Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1891-02-07

give testimony to show that there is
no happiness outside of Christ, willie
there is great JOY in his service. There
are young men who have not been
Christians more than two months who
would stand up tonight. if should
ask them. and say i'll those two months
they had more joy and satisfaction
than in al the years of their frivolity
and dissipation. Go to the door OF
l:that gin shop TO night. and when the
gang of young men come out ask tllela
whether they are happy They laugh
I$along the street. and they jerr and
I.they shout, but nobody has any idea
That they ere happy.
~ could call upon the aged lnen in
this house to give testimony. There
are aged men here who tried the world,
and they tried religion. md they are
willing to testify OH our side. Itw;ls
not long ago that en- cid man arose in
a praying circle and s;lid: Brethren,
i lost-lny son just ashe graduated from
college and it broke my heart; but |
am glad now he is gone lie is at rest,
away from all sorrow and from all
trouble. And then. nlS57, | lost all
my property, and you see am getting
old. and it is rather hard upon ne;
but am sure God will not let lnc suf.
fer lie has not taken cure OF lie for
sevcnty-.ive years now to let he drop
out of lis bands.
went ltotlle room of an aged man,
his eyesigllt nearly gone, his lle,ring
nearly gone, and What do yoi suppose
he was talking ;lboutt The goodness
OF God and the joys of religion. He
sud II would like to go over and join
my wife OH the other side of the flood.
and am waiting until the Lord calls
me. am happy now shall he
happy there.
What is it that gave that aged man
Sc much satisfaction and rest Phys
ic:ll exulmrlnce' no; it has all gone.
Sunshine. IIecan.iot see it. The voices
of friends He cannot henr tlieln. 1t
is the grace OF God. that is brighter
than MONDAY and that is Sweeter than
music. If II llnrpist takes a'llarp and
finds that all tile strings are broken but
one string he does not tryto play upon
it. Yct here will show you an aged
nan the strings OF whose joy are all
broken save one, and yet he tllruns it
with such satisfaction. sucl, melody
that the angels OF God stop the swift
stroke of their wings and hover about
tie place until the music ceases OH. re-
Iigion's "waysare way $ of pleas;lntness.
and all l:er paths are peace. And il
YOU have rot the satisfaction that is to
be found in Jesus Christ ! must tell
you, with oil the concentrated emphasis
of my SOUL "One thing thou l;lckest
CHRIST CALLS you TO usEFELNEss.
| remark. again. that you lack the
element of usefulness Where is your
shlsinessa You ss,y il is No. 45 such a
street, or go such . greet ~
500 such street Ny friend iYJsoltsn,
your business is wherever tISssse is a
tear to he wiped away or sf-.tl to be
saved. Yon may. before Ginning TO
Christ, do IL great nl;my noble things
You take IL loaf Of bread to that starry
ing man in the alley. but lie wants i'm.
mortal bread You take Il pound Of
candles to that dark slianty. They
want the light that springs from the
throne OF God. and you cannot take it
because you have it not in your own
heart. You know that the flight of all
arrow depends very much upon the
strength OF the bow. and have to tel
you that the best bow that was ever
made was made OFT of the cross OF
Christ. and when rcligion takes n soul
and puts it Oh that. and pulls it back
and lets it fly. every time it brings
down Saul or Goliath.
There are people here OF high social
position. and large means and cultured
minds who. if they would come into
the kingdom of God, would set the city
on fire with religious awakening OH
hear you not the more than million
voices of those in these two cities who
are unconvertedl Voices of those who
in these two cities are dying in their
sinsa They want light. They want
bread. They want Christ. They want
heaven. Oh, that the Lord would
make you a flaming evangell As for
myself, | have sworn before high
heaven that will preach this gospel as
well as can, in all its fullncss, until
every fiber of my body, and every fac
uIty of my mind, and every passion OF
my soul, is exhausted. But we all
have !, work to do cannot do your
work, nor can you do my work. God
points us out the place where we are to
serve, and yet are there not people in
this house who are thirty, forty, fifty,
and sixty years of age, and yet have
not begun the great work for which
they were crcated2 With every worldly
equipment. lone thing thou lackest.
Again, you lack tile element of per
sonal safety Where are those people
who associated with you twenty years
ago2 Where are those people that flf-
teen years ago used to cross South
ferry or Fulton ferry with you to New
York? Walk down the street where
you were in business fifteen years ago
and see how all the signs have changed.
Where are the people gone2 How
many of them are landed in eternity |
cannot say, but many, many. I went
to the village of my boyhood. The
houses were all changed. passed one
house in which once resided u man
who had lived an earnest. useful life,
and he is in glory now. In the next