The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1903-04-29

! IlIOcS grows QlScOuidSeu tS IL IdCeS
/ labor that in the nature Of the case can
never be completed in any sense and
! has the vision OF an ideal that no
church or parish ever yet realized?
And then Of late I am haunted by a
doubt as to the value Of q great deal
! that I am doing. It is not the hard
work I am beginning to dread; it is
{ the fear that it is wasted power and
! that the organized clurch Of today
ought to be changing much Of its prac-
tice in order to do what Christ wants
done"
Would you mind telling me some.
thing in detail what you mean? Give
me page out of your days work"
Gordon asked with genuine interest.
Falmouth was going through a crisis
in his churca life, and Gordon was be-
ginning to have more than very
strong personal feeling for him.
t'It will be talking shop" Falmouth
smiled sadly and hesitated.
That's pardonable between friends"
Gordon answered, with a look that
showed the minister a little further
into his afactionate nature.
"Well-you understand all right"
with an air Of relief. Take yesterday
as an example The morning started
CT with a miscellaneous correspond
ence that took about fifty minutes.
Then worked on my Sunday morning
sermon for an hour. At the end Of that
time I had to leave the study to hunt
I'D boy whose mother wrote me about
his being sick at a boarding house on
Ross street. I had to so in the
morning because Of engagements that
filed every minute Of my afternoons
for the next two weeks. l found the
young fellow in desperate condition,
brought about by his own sin. 1t was
a case that could not be turned over to
others. shall feel obliged to go and
see him often, in order to meet the ap-
peal Of that mother. Back to my
study in time to write little on an acI-
dress for next meeting Of our local as
sociation. Home to dinner. Funeral
at . o'clock. The place happened to he
! quite near the church, and l was not
asked to go out to the cemetery. TIE
people were strangers to me and were
in great trouble. Went back to the
study to get word to our visiting conf
mittee to see this family as soon SIS
possible. By the time that was done
started for the county hospital on
Burke street to visit one Of my caurch
members, very seriously i'll there. AT
S o'clock T was back at the church,
where a committee Of my Endeayor So
ciety had a special meeting to revise
their constitution and to plan for the
winters campaign, and wanted my
presence and advice Owing to the
failure Of part Of the committee to be
prompt it was 6:30 before l left the
church.
"After supper I had q wedding over
on Park avenue. Mrs Falmouth was
unable to go with me on account OF
the illness Of one Of our boys. When
left the wedding party, it was 8
o'clock. AS I was getting into the car
rage to 60 home messenger boy
brought q message asking NE to call
at the hospital, as my parishioner was
II critical condition and might die
before morning. I went at once apd
STAYED until midnight, when the pa
tents condition grew better, and left
for home. When I reached home,
found my wife sitting up with the boy,
who had become quite sick. sent her
to bed and stayed up with the child
until he was better. Early this morn
ing I was sent for by the family at
whose place the funeral was held, ask
ING me to call this morning, as one OF
the members Of the family was IN Sc
rious condition. I called, and when I
cot to my study it was after 10 o'clock.
1t is Wednesday, and only part Of
my next Sunday morning sermon 1s
completed I have not even selected
text for the evening sermon. The sub
ject of my prayer meeting is Best Meth
DDS of Modern Bible Study I have part
" prepared the service. l have three
committee meetings tomorrow after
noon and an address in the evening on
the Duty Of Good Citizens Il Tic Coin-
ing Municipal Campaign This is be-
fore the mass meeting arranged by the
| committee Of fifty. There are FIVE or
six families in my parish in great need
Of my personal visitation, and two
deaths occurred yesterday, which
means funeral services tomorrow. My
assistant has been on the sick list for
nearly month, and the church, Of
course, cannot we'll supply his place,
although volunteers are doing some Of
his work. I am not complaining, Cor
! don. have some Of the best men and
women in the city in my church mem
bership. They are loyal and true, and
any man might we'll be proud Of their
friendship.
81 am not complaining either about
the bewildering number Of calls on my
| time and sympathy from strangers and
people entirely outside of my parish. Il
IS a compliment to the ministry that
the n-Christian part Of the community
turns to the church and the preacher
for comfort and help. All these things
7 accepted when I entered the profes-
sion. would be fool to act the baby
now that heavy burdens Of trouble III
other peoples lives are rolled upon me.
1t is all part of the profession which
I deliberately chose. y doctor might
as we'll complain that his work brings
him face to face all the time with
physical pain as the minister complain
that his work brings him constantly
into the presence Of sin sickness and
spiritual ruin. This is what every true
ministry means and always will mean
and the man who wants to shirk al
that had better never enter the busi'
ness OF preacher and pastor. But the
doubt that lately has begun to torment
me is the doubt that all this that an
doing in and through the church Is
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