Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-04-14
THE DUTIES OF LIFE.
Rev. George Hodges Discourses on the
Necessity for Purpose to
INSURE PERMANENT SUCCESS.
Work, CompaniOnship and Culture Essen
tial to True Happiness.
ONE IDEAL LIFE ALWAYS BEFORE Us
rwR1rrrN FOR THE D1spArcH.1

WRITTEN FOR THE DIsPATcH.1
I remember an imposing picture by Dob
son-the Dobson whose "Good Shepherd
everybody knows-a picture called "The
Plough" A young boy is just getting his
first good grip of the handles of plough.
His father stands beside him pointing out
the direction of the furrow. The boy is
looking out ahead over the line he is to
make. 1t is a picture of purpose.
There are several of Toby RosenthaPs s
pictures in Pittsburg. was looking at
one the other day. A young emigrant is
starting out for Oklahoma, or whatever took
the place of that new land when the painter
made the picture. He stands amid his bales
of baggage, father on one side and mother
on the other, listening to their last words of
counsel, looking out into the distance and
the future. 1t is another picture of pur-
pose.
The important thing about purpose is
its dlrection-as it is the important thing
about a journey. The natural question
about journey is, where are you going?
The natural question about. a purpose is,
what is it which you wish to do or to be?
The Master started once, we are told, upon
journey to Jerusalem. That was the
purpose of His journey. He was going to
Jerusalem. They asked Napoleon one day,
as he stood upon the coast of Syria, if he
avowed that Jerusalem did not enter into
his line of operations. Napoleon was not
going to Jerusalem.
Hither and thither, upon all sorts of
errands, men are making journeys up and
down the world, with faces turned toward
Jerusalem or away from it. 1t makes a
good deal of difference whether a mans
face is turned away from Jerusalem or
toward it. Whether purpose is right or
wrong, worthy or unworthy, is determined
by its direction.
Now, the direction of purpose is deter
mined by our idea of what constitutes sue
cess. For all purposes aim at sue
cess. And as the kind of pur-
all manner of difference in his life,
so there are few questions to which it is
more important to get a right answer than
just this: What is your ideal of success?
Or, to put the question in another and a
blunter way: What sort of man or woman
do you account the most successful? Sup
pose that the old fairy tale could for once
come true, and you could have one wish.
You could wish once, and whatever you
asked for, you would get it. What would
be your wish? That will show the direction
OF your purpose. Because that will reveal
your idea of what constitutes success.
TWO KINDS OF SUCCESS.
Now, it is immensely needful that we
should be distinctly aware of the wide diff
ference between two kinds of success: The
temporary and the permanent. Many mis-
takes in the career of men and nations have
resulted from failure to distinguish be-
tween the temporary and the permanent.
Sometimes the most unfortunate thing
that can happen to a man is to succeed.
Because success may stand in the way of
success. Success may came too soon, and
vantage may discourage effort toward
worthier success. Or success may mean
emphasis upon side of life which lowers
ones ideal, which hides true success entire
ly. As where success financial may obscure
the vision of success spiritual; or as where
success in politics may bar the way to a sue
cess in craftsmanship: Success may mean
failure.
And, on the other hand, failure may
mean success. As in game of chess.
player will sacrifice an important piece, and
put himself at disadvantage for a moment
in order that in the end he may gain much
more than he has lost True success always
costs sacrifice. 1t is a universal law that
no great good can be attained without pain
and toll. All things which are worth any
thing have TO be paid for. The more they
are worth, the more we must expect to pay.
That is, permanent success can be won only
by temporary failure. We must be willing
to give up some ease and pleasure for a
time, if we will gain any lasting pleasure
or win any prize worth winning.
1t makes all the difference in the world
toward which kind of success the purpose
of mans life is directed-toward the tenn
porary or the permanent.
ONLY ONE PERMANENT SUCCESS.
But where is permanent success to be dis
covered? Is it in riches, which take to
themselves wings, which moth and rust may
corrupt and thieves may steal? Is it in
pleasure, which will presently pail upon
the senses and fade into vacancy and vain
regret? Is it in power, or fame, which will
inevitably pass out of your hand into an
others, and you be none the happier or bet
ter for it? No; not in any of these things
These are only temporary. If the direction
of your purpose is toward such ends as
these, you will certainly find at last that
Gney are UuG plGldllS III Lne pain OF Iallure.
There is one permanent success, and only
one, and that is the possession of an un-
stained character. There is only one thing
in all this world worth striving alter, only
one thing worth the sacrifice of all which
we account precious, one thing worth living
for and worth dying for, and that is the ap-
proving benediction of God our Father.
That alone, of all things in this world, lasts
Aim at the best success. Look up and
not down. Make your purpose high. Set
your affection upon things above, not on
things on the earth. For the things
which are seen-the joys which you can
taste, the praises you can hear, the coins you
can count-the things of sense are temporal
they will pass away: while only the things
unseen-the graces, the virtues, faith, hope, |
love, the blessing of our heavenly Father
only those are eternal. Heaven and earth !
shall pass away, but these things never.
Only these are permanently worth while.
But on the way toward success permanent |
lies success temporary. The essential thing |
is to aim at the permanent. Then the tenn |
porary will not harm you. It will help you |
You will make the temporary great stair
way of ascent toward the permanent With |
the better in your mind all the time all else |