Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1898-11-26


without any practical result, save fa-
tigue of body and fatigue of mind, great
Encouragement for tie future and great
disgust for the past. Oh, my friends
this is 'south land" and it slopes off
toward deserts Of SORROWS and the
prayer which Achsah made to her fa-
ther Caleb we make this Gay to our Fa-
ther God: Thou hast given me south
land; give me also springs of water
And he gave her the upper springs and
the neither springs.
Blessed be God, we have more adj
vantages given us than we can really
appreciated We lave spiritual blessings
offered US in this world which [ shall
call the neither springs aud glories in
the world to come which shall call tife
upper springs.
Where shall | find words enough
threaded with light to set forth the
pleasure of religion? David, unable to
describe it in words, played it on a
harp Mrs. Hemans, not finding enough
power in prose- sings that praise in a
canto Christopher Wren, unable to de-
scribe it in language, sprung it into the
arches of ST. Paul's. John Bunyan, un-
able to present it in ordinary phrase
ology, takes all the fascination of allie
CORY. Handel, with ordinary music un-
able to reach the height of the theme,
rouses it up in an cratorio. Oh, there is
no life Oh ealth so happy as "a really
Christian life do not mean sham
Christian life, but a real Christian life.
Where there is thorn there is Il whole
garland OF roses. Where there is one
groan there arc three doxologies. Where
there is enc day of cloud there is a
whole season of sunshine. Take the
humblest Christian man that You know
angels Of God canopy him with their
white wings the lightnings of heaven
are his armed allies; the Lord is his
Shepherd, picking ont for him green
pastures by still waters. If he walk
forth, heaven is his bodyguard. If be
lie down to sleep, ladders of light, angel
blossomiup, arc let into his dreams. If
he DO thirsty. the potentates of heaven
are his cupbearers If he sit down to
food, his plain table blooms into the
Kings banquet Men say, Look at
that odd fellow with the wornout
coat. :" Tho angels of God cry, Lift up
your heads, ye everlasting gates, and
let him conc in!" Fastidious people
cry, "Get off my front stepsl'' The
doorkeerers of heaven cry, Come ye
blessed of my Father, inherit the king
dom!' When he comes to die, though
he may be carried cut in pine box to
the potter's field, to that pottcr's field
the chariots of Christ will como down,
and the cavalcade will crowd all the
boulevards of heaven.
[ bless Christ for the present satisfac-
ton of religion 1t makes man all
right with reference to the past; it
makes man all right with reference to
the future. Oh, these neither springs of
comfortl They are perennial. The
foundation Of God standeth sure having
-,h:s seal, .'Tko Lord knoweth them that
are his, = 1.-The maintains shall depart
end the hills be removed but my kind
ness shall not depart from thee, neither
shall the covenant OF my peace lie re-
moved. saith the Lord. who hath mercy
upon thee. Oh, cluster of diamonds
set in FURNISHED gold Oh, neither
springs Of comfor, bursting through all
tho valleys of trial ami tribulation!
When you see, you Of the world, what
satisfaction there is Gil earth i'll religion,
do you not tairst after It as the daugh-
ter of Caleb tLirsted after the water
springs? 1t is 10 staSnant pond, scum
med over with malaria, but springs of
water leuping from the Rock OF Agesl
Take up one cup CT that spring water
and across the top of the chalice will
float tile delicate shadows of the heae-
emily wall the yellow Of jasper, the
green of emerald, the blue of sardonyx,
the fire of jacinth.
The Source of Happiness.
wish could mako you understand
the Joy religion is to some of us. 1t
makes man happy while he lives and
glad when he dies. With two feet upon
a chair and bursting with dropsies, l
heard ALI old man in the poorhonse cry
ont. "Bless the Lord, oh, my soul y /
looked around and said, what has this
man got to thapl. God for?' 1t makes
the lame man leap as hart, and the
dumb sing. They say that the old Puri
tan religion is juiceless and joyless
religion, but remember aiding OF DR.
Goodwin, the celebrated Puritan, who
in his last moment said Is this dy-
ing? Why, NY low atides in strength
am swallowed up i'll Godr' Her
ways are ways of pleasa'lness, and all
her paths are peace. Oh, you who
have been trying to satisfy yourselves
with the South land of this world,
do you not feel that you would, this
morning, liko to have access to the
neither springs of spiritual comfort:
Would younot like to have Jesus Christ
bend over your cradle and bess your
table and heal your wounds and strew
flowers of CONSOLATION all up and down
the graves OF your dead?
lis religion that can give
Sweetest pleasures while we live.
TITS religion c,ln supply
Sweetest comfort when we die
But have something better to tell
you, suggested by this text 1t seems
that old Father Caleb Oh the wedding
lay of his daughter wanted to make her
just as happy as possible. Though 9th
aiel was taking her away and his heart
was almost broken because she was go
ing, yet he gives her south land;
not only that, but the neither springsi
aot only that, but the upper springs.
D God, my Father thank thee that
thon hast given me "soutn land in
this world and the neither springs of
spiritual comfort in this world; but
more than all, l thank thee for the up
ner spriugs in heaven