The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1891-01-08


swing all the shining gates of heaverl
wide open before your redeemed spirit
Come into the kingdom of Godl With
out half second of delay come in
Many of my hearers today arc wha
the world calls and what | would cal
splendid fellows, and they seem happ
enough, and are jolly and obliging, and
If We're in trouble | would go TO them
with as much confidence as | would I'd
my father II ne We're yet alive, Bui|
when they so to their rooms at night
or when the excitements of social and
business life are off, they are not con
tent, and they want something better
than this world can offer. under
stand them so veil | would, withoat
any fear of being thought rough, put
my right hand on their one shoulder
and my left hand on their other shonl
der, and push thom into the kingdonI
of God. But | cannot Power from
on high, lay hold of them!
Years ago, at the close of religious
service in Brooklyn Tabernacle, a gen
tleman, most distinguished in appear
ance and with remarkable cerebral de-
velopment, camo forward with his wife
and daughter and said to me in u most
courteous and elegant way, Let md
introduce you to my wife and daughter
who wish some counsel in regard to re
ligious matters" ard the three sd
down. After had coaversel with thu
wife and daughter turned to the gen
tleman and said, Perhaps you have
some interest yourself in these lnattcrsY'
None whatever, was the reply, polite
yet firm. But before the meeting iiss-rs
closed saw his hand lifted to his fore
head and his eyes closed, and said
''Sir, have you not changed your mind
and are you not thoughtful on this sub
ject?" He said; II am. Since coming
to this seat l have sought and found
Christ as my Saviour, and have but
one desire more. and that is, before |
leave this house to join my wife and
daughter in making profession of the
Christian religion. Il have been known
as on the wrong side long enough. y
What was it that had come upon hint
1t was the power from high.
At the first communion after the
dedication of our former church, three
hundred and twenty-eight souls stood
up in the aisles and publicly espoused
the cause of Christ. At another time
four hundred souls; at another time
five hundred. And our four thousand
five hundred membership were but q
small part of those who within those
sacred walls took upon themselves the
VOWS of the Christian. What turned
the,na What saved them? Power
from the level' No; power from on
high.
GREATER THINGS MAY BE SEEN.
But greater things are to be seen if
ever these cities and ever this world is
to be taken for God, There is one
class of men and women in all these as
semblages in whom l have especial in
terest, and that is those who had good
fathers and mothers once, but they are
dead What multitudes of us are or
phansl We may be forty, fifty, eighty
years old, but we never get used TO
having father and mother gone. Oh,
how often we have had troubles that
we would like to have told them, and
we always felt as long as father and
mother were alive we had some one to
whom we could go. Now, would like
to ask if you think that all their prayers
in your behalf have been answered
mo" you say, but it is too late, the
old folks are gone now"
| must courteously contradict you.
1t is not too late have friend in
the ministry who was attending the
last hours of an aged Christian, and
my friend said to the old Christian, SIS
there no trouble on your mindF The
old man turned his face to the wall for
a few moments, and then said: ''OnIy
one thing. | hope for the salvation OF
my ten children, but not one of them
is yet saved; yet | am sure they will
be. God means to wait until / am
gone" So he died. When my friend
told the circumstances eight of the
ten had found the Lord. and have no
doubt the other two before this have
found him. Oh, that the long post
poned answers to prayer for you, my
brother, for you, my sister, might this
frour descend in power from ON high.
The history of these unanswered
prayers for you God oaly knows. They
may have boon offered in the solemn
birth hour They may have been
offered when you were down with scar.
let fever or diphtheria or membranous
Group. They may have been offered
some night when you were sound asleeI
in the trundle bed, and your mother
came in to see if you We're rightly
covered in the cold winter night. They
may have been offered at that time
which comes at least once in almost
every ones life, when your father and
mother had hard work to make a liv
ing, and they feared that want would
come to them and you. They may have
been offered when the lips could ne
longer move and the eyes were CLOSED
for the long sleep.
Oh, unanswered prayers of father ant
mother, where are you2 In what room
of the old homestead have they hidden
oh, unanswered prayers, rise in mis-
of many tears into a cloud, and ther
break in shower which shall softer
the heart of that man who is so hare
he cannot Cry, or that woman who i
ashamed to pray! Oh. armchair of til,
aged, now empty and in the garre
among the rubbish, speak out! Oh
staff of the pilgrim who has ended hi
weary journey, tell of the parental any
ieties that bent over thee. Oh, famil,
Bible, with story of births and deaths
rustic some of thy time worn leaves
and let us know of the wrinkled hand
that once turned thy pages, and OK
plain that spot where a tear fell upol
the passage: 80, Absalom, my son