Los Angeles herald., 1907-01-07
NEW YEAR BRINGS
GREAT AMBITIONS
TALMAGE OUTLINES HIS EX-
PECTATI0NS
Appeals to Higher Nature and Shows
Hearers How They May Make
Year Replete with Spirit
ual Achievement

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Happy New Year! I bring to you
the gospel salutation / bring 1t to you
with q smile upon the lin with Joy
yelling up In the heart. / bring IL to
you, because 1 hope 1t is to be the best
and the most momentous year Of all
your life.
Il am going to be gospel prophet
this morning. l am not only going to
tell you that this new year is to be the
best year of your life but it is also
going to be precursor of many other
useful years. l am going to say to YOU,
as Solomon said of old, that on account
of this coming year consecrated to God,
your earthly longevity shall be length
ened. The years of thy life shall be
increased
ITO overcome your evil passions. and
to live as your redeemed father and
mother want you to live, Is to be one of
your chief desires for the ensuing year.
There was great change in your life
when the old folks died. You may have
long ago become a grown-up man, and
been away from home five, ten or even
hfteen years, before you received the
fatal telegram from your sister: Come
home at once, mother Is dying Yet,
not until that time did you willfully let
yourself go into the maelstrom of sin.
mot until that time did you say, in
sinful sense: We'll, it does not mat
ter much what becomes of me- Mother
is now dead and father is dead. Even
II l do wrong, and become dissipated,
they will not hear of it, For a few
years after your mothers death your
Oldest sister tried to take your mothers
place. Every Sunday night she would
write to you just as your mother did.
But somehow, though her letters were
newsy and bright, and told you how the
old neighbors We're getting on, their
messages did not ring in your heart like
mothers letters. They did not so often
plead with you to be good boy. and
say your prayers, and read your Bible,
and live for Christ. They did not begin
with the sacred words: My dear boy
''She always called you her boy,
though you had long ago been able to
stand in an election booth and declare
your choice for the presidency of the
United States. But somehow. during
the past few months, the teachings of
the old homestead have been pressing
down upon you with mighty power.
Man. you are tired of sin. You are tired
of yourself. You might feel a little
better If you could only put your head
in her lap and have a good cry. But
you can't. Do you know what is the
matter? l think your dead parents are
pleading with you and for you now,
just the same Is they did of old.
Tears IN Bottle
1.-THE Psalmlst tells us that God keeps
the tears of his loved ones in q bottle.
Last week God lifted one of the parental
tears which were shed over your cradle.
He placed the sparkling treasure upon
the white wing of an angel of mercy
and cried: Go, angel, and drop that
tear upon that young mans head and
anoint him with the spirits power
Last night God sent another white
winged messenger with another tear out
of his bottle, shed by your father on the
day you Joined the church. One white
winged angel after another did as they
were told. They all dropped those pa
rental tears upon your head and heart.
Discouraged man, today wearied of the
sinful world, as you sit there with the
tears running down your cheeks you
think they are your tears. They are
not. They are the tears of your dead
and redeemed father and mother, which
God has long been preserving in his
sacred obttle. They are the tears of joy
which your father and mother are now
shedding in heaven, because the white
winged angels have already flown to
the Celestial city to announce to them
that their boy is awearied of sin; that
their boy is now ready to cast himself
upon the love of Jesus and be saved.
oh, today the sacred band of Christian
worshipers about me can hardly keep
from clapping their hands in joy. Truly
this is not only for us, but also for
your repenting soul, a happy, happy
New Years day.
This ought to be especially a happy
New Year for you, repenting, sinful
man, because now the good works of
your dead father and mother are about
to be perpetuated through the coming
centuries. When your mother died you
said, I do not want for her any ex-
pensive funeral or useless show. l do
not want any trained choir to sing any
classical music by her casket. I do not
want for her a public funeral. I do not
even want her body to be taken to the
church. Let her sleep as long as possi-
BILE in the bed where she died. Let her
funeral be by her own f1reside. Let
few friends gather here who loved her.
Let some young girl who is friend of
my sister sang simple song like
Safe in the arms of Jesus.
Safe on his gentle breast.
Mother was not fond of society.
She was a home body. She lived most
ly for father and us children Well,
my brother, If your mother was home
body and lived mostly for her children,
do you not see that II you refused to
repent, refused to consecrate your life
to the cross, refused to be a good man
and live a pure life that your sinful
acts would be damming back a great
part of her prayers and the good re-
suits of her life? When your mother
died you gathered up all the kind, SYM
pathetic letters which were written to
you about her past kindness. You also
had the officiating minister write down
mis- funeral address. Then you had
these letters and that address all
printed and bound together into a
booklet, which you called My Mothers
Memorial But. man, the mightiest
and most triumphant memorial you
could ever make of your mothers life is
your own life consecrated to the SER
vice of Jesus. She put her blood and
her life into your life. So, man, this
ought to be happy year fer you. 1t
ought to be happy, because by your
own conservation to the service of the
Lord Jesus you are here and now ready
to let your mothers prayers echo and
re-echo and resound in your prayers.
Her good deeds will find true continu-
ance in your good deeds. Her Christ
shall hereafter be worshiped with
sweeter look. because he is also now
her boys Christ"