Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1895-09-12

hoSt iOnR-laceu Christians. Thew
nave got mighty tough hides and
powerful short recollections and YOU
can't get them to get along bit be,
ter, try as you may.
How many people have you gol
in your church ?" queried Mr.. Jones
turning suddenly to Rev. w. G..
Herbert, of Waverly Methodist
Episcopal church, who was seated
on tho platform beside him.
"Thres hundred" was the an
swer.
Three hundred," repeated the
evangelist. d" And Of that number
reckon you have about thirty
whom you can get any work out of,
about twenty who sort o. linger
around the place where the work is
being done, and two hundred and
fifty whom you can't stir to save
your soul.
Suppose you were q farmer with
three hundred mules and worked for
every one Of them. In a year the
grass would have your crops, the
buzzards would have your mules and
the sheriff would have you. That's
what comes of everybody not doing
their own work.
There are Methodist preachers
who are afraid of saying things right
out like this for fear of being moved
away at the next conference. 1 used
to be that way myself, but when 1
found that my feet, my hands and
my tongue were tied, 1 just got out !;
and now l don't care whether the
Bishop likes it or not, or what the
stewards of the church have to say
about it.
Many of you have an idea that
conference appointment ts are made
by God. They are not, except the
small ones. The prominent charges
are all selected before conference
meets, and then the Lord the rest of
them. All my appointments in the
old days were made with the grace
or God-that is to say, all of them
were small. The bishops never
gave me large church.
l would like to see the Methodist
minister of any prominent church
in Baltimore who dares to get up in
his pulpit and boldly preach the
doctrines of prohibition. He's
afraid of the influence of the devil
in his congregation"
"I do it in my church," inter
rupted Rev. Harry Mitchell, of Ex-
eter Street Methodist Episcopal
church.
You don't call yourselfa preacher
of prominence, do you?" was Mr..
Jones's rejoinder.- Every one
laughed good naturedly, both on
the platform and in the audience.
"There is just one thing that l
want you all to remember said
Mr.. Jones in concluding. "It
doesn't matter to me whether YOU
forget everything else l have said if
you'll only bear this point in mind.
Some time ago, while preaching In
Church, Atlanta, used In
my sermon the illustration of the
locomotive which l have used to-day,
and at its close invited every one
to speak up and let me know what
part of the engine of Christianity
he or she would like to be. Some
one said he wanted to be the cylin-
der, another the boiler, a third the
cow-catcher and fourth the whistle.
Then an old man got up and 1
knew he was going to say something
worth hearing. He was one of the
finest men / ever knew. The only
trouble with him was that he was
stingy; he was worth $4,000 and
ont of that he only gave $1.5O to
the poor each year. Just think of
1t! Well, he rose up and said to me {:
Mr.. Jones, / want to be the old
black coal that is thrown into the
flames to keep up the power that is
driving the locomotive of Christi
How many of us are there who
would like to be just the old black
coal 2"