The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1858-09-30

support; and yet its obligations are not
discharged. 1t is moral and spiritua
law, ordained by the Creator to exercise
our higher attributes-to aid in forming
pure and elevated tone of character
For the sake of the mind, no less than
for the body, are we appointed to be crea.
lures OF toll. The sweat of the brow
has deeper meaning than is derived from
nerves and muscles, while "thorns and
thistles" speak another language besides
the curse. Work Is part of that encon-
omy which contempiates the renewing OF
our ruined race. If Christiany has been
sent into the world to redeem our spirit
ual nature, work has been ordained to i'm
tprove the earth, and render it fit thea
tire for the displays of Christian virtue.
How beautifully are religion and work
united in the Decalogue? The divine
command IS to labor :" six days" and to
rest on the seventh" If we do not work
for six days we can have no Sabbath; for
the Sabbath, no matter how observed can
not be a religious day to him who fails to
labor through the period of the week.
ldleness can never have a Sabbath lux
ury and ennui, wasting all their time in
'' inglorious sloth," deaden their capacity
for its repose. The two institutions
weekly labor and Sabbath rest-are join
ed together, and neither has any signiti-
cance without the other. Both, therefore,
are typical institutions looking to the fu-
ture, and foreshadowing ideas greater than
themselves.
No man should feel that his work is
mere earthly necessity. Nor ought he
to look upon it as drudgerv Whatever
are it burdens and tolls, there is always a
thought, sublime thonght beneath them,
which is, that there is a great intellectual
and moral benefit in all his appointed
task. OF this benefit nothing should de-
prive him. Nothing can deprive him of
it, ii he is a sincere, right-minded, true
hearted man. Daily industry may not
fully repay his hard exertions; all his
struggling may yield him bur scanty re-
muneration; but beyond this there is
another reward There is a strength of
will, silent endurance, peaceful recon
ciliation to the dispensations of Provi-
dence, heroic trust, that elevate and en-
nolle his humble toll So far as a man
considers the higher connections of his
work, that far is he above circumstances.
In that sphere the penuriousness of cap
ital, the grinding sel6shness of employers
cannot reach him. Hence there is always
an opportunity for him to enjoy his work,
Let Its earthly aspects be ever so discour-
aging, it has more than food and raiment
in it, The presence of divine spirit is /
wise and beautiful law establish
ed by the benevolence of God-and |
wherever that law is obeyed, wherever its
wisdom and beauty are felt, the goodness
of the Infinite One comes to the heart and |
enriches its feelings. \ man works all /
the better by thus entering into the NOR
al import of labor. Gods laws justify
themselves to our reason. If We yield our
intelligence to their excellence, as we'll as
our services to their authority, they be-
come means to improve and exalt our
character. No one avais himself of the
entire power Of any great law, be it nat
ural or moral, unless the convictions of
his mind, no less than his actions, are of
fered in homage to its wisdom and love
For the obedience that honors God is not
a blind, thoughtless obedience, but one
that sees the embodiment of Himself in
His laws, and seeks therein for fellowship
with Him. Men grossly err, therefore,
who find in work nothing more than
provision for outward life. For them the
presence of God is there If they labor
Alright, the purity and glory of His nature
will shine through the law and brighten
the spiritual faculties of their being.
To enjoy our work, we must be con-
scious of personal improvement through
its instrumentality. 1t must afford en-
ployment to the mind, stimulating the
active powers of the intellect, and enlist
ing the feelings. Not only must it keep
the attention awake, but it must exercise
skill and Ingenuity, and besides this lead
the thought beyond its own immediate re-
QUESTIONS and quicken its functions. IF
our work fail to occupy the thinking fac
ulties, it soon degenerates into duh rou-
tine. The freshness of the mind is lost,
attention becomes mechanical, habits put
an end to vigor, and the whole Intellect
sinks into sluggish mass. All occupa-
tions, IN this respect, arc not alike. Some
are more intellectual than others. Few, /
however, are necessarily deadening to the
BY far the larger part of hu-
man employments tend to cultivate and
enlarge the mind, and if we used them
Alright they would be constant means OF
progress. There is always
to be learned from them. The
most common day-labor, the humblest me-
chanical pursuit, have some connection
;.L ,,,trro1 laus and objects which if