Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1896-11-27
A RES0UNDING CALL.
REV. DR.. TALMAGE ON "YOUNG MEN
CHALLENGED TO NOBILITY"

The Turning Point
WASHINGTON, Nov. "A resounding
call goes out in this sermon Of DR.. Tai
mage. II needed, it would be reyolu-
tionary for good. His subject is
"Young Men Challenged to Nobility, )"
and the text II Kings vi, II, "And the
Lord opened the eyes Of the young man. &"
One morning, in Dothan, a young
theological student was scared by find
lug himself and Elisha the prophet,
upon whom he waited, surrounded by a
whole army Of enemies. But venerable
Elisha was not scared at all, because he
saw the mountains full Of defense for
him in chariots made Of fire, drawn by
horses Of fire-a supernatural appearance
that could not be seen with the natural
eve. So the old minister prayed that the
young minister might see them also,
and the prayer was answered, and the
Lord opened the eyes Of the young man,
and he also saw the fiery procession,
looking somewhat, suppose, like the
Adirondacks or the Alleghanies in au-
tumnal resplendence.
Many young men standing among the
most tremendous realities have their
eyes half shut or entirely closed. May
God grant that my sermon may open
wide your eyes to your safety, your op'
portunity and your destiny!
Good Home,
A mighty defense for a young man is
a good home. Some of my hearers look
back with tender satisfaction to their
early home. 1t may have been rude and
rustic, hidden among the hills, and
architect or upholsterer never planned
or adorned it. But all the frescO on
princely walls never looked so enticing
to you as those rough hewn rafters. You
can think of no park or arbor Of trees
planted on fashionable country seat so
attractive as the plain brook that ran in
front Of the old farmhouse and sang un-
der the weeping willows. No barred
gateway adorned with statue Of bronze
and swung open by obsequious porter IN
full dress has half the glory OF the old
swing gate. Many Of you have a second
dwelling place, your adopted home, that
also is sacred forever. There you built
the first family altar. There your chill
dren were born. All those trees you
planted. That room is solemn because
once in it, over the hot pillow, tapped
the wing Of death. Under that roof you
expect, when your work is done, to lie
down and die You try with many
words to tell the excellency Of the place,
but you fail. There is only one word il
the language that can describe your
meaning. 1t is home
Now, declare it, that young man Is
comparatively safe who goes out into
the world with charm like this upon
him. The memory of parental solicitude,
watching, planning and praying Will
be to him a shield and shelter. never
knew "A man faithful both to his early
and adopted homes who at the same time
was given over to any gross form OF dis
sipation or wickedness. He who seeks
his enjoyment chiefly from outside asso-
citation, rather than from the more quiet
and unpresuming pleasures Of which
have spoken, may be suspected to be on
the broad road to ruin. Absalom de-
spised his fathers house, and you know
his history Of sin and his death Of
shame. If you seem unnecessarily iso-
lated from your kindred and former as
sociates, is there not some room that
YOU can call your own? Into it gather
books and pictures and harp. Have a
portrait over the mantel. Make ungodIy
mirth stand back from the threshold.
Consecrate some spot with the knee OF
prayer. BY the memory Of other days,
fathers counsel, and a mothers love-
and a sisters confidence, call it home.
industrious Habits.
Another defense for q young man is
industrious habits. Many young men,
in starting upon life in this age, expect
to make their way through the world by
the use Of their wits rather than the toll
Of their hands. A boy now goes to the
city and fails twice before he is as ole
as his father was when he first saw the
spires Of the great town. Sitting II
some Office, rented at $1,000 year, h'
is waiting for the bank TO declare it'
dividend, or goes into the market ex
pecting before night TO be made rich by
the rushing up of the stocks. But lucS
seemed so dull he resolved on some 9th
er tack. Perhaps he borrowed from hi
employers money drawer and forgets tC
put it back, or for merely the purpose
Of improving his penmanship makes
copy plate of a merchants signature
Never mind; all is right in trade. IL
some dark night there may come in hi
dreams a vision Of the penitentiary, bu
it soon vanishes. In short time h'
will be ready to retire from the busy
world, and, amid his hocks and herds
cultivate the domestic virtues. Ther
those young men who once were hi
schoolmates and knew no better than t
engage in honest work will come will
their OK teams to draw him logs, and
with their hard hands, to help heave VI
his castle. This is no fancy picture. L
is everyday life 1 should not wonder
there were some rotten beams in tina
beautiful palace. Ishould not wonder
dire sickness should smite through tn
young man, or if God should pour int
his cup Of life draft that would thrill
him with unbearable agony; If his chill
dren should become to him a livinI
curse, making his home pest and
disgrace. / should not wonder it he goe
to a miserable grave, and beyond 1t int
the gnashing of teeth. The way OF tn
ungodly shall perish.
My young friends, there is no way Z
genuine success except through toll
either Of head or hand. At the battle o
Crecy, in l346, the Prince Of Wales
finding himself heavily pressed by tn
enemy, sent word to his father for help
The father, watching the battle from
windmill, and seeing his son was no
wounded and could gain the day II b
would, sent word: "No, will no
come. Let the boy win his spurs for,
God will, desire that this day be NJ
with all its honors. F" Young man. figh
- -, hattia all through, and y0