Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1892-01-16


Your setback, like that of Ahazs sundial,
may be recovery and triumph. never had
setback but it turned out to be a set for
ward. You never would have become a
Christian if you had not had setback. The
highest thrones in heaven are for the set
backs. In 1861 the shadow of the sundial of
this nation was set PACK, aud all things
seemed going to ruin, AMI it was set back
further in 1882, and further in 1853, and still
further in 1865, but there is not an intel
ligent and well balanced man-north or
south, east or west-but feels 1t was set back
toward the sunrise.
But promise to show you how the shaw
ows might be turned back. First, by going
much among the young people. In most
family circles there ara grandchildren, By
this divine arrangement most of the people
who have passed ths meridian of life can
compass themselves by juvenility. 1t is a
bad thing for an cd man or old woman to
sit looking at the vivacity of their grand
children shouting, 'Stop that racketm
Better join in the fun. Let the eighty-year-
Old grandfather join the eight year-old
grandson or granddaughter. My father AMI
mother lived 10 see over eighty children and
grandchildren and great grandchildren, AMI
a more boisterous crew vera never turned
out on this = 5lunary sphere, and they all
seemed to CRY to the old folks. "Keep
young" and they did keep young. Don't
walk with cane unless you have to or only
as a defence in city afflicted with
too many CANNES. Don't wear glasses
stronger than necessary, putting on num-
Der tens when eghteens will do as we'll
Don't go into the company of those who are
always talking about rheumatism and lum-
bago and shortness of breath and the brevity
Of human life. 1t is too much for my gravity
to hear an octogenarian talking about the
shortness of human life. From all can find
out he has always been here and from present
prospects he is always going to stay. Remain
young Hang up your stockings in Christmas
time Help thu boys f1v the kite. Teach the
girls how to dress their dolls. Better than
nrnica for your stiff joints and catnip Tea
for your sleepless nights will be large dose
of youthful companionship
Set back the clock of human life. Make
the shadow of the sun1ial Of Ahaz retreat
ten degrees. People make themselves old
by always talking about being old and
wishing for the good old days, which were
never as good as these days. From all can
hear the grandchildren are not half as bad
as the grandparents were. Matters have
been hushed up. But if you have ever been
in room adjoining a room where some very
old people, little deaf, were talking over
old times, you will find that this age does not
monopolize all the young rascals. 1t may
now be hard to get young people up early
enough in the morning, but their grandpa
rents always had to be pulled out of bed.
1t is wrong now to play mischevious tricks on
the unsuspecting, but eighty years ago at
school that now venerable man sat down on
a crooked pin not accidently placed there,
and purposely drove the sleigh riding party
too near the edge of the embankment that
be might see how they would look when
tumbled into the snow. And that man who
has SO little patience with childish exuber-
ance was in olden times up to pranks, one
half of which if practicei by the eight-year.
old of to-day would set grandfather and
grandmother crazy. Revive your remem.
brance Of what you were between five and
ten years OF aga and with patience capable
of everything join with the young. Put back
the shadow of the dial not ten degrees. but
fifty and sixty and seventy degrees.
Set back your clocks also by entering on
new and absorbing Christian work In our
desire to inspire the young we have in our
essays had much to say about what has
been accomplished by the young; of Ro.
mulus who founded Rome when he was
twenty years of age; of Cortes, who had con-
quered Mexico at thirty years; of Pitt,
who was Prime Minister of England at
twenty-four years; of Raphael, who died
at thirty seven years; of Calvin, who wrote
his institutes at twenty-six; of Melanc-
thop, who took learned professors chair
at LWeDLy-OuS years. OIL Luther, WHO lau
conquered Ger many for the Reformation
by the time he was thirty-five years And
1t is all very well for us to show how early
In life one can do very great things for God
and the welfare of the world, but some of
the mightiest work for God has been done
by septuagenarians and octogenarians and
nonagenarians. Indeed there is work
which none cut such can do. They pre-
serve the equipoise of senates, of religious
denominations, of reformatory movements.
