The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1892-06-22

man or woman flor there are not many
of them whose disposition is genial and
summary. Why? Have they always
been treated well? Oh, no. Hard
things have been said against them.
They have been charged with officious-
ness; and their generosities have
been set down to desire for dis
play, and they have many time been
the subject of tittle-tattle, and they
have had enough small assaults like
gnats and enough great attacks like
lions to have made them perpetually
miserable. if they would have con-
scented to be miserable. But they had
enough Divine philosophy to east OF
the annoyances, and they have kept
themselves in the sunlight Of Gods
favor and have realized that these OPP
positions and hindrances are part OF q
mighty discipline, by which they are to
be prepared for usefulness and Heaven.
The secret of it all is, they have, by the
help of the Eternal God, learned how to
forget.
Another practical thought: when our
faults are repented of let them go out
of mind. If God forgets them we
have right to forget them. Hav-
ing once repented of our infelicity and
misdemeanors there is no need of our
repenting of them again. Suppose l
owe you large sum of money and you
are persuaded am incapicitated to pay
and you give me acquittal from that OBJ
legation. You say: Il cancel that debt
All is right now Start again." And
the next day come in and say: "You
know about that big debt l owed you.
l have come in to get you to let me off,
l feel so bad about it can not rest. Do
let me Off" You reply with a little i'm
patience: ~ did let you off. Don't
bother myself and bother me
with any more of that dis
cussion." The following day l come in
and say: MY dear sir, about that debt.
l can never get over the fact that l
cwed you that money, it is
something that weighs on my
mind like milestone. Do for
give me that debt" This time You
clear lose your patience and say: "You
are nuisance. What Go you mean by
this reiteration of that affair? am al
most sorry forgave you that debt. Do
you doubt my veracity, or do you not
understand the plain language in which
l told you that debt was cancelled"
Well, my friends, there are many
Christians guilty of worse folly than
that While it is right that they repent
of new sins and of recent sins, what is
the use of bothering yourself and in
sulting God by asking him to forgive
sins that long ago were forgiven? God
has forgotten them? Why do you not
forget them? No, you drag the load on
with you, and 1858 times year, if you
pray every day, you ask God to recall
occurrences which He has not only for
given but forgotten. Quit this folly.
do not ask you less to realize the tur-
pitude of sin, but ask you to higher
faith in the promise of God, and the
full delivercncc of His mercy.
He does not give a receipt for part
paymet, or so much received on account
but receipt in full, God having fol-
Christ's sake decreed: Your sins anC
your iniquities will I remember nc
more" As far as possible let the disa
greeables of life drop. Wehave enough
things in the present and there will bt
enough in the future to disturb us with
out running special train into the
great Comedy to fetch us as specia
freight things left behind. Some ter
years ago, when there was great rail
| road strike, remember seeingall along
the route from Omaha to Chicago anC
from Chicago to New York hundred.
and thousands of freight cars switched
on the side tracks, those cars loaded
with all kinds of perishable material
| decaying and wasting. After the strike
was over, did the railroad company
bring all that persisted material dowI
to the markets? No, they threw it of
where it was destroyed and loaded NJ
with something else. Let the long
train of your thoughts throw off tn,
worse than useless freight of corrup
and destroyed past, and load up will
gratitude and faith and holy determi
nation. We do not please God by thu
cultivation of the miserable. He would
rather see us happy than to see us de
pressed. You would rather see you
children laugh than to see them cry, ant
your Heavenly Father has no fondnes
for Mysteries.
Not only forget your pardoned trans
gressions, but allow others to forge
them. The chief stock on hand o
many people is to recount in praye
meetings and pulpits what big scoun
drels they once were. They not onl,
will not forget their forgiven deficits
but they seem to be determined tina
the church and the world shall no
forget them. II you want to declar
that you have been the chief of sinner
and extol the grace that could saw
such wretch as you were, do SO, bu
do not 60 into particulars. Do not tel
how many times You got drunk, or T.
what bad places you went, or how
many free rides you had in the prisol
van before you were converted.
Lump it, brother; give 1T to us in bulk
II you have any scars got in HONORABLE
warfare, show them; but if you hav
scars got in ignoble warfare. do no
display them. know you will quot
the Bible reference to the horrible pi
from which you were digged. Yes, b
thankful for that rescue but do nc
make display of the mud of that horr
BILE pit, or splash it over other people