The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1904-11-24
WORSHIP OF THANKS
Rev. SWinnertOn Delivers Sermon at
Union Thanksgiving Services
Last Night.
Rev. John r. Henderson Delivers Ap.
propriate Thanksgiving Ser
mon Last Sunday.

last evening, the sermon being deliv-
cred by Rev. Rupert Swinnerton,
pastor Of the Princeton M. E. church.
There was good attendance and the
service was a very interesting one.
Special music was furnished.
Rev. John r. Henderson offered
prayer and read the scripture lesson.
Rev. Swinnerton's Thanksgiving
topic was ''The Open Hand of God,"
the scripture key note of his topic be-
ing from Psalm CIV-27, %, 20.
':These wait all upon the
That thou mayest give them their meat in due
season,
That thou givest them they gather;
Thou openest thy hand they are satisfied With
good
Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled;
Thou takest away their breath. they die and
return to dust
Rev. Swinnerton said that the words
of the psalmist were a summary of
creation and Providence. The world
came into existence at the hands of
the Divine fiat. He drew picture of
the development of the naked world
into a perfect physical world where
trees wave in the breezes of heaven,
birds fit to and fro in the heaven,
ANIMALS roam in the forests, fish glide
in the rivers and seas and man takes
the field as general-in-chief of the
great army of God.
The Transformation was not the re-
suit of blind chance or the disposition
of things to the hand of Fate, but all
is laid at the feet of an infinite God
whose being extends ''from everlast-
ing to everlasting" and whose throne
is the consultations of immensely ana
domain the universe itself.
The picture painted by the psalmist
is of great person opening His hand
in a bountiful manner and all the
creatures of His extensive household
coming up and tapping food from His
bountiful hand. ...
The speaker emphasized the depend
ence of all creatures upon God.
1.-The most microscopic creature
that exists to the ponderouus elephant
must come to Gods table every morn
ing for food. There is no creature so
small but some provision has been
made for, it's SUPPORT ~
"God says to man, There is the
land, till the soil and there shall al
ways be seed time and harvest Some
Of course have perverted the plan of
God and every winter in Chicago and
other large cities people starve to
death beneath the shadow of pyramids
of wheat" -..--~ .-.,-s. 2.
Rev. Swinnerton showed the utter
dependence of man upon God. 9 . ..:-,
'In his normal government and as
a general thing God is generous with
the members of his family and He
opens His hand. It is possible in the
economy of God for every want to be
supplied: There is an opposite to
satisfy every longing
Referring to the real spirit of
Thanksgiving, Rev. Swinnerton pic
tured the pessimists, the kickers, the
ungrateful, and those who complain
that the state is wrong, the church
corrupt and education is not what it
should be. Instead of being like the
psalmist whose heart is filled with
gratitude, they grumble and make
themselves miserable and everybody
about them. In striking contrast to
this class of people he told of the
beautiful custom which prevails
among the Swiss herdsmen of the Alps
who each evening at sunset take their
horns and shout through them in a
mighty voice, "Praise We the Lord"
herdsman answering herdsman in the
Thanksgiving chorus, "Higher and
higher up the mountains the sound is
taken up until every hill has found a
tongue, and peak answers peak,
Praise We the Lord
Something like this has just taken
place in America The president has
sent forth a proclamation to thank
and praise the Lord. The sound has
been taken up and 're-echoed by the
governor of each state, and thus it
has reached every village and ham,
let.''
Rev. Swinnerton spoke of Thanks
giving for the past and present, the
spiritual Thanksgiving, domestic
Thanksgiving, and national Thanks
giving for the great and good man
whom God has elected to represent
the people of this country. 'sThe
voice of the people is the voice of
God. The people by an overwhelm-
ing majority have placed President
Roosevelt in the chief seat of the ma