Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1890-09-20

wide as eternity, from tin to tin, arc the
wings of the Almighty OH under such
provisions as that can you not rejoice; Come
under, We wandering. ye weary, We troubled,
/ ye SHINING, ye dying souisi Come under the
| wings of the Almighty Whosoeyer viii
come let him come. However ragged how
ever wretched, however abandoned, how
| ever woe begone, there is room enough under
| the wings-under tho broad wings of the
| Almighty Oh what gospel so glorious.
SO magnificent in its provisioul love to
preach it,. 1t is my life to preach it. 1t is
my heaven to preach it,
remark, further, that the wings under
I which Ruth came to trust were strong wings.
The strength Of q birds wing-of sea fowls
wing for example-you might guess it from
the fact that sometimes for five six or seven
days it seems to fly without resting. There
have been condors in the Andes that could
overcome an OK or stag There have been
eagles that have picket 10 children AMI
swang them to the top of the ellis. The
Zap of an eagles wing has death in it to
everything it strikes There are birds whose
wings are packe with strength TO fly, to lift
to destroy. So the wings Of Col are strong
wings. Mighty to save. Mighty to destroy
Ipreach Him-''thc Lord, strong and mighty;
the Lord mighty in battler He tapped
His wing, and the antediluvian world was
gone. He tapped His wing, and Babylon
persisted He ilappsd His wing, and Hercu-
laneum was buried. Flo tapped His wing,
and the Napolonic dynasty ceased
Before the stroke of that pinion feet is
nothing An army is nothing. An er1pire
is nothing A world is nothing The uni
verse is nothing king-eternaI onnipo-
tent He asks no counsel from the thrones
of heaven. He takes not the archangel into
His cabinet. He wants none to draw Ills
chariots, for they are the winds. None to
load His batteries, for they are the lightnings
None to tie the sandals of His feet for they
are the clouds Mighty to save. Our enemies
may be strong, our sorrows violent our sins
may be great. But quicker than an eagle
ever hurled from the crags hawk or raven
will the Lord strike back our SINS and our
temptations if they assault us when we are
once seated on the eternal rock of His saliva
ton. WHAT blessed thing it is TO be de-
Tended by the strong wing of the Almighty
Stronger than the pelicau's wing, stronger
than the albatross' wing stronger than the
con1oi's wing are the wings of the Almighty.
have only one more thought to present.
The wings under which Ruth had come to
trust were gentle wings. There is nothing
softer than feather. You have noticed
when bird returns from fight how gently
it stoops over the nest. The young birds are
not afraid of having their lives trampled out
by the mother bird; the old whippoor- twill
drops into its nest of leaves the oriole into
its casket of bark, the humming bird into its
hammock of moss-gentle as the light. And
so, says the psalmist, He shall cover thee
with His wing. oh, the gentleness of Godi
But even that figure does not fully set forth;
for | have sometimes looked into the birds
nest and seen dead bird-its life having
been trampled out by the mother bird. But
no one that ever came under the feathers Of
tho Almighty was trodden on.
Blessed nest warm nestl Why will men
lNoc iaN 1f
and to be chilled by the blast where there is
divine shelter? More beautiful than any
flower | ever saw are the hues OF birds
plunage Did you ever examine it? The
blackbird, floating like fake of darkness
through the sunlight; the meadow lark, with
head of fawn and throat of velvet and
breast of gold; the red fllm;ngo, flying over
the southern swamps like sparks from tho
forge of the setting sun; the pelican, white
and black-morning and night tangled in its
wings-gve but faint idea Of the beauty
that comes down over the soul when on it
drop the feathers Of the Almighty.
Here fold your weary wings, This is the
only safe nest. Every other nest will be de
stroye1 The prophet says so: Though
thou exalt thyself like the eagle, and set thy
nest among the stars yet will | bring thee
down. saith the Lord of lIosts.n Under the
swift wings, under the broad wings, under
the strong wings under the gentle wings OF
the Almighty find shelter until these calam-
tiles are overpast. Then when you want TO
change nests it will only be from the valley
of earth to the heights of heaven; and instead
of ''the wings of a dove" for which David
longed, not knowing that in the first mile of
their flight they would give out, YOU will be
conducted upward by the Lord God OF israel,
under whose wings Ruth, the beautiful
Moabitess. came to trust.
God forbid that in this matter OF eternal
veal or woe we should be more stupid than
the fowls of heaven; 'for the stark knoweth
her appointed time. and the turtle. and the
crane, and the swallow observe the time OF
their going; but my people know not the
judgments of the Lord"