The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1900-09-27


they shook hands ana are now to *
one forever.
How to Love the Father.
Did you ever know drunkard re,
claimed by mimicry OF his staggering
steps, his thick tongue or his hic.
cough? No. You only madden his
brain. But you go to him and lei
him know you appreciate what an aw.
full struggle he has with the evil habit
and you let him know that you have
been acquainted with people who were
down in the same depths who by the
grace of God have been rescued. He
hears your voice, he responds to thai
sympathy, and he is saved. You can.
not scold the world into anything bet
ter. You may attract it into some
thing better The stormiest wind
comes out from its hiding place and
says, II will arouse this sea" And il
blows upon the sea. Half of the sea
Is aroused or fourth of the sea is
aroused, yet not the entire Atlantic,
But after awhile the moon comes out
calm and placid. 1t shines upon the
Sea, and the ocean begins to lift. It
embraces all the highlands; the beach
is all covered. The heart throb OF one
world beating against the heart throb
Of another world. The storm could
not rouse the whole Atlantic, the
moon lifted it. "And IT, said Christ.
'if I be lifted up will draw all men
unto me-"
Clothing Our Nakedness.
What is self-sacrifice? 1t is my
walking a long journey to save you
from fatigue. 1t is my lifting great
number of pounds to save you from
the awful strain. 1t is subtraction
from my comfort and prosperity so
that there may be an addition to your
comfort and prosperity How much of
that have we? Might not I rather
say, How little have we?" Two chill
dren- brother and sister-were pass
ing down the road. They were both
very destitute. The lad had hardly
any garments at all. His sister had
coat that she had outgrown. 1t was
very cold day. She said. Johnny,
come under this coat "Oh, no." he
said; 'the coat isn't large enoughw
"Oh, . she said, 'it will stretch He
comes under the coat. but the coat
would not stretch. So she took off the
coat and put it on him. Self-sacrifice
pure and simple. Christ taking off his
robe to clothe our nakedness. Self
sacrifice. have not any of it, nor
have you compared with that. The
sacrifice of the Son of God.
Christ walked to Emmaus, Christ
walked from Capernaum to Bethany,
Christ walked from Jerusalem to Col
gotha. How far have you and walk
ed for Christ? His head achea, his
heart ached, his back ached. How
much have we ached for Christ?
The Need of Humility.
How much of that humility have
we? If we get a few more dollars
than other people or gain little high
er position, oh, how we strut! We go
around wanting everybody to know
their place, and say. is not this great
Babylon that l have built for the hon
or of my kingdom and by the might
of my strength" Who has anything
of the humility Of Christ?
The disposition of Christ was also
the spirit of prayer. Prayer on the
mountains, prayer on the sea, prayer
among the sick, prayer everywhere.
Prayer for little children: Father, I
thank thee that thou hast hidden
these things from the wise and pru-
dent and revealed them unto Babes"
Prayer for his friends: Father, I
will that they be with me where I
am Prayer for his enemies: Faith
er, forgive them; they know not
what they do" Prayer for all ma
tions: ''Thy kingdom come" How
little of that spirit you and have.
How soon our knees get tired. Where
is the vial full of odors which are the
prayers of all the saints? Which of
us can keep our mind ten minutes on
prayer without wandering? Not
you, not l. Oh, that we might have
the. spirit of prayer which was the
spirit of Christ. We want more prayer
in the family. more prayer in the
church, more prayer in the legislative
hall, more prayer among the sick, more
prayer among the aged, more prayer
among the young. The great advance
ment of the church is to be in that
direction yet.
The Spirit of Hard Work.
The spirit Of Christ, remark last
ly, was spirit of hard work. Not
one lazy moment in all his life.
Whether he was talking to the fisher
men on the beach or preaching to the
sailors on the dock or administering
to the rustics amid the mountains or
| spending an evening in Bethany, al
ways busy for others. With hands
heart. head busy for others. Hewing
in the Nazareth carpenter shop, teach
ing the lame how to walk without
crutches, curing the child's fits, pro
viding rations for the hungry host
Busy, busy, busy! The hardy men
who pulled the net out of the sea
filled with foundering treasures, the
shepherds who hunted up grassy plots
for their focks to nibble at, the ship
wrights pounding away in the dry.
docks, the winemakers Of Engedi dip.
1 ping the juices from the vat and pour.