Daddy’s Empty Chair<\/p>\n
A man\u2019s daughter had asked the local minister to come and pray with her father.<\/p>\n
When the minister arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows.<\/p>\n
An empty chair sat beside his bed. The minister assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI guess you were expecting me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u2018No, who are you?\u201d said the father.<\/p>\n
The minister told him his name and then remarked, \u201cI saw the empty chair and I figured you knew I was going to show up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh yeah, the chair,\u201d said the bedridden man. \u201cWould you mind closing the door?\u201d Puzzled, the minister shut the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have never told anyone this, not even my daughter,\u201d said the man. \u201cBut all of my life I have never known how to pray.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it went right over my head.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI abandoned any attempt at prayer,\u201d the old man continued, \u201cuntil one day four years ago, my best friend said to me, \u201cJohnny, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with God.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHere is what I suggest,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see God on the chair. It\u2019s not spooky because he promised, \u2018I will be with you always\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen just speak to him in the same way you\u2019re doing with me right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, I tried it and I\u2019ve liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m careful though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she\u2019d either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm.\u201d<\/p>\n
The minister was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old man to continue on the journey.<\/p>\n
Then he prayed with him, anointed him with oil, and then returned to the church.<\/p>\n
Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her daddy had died that afternoon.<\/p>\n
Did he die in peace?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
Yes, when I left the house about two o\u2019clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me how much he loved me, and kissed me on the cheek.<\/p>\n
When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
What do you make of that?\u201d The minister wiped a tear from his eye and said, \u201cI wish we could all go like that.\u201d<\/p>\n