hours reading it in secret.

After hearing the Queen’s law, Elsie’s father told her, “These are dangerous days for us. The Queen has ordered all Bibles to be gathered up and burned, and anyone found with one in his possession will be put to death. However, I cannot part with our Bible. It is the only copy left in this village. Let me warn you, Elsie, don’t tell anyone that we have it!”

The days that followed were very upsetting for everyone who loved God’s precious Word. Soldiers sent by the Queen were sure there was a Bible hidden somewhere in Harrant, and the town was searched again and again. When the soldiers learned the blacksmith was the only one in town who could read, they took him to prison. Elsie was cared for by their kind neighbors, but the thoughts of her father in prison made her very sad.

One day the soldiers came again to Harrant and searched every house. When they came to the blacksmith’s house they said, “We’ll burn the house and shop to the ground! If a Bible is hidden in there it will be burned!” As the soldiers came near the house, Elsie hid in the bushes to watch. She was heartbroken as she watched them set fire to the house and shop. When the house was burning furiously, the soldiers left.

As Elsie watched her house burning she thought of the Bible still hidden inside. She also thought of her father in prison because he had protected the only Bible in the town. Suddenly she dashed to the burning house and ran inside. The intense heat burned her skin and singed her clothes, but she stumbled to the wall where the Bible lay hidden. She quickly slid it out of its hiding place and hid it in the folds of her skirt. She was barely able to get back through the smoke and flames before collapsing outside the blazing house.

There, an hour later, the villagers found her still unconscious. Underneath her they found the Bible she had saved. They treated her burns, but she had the scars from the burns for the rest of her life.

Most of us have a Bible in our home, but do we value it as Elsie and her father did? Are you remembering to read it every day? Job said that he esteemed the words of God’s mouth more than his necessary food. (See Job 23:12.)

How good of God to give us His precious Word. It tells of His beloved Son, that precious Saviour God has provided for sinners. Time that we spend reading our Bibles is never wasted. If we are faithful in reading it, the Lord Jesus will turn that Word to joy in our own souls. “Thy Word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart.” Jeremiah 15:16.

ML-12/08/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Mongoose Snake Killers

“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.” Revelation 4:11.

Over thirty species of mongooses are found in the woodlands of India, Africa, parts of Europe and other places. Most are slightly bigger than a squirrel, with thick, soft brown and black fur. Their small ears are set behind sharp eyes on a pointed head and snout, and their Creator has given them streamlined bodies just right for their life-style. Some species are night hunters while others feed in the morning and evening and rest in the hotter part of the day. They are very curious animals and are easily caught by attracting them with bright lights. They are also fond of shiny or brightly colored objects and, like pack rats, place many such things in their nests.

Although not immune to poison, they don’t hesitate to attack vicious snakes. Much like the roadrunner bird, a mongoose, spotting a snake, slowly circles around it, then makes a swift attack. The snake strikes back, but the attacker dodges easily and tempts it again and again. Each time the snake becomes more tired, and finally the mongoose kills it. The Indian and gray mongooses skilled in this, are well known and are often tamed and used by exhibitors on street corners in India to stage fights with deadly cobras. The mongoose is always victorious, and the owner makes a living with the coins tossed to him for his pet’s performances.

The diet of these animals includes rats, mice and other small animals, birds, fruit, nuts and insects. Some also eat crabs and other shellfish. The banded mongoose, which is two feet long from its nose to the tip of its tail and dressed in thick brown and tan fur, is one of these. After catching a shellfish it will rise on its hind legs and hurl it to the ground, breaking the shell so it can get at the meat. This species also has an odd way of eating large eggs. Standing upright with a large rock behind it and holding the egg in its front paws, it tosses it backward between its hind legs, smashing it against the rock, then turns around to enjoy the treat!

This little animal is another example of the pleasure the Creator has in the variety of living creatures He has brought into being, as expressed in our opening verse. Those who love the Lord God can share His pleasure by recognizing that all things were created by Him and not listening to the foolish and false claims of some who speak about “evolution.” Those who recognize “evolution” show their refusal to believe God’s Word, the Bible, which is the only source of all that is true.

Reading the Bible every day helps us to understand the wonders of His ways and to see why He declares: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil.” Jeremiah 29:11. Have you thanked Him for His thoughts of Peace and love toward you?

