Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1894-10-26
REV. DIR. TALMAGE
THE BROOKLYN DIvINE's sun
DAY SERMON.
subject: "Au,un,u Thoughts"

When God would set fast n beautiful
thought, He plants II in r tree. When IL
would nut II aioat. He fashions It into a ilsh
/ When He would have IL glide the AR. H.
molds II into a bird. Ny text speaks o' tout
birds of beautiful instinct-thr stork.o su -.
strong affection that Il IS allowed ih'nlVarlN
10 come in Holland and Germany and bull
its nest over the doorway; the s"re'
! dispositioned turtleiove, minchng IN color
white and black and brown and nshrn "ni
| chestnut the crane with voice hk" the
cang Of trumpet the swallow. swift rs a
dart shot out OF the tow % heaven, falling,
mounting, skimming, s9tling-'our hirdS
! started by the prophet twenty five centuries
ago, yet flying on through the ages with
rousiDg truth under glossy wing and in the
| clutch Of stout claw | suppose II NAV have
| been in this very season OF the year-lutumn
| and the prophet out of doors, thinking Of
/ the impentence OF the people OF his dav.
hears II great cry overhead.
Now. you know II is no easy thing for ons
with ordinary delicacy OF oversight to look
into the deep blue OF MONDAY heHven, but
the prophet looks up. and there are tiocks
OF storks and turiledoves and cranes ami
swallows drawn out in long lines for flight
southwark. As IL their habit the cranes
bad arranged themselves in two lines, max
ing an angle, n wedge splitting the air with
wild velocity, the old crane, with command
ing call. bidding them onward while
the towns, and the cities, and tho
continents slid under them. Tho
| prophet, almost blinded from looking into
the dazzling heavens, stoops down and be-
| gins to think how much superior the birds
are In sagacity about their safety than men
are about theirs and he puts his hand upon
the pen and begins TO write, "The stork In
the heaven knoweth his appointed I ines, AMI
the turtle, and the crane, and the swallow
observe the time OF their coming, but my
people know not the judgment OF the Lord. "
II you were in the field to-day. in thu
clump OF trees at the corner of the field, you
would see a convention OF birds noisy as
the American Congress the last night before
adjournment or as the English Parliament
when some unfortunate member proposes
more economy in the Queens household,
q convention Of birds all talking Mt once,
moving and passing resolutions on the sub
| ject OF migration. some proposing to 20 to-
| morrow. some moving that they 20 to-day,
! but all unanimous In the fact that they must
/ 90 soon, Tor they have marching orders
/ from the Lord written on the tlrst white
sheet OF the frost and in the pictorial OF the
| changing leaves.
There is not belted kingflsher or a
chaftinch, or fire crested wren, or a plover.
! or red legged partridge but expects to
spendthe winter at the South, for the apart
meni5 have already been ordered for them
in South America or in Africa AMI after
thousands of miles OF flight they will stop in
the very tree where they spent last January
| Farewell, bright plumage! Until spring
weather, away! Fly on, great hanl OF
heavenly musicians Strew the CONT
nents with music, and. whether from
| Ceylon isle, or Caroinian swamps, or
Brazilian groves men see your wings or
hear your voice. may they ct bethink them.
selves OF the solemn words of the text. The
stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed
times, and the turtle and the crane, and the
| swallow observe the time OF their coming
but my people know not the Judgment OF
| the Lord. "
Propose so far as God may help me In
this sermon carrying out the idea OF the text
/ to show that the birds Of tito air have more
sagacty than men. And | begin by par
I ticularizing and saying that they minsle
music with their work. The most serious
undertaking OF a birds life Is this an
nual flight southwark. Naturaliss tell us
! that they arrive thiRa weary gni p!umagc
ruffied, and yet they go singing all the way
! the ground the lower line OF the music. the
sky the upper line OF the music. themselves
the notes scattered up and down between
suppose their song gives. elasticity to their
| wing and helps on with the journey, dwinl-
| ling 1000 miles into 400. Would God that
we were as wise rs they in minging Chris
tian song with our everyday work | be-
lieve there Is such thing as taking the
pitch OF Christian devotion in the morning
and keeping it all the day. | think we
might take some OF the duIlest helvies',
most disHgreeahle work of our life aud set it
to the tune OF Antioch" or Mount Pts.
gah.'
II is n good sign when you hear n work
man whistle. II Is better sign when YOU
hear him hum roundelay. Ii is a still bet
ter sign when you hear him sing the words
OF Isaac Watts or Charles Wesley. A violin
chorded and strung, II something accident
ally strikes ii. makes music. AMI | suppose
there is such thing as having our hearts so
attuned by divine grace that even the rough
collisions OF lie will make hcav-
emily vibration. DO not believe
that the power OF Christian song has yet
been iullYtried. / believe that II you could
roll the "Old Hundred" doxology through
the street 1t would put an end 10 any panic
believe that the discorls, and the sorrows,
and the sins OF the world are TO be swept out
by heavsn-born haleluiahs. Some one us ked
Haydn, the celebrated musician. why he al
ways composed such cheerful music.
Why" he said. II can't do otherwise
When think OF Col my soul is so full Of
Joy that the notes leap and dance
from my pen" | wish we might
all exut melodiously before the Lord.
With God for our Father and Christ for our
Saviour, and heaven for our homo and
angels tor future companions, and eternity
for lifetime, we should strike all the notes
OF Joy. Going through the wilderness OF
this world let us remember that we are on
the way to summary cline OF heaven. and
from the migratory populations flying
through this autumnal mir learn always to
keep singing
Children Of the Heavenly King,
As ye journey, sweetly sing.
Sing your Saviours worthy praise,
Glorious in His works and ways.
Ye are travelling home to God
In the way your fathers trod.
They are happy now, and we
Soon their happiness shall see.
The Church OF God never will be trI-
umphant church until 1t becomes singing
church.
Igo further and remark that the birds OF
the air are wiser than We in the fact that in
their migration they fly very high. During
the summer, when they are In the fields, they
often come within reach OF the gun, but
when they start for the annual flight south
ward they take their places midneaven and
go\ straight as mark. The longest rihe
that was ever brought to shoulder can
not reacn them. NOulu 10 dOu that we
were as wise rs the stork and crane in our
flight heavenward We fly so low that we
are within easy range OF the world, the flesh
and the devil. We are brought down by
temptations that ought not to come within a
mile of reaching us. Oh, for some of the
faith of George Muller OF England and Alfred
Goodman, once OF the church militant, now
OF the church triumphant So poor is the
type OF pety In the church OF God now that
men actually carcature the idea that there
Is any such thing as a higher life. MoIes
never did believe in eagles. But my breth-
rem, because we have not reached these
heights ourselves, shall we derlde the fact
that there any such heights2 man was
once talking to Brunei, the famous engi-
neer, about the length OF the railroad from