Patty’s mother had told her not to play near the old well. But Patty played near there anyway. The well was covered with boards. She stood on them and jumped up and down. Then a board broke! And Patty fell down into the dark well.
“Help!” she screamed.
There was no water in the well, thankful to say. It had been partly filled with dirt. However, rain water had run in and turned the dirt into black, sticky mud. Patty went down, down, and down into the mud.
Mother heard her little girl’s scream and came running. She pulled off some more of the boards and tried to reach Patty, but her little girl was too far down. She was going down more and more into the mud.
“Help! Help!” called Patty’s mother. Then she broke off some more of the boards and dropped them down beside Patty. Patty took hold of the boards and tried to pull herself out of the mud, but this failed. Mother jumped down beside her. She stayed on the boards and tried to pull Patty out of the mud, but Patty was too far in.
Some men had heard Mother cry for help and they hurried to the rescue. They got ahold of Patty and strong arms pulled her out of the mud. They pulled both Patty and Mother out of the old well.
Patty was not hurt, but she was covered with mud. Mother gave her a warm hath and then put her to bed. Then she sat down beside her little girl.
“I felt so much better when you got down there with me,” said Patty. “But I’m glad you didn’t get in the mud, too.”
“If I had sunk in the mud I couldn’t have helped you,” said Mother.
“But I want to tell you of something worse than black sticky mud. It is sin. Sin is like the mud. It keeps pulling you down, and you sink into it deeper and deeper. We cannot get out of it by our own strength. The more we try to save ourselves the deeper we sink.
The Lord Jesus came from heaven. In Him was no sin—He was holy, harmless, undefiled. In Him was love, and there was power in that love. He came down to where we were. He went down into that deep dark pit of sin, and He was punished for us when He died for sin upon the cross. God now says if one believes in Jesus, His dear Son, as his Saviour, He will forgive that one his sins. “Their sins,” He says, “and iniquities will I remember no more,” because Jesus has died.
Patty did ask the Lord to save her. And that very day she was saved twice—saved from the muddy well and then saved from the horrible pit of sin and death and judgment.
“I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God.” Psalms 40:1-31<<To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.>> I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. 2He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. 3And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord. (Psalm 40:1‑3).
ML-09/02/1979