Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-11-08
RELIGIOUS.

are few hating, timid, irresolute
persons, who have q trembling faith
in Christ, but who do not come out
decidedly and confess Him. They
may be Christians; but the world is
not allowed to know it. They carry
dark lanterns. "Shining lights" they
certainly are not. No one is the bet
ter for their secret, clandestine at
tempts to steal along quietly toward
heaven without letting any one over
hear their foot steps. Now this is q
miserable 1--WE are almost ready to say
contemptable) mode Of living-this
concealment Of the colors when dan
ger threatens this following along
after the church, with a vague hope
of being counted in among Gods peo-
| pie when heavens prizes are distrib-
uted to the faithful.
Away among the Alleghanies
there is a spring, so small that a
single oxen could drain it dry on a
summer day. 1t steals it's unobtrusive
way among the hills until it spreads
out in the beautiful Ohio. Thence
1t streatches away thousand miles,
leaving on its banks more than q
thousand villages and cities, bearing
on it's bosom more than half thou
sand steamboats,. Then joining Oh
the Mississippi, it streatches away
some twelve hundred miles more, till
it falls into the great emblem of eter-
nifty. 1t is one of the great trib-
utaries of the ocean, which obedient
only to God, shall roll and roar until
the angel, with one foot on the sea
and the other on the land, shall lift
up his hand TO heaven and swear
that time shall be no longer. So
with moral influence. 1t is the rill,
the rivulet, the ocean, boundless and
fathomless as eternity.
You have seen the invigorating
influence off human passion. You
have observed how love will make
timid woman courageous how it
gives rush and flow to q desultory,
purposeless man. to have within him
self the consciousness of a virtuous
affection, for the sake of which it is
worth while to be brave, and neces-
sary to be pure. You have said some
times of one and another among your
friends, ~ can scarcely recognize in
him the same man." and you have
found the explanation afterwards in
some secret kindling on the alter Of
his soul OF a fire of a human devotion.
So II is in that one higher region
still-that hidden life, that death to
the world, of which St. Paul tells
Many a man is known Chris
tian, simply because his name is on
the church-roll, and he is seen from
time to time at the communicable.
He is not known as Christian be-
cause of any work he does. He is
not seen in the prayer-meeting. or
the Sabbath-school. His principle
seems to be to get all he can, but to
do correspondingly little in the line
ofreligious activity. He woefully cb-
scures the light Of Christian example.
Men certainly see no "good work" of
his performing, and hence are not led
to glorify the Father in heaven
The success, as an orator, Of Rev.
Mr.. Sturgeon, of London, is said by
one who has recently listened to him
to be greatly owing TO his wonderful
voice. Tits neither tender nor music
al, but clear and ringing, and can be
heard with ease by all in the congre-
cation. 1t is full and clear, and free
from any nasal twang. On one occa-
sion two persons in the congregation
wero converted simply by hearing
him read the hymn, "Jesus, lover OF
my SOUL"
The Methodist wishes that Chris
tian men would remember God in
their business affairs. Too many, it
says, if they were honest, would de-
clare as the old man did who said:
"Wh | start on a work of mercy
and stop to deal in horses l never
have good luck The fact is, l don't
want the Lord around me when I'm
trading horses p
Religion ought to soften and
swoeten the whole man. A Chris
tian ought to be a polite man not
necessarily with the airs and graces
of polite society, but certainly with
genuine heart-politeness. And yet
it is to be feared that sometimes the
light Of Christian love is hidden I'M
der the bushel of stern, forbidding,
harsh exterior; and so men are not
attracted to religion, but rather re-
PEELED from it.
Tho Welsh Presbyteri Church
in America, which now first appears
to the public in the list of denomin-
actions, numbers one hundred and
thirty-eight churches, one hundred
aud ten ministers, and ten thousand
members.
The Ladies Missionary Associ-
alton, Of Hartford. Connecticut, have
a mission in Mexico which numbers
eight churches and three hundred
Mexican converts.
-Klopstock engraved on the
grave of his wife two sheaves of
wheat, thrown, as it were, carelessly
together, with the words: eve
thall ripen in heaven.
The Baptists of Iowa have $50
churches, los schools, 19,1h9 mem
bers, and raised last year, s5,S61.44
The Ssbbath-schools of the Uni
ted States have LOCO, 600 teachers
and c, 200, 900 scholars.
gaTThe Central and Hudson River