The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1894-07-13

desert of sin and suffering. 1t is
well irrigated, for ''our eyes are unto
the hills, from whence cometh our
help" From the mountains of Gods
strength there flow down rivers Of
gladness. There is a river, the stream
whereof shall make glad the city of
our God. Preaching the Gospel is one
of these aqueducts The Bible is an
other. Baptism and the Lords supper
are aqueducts Water to slalxe the
thirst, water to restore the
faint, water to wash the un-
clean, water tossed high up in tho
light of the sun of righteousness,
showing us the rainbow around the
throne. Oh, was there ever a garden
SO thoroughly irrigated? You know
| tire beauty of Versailles and Chats
worth depends very much upon the
great supply of water. l came to the
| la ster place (Chatsworth) one day when
| st angers are not to he admitted, but
\ by an inducement, which always seemed
as applicable to an Englishman as an
American, / got in, and then the gar
| deaer went far up above the stairs of
| ste ne and turned on the water. l saw
! it cleaning on the dry pave
ment, coming down from step to
step until it came so near / could
hear the musical rush, and all over
/ the high, broad stairs it came foaming,
| flashing. roaring down until sunlight
and wave in gleesome wrestle tumbled
at Ily feet So it is with the church of
GOO. Everything comes from above
pardon from above, JOY from above,
/ i
| from above oh, that now God would
turn. on the waters of salvation that
/ they might flow down through his her
itag, and that this day we might each
find our places to be Films, - with 12
wella of water and threescore and ten
palm trees.
Hank, ! hear the latch at the garden
gate, and look to see who is comingi
| hear the voice of Christ, 81 am come
into my garden" say: Come in, o
Jesus; we have been waiting for thee.
| Walk all through these paths. Look
-at the flowers; look at the fruit Pluck
that which thou wilt for thyself''
Jesus comes into the garden and up to
that old man and touches him and
says: almost home, father. Not many
more aches for thee. / will never
| leave thee. / will never forsalxe thee.
Take courage little longer, and vii
steady thy tottering steps, and 1 viii
soothe thy troubles and give thee rest.
Courage, old man." Then Christ goes
up another garden path, and he comes
to soll in trouble and says: Peace;
all is welll | have seen thy tears;
have heard thy prayer. The sun shall
not smite thee by day, nor the moon by
night. The Lord shall preserve thee
| from all evil. He will preserve thy soul.
Courage, o troubled spirit!' Then I
see Jesus going up another garden
path, and 1 see great excitement among
| the leaves, and hasten up that garden
path to see what Jesus is doing there,
and, 10, he is breaking off flowers,
sharp and clean, from the stem, and I
say: 'Stop, Jesus, don't kill those
| beautiful flowers" He turns to me
and says: Il have come into my gar.
den to gather lilies, and 1 mean to take
these mp to a higher terrace and for the
garden around my palace, and there
will plant them and in better soil and
in better air. They shall put forth
brighter leaves and sweeter redOlence,
and no frost shall touch them forever"
And ] looked up into His face and said:
| ''Well, it is His garden, and He has a
right to do what He will with it. Thy
will be done''-the hardest prayer a
man ever made.
/ notice that the fine gardens some
times have high fences around them,
and / can not get in. 1t is so with the
Kings garden. The only glimpse you
| - In
king rides out in his splendid carriage.
1t is not so with this garden-the Kings
garden l throw wide open the gate
and tell you all to come in. No monop-
oily in religion. Whosoever will, may.
Choose now between a desert and n
garden. Many of you have tried tbs
garden of this worlds delight.
You have found it has been chag1in.
So it was with Theodore Hook. He
made all the world laugh. He makes
us laugh now when we read his poems,
but he could not make his own heart
laugh. While in the midst of his fes-
tivities he confronted a looking glass,
and ne saw himself and said: There,
that is true. l look just as I am-done
up in body. mind and purse" So it
was with ShenstOne, of whose garden
told you at the beginning of my SER
mon.
He sat down amid those bowers
and said: Il have lost my road to hap
piness. am angry, and envious, and
frantic, and despiss everything around
me. Just as it becomes a mailman to
do Oh, We weary souls, come into
Christ's garden to-day and pluck
little heartsease! Christ is the
only rest and the only pardon
for a perturbed spirit. Do you not
think you chance has almost come?
You men and women who have been
waiting year after year for some good
opportunity in which to accept Christ,
but have postponed it five, ten, TWEEN
ty, thirty years, do you not feel as if
now -FOUR hour of deliverance and par>
don and salvation had come? Oh, man.
what grudge hast thou against thy
poor soul that thou wilt not let it be
saved? : feel as if salvation must come
now to some of your hearts.
Some years ago vessel struck on the
rocks. They had only one lifeboat. In
that lifeboat the passengers and crew
were getting ashore. The vessel had
foundered and was siukiVg deeper and
deeper, and that ono Vt could not
take the passengers very swiftly. A
little girl stood on the deck, waiting Tor
her turn TO get into the boat. The boat
came and vent-came and went-but
her t47rn did not sfrm to come