The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1900-11-14

hsps they may make that investment In
real estate or in railroads; perhaps they
viii not. They are like steamer that
snould go out of New York harbor,
starting fol Glasgow, and the next day
should change ior Havre de Grace, snd
the next for Charleston, and the next
for Boston, and the next for Liverpool,
These men on the sea CT life everlsss-
ingly tacking ship aud making no mead
way. Or they are like man VINO starts
to build a house in the CoEintnlah
stvIe and changes it to Dorlc snd then
comnletes it in The Ionic, TIE curse OF ali
styles Of architecture. odog man,
start right and keep on. Have decision
If character. Chsracter is like the
sold6pch of Tonquin. 1t is magnificent
While standing 6rn, but loses all beauty
in flight. How much decision OF
character in order that these young men
may be Christins! Their old associates
make sarcastic flngs at them. They go
on excursions, and they do not invite
them. They prophesy that he will
give out. They wender if he is not get
ting wings. AS he passes they grimsce
and wink and chuckle and say, There
goes saint" 0 young man, have
decision of character You can afford
in this matter Of religion to be laughed
at, What do you care for the SCOTS Of
these men, who are afronted bscsuse
you will not 60 to ruin with them!
When the grave cracks open under their
feet. aud grim messengers push them IN
into il, aud eternity comes down hard
upon their spirit, aud conscience
sipgs, and hopeless ruin lifts up to hurl
then down, vii! they laugh then?
u:a,o also from my sairj ,ct that meo
may take religion into their worldly
business. Hi, is ms; appropriate
thought a: Mss .ason Of the year, wnen
50 mary q n ar, starting out IN new
en,erpritcS Daniel ha;i enough work
10 30 10 occupy SIX men All the at.
fairs Uf sta:e wee il his hsnds; Ques.
tions OF finance, questions of wsr, OF
peace; all intern .tional Q1estions were
for bis settlement or adjustment. He
must nave had a correspondence vas;
beyond all computation. TaeTe was
not nan in ali the earth who had more
to 90 than Daniel secretary Of state,
srd yet we fnd MIN three times s day
bowing before God in prayer. There
are men in our day who haye not huo,
dredth part OF DAniels engagements
who say they ace too busy to b. relig
ious, They hsve an idea sem shoT that
religion will spoil their worldly oocups
ton, 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 re
ligion is impersi1ent They would like
to have it very well seated beside them
in church on the Sabbath, to find the
place in the psslmbook or to nudge
them awake when they get sleepy under
the didaotic discourse, OF they would
like to leave it in the pew on Sabbath
evening as they 60 out, closing the door,
saying, Good night, religion; I'll be
back next Sunday!' But to have reli-
gion 60 right along by them all through
llfe, 10 have religion looking over their
shoulder when they are making a bar
gain, to have religion take up bag Of
dishonest gold and shake it and ssy,
Where dld you get tbat' They think
that is an impairment religion. They
would like to have religion to help
them VI hen they are sick, and when the
shadow Of death comes over them, they
woul1 ike to have religion as sort Of
nightkey with which to open the door
of hes7sn, bu: religion under other cir.
cuustsnocs they take to b. imperti
nerce.
Now, ny friends, religion uever rob-
bed a man of a dcllar. O,her things
being equal. mason will build a bet
ter wall, csbinet maker will make 8
better chair, plumber will make bet
ter pipe, a lawyer will make better
plea, merchant will sell better bill
OF goods. [ say, other things being
equal. OF course when religion gives
nan new heart. it does Lot propose
to give him pew he'd or to insellec-
tualze him OF to casnge mtn's corci-
ticn when his ordinary state is an over
throw of the philosophical theory that
total vacuum is impossible, but the
more letters you have to write, the more
burdens you have to carry, the more
miles yor have to travel, the more bur
6ens you have to lift, the more engage
ments you have to meet, the more dis
Du:es you have to se:tle, the more op-
portuuity you have Of being Christian.
If you have thousand irons in the fire,
you have Thousand more opportunities
of serving God than If ycu only had one
iron in the IRE. Who so busy as Christ?
And yet who nii;ionth part as holy?
The busiest men the best man. All
the persons converted in scripture busy
at the time Of their being converted.
Matthew attending to his custom house
du.ies; the p-o6igal son feeding sgiae;
Lydia selling purple; Simon Peter haul
ing in the MT from the sea; Saul spur
ring his horse toward Damascus, going
down on his law business, Busy, bus,
D.niel with all the affairs of state
weighing down upon his soul, aud yet
three times sday worshiping tbs God Of
heaven.
Again I learn from this subject that
a msu may take religion into his pol
itics. Daniel had ali the affairs Of
state on hand, yet servant of God
He conld not have kept his elevated
position unless he had been thorough
pclit!ciao, and yet all the thrusts Ct
officials AMI all the danger Of disgrace
old net make him yield one iota Of
his high toced religious principle.
He stood before thst age, specimen
oi gcdiy politician. So there have
been IN our day and in the days of cur
fathers mrn as eminent IN the service
OF Goa as they have been eminent in