Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1891-11-13

has been so. 1 was reading of n dying
boy who, while the family stood round
sorrowfully expecting each breath
would be the last, cried, open the gates.
Open the gates! Happy! Happy! Hap
py!" John Owen in his last hour said
To his attendant, ION, brother Payne!
the long wished for day has come at
LAST Rutherford, in the closing mo-
ment of his life cried out, Il shall
shine, / shall see him as he is, and all
the fair company with HIM, and Dhau
have my share. l have gotten the
victory. Christ is holding forth his
arms to embrace me. Now / feel!
Now enjoy! Now | rejoice feed
on mama, l have angles food. My
eyes will see my redeemer. Glory,
glory dweleth in the lmmanuers
land" Yes, 10000 times in the history
of the world has the dying bed been
made n Patmos. You see the time
will come when you will, . child of
God, be eXiled To your last sickness
as much as John was exiled to ratmos.
You will go into your own room not
to come out again for God Is going to
do something better and grander and
happier for you than he has ever yet
done There will be such visions let
down to your pillow as God gives no
man If he is ever to return TO this
tame world The apparent feeling of
uneasineSs and restlessness at the
time of the Christians departure, the
physicians say, is caused by no real
distress. IL Is an unconscious and in
voluntary movement. and i think in
MANY cases il is the vision of heavenly
gladness too great for mortal enour
ance. 1t Is only heaven breaking in
on the departing spirit. You see your
work will be done and the time for your
departure will lie at hand, and there
will be wings over you and wings un-
der you, and songs let loose on the
air, and your old father and mother
gone for years will descend into the
room, and your little children whom
you put away for the last sleep years
ago will be at your side, and their kiss
will be on your foreheads, and you will
see gardens in full bloom and the
swinging open of shining gates, and
will hear voices long ago hushed. In
many Christian departure that you
have known and | have known there
was IN the phraseology of the depart
ing ones something that indicated
the temperance of those long de-
ceased. IL is no delirium, no delusion,
loved ones will hear that YOU are about
to come and they will say in heaven,
MAY go down TO show that soul the
way up? May | be the celestial es-
cort? May / wait for that soul at the
cage of the pillow?' And the Lord
will say, Yes. You may fly
down on that mission And | think
all your glorified kindred will come
down, and they will be in the room,
and although those in health standing
round you may hear no voice, and see
no arrival from the heavenly world,
you will see and hear. And the mo-
ment the fleshlv bond of the soul shall
break, the cry will be, "Follow me!
Up this way! BY this gilded cloud,
apast these stars, straight fof home,
straight for glory, straight for God"
AS on that day in the Grecian ArcAi-
pelago, Patmos began to fade out of
sight, | walked to the stern of the
ship that | might keep my eye on the
enchantment as long as / could, ard
the voice that sounded out of heaven
TO John the exile in the cavern on Pat
most seemed sounding in the waters
that dashed against the side of our
ship, behold the tabernacle of Goo is
with men, and he will dwell with
them, and they shall be his people and
God himself shall be with them and be
their God and God shall wipe away
all tears from their eyes, and there
shall be no more death, neither sorrow
nor crying, neither shall there be any
more pain, for the former things are
passed away"