The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1893-06-28
think so? Some OF you are making your


the plan OF q ship Of many, thousand tons.
Many workmen are engaged on It for long
WHILE The ship is done, and some day. with
| the flags up and the air gorgeous with bunt-
| ing. that vessel Is launched for Southampton.
At that time q lad six years OF age comes
| running down the dock with atoy boat which
| he has made with his own jackknife, and he
says: "Here. my boat Is better than yours.
Just look at this jibboom and these weather
cross jack braces" and he drops bis little
boat beside the great ship, and there Is a roar
OF laughter on the docks.
All, my friends, that great ship is your life
as God planned it-vast, million tonned,
ocean destined, eternity bound. That little
boat Is your life as you are trying to hew It
OF. end fashlonFir and launch it. All, do not
try to be rival of the great Jehovah. God
Is always right, and In nine cases out OF ten
you are wrong. He sends just the hardships,
just the bankruptcies, just the cross that It
is best for you to have. He knows what kind
OF grain you are, and HeseEds the right kind
of thrashing machine. It will be rod or
staff or iron wheel just according as you are
ftches or cummin or corE.
Again. my subject teaches US that God
keeps trial on US until we let go. The farmer
/ shouts "whoa p to his horses as soon as the
grain has dropped from the stalk. The far
mer comes with his fork and tosses up the
straw, and he sees that the straw has let 20
the grain and the grain Is thoroughly
thrashed. SO God. Smiling rod and turn
Ing wheel both cease as soon. as we let Co.
We hold on to this world with its pleasures
and riches and emoluments, and our knuckles
are 30 firmly set that 1t seems as IL we could
hold on forever. God comes along with
some thrashing trouble and beats us loose.
We started under the dolusion that this was
great world. We learned out OF our geo2-
raphy that it was so many thousand miles
In diameter and 80 many thousand miles In
circumference, and we said, ,-"Oh, my, what
a worldw Troubles came in after life. and
this trouble sliced off one part OF the world,
and that trouble sliced of another part OF the
world, and it has got to be smaller world,
and In some OF your estimations very in
significant world, and 1t Is depreciating all
the time as spiritual property. Ten per
cent. of, fifty per cent. off, and there are
those here who would not give ten cents for
this world-for the entire world-as a soul
possession.
We thought that friendship was grand
thing. In school we used to write compost
tions about friendship, and perhaps we
made our graduating speech on commence,
ment day on friendship. Oh, it was charmed
thing. But docs 1t mean as much to you as
it used to? You have gone on in life, and
one friend has betrayed you, and another
friend hes misinterpreted you, and anotner
friend has neglected you, and friendship
comes now sometimes to mean to you merely
another ak to grind!
So with money. We thought II man had
q competency he was safe for all the frture,
but we have learned that q mortgage may be
defeated by an unknown previous incum-
brance that signing your name on the back
OF a note may be your busi-ess death war-
rant that q new tariff may change the cur
rent OF trade that man may be rich to-day
and door tomorrow. And God, by all these
misfortunes is trying to loosen our grip, but
still we hold on. God smites US with stah,
but we hold on. And he strikes Us with
rod, but we hold on. And Hesends over US
the iron wheel Of misfortune. but We hold on,
There are men who keep their grip on this
world until the last moment who suggest to
me the condition and conduct OF the poor In
dian In the boat in the Niagara rapids COM
ing on toward the fall. Seeing that he could
not escape. q moment or two before he got
to the verge OF the plunge he lifted wine
bottle and drank it of and than tossed the
bottle into the air. So there are men VINO
clutch the world, and they 60 down through
the rapids OF temptation and sin, ana tney
hold on to the very last moment OF life, drink
ing to their eternal damnation as they 80
over and 60 down.
Oh. let 20! Let go! The best fortunes are
in heaven. There are no absconding cashiers
from that bank, no failing in promises to pay.
Set your affections o. things above, not on
thing on the eerth. Let 90! Depend upon
it that God will keep upon you the staff, or
the rod, or the ircn wheel until you do ietgo.
Another thing my text teaches US Is tnat
Christian sorrow is going to nave sure
terminus. Ny text says: "Sread corn IS
bruised because he will not be eyer thrashlng
it." Blessed be God for that. Pound away.
O fail. Turn on, 0 wheel? Your wo-k Will
soon be done. "Es will Eot be ever thrash
ing it." Now the Christian has almost as
much use in the organ for the stop trenulant
as he has for .he trumpet But after aWnie
he will put the last dirge into the portiol1o
forever. So much of US as is wheat will be
separated from so much as ls chan, anu tnere
will be 20 need OF pounding.
They never cry in heaven because they
have nothing to cry about. There are no
tears OF bereavement, for you shall have your
friends all round about you. There are no
tears OF poverty because each one SITS at the
Kings table and has his own chariot OF SAL
vstion and free access to the wardrobe where
princes get their array. Notears OF sickness,
for there are no pneumonias on the cir, ana
no malsrial exhaIstions from the rolling
river OF life, and no crutch for the lame limb,
and no splint for the broken arm, but the
pulses throbbing with the health OF the eternal
God in climate like our June before the
blossoms fall, or our gorgeous OctoDer De-
fore the leaves scatter. -.
In that land the souls will talk over the
different modes Of thraShing. Oh, the story
of the staff that struck the f1tches,' and the
rod that beat the cummin, and the iron
wheel that went over the corn! Daniel will
describe tha lions, and Jonah levlathans,
and Paul the elmwood whips with Whtca
he was scourged end Eve will tell how
aromatic Eden was the day she LETT 1t, and
John Rogers will tell Of the smart OF hame,
and Elijah OF the fiery team that wheeled
him up the sky sleeps, and Christ OF ths
numbness and paroxysm and hemorrhaSes
Of the awful crucifnon. There they are De-
fore the throne Of God. On one elevation
all those who were struck OF the stan. On a
higher elevation all those who were struck
of the rod. On highest elevation, and
amid the highest attitudes Of heaven, all
those who were under the wheel. He WILL
not ever be thrashing It.
Oh, my hearers, Is there not enough salve
In this text to make @ plaster large enough
to heal oil your wounds2 When child Is
hurt, the mother is very apt to soy to it,
snow, it will soon feel better" And this ls
what God says when He unbo5om5 al tne
trouble in the hush OF this great promise.
"Weepng may endure for night, but Joy
cometh in the morning." You may leave
your pocket handkerchief soppiny wet with
tears on your death pillow, but you Will so
up absolutely sorrowless. They will Wear
black you will wear white. Expresses for
them, palms for you.
You vii! say ''Is It possible that T am
here? Is this heaven? Am so pure now
will never do anything wrong? Am so well
that will never again be sick? Are these
companionships 80 firm that they will never
again be broken? Is that Mary9 ls tnat
tlSn