s longing cry Dr.
Parsons himself read the next solemn sentence, read it in such a way
that it almost seemed as if this might be the sacred garden, and
_Himself_ standing among the olive-trees speaking even to _her_:

"And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch." Here, then, was her
direction from His own lips. Though centuries had passed since He spoke
them they echoed down to her. She was not overwhelmed; she was not
crushed by the new and solemn sense of her calling that flowed over her.
The Lord himself was there in every deed, and whispered in her ear, "It
is I, be not afraid." And her heart responded solemnly, "Aye, Lord, I
feel thy presence; I have been sleeping, but I am awake, and from
henceforth I _will_ watch."

That Bible reading was like a whole week of theological study to Flossy.
It was not that she learned simply about the blessed assurance, the
weight of testimony amounting to an absolute certainty, concerning the
coming of the Lord. But there were so many truths growing out from that,
so many incentives to be up and doing; for she found before the reading
closed that one must not only watch, but in the watching work; and there
were so many reasons why she should, and so many hints as to the way and
the time. Then there was, also, the most blessed discovery that the
Bible was not a book to treat like an arithmetic. That one must read
through the Book of Genesis, and then go on to Exodus, a chapter to-day,
two chapters to-morrow, and perhaps some days, when one was not in too
great a hurry and could read very fast, take half a dozen chapters, and
so get through it. But she learned that there were little connecting
links of sweetness all the way through the book; that she had a right to
look over in Revelation for an explanation of something that was stated
in Deuteronomy. She did not learn all this, either, at this one time;
but she got a vivid hint of it, strong enough to keep her hunting and
pulling at the lovely golden thread of the Bible for long years to come.

There were special points about the closing verses that throbbed in her
heart, and awakened purposes that never slept again. It was the
gentleman who sat beside her who read the solemn words of the verse:

"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the
heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt
with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall
be burned up. Seei