The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-03-20

to an earthly potentate spiritually
live church is one of whose worshipers
always assemble on time. One of the sur
est signs of a spiritually dead church is
the hardness of the church members,
who always expect their seats to be saved
until at least the second hymn has been
sung, and often until the collection plate
has been passed. The pews should be
filled on time just as the organist at the
hour sharp should be in her place at the
| ivory keys and the minister in his place
behind the sacred pulpit
Behaving yourself Alright In church i'm
plies a second act, which is just as i'm
portant as promptness at church SER
vice. A church member should be In his
place when the service starts as surely
as he should be at his seat when the
train starts. But he should do more
than sit down when the minister takes
his place. He should, first of all, kneel
and render obeisance and homage to the
Heavenly Father, whose tryst he, the
worshlper has come to keep. The very
first act of a guest in a home is to go and
pay his respects to the host Of hostess
The very first act a worshiper should per-
form when In church is to pay his re-
spects to the Christ, who, In a spiritual
, sense, is the head of the temple in which
the church member has come to worship
The Episcopalian rector begins his ser
vice in this wise: Lord l have loved
the habitation of Thy house and the
place where Thine honor dwelleth.
When we enter the house of God, de
we one and all feel that we are coming
into the presence of the Lord? If we do,
would we come laughing and talking an'
nodding to each other like lot OF
schoolgirls entering their class rooms? II
we do, would there be so much whisper
ing among the members, both in the pews
and in the back of the church? II we do,
would there be so much turning around
to watch others who happen to come in
late, and a disposition to laugh when
anything goes wrong? People who have
visited European courts write that there
| the king is first and last In the thoughts
of all the waiting courtiers. AS soon as
the king enters the room, all the waiting
| mobiles arise and bow. When the king
| speaks, the waiting mobiles listen. When
messenger enters, he not only kneels,
but when he leaves the throne room he
never turns his back upon the seated
king. When we enter the sanctuary of
| God, do we bow as before king? Do we
| try to keep our face always toward the
| Divine face? Do we earnestly try to
make the prayers of the psamist our
prayer? LET the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart be always
accepta BILE In thy sight, 0 Lord, my
strength and my Redeemer.' The church
of God ought to be something more sa-
cred than a concert hall or a theater. 1t
| ought to be place where joke and
cachinnatio and a chitchat should be
Just as much out of place as a min
strel show would be at funeral, by the
casket of the dead.
In the House Of God.
man and woman. ever keep the face
of Jesus Christ before you when you are
in the house of God Every church
building dedicated to the worship of God
! is in very truth His house, in which
His presence is manifested as surely,
though not so visbly as in the Shekinah
of the tabernacle. Always enter the house
of God in the same spirit that the little
child of Rev. Charles I. Brady, an AM
erican missionary, showed when he en-
| tered a great European cathedral. The
father was compelled to return to his
boarding place for something he had for
| gotten. He left his little boy in the nave
| of the church to await his return. When
| the father came back he found his child
standing in the middle of the great
| church in awe. looking around as though
| he was expecting some one. The mellow
sunlight streaming through the stained
glass windows fell upon his curly head
and made him look like little angel.
When the child heard his fathers return