Part 34 (1/2)

Thus the clouds which had so suddenly obscured little Elsie's sky, seemed to have vanished as speedily as they had arisen.

Her father again treated her with all his wonted affection, and there even seemed to be a depth of tenderness in his love which it had not known before, for he could not forget how nearly he had lost her.

CHAPTER ELEVENTH

”In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes; even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.”

--_Luke_ x. 21.

Says the Apostle Paul, ”I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart, for I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ, for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh.... Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to G.o.d for Israel is, that they might be saved.”

And such, dear reader, is, in greater or less degree, the feeling of every renewed heart; loving Jesus, it would fain have others love Him too; it desires the salvation of all; but for that of its own dear ones it longs and labors and prays; it is like Jacob wrestling with the angel, when he said, ”I will not let thee go except thou bless me.”

And thus it was with Elsie. She knew now that her father was not a Christian; that he had no real love for Jesus, none of the true fear of G.o.d before his eyes. She saw that if he permitted her to read to him from G.o.d's word, as he sometimes did, it was not that he felt any pleasure in listening, but only to please her; she had no reason to suppose he ever prayed, and though he went regularly to church, it was because he considered it proper and respectable to do so, and not that he cared to wors.h.i.+p G.o.d, or to learn His will.

This conviction, which had gradually dawned upon Elsie, until now it amounted to certainty, caused her great grief; she shed many tears over it in secret, and very many and very earnest were the prayers she offered up for her dear father's conversion.

She was sitting on his knee one evening in the drawing-room, while he and several other gentlemen were conversing on the subject of religion.

They were discussing the question whether or no a change of heart were necessary to salvation.

The general opinion seemed to be that it was not, and Elsie listened with pain while her father expressed his decided conviction that all who led an honest, upright, moral life, and attended to the outward observances of religion, were quite safe.

”He could see no necessity for a change of heart; he did not believe in the doctrine of total depravity, not he; no indeed, he thought the world much better than many people would have us believe.”

Elsie fixed her eyes on his face with a very mournful gaze while he was speaking, but he was busy with his argument and did not notice her.

But one of the guests was just expressing his approval of Mr.

Dinsmore's sentiments, when catching sight of Elsie's face, he stopped, remarking, ”Your little girl looks as if she had something to say on the subject; what is it, my dear?”

Elsie blushed, hesitated, and looked at her father.

”Yes, speak, my daughter, if you have anything to say,” he said encouragingly.

Elsie lifted her eyes timidly to the gentleman's face as she replied, ”I was just thinking, sir, of what our Saviour said to Nicodemus: 'Verily, verily I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of G.o.d.' 'Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.'”

She repeated these words of inspiration with a deep, earnest solemnity that seemed to impress every hearer.

For a moment there was a deep hush in the room.

Then the gentleman asked, ”Well, my little lady, and what is meant by being born again?”

”O sir!” she replied, ”surely you know that it means to have the image of G.o.d, lost in Adam's fall, restored to us; it means what David asked for when he prayed, 'Create in me a clean heart, O G.o.d, and renew a right spirit within me.'”

”Where did you learn all this?” he asked, looking at her with mingled surprise and admiration.

”In the Bible, sir,” she modestly replied.

”You seem to have read it to some purpose,” said he; ”and now since you consider that change so necessary, can you tell me how it is to be brought about?”