The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1886-10-07
"Well,"I sail, team you Keep yo1r cour-

"Oh, yes" she said, "I am happy, very
happy, indeed"
Her face showed it. She looked the hap.
piest of any one on the ground. Oh. what
a means of gracs to the world, these in
| valid chairs.
On that field of human suffering the
grace of God gets its victory. E lward
Payson, the invalid, and Richard Baxter,
| the invalid, and Robert Hall, the invalid,
| and the ten thousand of whom the world
has new sr heard, but of whom all Heaven
| is cognizant. The most conspicuous thing
on earth for Gods eye and the eye of
angels to rest on is not throne of earthly
power, but it is the invalid's chair. Oh,
these men and women who are always
suffering. but never complaining--these
victims of spinal disease, AMI neuralgia
| torture, and rheumatic exruciation will
answer to the roll-call OF the martyrs, and
| rise to the martyrs throne, and will wave
the martyrs palm! But when one of these
| invalid's chairs becomes vacant how sug-
| gestive it is! No more bolsttr ring up OF
the weary head. No more changing from
side to side to get an easy pos ton. No
| more use of the handage, and the cata-
plasm, and the prescription. That in.
valid's chair may be folded up, or taken
apart, or set away, but it will never
lose its queenly power; it will always
| preach of trust in God and cheerful sub
| mission. Suffering all ended now. With
| respect to that invalid the words of my
| text have been fulfilled:
Thou shalt be missed, because thy scat will
be empty.
4. Ipass on and find one more vacant
| chair. 1t is a high chair. l. is tile chii's
chair. If that chair be occupie |. | think it
is the most potent chair in all the house,
hold. All the chairs lit on it: and the
| chairs are turned toward it. Tt means
| more than David's chair a Saul's banuret.
AT any rate, it makes more racquet. That
is strange house that can be dull with s.
chill in it. How that child breaks up til 2
hard worldlness of the place, and keeps
| you young to sixty, seventy and eighty
years of age! IL You haven n, chill OF
your own, adopt one; it will open
| Heaven to your soul. It will pay
! its way. Its Growing in the morning will
give the day a cheerful starting, and
| its glee at hi sht will give the dav a
cheerful close. You do not Tx chill iren:
Then you had better stay out of II .aven,
for there are so many there they would
fairly make you crazv! Only about 5eo,.
| 600, coo of them! The CID cruSty discip'es
told the mothers TO keep the children
away from Chris.
"You bother Him." they said, you
| trouble the Master
| Trouble Him! He hal filed II avan
with that kind of trouble.
| A lioneer in California says that for the
| first year or two after bis resi- 'ence in
Sierra Nevada County there wa; not
| single child in all the reach of a iundr d
miles. Blu the Fourth OF july cam,
and the miners wero gatherel IT,
| gether, and they were celei,ratiur tine
Fourth with Grafton AM poem aud a
| boisterous brass brand; an willie the
band was playing, an infants Voice
was heard crying, AMI all the miners
were startled, AMI the swarshy mcu
began 10 tiiAk of their homes
| on tie Eastern coast AM Ct their
| wives and ch;llren far away, an their
hearts were fill. with hone sickness az
they helrd the babe cry. But tie music
wen. on, anil the child erie IL .or and
| louder, and the lrass ban | piaee louder
and lou Ter, trying to drown ont the in
fantile interruption, when a swartiry
miner, the tears rolling d own his face, got
up and shooS his fist, and sail:
''Stop that noisy bani, and give ihe
ba' y a chance"
Oh. there was path0s in it as we'll az
good cheer in it, Thee is nothing 70
arouse, AMI melt, and sublue the soul like
a chill rs voice.
But when it goes away from you this
high chair become; a bisher chair, and
there is desolation all about you. In
three fourths of the homes of my coag-s.
ga'ion there is vacant hi Oh chair Soms-
how you never ges over it. There is no
one to pat to be at night; no one to ask
strange gu ,stions about God and
H -aven. Oh, what is the use of tat
high chair: 1t is to Ii you hishsc. What
a drawing upward it is to have children
in Heaven. And then it is such pre-.
ventive against sin. IL n father is goin,
away into sin he leaves his living. chill
dren with their mother; but if father il
going away into sin what is be going to
do with bis dea children floating about
him and lowering over his every way ward
step! Oh, speak out, vacant high chair,
and say:
sFather, come back from sin: mother,
come back from worl lines. / am watch-
ing you. am waiting for you"
With respect to your child the words Of
my text have been fulfilled:
Thou shalt be missed, b ecausc thy seat
will be empty.
My hearers, have gathered up the
voices of your departed friends, and tried
to intone them into one invitation up
ward. Iset in array all the vacant chairs
in your homes, an of your social circle,
and hid them cry out.
''Time is short. Eternity is near. Take
my Saviour. Be at peace with my God.
Come up wheretI am. We lived together
on earth; come, let us live toge her in
heaven"
We answer that invitation. We come.
Keep a seat for us, as Saul kept seat for
David; but that seat shall not lie empty.
When we are all through with this world,
and we have shaken hands all around for
the last time, and all our chairs in the
home circle, and in the outside world,