Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1900-01-06


The family group breaks up. Did
you ever know household that for 70
years remained intact? Not one. Was
there ever church record the same
after the passage Of 25 years or 10
years or 10 yearsf The fact ~ that the
story OF our life will soon end. because
the group of listeners will be gone. So
you see II We are going to give the
right trend and emphasis we must give
II right away II there are old people
In the group Of our influence. all we
can do for them will be In five or ten
years. II there are children around US.
In 10 or Is years they will no longer
be children. and they Will be fashion
Ing the story Of their own life. What
thy hand hndeth to do. do II with all
thy might" Passing all. passing ey-
erything. as tale that Is told"
My text. In referring 10 the years. re-
minds me that In 12 hours this year
will forever have gone away Ninety
nine out of the hundred years Of this
century will have disappeared. We
have only. one year OF the century left
There ought TO be something especial
ly suggestive In the last year Of CEN
tury. II ought to be a year Of un-
paralleled industries. Of unheard or
conservation. Not a person In any Of
our audiences this day can remember
the first years Of this century. Not a
person in any Of our audiences today
In no ocf ~ a
century.
End Of the Century.
Through medical science the worlds
longevity may be greatly improved In
the future, as IL has been In the past,
but it would not be well for the people
to live too long Some Of them would.
through their skill at acquisitlveness,
gather too much, and some multimil-
lionaires would become billlonaires and
trillionaires, and some would after
awhile pocket hemisphere. No.
Death is useful In its financial limita-
tiOns, ard then all have eLough sor-
rows and annoyances and sufferings
by the time they become nonagenari-
ans or centenarians to make 1t desIra-
BILE to quit. Besides that, II would not
be fair so long to keep so many good
old people out Of heaven. So IT is well
arranged that those who stand by the
deathbed Of the nineteenth century will
not be called to stand by the deathbed
of the twentieth century.
Oh, crowd this last year with pray
ers, with hosannas, with kind words.
with helpfulness. Make the peroration
Of the century the climax Of Christlike
deeds. Close up the ranks Of God. and
during this remaining ~ months
charge nightly against the host OF
Abaddon. Have no reserve corps. Let
swiftest gospel cavalry gallop. and
heaviest moral artillery roll. and
mightiest evangelistic batteries thun-
der on the scene. Let ministers Of the
gospel quit sll controversy with each
other and in solid phalanx march out
for the worlds dlsinthrallment. Let
printing presses. secular and religious,
make combined movement 20 ,nsvraet aw .
and emaneipate the world 1RR,k kz<n0zs,
hills 10 : sh@.-- De r,IJ.s.ss, 1faying IofS
"a great rain" and on every contested
field Joshuas to see that final victory
Is gained before the sun goes down.
and every mountain become transtg-
uration, and every Galilee a walking
place of him who can hush a tempest.
Let us be jealous Of every month, or
every week. OF every day that passes
without something significant and
glorious wrought for God and this sin
cursed world. Let our churches be
thronged with devout assemblages.
Let the chorals be more like grand
marches than requiems. Let this COM
ing wear see the last wound OF Trans
yaal and Philippine conflict. and the
earth quake with the grounding arms
of the last regiment ever to be mar
shaled, and the furnaces Of the foun-
dries blaze with the fires that shall
turn the last swords into plowshares.
And may all those whose lives shall
90 ont in this last year Of century. as
many will. meet in the heavenly world
those who In the morning and MONDAY
OF this hundred years tOiled and sur
fered for the worlds salvation to tell
them how much has been accomplished
for the glory of him whose march
through all the coming centuries the
Scriptures describe as going forth con
ouerIng and to conquer" oh, the
contrast between that upllfted spec
tacle of eternal triumph In the pres
ence Of God and the Lamb and these
earthly scenes. where 1--WE spend our
years as a tale that is told"