Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-11-24
HER HEARTS DESIRE.


sire"
The choir of the little country
church did not sing the beautiful
words very we'll. The sopranos
voice was Enthusiastically cracked
and the tenor displayed surprising
! disregard of time and tune. But then,
there were no musical critics in the
small congregation scattered through
out this quiet little country church
| that Thanksgiving morning And the
beauty of the words and the promise
contained in them touched the hearts
| Of many.
Wait patiently upon the Lord and
he shall give thee thy hearts desire
repeated the choir.
ct is not true!"
The words were not spoken, but they
were in the thought ana heart of one
old woman sitting far back near the
door. She sat alone, for she was alone
in the world. Those who had once
peopled the old pew with her-father,
mother, husband, brothers and sisters,
and the child Of her love and care. all
were gone. The quiet peaceful beauty
of that Thanksgiving morning and the
spiritual atmosphere of the church had
quite failed to appeal to old Margaret
Hudson. Never had she felt in a more
| rebellious mood. 1t would have dazed
and panied the white-haired old elder
in the pulpit had he known the
| thoughts that were uppermost in the
mind Of the small, dark, keen-eyed lit
tie old woman whose head gave q lit
tie defiant toss when he rose and said:
Let us bow our heads In prayer"
Margaret Hudson did not bow her
head, and her heart did not respond to
the simple, fervent prayer Of Elder
Norris.
whats the use?" she was saying
angrily to herself. Haven't 1 been
bowling my head and my knees in pray
er for years and years-in one prayer
for one thing, for my hearts desire,
and has it been granted to me? No,
| 1t HASN'T l have waited patiently on
the Lord and He has not given me the
| desire Of my heart. I don't believe
that He ever will give it to me. I've
lost faith and hope. l can't help it,
My hearts desire has been denied me
so long and the promise has not come
true to me. l can't believe that it is
true"
There were educated, polished and
brilliant ministers in beautiful city
| churches who preached with less sim
pie and tender beauty than that old
elder preached that morning about the
joy of gratitude and praise giving for
| the blessings of God, but Margaret
Hudson was not touched by the words
Her faith had lost it's Olivet and her
love its Galilee.
when He gives me my hearts de-
| SIRE" she said stubbornly. when He
sends my boy, my Jim, back to me,
will believe that His promises are true
I can't trust Him more until He does -
She did not tarry at the close of the
sermon for her usual greeting of old
friends, but stole out alone and hurried
toward her lonely home, the homeli-
| ness and desolation of which were
never so hard to bear as now.
eff He'd hear my prayer and send
| Jim back to me it would be so,'' she
said.
| jim! Her hearts desirei Where was
| he at that moment?
God only knowsi" his mother said
| between her broken sobs as she went
slowly along over the country road, the
bright sunlight of a glorious Novem-
| Der day lending a radiance to the
| brown leaves still REMAINING on tho
| trees. 1t had been twenty years since
! she had seen Jim. He was then a
handsome, head-strong boy of IS, and
the only child that lad come to her.
| She had 1aVished upon him the warm
| est, tenderest affections of her life
and yet she never knew just why Jim
had run away from home in his eight
zenith year and she had never seen him
nor heard from him since that day.