Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1899-03-01
SERMONS OF THE DAY.


Pssashsl ~ Rsv. Dr TaInsss.
-Lessons Drawn From the Episode of
Martha and Mary-Daily Trials Pre-
pare One For Future Blessings.
TEXT: Lord, dost Thou not care that
my sister hath left me to serve alcne? Bid
her therefore that she help me."-Luke K.
40.
Yonder is a beautiful village homestead.
The man Of the house is dead and his
widow has charge OF the premises. 1t Is
Widow Martha. OF Bethany. Yes, l will
show you also the pet OF the household. 1t
is Mary, the younger sister, with book
under her arm. and 10 her face no sign Of
care or anxiety about anything. Company
has come. Cbrist's appearing at the outside
OF the door makes some excitement inside
the door. The sisters set back the disar-
ranged furniture, arrange their hair. and
in fash preP~re to open the door. Iney
do not keep Christ waiting outside until
they have newly appareled themselves or
elaborately arranged their tresses. and
then with affected surprise come out and,
pretending not to have heard the two or
three previous knockings, say, "Wby, is
ways presentable, although perhaps they
had not on their best. None of us always
have on our best. Otherwise very soon
our best would not be worth having on.
They throw open the door and greet Christ.
They saw: "Good morning, Master! Come
in and be seatedv' Christ brought a com
pany OF friends with Him, and the influx
OF so many city visitors, you do not won
der, threw the country home into some
perturbation. suppose the "alk from the
city had been keen appetizer. The
kitchen department that day was very
o,k lav II
as Martha had greeted her guests she went
to that ROOM Mary had no anxiety about
the dinner She had full confidence that
her sister Martha could get up the best
dinner in Bethany, and she practically
said: ''Now, let US have division Of labor.
Martha you cook and I'll sit down and
learn"
The same difference you now sometimes
see between sisters. There is Martha, in
dustrious, painstaking, a good manager.
| ever inventive OF some new pastry, diseov-
| ering something in household affairs.
Here is Mary, fond OF conversation, liter,
! ary so full of questions OF ethics she has
| no time to discuss questions Of household
| welfare. 1t is noon. Mary is in the par
| lor Martha is in the kitchen. 1t would
have been better for them to have divided
the toll, and then they could have divided
the opportunity OF listening to Christ. Bu
Mary monopoiizes Christ, while Marthi
| swelters before the fire. 1t was very i'm
| portant that they have good dinner tha
day, for Christ WAS hungry, and He did no
often have luxurious entertainment. Alas
! me- IL all the responsibility OF that enter
tainment had rested with Mary! What
repast they would have had! But some
| thing went wrong in the kitchen. Eithe
the fire would not burn or the bread woul,
not bake or something was turned blac
that ought to have been only turne
| brown, or Martha scalded herself, and
4 60 inn oil ha
sion, with besweated brow she rushed on
OF the kitchen into the parlor, perhap
with topgs in one hand and pitcher in tn
other, and she cried out: Lord, dost Tho
not care that my sister has left me to serv
! alone? Bid her therefore that she hel
! me-" Christ scolded not "a word. If
were scol. ing, 1 would rather have Hi
scold me Than anybody else bless M
There was Eothfus- -srcvr1in the ss>:sosr
reply He knew that Martha had bee
working herself almost to deatht to get Hi
something to eat, but He appreciated ht
kindness, and He practically said: m
dear woman, do not worry. Let the dir
ner GO. Sit down here on this couch b'
side your younger sister, Mary. Let U
talk about something else. Martha, Mai
! tha thou art careful and troubled abor
many things but one thing is needful.'
As Martha throws open the door l loo
in to-day, and l see a great man
household anxie;ies, perplexities. fatigue
! and trials and about them l am going t
speak II the Lord OF Mary and Martha an
Lazarus will help me by His grace.
! As l look into that door, in the frs
place, l see the trial OF nonappreciatior
That was what made Martha so vexed d
Mary. Mary, the younger sister, had n
! proper estimate of the elder sisters fl
! tfgue. Just as now men having annoy
| ances of store and factory and shop. or a
the Stock Exchange, come home at nigh
| and hear of some household annoyance
and they say, "Oh, that's nothing! lo
| ought to be In a factory a day and have te
or fifteen or twenty or 100 subordinate
Then YOU would know something abou
annoyance and trouble" oh, man, let m
DELL you that a wife and a mother has I
conduct at the same time university,
clothing establishment, restaurant.
laundry, library, and has to be healt
| realm! She has to do tbousan
! things, and to do them well, in order I
make things 20 smoothly. and that is whi
5 puts the awful tax on womans nerve
; and woman's brain. 1 know there ar
exceptions to the rule. Sometimes 20
will find q woman who can sit in the arm
chair OF the library all day without an
! anxiety, or .arry on the belated pillow
J and ali the cares of the household al
thrown upon servants who have lars
wages and great experience; but that
the exception. speak OF the great mass
4
: gle, and who at thirty years Of age look
though they were forty. The fallen at CHI
l. Ions and Austerlitz and Gettysburg al
! waterloo are a small number In comparisc
! with those who have gone down under Il
y Armageddon Of the kitchen. Go out to Il
; country and look over the epitaphs on II
| tombstones. They are all beautiful al
poetic, but II the tombstones could tell Il
! truth thousands OF them would say, "He
! lies a woman who was killed by too muC
| mending and sewing and baking and scou
: ing and scrubing," and the weapon wit
/ | which she was killed was a broom or
!, ! sewing machine or Il ladie.
The housewife rises in the morning hal
= | rested At an irrevocable hour she mu:
have the morning repast ready. what
j.. | the fire will not burn, what II the ciot
stop, what If the marketing has not bee
> sent in? No matter that; it must be reat
} at the irrevocable hour. Then the chi
p dren must be got ready for school. b
!, What il the garments be tOrn2 What
I they do not know their lessonsf What
t the hat or sash is lost? They must
O I ready. Then you have the duty OF the da
!, or perhaps several days, to plan out. b
what If the butcher sends meat unmas'
Z eahlea What IL the grocer furnishes yo'
Q articles of food adulterated? What IL t
n piece of silver be lost, or a favorite chaii'
be broken, or the roof leak, or the plum
Z ing fail, or any one Of thousand thin
occur? No matter. Everything must
J. ready.
~ Young woman OF brilliant educate
and prosperous surroundings was call
Q down stairs to help in the absence OF t
(. servant, and there was a ring at the be
aud she went to the door and an admir-
entered. He said: Il thought l hea
n music in the house. Was it on the pia
10 or the harp2" She said: Neither; it wa
= frying pan accompaniment to gridirc
In other words, was called down sta
q to help. suppose some time 1 shall ha
D, to learn, and / have begun now." VIII
\. will the world learn that every kind
work that Is right is honorable?
)L As Martha .anens the door look in q