Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1899-12-15
GUARD YOUR TEMPER
DR.. TALMAGE RECOMMENDS REPREs-
SION OF WRATH.
A Sweet Disposition Adds Much 10
the JOY of Livlng-DOn't Waste
Health Rehearsing Wrongs md
Schemfnu Revenge.

course Dr. Talmage placates the
worlds revenges and recommends
more OF the saccharine and less Of the
sour in human dispositions; text.
Epheslans iv, 26, Let not the sun go
down upon your wrath"
What a pillow, embroidered OF all
cOlors, hath the dying day! The era
die Of clouds from which the sun rises
is beautiful enough, but II Is surpassed
by the many colored mausoleum In
which at evening it is buried.
Sunset among the mountains! 1t al
most takes ones breath away to recall
the scene. The long shadows stretch
ing over the plain make the glory OF
the departing light on the tiptop
crags and struck aslant through the
foliage the more conspicuous. Saffron
and gold. purple and crimson COM
mingled. All the castles OF cloud In
connagration. Burning Moscows on the
sky. Hanging gardens OF roses at
their deepest blush. Banners OF va
Dor, red as II from carnage, in the bat
tie OF the elements. The hunter among
the Adlrondacks and the Swiss VII
lager among the Alps know what Is
sunset among the mountains. After
storm at sea the rolling grandeur
into which the sun goes down to battle
at nightfall is something to make
weird and splendid dreams out of for
lifetime Alexander Smith In his
poem compares the sunset to THE bar
ren beach of hell" but this wonderful
spectacle OF nature makes me think
Of the FURNISHED wall OF heaven. Paul
in prison. writing my text remembers
some of the gorgeous sunsets among
the mountains Of Asia Minor and how
he had often seen the towers OF Da-
mascus bnZe I'm the close OF the orient
al days, and he flashes out that men,
ory In the text when he says, LET not
the sun go down upon your wrath"
Sublime all suggestive duty for peo-
pie then and people now! Forgive
ness before sundown. He who never
feels the throb Of Indignation Is imbe-
cile. He who can walk among the in
justices Of the world inflicted upon
himself and others without flush OF
cheek or fash Of eye or agitation Of
nature is either in sympathy with
wrong or semi-IdIotlc. When Ananias,
the high priest. ordered the constables
OF the courtroom to smite Paul on the
mouth, Paul fred up and said, "God
shall smlte thee. thou whlted wall"
In the sentence Immediately before
my text Paul commands the Ephe-
slams. BE ye angry and sin not. IL
all depends on what you are mad at
and how long the feeling lasts whether
anger Is right or wrong. Life Is full
Of exasperations. Saul after David,
Succoth after Gideon. Korsh after
Moses. the Pasquins after Augustus.
the Pharisees after Christ, and every
one has had his pursuers, and we are
swindled or belied or misrepresented
or prosecuted or in some way wronged'
and the danger Is that healthful In
dlCnation Shall become baleful spite
and that our feelings settle down into
a prolonged outpourIng OF temper dis
pleasing to God and rulnous to our
selves. and hence the important In
junction OF the text. Let not the sun
60 down upon your wrath"
Why that limitation to ones anger
Why that period Of flaming vapor set
to punctuate a flaming disposition
What has the sunset got to do with
ones resen.ful emotonsr Was II a
baphazard sentiment written by Paul
without special signiicancel No, no.
| think OF five reasons why we should
not let the sun set before our temper.
Away with Feuds.
First. because II hours IL long
enough 10 be cross about any wrong
inflicted upon us. Nothing Is so ex'
hausting to physical health or mental
faculty as u protracted indulgence OF
IN humor. II racks the nervous sys-
TEN. II hurts the digestion. II heats
the blood In brain and heart until the
whole body Is first overheated and
1 then depressed. Besides that. 1t sours
the disposition. turns one aside from
| his legitimate work, expends energies
that ought TO be better employed and
does us more harm than it does our
antagonist. Paul gives us 4 good,
wide allowance Of time for Legitimate
denunciatlon. from u o'clock TO
o'clock. but says. stop thereW Watch
the descending orb OF day, and when
II reaches the horizon take reef IN
) your disposition. UnlOose your col
lar and cool Off. Change the subject
to something delightfully."- pleasant
Unroll your tight fist and shake hands
with some one. Bank up the fires al
the curfew bell. Drive the growing
dog OF enmlty back to Its kennel The
hours of this morning will pass by
and the afternoon will arrive. and thu
sun will begin to set, and. beg you
,n It's blazing hearth throw all you
feuds. invectives and satires.
Other things being equal. the maj
who preserves good temper Will come
out ahead. An old writer says that th'
celebrated John Henderson OF Bristol
F England. was at a dinner party wher'
political excitement ran high and th'
debate got angry. and while Henderson
was speaking his opponent. unable u
answer his argument dashed glas
of wine In his face. when the speake
deliberately wiped the liquid from oil
face and said: This, sir. Is a digres
sion. Now, II you please, for the mail
argument" While worldly philosoph.
could help but very few TO such equi
polse OF spirit the grace OF God coui'
help any man to such triumph. I'm
possible" you say. II would have ei
ther left the table In anger or hav
. knocked the man down" But ! hay
come TO believe that nothing Is lmpossi
BILE II God help.
Aye, you will not postpone I'LL SUI
down forgiveness OF enemies II 20
can realize that their behavior towar
l.. you may be put into the catalogue Q
the "all things" that work togethe
for good to those that love God"
have had multltudes OF friends, but
, have found In my own experience ina
God so arranged 1t that the creates
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