Young men for action, old men for coun-
sci. Instead of any of you beginning to
fold up your energies, arouse anew your
energies. With the experience you have
obtained and the opportunities of observa-
ton you have had during a long life, you
ought to be able to do in one year now
more than you did in ten years right after
you have passed out of your teens. Physica
power less, your spiritual power ought tc
be more. Up to the last hour of their lives
what powers for good old DR.. Archibald
Alexander, old Dr. Woods, old DR.. Halves
old DIR. Minor, old DR.. McIlvane old DR.
Tying, old DR.. Candlish, old DR.. Chalmersi
What have been Bismarck to Germany. and
Gladstone to England aud Oliver Wendell
Holmes to America in the time of an adj
vanced age? Let me say to those in the after
noon of life: Don't be putting off the har.
ness; when 60 wants il off he will t1ke it
off. Don't be fri ,htene1 out of life by the
grlo as many are. At the first sneezs of an
lnhuenz1 many give up all as lost No new
terror has come on the earth. The microbes
as the cause of disease were described in the
1airnud seventeen hundred years ago as Gin
visible legions of dangerous ones" Don't be
scared out of life by all this talk about heart
failure. That trouble has always been in the
world. That is what all the people that ever
passed out of this life have died of-heart
failure. Adam had it and all of his descend
ants have had it or will have it, Do not be
watching for symptoms or you will havs
symptoms of everything Some of you will
yet die of symptoms. Symptoms are often
only what we sometimes see in the country
"a dead owl nailed on barn door to scare
living owls. Put your trust in God, go to
bed at ten o'clock, have the window open six
nnches to let in the fresh air, sleep on your
right side and fear nothing. The old maxim
was right, Get thy spindle and distaff ready
nd God will send the fax"
But while looking at this suudial of Ahaz
and l ses the sha low of it move [ notice
that 1t went back toward the sunrise instead
OF IorE ward toWarI the sunset-towari the
morning instead o. toward the night. That
thing the worl | is willing now to 10, and in
many cases has done. There have a great
many things been written and spoken about
the sunset of life. | have said SONS of them
myself. But my text suggests better idea.
The Lord who turned back that day from
gong toward sundown and started it towar
sunrise is willing to do the same thing for
all OF us. The tbeologians who stick to old re-
h9lous technicalities until they become sopo-
rifles would not call it anything but CONVEX
sion. call 1t change from going toward sun
down to going toward sunrise That man
who never tries to unouckle the clasp of evil
habit and wac keeps all the sins of the past
and the present freighting him and who
ignores the one redemption made by the
only one who could eieem. if that man will
ex famine the sunlial hs will fint that the
shadow is going forward aud he is on the
way to shutdown. His day is on the road to
night All the watches that tick, all the
clocks that strike ali the sand glasses that
empty themselves all the shadows that move
on all the sundials indicate the approach of
darkness. But now, in answer to PRAYER. as
in my text the change was in answer to
prayer the pardouinS Lord roverses thin s
and the man starts toward sunrise instead oil
sunset. He turns the other way The Captain
of salvation gives him the military command,
Attention Right about facet" He was
marching toward indifference. marching
toward hardness of heart, marching toward
prayerlessnesS, marching toward sin, march
ing toward gloom, marching toward death.
Now be turns and marches toward peace,
marches toward light and marches toward
comfort and marches toward high hope and
marches toward triumph stupendous and
everlasting, toward hosann rs that ever hoist
and hallelujahs that ever roll. Now if that
is not the turning of the shadow on the dial
of Ahaz from going toward shutdown to go
ing toward sunrise, what is it?
| have seen day break over Mount Blanc
and the Matterhorn. over the heights OF
Lebanon. over Mount Washing. on. over
the Sierra Nevadas, aid mid-Atlantic, the
morning after q ueplrtel storm wnen the
pillows were liquid Alps and liquid Sierra