A man's daughter
had asked the local minister to come and pray with her father. When the
minister arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped upon
two pillows. An empty chair sat beside his bed.
The minister assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.
"I guess you were expecting me, he said. 'No, who are you?" said the father.
The minister told him his name and then remarked, "I saw the empty chair
and I figured you knew I was going to show up." "Oh yeah, the chair," said
the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?"
Puzzled, the minister shut the door.
"I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter." said the man.
"But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to
hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it went right over my head." I abandoned
any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day four years
ago, my best friend said to me, 'Johnny, prayer is just a simple matter
of having a conversation with Jesus. Here is what I suggest."
"Sit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and
in faith, see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised,
'I will be with you always'. "Then just speak to him in the same way you're
doing with me right now."
"So, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours
every day. I'm careful though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty
chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny
farm."
The minister was so deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old
man to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, anointed him with
oil, and returned to the church.
Two nights later, the daughter called to tell the minister that her
daddy had died that afternoon.
"Did he die in peace?" he asked.
"Yes, when I left the house about two o'clock, he called me over to
his bedside, told me he loved me and kissed me on the cheek. When I got
back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something
strange about his death. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned
over and rested his head on the chair beside the bed. What do you make
of that?"
The minister wiped a tear from his eye and said, "I wish we could all
go like that."
Just send this to four people or more, and do not break this,
please. Prayer is one of
the best free gifts we receive.
I asked God for water, He
gave me an ocean.
I asked God for a flower,
He gave me a garden.
I asked God for a friend,
He gave me all of YOU...
In God We Find Strength and
Comfort
May today there be peace within you. May you trust
God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
"I believe that friends are quiet angels who lift us
to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering
how to fly."
"But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew
their strength: they shall mount up with wings
as eagles: they shall run, and not be weary;
they shall walk, and not faint."
Isaiah 40:31
~ DADDY'S
EMPTY CHAIR ~
