Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1893-03-17
REV. DR.. TAlMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIyINE'S SUN.
DAY SERMON.
SUBJECT: "FRoM TWENTY TO
SEVENTY.

80 s-NI
TEXT: "Ths days OF our years are three
score and ten Psalm xc.. 10.
The SEVENTEEN milestone OF life Is here
planted as at the end Of the journey. A few
90 beyo it; multitudes never reach it. The
oldest person OF modern times expired al
1853 years. A Greek of the name OF Strava-
ride lived to 1872 years. An Englishman OF
the name of Thomas Parr Gvei l52 years.
Before the time of Moses people lived l5l
years, and il you go far enough back they
lived 500 years. Well. that was necessary,
because the story OF the world must come
down by tradition, and il needed long life
safely to transmit the news OF the past. III
the generations had been short lived, the
story would so often have changed lips that
It might have got oil astray.
But after Moses began to write 1t down
and parchment told 1t IRON century TO CEN
tury 1t was not necessary that people live SO
long in order TO authenticate the events of
the past II in our time people lived only
Twenty-Five years, that would not affect his
tory, since it is put in print and is no longer
dependent upon tradition. Whatever your
age | will to-dsy directly address you, and
| shall speak to those who are in the twen.
ties the thirties the forties, the fifties, the
sixties and to those who are In the seven
ties and beyond.
First, then. 1 accost those OF you who
are in the twenties. You are full OF expec~
tation. You are ambitious-that is, IL you
amount to anything-for some kind of sue
cess, commercial or mechanical or profes.
sional or literary or agricultural or social or
moral. II find some one in the twenties
without any sort of ambition, l feel like
saying. my friend, you have got on the
wrong planet. This is not the world for you.
You are going to be in the way. Have you
made your choice OF poorhousesi You will
never be able TO pay FOR your cradle. Who
is going to settle for your boardl There Is
mistake about the fact that you were born
at ALL"
But supposing you have ambition, let me
say to ali the twenties: Expect everything
through divine manipulation, and then you
will get all you want or something better.
Are you looking for wealth. Well, remem-
ber that God controls the money markets.
the harvests, the droughts, the caterpillars,
the locusts, the sunshine, the storm, the
land, the sea, and you will get wealth. Per-
ha, $ not that which is stored up in banks, in
safe deposits, in United States securities, Ia
houses and lands, but your clothing and
board and shelter, and that is about all you
can appropriate anyhow. You cost the
Lord great deal To feed and cloths and
shelter for lifetime requires big sun OF
! ",
the absolute necessities you get an enormous
amount OF supply.
| Expect as much as you will OF any kind OF
success; Il you expect 1t from the Lord, you
are safe. Depend on any other resource and
YOU may be badly chagrinei, but depend on
God and all will be well. 1t Is good thing
IN the crisis OF life to have a man of large
means back you up. It is a great thing to
have q moneyed institution stand behind
you in your undertaking. But 1t is might
Ter thing to have the God of heaven and
, earth your coadjutor, AMI you may have
Him. am so glad that | meet you while
you are in the twenties You are Lying out
your plans. and all your life in this world
aud the next for 500 100 600 years of your
existence will be affected by those plans. 1t
! IS about o'clock in the morning o. JUur
f IN. ysu 4rs jdst starting out. Which
way are you going to startS Oh, the Twen.
+ tiesi
"rwenty' is a great word in the Bible
Joseph was sold for 90 pieces Of silver. Sam
;on Judged Israel % years Solomon gave
Zechariah saw was 20 cubts. When the
sailors OF the ship on which Paul sailed
| sounded the Mediterranean Sea, 1t was ~
lathoms. What mighty things have been
lone in the twentiesi Romulus founded
Rome when he was 20. Keats finished life
at 25. Lafayette WAS a world renowned
soldier at l3. Oberlin accomplished his
,hief work by 81. Bouaparte was victor
.over Italy at %. Pitt was prime minister
of England at ~. Calvin had completed
his immortal institutes" by the time he
was &c. Grotius was attorney general at "a;
Some of the mightiest things for God and
eternity have been done in the twenties. As
long as you can put the figure '2' before the
other figure that helps describe your age
have high hopes about you. Look out for
that figure '2.n Watch its continuance
with as much earnestness as you ever
watched anything that promised your saliva
ton or threatened you demolition. what
critical time, the twenties! While they con.
tinue you decide your occupation and the
principles by which you will be guided. You
make your most abiding friendships. You
arrange your home life. You fix your
habits. Lord God Almighty, for Jesus
Christ's sake, have mercy on all the men
and women In the twentiesi
Next accost those in the thirties. You
are at AN age when you find what tough
thing it is to get recognized and established
in your occupation or profession. Ten years
ago you thought all that was necessary FOR
success was to put on your shutter the sign
of physician or dentist or attorney or broker
or agent, and you would have plenty OF busi
ness. How many hours you sat and waited
for business and waited In vain three per
sons only know-God, your wife ant
yourself. In commercial life you have mol
had the promotion and the increase in salary
you anticipated, or the place you expected
10 occupy in the firm has not been vacated
The produce of the farm, with which you
expected to support yourself aud those de
pend ng on you, and TO pay the interest or
the mortgage, has been far less than yor
anticipated, or the prlcas were down. or spe
cial expenses for sickness made drafts OF
your resources that you could not have ex'
pected.
In some respects the hardest decade o
life is the thirtles, because the results ar,
generally so far behind the anticipations. 1
3 very rare indeed that a young man doe
rs did the young man last Sunday night
when he came to me and said: II have beer
SO marvelously prospered since l came 70
this country that feel, as q matter o
gratitude, that ought to dedicate mysel
to Goap Nine-tenths of the poetry OF liz
has been knocked out Of you since you cam'
into the thirties. Men In the different pro
| fessions and occupations saw that you wer'
rising and they must put an estoppel on yo'
| or you might somehow stand in the way
| They think you must be suppressed.
From 80 to 40 it is an especially hard tim
tOT yOuuR uotehot JN""S N~''J~N --t
merchants, young farmers young mechan'
les. young ministers. The struggle OF th'
thirties Is for honest and helpful and re
munerative recognition. But few old pee
| Die know how to treat young people withou
patronizing them on the one hand or snub
bing them on the other. Oh, the thirties
Joseph stood before Pharaoh at 80. David
was 80 years old when he began to reigu
The height OF Solomon's temple was 30 Gu
bits. Christ entered upon His actiye.ministr
at 80 years OF age. Judas sold hlmsslf fol
S0 pieces OF silver.
Oh. the thirtiesl What word suggestiy
of triumph or disasteri Your decade is th
one that will probably afford the creates
| opportunity for victory, because there
the greatest necessity for struggle. Rea
the worlds history and know what are II
thirties for good or bad. Alexander tt
GreatlDosed bis career at 80. Frederick th
| Great made Eurone :remhle Tith his arm,s
at 35. Cortes conquered Mexico at 8
| Grant fouQht Shiloh ahd Donelson when 3