Cedar Falls gazette. [volume] (Cedar Falls, Iowa) 1860-1895, 1860-03-30

"A mans life consisteth not in the abun.
dance Of the things which he posscsseth.' y
a man is not prosperous because he makes
money, because he is skillful, or because he
has knowle dge. That man who is happy
that man whose mind is like well-chorded
harp, and is responsive to enjoyment; that
man who knows how to enjoy with his in.
tellcct, With his moral sentiment, with his
taste; that man who knows how to reap JOY
from all his social affections; that man VIC
knows how to stand strong without being de-
bauchcd by his animal passions; that man
who knows how to regulate his physical life
that man who has supreme use of himself.
all through; that man who is happy in The
broadcast way, and with the greatest number
of fountains of enjoyment-that man is pros
porous.
/ On the other hand, man may be a ripe
scholar and rich man, and not be prosper
Gus. A man may be millionaire, and yet
be so miserable rs to groan and curse all
night. A man may have all the outside things
which the world affords, and vet not be a
happy man. One man may have chest full
of excellent tools, and be a bungling work
man; while another man may have nothing
but .jackknifc and be skillful workman
One man may have ever so many external
means of enjoyment, and be miserable; while
another man may have scarcely any external
means of enjoyment, and be happy. You
must not, therefore, argue that a man is pros
porous because he has influence or power, or
money, or any of these things. isyou want
to know who are prosperous, find out who
are happy.
You would think to look at that bell up in
| ~ ho1f oh han ftol l. hs.rh
1t only needs that some one should pull
the rope to make it sound glofiously through
the airp' Well, pull the rope, it sounds for
all the world like a tin pan 1t is cracked
| see men in the old belfry of prosperity
and other men are looking up at them and
saying, "Oh, how happy they must be !!
Well ring them, and see how they sound
You will find them to be good for nothing
the moment you subject them to that test.
Therefore, in constituting the declarations of
Scriptures, you are not to measure man by
his pocket, by what he is worth, and say,
That man is prosperous who has n good deal
and that man is unprosperous who has but
little." Before you, can tell whether man
is prosperous or not, you must go into the
man himself; you must see what his secret
thoughts are. tell you there is more Joy to
many pauper who looks at the sun and the
grass and the flowers, and listen to the birds
from the Alms-house window, than there is
to many millionaire. have known good
many of these rich mcn always cotton
to the rich! | always make friends with
them, that may find out what sort of men
they are what kind of life they live, and
how they enjoy themselves. A rich man in
New York was often heard to say in his bed,
"Oh God Oh God when will il be morning. y
When man has built his bed out of hard
gold, he does not sleep any easier than he
would if he had built it of iron or stonc--
When man builds his life out Of metals, he
has got to have metallic life.
| tell you mans life does not consist of
the things which he possesses. It consists
in the sweetness of his disposition, in the
delicacy Of his tastes, in the richness of his
affections, in the breath of his recognition of
Gods work in everything in which mans
| life stands. You may be rich and be a beast,
and you may be poor aud be an angel All
of human life may be at your service, and yet
you may not be able to say that one foot is
yours except that small portion of real estate
which every body owns in the grave yard
You may not have more than that, and yet be
rich and prosperous.
When, therefore, you are undertaking to
see whether or notseeking first the kingdom
of God and his Righteousness will ensure to
your prosperity, do not make a superficial
measurement; measure clear through into the
marrow.
I only need to say few things in closing !;
and the first thing wish TO say is: that God
has put an advocate for virtue and religion in
every part of your life and your lower ma
ture. As in the body in respect TO health, so
in the soul in respect to religion. OF course
the greatest blessings of health are experienced
in the brain, in the heart, in the stomach, i'm
these central organs; but there is not part
that is not better for being healthy A man $
very hair, his very nails, the parts that seem
to be useless, are better for being healthy
General health helps everything-the least i'm
portant things, as well as the things of the
most importance. So it is with religion. -
/ Though it helps chiefly the moral faculties, it
helps everything, and makes man better
down to the very bottom Of his nature.
Therefore, next, there is no excuse for a
mans turning away from rcctitudc for the sake
of outward prosperity. you turn off from
the beaten road, and take a circuitous route,
you viii stumble in the end, and loose the
things for which you transgrcssed. think
no man ever cheated the devil, and think no
man ever will,
/ have no doubt that the devil over-reachcs
himself and cheats himself; but in any trans
action between you and him, he is longer
headed than you are. And if a man sells his
principals for secular prosperity, he shall find
in the end that the writings drawn and the
promises made were all spurious. Honesty
is the best policy; and of honesty, that which
has the most Of God in it is the best
/ remark once more, that in worldly things
| in general, it would be well il we could write
on the bells Of our horses, on our door-posts,
| on our phylacteries, and as band for our
heads, The right way is always the prosper
! Gus way" do not care what the look of
things is, the way that violates established
moral principals is dangerous. and, in the end,
is ruinous, And, in public affairs, and in per-
sonal affairs, that course which carries with
i it the highest moral and religious elements is
the best, the safest, the most PROSPEROUS
course. So that the question ought to be,
What is ight?" Ask what is right, and
then ask nothing else. You do not need to
ask anything else, for rectitnde is pilot that
never ran ship on shore.
4 When the ship, beaten by storm, at hast
\ reaches the pilot ground off hasbov. and the