Hello All, Grace and Peace be to you from our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST.
This next story is lengthy, but worth the read. I love this story of...
The Wallpaper That Talked
Far away in Japan lived a little Koto San and her grandmother. As they sat sipping their tea one chilly day, Grandmother said thoughtfully,"My, but I wish I had enough money to buy some wallpaper." "It would be nice to have some pretty new paper!" cried Koto San eagerly. " Please, do try to get some!"
"But we are so poor. We really do need the paper, since it would make the room warmer for winter, but I'm afraid that I can get nothing with the little bit of money that I have."
Next morning, Grandmother proudly watched Koto San as she skipped to the mission school. Koto San was a bright little girl, and already she could read. Grandmother had wondered if she was doing right when she first allowed Koto San to go to the school of the "foreign devils." But Koto San must have an education, and this was the cheapest way. To soothe her conscience, Grandmother had forbidden Koto San to ever bring home the "foreign devils" terrible book"-the Bible.
Koto San had learned to love the LORD JESUS after hearing about HIM from the missionaries, and often she longed to tell Grandmother that the wonderful LORD JESUS loved her, too, and had died for her sins. But because she feared that Grandmother might not allow her to go to the mission school, she kept her secret in her heart and prayed for Grandmother.
After Koto San had gone, Grandmother put on her bright kimono, a long dress with big sleeves and a wide sash. Taking her bit of money, she hurried to the market. What a busy, noisy place! And, oh, what wonderful things there were to buy-if only one had money! At the shops that sold wallpaper, Grandmother was thrilled with the lovely paper she saw, but again and again she shook her head. It was just as she feared. She did not have enough money.
Sadly Grandmother walked slowly homeward. As she passed a neat little house, she noticed its lovely lawn. But what was that lying on the grass? Could it be a box? Had someone dropped it? Grandmother looked up and down the narrow, empty street. Crossing the lawn quickly, she picked up the box, opened it cautiously, and peeked inside.
Oh! Oh! How wonderful! The box was full of paper-paper that had pretty writing marks all over it that meant nothing to Grandmother, who could not read! The sheets of paper were not large, but there were so many of them that perhaps there would be enough to cover the walls of her room. Once again Grandmother looked up and down the street and at the little house. No one seemed to be watching. Surely the box must have been thrown away. Without waiting any longer, she tucked the box into her big sleeve and hurried home.
Mixing the paste took but a few moments, and when Koto San returned home from the mission school, Grandmother had quite a bit of one wall already papered. "Oh, Grandmother, how nice!" she cried happily. "You did get some pretty paper! I have never seen wallpaper just like this before." Koto San went closer and suddenly she caught her breath. For a moment she looked frightened as she glanced quickly at Grandmother and then back at the paper. Grandmother calmly continued with her work. Koto San's eyes began to twinkle and sparkle, for Koto San knew something about that paper that Grandmother did not know. Grandmother was pasting the Bible-the "foreign devils" book"-on their walls!
After several days, the room was finished. Grandmother and Koto San surveyed their work proudly. My, but it did look nice! "And to think it didn't cost me anything!" Grandmother was thinking.
"Now I can read the Bible whenever I wish!" Koto San was thinking. After that, as they sat sipping their tea together, Koto San would sit close to the wall so that she could read. Often she wished that she dared to tell Grandmother the secret, but she supposed that Grandmother would tear the paper from the wall if she knew.
One day Koto San thought, "I'll tell her just a little bit to see if she gets angry." "Grandmother, sometimes as I sit here drinking tea, the wallpaper talks to me."
"Talks to you? Why, what nonsense, child." She turned to look at the wall beside her. " Whoever heard of wallpaper talking!"
"But it does!" insisted Koto San.
"Then what does it say if it talks to you?" Grandmother asked unbelievingly.
"Well, began Koto San slowly, "right here it tells how the great GOD in Heaven made the sun, moon, and stars, and all the wonderful world we live in!" and she read to Grandmother from the first chapter of Genesis.
"How wonderful! Grandmother exclaimed, hardly able to believe it. "Does it really say that? How strange that I can not hear it talk, " and she bent her ear to the wall. "Does it say anything else?"
