Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1906-12-15
Caln1age
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmaee, ID. ID.

sermon the preacher shows the pleas
ures that attend q life rightly spent
and the blessings also, including that
Of longevity. The text Is Exodus Xxx,
- Honor thy father and thy mother
that thy days may be long"
Would you like to grow old? Would
you live upon this earth so long that
your hair shall become white as the
driven snow? Would you, If you could,
live to see your children grow up and
the family scatter and most or the
rooms of the old homestead become
empty and silent except when your
childrens children come to make their
grandfather an annual visit and play
in the nursery with some Of the same
old toys which their fathers and moth
ers used when they were chlldrenF
Would you be born in the latter part OF
one century and live on and on until
you could stand at the cradle or new
century and then live on until you |
could see that century cast aside It's
swaddling clothes and pass through the |
DAYS of its youth and young manhood |
and come on toward its mission OF
middle life? In other words would you |
like to live out the full allotment OF |
mans life and see the sun rise and set
when you have reached your three
score and ten, or even pass your four
score. or even live on, as did Ludovico |
the famous statesman, who started to
write the memoirs of his times at the |
| great age Of 113?
Would you like to be an old man.
| like Peter Cooper or Titan or Pc |
trarch or Cato or Jacob or Isaac or
Abraham? WELL" you say, "that oil
depends upon circumstances. II
could flourish in n righteous old age |
like the psalmIst's palm tree; IL could |
grow old with young heart; II my In |
fuence for good over my fellow men
might be stronger when became gray |
er. I would like to live to be very old, |
and the older the better. But II | am
TO be like an old worm eaten tree,
rnarled and twisted out Of shape; II |
nm to be an mbIttered, whining, fault
finding, helpless old man, out OF touch
with all the :;1 a3 y9H eSements of life, then
want to die before become a pest
to everybody and a dead weight upon
| nv friends. In other words, if | can
/ live to be one Of those lovable, gentle,
helpful. kindly old men who tighten the
burdens OF all those with whom they
cone In contact. then wish to live.
But If cannot be such q one then l
want to die, and perhaps the sooner |
die the better 1t will be for the hap
piness Of those about me-" Well said,
my brother We are here, of course,
speaking Of a glorious old age OF Chris
tlan usefulness. No sane man should
want to live to be bad old man any
more than he should wish to be bad
young man or bad middle aged man,
but most Of us want to live upon earth
Just as long as we can be Of use to
our fellow men. Therefore the longer
we can be of use the longer we should
wish to live.
who Wants to Die at Fiftyf
Who would want to die at fifty years
Of age II he could live to do his best
work for Christ In his sixties and sew
enties, as did John Wesley? SO won
derfully did that great mans physical
frame retain its vigor that it grew
stronger as 1t became older. In bis
biography we find that II was not until
John Wesley reached his sixty ninth
year that he could be persuaded to
travel in a carriage. He always made
his preaching tours up to that time on
horseback At Kingswood he preached
under the shade Of the trees which he
himself had planted When he was
seventy years Of age he spoke at one
time to over 10000 people, by all Of
whom he was distinctly heard. He tells
us himself that when he was. seventy
two years Of age his eyes were more
powerful and his nerves were trmer
than they were when he was forty.
Yes, we should want to do Gods work
in our twenties and thrties and for
ties. But we should also wish to live
TO do a noble Christian mans work In
our fifties and sixties and seventies
and, If possible. in our eighties and
nineties. No man should desire to
shorten his earthly usefulness one day
or one hour when he Is still able to
serve his Divine Master and King
Would you serve God many days?
Would you serve him as nm old man!
Well. II you thus desire. / can tell you
how you can do it. How? Why. read
the commandment of my text God
here states n simple plain gospel truth.
He comes to us tolay and practically
says this: Boys and girls, young men
and young women. If you would serve
me upon earth for years and years to
[ come. then carefully follow the advice
Of your Christian parents You and
can never find or earth better friend
than n noble Christian mother or no
Bile Christian father Most Of us are
ready to confess that God chose well
for us when he let us be born In the
homes Of oar Christian parents Now
comes the practical question. which |
am putting to every young man ana
every young woman. Are you ready TO
'honor thy father and thy mother that
thy days may be long upon the land
l which the Lord thy God giveth theeT'
The Honoring of Parents.
This divine commandent, IN the first
/ place, Is emphatically true In refer
ence to our young peoples physical
equipment for long future life. 1t IS
very important to talk about the
beauty Of holiness" and the necessity
Of developing our moral characters
Alright. 1t is well enough to plan for
the higher attainments Of the intel
lectual life. No one should want to
grow up to be a mere healthy physical
animal, but we must remember that