ML-12/08/1985

Little Rebel of the Woodpile

Memory verse: “When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:6

Schatzen, a wire-haired brindle dachshund, peeped out from under his long, shaggy eyebrows and looked unhappily over the little backyard which was now his new home. Being a “high-class” dog with “papers” did not help the aching of his doggy heart for his old, loving playmates. Perhaps that is why he refused to go into the doghouse provided for him. Instead, he chose to live under the woodpile against the garage. His “weiner dog” body, having very short legs, did not need much headroom. He only came out to eat and, of course, to bark at cats and rabbits if nobody was around.

Today as a dreary rain fell he dozed, but was suddenly awakened by a cold feeling on his hind legs. His woodpile house was leaking! As he wriggled to a new spot, he heard his owner at the back door.

“Schatzen, come here!” she whistled and called again. Getting no response from Schatzen she shouted, “Well, go ahead and be stubborn!” and she slammed the door.

The next day food was placed outside the door for Schatzen, and the owners then left for a short vacation. The drizzle continued all day as Schatzen dozed. Unknown to him the rain was slowly soaking the boards in his woodpile. Weighted and sagging, they made his tunnel to get out too low. When Schatzen tried to leave his cozy inside-room, he found he was a prisoner in the woodpile! And the owner he had ignored had driven away for a long weekend! Would he die all alone in the woodpile?

On the fourth day he heard a wonderful voice speaking to his new owner... his old owner! He cried and yelped! She was listening and she heard him. Those boards began to fly and quickly she reached the trembling wet thing. Schatzen looked up with eyes sad enough to melt a heart of stone. Even though he was soaked and chilled and hungry, he was happy now with those he loved.

Later, as his dear old owner was holding him warm and snug, she whispered, “You precious, stubborn little thing! Elsa,” she said to her daughter nearby, “Schatzen is a good picture of us before we are saved. We want to do things our own way and we’re held prisoner by sin. All he could do was cry; just like us — helpless. ‘When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.’ That’s Romans 5:6. But Isaiah 65:24 shows how quickly our God will help us — ‘Before they call, I will answer."'

You will be glad to know that Schatzen soon moved to a new, happy home where there were children. But what about you? Are you stiffening yourself against God’s voice to you? Every day you add to the heavy load of sin. One cry and Jesus will hear — Jesus Himself, the very Son of God. Because He could not sin, God could punish Him instead of you and me. Let Him lift your heavy load, and then you, too, will go to a bright, new home where Jesus is.

“God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

ML-12/15/1985

Grandpa, Grandma and the Baby Cardinal

The three little baby cardinals felt safe, warm and cozy as they snuggled close together in the little nest that Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal had built in the pine tree that stood beside Grandpa and Grandma’s house. When mother or father cardinal returned to the nest with a nice, juicy worm, the peace and quiet of this happy little nest was disturbed. What a lot of squawking, chirping and peeping was heard as each little cardinal tried to explain to his parents how very hungry he was and how very good that worm would taste. And with all three baby birds trying to talk at once, you can imagine how difficult it was for anyone to understand them!

This happy little home continued until one night a cold, stormy wind began to blow on the pine tree. The next morning Grandma looked out her window to see what had become of the little cardinal family. She sadly saw that the nest was no longer safely nestled among the branches of the pine tree. Hurrying outside she found the remains of the nest on the ground. Nearby she found one of the little baby birds more lead than alive. Although Grandma searched carefully, she could not find the other two baby birds.

Grandma loved to care for sick or injured little animals, so she gently carried the little baby bird into the warm house and began to care for it. All her care and attention seemed to work wonders for the little baby bird, because in almost no time he was quite healthy again.

Grandpa fixed an old cage as a temporary home, making it as comfortable as he could. He hung the cage in front of the window that looked out at the pine tree. They did everything they could to make the little bird happy in his new home. Grandpa and Grandma always made sure that the baby cardinal had plenty to eat, and it wasn’t long before the little bird was talking to them just the way he had to father cardinal. When they would come near the cage, the little bird would open his beak wide and start his noisy chirping and squawking. A moment later his little tummy was full of good, fresh fruit or tasty seeds.

All this time father cardinal was flying around outside the window trying to get to his baby. But the window which allowed Mr. Cardinal to see the baby bird wouldn’t allow him to fly to his baby’s new home.

