Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1875-07-14
Che family Circle.
Sixteen Hundred and sixty.eight Sundays.
BY UNCLE NED.


Bows, how many Of you have been a
church or in Sunday School every Sabbath
for one year? That would be only fifty
two or possibly tifiy-three Sundays. But
| know a man who has attended public
worship every Sabbath for hity-tuo years,
and that makes 1868 Sundays. Now all Ct
YOU who feel like saying Ugh" raise your
hands. And all the boys and girls who
think it is Il grand thing, better than
cakes and holidays. to 60 to church and
Sunday School sixteen undrcd and sixty
eight SUNDAYS in succession will stand and
be counted and have your names written
in the book of honor.
Now let Us look ut these tigurcs-32
years, lG6S Sundays and see what we
n al see. At least % of those years were
in the DAYS of tro sermons each S Sabbath.
So we have 2G0O sermons, 26)O hours in
In. SUNDAY school and $500 prayer meet
inc> in 81 years. But perhaps the good
man did not always attend every service
every Sabbath Well. if We are not quit
sure of all the sermons we can make W
the lack with the lectures and prayer
meet nsS during the weeks.
BIT what are 21O0 sermons TO sly
nothing Of the songs and prayers preceding
{, la, ge amount of the best kind Of school
ing
If we reckon 40 weeks Of 5 days eacl
for 4 school wear and count three hours fol
:. day in the lecture and recitation rooms
then we have in these 20O0 sermons. tn,
equivalent of II years of study. These
sermon. have been preached, very many
of the m, by highly educated men; they
have been discussions Of all the creates
truths and principles that concern man as ;
moral, social. civil. an immortal being
and they have been listened to ut interval:
\ lowing the nearer to profit by meditation
n,,on the sermons. What lessons il
his DRY. in science, in civil government
and what stores of biographical knowledge
have been incorporated into these thou
san Is of sermons, Surely, the sermon il
the plblic worship Of God is n principal
agency of public rdur;.ti"n. 1t educate:
under the most advantageous circum
stances The sermon is indi~pen sable n
an educator The boy th,t yet5 too >mar
to attend church robs himself of his very
best helps in the WY of mental improv"
ment The best brains in our country IT,
great debtor t. the intellectual food serve,
up in the sermons preached every Sab
bath day.
And this man speak of is one Of tn,
very eldest Business men in Vermont
| He has h norcd the Sanctuary on the Sab
bath and God has wonderfully preserves
him. The sermons Of - and many NOR
vetr, hive been moral corrections an'
rli,l, 5. He has lived more carefully an,
upri-h,lv-mndn the needs Of body
mind and soul more wisely and faithful,
tl,n anyex emporary who has direg;,rlc'
the privileges OF public worship. Tn
rommtnd, of God. the duties of holy livnc
the promise, to the good. the tllreatene
woes that never fail though they oft,1
seem to tarry, these sermons in the >anctu,
rirs WW determine very much the fIbri
of character in those who constantly listen
S rmons are not washed away like foo;
prints in the sand.
Boys, if you were to swap places will
one of two men. of whom You could know
beforehand only this thai one Of them Ia,
atten lie | church every Sabbath for thirty
two Years and the other had not been a
church once in the same time, which on
of the two would ynu choosc9 l woul,
take the chances Of the man who 30 ofte,
and so continuously worshiped, singing
praying and in meditation. rather than tn
other in whose heart and life God had 5,
little place.