Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1903-01-28

night is a valley. The highway of life
has countless prongs. We must make
final decisions each day, for we cannot,
at one and the same time, take both
the right hand and the left hand
roads.
The highway of life winds over peril
Gus heights, with a yawning precipice
on either hand. One misstep and there
Is endless and bottomless engulfment.
The highway swarms and crawls with
ravenous beasts and yenomous ser
penis that howl and hiss with fury
deadly and with hatred deep as hell.
Even in our sleep we are threading our
way among flaming and flying swords
and spears and plowshares as evil an
gels, insidious diseases and incipient
death crowd in upon us and dispute
our further progress.
The heather have their gods of birth,
but they only mock them. Not so with
our Savior. He is present at every
birth. Into the nostrils of every babe
He breathes the breath of eternity.
What He did for Adam in the begin
ming He will continue to do until the
last birth has been accomplished. His
eye catches the first CLEAN of our open
ing eyes, His ear hears the first wailing
cry, and His nailed and pierced hand
feels the first pulse beat and heart
throb. You believe that He presides
over the second birth. the birth spir-
itual why should you deem it thing
incredible that He should also preside
over the first birth, the birth physical
and psychical, upon which the second
birth, the birth spiritual. depends?
Here, then is occasion for joy to all
parents. Though kings may send feliei-
tations and congratulations when your
fedgelings fly into your bowers of love,
a yet greater King is already there
with light and life and all the aroma
of the skies. The great Physician pre-
sides over every birth; the King of
kings bestows every crown of life.
whose smile no flower blossoms in
humble cot or palace hall. When He
withholds His smile they fade, and
when He hides His face they die
who plucked that flower|' cried the
toiler as he walked through the garden.
His fellow servant answered, The
Master" and the toiler held his peace
Death in babyhood is but the shadow
of the Masters face as He bends to
kiss the precious life away. 1t is but
the eclipse under the cover Of which
He removes them from our embrace,
/ speak of sickness next because sick
ness always comes next. Sickness al
ways follows hard upon the heels of
birth Sickness is the vermin that
covers the cleanliest child. the cancer
that fastens and feeds upon the health
lest life, the highwayman that smites
down at midday as well as at midnight,
the scourger that spares neither high
nor low, neither rich nor poor, neither
young nor old.
o We who suffer from the rayages of
sickness. or have loved ones who are
racked with many pains, take this
promise to-day. Let it warm the part
that cLills and cool the part that burns
Let it be bandage on the brow, hearts
ease on the breast, healing draught
upon the tongue and wool upon the
feet. "Lo, l am with you Away"
When the physician and surgeon are
gone when the family sleeps, when the
watchers doze, when the light is burned
down into the socket and the fire on the
hearth is quite gone out, when the air
is cold to the point of freezing, when
the deep-mouthed bayiug of the distant
watch dog alone breaks the silence and
the soul hears the solemn booming at
midnight of the bells in the towers of
eternity, 81 am with you. Ever! Every
where. Lo, l am with you alwayw
However lightly we may think of
death and judgment, and with what
ever bravado we may speak, they are
nevertheless the graYest and most
awful of all our allotted ordeals and we
only belittle ourselves and lower our
selves in the estimation of the universe
when we speak trifiingly and fiippantly
of them. | only articulate all history
when l declare that the dark stream
and the silent boatman on the one hand
and the dazzling throne and the incor-
ruptible Judge on the other have filled
the loftiest and profoundest minds of
all the centuries with dread alarms and
with fearful apprehensions.
Blessed be God, there is strength
there is support, there is consolation,
there is assurance. there is victory eter-
nal through our Lord Jesus Christ!
Coming thus through the fires of hui
initiation and crucifixion, comprising
the whole gamut of human experience,
not even emitting death. He is able to
become "a merciful and faithful high
priest I'm things pertaining to God"
For in that He Himself hath suffered
He is able to succor those that suffer"
The scriptures burst forth with so
great "a cloud of witnesses" it is i'm
possible for us to hear them all even
In chorus. Let us begin with the Mas
ter Himself: Let not your heart be
troubled; We believe in God, believe
also in Me. In my Fathers house are
many mansions: If it were not SO 1
would have told you. | go TO prepare
a place for you. And If l 90 and pre-
pare place for you will come again
and receive you unto Myself; that
where l am there ye may be also y
The many mansions viii have
many residents. In some Of them there
VIII be angels; in others archangels; in
Others cherubim, in others seraphim
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