Grandpa decided to try an experiment. He took the cage outside, placed it by the pine tree, and opened its door. It wasn’t very long until father cardinal came swooping down from his perch in the tree with a worm for his little baby. Right into the cage he went, fed his hungry baby, and was off again to get more!

With all of this loving care, it was only a short time until a happy, healthy little cardinal was enjoying the freedom of the beautiful blue sky and singing his happy song of thanksgiving.

This happy little story is a reminder of a very solemn verse found in the Bible in the book of Proverbs: “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12.

No doubt the pine tree seemed like a safe and happy place to care for the little birds. But father and mother cardinal were sadly mistaken, and two of their little babies died in the storm.

God is about to send a storm of judgment on this world because of sin. The Bible has plainly told us that “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23. Not even one small sin will ever be allowed in His presence!

Many people seem to be satisfied with their “way” of being safe from this coming “storm,” but we know that there is really only one “way” that God has for man to come into the safety of His presence. The Lord Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6.

The love and care that Grandpa and Grandma showed toward the little cardinal is very small compared to the love that God has shown to you by sending His beloved Son, Jesus, into this world to die for sin. And when you accept the Lord Jesus as your personal Saviour, He will care for you all the way home to heaven, because He said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5.

ML-12/15/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Those Pesky Rats - Part 1

“Yet, the darkness hideth not from Thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to Thee.” Psalms 139:12.

In past issues we have considered many animals and birds that are attractive, interesting and that have helpful habits. But this is not true of all creatures even though all are a part of God’s creation. Among those that are not helpful or attractive we must include rats, which outnumber human beings on the earth — there are 100 million of them in North America alone. It is no wonder there are so many since a mother rat can have as many as 80 babies in one year! When these are three or four months old they begin raising families of their own. If all these rats lived, there would be millions of descendants in two or three years’ time, just starting from one pair! But the Creator does not allow this to happen.

Rats are related to mice and are similar in many ways except for size. Although seldom seen in daylight, many make their homes in houses, barns and other buildings, because being near humans means there will be plenty of food and shelter available. They also like to get aboard ships and this spreads them around the world, which is how unwanted, disease-infested rats got into the Americas in the first place. Have you ever noticed that large ships are tied to docks by big ropes which pass through round metal plates? The purpose of those shields is to keep rats and mice from climbing up the ropes, but some still manage to get aboard.

Except perhaps for the white rats used in medical laboratories, there’s not much good that can be said about rats. Not only do they spread disease, they consume great quantities of food — one rat alone can eat 25 pounds of grain or corn in a year’s time, taking it from farmers’ fields, storage bins and kitchen pantries. Multiply this by hundreds of millions of them and it gives you an idea of how much food they consume that might have been put to good use for hungry people. In fact, they are the cause of famines in many places. In addition to grains and seeds, many are fond of nuts, fruit, eggs, fish, vegetables, chickens and many other kinds of food. They will go after almost anything edible, often spoiling more than they eat.

Perhaps rats are allowed to be so plentiful and such a nuisance to provide us with a solemn lesson. They remind us of that which is destructive, creating nothing good themselves and bringing harm to others. What a contrast this is to what the Bible says should be the character of those who love the Lord: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.... For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works.” Ephesians 2:8,10.

When we consider His desire that we should show good works in our lives, our daily prayer should be, “Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not. I have called upon Thee, for Thou wilt hear me, O God.” Psalms 17:5,6.

(to be continued)

ML-12/15/1985

Ching Lee's Stuffed Ears

Memory Verse: “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Romans 10:17

In San Francisco, California there is an area called “Chinatown.” As the name suggests, the people who live in this section are Chinese. There are many who don’t speak English, especially among the older people. They speak only the Chinese language.

A Gospel work to reach these Chinese-speaking people had been going on for some time. The preacher, himself a Chinese Christian, had rented a small room on a street in Chinatown to preach the Gospel. There were wooden benches on which to sit. Bible verses in Chinese characters were on posters hanging on the walls. The preacher passed out many Chinese tracts and invitations to the Gospel meetings. He also had a Sunday school for the Chinese children. It was in the Sunday school that Lotus had heard the story of the Lord Jesus Christ and had accepted Him as her Saviour.

Lotus combed her straight black hair, then went to find her grandfather, Ching Lee. She said to him in Chinese, “Come, honorable grandfather. It’s time for the Gospel meeting.” Ching Lee grumbled and refused to move from his chair.

