The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1929, Page 178

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178

THE LUTHERAN: PIONEER.

Bethlehem.

Micau 5, 2.

Little hamlet in the land of Judah,
Yet the chosen whence the Ruler came
And the story of a world’s redemption,
Bethlehem, is twined around thy name. -

Wondrous story, darkness gross and dreadful
Covered earth and peoples nigh and far;

Yet the dawn of living hope for mankind,
Bethlehem, rose with thy shining star.

Nothing but a stable tendered shelter
To thy weary wanderers for the night;
Yet unnumbered souls find rest and comfort,

Bethlehem, in thy relief and light.
aa

Wrapped in swaddling-clothes, His bed a manger,
Sleeping on thy earth, an, infant lies;

Yet this Child, God’s Son, in thee has opened,
Bethlehem, the.gates of paradise.

Bethlehem, thou ancient royal city,
Christmas ever draws us nigh to thee;

In thy story we have found our Savior —
Praise be to His name eternally! H. MEYER.

A Prayer for Missions.

Most gracious God, who hast made of one blood
all nations of men and didst send Thy Son to be
the Savior of the world, we praise and adore Thee
for Thy redeeming love, for the glory of the Gospel,
for the transforming power of Thy Spirit and for
the promise of a better age. We thank Thee for
consecrated heralds of the Cross, for open doors of
opportunity, for widening avenues of service, and
for rays of dawning in the realms of night.

Forgive our unfaithfulness and our fears, our
self-indulgence, our vanities and our frivolous waste,
our narrow horizons, our failures in service, and our
reluctance to obey our Lord’s command.

May Thy Spirit breathe upon our hearts, awak-
ening a new passion for Christ and for the souls
He died to save. May our eyes be opened to see
fields white to the harvest, and may we be impelled
to pray for more laborers and to support them with |

*. sacrificial gifts!

_.” Graciously protect and enrich Thy faithful ser-
vants in all the mission-stations of the world.
Remove from before them the barriers which impede
their progress. Give them patience in all their con-
stant cares, strength for their daily burdens, joy in
_ their unselfish service, and rich rewards for their un-

_Temitting toil. Hndue with wisdom those by whom
their tasks are directed or controlled.

have been won from false faiths and who are wit-
nessing for Christ in the presence of hostility
and hate.

Speak peace to the nations, that the Gospel may
have free course and hasten the coming of our Lord,
to whom we will ascribe all glory both now and
evermore. Amen. Cuas. R. ErpMan.

St. Philip’s, Philadelphia, Pa.

About eleven years ago a group of colored people,
members of one of our congregations in the South,
decided to leave their native city and travel onward
in the hope of bettering their condition. In the
course of their travels they arrived in the city of
Philadelphia, Pa. Here they found what they long
had sought and prepared to settle there. Of course,
their first thought was a home, a place to live.
After they had found that, one thing, indeed the
most important, was still lacking—a Lutheran
church; for they had learned to love so dearly the
Church which gave them the pure Gospel. When
Sunday came, they set forth to look for their
church. A copy of Dr. Martin Luther’s Small
Catechism firmly clasped in their hands, entire
families joined in the search of it. While walking
the streets, they saw a church which had the name
“Lutheran Church” written on the bulletin-board.
Thanking God for having found their church, they
entered it and remained for the service. However,
at the close of the service they said to one another
that they were not satisfied. Something was
missing. Just what it was they could not say at
the moment. In the service they had heard the
pastor announce that the Sunday-school would meet
in the afternoon, and so they decided to send their
children to the Sunday-school. “These little tots
then set out for Sunday-school, also clutching in
their hands their Catechism. Sunday-school ended,
they returned to their homes. Upon their return
their parents asked, “Well, how was Sunday-
school?” ‘The children answered, “That isn’t a Lu-
theran church; they don’t even have a Catechism.”
A church or Sunday-school that did not use a Cate-
chism simply was not a Lutheran church to them,
even though it had that name written above the
door. The next Sunday these people went in an-
other direction, always in search of a truly Lutheran
church; but no matter which church they entered
by that name, they would always return dissatisfied,
for in none of these churches the Lutheran Cate-
chism was used. What should they do? Must their