Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1909-12-10

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SINGING A NEW SONG.
By Rev. c. A. S. Dwight.

earth. Isa 42:10.
Music has in every age been rec
egniZed as a natural and ready in
strument for the expression OF human
emotions, whether OF joy or sorrow.
1t Is difficult to find anywhere peo-
pie so primitive as not to possess at
least the rudiments Of a musical sense
and some kind of rude musical In
struments. Where the savage cannot
chant, he will at least utter notes in
cadence, and where he has not the
skill necessary to finger harp, he
will beat a tom-tom. The beat and
throb Of music Is through all of hui
man life music is the ground-swell of
existence.
Sorrow has its music, and likewise
joy. The dirge is sadly familiar, but
frequent, too, are the lyric and the
paean. Or all men on earth, the Chris
tian believer has least cause to play
dirges and indulge in lamentations,
and the most reason to sing and
shout, with an abandon which Is in
the best sense gleeful because it Is
first Of all godly. Goodness is the
natural base Of happiness and inspir-
alton of joy. When a man is right
with God he comes into just relations
with everything in the universe and
his life at once begins to partake of
the harmonies Of the spheres. Every
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strained to confess, as he reviews the
work of the Almighty in his own life,
He hath put new song in my
mouth, even praise unto our God" 1t
is Christianity and not Buddhism,
Islam or Confucianism, which is tune
ful-which has a heart to sing and
a mind to know why it sings. The
Christian, then, as defined by an in
tegral aspect of his being and with
reference to an important phase of
his existence, Is the Man with a Song.
1t is just as true that the song
which a sincere and progressive Chris
tian sings is not always the same
tune. Sing unto the Lord a new song!
wrote more good songs Of the kind
that live and stir the hearts Of men
of all chimes and ages than any man
who lived before or since. With the
recurrence of every new year, yes,
with the dawning Of every new day,
there is added reason to praise the
Lord for His benefits to mentor His
mercies are fresh every morning ana
new every evening. The mama which
God gave the Israelites of old was a
perpetually renewed feast. 1t was
fresh food for each recurring day.
The Lord does not feed His people on
stale bread The menus of Providence
have variety and spice. No one day of
life is exactly like any other day; no
phase Of one mans experience is pre-
cisely the counterpart of that of any
other believer. There is endless vari-
ETY. in life, and there is numberless
occasions for thanksgiving. Life is
full Of inspiring motifs for new songs,
or for novel adaptations Of the old
melody of praise.
1t is to be feared, however, that
many Christian men forget that their
Christian experience needs daily re-
newal and that new occasions call for
fresh exercises Of the grace of thanks
giving. There are men who testify
mainly to what the Lord has done for
their souls. Their testimony Is in the
VIII oh io 20 hn cd
for no man can tell about what he has
not yet received, unless he be a
prophet, but the trouble is that the
experience Is so very preterite. No
man can live wholly on the memory
Of the past. 1t is all right that he
should recall with gratitude the great
events of a past decade or two but it
Is also important that he keep his ex-
periences up to date, and be able to
tell Ito others round" how much the
Savior did for his soul yesterday, or
how his heart was lifted up in the
ways Of the Lord only the day before
yesterday.
Thanksgiving Day with is annual
recall of thought from material bless
ings to the Author of them all Is a
reminder that it Is time for the whole
Christian church to become vocal once
again with the new songs" of a fresh
hopefulness and helpfulness. Another
year has passed for better or worse
and II the year has been lived in the
shadow of Gods presence it has been
for better-and now a full volume of
hearty praise, precisely attuned to the
peculiar experiences of the past
twelvemonth. should rise to God. 1T
Is a good thing to give thanks unto
the Lord, and to sing praises unto
Thy name, o Most High" Praise
is comedy for the upright" Scripture
passages such as thes. aecsnruate the
constant timeliness of thanksgiving,
the persistent call for praise 1t is
indeed sordid nature that never ac-
knowledges God as the Author of ali
its good. Even the birds look up in
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