Iuka reporter. (Iuka, Miss.) 1888-1894, 1891-10-22


in stumbling about among businesses and
occupations, now trying this and now trying
that, and failing in ALL would be able to 20
ahead with definite, decided and trsmend-
Gus purpose, saying; ''ro this end was
bornn
But my subject now mounts into the
momentous. Let me say that you are made
Tor usefulness and heaven judge this from
the way you are built. You go into shop
where there is only one wheel turning and
that by workmans foot on treadle.
and say to yourself, 'Here is some
thing good being done, yet on a small
scale;" but If you go into factory covering
many acres, and you find thousands of bands
pulling on thousands Of wheels, and shut
Ties Tying, and the whole scene bewildering
with activities, driven by water, or steam
or electric power, you conclude that the fac
tory was put up TO do great work and on q
vast scale. Now, l look at you, and if
should find that you had only one faculty of
body, only one muscle, only one nerve if
you could see but could not hear, or could
hear and not see, IL you hal the use of only
one foot or one hand, and, as to your higher
nature, il you had only one mental faculty,
and you had memory but no Judgment, or
judgment but no will, and if you had a soul
with only one capacity, l would say not
much is expected of you
But stand up, 0 man, let me look you
squarely in the facet Eyes capable of see
ing everything. Ears capable of hearing
everything. Hands capable of grasping
everything Mind with more wheels than
any factory ever turned, more power than
Corllss engine ever moved A soul that will
outlive all the universe, except heaven and
would outlive all heaven if the life of other
lmmortals were a moment short of the
eternal. Now, what has the world right
to expect from you? What has God right
fr III 4 g A.. =
economists in the universe, and He makes
nothing uselessly, and for what purpose did
he build your body, mind and soul as they
are built?
There are only two beings in the universe
who can answer that question. The angels
do not know. The schools do not know.
Your kindred cannot certainly know. God
knows and you ought to know. A factory
running at an expense of $500, 900 year.
and turning out goods worth seventy cents
year would not be such an incongruity
as you, o man, with such senli-iIifinite
equipment doing nothing, or next to moth
ing, in the way of usefulness. ssWhat shall
do?' you ask. My brethren, my sisters, do
not ask me. Ask God.
There's some path of Christian usefulness
open. 1t may be q rough path, or it may be
smooth path, long path or short path.
1t may be on a mount of conspicuity or in q
valley unobserved, but it is a path on
which you can start with such faith and
such satisfaction and such certainty that
you can cry out in the face of
earth and hell and heaven, ITO this end was
| born" Do not wait for extraordinary
qualifications. Philip the Conqueror gained
his greatest victories seated on a mule, and
If you wait for some caparisoned Bucephalus
to ride into the conflict you will never get
into the world wide fight at all. Sampson
slew the Lords enemies with the jawbone of
the stupidest beast created. Shamgar slew
six hundred of the Lords enemies with an
OK goad. Under God spittle cured the blind
mans eyes IN the New Testament story. Take
all the faculty you have and say: 70 Lord,
here is what have. Show me the field and
back me up by omnipotent power. Any
where, anyhow, any time for God"
Two men riding on horseback came to u
trough to water the horses. While the
horses were drinking one of the men said to
the other few words about the value of the
soul, and then they rode away, and in oppo-
site directions. But the words uttered were
the salvation of the one to whom they were
uttered, and he became the Rev. Mr.. Cham
pion, one of the most distinguished mission
aries in heather lands for years wondering
who did for him the Christian kindness, and
not finding out until, in bundle of books
sent him to Africa, he found the biography
of Brainerd Taylor and a picture of him, and
y
book as the man who, at the watering trough
for horses had said the thing that saved has
soul. What opportunities you have had in
the past. What opportunities you have
now What opportunities you will have in
the days to comet
Put ON your hat oh, woman, this after
noon, and go in and comfort that young
mother who lost her babe last summer. Put
on your hat, oh, man, and go over and see
that merchant who was compelled yesterday
to make an assignment, and tell him of the
everlasting riches remaining for all those
who serve the Lord Can you sing? Go and
sing for that man who cannot get well, and
you will help him into heaven. Let it be
your brain, your tongue, your eyes, your
ears, your heart, your lungs, your hands,
your feet, your body, your mind, your soul,
your life, your death, your time your eter-
nifty for God, feeling in your soul, TO this
end was born"
1t may be helpful to some if recite my
own experiencein this regard. l started for
the law without asking any divine direction
/ consulted my own tastes L llket lawyers
and courtrooms and judges and juries, and
l reveled in hearing the Frelinghuysens and
the Bradleys of the New Jersey bar, and as
assistant of the county clerk, at sixteen
years of age, searched titles naturalized
foreigners, recorded Deeds received the con-
fession of judgments, swore witnesses and
X
felt call to the Gospel ministry and entered
it, and felt some satisfaction in the work.
But one summer when l was resting at
Sharon Springs, and while seated in the park
OF that village, l said to myself, IF | have
an especial work to do in the world | ought
to find it out now, and with that determin-
alton prayed as | had never before prayed,
and got the divine direction, and wrote it
down in my memorandum book, and saw
my life work then as plainly as see it now.
Oh, do not be satisfied with general direc-
tions. Get specific directions. Do not shoot
at random Take aim and fire. Concen-
trate. Napoleon's success in battle came
from his theory of breaking through the
enemy's ranks at one point, not trying to
meet the whole line of the enemy's force by
a similar force One reason why he lost
Waterloo was because he did not work his
usual theory, aud spread his force out over a
wide range. Oh, Christian man, oh, Chris
tian woman, break through somewhere.
Not a general engagement for God, but a
particular engagement, and made in answer
to prayer. 1t there ara sixteen hundred
million people in the world. then there are
sixteen hundred million different missions to
fulfill, different styles of work to do, differ
ent orbits in which to revolve, andif you dc
not get the divine direction there are at least
fifteen hundred and ninety mine million pos
sibilities that you will make mistake On
your knees before God get the matter settled
SO that you can firmly say, 10 this end was
born"
And now come to the climacteric con
sideration. As near as l eau toll. you were