Leaves have their, time to fall,
And flowers to wither at the Northwind’s breath,
And stars to set--but all,
Thou hast ALL seasons for thine own, 0 Death.
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Youth and the opening rose
May look like things too glorious for decay,
And smile at thee--but thou art not of those
That wait the ripened bloom to seize their prey.
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We know when moons shall wane,
When summer birds from far shall cross the sea,
When Autumn’s hue shall tinge the golden grain--
But who shall teach us when to look for thee!
Is it when Spring’s first gale
Comes forth to whisper where the violets lie?
Is it when roses in our paths grow pale? --
They have one season--All are ours to die!
Thou art where billows foam,
Thou art where music melts upon the air;
Thou art around us in our peaceful home,
And the world calls us forth--and thou art there.
Thou art where friend meets friend,
Beneath the shadow of the elm to rest--
Thou art where foe meets foe, and trumpets rend
The skies, and swords beat down the princely crest.
Leaves have their time to fall,
And flowers to wither at the Northwind’s breath,
And stars to set--but all,
Thou hast ALL seasons for thine own, 0 Death.
-Hemans-
from a poem entitled, "THE HOUR OF DEATH"
1, 1490--Jerome Savonarola preaches in St. Marks’s Church following a lecture delivered by him. The service is "crowded to suffocation" as Florence, Italy feels the start of a mighty revival. Men can be seen to tremble, while women sob. The city is going wild.
8, 1471--At the age of 91 years, Thomas Hammerlein better known as Thomas a Kempis dies. He has left for the nourishing of Christians for the next 500 years, his famous work, The Imitation of Christ.
9, 1788--Adoniram and Abigail Judson are blessed with a baby boy whom they name after his father. Mr. Judson is pastor of the Congregational Church in Malden, Massachusetts. This infant boy will carry the Gospel to the people of Burma, and will become the founder of American missions as he organizes the first missionary board in America.
11, 1778--Augustus Toplady who has penned the notable hymn, "Rock of Ages", dies in London, England. He is 38 years of age. Just before he dies, he is seen to burst into tears, exclaiming, "All is light, light, light...Oh, come, Lord Jesus. Come, come quickly!"
11, 1848--Sarah Flower will die of Tuberculosis. Her hymn "Nearer My God TO Thee" will be sung at the funeral of President William McKinley in 1901, being his favorite, and will also be sung by the hundreds who go down with the Titanic in 1912.
11, 1890--In Birmingham, England, John Newman dies in his 89th year. His well-known hymn "Lead Kindly Light" has encouraged the hearts of many.
15, 1742--The revival in Cambuslang, Scotland continues to swell. The town of 900 people has become a town of over 30,000 people who eagerly wait upon the preaching of the Word. Three thousand people will observe the Lord’s Supper. Singing will be heard through the night.
Much is being said today about civil rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, even the rights of homosexuals, but much of this talk actually makes a mockery of truth, righteousness, justice and reason. A person would do well to differentiate between "liberty" and
"Libertinism:" the former is true freedom; the latter destroys it.
Boundless freedom is the freedom of injustice and opens the door to anarchy. This is freedom from conscience and is the freedom of the Devil. It is Satan himself who pleads for infinite and boundless tolerance.
We need to discern the difference between freedom of conscience and freedom from conscience. Conscience, when enlightened by Holy Scripture is the guard of the soul. Freedom of conscience is freedom from all restraints in respect to man to follow the dictates of
conscience. Freedom from conscience is falsely called liberty being in actuality "libertinism."
No sin is worse than the freedom to sin. Now if we are willing to tolerate any wrong in order right may be tolerated, then we pocket right in the trousers of wrong and thus destroy the very principles of right. Remember, the same principles, which destroy right, destroy
any injustice in punishment of right.