Lotus sighed. She could go on alone to the meeting without her grandfather, “but he doesn’t know about Jesus,” she told herself. She had prayed every night that her old grandfather would be saved.

“I’m too tired to go tonight, small granddaughter,” he said slowly.

“But Grandfather, you promised! And you’ll like the singing.” Lotus pulled at his coat sleeve as she talked.

“Singing?” Ching Lee did enjoy singing. And besides, he really had promised her that he’d go. He began to get up, moving stiffly, and reached for his cane. “Hurry up, Lotus child! I want to hear the singing.”

Grandfather walked so slowly that the first hymn was finished before Lotus had him seated near the front of the meeting room. Then there was more singing, and Lotus joined in with the other children and the few grownups who were there. The old man smiled as he listened, his body swaying with the music. The musical voices of the Chinese audience came to an end with the hymn "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus,” and the preacher began to pray.

Ching Lee had been sitting with his eyes closed. As the preacher began to speak, Ching Lee had an idea. He slowly placed one of his fingers into each of his ears. Now he didn’t have to listen to any of the preacher’s stories!

Lotus pulled on his sleeve and tried to get him to listen. Ching Lee yawned noisily several times, but refused to remove his fingers. He looked at one of the posters hanging on the wall. In Chinese characters were printed the words, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord...” Ching Lee read no further. He closed his eyes, pushed his fingers still further into his ears and shuffled his feet.

As Ching Lee sat with his eyes closed and his ears plugged, a fly came buzzing around him. It landed on the bald spot on the top of his head. Ching Lee opened his eyes and unstopped his ears as he made a swing to swat the fly. As he did that he heard the speaker say, “who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Matthew 13:43. Back into his ears went his fingers, but the Word of God had entered. Instead of closing his eyes this time, he watched the preacher’s face. The fly returned and again Ching Lee swatted at it.

“Who hath ears to hear,” repeated the preacher.

Ears? Yes, Ching Lee had ears and ears were for hearing. Maybe he had better listen after all. He slowly removed his fingers. The preacher was describing a farmer who owned a large field. He had sown good seed in his field. It made Ching Lee think of the rice fields called paddies in which he used to work when he was in China. The preacher continued, “But an enemy came and sowed bad seed in the same field! And the good and the bad seed grew together until harvest time. Then the tares from the bad seed were separated from the good and were burned in the fire.”

The speaker went on to explain that those who were listening were either tares or good seed, and that it was God who would be the judge. He explained the way of salvation through faith in the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross to wash away sins.

As Ching Lee listened to the Word of God, the Holy Spirit spoke to his heart. The fly returned, but Ching Lee didn’t even hear it buzzing. Jesus the Son of the living God had died for him — for Ching Lee!

After the meeting Ching Lee said he wanted to talk with the preacher. Lotus was very excited as she led her grandfather to him. She walked quietly around the room praying silently as the preacher talked with her grandfather.

Finally, Ching Lee slowly rose and called, “Lotus child, take me home. I’m tired.”

She looked up into his face as she took his arm to help him. She wanted to ask him if he had accepted Jesus into his heart as his Saviour, but she waited for him to speak.

He smiled down at her and said, “Lotus child, your God is my God now. I have believed in the Lord Jesus as my Saviour. I hear singing, small granddaughter, and it is inside of me. My heart is singing, child!”

Lotus and her grandfather were both very happy as they walked home. There was not only joy in their hearts, but the Lord Jesus said, “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Luke 15:10.

ML-12/22/1985

Little Ann

Four-year-old Ann and her mother were on a vacation at the sea shore. They both were enjoying the sun and sand and especially the water. Although Ann was just a little girl she was having great fun playing in the sand and splashing in the shallow water along the shore.

As Mother watched Ann playing in the little waves that lapped the sand, she suddenly saw a large wave rushing toward the shore. The wave was much higher than Ann, and it was almost to shore. There wasn’t time for Ann’s mother to run and snatch her little girl out of danger! The only thing she could do was to shout “ANN, COME!” Ann turned and ran as fast as she could straight to her mother as the wave crashed on the sand where she had been playing. How happy Mother was to have her little girl safe.

What if Ann had not paid attention to her mother’s call to come? She certainly would have been swept out to sea and drowned! Ann had been taught to obey her mother’s voice at once. Even the reply “just a minute” would have made it too late. She heard her mother’s voice and acted.

