Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1898-06-06

on some August day, seen two thunder
showers meet. One cloud from this
mountain, and another cloud from that
mountain. coming nearer and nearer
! together, and, responding to each
other, crash to crash, thunder to thun-
der boom! boom! And then the clouds
break and the torrents pour, and they
are emptied perhaps into the very same
stream that comes down so red at your
feet, that it seems as if all the carnage
of the storm battle had been emptied
into 1t. So in this Bible / see two
storms gather, one above Sinai, the
other above Calvary, and they respond
one to the other-fash to flash, thunder
to thunder, boom! boom! Sinai thun-
ders: "The soul that sinnetL, it shall
die;" Calvary responds: Save them
from going down to the pit, for I have
found ransom"
Sinai says: 'Woe! Wool" Calvary an
swers: Mercy! Mercy!" and then the
clouds burst, and empty their treasures
into one torrent, and 1t comes flowing
to our feet, red with the carnage Of
our Lord-in which if thy soul be
plunged like the bird in the text, it
shall go forth free-free! Oh, l wish
all people to understand this; that when
a man becomes a Christian he does not
become a slave, but that he becomes q
free man; that he has larger liberty
after he becomes child of God than
before he became a child of God. Gen.
Fisk said that he once stood at slave
block where an old Christian minister
was being Sold The auctioneer said of
him: "What bid do l hear for this
man? He is very good kind of man;
he is minister" Somebody said:
Twenty dollars Che was very old and
not worth much); somebody else:
"Twenty-ive-"Th Thirty" = Thirty -five'
Forty" The aged minister began to
tremble. He had expected to be able to
buy his own freedom, and he had just
$40, and expected with the $40 to get
free. AS the bids ran up the old man
trembled more and more. Forty
/ "Forty-fve' - Fifty" - "Fifty-fve"-
Sixty "Sixty-fve." The old man
cried out: Seventy" He was afraid
they would outbid him. The men
around were transfxed. Nobody dared
bid, and the auctioneer struck him
down to himself done-done!
The next thing l notice about this
bird, when it was loosened (and this
is the main idea), is, that it flew away.
Which way did it go? When you let
a bird loose from your grasp, which
way does it fly? Up. What are wings
for? TO fly with. Is there anything
in the suggestion of the direction taken
by that bird to indicate which way we
ought to go?
Rise my soul, and stretch thy wings.
Thy better portion trace;
Rise from transitory things
4 To heaven, thy native place.
We should be going heavenward.
That is the suggestion. But know that
we have great many drawbacks. You
had them this morning, perhaps. You
had them yesterday, or the day before; ;
and although you want to be going
! heavenward, you are constantly dis
I couraged. But l suppose when that
bird went out of the priests hands it
! went by infections-sometimes stoop-
ing. A bird does not shoot directly up,
but this is the motion of bird. So the
soul scars toward God, rising up in love,
and sometimes depressed by trial. 1t
does not always 60 in the direction it
would like to go. But the main course is
right. There is one passage in the Bible
which / quote oftener to myself than
any other: HE knoweth our frame, and
He remembereth that we are dust"
There is legend in Iceland which
says that when Jesus was a boy playing
with His comrades one Sabbath day, He
I made birds of clay; and as these birds
of clay were standing upon the ground
an old Sadducee came along, and he was
disguised at the sport, and dashed the
birds to pieces; but the legend says
that Jesus waved His hand above the
broken birds, and they took wing and
went singing heavenward. Of course,
that is a fable among the Icela nders;
but it is not a fable that we are dust,
and that, the hand of Divine grace waved
over US once, we go singing toward the
skies.
I wish, my friends, that we could live
in a higher atmosphere. If a mans
whole life object is to make dollars, he
will be running against those who are
making dollars. If his whole object is
to get applause, he will run against
those who are seeking applause. But
| if he rises higher than that. he will not
be interrupted in his flight heaven
ward. Why does that flock of birds,
floating up against the blue sky SO high
that you, can hardly see them, not
change its course tor spire or tower
They are above all distractions. So
we would not have so often to change
our Christian course if we lived in a
higher atmosphere, nearer Christ, near
| er the throne of God.
Oh We who have been washed in the
blood of Christ = We who have been
loosed from the hyssop branch-start
heavenward. 1t may be to some of you
a long flight.
Temptations may dispute your. way;