Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1902-02-08
Talmage Says Is Causes for Thanks.
wing That Are Seldom Recognized.
Remember the Daily Blessings = Comforts
Of Friendship.

and shows now to cultivate 4 cheerful
spirit; text, Psalms XX..lii- :, Sing unto
him with psaltery and m instrument OF
sten strings.
A musician as vel as poet and con-
wercr and king was David, the author
my text. He first composed the sacred
hythm and then played it upon 4 harp,
skriking and plucsing the strings with his
fingers and thumbs. The harp is the old
est OF musical instruments. ,iubal invent
ed it, and he was the seventh descendant
from Adam. It's music was suggested by
the twang of the bowstring. Homer re-
fer5 to the harp in the 'Iliad." IL Is the
most consecrated of all instruments. The
fate is more mellow, the bugle more mar
tia, the corncs more incisiyc, the trumpet
more resonant, the organ more mighty. but
the harp has j tenderness and sweetness
belonging to no other instrument that l
know of. 1t caters into the richest sym
boiIsm OF the Holy Scriptures. The cap
tives in their sadness hung their ha;ps
upoa the willows" In other ages il had
eight strings Davids harp had ten
strings. and when his great soul was aiire
-, with the theme his sympathetic voice, &c
companicd BY exquisite vibration OF the
chords. must have been o?erpowering.
With ae many things 10 complain about
as any man ever had David wrote more
anthems than any other man ever wrote.
lie PUTS even the frosts and hailstorms
and tempes;s and creeping things ard fly
ing fowl and the mountains and the hills
and day and night into = chorus. Absa-
Ions plotting and Ahithophe.'s treachery
and hosts OF antagonists and sleeplcss
nights and I running sore could not hush
has psGlmoiy. Indeed. the more his trou-
bles the m;ghtier his sacred poems. The
words praise and song arc so often
repeated in his psalms chat one would
think the typesetters case containing the
letters with which those words are spelled
would be exhausted.
In my tex David calls upoa the people
to praise the Lord with an Instrument OF
ten strings. like that which he was accus-
toned 20 finger. The simple fact Is that
Ac most o. us, il we praise the Lord at
all, play upon one string or two strings or
three strings when we ought 10 take harp
fully chortcl aud with glad fingers sweep
adj the strings. Instead o. being grateful
for here ana there a blessing we happen
TO think OF, We ought 10 rehearse all our
blessings so Ear as We can recall them and
obey the injunction OF my text TO sing
unto Him with an instrument OF ten
strings.
Lave you ever thanked God for delight
some food: What vast multitudes are n
hunge.ed from day to day or are obliged
TO take food not toothsome pleasant to
the taste. What millions are in struggle
fer bread y Confederate soldier went %
the front. and his family were on the
verge OF starvation. but they were kept up
by the faith of child OF that household,
who, noticing that some supply was sure to
come excla med, Mother, | think God
hears whea We scrape the bottom Of the
barrel"
Have you appreciated the fact that on
most OF your tables are Injuries that do
not come to all: Have you realized what
varieties of flavor often touch your tongue
and how the saccharin and the acid have
been Afforded your palate! What fruits,
hat nuts st.. 10
tite, while many would be glad to get the
orusts and rlnds and pee!iags that fall
from your table.
For the fine nayors and the luxurious
vianis you have enjoyed for a lifetime per
haps you have never expressed to God 4
word o. thanksgiving. That is one OF the
ten -trings that you ought to have
thrunmed IN praise TO God, but you have
never yet put il N vibration.
Have you thanked God for cycs;gnt IS
originally given 10 you or, afte- it was
dimrled by age. for the glass that brought
the page OF the book within the compass
of the vision: Have you realized the pri.
alton those suffer to whon the day Is "a
black as the night and VINO never sec the
acc OF father or neither or wife or child or
lend: Through what painful surgery
lany have gone to set one glimpse OF the
ght, The eye so delicate and beautiful
nd useful that one OF them Is invaluable.
And most Of us have two OF these won
srs OF divine mechanism. The man OF
illions CT dollars who recently went blind
ON atrophy OF optic nerve would have
en- willing to give al his millions and be-
rae = cav laborer ii he could have kept
tlo blindness that s.adually crept over
vision.
YOU may have noticed how C'lrist's SYM
lies were stirred ior the blind. OBI
mia has always been rrcvalcnt in Pal
&c, the custom ~ slcep.ng on the house
}, exposed to the dew and tho flying
OF the CT7 season, inviting this dread
disorder. \ large percentage of the in
itants could not tell the difference be-
en- u O'Clock at noon and u o'clock at
Ii. We are told of six OF Christ's mir
for the cure OF these sightless ones.
l suppose they were only specimens OF
drcGs of restored visions.
hat piiiiul spectacle saul OF Tarsus,
hty man, three days led about in phys
a. vel a. spiritual darkness. he who
,rward made Fell. srenble by ms elo-
encc and ared the Athenian philoso-
.rs on Mars Hill and was the only cool
lded man il the Alexandria corn shin
/ went TO pieces on the rocks OF Mile
once he mighty prosecutor of Saul,
erward the glorious evangelist Paul, for
rec days not able to take a safe step
hout guidance
lave YOU ever given thanks fo- two
as-media between the sorl inside and
+, infinite Cod could create! The eye,
G window of our immortal nature tho
te through winch all oolors msrch. the
,ture gallery Of the soul. Without the
C this world il big drnseon. i fear
az many u us ave never given one
ariv expire ION Of gratitude f,r treasure
sight. the loss o. which is tie greatest
sa. ter possible. unless il be ne loss of
G mind. Those wcndrous seven fusclcs
at turn the eye zap or down -;.ht or
or arouad No one but =, could
ave created he rrtna II re have ever
a,prcciatcd what God dill wH.a lie ave
two eyes it was when We Nv otEers
18th oblitcrated visor
Ala. that only through Che priva.iol OF
theirs we came 20 3 realization oi orr own
Tossing! If ven had harp 10 hand and
wept all The strings OF gratitude. you
-ould have struck ths. which IS one OF
ae most dulcet Of tie len strings.
Further. notice how many pass through
rc in cilencc because he car refuses to
ITS office. They never hear music, vo-
y OF instrumental. The thunder that
lis its full diapason through the heav-
ms does not start'c he prolonged silence
The air that has Tor us many melodies
has no sweet sound for them. They live in
L., hot mil 10 i.,r.I