The Red Cloud chief., 1885-05-08
HAPPINESS WITHOUT GOD.

This life No, = Blessed One for = Worldly
Feel safely So.
II a man Is evcr 20 be happy without
God. it must bc in some such world as
this. l, must be in = material world.
where it is possible To Danish tie though,
Of God and of responsibility. and find
occupation and a species Of enjoyment
in other beings and objects. Nscreat-
ure desires to he happy away from God.
and in opposition To His commandment
he must accomplish it before le goes into
a spiritual world; he must effect it amid
these visible and temporal scenes. This
is his only opportunity. No sinful Great
ure can be happy for \ moment in the
lie to come. He must therefore obtain
icfOre he dies all the IN o gment he will
ever obtain. Lik. Dives. he must re-
ceiye all his good thing" here. II a
man can ever uispen>. with the help and
favor of God. and not feel his need of
Him. il must b. when he is fully alb
sorbed in the care, and interests of this
life. and when he u center n aiiec-
tons On father and mother. on houses
and lands. Standing within this sphere
he can, il ever. he without God. and not
be miserable; for he can busy his
thoughts and exert his faculties and
send forth his affections, and thus find
occupation away from his Creator; and
hence il is that there is SO much Of SIN
full pleasure in this life. while ther. is
--.. ~ - -. shA ,.t Il, tIs- ,n..es
world \ man can make himself his W
end Of living. and not lie constantly
wre,chcd; but in the spiritual world.
where God and duty must he the pr.nci-
pal subjects OF reflection, no man scan
be Supremacy selfish without bein glsu-
premcly miserable. Take. the:efS
your sinful enjoyment in this life
who banker after this kind Of plea
for it is impos ,ib!e to find any of
the next life. Rejoice. q Young n
in the days Of thy youth. and walk
the waysO of thine heart. and in the :
of thine eyes. but know thou that fol
these things God viii bring thee -
Judgment
Still. even this life. with all its sinful
enjoyment. is not a blessed life for a
worldly man. There il a Heaven-wide
difference between earthly pleasure and
Bile scdnesS The wording sees dark
DAYS and sad hours. when he is COM
PEELED to reflect even in the midst Of all
that this life gives him. All serious re-
Election tends to DESTROY the happiness
of such "a man. He can not commune
an instant with his own heart without
beginning To feel wreiched. Thinking
makes him miserable. He has fastened
his atiections-which a really lind no
rest but in An infinite good upon gold.
honor and pleasure. But he knows in
lis rejecting moments hat his gold
will perish. and if it did not. that he
must ultimately grow weary of it.
He knows that worldly honor and SEN
sual enjoyment will fee away from his
diving bed: and that even IL they Il i
not. they could be no sOlace io him in
that awful crisis of the soul. He knows.
in these honest and truthful hours. that
the chief 20 Il Is n 1 his. because he has
n made tod his strength apd portion.
A man needs to feel not only happy, but
sa'e'y happy-happy upon solid and i'm
movable grounds-In order To be truly
happy. Probably Dives himself some
times had a dim intimstion # the mis-
ery that was TO burst uTon him when he
8 .ould stand before God Probably
every worldly man hears these words
said 10 him occasionally from the cham
Der, Of bis consc en- e: You are cam.
parativeiy ut ease now. but his ease
can not he permanent feu % or
may know. that yosi will have no source
Of peace in death and the Judgment
Your portion is not in God. and there
fore o N not rest upon Him when
f.osh and hear: fa:L."-DT. Shedd