Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1901-02-15

ITO" 10 cSr ~" out believers in CHRIS
d a;nO;fsy WI were such persons as Ben1sImn
F flr,,,i1 John Ruskn. Thomas CarI1yyles
Pah;n gton Macaulay. William PENN p wi
tcr Scott. Charles Kingsley; Horace D Tee
nell James A. Garfield, koDeFe - Al, |
StonewaIl Jackson. Admiral roote' 1ohn
miral Farragut, Ulysses .. "r Sh;ef Tus. |
Milton, William Shakespeare, o;el Webs. |
t te,' George Washington? How 40 you
account for their fondness for the oni'''
tian religion? TIL COLLEGES and |
un;versit;es of the earth will you name nro
thee started by in6dels and now sup
ported by infdels? Down IN y your n, ynn
are you really happy IN the rnPs ostiiv fa.
occupy antagonistic to the 0i''''
gion? 80, g., srob questions,
ii he will Get 80 red in the face as 10
suggest. sra apopiexy, and he will look at ms
watch and say he has an engagement Sr "m
m m%.JN co You will put him in a sWea,g;
that will beat Turkish bath. You WI,
nIt him on a rout compared with Wnict
pnr troops at Bull Run made no tille ~
! ALL "a, ro,,r,ents but
interrogation points, and L plonli9e hall
victory, Shall such man as you, sn% ~
| such a woman as you. surrender TO one y.
tbo meanest spirits that ever smoked up
! from the pit-the dumb devil spoken Oh III
Ert then there are occasions when tnlss
,,srf;cular shirt that Christ exercised
when lie said. II charge thee to come ons
| of him. takes people by the Wno1iG ;Snoo
In the most responsive religious auoleLo1
| have you noticed how many peopie h tbev
sing at all? They have a book, ana anef
! have voice; and they know how TO reas.
Tbey know many of the tunes and yet are
silent while the great raptures OF mus
mass nv. Among those who sing noC one
ont of a hundred sings loud enough, 70
hear his own voice They hum It, Iney
| give sort of religious grunt. Iney T MaHe
fhe Inns 90. bat it is inaudlble:. WIN
a voice strong enough to stop a stree t taa
one block. away, all tney can anor ,r,, 80
praise of God is about half WhiS2Pel'
With enough sopranos, enough aitos'
enough bassos to make small heaven be-
tween the four walls, they let the. oppor..
tun;ty 60 by unimproved. The, volume OF
voice t6at ascends from the largest au.
d;nnce that ever assembled ought TO pc
multiplied two thousandfold. But tne
minister rises and gives out the hymn, tae
organ begins, the choir or pTeceptoI leaIs,
the audience are standing SO that IRE
lungs may have full expansion, and a
mighty harmony is about to ascend Wnen
The evil spirit spoken Of in my text-the
| dunno deyil-spreads his two wings over
fha Inns Of one-half the audience; and tne
oIIer wing over the lips of the other halt
of the audience, and the voices roll pacH
into the Threats from which they StareeH,
heard and nine-tenths Of the holy power
is DESTROYED. and the dumb devil, as ne
flies away. SAYS, II could not keep Isaac
Watts from writing that hymn, ana L
could not keep Lowell Mason from com,
nosino the tune to which it is set. but L
smote into silence or half silence the hpss
from which it would have spread. aDroa3 !
to bless neighborhoods and cites ana ana
then mount the wide, open heayens. Wv :
Of Cbrs{endom and those four lines would
take the whole earth for God. -.
This is the way l account Tor the 1acr
that the stupidest places on earth are
some prayer meetings. ! DO not i see now o.
! a man keeps any grace if he regularly at
tends them. They are spiritual retllgera
tors. Religion kept on ice. HOW many o.
US have LOST occasions, OF usel9iness! 81
In scuiptor's studio stood a, figure, o.
the cod Opportunity. The sculptor Lac
. made the hair fall down over the face %
! the statue so as to completely cover 1t
and there were wings to the feet. Nnel
: asked why he SO represented Opportunity
I. The sculptor answered. "The face OF tn'
} statue is thus covered up because we az
: not recognize Opportunity when 1t comes 6
+, and the wings Of the feet show that UP
:, portunity is swiftly gone" -,
} But do not let the world deride tn!
J church because of all this, for the dum,
I devil is just as conspicuous in the world
d The great political parties assemble. at tn
e proper time to build platforms for TIL
a candidates to stand on. A committee, 0
I each party is appointed to make the pat
$ form. After proper deliberation the com
t mttees come in with q ringing report
e whereas" and whereas and whereas.
Pronunciamentos all shaped with the on
1 idea of getting the most votes. All e$
n preston in regard to the great moral evil
d of the country ignored. No expression I
n behalf of temperate living, for that woul
L lose the vote of the liquor traffic: NO e1
l. preston in regard to the universal attemp
7 at the demolition of the Lords day. N
d recognition of God in the history OF M
= tions, for that, would lose the vote
d atheists. But whereas" and whereas
r and whereas" Nine cheers will be give
for the platform. The dumb devil OF til
a text puts one wing over the one plattorl
n. and the other wing over the other pla
Of form. Those great conventions are opene
re with PRAYER BY their chaplains. II the
n avoided platitudes and told the homes
lie truth in their prayers they, would say
il 80 Lord we want to be postmasters an
d, consuls and foreign ministers and Unite
re States district attorneys. For that we a.
here and for that we will strive till tt
il. elect orl next November. Give us office I
d. we die. Forever and ever, Amen"
III The world, to say the least, is no be
e. ter than the church on this subject of :
ct lence at the wrong time. In other word
ID is it not time for Christianity to becon
IN pronounced and aggressive as never b
On fore? Take sides for God and sobre
IN and righteousness.
it III the Lord be God, follow Him;
re Baal, then follow him." Have you oppo
Ks tunity of rebuking sin? Rebule
ny Have you chance to cheer dishearten
he soul? Cheer it. Have you useful wo
st. to speak? Speak it.
as BE out and out, up and down for rigf
on eousness. If your ship is afioat on t
on Pacific Ocean of Gods mercy, hang o
h YOUR colors from the masthead. Show 20
he passport il you have one. Do not gnu
he ole Your soul into the harbor of heave
or Speak out for God! Close up the chapt
ist Of lost opportunities, and open q nj
ed chapter. Before you get to the door
on your way out shake hands with some OF
y? and ask him to join you on the road
of heaven. Do not drive up to heaven in
th two.wheeled ''sulky" with room only /
I'll. one, and that yourself, but get the b
or gest gospel wagon you can find, and pile
OH full of friends and neighbors,. and she
an till they hear you all up and down
Ike | skies, Come with u.s. and we will do y
an good, for the Lord hath promised go