The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1893-09-05

together in our churches to give tnahhs ~
God for his goodness. But every ahy ou ,o.t
of the blessings of life as matter %
course. We have had ten thousand pies
sings this morning, for which we nave NOV
thanked God. Before the night COMES
we will have thousand more you Will
never think of mentioning before Goa.
We must see a blind man led along by
his dog before we learn what granu
thing it is to have ones eyesisht. we must
see a man with st. Nltuss dance before
we learn what a grand thing it Is to nave
,he use of our physical energies. We
must see some soldier crippled, hmpils
along on his crutch or his empty coalSiceVG
| pinned up before we learn what gfahu
thing it is to have the use OF all our phys
| zeal faculties In other words, we are 50
STUPID that nothing but the mlslortunes
of others can wake US up to an apprecla-
| tiou of our common blessings.
We get on board a train and start for
/ Boston and come to NorWalk DrluSe ana
| the draw is off and crash goes the train.
FIFTY lives dashed out. We escape. we
come home in great excitement and can
our friends around Us and we all kneel
! down and thank God for our escape While
so many persisted. But tomorrow morning
we Get ON a train of cars for Boston. You
cross the bridge at Norwalk. You cross
all other bridges. You get to Boston in
safety Then you return home. Not an
accident, not an alarm. No thanks. In
other words you seem to be more thankful
when fifty people loose their lives and You
get off than you are grateful to God when
Won all get off and You have mo alarm at
all Now you ought to be thankful when
you escape from accident, but more thank
ful when they all escape: In the one case
YOUR gratitude is somewhat selfish; III the
other it is more like it ought to be.
Oh! these common mcrclcs. these common
blessings, how little appreciate them
and how soon we forget them Like the
OK grazing, with the clover up to its eyes,
like the bird picking the worm out OF the
furrow-neycr thinking to thank God who
makes the grass grow. and who gives HE
10 every living thing, from the animalculae
in the sod to the Serapn Oh the throne.
Thanksgiving on the 18th of November.
in the autumn of the year; but blessings.
hour by hour and day by day and no thanks
at all. | compared our Indifference to the
brute; but perhaps / WronEed the brute.
do not know but that, among its other in
,tincts. it may have an instinct by which
| if recognizes the divine hand thai feeds
IT, I do not know but that God is. through
it, holding communication with what we
call 'irrational creation. Ihe COW that
stands under the willow by the water
course chewing its cud, looks very thankful
and who can cell nov much bird means
hy it's song? The aroma of the flowers
smells like incense. and the mist arising
from the river looks ike the smoke OF d
morning sacrifice. Oh. that we were a
responsive.
, drink. and | gave you this glass of water
, your common instinct would reply, 'Thanl
you And yet, how many chahces o
! mercy We get hour by hour from the hanC
of the Lord, our Father and our Nlng
/ and we do not even think to say "Ihanl
5 you More just to men than we are JUS
: TO God.
Who thinks of thanking Coo for TIL
e water gushing up in the well, foamlng Il
t the cascade, laughing over the rocks. pat
: lering III the shower, clapmhg It's hand
I N me, sea- VINO thinks 10 thank God 70
. that? Who thinks 10 thank God for til
{ air. the fountain of life, the bridge OF sun
! beams, the path of sound, the great fan o
u 4 hot summer day? VINO thinks to than
,, God for this wonderful physical organism
= this sweep of vision, this chime OF hal
r. mony struck into The ear, this crlmso
Il tide rolling through arteries and VEN
:, this drumming Of the heart GA the march c
] immortality?.
,, / conyscl myself, and l convict ever
II one Of you While | say these things, til;
lie we are uuappreratlye Of the common ne
&ea q is c Hqa % %S 5hsy % %f 6 M
- our feet, and famine ana desoiation an
:, sickness and Voc would stalk across Il!
:, earth, and the whole earth would becon
:, Il place of skulls.
q Q, by friends. let us wake up to IN al
p probation Of the common mercies of lif
. Let every day be Il Sabbath, every me:
g Il sacrament, every room a holy Of hoHe:
d We all hav" burdens to bear: let us cheer
5 fully bear them. We all have battles t
$ fight; let us courageously fight tlcm
{ If we want to die right we must liy
i right You 90 home ard attend 10 voI,
d little sphere of duties. will 90 home an
;; attend to my little sphere of duties. Yo
, cannot do my work: I cannot do yOur Wor.