Woman to Woman
Vol. 6, No. 5
“And ye are complete in him.” Colossians 2:10
Sept./Oct. 2003
Author Unknown
A beggar lived
near the king’s palace.
One day he saw a proc-
lamation posted out-
side the palace gate.
The king was giving a
great dinner. Anyone dressed in royal garments was invited
to the party. The beggar went on his way. He looked at the
rags he was wearing and sighed. Surely only kings and their
families wore royal robes, he thought. Slowly an idea crept
into his mind. The audacity of it made him tremble. Would
he dare?
He made his way back to the palace. He approached the
guard at the gate. “Please, sire, I would like to speak to the
king.” “Wait here,” the guard replied. In a few minutes, he
was back. “His majesty will see you,” he said, and led the
beggar in.
“You wish to see me?” asked the king. “Yes, your maj-
esty. I want so much to attend the banquet, but I have no
royal robes to wear. Please, sir, if I may be so bold, may I
have one of your old garments so that I, too, may come to the
banquet?”
The beggar shook so hard that he could not see the faint
smile that was on the king’s face. “You have been wise in
coming to me,” the king said. He called to his son, the young
prince. “Take this man to your room and array him in some
of your clothes.” The prince did as he was told and soon the
beggar was standing before a mirror, clothed in garments
that he had never dared hope for. “You are now eligible to at-
tend the king’s banquet tomorrow night,” said the prince.
“But even more important, you will never need any other
clothes. These garments will last forever.” The beggar
dropped to his knees. “Oh, thank you,” he cried.
But as he started to leave, he looked back at his pile of
dirty rags on the floor. He hesitated. What if the prince was
wrong? What if he would need his old clothes again?
Quickly he gathered them up.
The banquet was far greater than he had ever imagined,
but he could not enjoy himself as he should. He had made a
small bundle of his old rags and it kept falling offhis lap. The
food was passed quickly and the beggar missed some of the
greatest delicacies.
Time proved that the prince was right. The clothes lasted
forever. Still the poor beggar grew fonder and fonder of his
old rags. As time passed people seemed to forget the royal
robes he was wearing. They saw only the little bundle of
filthy rags that he clung to wherever he went. They even
spoke of him as the old man with the rags.
One day as he lay dying, the king visited him. The beg-
gar saw the sad look on the king’s face when he looked at the
small bundle of rags by the bed. Suddenly the beggar re-
membered the prince’s words and he realized that his bundle
of rags had cost him a lifetime of true royalty. He wept bit-
terly at his folly. And the king wept with him.
Inside This Issue:
Editorial ·······················Page 2
Delight and Pain and Lessons Learned
The Heart of God (Part 5) ··············Page 4
Be a Happy Echo ···················Page 5
Shepherding Our Flock (Part 1) ···········Page 6
Are You Called or Chosen? ·············Page 7
Melissa’s Mite ····················Page 8
Beyond October ···················Page 9
Health is Wealth···················Page 10
Fearfully and Wonderfully Made (Part 8)
Spotlight on Orphans ················Page 13
New Beginnings at the Hope For Children Center
From the Internet ··················Page 15
The 7-Ups
(Continued on Page 8)
The Beggar’s Clothes
