Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1897-04-09


sHaya merry on ne, q God. a. ling 10
Thy loving Kindness. according TO the
multitude o! Thy tender merclssi aot out |
my transgrrssions. for acknow - my
irdnsrressiOns, and my Sins ars eys before
Thea" I
Again. nv subject gives me a spe zen Of
busy and triumphant sadness. IT. WAS
any man Ia the world who hal r.lt to
NOPE and give up everything "a LOST Z was
Nehemiah. You say, ale was a Gu zirer
in the palace Of Shushan, and Il was -lnd
place." So Il was. The hall OF that ace
was 200 feet square, and the roof b, red
over thirty-six marble pillars, each ar
sixty feet high, and the intense blue nc
SKY aud .he deep green Of the forest fol 20,
and the white 81 the driven snow, all l-g
trembling in the upholstery. But, Y
friends, YOU know very well that fine a.
tec'ura will not put down homesickr~.
Yet Nehemiah did not give up. II
when YOU saw him going am
these deso!atel streets and bv tn
dismantlei towers and by tine to
IN grave OF his father, you would suppo.
that ne would have been disheartened an
that he would have dlsmounted from h.
horse aud gone to his room and said: "Wos
is mel NV fathers grave Is torn up. Tho
temple j. dishonOred. The walls are broken
down. | have no money with which to re-
build. / wish hal never been born. wish
were dead" Not 50 says Nehemiah.
Although he had grief so intense that IL
excited the commentary OF his king, vet that
penuiless. eVpatriate Nehemiah rouses him
self IN to rebuild the city, He gets his per-
mission OF absence. Tie gets his passports.
He hastens away 10 Jerusalem By night
on horseback he rides through the ruins
He OvercOmes the most ferocous opposition.
He arouses the piety and patriotism OF the
people, and in less than two months
namely. Nitv-twO days-Ierusalem was re-
built. That's what | call busy and triumph
ant sadness.
NY friends the whole temptation is with
you when YOU have trouble 90 do Just tho
opposite TO the behavior Of Nehemiah. an
that is TO give up. You say, II have lost my
child am cnu never smile again" You say,
al have lost my property. and | never can
repair my fortune" You say, "Ihave fallen
into sin, AMI never can start again for n
new life" II Satan can make you form that
resolution and make YOU keep it, he has
ruined you. Trouble is not sent 10 crush
you, but to arouse you. TO animate you, 10
prOpel you. The blacksmith does not thrust
the iron into the forge and then blow away
with the bellows and then bring the
hot iron out on tine anvil and beat with
stroke after stroke to ruin the iron, Tut
to prepare 1t for better use. Oh,
that the Lord God OF Nehemiah would
rouse up all broken hearted people TO re-
build! Whipped BETRAYED, shipwrcckei,
imprisoned, Paul went right on. The italian
martyr Algerius sits 10 his dungeon writing
n letter. and hO dates it. From the delecia.
BILE orchard Of the Leonina prison" That
is what | call triumphant sadness. I knew
a mother who buried her babe on Friday and
on Sabbath appeared in the house Of God
and said: "Gvc me class; give me a Sab
b8th-srnool class. | have no child now left
me. and would like to have class OF little
children. Give me real poor children
Give me class of the back street" That |
say is beautiful. That il triumphant sadness
At o'clock every Sabbath afternoon, for
years, in beautiful par.or in Philadelphia
II parlOr pictured and statuetteI--there were
from ten 10 twenty destitute children Of the
street Those destitute children received
religious instruction. concluding with cakes
and sandwiches How do | know that that
was going on for sixteen years. know il
in this way: That was the first homo in Phil-
adelphia where / was called to comfort a
great sorrow They had splendid boy, and
he had been drowned ut Long Branch. The
father and mother almost iloli2ed the boy.
and the sob and shrek OF that father ana
mother ne they hung over the coffin resouud
in my ears to-day. There seemed to be NJ
use OF praying. for when | knelt down L.
pray the cutlery in the room drowned out all
the prayer. But the Lord comtorted
that sorrow. They did not forget their
trouble. i you should 20 any afternoon in
to Laurel Hill, YOU would find monument
with the word "Waltcr' inscribed upon II
and a wreath OF fresh flowers around the
name. | think there was not an hour in
twenty wears, winter or summer, when there
was not u wreath Of fresh flowers around
Waters name. But the Christian mother
who sent those flowers there having no child
left, Sabbath afternoons mothered ten OF
twenty OF the lost ones OF the street. That
is beautiful. That Is what | call busy aud
triumphant sadness. lI~e is Il man who
has lost his properly. He does not 80 tC
hard drinking He does not destroy his own
life. He comes and says: "Harness me for
Christian work. My moneys gone. | have
no treasures on earth. ! want treasures in
| heaven. | have n voice and a heart to serv,
| God" You say that that man has failed
| He has not iailed-he has triumphed!
| Oh, | wish | could persuade all the people
| who havO any kind Of trouble never to give
up. | wish they would look at the mlduigh
rider OF the text and that the four h0ofs o
| that beast on which Nehemiah rode nigh
| cut to pieces all their discOura3ements anC
| hardships and trials. Give up! Who Is 20
| Ing to give up when on the bosom of God h,
| can have all his troubles hushed2 Give up
| Mover think OF giving up. Arc you borne
| down with poverty? 4 little child was fOunt
| holding her dead mothers hand in the dark
| ness OF a tenement house. and some one com
! ing in the little girl looked up while holdin,
| her dead mothers hand, and said. "Oh,
| do wish that God had made more light fol
poor folks" My dear. God will be your
| light, God vii. be your shelter, God will be
| Ava ION wi
| the bercavements OF life? Is tn,
house lonely now that the child il
| gone? Do not give up Think OF what tht
| old sexton said when the minister asked hin
| why he put so much care on the little graves
| in the cemetery-sO much more care than or
| the larger graves--aud the old sexton said
"Sir, you know that of such Is the kingdom
OF heaven, and | think the Saviour i
| pleased when he secs so much white clover
| growing around these little graves" But
when the minister pressed the old sexton
for more satisfactory answer the old sex
ton said, "Sr, about these larger graves,
don't know who are the Lords saints ant
who are not. but you know, sir, it ID clear
| different with the BARNS" Oh. If you havt
had that keen, tender, indescribable sorrow
that comes from the loss of Il child. do no
give up. The old sexton was right. 1t 1:
all we'll with the BARNS. Or, if you have
sinned, If you have sinned grievously-
sinned until you have been cast out by the
church, sinned until you have been cast out
by society--do not give up. Perhaps there
may be in this house one that could truth
fully utter the lamentation ofanother:
Once l was pure as the snow, but fell
Fell like q snowflake. from heaven to hell
Fell to be trampled as filth in the street
Fell to be scoffed at, spit on and beat,
Praying, cursing, wishing to die,
Selling my soul to whoever would buy.
Dealing in shame for morsel of bread,
Hating the living and fearing the dead.
Do not give up! One like unto the Son o
Gol comes to you to-day saying. $50 anc
sin no more" while he cries out to your as
sailants, "Let him that is without si1
cast the first stone at her." Oh Their,
| Is no ransom MhY any ono in thi