The Progress. (Shreveport, La.) 1892-1900, 1898-03-26
LOST IN THE DESERT.
Rev. DR.. Talmage Draws Lessons
From Mothers Trials.
Finding Ones Sphere and Keeping It
Sympathy with Women The Deatinies
of Mothers Set Forth-A We'll
in Every Wilderness.

In the following sermon Rev. T. De-
Witt Talmage draws some startling
lessons from an oriental story, and
points to wells of comfort in uncxpect-
ed places. The text is:
And God opene her eyes, and she sa : a well
of water: and she went and filled tho bottle
with water and gave the lad to drink. Genesis
xxi. 10.
Morning breaks upon Beersheba.
There is an early stir in the house of
old Abraham. There has been trouble
among the domestics. Hagar, an as
sistant in the household, and her son,
a brisk lad of 16 years, have become
impudent and insolent, and Sarah, the
mistress Of the household, puts her foot
down very hard and says that they
will have to leave the premises. They
are packing up now. Abraham, know
ing that the journey before his servant
and her son will be very long
and across desolate places, in the
kindness of his heart sets about putting
up some bread and bottle with water
lin it. 1t is very plain lunch
that Abraham provides, but warrant
you there would have been enough Of
it had they not lost their way. "God
be with your said old Abraham, as he
gave the lunch to Hagar and good
many charges as to how she should
conduct the journey. Ishmael, the
boy, Il suppose, bounded away in the
morning light. Boys always like a
change. Poor Ishmael! He has no
idea of the disasters that are ahead Of
him. ..Hagar gives one long, lingering
look az THE familiar place where she
had spent so many happy days, each
scene associated with the pride and
JOY of her heart, young Ishmael.
The sscorching noon comes on. The
eir is sitting and moves across the
desert with insufferable suffocation
Ishmael, the boy, begins to complain
and lies down, but Hagar rouses him
up, saying nothing about her own
WEAKNESS or the sweltering heat; for
mothers can endure anything. Trudge,
trudge, trudge. Crossing the dead
level of the desert, how wearily and
slowly the miles slip! A tamarind that
seemed hours ago to stand only just a
little ahead, inviting the travellers to
come under its shadow, now is as far
off as ever, or seemingly SO. Night
drops upon the desert, and the trav-
elers are pillowless. Ishmael, very
weary, suppose, instantly falls asleep.
Hagar, as the shadows of the night be-
gin to lap over each other-Hagar hugs
her weary boy to her bosom and thinks
of the fact that it is her fault that they
are in the desert, A star looks out,
and every falling tear it kisses with
sparkle. A wing of wind comes over
the hot earth and lifts the locks from
the fevered brow of the boy. Hagar
sleeps ftfully, and in her dreams trav-
els over the weary day, and half
awakes her son by crying out in her
sleep, "Ishmael! Ishmael!"
And SO they go on day after day and
night after night, for they have lost
their way. No path in the shifting
sands; no sign in the burning sky
The sack empty of the -four; the water
gone from the bottle. What shall she
do? AS she puts her fainting Ishmael
under a stunted shrub of the arid plain,
she sees the bloodshot eye, and feels
the hot hand, and watches the blood
bursting from the cracked tongue, and
there is a shrek in the desert of Beer
sheba: 1--WE shall die! We shall die'
l.