The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-08-07
DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON.
BY THE REV FRANK DE WITT rALmAoE D. D

musical ilil college to cultivate her voice
 Sne was once the leader of her fathers choir. Her father Is a minister and is spending the savings of a lifetime in giv- ing ms daughter musical education that she may be the better able to serve Ohrlst. But, though there are hundreds or struggling little churches within snort distance of where she lives which would De blessed by her singing she now never enters prayer meeting She rarely enters church. She says, Walt, Lord, until have acquired A profieienev In the art, and then l will sing for theen
 People overworked.
 But these words of my text not only ap- ply to the young people who are sidetrack- ing their gospel duties to make way for their preparation for a profession They also apply to the busy men and women who, in the prime of physical strength
 and mental power, are like tired peas- ants staggering along the highways under greater burdens than 1t seems possible Tor them to bear When I speak thus l mean that this text is applicable to nearly all men and women in midlfe. Why? Because l believe that most people are overworked. They are physically tired They are tired In the same way that my grandmother was tired who, as a farmers wife, had to rear thirteen children. My father used to say: T never remember my mother except with tired look on her face. As a little boy l remember her coming to the table and, after all the children had been served, turning to fath- CT and saying. David, l am too tired to eat, " How many other women have said the same thingl Most people are overworked in the struggle of life. Yet this text, 0 man, O woman, in the prime of your physical and mental strength, ap- plies to you. No right have you to side track your duties to God. No right have you to say to Christ, Lord. suffer me to do this or that, and then I will follow thee" Christ should be first not last. Chrst's command, no matter how or when it comes, should be needed or obeyed; then all other duties will fall into line in their right places.
 Christis command, Follow me-" comes to the tired merchant. It comes to you even in the whirl and hustle of business life. "Oh, mo-" you say, T have no time for Christ. My business absorbs every atom of my energy. l am so tired from my week day tasks Lat I am too weary to go to church on Sunday Why, when I go. I fall asleep during the sermon. It makes but little difference to me who breaches the sermon. Come down to my store any time and you will see how l am oYerdriven. There is a steady stream of men in my outer office all the time. l must see them. It is work. work, work until l am nearly dead" Yes, my brother, in one sense what you say Is true. You are an overworked man, but how much of that labor that so fatigueS you Is volun- tarily undertaken? Have you, as a Chris llan man, ene right to give to your own concerns. to your business and the world. the whole of your time and energy? Have you forgotten the claims that God has up- on you? Better leave undone some of the work you are now doing that you may have strength to serve him. Why would you not be willing to drop some of that business drudgery? Do you know that much of that grinding, useless, selfish toll is making failure out of your life? The temporal necessities of life are very small, yet thousands of peo- pie plod on, and on. and on. in a treadmill of mercantile drudgery, as though their very happiness depended upon raising their store from a four story to ten story dry goods emporium.
 Rich Mans Failure.
 Some time ago a lady visited an old school friend who had married a mer- chant in one of our eastern cities That night when they were seated together for a quiet chat she said: "Clara how Is your husband getting along?" Miserably' ans wered the wife. Why how is that? Is he not making lot of money? Is not this palace of home your own? Is not his name written high as one of the great financiers of this city?" "Oh, yes, ans wered the wife John Is making lot of money. He is already what some peo- ple call rich. But I certainly call him poor When we started out in life we did not have much money, but we had enough for all our necessary wants Besides we had plenty of time for each other and our friends and for our church. John then only had small store He would get home for supper on time Then all the evenings were ours. We read together. We visited our friends together Some weeks John would get off a whole day, and together we would take trip to the country and roam among the wild flowers. Our Sundays were always spent 1 together at church and at the home. But nowJohn has sold himself to his work. l rarely see him. He works all day. He works part of the night. He always has some business engagement on Sunday. He : makes lots of money, but then he only | puts that money back into the business, and therefore 1t is not his to use. He has ] kept on working the harder to look after | the bigger business. certainly think | that. John Is making a failure out Of life. He Is a perfect slave to work, and we rarely see each other for any of our old l good times''
 But this text has still another appli- cation It is wdrd of reproof to people who waste their time and strength in use- less remorse over their undutifu conduct to parents who are now dead. Many men ! and women have sidetracked their direct | duties to God by switching them off to a family plot. I remember some years ago, after l had spent four years in the west, | l went to Brooklyn to find my mother grave. Though had lived over quarter of q century in Brooklyn. yet by the new system of car lines established there since I went to Chicago could not find Green wood cemetery until l had been put or three different cars. But, though here and there one person, by long absence, may be | unable to find his mothers grave, there | are thousands and tens of thousands or | people who have become blinded 10 the living duties of life because they will per sist in tarrying by the family plots where sleep their dead. Useless regrets for the dead may have great part in the side | tracking of our duties to God. Who was this young diciple to whom Christ spoke | do not know The Bible does not men tion his name. But perhaps he belong 1 ed to that great multitude who spends | one half of their lives In abusing and neglecting the living and the other half In mourning and sobbing over the dead. | Their love and grief are purely Carlylean. They say that Thomas Carlyle, the dis gruntled, fault-fnding, iconoelastlc philo- sopher. was the founder of a big school of copyists. However that may be, know there are many people who emulate | the writer of "Sartor Resartus' in one fact. After the death of his wife his ha- l bitual lament was, Alas alas, she can
 never know now how I loved her." Dur
 ing her lifetime he had for her only sharr | words and none of the little delicate at- | fanffONc xp1 h da bar ha n.