The Newtown bee. (Newtown, Conn.) 1877-current, 1895-10-25
Around the Fireside.
PROSPERITY OF THE SOUL.
PARISH HOUSE,
EPISCOPAL CHURCH j..

A SERMON BY REV EVAN EVANS, PAsToI
OF THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
NEW PRESTON, CT.
Text, Sd John % "Beloved wish above
all things that thou mayest prosper and be in
health, even as thy soul prospereth."
/ wish to say at the beginning that tht
man that spoke my text was we'll dis
posed toward the other, the man he ad
dresses. know that in many cases the
fulfillment of such wish would near
physical and financial ruin, and that thu
most deadly enemies could use this pray
er for one another. You can never wisf
anything worse for some than that they
should prosper in temporal things a:
they prosper in soul. 1t is not an enc
my that speaks, but fatherly man, the
beloved John, who did not do much il
the latter part of his life but wishing
well to people. But this is great dea
when we consider it. 1t is quite pow
er to be able to wish we'll for the honor
able and legitimate efforts of all men
That is not easily done. And persons
that do it are far between; they have
been well tempered like the beloved dis
ciple. Because good wishes are not sold
over counters, and have no market val.
ne, people who Judge everything by the
number of cents it brings or takes, con-
slider them of no consequence. But in
spite of these cent Judges, good wishes
are Of great value; and it is an unmis-
taxable blessing to have men like John
spending the evening Of their day pray
ing for the prosperity of other people.
These wel-wishers are happy in their
wishes.
THEY ARE COMMENTED PEOPLE;
and their generous prayers bring them
deep satisfaction and profound peace.
1t is grand state of mind to be in. But
as l said before, it is not very common.
1t is an acquired disposition. The natur-
al disposition is to have petty jealousies,
full of mild torments, and dark, gloomy
wishes, and have conceived prayers
which would make man shudder If he
put them into words. Those petty jeal-
ousies bite their best when they see the
prosperity of other people. They make
their father more miserable while he sees
others prospecting. 1t is these Jealous
les that make people dissatisfied with
their own lot. Not only they are dissat-
isfied with the success and prosperity of
their neighbors, but dissatisfied with
their own conditions. The prosperity of
their neighbors makes them dissatisfied
with their own condition. 1t is said that
this is the reason that prosperous people
are craving for more prosperity, they
know of somebody more prosperous than
themselves; and as long as that is the
case there is no peace for them. When
we find the enlightened society of the
10th century so full of this diabolical
spirit, is it not refreshing to hear good
old man like John speaking, and express
ing his wishes so pure and unselfish
Any number of these products of modern
times can offer the prayer Of John, but
they can do it because they know that
their rivals would be nobodies Of they
prospered not better in finances than In
soul. So, two very opposite spirits
could offer this prayer, using the same
words, but with directly opposite inten-
ton; one wishing prosperity, the other
reverses and failure. The one is a good
spirit, the other evil spirit.
John wishes we'll to Gaiu. and the
wish speaks well of the spirituality of
the latter. 1t was grand compliment
to his frame Of mind and heart. We do
not generally look at things In this or
der. We look at the natural first, and
then at the spiritual. The physical
forces itself on US first, and the spiritual I
timidly stands at distance. 1t has not
the vulgar boldness of the physical. So /
we are apt to fling one natural law into
the spiritual world; while little thought
would show US, that spiritual laws are
In the natural world. So the general
wish would reverse Johns order, and
form itself beloved, wish above all /
things that thou mayest prosper in soul as
thou prosperest in worldly things" We
seem to understand this kind of prosper
ty better. IL Is more tangible; it can
be weighed or measured, or at least es-
simated. The spiritual is not so tangi-
Die to most of us; therefore having not
;he place 1t should have in our estima-
ion. Not only Is this temporal prosper
ty better known, but the method of ac-
luiring It is better known. This meth.
I'd has been thoroughly studied.
1T Is THE ONE GREAT STUDY OF MEN.
Which study In this time Is necessary In
me day to attain any degree Of success.