The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-03-12
Communion or Service?


The question, How much of my time
one in religious meetings Of young people.
What part Of my means shall l give to
the Lord?" is also common. The same
idea underlies practices like the Morning
Watch" the Week OF Self-Denial," and
other special seasons set apart for the
giving" OF time or of money to God. OF
course, untold good may come out OF the
observance of such seasons, but there 10
also a subtle danger in the idea which is
liable to be overlooked God has a right
to all our time. 1t is his. How, then, can
we talk about giving it to him! More
over, the time spent in Gods service IS
that which is most fruitful for us as indi-
viduals. In what sense shall we distinguish
our time and Gods time:
The writer remembers being told, in
childhood, of a woman, still young, who
had read the Bible through twenty times
on her knees. And yet thege were many
boys and girls within one mile OF her
home who did not know how to read the
Bible. That she died early of consump.
ton was then considered the sign and seal
o. her sainthood, whatever Interpretation
the present bacteriologist might be inclined
to give. The antipode Of her type Is the
busting Christian, who Is 80 busy with
sporadic attempts to make money Tor the
church that she has no time to realize the
10Y of the intiowing divine, or, indeed, to
open her soul to receive such infowing.
The problem for many q child OF God Is
how to unite the worthier elements OF the
seemingly irreconcilable characters.
An occupation whose essential nature
makes withdrawal from communion with
God necessary IS wrongly chosen, and
should be given up as soon as possible. It
is often quite possible, however, that IN
stead of having made mistake IN our
choice Of occupation, we are living, or try.
to live, two lives, putting God in one and
the occupation in the other. An occupa'
ton, in itself not Incompatible with the
divine life, may be made so by placing 1t
in a universe OF desire in which the divine
has no place. Instead Of perplexing our.
selves as to how our time shall be divided
between our religious duties and our occu-
pations, we would far better put the reii-
zion and the occupation in the same uni
verse of desire, let them be organic parts
of the same life, and then live that lie
strongly, earnestly and singly. When we
6nd God in our daily work, In our recrea-
ton. in the nature about US, even In the
debascd humanity we arc born to elevate,
We shall not need to ask any questions
about how much time We should take away
from these things to give to Him..
There is perhaps 10 figure OF speech
which has so cloudcd our conception OF
God and our relations to Him as that IN.
volved in calling Him king. The kings OF
the earth are in no real sense analogues OF
God. Yet We talk about our contributions
to religious purposes as IL we were paying
God tribute. We think OF Him as punish
ing us and judging US as IN earthly ruler
would do. We find no better illustration
of the respect due Him than the state and
ceremony with which earthly kings sur.
round themselves. We are learning now
that the monarch OF earth often simply
use tricks, trappines and vulgar devices to
command the respect OF the vulgar IN their
etiaue: and pageantry. Does the God OF
heaven and earth need this. We talk about
appearing before God IS il we were not al
ways before Him. We do not pay God trib.
ute at all. All that We have is His. There
should be no question OF our individual
uses, if our life is, indeed, hid with Christ
in God" Is it not presumptuoas to talk
Of giving" to the Lord! 1t is He who is
sharing His own with us. Our oneness
with Him should be oil such nature as to
preclude ANYTHING like n jealous division.
1t is not only trae that communion with.
out service loses its vitality. and that ser
vice without communion loses its JOY, but
it il also true that neither can exist with.
out the other. They are parts OF an or.
vanic whole in which the Union IL SO vital
that separation would be rs fatal rs would
the severance OF the heart and lungs in the
human body. The most intimate commu-
nion with our heavenly Father is to be at.
tained only by means of the most devout
service. Gods holiest shrine is the soul OF
man. and He is in the haunts Of men in
larger measure than in the closet. The
devotce on his knees in the heavy air Of
his chamber is often further away from
: the God he seeks than the sister of mercy
as she returns through the golden dawn
from the chamber OF suffering. The mid
day withdrawal or the morning watch may
be An isolation from the highway where
Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.-Sunday-
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