The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-01-23

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 converted, he asked the Lord to
teach him how to bear himself toward
that business antagonist, and he
was impressed with the fact that it was his
duty when a customer asked for certain
kinils of goods which he had not, but which
he knew his opponent had, to recommend
him to 90 to that store. l suppose that Is
about the hardest thing man could do; but
being thoroughly converted to God, he re-
solved to do that very thing, and being asked
for a certain kind of goods which he had not
he said: "You 60 to such and such store,
and you will get it." After awhile. merchant
number two found these customers 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 neghbors, the grace
Of God entirely changing their disposition,
"Oh," says some one, Il have rough,
jagged, impetuous nature, and religion can
do ANYTHING for me-" Do you know that
Martin Luther and Robert Newton and Rich
ard Baxter were impetuous, all-consuming
natures, yet the grace Of God turned them
into the mightiest usefulness! manutac-
turer cares but very little for stream that
slowly runs through the meadow, but strong
torrent that leaps from rock to rock
and rushes with mad energy through the
valley and out toward the sea- Along that
river you will find futtering shuttles and
grinding mill and flashing water wheel And
a nature, the swiftest, the most rugged and
the most tremendous that is the nature God
turns into greatest usefulness. Oh, how many
who have been pusnacious and hard to
please. and irascible, and more bothered
about the mote i'll their neighbors eye than
about the beam like ship timber in their owu
eye, who have been entirely changed by the
grace OF God. and have found out that God
illness is profitable for the life that now is as
we'll as for thu life which is to come"
Again remark that religion is good for q
mans worldly business. know the general
theory is the more business the less religion,
the more religion the less business. Not so,
thought DR.. Hans, in his Biography of a
Christian Merchant" when he says: "He
grew IN grace the last six years or his lie
more than at any time IN his lie; during
those six years he had moro business crowd
ing him than at any other time" In other
words the more worldly business man has,
the more opportunity to serve God. Does
religion exhiiarate or retard worldly ousl'
ness! is the the practical question for you to
discuss. Does it hang like mortgage over
the farm? Is it bad debt on the ledger! Is
it q lien against the estatel Does it crowd
the door through which customers come for
broadcloths and silks' Now, religion will
hinder your business if it be bad business,
or if it be a good business wrongfully con-
Quoted. If you tell lies behind the counter,
if YOU use false weights and measures, if you
put sand in sugar, and beet-juice in vinegar
and lard in butter. and sell for one thing that
which is another thing, then religion will in:
terfere with that business; but lawful
10 fn1l find
religion of the Lord Jesus Christ its mightlest
auxiliary. :.
Religion will give ON equipoise OF spirit, it
will keep you from ebulitions of temper-aud
you know great many fine businesses have
been blown to atoms by bad temper-lt Will
keep you from worriment about frequent loss.
it will keep You industrious and prompt, IL
will keep you back from squandering and
dissipation, it will give you a kindness
of spirit which will be easily distinguished
from that mere store courtesy which
shakes hands violently with you, ask.
ing about the health Of your family when
there is no anxiety to know whether your
child is we'll or sick! But the anxiety IS TO
know how many dozen cambria pocKet
handkerchefs you will take and pay casn
down 1t will prepare YOU for the practlcal
say that religion will make us financially
rich, but do say that it will giveus, IL
will assure us. of comfortable sustenance
at the start, a comfortable subsistence all the
way through, and it will help us to direct the
the bank, to manage the traffic, to conducG
all our business matters, and TO make tne
most insignificant affair Of our life matter
of vast importance glorifed by Chrlstlan
principle.
In New York city there was a merchant
hard in his dealings with his fellows, who had
written over his banking house. or his count
ing-house room: mo compromise" Then
when some merchant got in crisis ana went
down-n fault of his, but conjunction OF
evil circumstances-and all the other mer-
chants we're willing to compromise-they
would take seventy-fve cents on the dollar,
or fifty cents, or twenty centS-comlng to
this man last of all, he snid: "No compro-
mise; III take one hundred cents on the dol
lar. and I can afford to wait" Well, the
wheel turned, and after while that man
was in crisis or business, and he sent out
his agents to compromise. and the agents
said to the merchants: "Will you take fifty
cents on the dollar2" "No" "Will you
take anything"' "We'll take one hundred
cents on the dollar. No compromise And
the man who wrote the inscription over his
counting g-house died in destitution. Oh.
we want more of the kindness OF
the Gospel and the spirit of love in
J
men have found in the religion of Jesus
Christ practical helpa How many there
are in this house to-day who could testify out
of their own experience that Goodness IS
profitable for the life that now is. There
were times in their business career when
they went here for help. and there for help;
and yonder for help and got no help until
they knet before the Lord crying for His
deliverance, and the Lord rescued them.
In bank not far from our great metropo-
lis-a village bank-an officer could not bal
once his accounts. He had worked at them
day after day, night after night, aud he was
sick nigh unto death as a result. He knew
he had not taken one farthing from that
bank, but somehow, for some reason inscru-
table then. the accounts wouldn't balance
Tho time rolled on, and tho morning OF
the day when the books should pass
under the inspection of the other officers
arrived, and he felt himself in awful peril,
conscious of his own integrity but unable to
prove that integrity. That morning he went
to the bank early, and he knelt down before
God and told the whole story OF his mental
right; / have preserved my integrity. but
here I am about to be overthrown unless
Thou should come to my rescue. Lord, de-
liver me-" And for one hour he continued
the prayer before God, and then he rose and
| Went to an old blotter that he had forgotten
| all about He opened it and there lay sheet
Of figures which he only needed to add to
another line of figures s-some line of figures
he had forgotten, and knew not where he
had laid them-and the accounts were
balanced and the Lord delivered MIN. You are
an infdel if you do not believe it. The Lord
| delivered HIM. God answered his prayer as
He will answer your prayer, 0 mau OF busl-
ness, in every crisis when you come to Him.
| Now, if this be SO, then I am persuaded, as
you are, of the fact that the vast majority Of