Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1904-06-09
NEED OF KNOWLEDGE
OUR REGULAR SUNDAY SERMON
eloquent Pastor Talks Interestingly
of the Infinite Possibilities of Man
In Acquiring Information.

In Acquiring Information.
BRISTOL, CoNN.-The Rev Dr. Arthur
III. Goodenough preached Sunday morning
Corinthians iii:21, %, %: For all things
are yours; whether Paul, or Apollos, or
Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or
things present, or things to come; all are
yours, and ye are Christ's and Christ is
Gods" DR.. Goodenough said:
Man aspires. His eye is on the sky.
Man was made to walk erect. His impulse
is to climb. This fact indicates his des-
tiny. The earth beneath us and the world
about us contribute to our fight, but they
offer us no home The world, so near to
: us and so essential to our present life, has
it's limitations and fetters. Man is impa-
tient Of limitations; he aspires to the in
finite and the infinite is always above us.
The nobler mans nature the more rest
philosophy of life is true that fails to rec
ognize this instinct of the soul. Man de-
sires more room, more room is above, and
above is something that attracts and
draws. That fact is mans salvation.
It is generally believed that man had his
origin in God. God is the root from
which all men have sprung: 1t is equally
and his goal. How noble is man. What,
infinite possibilities are in him. Man is not
waif, aimlessly wandering through a
trackless wilderness, nor an orphan minus
parents guiding hand and tender voice.
Mans origin and destiny are one. It is
God. If your ive-year-old boy is in need
he instinctively cries, my father" If he is
mother" Instantly the complement of his
needy nature is at hand. Father and
mother are to him all that he needs. We
are only larger children, with larger and
more imperative needs. Is there any help
for us? We have outgrown the ability
Of our earthly parents to help us. What
shall we do? As the thirsty OK turns to
the heavens and say, 'My Father-God,
help me- And quicker than thought the
help comes. Here we have the philosophy
of happiness and the secret of success. AS
witnesses to this fact we call to the stand
Augustine, Bernard, John Howe, Isaac
Watts and Ga Charles Wesley. The upward
look wins. The man who aspires to God,
and holiness, and Immortality is the one
to whom this text is spoken. 'sAll things
are yours; for ye are Christ's and Christ
is Gods
The thing that wise men are thinking
about is life. Bread and acres and dollars
| are only Incidental. God made the acres.
Gods sunshine and showers grew the grain
from which the bread is made. God fur
l..
Therefore, acres and bread and dollars are
good because God had something to do
with producing them. These are valuable
contributions to life, some of our life
values. Life itself is worth more than all
| of them put together. The man who cul-
tivates your farm is worth more than the
| farm. The man who builds your home is
worth more than the house. We are not
paupers. No man, woman OF child in this
world need be poor. There are other values
beside dollars. We are heirs to untold
riches Our heavenly Father, the unseen
| capitalist, has invested largely in US, and
He is no spendthrift He has put the
value where it may multiply. Life is a
feeble thing at the beginning; SO is the
acorn, but in the acorn is The massive
oak; so is the bulb, but the bulb contains
| the tint and perfume of the lily. So life
| as we see it in the babe, it contains a
! Kep;er, Newton, Gladstone, a Nc
Kinley.
! Character is result, product. Charac-
i ter tells the story of our conduct and IN
dustry. Character is the fruitage Of our
thinking, our willing, our loving, our doing.
And character is the man. Character de-
ternines ones value to himself and to So
ciety. This is what makes biography the
popular literature of our day. People in
| terest people. Biography is death to pes
simism. Thousands Of men and women
have succeeded in life. They have feasted
on the universe and enjoyed the infinite,
My young friends, the one thing in this
world for you to do, is to follow their
example. You may. Character is no ready
made thing; it is madeeto order. It means
plan and purpose and persistence. You
| do not have to make the machinery nor
the material; these are furnished. The Sc
| lection of the web, the feeding Of the loom
| + ho1 nf ho Tho
suit is character, and character is destiny
This is the work of life. Human chances
are not equal Circumstances favor some
more than others. No doubt of it. But
then every man has chance, aye, more.
every man has a probability of success
seem to fail, but there is no excuse fol
failure. Oh, horrible, heartbreaking word
is failure. May none Of you ever know
what it means. There is a way of escape
from it. Make right, not to say, best
use of what is in you, wisely appropriate
what is about you, give reason the rein
Enthrone conscience. Be religious. And
advance of the soul, and the enrichment
of being. All things are yours to do with,
It was never easier to be good thai
now. Perhaps it is never easy to be good
| What makes it easier to be good to-day
than it was yesterday? The multiplicity O.
helps at hand. To read some newspaper;
and to hear some speakers, one woule
suppose that nobody was good. The fact is
the world is full Of good people. What i
goodness? Not the muttering of creee
nor the repeating of prayer; not TIT
reading of the Bible nor, going to church
Good people do these things, but thes,
things are not essentially goodness. Bat
people may Go them, too Goodness i
consideration for the other fellow, sweet
ness of temper, gentleness of conduct. noble
ness OF purpose, love to God and man. I
is to live kindly and truly and well. It i
. like the Christ doing good every day an,
everywhere. This is the goodness tha
counts in our day. And we rejoice to be
| lieve that it is constantly on the increase
Goodness is true religion, and true religion
! is goodness. The two are inseparable.
: is culturing, refining, elevating process
It is ever making for the best that life
; capable Of. What God wants 1or His chi
dren is .ne best. The desire of God
, human hanpiness. To this end He is p.
tient and indulgent. He is prodigal i
gifts. He is ever lavishing His love upo
us. God is neither mean nor little He
the great Father. giving Himself for th
salvation, the enrichment, the perfect ha,
piness of His children. God is not the a,
thor Of pain. He takes no delight j
tearss Che blessed Saviour ceases not j