Sun., April 9, 1933 - To S.S. and church this a.m. I went out to Ola's with the car and brought them in to dinner. Took them home again about 6:00. I took the car to Walkers and will keep it here this week. Went to church with the folks this evening.
Mon., April 10, 1933 - Snowed a little early this morning. Laurence didn't think the exams so hard. After looking over the questions, I decided he should have gotten fairly good grades. Listened to the radio this eve. Martin Schermers were over awhile. I stayed up until 12:00 to finish "In His Steps." It was so interesting I couldn't find a place to stop.
Tues., April 11, 1933 - I took the fair cards to school this morning. They've been up in the closet since last fall. The ladies started house cleaning, the boys' and my bedroom were first. The girls rearranged the furniture in my room. I surely like it now. Washed and finger waved my hair tonite.
Not that I had any doubts, but Grandma and I are certainly related. I have stayed up late reading a book I didn't want to put down. And I certainly have been guilty (on multiple occasions) of having something sit in the house for multiple months that didn't have to.
I had not heard of the book "In His Steps" nor the movie made in 1964 from the book. Here I thought WWJD was a new phenomenon. Guess not. Here is information from wikipedia:
In His Steps is a best-selling religious fiction novel written by Charles Monroe Sheldon. First published in 1896, the book has sold more than 30,000,000 copies, and ranks as one of the best-selling books of all time. The full title of the book is In His Steps: What Would Jesus Do?.
Though variations of the subtitle "What would Jesus do" have been used by Christians for centuries as a form of imitatio dei, the imitation of God, it gained much greater currency following publication of the book.
Chicago Advance, the original publisher, failed to register the copyright in the proper form. Other publishers took advantage of this, publishing the book without paying the author royalties. Thus lower prices and multiple publishers led to larger sales.
In 1896, for his Sunday night services, Sheldon thought he would write a story, which would continue one chapter a week, about various persons who applied "What would Jesus do?" to their lives. Sheldon was soon preaching to a packed crowd. When the story was over, it was published in the Advance, one chapter per week, and finally the Advance printed a ten-cent paperback edition which sold 100,000 copies in a few weeks.
In His Steps takes place in the railroad town of Raymond, probably located in the eastern U.S.A. (Chicago, IL and the coast of Maine are mentioned as being accessible by train), and Chicago Illinois. The main character is the Rev. Henry Maxwell, pastor of the First Church of Raymond, who challenges his congregation to not do anything for a whole year without first asking: “What Would Jesus Do?” Other characters include Ed Norman, senior editor of the Raymond Daily Newspaper, Rachel Winslow, a talented singer, and Virginia Page, an heiress, to name a few.
The novel begins on a Friday morning when a man out of work (later identified as Jack Manning) appears at the front door of Henry Maxwell while the latter is preparing for that Sunday’s upcoming sermon. Maxwell listens to the man’s helpless plea briefly before brushing him away and closing the door. The same man appears in church at the end of the Sunday sermon, walks up to “the open space in front of the pulpit,” and faces the people. No one stops him. He quietly but frankly confronts the congregation—“I’m not complaining; just stating facts.”—about their compassion, or apathetic lack thereof, for the jobless like him in Raymond. Upon finishing his address to the congregation, he collapses, and dies a few days later.
That next Sunday, Henry Maxwell, deeply moved by the events of the past week, presents a challenge to his congregation: “Do not do anything without first asking, ‘What would Jesus do?’” This challenge is the theme of the novel and is the driving force of the plot. From this point on, the rest of the novel consists of certain episodes that focus on individual characters as their lives are transformed by the challenge.
Norman decides not to print a prize fight, and to discontinue the Sunday edition, leaving a drop in subscriptions. Alexander Powers starts a small meeting for the railroad men, but also discovers the railroad's fraud against the ICC. He resigns his post, and goes to work as a telegraph clerk. Rollin Page proposes to Rachel Winslow, who rejects him, because he has no direction. Later Rachel and Virginia help Mr. and Mrs. Gray with meetings in the Rectangle (an area surrounded by saloons), and Rollin experiences conversion. Later, Virginia takes Laureen, a drunken lady who was earlier converted, to her house, to the dismay of her grandmother who leaves for high society. Jasper Chase, against the "What Would Jesus Do" vow, decides to print his novel anyways. Virginia later uses her inheritance to buy the Rectangle property and also to help Norman's newspaper. Rollin, having a purpose for his life helping people, declares love for Rachel.
Chapters 16–24 shift the action to Chicago, with Dr. Calvin Bruce from Chicago visiting Raymond, and writing what he saw. He then decides to try similarly. Dr. Bruce does a similar pledge. His bishop, Bishop Edward Hampton visits him also. Rachel's cousins, Felicia and Rose are orphaned when their father commits suicide and their mother dies of shock. They go to live in Raymond for a little bit. Dr. Bruce and the Bishop start a work in the Settlement (similar to the Rectangle), with help from Felicia. The Bishop is held up, but the robber realizes the Bishop was the same person who helped him, and he reforms. Some of the characters from the earlier chapters, such as Henry Maxwell, Rachel Winslow, appear to see the work in the Settlement. The last chapter has a vision Henry Maxwell sees, telling some of the future of many of the characters in the book.
I can't say this summary does much for me; I would have to read the book to figure out the attraction.
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