YEARS AGO a man who lived among the pines in the forests of Michigan, became seriously ill, and went by train to town to see a doctor. On his way home, while waiting in the station for his train, he chatted with another traveler to whom he told the reason for his journey. The doctor had said he could only live a few months longer.
“How do you feel about dying?” asked his companion. “Have you thought about what is coming after death?”
“Oh,” said the sick man, “I do not fear death.”
“Why?” asked the other.
The sick man then told him how it had come about: it is a short but beautiful story of faith in the holy Word of God.
He had lived all his life among the pines. Neither he nor his wife could read; they had seldom heard a sermon, and although they knew what the Bible is, they did not own one.
Their little boy had gone to school one winter and had learned to read.
One day he met a man on the road who spoke to him and gave him a Testament. It followed that at night, when the day’s work was done, and while all sat around the fire, the boy used to read to his father and mother. One night he read from 1 Timothy 1 until he came to verse 15: “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”
“Stop!” said the father. “Wife, listen to that! We are sinners and Christ Jesus came into the world to save us. Isn’t that good?”
“Yes,” said his wife; “that is good. Let us thank God for it.”
And in their humble cabin, on their knees before God, they thanked Him for His great gift, which in simple faith they had just accepted.
“And,” said the sick man, in telling the story, “why should I be afraid to die, when Christ Jesus has saved me?”
So the little boy was a link in the chain of blessing in that home. It was a joyful message which fell on the ears of those repentant sinners and they received it with joy. Reader, have you received this same joyful message and believed it?
ML-02/17/1963