Year: 1876

GODS PROvIDENTIAL CARE OF Us.


The attendance at the Church OF the Disciples yester
day morning very slim, owing the inclemency of
the weather. Mr.. Hepworth selected his text from St
James v., 13 IA, 15-"Go to- now We that say To-day
or tomorrow will go into such city and continue
there year, and buy and sell and get gain;
ye know not what shall be- on the For what
your life 1t is vapor that appeareth for lit
tie time and then vanshetb away For that ye ought
TO say, II the Lord WILL we shall live and do this
thai We are hardly conscious, think, how deeply
rooted in belief in experimenting
Providence is We assent to the general fact Of
perintendence; but We find il n little diff
cult in experiences TO recognize the
actual presence Of God The mind grasps
the dogma with ease the heart assens TO it with great
difficulty Logically the chain is perfect between
lives and the hand OF the Lord but practically there
Is weak if not a broken, link somewhere. In
higher moods We lie quietly in Gods PALM but this
mood is not line that runs unbroken through our
life There times when apt to feel that there
is basis for the ola belief that God rules everything


we are apt feel that have made mistake and that
God lives outside the universe rather than inside; that
He looks upon His wonderful creation but does not
walk through 1t hke tender-hearted superintendent
whose duty and pleasure it is to see that everything
goes we'll


We never have any question about the power of God
If / were to ask you who made the earth and the
planets the would come without hesitation
God God made everything God controls everything
he walks with


GOLDEN FOOTSTEPS


from star to star; He shakes the dust out Of His robe
and 900 new planets are born; His pathway Is IN
describaby beautiful, and il Is delight TO Him to
wander from end OF the universe to the other and
He who controls the stars in thoir marks the
falling Of the tear OF grief God is no more God His
greatness than He is in His lttleness, and the world is
not perfect IN its larger than in It's smaller wheels


We recognize these general facts but We hud II ex-
ceedngiy difficult TO apply them to our human lives
and to make them inspirations, encouragements and
hopes in our personal experience. l believe that
nothing escapes the providence OF God. believe in
the literal translation of the word Emmanuel
God with do not believe in God outside
OF His universe. When matchmaker makes a
watch he sends and il wll keep perfect till
ii impaired by age and he knows nothing Of it.
There who believe that God made the world IN
Sax days and then retired his palace away from
His workshop the seventh there TO stay ana leave
the world till 1t is worn out, then 10 be consigned
worthless TO that cnnaagration that shall burn up the
world like scroll But that theory is so cold that
cast about to find another That cannot be true which
Renates me IRON Him; that must be true that draws
me 10 Him That is the true standard think
Whatever doctrine so commends itself TO your mind
affection that it draws you upward into more
pcit faith and more quiet endurance Tor that reason
true


Now, l believe in the docrine of Proyi
any more than over the lie OF each
individual person Under Its benign influence ! am
encouraged TO do and to bel 1t rs doctrine that sweet
ems human life doctrine that makes brave when
am alone for 'thou, God seest me- 1t is doctrine
that enables TO lay loved in the grave without
n murmur, though not without tear like TO turn
the Scriptures to md what they have to say.
David sang of this matter and he had higher
theme "Ihe Lord Is gracious and full of compassion
One would think He personal friend, only of
larger stature and wisdom 'Sow and OF great


mercy the Lord Is good TO all and His tender merces
are over all His works - Then / turn TO Matthew:
Fear them who XIII the body, but rather tear Him
who is able to kill both soul and body in helLn A
sparrow shall not fall to the ground without your
Father seeing The very hairs of your head are num-
bered No stronger expression could be used than that
God cares for everything


But some will say those things which you call special
provIdences and which you take great delight IN de-
nominating answers 70 prayer" may they not bo
concidencesY Let Us look ut this matter if for in
stance, prav to-day and get al answer may have
doubt If my nelghoor prays and gets an answer, stu
years and ind the most remarkable answers 10 prayer
and after lnd the character and tone of my whole
the probabilities against the coincidences to such
extent that you must hnd law for IT, and what you
call coincidence Is like an answer to prayer
that the two things cannot be separated. j do not
care what you call IT. II when pray receive what
you call condolences and call answers do not care
so long as get what | pray fort Is answer to
prayer, and there is an end OF IT.


we are all willing TO admit that the Hebrew race was


A PRovIDESrIAL RACE


What want TO prove that God deals not only in
but See the number Of condolences 10 which
| will alnGc Jacobs favorite Joseph. II
q curious coincidence. was It not that one day Jacob
said TO Joseph 81 want you 70 go and see your brothers
and bring news OF them ~ IL was curious coin
cidence that just that his brothers
dcring how they could get rio OF him. Joseph went
remarkable coincidence was II not that when Joseph
had been cast into the pit some merchants passed by
They might have passed by two days earlier or later
they might have gone by another road Then Joseph
would never have beon taken 10 Egypt And Is
coincidence that Joseph was sold TO Pot-
phar and IL coincidence that the
wife Of Potiphar was q lustful woman and on ac-
of her appettes great events happened and Jo
seph cast prison and while he was there there
were also two men Of the Kings household II is
markabe coincidence again, that OF these men Is lib
Grated and he mentions to Potphar the TACT that Jo-
seph the interpreter Of dreams Is in prison Another
curious thing Is that Pharaoh had dream which no.
body could interpret but Joseph, Joseph sent for
and no interprets the dream and on the strength OF
that he made the first In the kingdom, and no
saved grain enough 10 last the country in the seven
years famine. And so these things piled up Are
they coincidencesf No they cannot be happenings;


EvENrs ARR ORDAINED,


and compelled 70 say, 'sGod must be in ths
thing" There Is chain running through these events
and you account for them only on the ground OF
Gods superntendence


NY argument is s:-God does not plan to-day and
not plan tomorrow; is with one man and not with
another God deals with all alike; and n In the life
of Joseph there special guidance and special
providence, In lives can be discovered the
hand and heart That Is the foundation OF our faith
III what am through the grace Of God, am con-