Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1885-12-03
THANKS GIVEN.

! T.
Sermon. ...
Delivered BY Rev. W. F. Cook, Pastor o
the Methodist Episcopal Con-
gregatfon.
In the Presbyterian Church al James
town, Dak., Thursday Nov.
2G, 1885.
FULL TEXT OF THE SERMON.
TExT:--Ant the seventh angel sounded; ant
there were great voices in heaven, saying, Tn,
kingdoms Of this world are become the Kingdom,
Of our Lord, and his Christ; and he shall reign
forever and ever. ..... f..
And the four and twenty elders, which sat be
fore God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and
worhipped God.
Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Al
mighty, which art, and vast, and art to come; be,
cause thou hast taken to thee thy great power and
hast reigned.--Rcv. chap. xI, yer. IS IS, and II.
Thanksgiving to the Almighty Father
for his countless mercies is the thought
and duty of the hour. For this we have
assembled here and lifted our voices and
hearts in song and prayer. The Ameri-
can people are especially the children of
God. Fifty million people today JOIN IN
swelling the national chorus of praise and
Thanksgiving. ...u..
The cantlcle of praise has been chanted
after storm, coronation and victories all
over the world. All the earth and all
the angels unite IN the song of praise for
"heaven and earth is full of thy glory"
The reasons tor national thanksgiving
can not be gwen without repeating our
written and nnwritten history; without
repeating tataet upon tablet of product
statistics; without recounting national
victories human and superb human most
Of which by appropriation now belong to
the world. From the time that the first
sod of this virgin soil was turned until
now, God haD been with US as with no
nation under the sun except the Jews.
In the discovery of the continent, in the
planting of the colonies, in the shaping
Of the Republic; in the victories of the
right, in the preservation OF the union,
and in the work of civil liberty we see
the hand of God as plainly as Moses and
the children II Israel saw it in the Pillar
Of Fire. In the silver moon light, in the
golden sunlie eht, in the pure ar, in the
sweet water, IN the fragrant flower, we
see monument of Gods goodness for
which we ought to sing "Praise God from
~ hon. oil u,cs>. -iss Aa~ss' We have heard
during the year the rustic of the corn
tassels, the rattle Of the reaper and the
rumble of water wheels, the groan OF
tortured machinery, the puff OF the
steam boat, the throb OF the railroad en- :
glne, the click of electricity and the salu-
tatioa of the printing press. For all Of
this the people ought to breath a prayer
of Thanksgiving to God.
We should thank God for His bountifui
blessings upon US during the past year.
He is our constant Benefactor. "In Him
we live, move and have our being" He
sustains US every moment of our existence.
He gives us the air we breathe and also
the faculty of breathing, furnishes US the
earth, the SUI shine and the rain; the fruit,
the flowers and the gram. He makes
our youth pleasant journey, our middle
age joy, and our old age comfort. If
we fly to the pleasures of the world it is
by continuance of these that we can fly
to them. Look to whatever place we
may for happiness; to books, to study, to
friends, to home, to prayers, they are all
from God. During the past year other
nations have felt the scourge of epidemic,
have heard the fatal rumble of the earth
quake, and the mutterings of war, while
our country has escaped. Misfortune and
bereavement may have come to many OF
US, but we ought to thank God that it is
no worse and that there are so many rich
blessings left for US.
The year has been one of great mercy
and prosperity to US. When We remem :
Der the bare plates and the empty ward
robes of the multitudes let each of us to-
day, while comfortably clothed and
housed, u tier heartfelt thanks to God for
these bountles and implore Gods mercy
and blessings upon the poor, and while
praying Gods blessing upon them do not
forget that it is in our power and it is
our duty to help answer our own prayers
for "faith without works is dead.''
Next to temporal blessings we must re-
member those that flow to us through our
liberties as a nation. England once
planted a colony on distant shore. For
time she nourished that colony, but in
an hour when England knew not the
trust committed to her care she oppressed
those people until liberty and independ-
ence became the watchword and its echoes
died not away till naughty England
learned its power.
In 1861 the rebellion began. 1t was
the North against the South; Lyon against
jackson; Sheridan against Johnston;
Grant against Lee. 1t was more. 1t was
one idea of civilization against another,
both armies fighting for principle, bear.
ing with them the hopes and prayers of q
. people confronting each other with
heroi.m and determination never before
seen in any land. No earthly courage
decided the contest. The battle of Look
out mountain, my brothers tell me, wa
fought above the clouds, but above the
moving lines of the Blue and the Grey
were Gods horsemen and fiery chariots
Gods own mighty right hsud has guided
the American Republic and preserved tt
-. o,,r Ehn,tioa An nj O,,r nuion