The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1898-06-30
USES OF ADVERSELY.
The Worth of Silent Sympathy
When in Trouble.
Eev. DR.. TaimaSe Draws Some Valuable
Lessons from the TribulatiOns of
Job-God Sends Our TrOu-
bles In Love.


The following sermon by Rev. T. De-
Witt Talmage points out the awkward
and irritating methods some people use
in trying to comfort those in trouble.
The text is:
Miserable comfort-rs are ye all-Job xvi, 2
The man of Uz had great many
trials-the loss of his family, the loss
of his property, the loss of his health;
but the most exasperating thing that
came upon him was the tantalizing
talk of those who ought to have SYM
pathized with him. And looking
around upon them, and weighing what
they had said, he utters the words of
my text.
Why did God let sin come into the
world? 1t is a question often hear
discussed, but never satisfactorily
answered. God made the world fair
and beautiful at the start. If our first
parents had not sinned in Eden they
might have gone out of that garden
and found 50 paradises all around the
earth - Europe, Asia, Africa, North
and South America-so many flower
gardens or orchards of fruit, redolent
and luscious. suppose when God
poured out the Gihon, and the Hidde-
kel, He poured out, at the same time,
the Hudson and the Susquehanna; the
whole earth was very fair and beauti-
full to look upon. Why did it not stay
SO. God had the power to keep back
sin and woe. Why did lie not keep
them back? Why not every cloud
roseatc, and every step joy, and every
sound music, and all the ages a long
jubilee of sinless men and sim
less women? God can make a
rose as easily as He can make a
thorn. Why, then, the predominance
of thorns? He can make good, fair,
ripe fruit as well as gnarlei ana sour
fruit. Why SO much, then, that is
gnarled and sour? lie can make men
robust in health. Why, then, are there
SO many invalids? Why not have our
whole race perpetual leisure instead of
this tug, and toll, and tus.le for u live
lihood? will tell you why God let sin
come into the world-when get on
the other side of the river of death.
That is the place where such ques-
tions will be answered and such mys-
teries solved. lie who this side that
river attempts to answer the question
only illustrates his own ignorance and
incompetency. All l know is one
great fact, and that is, that herd of
woes has come in upon us, trampling
down everything fair and beautiful. A
sword at the gate of Eden and sword
at every gate.
remark, in the first place, that very
voluble people are incompetent for the
work of giving comfort. Bildad and
Eliphaz had the gift of language and
with their words almost bothered Jobs
life out. Alas! for these voluble pco-
pie that go among the houses of the
afflicted, aid talk, and talk, and talk,
and talk. They rehearse their own
sorrows, and then they tell the poor
sufferers that they feel badly now, but
they will feel worse after awhile.
Silence! Do you expect with a thin
court-plaster of words to heal a wound
deep as the soul? Step very gently
around about a broken heart. Talk
very softly around those whom God
has bereft. Then go your way. Deep
sympathy has not much to say. A
firm grasp Of the hand, compassion
ate look, just one word that means as
much as a whole dictionary, and you
have given, perhaps, all the comfort
that a soul needs. A man has terri
BILE wound in his arm. The surgeon
comes and binds it up. Now" he
says, carry that arm in sling, and
be very careful of it. Let no one
touch it." But the neighbors have
heard of the accident, and they come
in, and they say: Let us see it."
And the baniage is pulled off, and this
one and that one must feel it and see
how much it is swollen, and there is
irritation, and Inflammation, and ex-
asperation, where there ought to be
healing and cooling. The surgeon
comes in and says: "What does this
mean? You have no business to touch
those bandages. That wound will
never heal unless you let it alone' So
there are souls broken down in sorrow.
What they most want is rest, or very
careful and gentle treatment; but the
have heard of the bereave-
ment, or of the loss, and they come in
to sympathize, and they say: "Show
us now the wound. What were his
last words? Rehearse now the whole
scene. How did you feel when yoa
found you were an orphan9" Tearing
off the bandages here, and pulling
them off there, leaving a CHASTITY
wound that the balm OF Gods grace
had already begun to heal. Oh, let no
loquacious people, with ever-rattling
tongues, 60 into the homes of the dis
tressed.
Again remark that all those per-
sons are incompetent to give any kind
of comfort who act merely as worldly
They come In and say:
why, this is what you ought to have
expected. The laws of nature must
have their way and then they get
eloquent over something they have
seen in post-mortem examinations.
Now, away with all human philosophy
st such q time. What difference does