Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1900-10-10

department. Daniel knew that if he CON
tinued his adherence to the religion of
the Lord he would be hurled TO the lions;
but having set his compass well. he sail
ed right on. For the lack of that ele
ment of decision of character so eminent
IN Daniel many men are ruined for this
world and ruined for the world TO come.
A great many at 40 years of age are not
settled in any respect, because they have
not been able 10 make up their minds
Perhaps they will go west; perhaps they
will go east; perhaps they will not; per-
haps they will go north; perhaps they
may 40 south; perhaps they will not per
haps they may make that investment in
real estate or in railroads: perhaps they
will not. They are like steamer that
should so out of New York harbor, start
ing for Glasgow, and the next day should
change for Havre de Grace, and the next
for Charleston. and the next for Boston,
and the next for Liverpool. These men
on the sea of life exerlastingly lacking
ship and making no headway Or they
are like a man who starts TO build
| house in the Corinthian style and changes
it TO Doric and then completes 1t in the
Ionic. the curse Of all styles of architec-
on. Have decision OF character Char
acter is like the goldhnch OF Tonquin. 1t
Is magnificent while standing firm. but
| loses all its beauty in flight. How much
| decision of character in order that these
| young men may be Christians, Their
! old associates make sarcastic filings at
| them. They go on excursions. and they
do not invite them. They prophesy that
] III H.. -.
not getting wings. As he passes they
grimacc and wink and chucklc and say,
There goes a saint" O young man.
! have decision Of character! You can af-
| ford in this matter of religion to be laugh
ell at What do YOU care for the SCOTS
of these men, who are affronted because
| You will not go to ruin with them? When
| the grave cracks open under their feet,
and grim messengers push them into it.
and eternity comes down hard upon their
spirit, and conscience stings. and hope
less ruin lifts them mp to hurl them down.
will thcy laugh then?
| leHrn also from my subject that men
may take religion into their worldly bust
ness This is most appropriate thought
ut this season OF the year. when so many
men are starting ont in new enterprises.
| six men. All the affairs Of state were in
| his hands: questions OF finance, CUES
! tions of war. Of peace: all international
! questions were for his settlement or nd
| justment. He must have had a CORE
Spondenee vast beyond all computation.
| There was not Il man in all the earth who
had more to do than Daniel. the secre-
tary Of state, and yet we find him three
q 4 4.
There are men in our day who have not
Il hundredth part of Daniels engage
ments who say they are too busy to be re-
Iigious. They have an idea somehow
that religion will spoil their worldly occu-
patton, that it viii trip the accountants
pen or dull the carpenters saw or con
fuse the lawyers brief or disarrange the
merchants store shelf They think reli-
giOn is impertinent. They would like
TO have it very well seated beside them
in church on the Sabbath, to find the
place in the psalmbook or to nudge them
awake when they get sleepy under the III
dactic discourse, or they would like to
leave it in the pew on Sabbath evening
as they go out, closing the door, saying.
Goodnight. religion; I'll he back next
Sunday But to have religion go right
along by them all through life to have
religion looking over their shoulder when
they are making a bargain, to have reli-
gion take up a bag Of dishonest gold and
shake it and say. Where did you get
that They think that is an imperti
neut religion. They would like to have n
religion to help them when they are sick,
and when the shadow of death comes
over them they would like to have reli-
gion as a sort OF nightkey with which to
open the door Of heaven, but religion un-
der other circumstances they take to be
impertlncnce.
Christianity for Busy Men.
Now, my friends. religion never robbed
man of dollar Other things being
equal. mason will build II better wall, a
cabinct maker will make better chair. a
plumber will make better pipe, law
yer will make better plea n merchant
will sell better bill of goods. l. say.
other things being equal OF course
when religion gives man new heart.
it does not propose 10 give him new
head or to intellcctualize him or TO
change mans condition when his ordi-
nary state is an overthrow Of the phil
osophical theory that total vacuum is
impossible but the more letters you have
to write, the more burdens you have to
carry, the more miles you have to travel.
the more burdens you have to lift the
more gagcmcnts you have 20 meet. the
more disputes you have to settle. the
more opportunity you have Of being q
Christian. If you have a thousand irons
in the fire. You have Il thousand more
opportunities Of serving God than if You
only had one iron in the fire. who 80
busy as Christ? And yet who n mil
lionth part as holy: The busiest men the
best men. All the persons converted in
Scripture busy n the tim" Of their being
converted. Matthew attending to his
custom house duties; the prodigal son
feeding swine; Lydia selling purple; 81
mon Peter hauling in the net from the
sea; Saul squirting his horse toward