Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1905-04-28

honey for n dozen bees. I have made
the tired. sick mother. riding by In her
carriage. clap her hands for Joy and
say, oh. what beautiful roser l
have been drawn In the picture OF q
Paul de Longpre. I have well earned
my rest. God will awake me in the
morning. He will send TO me the sun
shire in his own good time. will now
| 81. my prayers and go to sleep and
| trust him"
What would you think IL all the wild
| flowers on the Jerusalem hills on TIE
morning Of the blacklist of all Black
Fridays In the worlds history began
| TO weep and to cry and TO beg. Sup
posing that we should hear them beg. n
to moan: What is the matter? Wat
Is the matter? Why Is that great
| crowd surgipg forth from yonder gates
to crush us and trample our petals I'm
the dust? Why is this darkness over
the whole earth? IL is not yet night.
Is the end of the world at hand? o
God, why are those rocks swaying un-
derneatb US as n cradle would rock
under n mothers touch? Why this aw-
full light in the garden on this early
Easter NORM" Ii ever there was a
| time when flowers could open their
lips and speak 1t must have been then
| when their Maker suffered. But not
with such words would they have bro
Ken their silence. 1 can imagine their
greeting as the Saviour stepped among
them that morning In the garden OF
Joseph OF Arimathea. Sweet and beau
and l can Imagine bis saying TO them:
swing your incense, wild flowers.
Swing 1t far and near. Hold high your
ehalice filed with sweetest OF nectar
that every passing humming bird may
have his FILL And then don't worry.
but trust me. Just trust me-" And IL
the Wild flowers trust God for food and
drink and sleep, cannot we do the
same?
The Lease. of the Lilies.
Trust Christ. as do the wild newers.
Oh, why cannot we do It? What a
blessed peace this trust would mean to
our tired hearts, The other day WAS
riding out to a cemetery with gentle
man who ives one OF the pallbearers OF
the funeral we were following. He
told me his age. In great amaEement 1
said: why, you do not look nearly as
old as that. What is your panacea OF
perpetual YOUTH" well" he an.
swered, 81 do not know of any except
one. ! trust God. Because fully trust
him never worry. 1 always go to bed
early and get eight or nine fun hours
sleep. Then when get up In the morn
ing 1 say to myself. Now, with Gods
help. Will do the best. the very best.
1 cam Then. IL have done my best
and things do not come out as wish,
why, II Is Gods lookout and not mine
know he loves me better than love
myself. Why should 1 grumble IL he
has a better plan for me than 1 have
thought out?" Alb. my friends. after
we have done our best with Gods help
can we not trust God? Can we not feel
that God will care for US even as he
does for the wild fiowersf
The Easter lilies teach US that n
short earthly life Is not necessarily an
unimportant life. Even though our
loved ones were with US but n few
years. the Influence OF those years both
| for them and us may reach on through
the eternlties. Their lives and our lives
may be as short as the shortest lived OF
the Wild flowers. and yet the eternities
themselves will never be able to outlive
them and us In our heavenly joys. The
Easter lily is the symbol Of the Christ's
resurrection and OF our own resurrec-
ton through Christ.
The God or the heavenly garden
sometimes gives his sweetest perfumes
and most exquisite garments 10 those
OF his floral children who may be call
ed the transient beauties OF this world
To some OF us our earthly lives may be
as short as those OF the passing flow
ers. The night blooming cereus bios
! SONS but once year. About o O'Clock
at night this beautiful flower. with its
rim OF most delicate pink and Its white
center. opens. In three hours the flow
er Is dead. The midnight tolls Its knell.
The night blooming cereus, although
nine inches In diameter. dies OF old
age after II has had but three short
hours OF maturity. The mnrvels OF
Peru. better known by the name OF
the four CLOCKS, were the little flow
ers dearly chefished by our grand
mothers. They open late every after
noon. just at 4 O'clock. In olden days
these flowers were far more to be
trusted as timepleces than the ancient
wooden clocks OF the quaint farm
houses. These flowers die short time
after the sun has set. Nearly all wild
flowers live but few days ut most.
Showdrops fade almost as quickly as
a snowdrop melts away. The trailing
arbutus shivers In the cold OF spring
and soon catches pneumonia and dies.
The biographies OF nearly all plants
can be written In the few words with
which Jesus described the life of a
lily. as 1.-THE grass OF the field. which
today Is and tomorrow Is cast into the
oven The heat OF the sun may beth
incubate floral lie and cremate the
shriveled corpse in the same day.
TIE Rss~srseffe. Ty.th.
But. though mans life. like the lilies.
may be very short, his heavenly life.
the Resurrection life. Is very hong.
Christ was only thirty-three years OF
age when he was lcrucifed. But Christ
Is today dwelling In heaven with our
Il u
Mother. by the grave OF your little
baby. ] declare 1t. Husband, by the
grave OF your dead wife believe 1t.
Child, by the casket OF your fntEer and
mother. welcome this resurrection
truth. Our dear ones earthly lives
may have ended. but their heavenly
lives have just begun. Oh, on this glo-
rious Easter morn will you accept this
TRUTH By placing your hope In Christ.
who bids you trust him. as do the lilies
OF the field, will you not grasp the
promise OF heavenly resurrection?
Could we have a more beautiful SYM
Dol OF the resurrection with which to
close this Easter service than the wild
flowers OF the east? Men often make
a thing ugly first and then cover It up
with paint or paste or gliding to make
IL beautiful" once wrote an unknown
writer. God never does SO. You will
ind no sham On his works. The shape
he gives 10 each creature Is Just that
which Is fitted for 1t, and the color