Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1902-02-21

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money or if he have an extensive traf-
fic, but in the humble work in life that
I am called to the sphere is too small
for the action of such grand, heavenly
principles Who tod you so? Do you
not know that God watches the faded
leaf on the brooks surface as certainly
as he does the path of blazing sun ?
And the moss that creeps up the side
of the rock makes as much impression
upon Gods mind as the waving tops
of Oregon pine and Lebanon's cedar,
and the alder, cracking under the
cows hoof, sounds s loud in Gods ear
as the snap of worlds confagration.
When you have anything to do in life.
however humble it may seem to be,
God is always there to help you to 10
it. If your work is that of a fisher
helped Simon when he dragged Gen
nesaret. If your work is drawing wa
ter then He will help you, a when He
talked at the well curb to the Samari-
tan woman. If you are engaged in the
custom house, He will lead you, a He
led Matthew sitting at the receipt of
customs. A religion that is not good in
one place is not worth anything in an
d
days wages in his pocket as certainly
needs the guidance of religion as he
who rattles the keys of a bank and
could abscond with hundred thou
sand dollars.
1 think that the church of God and
the Sabbath are only an armory where
we are to get weapons. When war
comes, if a man wants to fight for his
country, he does not go to Troy or
Springfield to do battling, but he goes
there for swords and muskets. I look
upon the church of Christ and the Sab
bath day as only the place and time
where and when we are to get armed
for Christian conflict, but the battle
field is on Monday, Tuesday, Wednes-
day, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
''St. Martins" and "Lenox' and "Old
Hundre 18th" do n OF amount to anything
unless they sing all the week. A ser
mon is useless unless we can take it
with us behind the pillow and the coun-
ter. The Sabbath day is worthless if
it last only "a hours.
There are many Christians who say:
eve are willing to serve God, but we
do not want to do it in these spheres
about which we are talking, and it
seems SO insipid and monotonous. If
we had some great occa sion, if we had
lived in the time of Luther, if we had
! been Paurs travelling companion, if
we could serve God on great scale,
we would do it, but we can't in this
everyday life" I admit that a great
deal of the romance and knight err
rantry of life have disappeared before
the advance of this practical age. The
| ancient temples of Rouen have been
| changed into Storehouses and smith
| les. The residences of poets and
| princes have been turned into brokers'
| shops. The classic mansion of Ashland
| has been cut up into walking sticks.
| The groves where the poets said the
| gods dwe1t have been carted out for
| firewood. The muses. that we used to
lead about have disappeared before
| the immi grants ak and the trapper's
gun, and the man who is waiting for
| a life bewitched with wonders will
never find it. There is, however, a
field of endurance and great achieve
ment, but it is in everyday life. There
are Alps to scale, there are Helles-
points to swim, there are fires to brave,
but they are all around US now. This
is the hardest kind of martyrdom to
bear.
Again, we need to bring the religion
of Christ into our commonest trials
For severe losses, for bereavement, for
| trouble that shocks like an earthquake
and that blasts like a storm, we pre-
scribe religious consolation; but, bust
ness man, for the small annoyances of
last week how much of the grace of
God did you apply? "Oh," you say,
"these trials are too small for such ap-
plication." My brother, they are
shaping your character, they are sour
ing your temper, they are wearing out
your patience and they are making you
less and less man. I go into sculp-
tors studio and see him shaping a
statue. He has a chisel in one hand
and a mallet in the other, and he gives
very gentle stroke-click, click,
click! I say: "Why don't you strike
harder?" "Oh," he replies, chat
would shatter the statue. / can't do
it that way. I must do it this way"
So he works on and after awhile the
features come>out, and everybody that
enters the studio is charmed and fas-
cinated. Well. God has your soul un-
der process of development, and it is
the little annoyances and vexations
of life that are chiseling out your inn
mortal nature. 1t is click, click, click!
wonder why some great providence
does not come and with one stroke
prepare you for Heaven. All, no. God
says that is not the way. And so he
keeps on by strokes of little annoy.
ances, little SORROWS, little vexations
until at last you shall be glad spec
tacle for angels and for men. You
know that large fortune may be
spent in small change, and a vast