St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1902-08-30
NJ VACATION REST
. ~an De Sermon BY the "aiph.
way and Byway" Preacher lsD'

eeasonable Sermon bv =. g..
way and Byway" Preacher sD
In. provided q Neea,,,
ing for His Disciple. oIol Out
full Lesson. n.. go Help
Therefrom.
'sn'' 1907, by A. N. Ke,,ou.
paper Cos Ae''0ss News
Tex.. Chicago. ,o
yoursei,, ana he said unto tben,. 1Sz.
rest Saves apart into a desana Come "
- a"hi1e.-Mark S:a. place. ant
!. ,as Rest.-Scripture r.oo
ca,, east one instance where o,, ecords
h a.ied His disciples aside t our Lore
uusy activity of the wor'a rom ron the
\ reya. 81 rest. The words of our ta Pc
with ~, 10 US the tender solici+nd A'
WI; %.1n which Christ regarded + tba
f .sa, as well as spiritual needs o fn ~:
~ 1o,io"ers. Doubtless there y. ny
o'her occasions during 49, were
l whan u u 'he active ministry Of Christ
than ne ana His disciples withdrsv
wan mselVes for the recreation Of the
"ea,y and exhausted bodies AZ W.. .au
- me renewing Of their sn;r;+,,a,
strength. Certainly Tho p;- a.ua'
- n which gave rise to the words
~ our text afford US ample warrant
- tnak'ng them the basis of a vaca.
1911 "e sermon. AS we study the
words and the incidents surro,nd.
ing them, and dig beneath the sur.
lace for light as to the Divine 49,,
regarding summertime rest and re-.
ereatlon, we shall spend q helnfu1
an y, blessed half-hour together.
Inc mistake is very often made in
suppos'ng that God is a hard task
master, and that He views with dis
sPproval vacation time and vacation
rest. With this thought consciously
Vt unconsclously burdening the heart,
many dear and weary child of God
steals on half guiltily, to his vaca ton
rest, almost feeling that he has left
ms Lord behind to follow him with
q sad and disappointed look. And in
SO doing half the. Joy and blessing of
the vacation is lost. All, if we would
draw close to the Saviour's side when
the burdens of life press hard and
the summers heat saps our vitality.
we would hear Him say again, as He
did OF yore: "Come We yourselves
apart into a desert place, and rest
awhile" And instead of leaving Him
behind, we would find the Lord pres
ent at our side, making glad every
moment and opening up new avenues
OF refreshing service for Him. Yes,
He who draws the shades of night
at the close of the busy day, and SUITS
the world to rest; He who rested
Himself on the Sabbath day anu bids
the world to rest with Him, is not
unmindful of the further needs of
His children. The call, "Come unto
Me, all ye that labor and are heavy
laden, and will give you rest"
sounds with alluring tenderness from
the shaded nook and ripping water
side sometimes, and as we draw our
selves apart for awhile we find the
Lord there awaiting us to soothe our
weary bodies and aching brains back
to normal vigor again.
If the declaration, 1.-THE devil never
takes a vacation" is not of hell's
own coinage, it is often used by the
devil and his minions to put the
mark of disapproval upon the vaca-
ton excursion of one whom the Lord
is calling apart for season of need
full rest. It may be true that the
prince of this world never does take
vacation. II so, it is only another
instance Of his hellish excess which
is self-destructive. He cannot and
will not hear God speak, but you,
dear friend, have that privilege. And
If the Lord calls you apart for the
vacation rest, hear Him also say:
ut is vain for you to rise up early,
20 sit up late, to eat the bread OF
sorrows;" even if the excess is in
behalf of a Sunday school class or
other religious obligation; "for," the
verse goes on to declare, 80 he
giveth His beloved sleep"
If you will read the entire sixth
chapter of Marks Gospel, from
which our text is taken, you will find
that the disciples have been journey
ing in bands of two, preaching the
Gospel of repentance. casting out
devils and healing the sick. They re-
turn and relate their experiences to
Jesus. while the people of Capernaum
crowd around in their unrest
and need. Surely here is opportun.
ity of further and greater work r1gnt
at hand. All, if many struggling
d;sc;nle of Christ to-day had been
+here how he would have groaned
nd exhausted his energies under
that seeming urgent call TO GUY!
pr+ Jesus knew that rest was i'm
and turning from tne
crowds for season He leads MS
out into the uninhabited but
f-agrant fields and sloping hlll-sldes
- Tho northeast of the Lake OF uai'
~. How vain it would have been
tor onv of the disciples to tarry oe-
Ia ~. when Jesus had planned re-
freshing lake trip and run IN sn
.neadows. And, behold, while 1resn
10 hreezes kiss the color back INTO
80. faces and the fragrance OF inc
lns aa;na lowers bring new messages
noo n,.s 1--we and care to their souls;
OF uo1 +he tuneful birds sing Natures
. s ~. ~ nraise and restful harmony
md they feel their nag ,a1s NJ
reviving; behold, new c mann o,,t;ne
serve eed into a vast picnic, at which
IS tu snnarv multitudes partake OF
the nun d.s bounty, and the disciples
the ho'' +ha renewed channels