"Oh, yes,! It tells me how GOD made and put the first people in the wonderful world, and how HE blessed them. But one day they were wicked," and Koto San read the sad story of how sin entered the world when Adam and Eve listened to Satan and disobeyed GOD eating of the tree HE had forbidden them to eat.
"How sad! Does the wallpaper say whether GOD punished them?" "GOD said they must surely die. If they had not disobeyed, they would have lived forever!"
"Does the wallpaper tell more? Something about that story talks to my heart, for my heart is sometimes wicked. Must GOD punish me, too?" Grandmother wondered softly. "We must listen again tomorrow and see if it will tell us more."
After that, Grandmother eagerly awaited Koto San's return from school each day. Soon Grandmother learned the good news that GOD sent HIS SON into the world to die for all who had sinned against HIM. When she heard that GOD loved her, and that she could accept HIS SON as her SAVIOR, she trembled for joy! Could these wonderful words be true?
Then one morning after Koto San had gone to school, Grandmother put on her pretty kimono again and hurried down the street. The burden on her heart to know whether this wonderful love story was true or not had grown so great that she had decided she must find out today. Perhaps the people who lived in the house where she had found the box could tell her if the story was true. But would they be angry and think she had stolen it? Grandmother was so anxious to have her questions answered that she went bravely to the little house.
When a foreign woman opened the door, Grandmother could only stare at her green eyes and straw-colored hair. The lady smiled and invited her in. Before Grandmother knew it, she was sitting down pouring out her story. The missionary listened quietly until Grandmother finished; then she got her Bible. As she opened the Book, Grandmother grew more excited. "There it is! Just the same as my wallpaper! Oh, tell me, please tell me, is it true? Does GOD really love me?"
With joy in her face the missionary cried, "HE does! See here, '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.' And HE says, 'Him that cometh to ME I will in wise cast out.'"
Before the missionary could say much more, Grandmother was on her knees, weeping her thanks to GOD for loving a poor old Japanese woman enough to send the LORD JESUS to die for her sins. Then getting to her feet she said, "I am sorry, but I must go now. Thank you , oh, thank you for all you have told me." and she hurried away with a shining face.
When Koto San got home, Grandmother met her at the door. "Oh, Koto San! What do you think I found out today? Our wallpaper is really the Bible!" For a moment Koto San was frightened, but then she noticed the joy on Grandmother's face. " "And best of all, Koto San," she hurried on to say, "I found out that it is all true! No one else in all of Japan has wallpaper that talks. Listen, little Koto San, run up and down the street and knock on all our neighbors' doors. Invite the ladies to come to our house for tea and to listen to the wallpaper's good news."
~Mrs. D.E. Wisner~
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PJ said...
What a beautiful story! You made me cry!
God Bless,
PJ
January 9, 2011 at 9:09 AM
PJ said...
Hey Donna! I loved your post so much that I am posting your http address to some followers of my blog on their comment section. They are from different countries so don't be alarmed. I think there are some from Indonesia, and Peru. This post I think would be beneficial to them because of their countries' political and religious problems. I think your post is an excellent tool for helping others (who may not know God and are afraid) to become curious about the Bible. God Bless!
PJ
January 9, 2011 at 9:40 AM
Donna Bragg said...
Hello PJ, I am so happy you liked the story. I love it a lot too. I really love the stories I am posting. They touched my heart and my hope is that they will touch the hearts of all my readers.
I hope your readers will enjoy them too! GOD bless you my dear sister!
January 9, 2011 at 3:05 PM
Laston Lumbanraja, S.Sos said...
Morning PJ. sweet blog. I like it. But you forget one thing: You don't put a translator yet. N i'am waiting for it. Haleluya!!
January 10, 2011 at 8:13 PM
Anonymous said...
Lovely story :)Although it is true that it was written by Mrs. D. E. Wisner, this particular version is currently published by ABEKA Books in Florida :) It is found in their "Missionary Stories Flashcard Series" It comes with wonderful large color pictures for telling the story to groups of children. :)
November 6, 2012 at 2:43 PM