Milford chronicle., 1903-06-12

fortune appear in comparison Low
and sordid? Apart from the rewards
that God gives to the faithful minister
there is a joy in the self surrender, il
the conservation of our whole lives tC
Christ who laid down his life for US.
Not Measured by Money.
! The true artist has a deep sense Of the
inspiring eXhilaraton when he surren
ders his life to his art Only the other
day a young man left my Chicago
church to 90 to Europe and study in the
foreign art schools. / said to him: why
do you follow this profession? In all
probability you will only eke out Of it
a bare living. You will have years and
years Of financial struggle ahead Il
know f." he answered. with a smiling
face "but though / may not make
much money l shall have higher re-
ward cham money would be willing
TO live all my life iu poverty if only
could coatinue to know the joy Of trying
TO interpret The higher message Of the
soul in the language OF colurs."
The true soldier does not think Of
/ money. the mere question of money.
whcn De snrrenders his life to the serv-
ice of his country. In all probability
he viii never have anything 10 live on
but mere pittance of a salary. Yet
he willingly dons the soldiers uniform.
He willingly promises to suffer and
starvc and. if need be. to die for his
country's good While promising to
make this sacrifice he feels happy in
the resolve. Cannot the minister 81 the
same way feel the eXhilaration Of a
noble cCnsecrution? I know that the
compensations OF the gospel minister
cannot De estimated by the standard of
mere money. I know there are many
men preaching week by week IN the
pulpit who il they had entered the law
or mercantile life would have an an
nual income Of FIVE ten times the in
come that they receive as ministers.
But does not the ioy of giving your
whole life 10 the service of Jesus Christ
bring some rewards higher than mon
ey? Does not the thought that you are
trying to sIve men and comfort mon
and bring them to the Saviour whether
you are standing by the opened casket
or by the sick bed or on the street or
in the pulpit give you tr9nscendent
and at times almost overwhelming Joys?
That these spiritual rewards are real
and satisfying is demonstrated by the
fact that the ministers are the only
class of men who. as a rule. want their
sons to follow in their own footsteps
and their daughters to marry men Of
their own profession. II you 90 to an
average lawyer and ask him what he
would like his sons to be he answers,
Almost anything rather than a law
YER" to physician, anything but n
doctor; 10 newspaper man, anything
but an editor; to merchant. and You
viii often find him struggling and saw
ing SO that he can give his boys a col
lege education for entrance into some
professional career. But a consecrated
minister invariably wants his sons 70
enter the gospel ministry. If you ask
your pastor this question. "What would
you like your son to be-" he will in MI
probability answer: We'll, I would not
like to persuade my boy to be min
ister. If he becomes Il minister / do
not want him to be man made. but
God made, minister. But if the Holy
Spirit should ever work upon his heart
l think the happiest day of my life
would be when I could hear him
preach in a Christian pulpit. May God
give me this joy" When some one
asked Henry Ward Beecher why he
entered the gospel ministry he an
swered: Il could not hep it, Who ever
heard of Lyman Beccher's son doing
anything else but preach?" The reason /
all those boys became preachers was |
because Lyman Beecher instBbd into |
their hearts what the joys of the Chris !
tian ministry might be. over half Of (
my seminary classmates We're the sons I
Of ministers The happiest day in my /
fathers life, l believe. was the day he 7
preached my ordination sermon and /
finished it in Il voice trembling with I
emotion and with eyes moist with /
tears Of rapturous joy. Oh. young men !
who feel today the yearnings for the 4
gospel ministry. l know that, if conse-
Grated. you will have the happiest,
most joyful and the noblest profession
al life that is now open to any Chris
tian man.