Milford chronicle., 1888-09-07

O.
grief. 1t is no sign Of weakness that men are
overcome Of their sorrows Thank God for
the relief Of tears Have you never been in
trouble when you could not weep, and you
would have given anything for a good cryq
David did well when he mourned for ABB
SALON, Abraham did well when he bemoaned
Sarah, Christ did well when he wept for
Lazarus, and the last man want to see come
anywhere near me when 1 have any kind Of
trouble is a worldly philosopher
Again ] remark that those persons arein-
competent fer the work Of comfort bearing
who have nothing but cant to Offer There
arc those who have the idea that you must
groan over the distressed and afflicted.
There are times In grief when one cheerful
face dawning upon a mans soul is worth a
thousand dollars to him. Do not whine over
the afflicted. Take the promises Of the Cos
pei, and utter them in a manly tone. Do not
be afraid to smile if you feel like it. Do not
drive any more hearses through that poor
soul. Do not tell him the trouble was fore
ordained; it viii not be any comfort to know
it was a million years coming. If you want
to find splints for a broken bone, do not take
cast iron Do not tell them it is Gods JUS
tice that weighs out grief. They want now
to hear Of Gods tender mercy. In other
words, do not give them aqua FORTS when
they need valerian.
Again remark that those persons are poor
comforters who have never had any trouble
themselves. A larlspur cannot lecture on
the nature of snowhake-it never saw a
snowflake; and those people who have al
ways lived in the summer Of prosperity can
not tax to those who are frozen in disaster.
God keeps aged people in the world, think,
for this very work Of sympathy. They have
been through all these trials. They know all
that which irritates and all that which
soothes. If there are men and women here
who have old people in the house, or near at
hand so that they can easily reach them, l
congratulate them Some Of us have had
trials in life, and, although we have had
many friends around about US, we have
wished that father and mother were still alive
that we might go and tell them. Perhaps
they could not say much, but it would have
been such a comfort to have them around.
These aged ones who have been all through
the trials Of life know how to give condo
lence. Cherish them; let them lean on your
+ arm-these aged people. If, when you speak
TO them, they cannot hear Just what you say
HE first time, and you have to say it a second
time, when you say it the second time do not
say it sharply If you do you viii be sorry
for it on the day when you take the last look
and brush back the silvery locks from the
wrinkled brow just before they screw the
/ lid ON. Blessed be God for the old peoplel
They may not have so much strength to go
around, but they are Gods appointed minis
! ters Of comfort Co a broken heart.
/ People who have not had trials themselves
cannot give comfort to others. They may
( talk very beautifully, and they may giveyou
great deal Of poetic sentiment; but while
I poetry is perfume that smells sweet, it makes
4 a very poor salve. If you have grave in
your pathway, and somebody comes and
covers it all over with howess it is a grave
yet Those who have not had grief them
selves know not the mystery of a broken
heart. They know not the meaning Of child
4 lessness, and the having no one to put to bed
at night, OF tho standing in a room where
every book and picture and door is full Of
memories-the door mat where she sat, the
cup out Of which she drans-the place
where she stood at the door and
clapped her hands --;the odd figures
that she scribbled-the blocks she built into
house. All, no; you must have trouble
yourself before you can comfort trouble in
others. But come all ye who have been be-
reft and ye who have been comforted in
/ your sorrows, and stand around these afflicted
souls, and say to them: 81 had that very
sorrow myself God comforted me, and he
will comfort YOU" and that will go right to
the spot. In other words, to comfort others
we must have faith in God, practical expert
ence and good, sound common sense.
But there are three or four considerations
that 1 will bring this morning to those who
are sorrowful and distressed, and that we
can always bring to them, knowing that
they will effect a cure. And the first con-
sideration is, that God sends our troubles in
love / often hear people in their troubles
say, ''Why, wonder what God has against
mem They seem to think God has some
/ g11udge against them because trouble and
misfortune have come. Oh no. Do you not
remember that passage Of Scripture, ''Whom
the Lord loveth he chastenethr A child
comes in with a very bad splinter in its
hand, and you try to extract it. 1t is a very
painful operation. The child draws back
from you, but you persist. You are going
to take that splinter out, so you take the
child with gentle but firm grasp; for al
though there may be pain in it, the splinter
must come out. And it is love that dictates
it and makes you persist. My friends, 1
really think that nearly all our sorrows in
this world are only the hand Of our Father
extracting some thorn. If all these sor-
rows were sent by enemies / would
say, arm yourselves against them; and, as in
the tropical clines, when a tiger comes down
from the mountains and carries off a child
from the village, the neighbors band together
and go into the forest and hunt the monster,
so would have you, if thought these mis-
fortunes were sent by an enemy, go out and
battle against them. But no; they come
from Father so kind, so loving, so gentle,
that the prophet, speaking Of his tenderness
and mercy, drops the idea Of a father, and
says, "As ono whom his mother comforteth,
so viii ! comfort you"
Again / remark, there is comfort In the
thought that God, by all this process, is going
to make you useful DO you know that those
who accomplish the most for God and heaven
have all been under the harrow7 Show me q
man that has done anything for Christ in
this day, in public or private place, who has
had no trouble and whose path has beer
smooth. All, no.
l onca went through an ak factory, and
saw TIN take the bars Of iron and thrusi
them " the terrible furnaces. TheI
beswcS \ <eNrkmen with long tongs stirred
the IL " q they brought out bar Of iror
and ig ITO crushing machine, and ther
they put it between jaws that bit it in twain
Then they put it on an anvil, and there wer'
great hammers swung by machinery-eact
one a half ton in weight-that went thump
thumpl thumpl If that iron could have
spoken, it would have said, "Why all thii
beatingl Why must l be pounded any mort
than any other ironr The workmen would
have said, 1--WE want to make axes out q
you, keen, sharp axes-axes with which e
hew down the forest, and build the ship, and
erect houses and carry on thousand enter
prises Of civilization. That's the reason We
pound you" Now, God puts a soul into the
furnace of trial, and then it is brought oui
and run through the crushing machine, anC
then it comes down on the anvil, and upon il
blow after blow, blow after blow, and the
soul cries out, 20 Lord, what does all thii
meang God says, Il want to make some
thing very useful out Of you. You shall b
something to hew with and something to built