The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1897-12-15

yysnts More Common Seuss IN Hatter5 cf
Relision-Absurdlties Of Churca aychi-
lecture and Manage Great
Need Of thew rid.
DR.. Talmase IN this discourse &cvo-
Gates more practical wisdom IL saofHS
At doing good and assailS soma OF Ioe
absur6ities il church src1i.ecture ard
management The text IS Luxe NJ,
S, The children OF this wcr.a are II
their generation wiser than tae cai1
dren Of light
That is ancther way of s&ying ;2-st
Christians are not s. sEitlf2lln the
manipulation OF spiritual 2tfairs IS
worldlinss are skillful 10 the manage
ment of temporalities. Iseeail around
me people whosare alert, esrnest, COR
centrsted ard skill'ul il mcuetafy
matters, who in the affairs Ct tbs soul
are laggards, inare, inert The gcea:
want of the world is more common
sense in matters Of religion. Il one
half OF the skill and forcefulnesS en-.
ployed in financial affairs was EN-.
ployed in disseminating the tru."s OF
Christ and trying 70 make TIE wcS-d
better, within ten years the lsSt jug
sernaut would fall, the last thr2ne OF
oppression upset, the last iplQolfy
tumble, and the anthem that vas
chanted over Bethlehem on Christmas
night would be echoed and ana re,
-choed from all nsiiors and kindred
ID people, GLORY TO God IN tne
highest and en- esrth pesce, coed VII
to men,
Some years ago, on train going
toward the southwest, as the porter Of
the sleeping car was making up the
berths at the evening tide, sew man
kneel down to pray. Worldly people
looked on as much as to say, What
does this mean?" I suppose the most
of the people IN the car thought thst
the man was either insane or that he
was fanatic, but he disturbed no one
when ne knelt, and he disturbed no
one when he arose In aiter converse
ton with him I found cut that he was
a member of q church IN s northern
city, that he was seafaring man and
thst he was on his way to New Orleans
to take command OF s vessel. i
thought then, SIS I think now, thst ten
such men-mep with such courage Tor
God as that man had-ten such men
would bring the whole city to Carist;
1000 such men would bring this Whole
land to God; 10000 such men, m q
short time, would bring the whole
earth into the kingdom Of JESUS. Tiar
he was successful in WORLDLY s8airs :
found out. That he was skillfui IN
spiritual affairs you are well pers9ad
ed. If men had the courage, the
pluck, the alertness, the acumen, the
industry, the common sensein matters
of the soul that they have N matters
of the world, this would be very clf
ferent kind of earth IN which to live.
In the first place my friends, We
want more common sense IN the oul.c-
ing and conduct of churches. The
idea of a6ap.iveness is always para
mount in any other kind OF structure.
# bankers meet together, and they re
solve upon putting G up g bank, the bank
is especially adapted to banking pur-
poses; if manufacturing company
puts up 8 building, it is to be adapted
to manufacturing purposes, but aoap-
tiveness is not always the question n
the rearing OF churches. In many OF
our churches we want more light,
more room, more ventilation. more
comfort. Vast sums of money are ex-
pended on ecclesiastical structures,
and men sit down in them, and you
ask man Row he likes the church.
He says, ST like it very vel, but l
can't hear" As though shawl fsc
tory were good for everything but
making shawls! The voice Of the
preacher dashes against the pillars.
Men sit down under the shadows OF
the Gothic arches and shiver and feel
they must be getting religion or some
thing else, they feel soUncomforta5ie.
Oh, my friends, we want more COM
mon sense in the rearing OF churches.
There is no excuse for lack OF light
when the heavens are full OF 1t, 20
excuse for lack of fresh air when the
world swins in it. Itought to be an
expression not only of our spieitural
happiness but Of our physical comfort
when we say: How amiable are
thy tabernacles. O Lord God OF hosts.
A day in thy courts IS better than
thousand.
Again, 7 remark We want more com.
mon sense in the obtaining OF religi
Gus hope. AL men understand that
IN order to succeed in Torldlv dirsc
tions they must concentrate. They
think on that one object, on that one
subject, until their mind takes fire
with the velocity of their own
thoughts. All their acumen, all their
strategy, all their wisdom, al their
common sense, they put IN tat one
direction, and they succeed. But how
seldom it is true IN the matter Of seek
ing after Coo. While no man ex
poets to accomplish anything for this
world without concentration and en-
thusiasm, how many there are expect
ing after awhile to get into tie king
dom OF God without the use Of any
such means!
4 miller in Califoroi& many years
ago picked up q sparkle Of gold from
the bed OF g stream which turned his
mill. He held up that sparkle Of gold
until il bewitched nations. Tens Of
thousands Of people left their homes
They took their blankets, a1d their
pickaxes, and their pistols and weG: 20
the wilds of California. Cities spIaog
us suddenly on the Pscifc ccas!. Mar
chants put aside their elegant apparel
and put on the miners eGb. AL the
land was full Of the talk about golG
Gold in tie eyes, gold in the ears, god
in the wake Of fsbips, goldin the streets
gold, gold. goId
Word comes to rs that the ncua
tain al Gods love is full Of gold; tha
men have been digging there and
have brought W gald, and amethyst
and carbuncle, aid jaspers-A~y-r
onyx, a2a a2 ehS-scf;7aS1s 80 aS1s, ard all the
4rslous stones out Of which the walls