St. Paul daily globe., 1888-05-14
PARABLE OF OPPORTUNITY.

ItSN. -hdlIo ~. oluGlc4 piCdCloo dG
the Grand opera house yesterday morn
ing upon the parable of the ten vir-
gins:
ID the revised Scriptures you will find
that the phrase, wherein the Son of
Man cometh'' IS omitted. The parable
closes with the words, Watch, there
fore, for We know not the day nor the
hour" The coming of the BRIDE
groom'' is simply symbolic way of de-
noting the coming of any event
that requires prompt and wise action.
That is the plain prose of it.
The expression, the door was Shut"
has no reference to the final state of the
impenitent. 1t states general princi-
pie that a9y opportunity of life once
lost is gone forever. Improve your
opportunity and you obtain the blessed
ness that results from vigilance and
care. Neglect it, and the door is shut.
Upon that chance it does not reopen.
There are crises in all careers, even the
humbleSt, that are as important rel
atively as the death of a monarch or the
winning of bottle. When one begins
an education, when he leaves home to
undertake for himself, when he chooses
& profession or selects life-work, when
he makes new acquaintance or forms
new friendship, when he faces a
temptation, when sickness prostrateS
him, when his first sorrow comes,
when his first success is
offering their possibilities for good or
evil. Everything depends upon the folly
or wisdom, the cowardice or courage,
with which these are used. The i'm
portance of certain moments may be
seen in the career of Christ. On the
moment of temptation He might have
yielded. He was man, with every
human liability. In the pres
ence of the combined authorities of
His nature He might have quailed
and retreated. When the terrible cross
threw its shadow across the sky of His
immediate future, He might have saved
His life by surrendering His cause.
But if He had done all this what a diff
ference it would have made to the
world, to every one of US. We gather
courage to-day and face evil and over
come it from the fact of that victory.
The influence that goes out from ouf
behavior in critical moments helps
others who are passing through the fire.
But opportunities are not necessarily
crises. Every incident of the day every
bit of work we have to do, every mo-
ment of contact with our neighbors. is a
chance that may be made glorious.
Cheerfulness and fidelity will lift them
from the dust and wreathe themwith gar
lands. The man of business has daily op-
portunity to be, honest and civil, the
clerk to treat his customers well, the
schoolboy to learn his lessons, the serv-
ant to sweep the corner clean, the pro-
feSSsional man to attend to the details
of his profession. the stablebOy to keep
his horses well groomed, the mason to
ply his mallet and chisel to the glory of
God. There is more genuine religion
in the heart of man who puts his con-
science into the yardstick, the trowel,
the spade, the curry comb, the
balances, than there is in fifty camp
meetings or revivals. 1t is the fidelity
with which we discharge little duties
that fits us for great ones. The oppor-
tunity Of the commonplace prepares
for the opportunity of the crisis. One
will be able to do at any particular mo-
ment the thing for which the mo-
ments preceding have made him ready.
The time comes when the errand
boy may be promoted, the clerk made a
manager OF partner, when the physician
has q critical case, the lawyer the oppor-
tunity for which he has longed. When
these occasions do come, everything
will be found to depend upon antece-
dent industry and fidelity. Nothing
goes by haphazard. There is no
flaw III the chain of events.
Our opportunities are fieeting.
No lesson needs stronger emphasis than
that of seiZing the chances of to-day.
How many let them slip and say. To
morrow we will bestir ourselves?'' That
word tomorrow" has been the wreck
of duties unnumbered; it has dashed
soaring aspirations into the mire; it has
brought regret and shame to hundreds
of noble hearts; it is the grave of honor
and glory and enterprise. Trust not
tomorrow" 1t is a phantom that
lures from the certainties of to-day into
bogs and marshes where multitudes
have sunk.