The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1898-08-19


REV. TALMAeE. full conflict. Yonder
are the Philistines on the rocks. Here
is Jonathan with his bodyguard in the
valley. On the one side is rock
called BozeZ: on the other side is a
rock called Seneh. These two were as
famous in olden times as in modern
times are Plymouth rock and Gil
braltar. They were precipitous, I'M
scalable and sharp. Between these
two rocks Jonathan must make
his ascent. The day comes for the
scaling of the height Jonathan, on
his hands and feet, begins the ascent.
With strain and slip and bruise, sup
pose, but still on and up, first goes
Jonathan, and then goes his body
guard. Bozez on one side, Seneh on
the other. After a sharp tug, and push,
and clinging, see the head of Jona-
than above the hole in the mountain;
and there is challenge, and a fight,
and a supernatural CONSERVATION.
These two men, Jonathan and his body
guard, drive back and drive down the
Philiistines over the rocks, and open a
campaign which demolishes the enc
mics of Israel. l suppose that the
overshadowing rocks on either side
did not balk or dishearten Jonathan
or his bodyguard, but only reused and
filed them with enthusiasm as they
went up. "There was a sharp rock on
the one side, and sharp rock on the
other side"
My friends, you have been, or are
now, some of you, in this crisis of the
text If a man meets one trouble he
can go through with it. He gathers
all his energies, concentrates them on
one point, and in the strength of God,
or by his own natural determination,
goes through it. But the man who
has trouble to the right of him, and
trouble to the left of him, is to be
pitied. Did either trouble come along,
he might endure it, but two troubles,
two disasters, two overshadowinR mis-
fortunes, are Bozez and Seneh. God
pity himl There is a sharp rock on
the one side, and a sharp rock on the
other side"
In this crisis of the text is that man
whose fortune and health fail him at
the same time. Nine.tenths of all our
merchants capsize in business before
they come TO 45 years of age. There
is some collision in commercial circles
and they stop payment 1t seems as
il every man must put his name on the
back of note before he learns what
fool man is who risks all his own
property on the prospect that some
man will tell the truth. 1t seems as
if man must have large amount of
unstable goods on his own shelf be-
fore he learns how much easier IL is TO
buy than to sell. 1t seems as il every
man must be completely burned out
before he learns the importance of al
ways keeping fully insured. 1t seems
as if every man must be wrecked in a
financial tempest before he learns TO
keep things snug in case of a sudden
euroclydon.
When the calamity does come, il is
awful. The man goes home in despair,
and he tells his family. Wen have
TO go to the poorhouse." He takes a
dolorous view OF everything. 1t seems
as if he never could rise. But little
time passes and he says, "Why; am
not SO badly off after all; | have my
family left" Before the Lord turned
Adam out of paradise, He gave him
Eve, so that when he lost paradise he
could stand il. Permit one who has
never read but few novels in all his
life, and who has not great deal of
romance in his composition, TO say,
that it, when mans fortunes fail, he
has good wife-a good Christian
wife-he ought not to be Respondent.
"Oh," you say, that only increases
the embarrassment, since you have
her also to take care Of" You are an
migrate, for the woman as often sup
ports the man as the man supports the
woman. The man may bring all the
dollars, but the woman generally
brings the courage and the faith in
God.
Well, this man of whom am speak.
ing looks around. and he finds his fam
lily is left, and he rallies, and the light
comes TO his eyes, and the smile to his
face, and the courage TO his heart. In
two years he is quite over it. He
makes his financial calamity the first
chapter in new era of prosperity. He
met that one rouble-conquered il.
He sat down for lutte while under
the grim shadow of the rock Bozez;
yet he soon arose, and began. like !
to climb But how often is |
il that physical ailment comes with !
financial embarrassment! When the
fortune failed IL broke the mans |
spirit. His nerves were shattered. |
His brain was stunned. can |
show you hundreds of men in our
cities whose fortune and health !
failed at the same time. They came
prematurely to the staff. Their hands
trembled with incipient paralysis.
They never saw a well day since the
hour when they called their creditors |