The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1885, Page 27

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

Grandma Stevens.

A STORY TO OUR PICTURE.

She was knitting as hard as she could.
‘Grandma could knit about as fast as she could
think. Little Nell was fidgeting about the
room, asking questions. She could ask ques-
tions faster than grandma could think.

“Oh, come!’’ she said at last; ‘‘you’ve
asked questions enough to last all day; get
the book and read a little to grandma; I’ve
had no reading since morning.’’

“Well,” said Nell, with a very bright face,
“T will,’ and she scampered after ‘‘ the book’’
—she knew very well what book she meant.

“Now, grandma, where shall I read?”

‘Well, dear, your brother commenced on
the fourteenth chapter of Matthew, and he
read to where Jesus sent His disciples away in
aship and He went up into a mountain to pray;
then the bell rang and he had to run.’’

“‘T see the place, grandma,’ and Nellie’s
clear little voice read: ‘‘‘But the ship was
now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves,
for the wind was contrary: And in the fourth
watch of the night—

“What time was that, grandma?”’

‘‘About four o’clock, I think, dear.’’

‘“««Jesus went unto them walking on the sea.’

“Oh, my! just to think, walking right on
the water; I dont see how He could have
done it.”

«««And when the disciples. saw Him walking
on the sea they were troubled—

“T should have thought they would be.
Wouldn’t you have been afraid, grandma?—
‘saying, It is a spirit, and they cried out for
fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them,
saying, Be of good cheer; itis I; be not afraid.’

“‘Oh, mustn’t they have been glad to hear
His voice? But I think after all they were
very stupid people. I should think they might
have known that it was Jesus. Grandma, the
next is about Peter.

“«¢And Peter answered Him and said, Lord,
if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the
water.’”’

‘How like Peter that is,’’ grandma said,
knitting away. ‘‘He always wanted to do some
queer thing or other; he never was content to
act like other ‘people. Well, let’s hear what
Jesus said to him.’’

‘©¢And He said, Come. And when Peter
was come down of the ship he walked on the
water to go to Jesus.’

‘¢Grandma, wasn’t it nice in Jesus to call
him and let him go walking on the water like
what nobody else could do? I would just have

liked that.’’

“‘T dare say you would,” grandma said,
smiling. ‘And I think it’s very likely you
would have acted just as Peter did.’’ ;

‘*How did he act? Oh, Isee! Why, grandma,
he was afraid after Jesus had called him! How

silly to be afraid! I wouldn’t have been; ‘I
would have walked right straight on.’”

“Yes, that’s just exactly the way Peter used
to talk; he never was afraid of anything until
he had to go through it.’

“But, grandma, do you think I could be so
foolish, if Jesus had really told me I might walk
on the water to Him?”’

‘Did you ever hear of a little girl who was
so foolish as to be afraid to go up stairs in the
dark to bed, after Jesus had told her that He
had given His angels charge over her?’’

Nell blushed, and kicked one of her kid toes
against the hearth as she said:

“©Oh, well, that is different!’’

“Yes,” said grandma, quietly; ‘‘it isn’t the
sea in a storm; it’s only your nice pleasant
room; that might make a difference.”’

Miss Nell read on: ‘‘‘ But when he saw the
wind boisterous he was afraid; and, beginning
to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.’”

little faith, you know. To think of the times
and times that Jesus has spoken to you. Why
you couldn’t begin to count them.’’

“Oh, but, grandma, I don’t mean that way!
I mean real truly speak to me, so I can hear
Him with my ears, just as Peter did.’”’

“Oh, well, He will one of these days; maybe
in a very few days! I don’t know how soon.
He will hold out his hand and say, ‘Come, ye
blessed of my father,’ or else He will say:
‘Depart from me.’ Don’t you let it be that
last, Nellie. Grandma wants her little girl with
her up there.’’—T. P.

—— —— oe 0 - ee -

The Sailor and the Psalm.

A chaplain to seamen at an American port
was called in the course of his duty to visit
a sailor who appeared to be near death.

He spoke kindly to the man upon the state
of his soul, and told him to cast himself on
Jesus, the Saviour of sinners. With an oat
the sick man bade him be gone. The chaplain
then told him he must stay with him, for if he
died thus he would be lost.

The man grew sullen and silent, and pre-
tended to fall asleep. The chaplain visited him
again and again. At last the chaplain repeated
a verse of a Psalm which he hoped the man
might have learned in his youth. This is the
verse:

Such pity as the father hath
Unto his children dear,

Like pity shows the Lord to such
As worship Him in fear.

Tears started in the sailor’s eyes as he listened
to these words. The chaplain asked him if he
had not had a pious mother. The man broke
in tears of grief. ‘‘Yes; my mother taught me
those words, and knelt beside me in prayer.”
Since then he had wandered over sea and land,
and had grown very wicked. But his memory
is now awakened, and the lessons: of former
years are called up. He then listened to all
the chaplain had to say. His life was spared,
and he lived to prove his sincerity.

Parents, are you so teaching your children,
by word and example, that their minds will
be stored with wholesome truths? The good ~
seed may lay for years, but sometime it will
sprout and grow and perhaps bear fruit for
time and for eternity. .

‘‘That’s sensible in Peter anyhow,” said
grandma, beginning to. ‘toe off’’ her stocking.
“T think much better of him than I did; it
isn’t every one who has brains to cry to the
Lord to come and take care of him; if he
couldn’t possibly have sense enough to trust
Jesus in the first place, why, the next best
thing to do was to cry to Him for help. I sup-
pose he got it without any doubt?”’

‘‘Grandma, what if the next verse should
read: ‘But Jesus walked right on and let Peter
sink—,””

“Tt won’t read so,’’, said grandma decid-
edly; ‘‘because .you see nobody ever cried,
‘Lord, save me,’ really wanting to be saved,
that Jesus didn’t attend to him right away.”

“Well, He did this time. It says: ‘And
immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand and
caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little
faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?’’’-

“Didn't I tell ‘you? ‘Immediately’ He took
care of him, just the minute Peter wanted Him
to; that’s always the way.’’

‘‘Grandma,” said Nell, soberly, ‘I should
like to have Jesus speak to me.’’

“Why ??? said grandma. ‘‘It makes me smile
to see how, like Peter you are; he had dreadful

A Boy’s Faith.

Two little boys were talking together about
the story of Elijah’s going to heaven in a chariot
of fire, which their mamma had lately told them.

“T say, Charlie,’” said George, ‘‘but wouldn’t
you be afraid to ride on a chariot of fire?”

“Why, no,” said Charlie, “I shouldn’t be
afraid if I knew the Lord was driving it!”

te pe

SLANDER would very. soon starve and die of
itself if no one took it in and gave it lodging.