Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1890-11-22
how is it now7 The greatest crime that
you can commit is the crime of success.
DECISION OF CHARACTER

AguH, my subject ImpreSSeS me with
the value of decision of character in
any department. Daniel knew that if
he continued his adherence to the re-
hglon of the Lord he would be hurled
to the lions, but having set his compass
well he sailed right on.
For the lack of that element of de-
clslon of character so eminent in Dan
lei many men are ruined for this world
and ruined for the world to come.
great manv at forty years of age ara not
ooUoleu III any respect, because they
nave not been able to make up their
mind Perhaps they will 90 west
Perhaps they will go east. PERHAPS
they will not. Perhaps they will 90
north Perhaps they may go south.
Perhaps they will not. Perhaps thew
may make that investment in real es-
tate or in railroads Perhaps they will
not. They are like a steamer that
should go out of New York harbor,
starting for Glasgow, and the next dav
should change for Havre de Grace. and
the next for Charleston, and the next
for Boston, and the next for LIVERPOOL
these men on the sea Of life, everlast-
ingly lacking ship and making no head
way. Or they are like a man who
starts to build a house in the Corinth-
ian style and changes it to Doric. and
then completes it in the Ionic. and is
cursed by all styles of architecture.
START RIGHT AND KEEP ON.
Young man, start right and keep on.
Have decision of character. Charac
ter is like the goldfinch Of Tonquin; it
is magnificent while standing firm, but
loses all its beauty in flight. How much
decision of character in order that these
young men may be Christians! Their
old associates make sarcastic filings at
them. They go on excursions and thew
do not invite them They prophesv
that he will give out They wonder if
he is not getting wings. As he passes
they grimace and wink and chuckle,
and say, There goes saint
Oh, young man, have decision of char
acter. You can afford in this matter
of religion to be laughed at. What do
you care for the SCOTS of these men
who are affronted because you will not
go to ruin with them? When the grave
cracks open under their feet, and grim
messengers push them into it, and eter-
nifty comes down hard upon their
spirit, and conscience stings, and hope.
less ruin lifts them up to hurl them
down, will they laugh then?
| learn also from my subject that
men may take religion into their
worldly business Daniel had enough
work to do to occupy six men. All the
affairs of state were in his hands
questions of finance, questions of war,
of peace, all international questions
were for his settlement or adjustment.
He must have had a correspondence
vast beyond all computation. There
was not a man in all the earth who
had more to do than Daniel, the secre-
tary of state, and yet we find him three
times a day bowling before God in
prayer. There are men in our dav
who have not a hundredth part of
Daniels engagements who say they
are too busy to be religious They
have idea Snmahnw that rolisinn
will spoil their worldly occupation,
that it will trip the accountants pen.
or dull the carpenters saw, or confuse
the lawyers brief, or disarrange the
merchants store shelf
INIPERTINENT RELIGION.
They think religion is impertinent
They would like to have it very well
seated beside them in church on the
Sabbath, to find the place in the psalm
book, or to nudge them awake when
they get sleepy under the didactic dis
course; or they would like to leave it in
the pew on Sabbath evening, as they
go out closing the door, saying, Good
night, religion; I'll be back next Sun
day" But to have religion go right
along by them all through life, to have
religion looking over their shoulder
when they are making bargain, to
have religion take up a bag of dishonest
gold and shake it and say, "IIa! hal
where did you get thatl'-they think
that is an impairment religion. They
would like to have a religion to help
them when they are sick, and when the
shadow of death comes over them they
would like to have religion as a sort of
night key with which to open the door
of heaven; but religion under other cir,
cumstances they take to be an imperti-
nence Now, my friends, religion never
robbed a man of a dollar Other things
being equal, IA mason will build bet
ter wall, cabinet maker will make a
better chair, a plumber will make a
better pipe. lawyer will make better
plea, a merchant will sell better bill
of goods.
/ say other things being equal. OF
course when religion gives man a new
heart It does not propose to give him a
new head. or to intellectualize him, or
to change a mans condition when his
ordinary state is an overthrow of the
philosophical theory that a total vacu
um is impossible; but the more letters
you have to write. the more burdens
you have to carry, the more miles you
have to travel, the more burdens you
have to lift the more engagements you
have to meet, the more disputes you
have to settle, the more opportunity
YOU have of being a Christian.
/ TIKI. BUSIEST MEN THE BEST MEN.