The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1892-05-11


chants, young lawyers. young physicians,
young ministerss How is it then?
THE SPIRIT OF INDIGESTION.
Again behold in our subject an exhibit
ton of true decision of character. Before
Daniel were condemnation and death, If he
continued faithful to his religion. Yet,
just as before, three times day he prayed
with his face toward Jerusalem. There is
nothing more fatal for the religious or
worldly advancement than spirit of in
decision. How often youth is almost gone
before the individual has determined upon
his profession.
There are those who for thirty or forty
years have accomplished nothing any
where because they have not felt them
selves settled. They have thought of the
law, of medicine, of merchandise, of mech
anism. They have some idea of going
west. Perhaps they will go east Perhaps
they won't. They may go north or south.
Perhaps they will invest their money in
railroads or in real estate. Perhaps they
won't. They are like a vessel starting
from New York harbOr, which should one
day decide on going to Liverpool, and the
next on New Orleans, and the next on Mar
settles. How many men have for long
while been out on the great sea of life and
they do not know to what port they are
destined? 1t is an everlasting lacking Of
ship but no Roadway.
The man who begins to build house in
the Corinthian style and when half way up
concludes to make it Doric. and then COM
pletes it in Ionic, will have an unseemly
pile and be cursed Of every school of archi-
lecture. These men that try everything
get to be nothing. God wrote in your brain
and engraved on your bones what you
ought to be. Then be that, nothing more
or nothing less. In that direction is your
success Every other road is ruin. Hav-
ing adjusted your compass, go ahead Set
your teeth together. Small difficulties do
not notice. Great difficulties, by Gods
grace strike them down. Onwardl Let
towards skulk.
Act you like sons of God. If you want
to sail to the land of gold you must double
the Cape. To usefulness and strong char
acter there is no overland route. Over the
great deeps you must fly. Most of the
way it is either head wind or tempest
Character, like the goldfinch of Tonquin,
is magnificent when standing firm, but
loses all its splendor in flight. There is no
such thing as failure 10 those who trust in
God. Paul got to be an apostle by falling
off his horse. Stephen was stoned into
heaven.
When a young man resolves on a re-
Hgious life, he does not always find it
smooth sailing. Old companions laugh
and say with sarcastic tone, ''He has got
to be pious." They go on excursions, out
do not ask him. They prophesy that his
religion will not hold out. They call him
"long faced" They wonder if he is not
getting wings. They say sharp things
abaIt him for themselves to laugh at.
L 4
and chuckle, and say loud enough to be
heard, There goes a saint" If you have
never seen life as it is, you know not what
strength of resolution it often requires for
young man to be Christian.
VALUE OF SELF DENIAL.
Again, let this story of Daniel teach MS
that the way to future success is through
present self denial. Not only did Daniel
show his Willingness for self restraint by
refusing the luxuries of the kings table,
but must have denied himself much social
enjoyment and sightseeing in order to have
attained most wonderful proficiency in
study. The rush of the chariots under his
window and the sound of mirth that rang
out on the air of Babylon would have at
tracted most young men into the streets
and TO expensive places of amusement.
But Daniel knew that it was only through
severity of application he could attain the
honorable position for which he was in
tended. Indeed, you may carry this truth
into universal application.
The most of those who have succeeded
in any profession or occupation have come
up from the very bottom of the ladder.
The brightest day began with the twilight.
The admirals who commanded the navies
of the world started as cabin boys. The
merchant princes, whose messengers arc
ships and whose servants the nations Gus
tom houses, once swept the store and kim
died the fires. The orator who lifts up the
gate of the soul, as Samson carried off the
gates of GAIA, once stammered and
blushed on the stage of a country school
house. The young painter. under whose
pencil skies blossom and waters CLEAN, I'M
derstands his subject so well because he
has but little to shelter him from the one
and is obliged to find his only beverage in
the other.
Out of the dark, deep mines of want and
suffering has been dug the marble for the
worlds greatest temples of wisdom and
palaces of power. Vanderlyn, the artist,
must first content himself with charcoal
sketch Franklin, before becoming the
renowned philosopher, must be journey
man printer Columbus must weave car
pets before he can weave hemispheres.
David must take care of his fathers sheep
before he rules Israel. Amos must be
herdsman before he becomes a prophet.
Daniel must be the humble student before
he rises to be the prime minister of Baby
Ion.
If a young man starts in life with large
notions of what he must Immediately have,
willing to consider no economy, but ex-
pecting with a small ship TO unfurl as
much sail as an ocean frigate, he will find
himself capsiZed by the first northeastern
1t is the small sprig that you can carry in
one hand which will thrive best when
planted But if, by levers and huge lum-
Der wagons, You bring down from the
mountain century oak, though you may
plant it, you cannot make it live. So be
who begins life on such a grand scale and
with such exorbitant notions, will never
succeed, while some young man who went
to town without means, but having right
spirit. through his self denial, planted
tree which has reached above Wall street
and flung its shadow in one direction over
the granite palaces on the avenues and in
the other far out over merchant vessels an
chored in the bay.
Men say success in life is all a matter of
good lack, bat industry and economy and
self denial put together always make GOOD
luck There are young men who failed
twice and are getting notes shaved the
third time before they are as old as their
father when he first began business for
himself. They started with the idea that