Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1893-06-17

from your lungs one sigh too deep, nor
from your temples one throb too sharp
The perplcxities of your earthly business
have not in them one tangle too intricate.
You sometimes feel as If our world
were full of bludgeons flying haphazard.
Oh, no; they arc thrashing instruments
that God just suits to your case. There
is not dollar Of bad debts on your ledg.
err, or q disappointment about goods
that you expected to go up, but that
have gonc down, or swindle OF your
business partner, or trick on the part
Of those who are in the same kind Of
business that you are, but God intended
to overrule for your immortal help. "Oh, !"
you say, there is no need talking that
way to me. don't like to be cheated
and outraged" Neither does the corn
like the corn thrasher, but after it has
been thrashed and winnowed it has 8
great deal better opinion Of winnowing
mills and corn thrashers.
"Well," you say, ''if could choose
! my troubles I would be willing to be
troubled" All, my brother, then itwould
not be trouble. You would choose some
thing that would not hurt, and unless it
hurts it docs not get sanctifed. Your
trial perhaps may be childlessness. You
are fond of children. You say, "Why
does God send children to that other
household, where they are unwelcome
and are beaten and banged about, when
would have taken them in the arms OF
my aifections?" You say, "Any other
trial but this Your trial perhaps may
be a disfgured countenance or a face
that is easily caricatured, and you say,
ooh, / could endure anything if only ]
was good looking" And your trial per-
haps is violent temper, and you have
to drive it like six unbroken horses amid
the gunpowder explosions Of a great hol-
iday, and ever and anon it runs away
with you. Your trial is the asthma.
You say, "Oh, if it were rheumatism or
neuralgia or erysipelas, but it is this
asthma, and it is such an exhausting
thing to breathe" Your trouble is a
husband, short, sharp, snappy and cross
about the house and raising small riot
because button is off How could you
know the button is off?
Your trial is wife ever In contest
with the servants, and she is sloven.
Though she was very careful about her
appearance in your presence once, now
she is careless, because she said her for
tune is madel Your trial is hard school
lesson you cannot learn, and you have
bitten your finger nails until they are q
sight to behold Everybody has some
vexation or annoyance or trial, and he
or she thinks it is the one least adapted.
Anything but this" all say. "Any-
thing but this"
Oh, my nearer, are you not ashamed
to be complaining all this time against
God? Who manages the affairs Of this
world anyhow? Is it an infinite Modoc,
or Sitting Bull savage, or an omnipo-
tent Mana Sahib? No, it Is the most
merciful and glorious and wise Being in
1.-the universe. You cannot teach Om--
impotence anything. You have fretted
and worried almost enough. Do you
not think so2 Some of you are making
yourselves ridiculous in the sight fthe
angels.
Here issa naval architect, and he draws
out the plan of a ship of many thousand
tons. Many workmen are engaged omit
for a long while. The ship is done, and
some day, with the flags up and the air
gorgeous with bunting, that vessel is
launched for Southampton. Atthat time
q lad 6 years of age comes running down
the dock with q toy 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 his little boat beside the great ship,
and there is 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 out and fashion it and
launchit. All, do not try to be a 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 he sends
the right kind of thrashing machine. 1t
will be a rod or staff or iron wheel just
according as you are ftches or cummin
or corn.
TEE WHEAT AND TIE cHAFF.
Again, my subject teaches US that
God keeps trial on us until we let go.
The farmer shouts "whoap to- his
horses as soon as the grain has dropped
from the stalk. The farmer comes with
his fork and losses up the straw, and he
sees that the straw has let go the grain
and the grain is thoroughly thrashed.
So God. Shifting rod and turning wheel
both cease as soon as we let go. We
hold on to this world with its pleasures
and riches and emoluments, and our
knuckles are so firmly set that it seems
as if we could hold on forever. God
comes along with some thrashing trouble
and beats US loose.
We started under the delusion that
this was great world. Welearned out
of our geography that it was so many
thousand miles in diameter and so many
..hos end miles in circumference, and we
said, "Oh, my, what worldl" Troubles
came in after life, and this trouble sliced
off one part of the world, and that trou-
Bile sliced off another part of the world,
and it has got to be smaller world, and
in some of your estimations very in
significant world, and it is depreciating
all the time as spiritual property. Ten
per cent off, so per cent off, and there
are those here who would not give 10
cents for this world-for the entire world
--as soul possession.
thought that friendship wasa grand
thing. In school we used to write com
positions about friendship, and perhaps
we made our graduating speech on COM
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