Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1896-08-07
=, n+ The family altar and at neighborhood

about their destiny. You expect you e.er 20.
TO heaven 10 meet them as you expect 10 meel
the Lord Jesus Christ.
That early association has Deen Il cn"In.
for you. There was time when you 80,
right up from house of iniquliy anu "alAeu
out into the fresh air because you tnought
your mother was looking at you. You nave
never been very happy in sin Decau9e VI
sweet old face that would present I.sell.
Tremulous voices from the past accoste1 you
until they were seemingly audible, and you
looked around to see who spoke. Ihere was
an estate not mentioned In the last VIII anu
testament, vast estate OF prayer anu hoiY
example and Christian entreaty and glorious
memory. The survivors OF the family gatn-
cred to hear the will read, and this was 10
be kept and that was to be sold, aud 1t was
'share and share alike" But there was an
unwritten will that read something like TINS:
"In tho name of God. amen. being OF SOUND
mind, bequeath to my children all my pray
ers for their salvation; l bequeath to them
all the results OF ,ifetime's toll; bequeatn
to them the Christian religion, which mas
been so much comfortto me, and hope may
BIZ solace for them; bequeath to them
hope of ieunion when the artings OF lie are
over. Share and share alike, may they IN
herit eternal riches. l bequeath to them the
wish that they may avoid my errors anu
In the name of God who made me, and the
Christ who redeemed me, aud the Holy
Ghost who sacrifices me. make this my last
will and testament. Witness all you hosrs
of heaven. Witness time, witness eternity
Signed, sealed and delivered in this our
dying hour, Father and Mother You oia
not get that will proved at the surrogate.ss
Office but take it out to-day ana reaa II
to you. take it out OF the a!coves OF your
heart l shake the dust of it. ask II you
will accept that inheritance, or VIII you
break the will?
o We OF Christian ancestry, yon have
responsibility vast beyond all measurement.
God will not let you off with just being as
rood rs ordinary people when you mad sucn
! extraordinary advantage. Ought not
| flower planted in a dollhouse be more thruty
than a flower planted outside III Storm
Ought not factory turned by the HOUSE
tome do more work than factory tu' heo ny
a thin and shallow mountain stream! Ougut
not YOU OF great enrly opportunity DO DetIet
than those who had a cradle un1lessed!
| father sets his son up in business. he
keeps an account OF all The expenditures, 50
much for store fixture. so much for rem, so
much for this, so much for that, and all the
items aggregated, and the father expects the
son to give an account. Your Heavenly
Father charges against you all the adVah-
tages OF piOuS ancestry-s0 many pray or,
SO much Christian example, so many KIM
entreatics-aI these gracious Influences one
tremendous aggregate, and he asks you ior
an account Of it. Ought not you 10 De oeSler
than those who hal no such advantage! DSt-
ter have been a founding plckea up on tno
CITY commons than with such magnificent
inheritance of cons Grafton to turn out IN
differently. Ought not you. my brother, 10
ba Better. having had Christian nuture. snah
the man VINO can truly say this morning:
"The first word remember my fatner speah-
ing to me was an oath; the first time re-
member NV father taking hold OF me was III
wrath; I never saw Bible till was ten
wears OF age, and then l was told 1t was a
pack OF lies. The first twenty years OF my
lifeIwas associated with thevlcious. 1seene1
to DE walled in by sin aud death.
Now, ny brother, ought you mol leave
it as matter of fairness with you-ought you
NOT to be better than those who had no early
Christian influence? Standing rs you DO pc
tween tho generation that is past ana tne
generation that is 10 come, are you gong tc
pass the blessing on, or are you gong TO
have your life the gulf in which thar toe OF
blessing sball drop out OF sight forever; tou
are the trustee Of piety in that ancestral IiIe,
and are you going to augment or sqaauueI
that solemn trust fund? Are you gong 10
disinherit YOUR sons and daughters OF the
heirloom which your parents lett your Az
that cannot be possible it cannot be possinle
that YOU are going to take such position Us
thgt. You are very careful about lille lnsur.
apces. and careful about the deeos. ano
careful about the mortgage, and careill
about the title OF your property, because
when YOU step of the stage you want your
children to get it all. Are you making no
provision that they shall get grandfather
or grandmother's religion? Oh, what las'
will and testament you are making, my
hrotherl 'In the name OF Goo, amen. Il
being OF sound mind, make this my last VII
and testament. I bequeath to my children
all the money ever made aud all tue houses
( OVID. but disinherit them. roo tnem o
The ancestral grace and the Cnrlst!an III
huenca that Inherited. have squanderel
fhat on NV own wor dliues2. Share anC
share alike must they in the misfortune an'
the everlasting outrage. Signed. sealed ant
delivered in the presence OF Gci ana mel
and angels aud devils aud all the genera
tions of earth Gpi heaven AMI hell, July
1896"
Owe of highly favored ancestry, wake u
this morning 10 a sense u your opportnnlt
and responsibility. think there must oe al
old cradle CT q fragment OF cradle some
where that could tell story or mlohigI
supulication in your behalf Nhere Is ia
| Old rocking cnisir III WHICH YOU "O.S
s'een with the holy nursery rhymeI "heI
is fSo old clock that licked away the me
ments of that sickness on that aWiul nlgl
wh4r there we're hut three OF you aWaxe-
Won and Col and mother? Is there not a
old sfaff in some closet? We beg youto tur
over a new leaf this very day. :, ,
3 Oh, the rower Of ancestral piety, VOL
lustrated by young man of New YORK wa
attended a PRAYER meeting one night an
, asked for PRAYERS aud then went home az
wrote down these words: "rwenty-1ve yea
400 tonight my mother went to heaven, N
beautiful. blessed mother, and nave pee
, nj me. tossei ND and down upon the piioV
of life's tempestuOus ocean. Shail ever
, n heaven? She told me | must meet ner
! heaven. When she took my hand IN hers al
: turned her gentle, loving eyes on me al
: ..ozed earnestly and long into my race ~
= fnan lifted them TO heaven In tnat ID
y MAYER. she PRAYED that might meet ner
= heaven. wonder i'll ever shall? MY mot
:, ar,s nravers-oh. mysweet. blessed mother
. nrayersl Did ever boy have sucn motn
:. rs hao? For twenty-five years nave
"a heard her pray until tonight. nave nsa
! her prayers all over again. Tney aaVe ID
v in fact, q terrible 'surrectioD. "a, hoM
:. was wont to pray She prayed as they pray
"a tonight, so earnest, so lmportunate, 50 q
,e Heving. Shall ever be Cnrsuahi .
ir aud happy was her HE! sue WIS 'N''-
IF and happy Christian. ~ 1,oo -
- onened il for wears. Did she believe COZ
- ever neglect her precious Bloc? she SUR
n tbouobt ! would read it much and OK
~ How often has sac read ii 10 mel HOW
y Che canss me 10 kneel by my little oeo d