Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1904-11-05

no difficulty In most cases about the
spiritual rescues. But the trouble Win
this old hateful and hating world is,
as Josh Billings quantity put IL, "When
a man starts downhill II seems as
though everything was creased FOR the
occasion" And when man once
strikes the bottom of the hill but very
few people are ready to fling him the
gospel rope and haul him up out OF the
mud. O man, can you not hear
Christ speaking to you in behair OF
Gods wayward children, as David, the
broken hearted father, once SAID 10
General Joab about his wayward Doy,
"Deal gently for my sake with the
Young man, even with Absalom."
Oh. how many sinners could be
brought to Christ If we would only
practice the gospel Of a gentle life! II
Is said that one of the hardest criml-
nails of an eastern penitentiary was
converted by the gentleness OF a little
child. This little girl and her rather
were being shown through the prison
wards. When the party came TO long
fight of stairs the warden turned 10
this hardened life prisoner and MUIR
derer near by and said, Jack, carry
her upstairs." When the hard featur-
ed convict stopped down to pick up the
little girl she looked up into his face
with a smile and said, Jack, will you
kiss me?" And when he was about to
nut the little one down she said, NOW,
Jack. will you let me kiss your NO
sooner were those last words spoken
than the old criminals heart was melt
ed God struck the rock Of Horeb and
II gushed forth with tears of penitence.
Kindness did it. The gentleness OF a
little child accomplished what the
blows of the keeper and the iron bars
could never do. o man, will you not
start forth from this moment TO WIN
sinful men and women to Jesus Christ
by the omnipotent power Of a gospel
lied gentle life?
The Chief Mission of Man.
To save immortals for Christ ought
TO be the chief mission Of man, IN
view of which fact again l ask the
same question | asked before, why
should we not be gentle with the sins
and wrongdoings Of other people? Has
not God been very gentle in his deal
ings with our sins? When william n
| Gladstone. the "great commoner" ol
England. was dying his son was read
ing to him this beautiful verse IRON
t Paul's epistle to young Timothy, This
is a faithful saying and worthy OF al
acceptation, that Christ Jesus came in
to the world to save sinners" and N
. sooner did the son come to the wor'
: "sinners" than the dying statesman
e finished the verse, "of whom am tn
| chief" Yes, like William E. Glad
l stone. like Peter and Paul, we nav
= all been the "chief of sinners" There
2 fore. If God deals gently with our sins
e cannot we, shall not we, deal genti
with the sins of others whom we wan
i to bring TO the cross?
b We have seen how man In his az
l. yotion to man was ready to sacrinc
o his all for an earthly master. Cannt
ii we. at least in the sarne .ratio, beiWil
: ing 10 sacrifice our liye8 ko the ,sexyi<
o of Jesus Christ, to bring sinners
o Christ through the influences OF
e gentle life. Amid large gatne
o ing in London Of literary men Willial
n Makepeac ce Thackeray one night said
e reference to Shakespeare, whose nan
g was being discussed, II should like
e have been Shakespeares shoeDlac
d lust TO have lived in his house, just
have worshiped him, just to have RI
on his errands and have seen TN
sweet. serene face" II the greatest
- all English satirists was ready to gl'
such devotion to the greatest OF
L. English dramatists should not we
% willing to do what a living Chri
- wants us to do? Should we not, shf
~ - we not, gladly go forth to bring 81
ners back to the altar OF mercy
~ kindness and Christian love? Charl
!! Wagner. the Alsatian preacher,
- pleasure loving Paris has rung {
~ ~ changes in the power Of "the simr
u u life" Today I preach the gospel
re the "gentle life"-the tender gent
NC ness by which God made David gre
~, ~, and by which we can, through Chri
no make Others great, and, throu
~ Christ, become great ourselves.
od Speak gently; It is little thing,
-, Dropped in the hearts deep wen.
lld The good, the JOY. which 1t may orir
ne Eternity shall tell.
ar copyright. 1904. by Louis Klopscn'l