The Lord Jesus Christ has told sinners “Come unto Me.” He has said it to save sinners from an awful punishment for their sins. He went to the cross and took that punishment on Himself. He is now saying “Come... and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28. Have you obeyed that call from the Saviour? Don’t wait any longer! Accept Him as your own Saviour. Danger is very near. Don’t say “just a minute,” or “in a little while” accept Him right now! “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

ML-12/22/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Those Pesky Rats - Part 2

“Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth?” Jeremiah 23:24.

In spite of their bad traits, rats are clever little animals, and many of their abilities show how the Creator has given them special skills. There are hundreds of species of them, all doing their mischief mostly in the dark. But, as mentioned in the above Bible verse, there is One who sees them in spite of the darkness just as He sees each of us every moment of our lives. He is “beholding the evil and the good” as another Bible verse says.

Nearly all rats have a sharply pointed nose, beady eyes, small rounded ears, long whiskers which help them feel their way around in the dark and long scaly tails. Best known is the brown or Norway rat which is quite common in America. It is about 16 inches long, including its tail. In the springtime these frequently dig burrows with separate living and eating areas, all connected by tunnels leading outside. With the first frost they move into the lower parts of buildings where people soon become aware of them, under floors, inside walls, in cellars and even in sewers.

The brown rats in China and Russia are larger and more fierce than those in America, and their burrows frequently undermine buildings, causing them to collapse. In addition to the brown or Norway rat, another common one is known as the black or roof rat which is smaller and darker than the Norway. It gets its name because it prefers to nest in the upper stories and attics of buildings and sometimes in trees. Although called black, it is really a gray-black color on top and much lighter on the underparts. It is a great climber and jumper and scampers rapidly up trees, drain pipes, cables, as well as brick and concrete walls. Some prefer an outdoor life and make their nests in rocks or bushes as well as in burrows.

If you have rats or mice in your home, you know what a nuisance they can be, not only in the way they eat, but by keeping people awake at night and leaving their tell-tale tracks around. They make us think of the Bible verse, “one sinner destroyeth much good” (Eccl. 9:18), because all of them spoil more than they eat. They will even chew up books, leather goods and clothing, as well as being pests to farmers by raiding chicken coops to get at the eggs and young chicks. As mentioned in last week’s account, they raise large families and a small number moving onto any property can soon become a major problem.

In the next issue we will consider the Creator’s purpose in making them part of His creation. Meanwhile, let us remember the Bible verse, “I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by My great power and by My outstretched arm.” Jeremiah 27:5. He has a purpose for everything He has created even though we may not always easily see it.

ML-12/22/1985

The Pony Express

Memory Verse: “Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105

The Pony Express was an important part of early American history. It ran from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California, a distance of 1900 miles. Forty men, each riding 50 miles at a stretch, dashed along the trail using 500 of the fastest horses available. The trip was made in ten days.

To keep the weight down, their clothing was very light, their saddles were small, and no weapons were carried. The horses wore small horseshoes or none at all. The mail pouches were flat and could not be larger than a certain size. Letters had to be written on very thin paper because the postage was $5.00 an ounce! However, even with all these restrictions on weight, there was something that every rider carried — a full-sized Bible.

The Bible was presented to each rider when he joined the Pony Express, and he always took it with him even with all the weight restrictions. Why? Because the Scriptures were regarded as “standard equipment.” God was important to the people in those frontier days. They realized the need of reading God’s Holy Word every day.

We, too, like the Pony Express rider, are on our way to a destination — eternity. God has arranged that He will not leave us without a compass or a guide. He has provided us with these in His precious Word — the Bible.

Is the Bible precious to you? Is it standard equipment for you every day? Do you read and study it? I hope so. “From a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Timothy 3:15-17.

ML-12/29/1985

A Kernel of Corn

Have you ever thought how even a little kernel of corn can remind us of the Lord Jesus Christ and of His work for us on the cross?

A kernel of corn, you know, is a seed. And on the inside of the little seed there is something so wonderful that no one in the whole world, no matter how wise he may be, can make it. That wonderful thing is LIFE.

If we should place the kernel down into the moist, warm soil and cover it, something very interesting will happen. In the darkness the outside body of the little seed will die, and a new plant will begin to grow. Then, before very long, the growing plant will burst through the top of the ground to enjoy the sunshine and rain from heaven. It will grow and produce ears of corn. These contain many new little kernels just like the one that was planted and died. One seed died so that a great many more might live!

