"B is the letter." "Before Jehovah's awful throne, Ye nations bow, with sacred joy ; He can create and He destroy." At first the children found it difficult to remember the verses, but Aunt Myra often gave them the first word of some she was aware they knew, and after a while they soon got into the plan, and became very fond of capping verses. The younger ones were allowed to look in a hymnbook, but the elder ones had to trust to memory alone. PARABLES FROM NATURE. THINK you would like, what used to be one of my favourite occupations when I was a child, that of finding out parables in all the things we see around us, in the sky, or earth, or sea. Try and see what you can do by yourselves this afternoon, for Grannie is not well, and I am going to read to her; but I shall come in after your tea, and then you shall read to me what you have written. "Bertram had better begin, because he is youngest, had he not, auntie?" said Nelly, as Aunt Myra came in and sat down in the midst of the little group. "The great big sun is mine," said little Bertram, eagerly, "because it shines on us, and makes us happy and warm, and Nelly says that it is like Jesus. You can tell all the rest, Nelly." And Nelly repeated softly, "Unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in His wings.' The sun gives us light. Jesus says, 'I am the light of the world.' And the sun keeps everything in its place; the earth goes round the sun, and that is what we do when we love Jesus; we like to spend our lives going round and round Him, to look at Him on every side. Also, I was thinking nothing would grow on the earth if the sun did not shine, and I'm sure nothing good would grow in our hearts, if Jesus did not smile on us." "Very good, Nelly; now let me hear another parable." "I thought of the snow," said Evelyn, “and I asked Arthur what it meant, and he said it was like the white robe of Jesus' righteousness covering up our souls, and making them all pure and beautiful. I know a text about snow, too. 'Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.' "I like that thought, my little Evelyn, very much," said Aunt Myra. "Ivy is mine," said Muriel. "I remembered how the gardener at home pulled the ivy off one of the trees, and I said it was a pity, for the ivy was so pretty, clinging round the tree; and he said the tree was a valuable one, and though the ivy looked pretty, it would kill the tree in time; it would grow over all the branches, and hinder the leaves from coming out, and check all growth till the poor tree would be strangled to death." "That is not a parable," said Arthur. "I am coming to it," said Muriel,“ only it seems rather a sad one. I thought, auntie, the ivy was like some bad habit, which seems so nice and comfortable, and yet if we let it grow, does it not strangle the soul?" "Yes, dear child, it does, and I think that your parable is a very valuable one for us all." The children had found several other parables, but these we must leave our little readers to find out for themselves. Some of the subjects taken were the moon, stars, clouds, the waves of the sea, the harvest-fields, thorns, a river, mountains, ships, all of which, and many more, have beautiful meanings. CHAPTER XXIX. THE FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT. UNTIE," said Nelly, "I have been thinking I should like very much to take the fruits of the Spirit, and find texts to explain each, and perhaps we could find an example for each in the Bible." "That would be a very pleasant way of spending a Sunday afternoon," said her aunt. So the children got their Bibles, and the elder ones each tried to make a different list. Love, This was Nelly's: |