The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-03-25

A4A6C III y ltSSOAS VI NOLSOldIlO0 anu
encouragement for people in sorrow
and adversely The text is Isaiah xviii,
%, 2S: For the fitches are not thrash
ed with n thrashing instrument, nei-
Their is a cart wheel turned about upon
the cummin, but the fitches are beaten
gu with Il staff and the cummin with
n rod. Bread corn is bruised because
he will not ever be thrashing it."
Nisfortunes Of various kinds come
upon various people, and in all times
the great need OF ninety-nine people
out OF q hundred is 'solace. Look, then,
TO his neglected allegory OF my text.
STChere are three kinds of seed men
'doncd-fitches, cummin and corn. OF
the last We all know. But it may be
well TO state that the ftches and the
cummin were small seeds, like the car
away or the chickpea. When these
grains or herbs were to be thrashed.
they were thrown on the floor. and the
wOrkmen would come around with
staff or rod or fail and beat them I'M
I'll the seed would be separated, but
when the corn was to be thrashed that
was thrown on the floor, and the men
would fasten horses or oxen to a cart
with iron denied wheels; that cart
would be drawn around the thrashing
floor, and so the work would be ac-
cOmplished. Different kinds of thrash
ing for different products. The fitches
are not thrashed with a thrashing in
strument, neither is a cart wheel turn
cd about pOn the cummin. but the
htcheS are beaten out with n staff and
the cummin with a rod. Bread corn is
bruised because he will not ever be
thrashing it."
The great thought that the text press
IS upon our SOuls is that we all 20
through some kind of thrashing process.
Fhe fact that o may be devOting
your life &c honorable and noble pur-
POSES will not win you any escape.
NIlh"rfOrce, the Christian emancipation.
was in his day derisively called Doc
TOR Cantwell." Thomas Darlington Ma
cauiay. the advocate of all that was
good. long before he became the most
conspicuous historian of his day was
c~aricatured in n of the quarterly re-
views as "Babbletongue Macaulay."
Norman Mcleod, the great friend Of
the Scotch poor. was industriously ma
hgned in all quarters. although OF the
day when he was carried to his
burial a workman stood and looked at
the funeral procession and said, IF he
had done nothing for anybody more
than he has done for me. he would
shine as the stars forever and ever"
All the small wits of London had their
fling at John Wesley, the father of
NethodiSm. If such men could not es-
cape the maligning of the world, nei-
Their can you expect TO get rid Of the
sharp, keen stroke of the tribulum.
All who will live godly in Christ Jesus
must suffer persecution. Besides that,
there are the sicknesses and the bank
1uptcies and the irritations and the dis
appointments which are ever putting a
cup of aloes to your lip. Those wrin-
Ales on your face are hierOglyphics
which, if deciphered. would make out
a thrilling story of trouble. The foot
step of the rabbit is seen the next
morning on the snow. and on the white
hairs of the aged are the footprints
showing where swift trouble alighted.
Come Unexpectedly.
Even amid the joys and hilarities Of
life trouble will sometimes break in.
AS when the people were assembled in
the CharleStown theater during the
Revolutionary war, and while they
were witnessing a farce and the audi
ence was in great graduation the guns
of an advancing army were heard and
the audience broke up in wild panic
and ran for their lives, so oftentimes
while you are seated amid the joys and
festivities nt this world you hear the
cannOnade of some great disaster. All
the ftches and the cummin and the
corn must come down on the thrashing
floor and be pounded.
My subject. in the first place. teaches
as that it Is no compliment to us II we
escape great trial. The ftches and the
cummin on one thrashing floor might
look over to the corn on another thrash
ing floor and say: Look at that poor.
miserable. bruised corn! We LAY only
been n little pounded, but that has been
almost destroyed" Well, the corn, If
1t had lips, would answer and say: do
you know the reason you have not been
as much pounded as l have? 1t is be-
cause you are not of so much worth as
i am. If you were, you would be as
severely run over" Yet there are men
who suppose they are the Lords favor
ites simply because their barns are
full and their bank ccount Is flush
and there are no funerals in the house.
1t may be because they are fitches and
eummin, while down at the n OF the
lane the roor widow may be the Lords
corn. You are but little pounded be-
cause you are but little worth and she
bruised and ground because she is the
best part Of the harvest. The heft Of
the t~hrashing machine is according to
the value of the grain. If you have not
been much thrashed in life, perhaps
there is not much to thrash If you
have not been much shaken Of trouble,
perhaps il is because there is going to
be a very small yield. When there are
plenty of ~blackberries, the gatherers go