So that’s why the little kernel of corn reminds us of the Lord Jesus and of His work on the cross for us. He died for sinners, He was buried, and He rose again according to the Scriptures (see 1 Cor. 15:3,4). Because of His death, we who have trusted in Him as our own Lord and Saviour have received EVEASTING LIFE. And just as it was necessary for the seed to die before there could be many new ones, it was necessary for the Lord Jesus to die so that you and I might be saved and receive everlasting life.

Look up John 12:24 in your Bible and read it. In that verse the Lord Jesus uses another kind of seed as an example to teach us the story of His great salvation.

But remember! You must accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your own Saviour before you can have EVERLASTING LIFE. If you have not yet accepted Him, you are still “dead in trespasses and sins.” Won’t you accept Him right now?

“As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” John 1:12.

ML-12/29/1985

A Wild Ride in a Storm

Several years ago southern California was hit with strong rain storms caused by high winds coming in off the ocean. These came, one closely following the other, until a total of thirteen inches of rain had fallen.

One of the areas that received the greatest damage was the Santa Monica mountains and adjoining districts. These border the Pacific Ocean northwest of Los Angeles. Here steep canyons, Topanga, Mandeville, Los Virgenes and others, usually dry or having a quiet stream flowing through them, became raging torrents, wiping out roads, whole communities, individual homes and cars. Worst of all, 24 lives were lost, mostly in these mud and debris-filled streams. It would seem that God was reminding people how weak and helpless they really are, and that the things of this world are not going to last forever.

As the fury of the storm increased, one resident, Joshua Patlack, concerned about the water eroding the bank below his home, decided to do something about it. Knowing his ordinary clothing would immediately become soaking wet in the rain, he put on a “wet suit” (a wool-lined, water-proof suit worn by skin divers and surf-boarders). Approaching the edge of the violent stream he discovered a big log which was backing the water up toward his house. He and a friend worked to loosen the log to clear the area. Just as their efforts were successful and the log floated free again, Josh lost his footing and fell into the raging stream.

Grabbing the log they had worked so hard to free, he hung on for dear life! He was able to scramble onto it and was taken on a wild ride down the canyon, eventually ending up in the Pacific Ocean. Josh, who had gotten bruised and scraped in his wild ride, was still alive and thankful to have the log to hang onto.

Meanwhile, his friend immediately contacted the police and Coast Guard and told them about Josh’s accident. Through the rest of the afternoon search and rescue teams flew over the area, but were unable to find any sign of Josh. When darkness came, the search was called off.

How this story reminds us of those who for years refuse Christ, wishing to force any thought of Him out of their lives, just as Josh wanted to move the log to get rid of it. But just as the discarded log was the means of saving Josh’s life, so many have found the Lord Jesus Christ ready and willing to receive them.

Through the long night Josh hung onto that solid log. Although he was a strong swimmer, he knew that it was only with the support of the log that he was going to survive.

As morning came the rescue flights started again, but with little hope of finding him. They followed the trail of debris that had washed from the canyon far out into the ocean. Finally, nearly 17 hours after falling into the stream, Josh was spotted by a helicopter crew and lifted to safety.

Josh’s survival was due to the “wet suit” he wore that kept him warm and the log that kept him afloat. There is a terrible storm of judgment that will soon fall on this sinful world. Before this storm comes, the Saviour is going to call to heaven all who trust in Him. Are you prepared? Do you have on the right “garment"? If you are not clothed “with the garments of salvation” (Isa. 61:10) and are not standing on that “spiritual Rock... and that Rock was Christ” (1 Cor. 10:4), then you are not prepared to meet God. Don’t wait any longer; accept Him now as your own Saviour.

“To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” Hebrews 4:7.

“Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.

ML-12/29/1985

The Wonders of God's Creation: Those Pesky Rats - Part 3

“The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.” Psalms 50:1.

In preceding issues we have mentioned rats in many places of the world. One species that lives in Australia is known as the stick-nest rat because it makes its home out of great piles of sticks, sometimes three feet high and as much as four feet wide. In windy areas they place stones on top to hold it all together. The instincts God has given them taught them to do this. This rat is similar to the wood or pack rat found in the western United States.

