The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1889-11-14
THE USES OF TROUBLE.
Sermon by Rev. T. Dewitt Tai
I mage, D. D.
Trouble Is Designed to Keep tho Norld
From Being Too Attractirc-iiow
Human Beings are Fitted for
Heaven by Their Suf-
ferlngs on Earth.


divine spoke as follows:
Riding across Western prairie, wild
flowers up to tho hub of the carriage
wheel. and while long distance from
any shelter. there came sudden shower,
and while the rain was falling in tor
rents, the sun was shining as bright
as ever saw it shine; and | thought
what beautiful spectacle this is!
So the tears Of the Bible are not
midnight storm, but rain on panSicd
prairies in Gods sweet and golden sun
light. You remember that bottle which
David labeled as containing tears, and
Mary's tears, and Paul's tears, and
Christ's tears. and the harvest OF Joy
that's to spring from the sowing of tears.
God mixes them. God rounds them. God
shows them where to fall. God eXhales
them. 4 census is taken Of them, and
there is record as TO the moment when
they are born, and as to the place of their
grave Tears of bad men are not kept.
Alexander. in his sorrow. had the hair
clipped from his horses and mules, and
made great ado about his grief; but in
all the vases of heaven there IS not one
of AleXander'S tears. / speak OF the
tears Of the good. Alas! me! they are
falling all the time. In summer, You
sometimes hear the growing thunder,
and YOU see there is storm miles away;
but you know from the drift of the clouds
that it will not come anywhere near you.
So. though it may be all bright around
about us, there is shower of trouble
somewhere all the time. Tears. Tears.
What Is tho use OF them anyhow?
Why not substitute laughter? Why not
make this world where all the people
are well and eternal strangers to pain
and aches? What is the use of an east
ern storm when we might have per-
petual nor'wester. Why, when family
is put together. not have them all stay.
or if they must be transplanted to make
other homes. thcn have them all alive?
the family record telling a story of mar
riageS and births, but OF no deaths.
Why not have the harveSts chase each
other without fatiguing toll? Why the
hard pillow. the hard crust. the hard
struggle? 1t is easy enough to explain
a smile, or success, or a congratula-
ton: but, come now, and bring all your
dictionaries and all your PHILOSOPHERS
and all your religions, and help me en-
plain tear. A chemist will tell you
that it is made up OF salt and lime and
other component parts; but he misses
the chief ingredients-the acid OF
soured liSo. the viperine sting of bitter
memory, the fragments OF broken
heart will tell you what tear is; it
is agony in solution.
Hear me. then. while I discourse to
you of the uses Of trouble.
:, First-lt is the design Of trouble to
keep this world from being too attrac-
tive. Something must be done to make
us willing to quit this existence. Iii
were not for trouble this world would
be good enough heaven for me. You
and would be willing to take lease of
life for o hundred million years II there
were no trouble. The earth cushioned
and upholstered and pillared and chan
deliered with such expense, no story OF
other worlds could enchant us. We
would say: "Let we'll enough alone. II
you want to die and have your body dis
integrated in the dust. and your soul 60
out on celestial adventure, then you
can go; but this world is good enough
for me-" You might as well 60 to man
who has just entered the Louvre at
Paris, and tell him to hasten off to tho
picture galleries of Venice or Florence.
'..Why." ne would say. ''what is the use
OF my going there? There arc REM
brandts and Rubenses and Raphaels here
that haven't looked at yet"
No man wants to go ont of this wOrlG,
or out of any house. until he has bet
ter house. To cure this wish to stay
hero God must somehow create dis
gust for our surroundings. How shall
He do it? He can not afford to deface
His horizon. or to tear off fiery panel
from the sunset, or to substract an an
ther. from the water lily, or to Danish
the pungent aroma from the mignonette,
or to drag the robes of the morning in
mire. You can not expect a Christopher
Wren to mar his oan st. Paul's cathe-
dral. or 4 Michael Angelo to dash out his
own Last Judgment" or C Handel to
discard his ''Israel in Egypt" and you
can not expect God to spoil the archi-
lecture and music of his own world.
How then arc we to be made willing to
leave? Here Is where trouble comes in.
After man has good deal OF trouble
he says: ''Well, am ready TO GO. If
there is a house somewhere whose roof
doesn't leak, would like to live there.
If there is an atmosphere somewhere
that does not distress the lungs would
like to breathe it. II there IS society
where there is no tittle-tattle, would
like to live there. If there is q home
circle somewhere where | can find my
lost friends, | would like to go there
He used to read the first part of the Bible
chiefly, now he reads the last part of the
Bible chiefly. Why has he changed
Genesis for Revelation? All! he used to
q be anxious chiefly to know how this
world was made, and all abouti its geolog-
fcat constructions. Nov he is chiefly
anxious to know nov tie next world was
made, and how it looks, and who live
there. and how they dress. He reads
Revelation ten times now where he
reads Genesis once. The old story. "in
the beginning God created the heavens
and the EARTH" does not thrill him half
AS Sat.etl as the other story. 81 saw new
heayea and new earth" The old
mans hand tsep3bles as he turns over
this apocaiyptia Leaf. and he has to take
cut his handkerchief 10 wipe his spec
taeies. That book of ReseIaion is a
prospectus now of the country inte which
he Is t1 soon immigrate; the country IL
which ne has lots already laid out, and
avenues opened. and trees planted, and
mansions built.
The thought of the blessed place
Coiues ovsi ILo nightly, aliu = as,u.".u
that if this hoase were one great ship.
and you all wef6 passengers on boardit
and one hand could LAUNCH that ship
into the glories Of heaven, shoHld be
tempted to take the responsibility And
launch you all into glory with one
stroke. holding on TO the side of the boat
until eonld get in myself. And yet
there are people here to whom this
world is brighter than heaven. Well,
dear souls, [ do not blame you. 1t is
natural. But after While you will be
ready 10 60, 1t was not until JOB had
been worn out with bereavements and
carbuncles and post of wife that he