Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1908-01-23

joyments. He is living upon ephemera
stlmulants. There Is not night when
he has to stay at home that he Is not
restless No sooner Is the evening
meal ended than he says: This is stu.
pid. No need OF sitting around here.
Let us 60 to the theater." or he says,
"Come, let us go to Mrs So-and-so's
card party" Or: II must do some
thing. Let us 60 to the club and have
a game Of billiards" Or when sum
mer comes he HES away to the fash
ionable hotel where he can turn night
into day and day into night. And he
is never happy unless he is intoxlcat-
ed with some kind Of excitement. To
such man I would say: My brother,
what you need Is a change Of heart
What you need is to get close to God.
What you need Is to have so much
divine grace that you will think It q
sufficient amusement when you can
play childhood game with your FIVE.
year-old daughter and when you can
enjoy an entertainment of magic lam
tern show made out Of an old sheet
hung up in your parlor, with the magic
lantern slides being run by your little
boy. 81 never pick lily out of the gar
den," said a poor dressmaker in my
home some time ago, but 1t says to me,
See how happy am on account of
Gods goodness to me-" Why? Be
cause, like Enoch, she was walking
with God And so, my brother and
sister, II you once get your hearts
right with Christ, the smallest and the
most Insignificant things Of life, like
the prattle of child. the sight OF two
little kittens tumbling upon the Hoor,
the merrymakings of lot of boys play
ing baseball in the back lots. will offer
to you an endless variety of amuse-
ment. Oh, that you and could he
like Phillips Brooks and never out
grow our love Of simple. innocent
pleasure. The ways Of heavenly wis
dom 'are ways Of pleasantness, and
all her paths are peace"
Ways Of PIeasantness.
The Christians ways are pleasant
also because they are full of peace. AS
he treads the path Of life he has that
wonderful peace which passeth all un-
Outstanding. and he says: There is a
divine power guiding me and mine.
Wherever go and whatever do his
hand is leading me and his arm is de-
Tending me. My path Of life may ap~
pear checkcred. but God will never let
me or mine get beyond the reach Of
IA In, t,t, AL,
together for good TO those that love
God" oh. my brother. can you not
feel what n glorious peace comes over
the wayfarer in the journey of life
when he fully realizes that God is lead
ing him and protecting him? He is on
the highway of wisdom. and all cher
ways are ways Of peasantness. and all
her paths are peace"
Some of us have been travellers. and
we know only too we'll the disquietude
and the anxiety which come over us
when we realize that we have strayed
from the right path. And, oh. the JOY
that wells up in the heart when we rec
ognize some fanelinr place from which
we can find our way back home, Some
time ago | was camping in the wild
regions Of Humboldt county. Cal, We
left the beaten paths and struck into
a side road and went to the end of the
road. and there we pitched camp for
deer hunting. One morning about 3
o'clock we arose and started after
game. After awhile 1t began to rain in
torrents, but still we kept on. Then.
after we had hunted for some six or
eight hours. We decided to make a
short cat over the mountains and get
back to camp. We climbed the noun
tain and pushed our way on for an
hour or two Then the whole topogra-
ply of the country seemed to change
We were lost. With no food and no
means To build campfire. with drip
ping clothes and empty stomachs. the
situation was anything but inviting
How to get back to camp we did not
know unless we retraccd our steps to
tle place whence we started for the
short cut SO back we went. Yet as
we tramped along everything was so
strange. Al last. after long pull and
tug. we cried. safe at last" for we
had sighted some familiar landmarks
And though we had still miles upon
miles to travel and though the rain
was falling in torrents we cared not
For we knew each step we We're TAX
ing was leading us nearer home. 1t is
4 happy feeling, after one has been
lost for hours In the woods. to find
the familiar path that leads him back
to fire and food and blessed sleep.
Christ as Guide.
Well. the same feeling had when
lost among the mountains of Hum
boldt county and then striking the
trail for home Is the feeling the Chris
tian has when Christ becomes his
guide. In the first place he is com
pletcly lost. He is lost on the moun-
tains of sin. Every step he lakes is a
step in the dark and seems to he lead
ing him farther and farther away from
his Fathers house. AS In trampS
along in the lonely mountains Of sin
the fierce eyed monsters of trouble
leap out of the thickets and assail him
and the loved ones he carries in his
arms. and 1t is dark and growing
darker every minute. But suddenly
out of the darkness there comes the
figure of q man. He has a beautiful
face. 1t Is the face of 4 man, and yet
1t has on It the slgus of divinity. He
reaches out his hands to the lost trav-
eler and says: what. Lost? Lost IN
the mountains or sin? FOLLOW me, ana
! will lead thee back to thy Fathers