Another that lives in Australia is the water rat which has partially webbed feet. It doesn’t bother people much, relying more on fish, frogs, water birds and shellfish for food. Its strong jaws can break most shells. However, if some are too tough it spreads them in the hot sun which soon causes them to open, and the rat then eats the exposed food. The Creator has been its teacher, too.

Part of the damage done by rats is due to their constant gnawing chewing on books, furniture, walls, lead pipes, plastics and even electrical wires on which they sometimes electrocute themselves. The reason for all this is not so much to eat what they gnaw on, but because their front teeth keep growing just like a beaver’s do, and if these teeth were not worn down by constant gnawing, they would grow too big for their mouths. The Creator’s wisdom is seen here again.

All rats seem clever in avoiding poisons and traps, but their numbers are partly controlled by such means. In addition they are a prey for dogs and cats, foxes, coyotes, weasels, hawks, owls, snakes and other animals and birds. If this were not the case their numbers would soon overrun the world.

Do you wonder why God allows these rodents to thrive, multiply and be such spoilers? One reason definitely is that they provide a much-needed food supply for the other creatures mentioned above. Another reason is certainly to remind mankind that sin is responsible for the evil throughout the world, just as rats and mice are present in all lands. These undesirable little animals come under the term “unclean” defined in the Bible (Lev. 11:27-29). God’s people in Bible times were instructed to avoid them. This tells us that God is not pleased when a person is involved with evil things. If tempted by evil things, the Bible instructs us to “Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.” Proverbs 4:14,15. These are two important verses for all of us.

The time is coming (known as the millennium) when these animals will no longer be filthy or destructive, but a happy part of God’s creation. Those who now love the Lord Jesus and know Him as their Saviour will before then be taken into the glories of heaven where sin can never come, and will look down on a cleansed earth, rejoicing that it, too, is also enjoying the light of His love. Will you be included with those in heaven?

ML-12/29/1985

Messages of God's Love: 1985

Table of Contents

The Other Side of the Wall

What Does Your License Plate Say?

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Big-Beaked Pelican

Kittens in the Hayloft

How Ed Was Saved

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Tough Zebra

The Cookie Man

The High Climbers

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Submissive Eider Duck

Caught by the Tide

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Astounding Ways of a Certain Wasp

Teeny

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Ungainly Manatee

Stranded on Egg Island Rock

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Glowing-Tailed Comet

Winter Rescue

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Unlovely Crow

"Stay on the Bus"

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Playful Seal

The Stained Tablecloth

The Two Debtors

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Cuddly Koala

Water Rescue

The Wonders of God's Creation: Seaweed - Pest or Blessing?

Two Minutes From Home

A Foolish Man - Luke 12:13-21

The Wonders of God's Creation: A Lesson From Bluebirds

What Is a Watchman?

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Likable Desert Fox

The Test

The Great Supper - Luke 14:12-24

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Purple Martin

The Call of the Wild

"I Am the Light of the World"

The Wonders of God's Creation: A Skunk - Be Careful - Part 1

Teddy's Disaster

Have You Ever Given Out a Tract?

The Wonders of God's Creation: A Skunk - Be Careful! Part 2

Tsali

Eddie's Heart

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Peculiar Aardvark

Ginger's Trick

One Word Answer

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Charming Finches

Sharing a Lion's Bedroom!

Speechless

The Wonders of God's Creation: Those Annoying Barnacles

The Dangerous Ride

Who's the Driver?

The Wonders of God's Creation: Big Trees From Little Seeds

"Please Make Them Snore!"

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Sociable Weaver Birds

Koko and All Ball

The Pillow Mishap

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Armor-Plated Pangolin

"I Knew You'd Come"

"Planting Seeds"

The Wonders of God's Creation: Jupiter - The Colorful Planet

A Trapped Skunk

The Garden Gate

The Wonders of God's Creation: Your Amazing Brain

Scamper and Scooter

The Crossword Puzzle

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Ear-Splitting Howlers

Where Do You Keep a Loon?

Closed Eyes

The Wonders of God's Creation: Beware the Tornado!

Mackinac Bridge

Left Behind

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Nimble Fisher-Marten

The Red Spots

The Old Man and the Tract

The Wonders of God's Creation: All-Important Chlorophyll

Kenny's Pocketknife

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Familiar Cow

His Hands

A Trapped Snake

The Wonders of God's Creation: The Swift Cheetah