The Bossier banner., 1893-08-31

|
| and memory as the old ivy and the
| yellow sunfower that stood sentinel
along the garden-walk, and the forget
me-nots playing hide-and-seek mid the
| long grass. The father who used to
| come in sunburnt from the fields, and
| sit down on the door-sill and wipe the
sweat from his brow, may have gone
| to his everlasting rest. The mother,
| who used to sit at the door a little bent
over, cap and spectacles on, her face
mellowing with the vicissitudes of
many years, may have put down her
gray head on the pillow in the valley,
but forget that home you never will.
| Have you thanked God for it? Have
| you rehearsed all these blessed reminis-
cences? Oh, thank God for Christian
| father; thank God for a Christian
mother; thank God for an early Chris
| tian altar at which you were taught to
| Eneel; thank God for an early Chris
| tian home.
l bring to mind another passage in
| the history of your life. The day came
when you set up your own household.
The days passed along in quiet blessed
| ness. You twain sat at the ia BILE morn
| ing and night and talked over your
| plans for the future. The most insig-
| niticant affair in your life became the
| subject of mutual consultation and ad-
visement. You were so happy you felt
| you never could be any happier. One
| day dark cloud hovered over your
| dwelling, and it got darker and darker;
| but out of that cloud the shining mes
senger of God descended to incarnate
an immortal spirit. Two little feet
started on an eternal journey, and you
were to lead them; a gem to flash in
| Heavens coronet, and you to polish it;
eternal ages of light and darkness
watching the starting out of a newly
created being.
You reioiced and you trembled at the
responsibility that in your possession
an immortal treasure was placed. You
prayed and rejoiced, and wept and
| wondered, and prayed and rejoiced, and
wept and wondered; you were earnest
in supplication that yon might lead it
through life into the kingdom of God.
| There was a tremor in your earnest
ness. There was a double interest
| about that home. There was an addi-
| tional interest why you should stay
| there and be faithful, and when in a
few months your house was filled with
the music of the child's laughter you
were struck through with the fact that
you had a stupendous mission.
Have you kept that vow? Have you
neglected any of these duties? Is your
home as much to you as it used to be?
| Have those aRticipations been graft
| fed? God help you to-day in your
solemn reminisence, and let II is mercy
fall upon your soul if your kindness
has been i'll requited. God have mercy
on the parent, on the wrinkles of whose
face is written the story of child's
sin. God have mercy on the mother
who, in addition to her other pangs.
has the pang of child iniquity. Oh,
there are many, many sad sounds in
this sad world, but the saddest sound
| that is ever heard is the breaking of
mothers heart. Are there any here
who remember that in that home they
were unfaithful? Are there those who
wandered off from the early home, and
| left the mother to die with a broken
to-day.
I find another point in your life his
tory. You found one day you were in
the wrong road; you could not sleep at
night; there was just one word that
seemed to throb through your banking
house, Or through your Office, or your
shop, or your bedroom, and that word
was ETERNITY" You said: Il am not
ready for it. o God, have mercy" The
Lord heard. Peace came to your heart.
You remember how your hand trem bled
as you took the cup of the holy COM
munion. You remember the old
minister who consecrated it, and
you remember the church officials
who carried it through the
aisle; you remember the old
people who at the close of the service
took your hand in theirs in congratu-
lating sympathy, as much as to say,
Welcome home, you lost prodigal;"
and though those hands have all with
cred away, that communion Sabbath
is resurrected to-day; it is resurrected
with all its prayers, and songs, and
tears, and sermons, and transfigura-
tion. Have you kept those vows?
Have you been a backslider? God help
you? This day lsneel at the foot of
mercy and start again for Heaven.
Start to-day as you started then. l
rouse your soul by that reminiscence.
But I must not spend any more of
my time in going over the advantages
of your life; just put them all in one
great sheaf, and bind them up in your
memory with one loud harvest song
such as reapers sing. Praise the Lord,
ye blood-bought mortals on earth!
Praise the 1ord, We crowned spirits of
Heaven!
But some of you have not always had
p smooth life. Some of you are now in
the shadow. Others had their troubles
years ago, you are mere wreck of
what you once were. / must gather
up the sorrows of your past life, but
how shall do it? You say that is i'm
possible, as you have had so many
troubles and adversities. Then l will
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