Year: 1859

From Recent Sermons by the Rev. Henry Ware
Be6cher.


1t seems to me as if all the things which
are in Nature cannot change, and are just
as they were LEFT by Gods hand; so that in


them seem to get nearer to God than
when am among men, who have changed
SO much from what God made them.


always feel, in the spring of the year, as
I used to feel when Twas a boy, and my
father had been away on a journey and
come home again, and | saw his trunk
opened and saw all the nice things which
he had brought for all the household. So
now, when the earth is covered again with
leaves and flowers, it seems to me as il
G cd had been away all last winter, and now
had come back again with all treasures and


gifts of love for all his children.


The history OF the world has shown q
series of great currents, which have not
only not moved in the way in whic things
seemed to look at any time, but in many
ways they have borne and dashed right up
against the things which were powerful and
strong.


am puzzled continually TO know how to
explain to my children the things which to
me are perfectly plain and simple. My lit
tie boy comes to me and asks me to ex-
plain to him what is meant by a bill OF ex-
change, or letter Of credit on Paris; and |
have to go back and go back until come to
some ground where can talk to him, so
that he can understand, and then, step by
step, bring the explanation up to the end,
and when have got through, he looks sub
missive, as boys do when they don't quite
like to say: II have not understood word
of all you have been saying" So, if we
were to come to God and ask Him to ex.
plain 20 US what is His Specia Providence,
there would be thousand things which we
should have to learn before we could under
stand it.


How many thousand stitches are :here in
a garment! Yet, when you look at it, you
don't see onc-ail you see is the garment;
but every one Of them was ne cessary. So
events are but separate stitches in the great
garment which God is making; and though
now all that we see is the events as they
transpire, yet, when it is done we shall not
observe the stitches, though they were all me-
cessary.


IF there is one thing that firmly believe
to be true, it is that Christ meant His disci-
pies to understan nd that God did really inter-
fere in human affairs. Mt that He ex-
planned to them how it was; but that lie
declared the general truth. And if there is
one thing tha. I heartily want to be true,
it is just that.


Sill water always is not only covered
with scum and filth. and breeds chills and
fever, and death, but it is infested with nox-
ious insects; while running water always
clears itself. And if you sit down in the
sha low pool OF reflection on these great
questions of Providence and Gods admin
istration, &c, it will be green as frog ponds
about you, and you will be harassed with
all skeptical doubts; but the running stream
of active religious duty will always clear
your doubts away. think religious disposi-
tions 90 far to clearing up all religious
doubts.


Suppose man is standing at his window
looking out upon his gardon, full of flowers
and fruit, and as he looks he sees a ragged
boy, who looks as if he had been born on o
rock and fed upon stones, for all the growth


and vitality there is in him. standing
and looking through the palings; and the
poor child, who never in his life, perhaps.
has seen so much that is SO beautiful and
ent:cing, reaches his hand through TO pluck
the 5ludy currants, or stand on tiploe to
reach the cherries that hang in too tempt
ing nearness for his honesty. And the
man is full ofselfishness, and he suffers as
he sees the boy reach out to take his prop
erty--it is real pain to him. Now there
are two ways for him to get rid of tina,
pain. One is, to call for his servant and
his dog and drive the boy away. But sup
pose, as he stood there, some good angle
touching him should change that hell Of
selfishness within him INTO benevolence
Then, to his surprise the boys pushing his
hand through the paings, instead of being
grevious, is 10y TO him, and he calls out
to him-"Put your hand in again, my buy,"
and he sends his servant to open the gate
and call him in to shake down TIE fruit
from the tree, and to fill his hands and his
pockets--to give him enough for himself,
and to carry away to his starving compan.
ions.-Burlington (Vt) Free Press, May
81.