Monday, November 11. Home to-day. Find all well, but some sickness in the neighborhood around. On the journey from which I have just returned, I traveled 1,271 miles on horse-back, one beast carrying me safely all of that distance. The roads we traveled were in many places just as nature formed them, the hand of man having done but little more than cut the timber out and remove impassable obstructions. We crossed high and rugged mountains, and forded dangerous streams. But in the West the people are waking up to the importance of improving the public roads. The abundant natural wealth of that country, when properly developed by wise industry, will respond in such lavish abundance that there will be no lack of means to build the best of roads, and in every respect to raise the country generally to that state of beauty by high culture, which ministers to the comfort and usefulness of its people.
The Baltimore & Ohio railroad will soon be completed to Wheeling, and this road, in connection with other roads likely to be built and connect with it, will open a very active traffic between that city and the East. I feel like saying to the Brethren everywhere that now is the time to sow the pure seeds of Gospel Truth in the West. If this be not done, tares will be sure to grow and multiply where the wheat of holy love should abound. Such fields of humanity, so full of life and vigor, will never remain unproductive. Education and civil law may help to control and keep in bounds the flood of moral and intellectual power flowing from them; but if the hand of sanctified religion be not put forth to give it proper direction, they will turn out to be a moral wilderness of sin, filled with all the wild beasts of human passion, "and every hateful bird."
In the time of my absence Eli Spitzer and wife, Polly Hindgardner, and another woman were baptized. This was done September 18. On the twenty-second there was a love feast at the Lost River meetinghouse; and about that time Samuel Toppan and wife, and three other persons, all on Stony Creek, were baptized. Thomas Lampkin and Polly Fridley, and another sister were also baptized in my absence.
Monday, December 16. To-day I preach the funeral of old Brother John Wine in the Forest. Text, Rev. 14:13, "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them."
I aimed to set forth, in the practical part of my discourse, a few thoughts based on the last part of the verse: "Their works do follow them." Our works are as sure to follow us from this world to the next as they are when we remove from one place to another in this. Let any one come among us, no matter from where, and he brings his character with him. If that is good, good works will follow him. They follow not only in the way of reports we may receive from those among whom he lived before he came among us, but they follow all he does while here. In this consists the blessedness of those who die in the Lord. In heaven the same good works follow them in all they do, only in much greater perfection, that accorded with the good will in their hearts that characterized their lives while here. The lives of good men are so conjoined with the Lord, because from the Lord, that whatever good they do in the way of helping others he accounts it as done to him. Indeed, this blessed following is the ground of proof that they are of his sheep. "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Will not that be a glorious and happy following? Is it not something worth sacrificing our life and our all in this world for? And that day will surely come. Just as sure as we live it will come, for the Scripture cannot be broken. This blessed following of good works will be sure to receive on that day the welcome plaudit: "Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord."
Wednesday, December 25. Christmas day. Meeting in Keagey's schoolhouse. Matthew 2 was read. Brother Daniel Miller spoke beautifully in the German language on the advent of the Lord Jesus. His main subject was the love of the Father, the good will toward men that gave the only begotten Son to redeem and save them.
He said: "The day is unimportant. We may have Christ's birthday correct, or we may not. I am not historian enough to speak positively on this point. But one thing there is upon which I can speak positively; and all the enemies of Jesus are unable to wrest the conviction of that truth from my heart; and that thing is this, that 'God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.' It has pleased our heavenly Father to tell us about our Savior's birth; how lowly it was, in a stable; and that he was laid in a manger, which means a kind of box from which horses take their food; and that a star in the east, sometimes called the Star of Bethlehem, guided the wise men who came from the east to see the infant, Jesus, to the place where he lay. Those good men hardly knew that this beautiful star was but an emblem of the leadings of God's revealed Truth. But it is so; for all the light of prophecy centered in that star which showed the time and place of the birth of the Son of God. Some seem to think the star was only a natural light, such as natural eyes could see, but I do not think so. I rather think it was a heavenly light, and that it could be seen only by such as loved the hope of our Lord's coming and were ready to rejoice at his birth.
"We have the brighter light of his more clearly revealed Word, by which we are enabled to find, not an infant Savior, but a Savior grown up to perfect manhood made perfect through sufferings ending in his death upon the cross. We find him as the risen and glorified Lord with power to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him. His heavenly truth is to us now and to all who are willing to open their eyes and see, as the Sun of Righteousness; 'for we are not of the night, nor of darkness, but we are all the children of light, and the children of the day.' Paul here means such as are true Christians. I love to preach the Gospel; but I love still more to see men and women open their eyes to the light of its truth, and their hearts to the warmth of its love. In this way they are led to seek the Lord; and the promise is: 'Every one that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.'
"One more thing I must notice. These wise men brought gifts to the infant Jesus. I suppose these were the first Christmas gifts ever made; and the custom of making presents at this time has probably been kept up ever since. If presents are made on this day with an eye to the gift of God's love, they will be acceptable in his eye; but if made lightly, simply to comply with custom or fashion, they have no promise."
I must yet add this from the brother's beautiful discourse. He said: "The greatest of all the Christmas gifts that man ever has received, or that even God himself can bestow, was made on that first Christmas day. Some of you may not think as I do about it, but on that day God gave to the world his own and only beloved Son, and to my eyes, and I hope to the eyes of many of you, he is the fairest of all the fair, and the one altogether lovely. I lay all the gold, and the frankincense, and the myrrh of my heart's best affections as thank offerings at his feet on this Christmas day. Brethren, God has made his most costly gift to us in the person of his Son; should we not be willing to reciprocate this gift with the most precious gift we are able to offer? And what is the most precious thing in his sight that we can give? It is our love in return for his love to us. If we do make this return in fullness, we place ourselves in a state of highest blessedness, described by John in few words: 'We love him, because he first loved us.' This is a heavenly state, and it must be the basis of all the bliss of saints and angels."