The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1890-06-27

hcr daughters brought n marble tab
let, beautifully Inscribed; and anoth
or daughter brought a beautiful
wreath of flowers. The third daugh
tor came and ssid: "NIother,
brought neither flowers nor tablet
but here is my heart. l have inscribc,
1t all over with your name, and where
over you so it will go with you" Th'
mother recognized it rs the best o
all mementocs. Oh, that our souls
! might go out toward our Father
that our hearts might be written nj
over with the evidences of His loving
,, kindness, and that we might never
forsake him.
In the first place, 1 notice in this
text, the fatho's eyesight; in the 300
ond place notice the fathers haste
end in the third place, notice tho
fathers kiss.
rs begin; the fathers eycsight
"When he. WIS a great way off his
fatbcrsye ..SSksl" a You have noticed
r.. ,'ss my : hss.
deal easier thnn they can close by.
L do not kieM whether this father
could soc we'll that which was near
by, but do know he could sec u
great way off. His father saw him. :"
Perhaps he had been looking for tho
return OF that boy especially that
day. l do not know but that he had
been III prayer, and that God had
told him that that day the rccrcat
boy would come home. "Thc fa-
thcr saw him n great way off"
L wonder if Gods cycsight can
doscry us whcn VIC arc coming back
to Him! The text pictures our con-
dltlon-wc arc n great way off. That
young man was not farther Off from
his fathers house, sin is not farther
off from holiness, hell is not farther
OFT from heaven, than we have been
by our sins away off from God; aye,
so far off that VIC could not hear His
voice, though vchemcntly He has
called us year after year. I do not
know what habits you may have
formed, OF in what evil places you
have bccn, OF what false notions you
may have entertained; but you are
ready to acknowledge, if your heart
has not been changed by the grace of
God, that you are great way OF
aye, so far that you cannot get back
of yourselves. You would like to
como back. Aye, this moment you
would start if it were not for this sin,
and that habit, and this disadvantage.
But L am to tell you of the Fathers
eyesight ''He saw him great way
off" He has seen all your fralties,
all your struggles. all your disadvan-
tagcs. He hal a&been longing for your
can s9ai%a With i as Saap been boxing at t
psr, psrent ppe over sr b. c6iid, HSa p'ties Nj s
you. You say: s0h, bad so many
evil surroundings when l started life. "
Your Father sees it. You say: 81
have so many bad surroundings now,
and it is very difficult for me to break
away from evil associations" Your
Father sees it, and if you should
start hcavenward-as pray you may
your Father would not sit idly
down and allow you to struggle on
up toward Him. Oh, no! Seeing
you q great way off, He would fly to
the rescue How long docs it take a
father to leap into tho middle of a
highway if his child be there, and q
swift vehicle is coming, and may do
stroy him? Five hundred times long
or than it takes our heavenly Father
to spring to the dclivcrance of lost
child. "Whenh he was great way off
his Father saw him"
And this brings mo to notice tho
fathers haste. Tho Bible says he
ran. No wonder! He did not know
but that tho young man would change
his mind and go back. Hc did not
know but that ho would drop from
exhaustion. He did not know but
that something fatal might ovcrtake
him before he got to tho door-sill;
and so the fathcrran. The Bible, for
the most part, speaks Of God rs walk
ing. SIN the fourth watch of the
night" it says, "Jesus came unto
them watching on the sea- "He
walketh upon the wings of tho wind" "
Our first parents heard the voice of
the Lord, walking in the garden in
tho cool of tho day; but when sinner
starts for God, the Father runs to
mCcC nlHl. on! ii u Inun CNCT WlllCS
help, it is when ho trios to become a
Christian. Tho world says to him:
''Back with you. Haye more spirit.
Don't be hamPcrcd with religion
Time enough yet. Wait.until you
got sick. Wait until you got old.
Satan says: Back with you; you arc
so bad that God will have nothing tc
do with you;" or "You are gooG
enough and need no Redecmor. Take
thine ease, eat, drink and be merry.
Ten thousand voices say: "Back will
you. God is q hard master. The
church is collection of hypocrites
Back into your sins; back to YOU
OWL indulgcnces; back to your prayer
less pillow. q Tho sillicst thing tina
n young man ever docs is to com,
home after he has been wandering.
Oh, how much help man does wan
when he tries to become Christian
Indeed, the prodigal cannot find hi
way home to his fathers house alone
Unless some one comes to meet hin
ho haI lnt&nr hoyo ufoua1 Inv fh