This is the true story of a girl named Mary Jones who loved God’s Word. She worked and saved her money for six years to buy a Bible and then walked 25 miles to buy it!
Mary was born in 1792 in the country of Wales. Her parents were quite poor and Mary’s father was ill. However, Mary and her mother went to the mission hall for Bible study, prayer and hymn singing each week. This was the happiest time of the week for Mary. She was only eight years old, but even the grown-ups noticed how eagerly she listened and how her face shone when the Bible was read.
There was no school in the district of Abergynolwyn where Mary lived, so she could not even learn to read. But Mary’s friend, Mrs. Evans, told her that when she learned to read she was welcome to come and use their Bible whenever she wished. This meant that she would have to walk the two miles to their house since there was no other way for her to go.
When Mary was ten years old, a school was opened in her district, and she finally learned to read. She soon started walking the two miles to the Evans’s house each Saturday afternoon to read their Bible and study Sunday’s lesson. But how she wished for a Bible of her own so she could read it every day for herself and also read it to her mother and father. She decided to earn money to buy one and asked her father to make her a money box. She had a colony of bees and some hens and sold the honey and eggs. She picked up sticks for a lady who was not able to pick them up herself, and she did some baby-sitting, housework and sewing for other people. Yet, for all her work, her little pile of money grew slowly.
Mary continued to work and save her money, as she longed for a Bible of her own. Welsh Bibles were very expensive and also very scarce in those days.
After six long years, Mary finally had saved enough money for a Bible. She was told that she would have to go see a clergyman in Bala to find a Bible to buy. Bala was twenty-five miles away! But that did not discourage her.
When she left for Bala with her money, Mary walked from dawn till dark to cover the twenty-five miles. The next morning she was able to buy a Bible. She hurried as she walked the long twenty-five miles back home, but her heart was full of joy and her face shining because of the treasure she held in her arms.
“Holy Bible, Book Divine,
Precious Treasure, Thou art mine.”
Do you love God’s Word? Do you read the Bible every day? The person who wrote Psalm 119:2424Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counsellors. (Psalm 119:24) loved reading God’s Word. He wrote, “Thy testimonies also are my delight, and my counselors.” Jeremiah also loved God’s Word. He wrote, “Thy Word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart” (Jeremiah 15:1616Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16)). Little Christians as well as big Christians need to read God’s Word every day in order to grow in the things of God. His Word will also guide us in making decisions in our lives. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105105NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Psalm 119:105)).
ML-11/05/2006