Morning journal and courier., 1889-01-31
THE mINISTRR,s PRIVATE LIFE.

Final Lyman Beecher Lecture-The
 Great Mold and Consequence of
 Character-The Phases Of a Minis
 ter,s Life-System Should Rule in
 Everything.
 The final lecture in the Lyman Beecher course was given by Prof. Broadus in Mar quand chapel yesterday afternoon upon "The Ministers Private Life" The chapel was crowded The lecturers remarks were re- plete with deep insight into life and charac- ter generally and laden with the experience of studied years.
 "What man is will always be 6 matter of more importance than what he knows or what he has," began the professor. "Of knowledge, wealth or character, the greatest is the last. From the lowest to the highest grade of teachers the character of the person is greater than all others, and so it is with the minister. Character takes it's shape and substance chiefly from private life. In this great matter there are prominent crises in every life. It depends largely upon heredity also. We may perhaps take the old Greek fancy of periods of seven years. In the first seven years of a child's life more than half the moulding is done; at the end of the sec ond seven there is @ great subtle thought; another seven and character is pretty well formed; it endures another marked crisis only two or three years after this period, when the entrance to sober life work is made. Habits which harden into character have been most entirely established during prepa- ration and but this final crisis remains. It may be worth to note the phases of a minis ter's private life.
 First-The minister's should be deeply devout life, a life striving to be higher every day sill the opening day, when death itself will be new birth into the highest life. sz a1~ over literature and age. Yet had rather live in our age than any before it. Still we have our danger of one-sidedness. We are in danger of sighting sober reflection in di- vine truth. I urge upon you the importance of will in piety. It is our duty and privilege strenghtb of purity, "God help me, will, will be goodl"
 Second-A minister's private life should be a cheerful and kindly life. man of oratorical temperament is especially subject to deepondencv and irritability. Against these set the thought of cheerfuiness at home. The homo of literary men is often unpleasant. They live in an atmosphere of their own, with their own beautiful or ideal creations. If you want to naakea home hap py one of these days, do as much courting after marriage as before; keep 1t up through life and heaven will bless you both.
 Third-A minister's private life should be an earnestly laborious one. The ministers of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ are a noble set of men. No nobler have we in any of the great walks of life; yet their ideal ought to be above all these examples. To serve God in laziness ought to be as impossi- ble as to serve God in Mammon. Conserve all physical and mental tolls that life may be long and it's whole length filled with honest labors.
 Fourth-A minister's private life ought to be life marked by common sense. Many people think that where there is great genius there is no common sense. If wego over the worlds wide field, true men of genius are ale ways marked with great common sense. Some also think it cannot be inforeed. Why not3 Is 1t what we all possess in some de- degree. Can we not improve our powers of observation, our combination of idease minister above all needs this boon of power can be said: "When he is in the pulpit we think he never ought to come out, but when out we think he never ought to go in."
 Fifth-A minister's private life ought to be systematic life. There are so many kinds of labors that system is sorely needed: would first say that every mans plan ot work must be his own; secondly, that this plan must be strongly elastic. The minis ter's day, week, year and lifetime should be marked by regular personal habits. In ex- ercise, sleep and meals regular hours should be observed, to keep you in the finest physi- cal condition. would suggest that the fore noon be given to sermons, the afternoon to visiting and the evening to study. Have your week systematized. Rest on Monday; on Tuesday morning choose two texts for next Sundays sermon; Wednesday and Thursday prepare the sermon, and con- tinue in this manner. Every mans lifetime should be the unwinding of plan. Work for the next five or ten years to come, but never for tomorrow. Look at the problem of life as a whole. Such is the existence of the true beneftters of mankind. Gentle men, do your best before God for his sake, | and for ours do little better"
 On Thursday and Friday, February 14th and 18th, General Armstrong will lecture 1 upon "The Christian Education of the Me- 1 gro and Indian Racss."