Barton County democrat., 1900-10-05

your pain and with voice that you will
never hear again, unless you join her
in the better country, told you to never
mind, for you would feel better by and
by, and by that dying couch where she
looked so pale and talked SO slowly,
catching her breath between the words,
and you felt an awful loneliness COM
ing over your soul. By all that beg
you to come back and take the same
religion. It was good enough for her.
It is good enough for you. Nay, I
have better plan than that. plead
by all the wounds and tears and blood
and groans and agonies and death
throes of the Son of God, who APP
proaches you at this moment with torn
brow and lacerated hands and whipped
back, and saying: "Come unto me, all
ye who are weary and heavy laden,
and will give you rest"
Again, there is field of usefulness
but little touched, occupied by those
who are astray in their habits. All
northern nations, like those of North
America and England and Scotland
that is, in the colder c1imates-are dew
astated by alcoholism. They take the
fire to keep up the warmth. In south
ern countries, like Arabia and Spain,
the blood is SO warm they are not
tempted to fiery liquids. The great
Roman armies never drank anything
stronger than water tinged with vine
gar, but under our northern climate
the temptation to heating stimulants
is most mighty, and millions succumb.
When mans habits go wrong the
church drops him, the social circle
drops him, good influences drop him,
we all drop him. Of all the men who
get off the track but few ever get on
again. Near my summer residence
there is hfe-saving station on the
beach. There are all the ropes and
rockets, the boats, the machinery for
getting people off shipwrecks. One
summer I saw there Is or 20 men who
were breakfasting after having just es-
capped with their lives and nothing
more. Up and down our coasts are
built these useful structures, and the
mariners know it, and they feel that
If they are driven to the breakers there
will be apt from shore to come a rescue.
The churches of God ought to be so
| many life-saving stations, not so
much to help those who are in smooth
waters, but those who have been ship
wrecked. Come, let us run out the
| lifeboats! And who will man them
We do not preach enough to such
men; we have not enough faith in
their release. Alas, if when they
come to hear us we are laboriously
trying to show the difference between
sublapsarianism and supralapsarian-
ism, while they have hundred vipers
of remorse and despair coiling
| o,,l ~ .&o1
it's. The church is not chiefly for
ties are all right and who could get to
Heaven praying and singing in their
own homes. 1t is on the beach to
help the drowning. Those bad cases
are the cases that God likes to take
hold of. He can save a pig sinner as
well as small sinner, and when a
man calls earnestly to God for help
he will go out to deliver such q one
If it were necessary, God would come
down from the sky, followed by al
the artillery of Heaven and million
angels with drawn swords. Get 1G(
such redeemed men in your churches
and nothing could stand before them
for such men are generally warm
hearted and enthusiastic. No forma
prayers then. No heartless singing
then. No cold conventionalisms then
Destitute children of the street of
fer a field of work comparatively un
occupied. The uncared for children
are in the majority in most of oul
cities. When they grow up, if un
reformed, they will outvote your chill
dren, and they will govern your chill
dren. The whisky ring will hatch Out
other whisky rings, and grog shops
will kill with their horrid stencil pub
lie sobriety unless the church of Goo
rises up with outstretched arms an6
infolds this dying popula tion in he1
bosom. Public schools cannot do it
Art cannot do it. Blackwell's island
cannot do it. Almshouses cannot dc
it, Jails canont do it. Church of God
wake up to your magnificent mission!
You can do it! Get somewhere, some
how to work!
The Prussian cavalry mount by put
ting their right foot into the stir
rup, while the American cavalry
mount by putting their left foot into
the stirrup. I do not care how yol
mount your war charger if you onl,
get into this battle for God and ge
there soon, right stirrup or left stir
rup or no stirrup at all. The unoccu
pied fields are all around us, and VIII,
should we build on another man.
foundation? I have heard of wha
was called the sthundering legion.
It was in 179, a part of the Roman
army to which some Christians .be
longed, and their prayers. it was said
were answered by thunder and light
ming and hail and tempest, whicl
overthrew an invading army AM
saved the empire. And I would t.
God that our churches might be S,