The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-11-15

lost sheep brought home on Shepherds
and the prodigals who got in
to the low work Of putting husks into
SWINGS troughs brought home 10 jewel
ry and banqueting and hilarity that
made the rafters ring.
Three sketches Of the same man: \
happy home. Of which he and a lassie
taken from a neighbor's house are the
united head Years OF happiness roll
on after years Of happiness Stars
pointing down 10 nativities. And
whether announced in greeting or not
every morning was a Good morning
and every night a Good night
Christmas Lrees and May queens. ami
birthday festivities and Thanksgiving
gatherings around loaded tables. But
that husband and father forms an ur-
fortunate acquaintance who leads him
in circles too cornwall. too late houred.
too s~candalous. After awhile. his mon
ey gone and not able to pear his part
OF the expense. he is gradually showed
out and ignored and pushed away.
Now. what a dilapidated home is his,
A dissipated life always shows itself n
faded window curtains. and impove~-
she wardrobe. and detected surround
ings, and in rob palings OF the gar
den fence. and the u~nhinged gate. ard
the dislocated door bell. and the disap-
pearance of wife and children from
scenes among WHICH they SIIDIle Tie
brightest and laughed the gladdest. II
any man was ever down, that husband
father is down. The fac is, he got into
a wrestle with evil that pushed and
pulled and cOntOrted n exhausted
him worse han any Olympian game
ever treated a Grecian. and he was
thrown. Thrown out Of prosperity into
gloom. Thrown out of good associa-
ton into bad. Throw out of health
into invalidism. Thrown out of happi-
ness into misery: but one day, while
sinking through one of the back
streets, not wishing to be recognized, a
good thought crosses his mind. for he
has heard of men flung fiat rising
again. Arriving at his house, he calls
his wife in and shuts the door and
says: Mary. l am going to do differ
emily. This is not what I promised you
when we were married. You have
been very patient with me and nave
borne everything, although | would
ave had no right to complain if you
had left me and gone home to your
fathers house. 1t seems to me that
once or twice, when [ was not myself.
I struck you, and several times, 7 know.
I called you hard names. Now | want
you to forgive me. I am going to do
better. n [ want o to help me-
Help you?" she says. "BIess your
SOUL! OF purse I will help you, I
knew o didn't mean it when you
treated me roughly. All that is in the
past. Never refer to it again. Today
let US begin anew"
Sympathizlng friends come around
and kind business people help the man
to something to do, so that he can again
earn a living. The children soon have
clothing so that they can go to school.
The old songs which the wife sans
years ago come back to her memOry
n she sings them over again at the
cradle or while preparing the MONDAY
meal. Domestic resurrection! He comes
home earlier han he used to, and he is
glad to spend the evening playing
games with the children or helping
them with arithmetic or grammar les
sons which are a little too a Time
passes on, n some outsider suggests
to him that he is not getting as much
out of life as he ought and proposes an
occasional visit to scenes Of Worldli-
ness and dissipation. He consents to
go once, and after much solicitation
twice. Then his old habit comes back.
He says he has been belated and says
he could not get pack until midnight.
He had to see some western merchant
that a arrived and talked of business
with him before he got out Of town.
Kindness and genia1ity again quit the
disposition of that husband and father.
1lS VII . 1ICoI oICdhS LII d CIV p1dCe.
That man goes into a second w~restle
with evil habit and is flung, and all hell
cackleS at the moral defeat. II told
you So" say many good people who
have no faith in the reformation Of a
fallen a II told you so! You made
a great fuss about his restored home,
but 1 knew it would not last. You
once gone wrong" SO with this un-
fortunate, things get worse and worse,
and his family have to give up the
house, and the last valuable goes to
the pawnbroker's shop. But hat un-
fortunate man is sauntering along the
street n Sunday night, and he goes
up to a church door, and the congre-
cation are singing the second hymn.
the one just before ermon and it is
William Cowper's glorious hymn:
There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Emmanuel'S veins,
And sinners plunged beneath that food
Lose all their guilty stains.
WATERING AT THE DOOR.
He goes into the vestibule Of the
church and stops there, not feeling we'll
enough dressed to go among the wor-
shippers, and he hears the minister
say, You will find the words of my
lGAl III LuhC, ll1c HllleleGllH cIldUl6T
and tenth verse, The Son Of Man is
come to seek and save hat which was
lost" The listener in the vestibule
says: IF any mar was ever lost, l am
lost, and the Son of Man came to save
that which is lost, n he has found
me and He will take me out of this
lost condition. Oh, Christ, have mercy
on mel" The poor man has courage
now to enter the main audience oom.
and he sits down on he first seat by
the door, and when at the close of the
service the minister comes down the
aisle the poor mar tells his story, and
he IS encouraged and invited to come
again, and the way is cleared for him
for membership in a Christian church.
and he feels the omnipotence of what
Peter, the apostle, said when he spoke
of those kept by the power of God
through faith unto complete saliva
ton" Yet he is to have one more
wrestle before he is free from evil hab-
its, and he goes into it, not in his own
strength, for that has failed him