Subject: MOM'S EMPTY CHAIR
A woman's daughter had asked the local Minister to come and pray with her
mother. When the
minister arrived, he found the woman lying in bed with her head propped up
on two pillows.
An empty chair sat beside her bed. The minister assumed that the woman had
been informed of
his visit.
'I guess you were expecting me, he said.
'No, who are you?' said the mother.
The minister told her 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 woman. 'Would you mind closing the
door?'
Puzzled, the minister s hut the door. '
I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter,' said the woman. '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 woman continued,
'until one day four
years ago, my best friend said to me, ' 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 deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old woman to
continue on the
journey. Then he prayed with her, anointed her with oil, and returned to the
church.
Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her mama had
died that afternoon.
Did she die in peace?' he asked.
Yes, when I left the house about two o'clock, she called me over to her
bedside, told me she loved
me and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later,
I found her .
But there was something strange about her death. Apparently, just before Mom
died, she leaned
over and rested her 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.'
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...
If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.
Subject: Fw: MOM'S EMPTY CHAIR
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