The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-01-18

Mozart's Requiem" Is it possible that q
religion which builds such indestructible
monuments and which lifts its ensign on
the highest promontories of worldly
power, can have any effect upon . mans
intellect but elevation and enlargement!
Now, l commend godliness as the best
mental discipline-better than bellies let
tres to purify the taste. better than mathe-
matics to harness the mind to all intricacy
and elaboration, better than logic to mar
shall the intellectual forces for onset and
victory. 1t will go with Hugh Miller and
show him the footprints of the Creator in
the red sandstone. It will go with the
botanist and show him the celestial glories
encamped under the curtain Of a water
lily. 1t will go with the astronomer on the
great heights where God shepherds the
great flock of worlds that wander on the
hills Of Heaven answering His voice as He
calls them all by their names.
Again remark that godliness is profit
able for ones disposition. Lord Ashley,
before he went into a great battle, was
heard to offer this prayer: 20, Lord. 1 shall
be very busy to-day; il I forget Thee,
forget me not" With such a Christian
disposition as that a man is Independent
of all circumstances. Our piety will have
a tinge of our natural temperament. If a
mau be cross and sour and fretful natu-
rally, after he becomes Christian he will
always have to be armed against the rebell-
ion of those evil inclinations, but religion
has tanned the widest nature; it has turned
fretfulness into gratitude, dependency
into good cheer and those who were hard
and ungovernable and uncompromising
have been made pliable and concilatory.
Good resolution, reformatory effort,
will not effect the change. 1t takes
mightier arm and mightier
hand to bend evil habits than
the hand that bent the bow of Ulysses. and
it takes stronger lasso than ever held the
buffalo on the prairie. A man can not go
forth with any human weapons and con-
tend successfully against these Titans
armed with uptorn mountain. But you
have known men into whose spirit the in
fiuence of the gospel of Christ came, until
their disposition was entirely changed.
So i. was with two merchants in New
York. They were very antagonistic.
They had done all they could to injure
each other. They were in the same line
of business. One of the merchants was
converted to God. Having been con-
verified he asked the Lord to teach him
how to bear himself toward that busi-
ness antagonist, and he was impressed
with the fact that it was his
duty when a customer asked for certain
kinds of goods which he had not, but which
he knew his opponent had, to recommend
him to go to that store. suppose that is
about the hardest thing a man could do;
but being thoroughly converted to God he
resolved to do that very thing. and being
asked for a certain kind of goods which he
had not he said: "You go to such and such
a store and you will get it." After while
number two found these custom
ers coming so sent, and he found also
that merchant number one had been
brought to God, and he sought the same
religion. Now they are good friends and
good neighbors, the grace of God entirely
changing their disposition.
30, says some one, 81 have q rough,
Jagged impetuous nature, and religion
can't do any thing for me-" Do you know
that Martin Luther and Robert Newton
and Richard Baxter were impetuous, all
natures, yet the grace of God
turned them into the mightiest usefulness?
A manufacturer cares but very little for q
stream that slowly runs through the
meadow, but q strong torrent that leaps
from rock to rock, and rushes with mad
energy through the valley and out toward
he sea, along that river you will find
shuttles and grinding mill and
flashing waterwheel. And a nature, the
'wiftest, the most rugged and the most
that is the nature God turns
nto greatest usefulness. o, how many
who have been pugnacious, and hard to
please, and irascible, and more bothered
ahoat the mote in their neighbours eye than
about the beam like ship timber in their
,wn eye, who have been entirely changed
~ the grace of God, and have found out
hat Goodness is profitable for the life
hat now is as we'll as for the life which is
o come"
Again remark, that religion is good for
mans worldly business. l know the
General theory is, the more business the
ess religion, the more religion the less
BUSINESS. Not so thought DR.. Hans in his
Of a Christian Merchant"
When he says: "He grew in grace the last
TX years of his life more than at any time
n his life; during those six years he had
more business crowding him than at any
ther time" In other words the more
worldly business man has, the more OPP
'ortuuity to serve God. Does religion
xhilarate or retard worldly bus inessg is |
he practical question for you to discuss.
Does it hang like a mortgage over the
arm: Is it a bad debt on the ledger? Is |
a lien against the estate? Does it crowd |
he door through which customers come |
or broadcloths and silks?
Now, religion will hinder your business |
it be bad businers, or if it be a good |
usinsss wrongly conducted. If you tell |
les behind the counter if You are false in |
our weights and measures, il you put |
and in sugar, and beet juice in vinegar,
nd lard in butter. and sell for one thing |
hat which is another thing, then religion |
Till interfere with that business; but q |
awful business, lawfully conducted. will |
nd the religion Of the Lord Jesus Christ |
Is mightiest auxiliary.
Religion will give an equipoise Of spirit,
will keep you from ebullitions of temper
and you know a great many fine bust.
esses have been blown to atoms BY bad
will keep you from worrimsnt
bout frequent loss, it will keep you indus.
rious and prompt after loss, it will keep
ipation, it will give you a kindness Of
pirit which will be easily distin.
uished from that mere store courtesy
hitch shakes hands violently with you,
skiing about the health of your family
hen there is no anxiety to know whether
our child is well or sick! but the anxiety
to know how many dozen cambria pock-
handkerchiefs you will take and pay
ash down. 1t will prepare you for the
tactical duties of everyday life. do not
lean to say that religion will make us
rich, but 1 do say that it will
i've us, it will assure US of q comfortable
lstenance at the start a comfortable SUBJ
stence all the way through, and it will
elp US to direct the bank. TO MANAGE tho