The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1902-04-17

THE right or wrong things you can thlhN
in thirty minutes, the right OF WfQhS
things you can say In thirty mlhuees' .no
right or wrong things you can 40 III IN
ty minutes are glorious OF pa4e-ui' ANP
ing or desperate. -
Look out for the fragments OF TING.
They are pieces OF eternity. III was Ing
half hours between shoelng horses tha1
made Elihu Burritt, the learned biacki,
smith. the half hours between professional
calls as a physician that made Abercrom..
bic the Christian philosopher, the nan
hours between his duties as schoolmaster
that made Salmon p Chase Chief Justlcey
the half hours between shoe. lasts tha2
made Henry Wilson Vice-Presldent OF me
United States, the half hours between
cana1boats. that made James a. Garfield
President.
The half hour day for good books or
bad books, the half hour day for prayer
or Incidence, the half hour day fol. help
ing others or blasting others, the half hour
before you go to business and the han
hour after you return from business-that
makes the difference between the scholar
and the ignoramus, between the Christian
and the infdel, between the saint and the
demon, between triumph and catastrophei
between heaven and hell.
The most tremendous things OF your
life and mine were certain half hours. The
half hour when in the parsonage OF a
country minister l resolved to become a
Christian then and there, the half hour
when | decided to become a preacher OF
the gospel. the half hour when | first re-
allied that my son was dead, the half hour
when l stood on the top Of my house In
Oxford street and saw our church burn
the half hour in which l entered Jerusa1
lem, the half hour in which L stopped on
Mount Calvary, the half hour IN which
stood on Mars Hill and about ten or
fifteen other half hours are the chief times
of my life.
You may forget the name of the exact
years or most OF the important events OF
your existence, but those half hours, Ike,
the half hour of my text, will be lmmorr;;
tai. do not query what you will do with
the twentieth century, l do NOT query
what you will do with this year, but what
will you do with the next half hour? ~
Upon that hinges your destiny, and dur
ing that some OF you will receive the gospel
and make complete surrender, and during
that others of you will make final and ia
tai rejection of the full and free and urgent
and imprisoned offer of life eternal.
Oh, that the next half hour might be
the most glorious thirty minutes OF your
earthly existence! y
Then there are those whose hearing is
so delicate that they get no satisfaction
when you describe the crash of the eter-
nal orchestra, and they feel like saying, aS
a good woman in Hudson, n. Y, said af-
ter hearing me speak of the mighty chorus
of heaven, That must be great heaven,
but what will become of my poor head?"
Yes, this half hour of my text is a still
experience. There was silence in heaven
for half an hour" 4
You will find the inhabitants all at
home. Enter the. Kings, palace and take.
only a glimpse, for we have only thirty
minutes for all heaven. is that Jesus?
YES" Just under the hair along His
forehead is the mark of wound made by
q bunch of twisted bramhles, and His foot
on the throne has on the round of His
instep another mark of wound made BY
spike, and a scar on the palm OF the
right hand and a scar ON the palm of the
left hand. But what countenanceli
What a smile What GRANDEUR What
a lovelinesst What an overwhelming look
of kindness and grace! Why, He looks as
if He had redeemed world! But come
on, for our time is short. Do you see that
row Of palaces? That is the, Apostolic
row. Do you see that long reach OF archit
tectural glories? That is Martyr, row. Do
you see that immense structure? That is
the biggest house in heaven; that is the
house OF many mansions" DO you see
that wall? Shade your eyes against its
burning .splendor, ,for; that is the wall Of
heaven, jasper at the bottom and amethyst
at the top. See this river rolling through
the heart of the great metropolis? That iS
the river concerning which those who Qp0I
lived on the banks Of the Hudson~of the\
Alabama OF the hhlne or tne Shannon
say 1--WE never saw the like of this for
clarity and sheen" That is the chief river
of heaven--so bright, SO wide, so deep
But you ask, "Where are the asyMms for
the old?" L answer, 'The inhabitants are
all young Where are the hospitals for
the lame", They are, all agile, Where
deaf" '"They all see and hear" Where
are the almshouses for the. poor" They
are all multimillionaires. Where are
the inebriate asylums?" why, there are
no saloons" Where are the graveyards?"
why, they never die" 81
ooh, let me go in and see them!" you
say. No, you cannot go in. There are
those who would never consent to let you
come out again. You say, Let me stay
here in this place where they never SIM
where they never suffer, where they never
part" No, no! Our time is short, our
thirty minutes are almost gone. Come ont;
We must get back to earth before this
half hour of heavenly silence breaks up,
for in your mortal state you cannot en-,
dure the pomp and splendor and resonance
when this half hour of silence is ended.l
The day will come when you can see heav.
en- in full blast, but not now. | am now
only showing you heaven at the dullest
half hour of all eternities. Come op!,
There is something in the celestial ap-,
pearance which makes me think that the
half hour of silence will soon be overS
are Vic Wulte uuIbeS DeluB ulICucu
to chariots, and yonder are seraphs finger:
ing harps as if about to strike them into
symphony, and yonder are conQuerors
taking down from the blue halls of heav.
en- the trumpets of victory. Remember,
we are mortal yet and cannot endure TIFF
full roll of heavenly harmonies and CALI
not endure even the silent heaven for mora
than half an hour.
Hark! The clock in the tower Of heaven
begins to strike, and the half hour is endi
ed. Descend! Come back! Come down.
till your work is done. Shoulder a little
longer, your burdens. Fight little longer
your battles, Weep little longer your
griefs. And then take heaven not in its
dullest half hour; but in its mightiest
pomp, and instead of taking it for thirty,
minutes, take it world without end.
But how will you spend the first half
hour of your heavenly citizenship after
you have gone in to stay? After your
proStration before the throne in worship
OF Him who made il. possible for YOU to
get there at all l think the rest of your
first. half hour in heaven will be passed In
receiving your reward if you have been
fntf FIJI / 1,ar-n