The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1902-12-05
FARMvILLE, VA, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1902

the matter with my brain. My memory
seems to have completely left me. ]
cannot recall the simplest names or
facts. have to make a memorandum
Of everything. Even my children have
to look after me now as though ! was n
little child"
When the faculties begin to fail and
the hair to whiten, the burden Of the
locusts becomes very heavy to bear un-
less man as n Christian Is walking
side by side with Christ. Even the
Christian viii find this burden a heavy
burden unless he has an extra amount
Of divine grace given to him. Mr..
Beceber once said that one Of the sad
dest days he ever spent was when the
realization first came upon him that
he was going down the hillside OF life
and very soon would not be as phys
ically strong or as mentally alert as
formerly The Plymouth pastor said
that this saddening realization came
upon him one day when he was at
tempting to dodge IN and out Of the
carriages and stages and dray wagons
that were moving up and down Broad
way As he was In the middle Of that
thorouehfare he heard a driver angrily
call out two or three times: Get out
Of the way. old mani Haven't you any
sense? Are you too old to thinkf Get
out Of the way, there, gray hairs, or
you'n be run down. Mr. Beecher hur-
rledly looked around to find out what
old man was in danger. To his sur
prise and chagrin. he found that the
drayman was shouting TO him and that
he and no other was the "old man.
1t is not hard struggle to physically
die Dying is just as natural an act
for the body as Is the act Of being
born. But it is hard TO grow old, to
feel that you have to ride when once
IL was an exhllaration 10 walk, 10
know that the mind is failing, that the
heart has not the old vlgor, that the
hand which once grasped and welded
the hlt Of a sword must now do the
small chores around the old homestead
II Is hard 10 know that upon the trem-
bling shoulders Of old age even the
weight Of a small grasshopper's body
can become a burden, a heavy, crush
ing burden.
Yet, my friends. amid the decaying
faculties Of old age the grace Of the
Lord Jesus Christ is sufficient to over
come the burden Of the buzzlng lOcusts.
What was the testimony Of the aged
Thomas Guthrie, the great Christian
warrior Of old Scotland? Standing be-
fore a large assemblage Of little chill
dren, he said: Don't call me an old
man, as some people do. Why. ! am as
young and happy as any child sitting
before me today. My limbs may not
be as strong as they once were. One
Of my feet may be in the grave but
the other foot Is planted upon the earth
so firmly that its leg has sunken knee
deep in the clover tops. My hearing
may not be as accurate as it once was,
but my ears are continually hearing
the sounds OF sweetest music. My eye
may not be as keen to read a book. but |
my eyeslght Is continually becoming |
more inspired 10 see the beauties OF |
earth as well as the beauties Of heaven. |
| am not an old man. As | approach |
my second childhood / have begun to |
live a life Of eternal happiness and Of |
never ending joys" Study the faces,
the beautiful happy faces, Of the aged
Christian men and women about, and |
you will learn as never before that the |
grace Of the Lord Jesus Christ is sufh- |
cient, even amid the decaylng physical |
and mental faculties, 20 lift the burden |
Of the buzzing locust. Oh, my young
brother and sister, while you are yet
physici lly strong will you not take into
your life this divine power that will be
such mighty help to you, when the
keepers Of the house shall tremble and
the strong men shall bow themselves
and the grinders cease because they
are fewY
When the great founder Of Method
ism was asked what he should do in
the interim If he knew that he was
going TO die at the end Of the next thir
ty-six hours, John Wesley replied: Il
would do just as | intended TO do. /
would ask Christ to go with me when
| preached tonight. | would ask Christ
10 90 with me when j meet my three
different preaching appointments to-
morrow, one in the morning, one at
noon and one in the evening | would
ask Christ to sit down with me when !
Eat my meals. | would ask Christ to
guard me when | sleep both tonight
md tomorrow night, and then I would
wake up In glory" Like John Wesley,
N the everyday duties Of life, in the
Eating and work and sleeping as well
rs in the prayer meeting, will you ask
he dear Christ to help you lift the diff
'erent infiniteslmal burdens OF swarm
If irritating, buzzing, nagging, uou-
bling locusts?
Cen u,rara porter In his Croffor |