Little People’s Lesson Pictures

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Let’s
imagine
we are living
in the past, way
back in the year

1896

Picture yourself
in that scene
.

Can you see it
?

I can’t see it
.

nope
.

How
would we
experience
The World
way way
back
in
1896
???

Marconi
registered the
patent for radio
in 1896, but no
one had a
radio
yet
.

In 1896,
most of what
we know about
the world is delivered
through newspapers and
by hearing stories
from others
.

A
bookshelf
if we’re lucky
enough to be
close to one
.

No
internet
.

No
television
.

Performance
is live but seldom
recorded, so when
it’s over it’s gone
forever, except
in our own
memories
…

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One
of the
places you
hear stories
is at church
.

Imagine
that you are
a youngster
.

Imagine
that you’re a
“Little Person”,
attending Sunday
School at your local
church, where you
are given this free
picture card
:

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Wait a minute…
Why am I asking YOU
to imagine this experience?
I’M doing the imagining!

I’m
imagining that
a card with pictures on it
might have been a rare gift
for many children
in that time
.

but then
I begin to wonder,
“What does it mean?”

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Looking
at the images,
I see a horse, a boat,
a waterfall and a plant
.

WHAT DOES
IT MEAN
???

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Oh,
maybe
THE TEXT
underneath the
images will help
me understand
…

The title of the card is,
“The Power of the Tongue”
which doesn’t seem to
relate to any of the
four images
.

Under those
is a reference to
some bible verses
in the book of James
.

then
a verse
:
or
as it
says on
the card, a
“Golden Text”
:

Whoso keepeth
his mouth and his
tongue keepeth his
soul from troubles

Proverbs 21:23

Well,
that didn’t
help at all
!!!

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Zooming back
into the 21st century,
I wonder if a newer bible
translation will clarify.
Here’s the same
verse from
the NIV
:
“Those who guard
their mouths and their
tongues keep themselves
from calamity”
.

nope
.

doesn’t help
…

nor the verses
before and after
verse 23

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Well,
there’s only
one more clue
shown on the card
.

I think I need to
look up those verses
in the book of James
.
(or to be more accurate,
the letter by James to the
twelve tribes scattered
among the nations!)

Here
is what’s
written in
James 3:1-12

Not many of you
should become teachers,
my fellow believers, because
you know that we who teach
will be judged more strictly.
We all stumble in many ways.
Anyone who is never at fault
in what they say is perfect,
able to keep their whole
body in check
.
When
we put bits
into the mouths
of horses to make
them obey us,
we can turn
the whole
animal
.
Or
take ships
as an example.
Although they are so
large and are driven by
strong winds, they are
steered by a very small
rudder wherever the
pilot wants to go
.
Likewise,
the tongue is
a small part of
the body, but it
makes great
boasts
.
Consider
what a great
forest is set on
fire by a small
spark
.
The
tongue
also is a fire,
a world of evil
among the parts
of the body
.
It corrupts
the whole body,
sets the whole course
of one’s life on fire, and
is itself set on fire by hell.
All kinds of animals, birds,
reptiles and sea creatures
are being tamed and have
been tamed by mankind,
but no human being
can tame the
tongue
.
It is a
restless evil,
full of deadly poison.
With the tongue we praise
our Lord and Father, and with
it we curse human beings,
who have been made in
God’s likeness
.
Out
of the same
mouth come praise
and cursing. My brothers
and sisters, this should not be.
Can both fresh water and salt
water flow from the
same spring
?
My brothers and sisters,
can a fig tree bear olives,
or a grapevine bear figs?
Neither can a salt spring
produce fresh water
.
(James 3:1-12)

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oh
Oh OH,
I get it now

!!!

Although the tongue
is a small part of a human
body, its use is powerful, like
the bit in a horse’s mouth,
or the rudder of a ship
.
Let’s try to make sure
that its fruit is good,
and its water fresh
.

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Although this little
card was published as a
“Little People’s Picture Lesson”,
its meaning is appropriate for
all of us, wouldn’t you agree
???

We attended Catholic Church
and Sunday School regularly,
but I don’t ever remember
this lesson being taught
.

Thanks for the Lesson
!!!

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Now
we’re back here
in the 21st century
.

I presented the card
like an adventure story
in search of the meaning.
But the truth is, the bible
verses from James are
printed on the
back of the
card
!

I looked everywhere
on the internet, trying
to find a better image
of this card
.

no luck
….

and I couldn’t find
ANY images of the
back of the card
(the verso)

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So,
is the lesson card
really so interesting that
a whole blog article
is devoted to it
???

Okay,
Here’s why I’m
writing about this
:

Let’s say I throw
a couple of these cards
into a drawer with some
other mementos, and
forget about them
for a few years
.

Then
one day
I’m looking
for something,
opening drawers,
and I see those cards
.

When I notice the card
that is “verses side up”,
I will probably think
to myself
,
“Oh, that’s
the lesson about
controlling how we talk”
.

I might
not remember
the actual verses,
but I will assume that
I remember what
it was about
.

When
I notice
the card that is
“images side up”,
I will probably have
the exact same thought
,
“Oh, that’s
the lesson about
controlling how we talk”
,

but then,
sooner or later,
I might start to wonder
…

“Wait a minute. What do
those pictures mean again?”

Maybe we don’t all think in
the same ways, but my mind
will start trying to put the
pieces together like
a puzzle
.

What
do those
four images
have in common
???

My mind
will re-create
the lesson
…

I won’t
be able to
resist it
.

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I’ve been
thinking about
images, and how
it seems I’m always
trying to find the
meaning in an
image,
or in
a group
of images
.

Did the designer of
this card intentionally
make the images
obscure
?

Probably not,
but I thought
it was worth
sharing
.

Did I stumble into an
interesting example of
images that force my
mind to engage
with the piece
?

yep
.

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PHOTO CREDIT:
“The Power of the Tongue”
Little People’s Lesson Pictures
American Sunday School Union
Philadelphia, 1909

Courtesy of the
Billy Graham Center Museum
Wheaton, Illinois

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thanks for visiting
come back soon

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