A LITTLE baby once died and the small sister asked her mother where the baby had gone.
“To be with Jesus.” replied the mother.
A few days afterwards a friend called, and the mother said to her friend, “O, I am so sorry that I have lost my baby.”
The little girl looked up into her mother’s face, which was wet with tears, and asked, “Mother, is a thing lost when you know where it is?”
“No, of course not, dear.”
“Well, mother, you told me that baby was gone to be with Jesus; then how can he be lost?”
Not gone from memory, not gone from love,—
But “gone to our Father’s house above.”
A lady dressed in black, used often to come to the meetings held in a Mission on the sand at a watering place. One, morning at the close of the service, she wanted to speak to me, and she looked so miserable. She told me that God had taken away her baby, and she was very angry with Him for doing so. She said, “I have given up all religion. I don’t go to church at all now; and never read the Bible, and never pray. Your services here are the first I have been to for a long time.”
“I will tell you about a shepherd who had a fine flock of sheep, but very hot weather came, and the grass where they were feeding became dry and parched. A river ran along the side of the field, but the water was very low on account of the dry weather. Just over the other side of the stream there was a far better pasture, so the kind shepherd wanted to get his flock over the stream, but they hesitated, and did not appear willing to cross over. So the shepherd took up a little lamb, and began to cross over on the stepping-stones, carrying it in his arms. The old mother sheep followed after him, bleating, and looked at the shepherd as if she would say, ‘What are you going to do with my lamb?’ Soon all the flock followed them to the other side, into the good pasture.”
I showed the lady how Jesus, the Good Shepherd, had been obliged to take her little lamb, over the narrow stream of death into the heavenly pastures, and that He had done it in great love to her soul, to lead her to loosen her grasp of things in this world which are passing away, and cause her to set her affections on things above.
Precious, precious blood of Jesus,
Shed on Calvary,
Shed for rebels, and for sinners,
Shed for me.
Precious blood that hath redeemed us
All the price is paid!
Perfect pardon now is offered,
Peace is made.
Though thy sins are red like crimson
Deep in scarlet glow,
Jesus’ precious blood can make them
White as snow.
Precious, precious blood of Jesus,
Ever offered free!
O believe it, O receive it,
‘Tis for thee!
Precious blood whose full atonement
Makes us nigh to God!
Precious blood, our song and glory
Praise and laud!
ML 10/20/1912