Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1901-01-28

and abrupt1leSS and harShneSS Of man
her must be avoided in our attempt at
usefulness I know a man in New
York who IS more sunshiny and genial
when he has dyspepsia than when he
is not suffering from that depressing
trouble. / have found out his secret
When he starts out in the morning
with such depression, he asks for spe-
cial grace to keep from swapping I'D
anybody that day, and puts forth addi-
tlonal determination to be kindly and
genial and by the help Of God he ac-
composites it. Many Of our nets need
to be mended in these respects. the
black threads and the rough threads
taken out, and the bright threads and
the golden threads of Christian genial
ity woven in.
In addition to this we need to mend
our nets with more threads Of patience.
It is no rare thing for a fisherman to
spend one whole day before he can
take st. Lawrence pike, or an Ohio
salmon, or Long Island pickerel, or a
Cayuga black bass, or a Delaware cat
fish. and he does that day after day
without particular diScOura cement
But what a lack of patience if we do
not Immediately succeed in soul catch
ing. We are apt to give it up and
say, Il will never try again" Into all
our nets we need to weave all along
the edge and all through the center
great, long stout threads of Christian
patience. How patient God has been
with us! Can we not be patient with
our fellows?
Threads OF Faith.
Again, in mending our nets we need
also to put in the threads Of faith and
tear out all the tangled meshes of
unbelief. Our work is successful ac-
cording to our faith. The man who
believes in only half a Bible, or the
Bible in spots; the man who thinks
he cannot persuade others; the man
who halts, doubling about this and
doubling about that, will be a failure
in Christian work. Show me the man
who rather thinks that the garden of
Eden may have been an allegOry,
and is not quite certain but that there
may be another chance after death,
and does not know whether or not the
Bible is inspired, and [ tell you that
man for soul saving is a poor stick.
Faith in God and Jesus Christ and
the Holy Ghost and the absolute neceS-
sity of q regenerated heart in order to
see God in peace is one thread you
must have in your nending net or you
will never be a successful fisher for
men. Why, how can you doubt? The
rOttenest thread to tear out of your
net is unbelief, and the most important
thread that you are to put in it is
faith. Faith in God, triumphant faith,
everlasting faith.
Oh, this important work of mending
our nets! If we could get our nets
right, we would accomplish more in
soul saving in the next year than we
have in the last 20 years. But where
shall we get them mended? Just where
old Zebedee and his two boys mended
their nets-Where you are. James and
John had no time to go ashore. They
were not fishing for fun, as you and l
do in summer time. 1t was their live
lihood and that of their families. They
mended their nets where they Were-in
the ship. oh" says some one, II mean
to get my net mended, and | will go
down to the public library, and 1 will
see what the scientists say about evo-
luton and about the survival of the
fittest,' and l will read up what the
say about advanced
thought I will leave the ship awhile,
and l will go ashore and stay there till
my net is mended." Do that my broth
er, and you will have no net left In
stead of their helping you mend your
net they will steal the pieces that re-
main. Better stay in the gospel boat,
where you have all the means for
your net. What are they, do
you ask. l answer all you need you
have where you are-namely, a Bible !
and a place to pray. The more you
study evolution and adopt what is call
ed advanced thought the more useless /
you will be. Stay in the ship and
mend your net. That is where James, |
the son Of Zebedee, and John, his broth
er, staid. That is where all who get |
their nets mended stay.
Avoid Unconstitutional Strife.
1 notice that all who leave the gospel !
boat and go ashore to mend their nets
stay there, or, if they try again to fish, |
they do not catch anything. Get out of
the gospel boat and go up into the
world to get your net mended, and you
will live to see the day when you will
feel like the man who, having forsaken
sighed, 81 would give a
thousand pounds to feel as L did in
1902 The time will come when you
would be willing to give thousand
pounds to feel as you did in 1901.
These men who have given up their re-
igion cannot help you bit.
These dear brethren of all denomina-
tons, afflicted with theological fidgets,
had better go to mending nets instead
IF breaking them. Before they break
Up the old religions let them go through
some great sacrifice for God that will