The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1921-05-04

all these things were told to your
childish mind could take them in
Sometimes teachers and preachers
have attempted to explain the vast
purpose of God. His creating some
thing out of nothing by the power of
his might. His allwise and all-pow-
erful governing and preserving OF
His creatures and their actions, the
atonement made by Jesus Christ and
how by faith in Him we are saved
but too often these truths have been
presented in such a way that the
average mind did not comprehend
their meaning or it was soon for
gotten but the sweet simple story
of Gods love as mother taught it has
remained with you. w no does not
remember the child's prayer learned
at mothers knee?
"Now / lay me down to sleep,
pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If | should die before ! wake,
I pray thee Lord my soul to take"
You understood that prayer.
taught you about Gods care for you
whether sleeping or walking.
! The very trustfulness of your
mothers faith made an abiding i'm
preston on your mind. Y on knew
that all her trust was placed in God
tina. she loved you and gradually you
came to have faith in her God-to
EellcNe what she believed. You had
that confidence in he. You knew
that sic could AMI would do for you
more than anyone else. She watch
cd over ven when in helpless mfan-
cy you ley in the crib. Wr"L yop
we're v! she poIfo med many lit
tie service that would have l'een
distas, nj but 1--we mad2 the task
sweet for her. ) he kept tho medi-
cine, the water or some little need
ed delicacy out on the window sill.
She knew just how many drops of
medicine were to be administered
and she was there just at the right
time. She it was who noted every
change in your condition and watch
ed by your bedside through the long
weary night.
You had in mother love, strong as
our GU, Heavenly Father for His
children who is More willing to
give His holy spirit to them that ask
Him than earthly parents are to give
good gifts unto their children" GAS
a father pitieth his children, so the
Lord pitieth them that fear him."
Fear as here used does not mean
dread such as you might have of
some hard taskmaster, but fear lest
you should do something you knew
would give mother pain O.: some
thing you knew she would be asham-
ed of-fear such as the lover might
have lest he offend the loved one.
God be praised if in your life you
have had an illustration of mother
love Some have been denied it.
Some have never been denied it.
Some have never known a mother
love. Some have known of her only
as a curse-how rare and sad are
such cases! When you knew love
like motheEts somehow you could
believe in the great love of God and
you could trust. So / think one rea-
son her faith has had such power ov
e, you is the affection you knew she
cherished for you and the truct you
reposed in he.
Then, l suppose there is another
reason, the way in which she taught
She taught you as no other person
could. She did not present to you
congrameration of facts or philoso-
phies. S he just dropped in bit by bit
as you were able to understand it
line upon line and precept upon pre-
cept l t was like the little seed that
is planted in the garden and careful
ly wate-ed and tended as it grows
and grows-like the little stream Of
water that issue forth from a spring
between the rocks upon the noun
tainside, trickled down the noun
tain. flowed on over a field, until it
reaches the Mississippi, then on and
on until it enters the Gulf of MeXi-
co and finally reaches the great
ocean. So it was in childhood-your
mothers faith was impaired to you
just as you were able to understand
it and it grew upon you as the years
went by.
st. Paul says: II call to remem-
b-ance the unfeigned faith which
dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois
and they mother Sunice." Not only
from your mother but from your
grand mothe. did you receive the
treasure. Dear old grand other in
the home, sitting by the fireside,
reading or busy with he knitting or
mending, ofte- looking over her spec
tacles at the other members of the
family-what a blessing, what an
untold blessing she has been to the
household The influence of her
godly life has rested on the home
like benediction. The faith on the
mothers side of the house is ex-
ceedingly important. So Paul in sub
stance to this young man Timothy.
A double obligation is laid upon you
by reason of the faith of your grand
mother and your mother" You can
not get along well in life without
faith.
Perhaps, dear reader, you are such
a one-you have members Of home
where the Bible was read and where
prayer was offered at eventide for
tn entire household, and Sill were
committed to His care for the night.
You had faith in God, but you left
that home one day and went out
among strangers. or YOU established