Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1889-06-26

his army is smitten. Alexander decide
upon campaign, brings up his hosts ant
dies. For long while that nation monop
ollzes the learning of the world. It is thu
nation OF the Arabs. Who founded it
lshmael, the lad that Hagar led into tn,
wilderness. She had no idea she was lead
ing forth such destinies. Neither does any
mother. You pass along the street and SET
boys and girls who will yet make the earth
quake with their influence. Who is that
boy at Sutton Pool, Plymouth, England,
barefooted, wading down into the sIusb
and slime, until his bare foot comes upon a
piece of glass and he lifts it. bleeding and
pain struck? That wound in the foot de-
cides that he be sedentary in his life, de.
| cides that he be student. That wound
by the glass in the foot decides that be
shall be John Kitto, who shall provide the
best religious encyclopedias the world has
ever had provided, and with his other
writings as well, throwing light upon the
Word of God such as has come from no
other man in this century. . mother,
mother, that little hand that wanders over
your face may yet be lifted to hurl thunder
bolts of war, or drop benedictions. That
little voice may blaspheme God in the grog
shop, or cry: "Forwardp' to the Lord 8
hosts, as they go out for their last victory.
My mind to-day leaps thirty years ahead,
and see merchant prince of New York.
One stroke of bis pen brings ship out of
Canton. Another stroke of his pen brings
a ship into Madras. He ia mighty in all
the money markets of the world. Who is
he? He sits to-day beside you in the
Tabernacle. My mind leaps thirty years
forward from this time, and I find myself
in relief association. A great multitude
of Christian women have met together for
a generous purpose. There is one woman
in that crowd who seems to have the conf
dence of all the others, and they all look up
to her for her counsel and for her prayers.
Who is she? To-day you will find her in the
Sabbath-scheol, while the teacher tells her
of that Christ who clothed the raked and
fed the hungry and healed the sick. My
mind leaps forward thirty years from now,
and I fad myself in an African Jungle; and
there is missionary of the cross addressing
the natives, and their dusky couutenances
are irradiated with the glad tidings of great
joy and salvation. Who is he? Did you
not hear his voice to day in the first song
of the service? My mind leaps forward
thirty years from now, and I find myself
looking through the wickets Of prison. I
see face SCARED with every crime. His
chin on his open palm, his elbow on his
knee-a picture of despair. AS open the
wicket he starts, and 1 hear his chain clank.
The Jail keeper tells me that he has been in
there now three times. First for theft, then
for arson, now for murder. He steps upon
the trap door, the rope is fastened to his
neck, the plank falls, his body swings into
the air, his soul swings off into eternity
Who is he, and where is he? To-day play
ing kite on the city commons. Mother,
you are to-day hoisting throne or forging
chain-you are kindling star or digging
a dungeon.
A good many years ago Christian
mother sat teaching lessons Of religion to
her child; and he drank in those lessons
She never knew that Lamphier would come
forth and establish the Fulton street prayer
meeting, and by one meeting revolutionize
the devotions of the whole earth, and thrill
the eternities with his Christian influence.
Lamphier said it was his mother who
brought him to Jesus Christ. She never
had an idea that she was leading forth such
destinies. But o. when l see a mother
reckless of her influence, rattling on toward
destruction, garlanded for the sacrifice with
unseemly mirth and godlessness, gayly
tripping on down to ruin, taking her chill
dren in the same direction, cannot help
but say, "There they go, there they go
Hagar and Ishmaelp' tell you there are
wilder deserts than Bser-sheba in many of
the domestic circles of this day. Dissi-
pated parents leading dissipated children.
Avaricious parents leading avaricious chill
dren. Prayerless parents leading prayer
less children. They 20 through every
street, up every dark alley, into every GEL
lar, along every highway. Hagar and Ish-
[mael! and while pronounce their names,
it seems like the moaning of the death
wind-Hagar and Ishmael!
| learn one more lesson from this Original
scsne, aud that is, that every wilderness
has well in it. Hager and Ishmael gave
up to die. Hagar's heart sank within her
as she heard her child crying: Water!
water! waterr' .'Ah." she says, ''my dar-
ling, there is no water. This is desert. 4"
Aud then Gods angel said from the cloud:
"What aileth thee, Hagar?" And she
looked up and say him pointing to well
Of water, where she filed the bottle for the
lad Blessed be God that there is in every
wilderness a well, if you only know how to
find it-fountains for all these thirsty souls
to day. "On that last day, on that great
day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried: "If
any man thirst, let him come to me and
drink" All these other fountains you fad
are mere mirages of the desert. Paracelsus,
you know, spent his time in trying to fnd
out the elixir of life-a liquid which, if
taken, would keep one perpetually young
in this world, and would change the aged
back again to youth. OF course he was dis.
appointed; he found not the elixir. But
here tell you to-day of the elixir of ever
lasting life bursting from the "Rock of
Ages and chat drinking that water you
shall never get.old, and you will never be
sick, and you will never die. "Ho, every
one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters"
All, here is a man who says: 81 have been
looking for that fountain great while, but
cant find it." And here is some one else
who says: 81 believe all you say, but have
been trudging along in the wilderness, and
can't find the fountain" Doyou know the
reason? Twill tell you. You never looked
in the right direction. "O," you say, 81
have looked everywhere. have looked
north, south, east aud west, and l haven't t
found the fountain" Why, you are not
looking in the right direction at all. Look
up, where Hagar looked. She never would
have found tae fountain at all, but when
she heard the voice of the angel she looked
up and she saw the finger pointing to the
supply. And o, soul, if to-day, with one
earnest, intense prayer you would only look
up to Christ, He would point you down to
the supply in the wilderness. "Look unto
Me, all ye ends of the earth, and be ye saw,
ed for am God, and there is none else. :"
Look look! as Hagar looked.
Yes, there is well for every desert of
bereavement. Looking over the audience
to-day, l notice signs of mourning. Have
you found consolation? man bereft, o
woman bereft, have you found consolation9
Hearse after hearse. We step from one
grave hillock to another grave hillock. We
follow corpses ourselves soon be like them.
The world is in mourning for its dead.
Every heart has become the sepulchre of
some buried joy. But sing ye to God, every
wilderness has we'll in it; and 1 come to
that we'll to day, and l begin to draw water
from that well. If you have lived in the
country, you have sometimes taken hold oil
the rope of the old we'll sweep, and you
know how the bucket came up dripping
with bright, cool water And lay hold oi
| a., of n~It 30 Ia-, L.