The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-12-16
os ANGELES, Cal. December o.

a life rightly spent and the blessings also,
including that of longevity. The text is
Exodus Xxx. ~, Honor thy father and thy
mother that thy Gays 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 cater and most of the rooms
of the old homestead become empty and
silent except when your ehildren's child
rem come to make their grandfather an
annual visit and play in the nursery with
! some of the same old toys which their
fathers and mothers used when they were
children? Would you be born in the lat
| ter part of one century and live on and
on until you could stand at the erode OF
a new century and then live on until
| you could see that century cast aside its
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 a mans
life and see the sun rise and set when you
have reached your three-score and ten,
or even pass your four-soore, or even live
on, as did Ludovico the famous states
man, who started to write the memoirs of
his times at the great age of IS?
Would you like to be an old man, like
Peter Cooper of Titan or Petrarch or
Cato or Jacob or Issac or Abraham
oil
circumstances. If 1 could flourish in a
righteous old age, like the psalmists palm
tree; If | could grow old with young
heart; If my influence for good over my
fellow men might be stronger when | be-
come grayer, l would like to live to be
very DID, and the older the better But
if am to be like an old worm eaten tree.
gnarled and twisted out of shape; II l
am to be an impittered, whining, fault
finder, helpless old man, out of touch with
all the adVancements of life, then l want
to die before l become a pest to every
body and a dead weight upon my friends.
In other words, If / can live to be one OF
those lovabe, gentle, helpful, kindly Old
men who tighten the burdens of all those
with whom they come In contact, then |
wish to live. But if | cannot be such
one then | want to die, and perhaps the
sooner | die the better If will be for the
happiness of those about me-" We'll 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 a bad young
man or a 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 Fifty?
Who would want to die at so years of
age If he could live to do his best work
for Christ in his COS and 7os as did John
Wesley? So wonderfully did that great
| mans physical frame retain its Vigor that
| it grew stronger as it became older In
| his biography we find that it was not
until John Wesley reached his 6eth year
| that he could be persuaded to travel in a
carriage. He always made his preaching
| tours up to thatAtime on horseback At
| Kingswood he preached under the shade
of the trees which he himself had planted.
When he was 70 years of age he spoke
at one time to over 5000 people, by all
of whom ne was distinctly heard lie
tells us himself that when he was 70
years of age his eyes were more power
full and his nerves were firmer than they
were when he was 40. Yes, we should
want to do Gods work in our COS and sos
and 4os But we should also wish to
| live to do a noble Christian mans work
| in our SOS and COS and 7os. and, if posi-
BILE. in our Dos and COS. No man should
desire 10 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 am old man
Wei, If you thus desire, l can tell you
how YOU can do it, How? Why, read the
commandment of my text. God here
states a simple plain gospel truth. lie
comes to us today and practically says
this. Boys and girls, young men ano
Young women, If you would serve me upof
earth for years and years to come, thef
carefully follow the advice of your Chris
tan parents" YoG and | can never hnc
on earth "A better friend than noble
Christian father. Most of us are ready
to confess that God chose well for us
when lie let us be born in the homes OF
our Christian parents. Now comes the
practical question, which | am putting tC
every young woman. Are you ready tf
"honor thy father and thy mother thai
thy DAYS may be long upon the lane
which the Lord thy God gi1eth thee
Honorine Parents.
This divine commandment, in the frs
nlace Is emphaticaly true in reference
10 our Young peoples physical equipmen
for a long future life. 1t is very impor
tant to talk about the beauty of holi
ness and the necessity of developing oul
moral characters Alright. 1t Is wei
enough to plan for the higher attain
ments of the intellectual life. No ont
should want to grow up to be mere
healthy physical animal. but we mus
remember that, no matter how great tht
brains power and the spiritual opportumi
ties which are opening up before us, they
are all to a more or less extent depend
emf upon the strength of our lungs anc
hearts and stomachs and muscles to prom
by Them 1t is very important that the
shin have the right kind of masts ano
sails and steering gear and cargo ano
provision and water supply, but it is also
of vital Importance that the vessel have
| The right kind of hull. The work OF my
brain and my spiritual opportunities may
be the cargo of my journey of life hui
NV physical body is the hun by which
| shall be able to sail on the sea of time
| II that fails me, then | must die. Yet
how many young people there are today
who are LAYING the foundation of future
life of inyaldism or of an early death by
not needing the advaice of their parents
| In reference to the care of their physical
| bodies,
WHY do your parents keep crying to
Won: "Charley, | would be more careful
about my diet Charley, you must not
| Oh,