El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-10-25
First Anniversary Sermon.

At the Presbyterian church yes
terday, Rev. H. w. Moore preached a
sermon appropriate to his first ami
versary as pastor. The text was from
III L IN. 10, study TO show thyself
approved unto Gcd, a workman that
neeteth not to be ashamed, rightly
dividing the word of truth" The pas
tor said in part: Just one year ago
tomorrow. October %, [ came into this
pulpit and locked into your faces for
the first lime as your pastor. L had to
screw up my courage four times day
and whistle the rest of it to get my
consent TO remain here three months.
Ever since | saw my first audience |
have been more at home and have
learned to love you as a people. |
know of go place in this wide country
as hard on minister as Ell PaSo. l
have found here just as intelligent, just
as kind people, people just as loyal to
Christ as | have found anywhe re. But
the isolation Ct FL PasO, the lack of a
settled righteousness in the communi-
", the impOs>ibllity of pulpit ex-
changes, the lack of association with
members of our own church, the alb
sence of educational facilities, public
Libraries, book stores, etc are all felt.
Here, if anywhere, a N mister must
fall back on native mettle. | want to
give to you the rules L have laid down
TOT the successful pastOrate of "a work
man that needeth not to be ashamed
First never, never, neglect pulpit
preparation. TIE way to heat church
Is first to build a fire on the pulpit.
rhe way to fill a church is first to fill
the pulpit. a minister who wastes his
energies at socia bles, social calling,
conventions, will pay for it in empty
pews. The pulpit Is not losing its pos
wer. Nothing will ever take the place OF
human speech dashed with a whole
some passion. A minister must study
history, philosophy. science, theology,
wit, illustration, aGecdOte-anyt thing
that will make his message irresistible.
Quit hobby riding, quit repeating old
slereotyped phrases, quit giving juice
less old sermons and study. Mar
tin Luther lifted the ulpit and the SER
mon 10 its proper place. Again, preach
short sermons. Ali u preacher gives
his audience after people are tired is
waste of breath. 1t is not lightning
scattered all over the sky that strikes,
but that gathered in the'thUnder bolt. L.
is not sermon scattered over one hour
but that sent home with power in d
shore time that make men start from
their seats for heaven. Again, preach
so people can understand you. Simple
language is the language of power.
Luz Vi pOoplO gov Viz Vi OoiU vi DCluS
deep when they are muddy. Who are
the preachers who draw the multi
tudes and bring thousands to GOO ?
They are those who make it plain. -
People can't cOmestO church carrying
Webster's unabridged dictionary with
them. True scholarship ought TO pop
ularize knowledge.
| have made over 800 calls the last
year. The sick, the troubled, the aged
...,1
till the last, yet L have not neglected
this. Yet true member Of the church
will not stay away from church because
the pastor don't call. Remember w h en-
sick or if you move from one street 10
another, that the pastor is neither
ON Misc mt nor omDipresent. Write
him, o. him, lie. hlm.know G.. Hing
is one OF the pleasures Of the ministry
but be charitable, and not loo exacting.
Three things l have said L wOu d never
DO in my ministry. First. go 10 see
stay out late at night The man who
invented midnight Oil deserves the
purgatory of an everlasting nightmare e..
Late suppers are murderers. Third |
will not stay in church as La5tor
fifteen minutes after l find out | am not
supported. Nothing cheers a preach
er's heart like a working church. You
GEAR people, many of you have done
splendid work.
[ have tried to be a pastor, not only
to my own church but to those outside
of my church. L have tried to be d
pastor to your children, and | have
tried to make Jesus Christ seem ind;s-
pensable to your young men and young
women. L owe much to the considera-
tion and kir dness of those who both in
and out of our church have fixed up our
pulpit, furnished me with horse al d
buggy, which has been blessing to
me in many ways.
The pulpit and the church will abide
forever. Here is a place where man
humbling himself becomes victorious,
using up his life finds it again. The
pulpit is the highest place in This
world, j. quickens conscienc-s s, arouses
sympa.hies, spsaks OF brotherhood