Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1902-02-27

They fleece every sheep they can catch. AL
country merchant comes in to buv sprinul
or fall goods; and he gets into the store oil
one OF these professed Christian men who
have really no grace in their hearts, and hel
1s completely swindled. He is so overcomet
that ne cannot get out of town during the
week. He stays in town over Sunday. goes
INTO some church to get Christian consola-ll
ton, when what is his aInazement to findi
that the very man who hands him the moor
esbox ln the church is the one who relieved
! him him Of his money! But never mind; the
deacon has his black coat on now. He
looks solemn and goes home, talking about
the blessed sermon" If the wheat in the
churches should be put into hopper. the
first turn Of the crank would make the
chat fly, I tell yotl.l Some Of these men
are great sticklers for gospel preaching.
They say: You stand there in bands and
surplice and gown and preach-preach like
an angel-and we will stand out here and
attend to business. Don't mix things.
Don't get business and religion in the same
bucket. You attend to your matters, and
we will attend to ours" They do not know
that God sees every cheat they have prac-
ticed in the last six years; that He nan look
| through the iron wall OF their tireproof
safe; that He has counted every dollar
| they have in their pocket and that day
Of judgment will come. These inconsistent
| in the house Of God singing at the close of
| the service, :sRock of ages cleft for me-"
and then when the benediction is pro-
| nounced shut the pew door and say as they
go out: "Goob-bye, religion. I'll be back
next Sunday
And have to tell you, O Christian men,
hrs you rsnnn sHnnot apply the .pa principles of
never be able to apply them on large
scale. If you cannot contend successfully
| against these small sorrows that come
down single handed, what will you do
when the greater disasters of life come
down with laundering artillery, rolling
over your soul?
Again, we must bring the religion, of
Christ into our commonest blessings. When
| the autumn comes and the harvests are in
and the governors make proclamations, we
| assemble in churches and we are very
| thankful. But every day ought to be
thanksgiving day. We do not recognize
the common mercies of life. We have to
see blind man led by his dog before we
| begin to bethink ourselves of what grand
thing it is to have undimmed cyesight.
| We have to- see some wounded man hob
bling on his crutch Or with his empty coat
sleeve pinned up before we learn to think
what grand thing God did for us when He
gave us healthy use OF our limbs. We are
SO stupid that nothing but the misfortunes
Of others can rouse us up to our blessings.
AS the OK grazes in the pasture up to it's
makes the clover, and as the bird picks up
the worm from the furrow, not knowing
that it is God who makes everything from
the animalcule in the sod to the seraph on
the throne, SO we go on eating, drinking
and enjoying; but never thanking, or sell
dom thanking, or, if thanking at all, with
only half a heart, = 7s--- = = So
I compared our Indifference to the brute,
but pe.haps I wronged the brute. l do not
. know but that, among it's other instincts,
it may have an instinct by which it recog-
nlzes the divine hand that feeds it. I do
not know but that God is, through it,
holding communication with what we call
!. Irrational creation" The cow that stands
under the willow by the watercourse chew.
ing its cud looks very thankful, and who
can tell how much bird means by ite
, song? The aroma of the flowers smells like
incense, and the mist arising from the river
looks like the smoke of a morning sacrifice
Oh, that we were as responsive! Yet who
thanks God for the water that gushes uI
in the well, and that foams in the cascade
and that laughs over the rocks, and that
!; hands in the sea?s Who thanks God fol
the air, the fountain of life, the bridge o1
: sunbeams, the path Of sound, the great fan
on hot summers day? Who thanks Goo
, for this wonderful physical organism, this
sweep of the vision, this chime of harmony
: struck into the ear, this soft tread of 6
J myriad delights over the nervous tissue
this rolling of the crimson tide through ar
/ terry and vein, this drumming of the heart
| on our march to Immortality? We take al
these things as a matter of course.
: But suppose God should withdraw these
r common blessings! Your body would be
' come an inquisition of torture, the cloud
5 would refuse rain, every green thing woule
} crumple up, and the earth would crack
r its healthful circulation, pestilence would
swoop, and every house would become .
place Of skulls. Streams would first swim
t with vermin and then dry up, and thirst
and hunger and anguish and despair woule
3 lift their sceptres. Oh, compare such lift
? as that with the life you live with YOU
, families! Is it not time that, with every
t edge these everyday mercies? 'Whethe1
t We eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do al
: to the glory Of God" Do address mar
< or woman who has not rendered to Coo
: one single Offering of thanks?
: I was preaching one Thanksgiving Da.
and announced my text-"Oh, give thank
: unto the Lord, for He is good, for His mer
= whether there was any blessing on the ser
< mon. or not, but the text went straight t
a young mans heart He said to himsel
: as read the text: "'Oh. give thanks unt'
the Lord, for He is good Why, I hav'
: never rendered Him any thanks! Oh, wha
: an migrate I have been!" Can it be, m.
4 brother, that you have been fed by tn
. good hand of God all these days, that vol
: have had clothing and shelter and all tn
= never offered your heart to God? Oh, le
t benefcient surroundings, and, yet hav
a sense Of the divine goodness shown yo;
e in everyday blessings melt your heart, AM
( if you have never before uttered one ear
S nest note of thanksgiving let this be tn
e day which shall hear YOU sing! What
:, say to one say to all. Take this prac
d tical religion I have recommended int
/ your everyday life. Make every day
0 Sabbath and every meal a sacrament AM
;, every room you enter hoy of holes. w
all have work to do; let us be willing to d
n it. We al have sorrows to bear; let u
n cheerfully bear them. We all have battle
T to fight; let US courageous.y fight them. l
p YOU want to die right, you must live right
b Negligence and incidence will win the his
/ of everlasting scorn, while faithfulness Wi
d gather its garlards and wave its sceptr
= and sit upon its throne long after thi
earth has put on ashes and eternal age
e have begun their march. You go home te
;. day and attend to your little sphere of dr
ss ties. I viii go home and attend to my Iii
# tie sphere of duties Every one in his ow
a n1,oa 60 o,1r Avarv cfar IN life chol1 bo