The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-02-28


lures. Here is happy household circle.
The parent does not realize the truth that
these children are only loaned to him. and
he forgets from what source came his
domestic blessings. Sickness drops upon
those children and death swoops upon a
little one. He says: rs God angry with
me?' No. His shepherds crook pulls him
back into better pastures. 1 do not know
what would have become of US if it had not
been for the shepherds crook. On. the
/ mercies of our troublesi You take up APP
pies and plums from under the shade of
the trees and the very best fruits Of
/ Christian character we find in the deep
shade of trouble
When I was on the steamer, coming
across the ocean, l got a cinder in my
eye. and several persons tried to get it out
| very gently, but it could not be taken out
in that way. ! was told that the engineer
had a facility in such cases. 1 went to
him. He put his large, sooty hand on me,
took a knife, and wrapped the lid of the
eye around the knife. ] expected to be
hurt very much. but without any PAIN
! and instantly he removed the cinder Oh
there come times in our Christian life
when our spiritual vision is being spoiled
! and all gentle appliances fail. Then there
comes some giant trouble and, black hand
ed lays hold of us and removes that which
would have ruined our vision forever. l
| VIII gather all your joys together in one
regiment of ten companies, and / VIII put
them under Col. JOY. Then l will gather
all your sorrows together in one regiment
of ten companies and put them under Col
Breakheart. Then | will ask, Which Of
these regiments has gained for you tie
greater spiritual victories? Certainly that
under Col. Brea kheart.
In the time of war, you may remember,
at the South and North, the question was
whether the black troops would fight; but
when they We're put into the struggle on
both sides. they did heroicaly. In the
great day of eternity it will be found that
il was not the white regiment of joys that
gained your greatest successes but the
black troops of trouble, misfortune and
disaster. Where you have gained one
spiritual success from your prosperity
you have gained ten spiritual successes
from your adversely.
There is no animal that struggles more
violently than a sheep when you corner
it and catch hold of it. Down in the glen
| see group of men around lost sheep
ploughman comes along and seizes the
| sheep, and tries to pacify it; but it is more
frightened than ever. A miller comes
along, puts down his grist, and caresses
| the sheep, and it seems as If 1t would die
of fright. After while some one breaks
| through the thicket. He says: Let me
| have the poor thing" He comes up and
| lays his arms around the sheep, and it is
| Immediately quiet. Who is the last man
! that comes? 1t is the shepherd. All my
| friends, be not afraid of the shepherds
| crook. 1t is never used on you, save in
mercy, to pull you back The hard. cold
| iceberg of trouble will melt in the warm
! gulf stream of divine sympathy.
| There is one passage l think you mis-
! interpret: THE bruised reed he will not
| break" Do you know that the shepherd
| in olden times played upon these reeds?
! They We're very easily bruised; but when
they We're bruised. they were never mend
| ed. The shepherd could so easily make
another one, he would snap the old one
! and throw it away, and get another The
| Bible says it is not so with our Shepherd
! When the music is gone out of a mans
| soul, God does not snap him in twain and
! throw him away. He mends and restores
The bruised reed he will not break"
When, in the Exchanging heavens of fate.
The threatening clouds of darkness
dwell
Then let us humbly watch and wait;
1t shall be well it shall be we'll
And when the storm has passed away
And sunshine smiles on flood and fell.
| How sweet to think, how sweet TO say,
1t has been well, it has been we'll
Next I speak of the Shepherds dogs.
They watch the straying sheep. and drive
them back again. Every shepherd has
his dog-from the nomads of the Bible
| times, down TO the Scotch herdsman
| watching his f1ocks on the Grammar hills
| Our shepherd employs the criticisms and
| prosecutions of the world as his dogs
| Ihere are those, you know whose whole
work it is to watch the Inconsistencies of
Christians. and bark at them. If one of
| Gods sheep gets astray, the world bowls
WIN more avidity than a shepherds dog
! ever caught a stray sheep by the TANKS
or rugged 1t by the ears, workings seize
the christian astray. 1t ought to do us
| good to know that We are thus watched
! IL ought to put us on our guard They
can not bite US, if we stay near the Shen-
herd The sharp knife of worldly assault
WiIl only trim the vines until they pro-
duce better grapes. The more YOU Mound
marjoram and rosemary, the sweeter thew
smell The more dogs take after you. the
! quicker you viii get to the gate.
You nave noticed that different hoclxs Of
| sheep nave different marks upon them:
| sometimes a red mark. sometimes a bIue
| mark. sometimes a straight mark and
sometimes crooked mark The Lord orr
| shepherd has a mark for his sheen II 10
a red mark-the mark of the cross "I2iess1
ed are they that are prosecuted for right
eousness' sake, for theirs Is the kinedop,
of heaven"
Furthermore, consider the shenberd,s
pasture-grounds. The old shepherds used
20 take the sheep upon the mountains in
the summer. and dwell in the valleys in
the winter. The sheep being out-of-doors
perpetually their wool was better than If
they had been kept in the hot atmosphere
of the sheep-cot Wells were dug for The
sheep and covered with large stones in
order that the hot weather might not snoil
the water. And then the shepherd led his
mock Wherever he would; nobody disputed
mis- right. So the Lord our Shepherd has a
large pasture-ground. He takes us in the
summer to the mountains and in the win
ter to the valleys Warm DAYS of pros
perity come, and we stand on sun-gilt Sab
baths and on hills of TRANSPORTATION: and
we are SO nigh up we can catch a glimpse
OF the pinnacles of the heavenly city. Then
cold winiry days of trouble come. and we
so down into the valley of sickness. want
ana bereavement, and we say. rs there
any sorrow like unto my sorrow?" Rut
blessed be God. the Lords sheen can dnd
pasture anywhere Between two rocks of
trouble tuft Of g1cpulaYt ,,,.,,,,...-...--..-