The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-05-16

 material equipment has its place which is important. It's value, which Is great. 1t Is not that on which men must depend. 2
 But our text turns the thought into another direction. Through God we shall do valiantly." What does this mean7 Not that he who links his life with God shall be translated from the field of struggle and of toll This were to rob him of the glories of participa- ton in the strife that ennobles and the toll that develops, Not that he who links himself with God shall always find himself con- sciously victorious over all opposing forces. There were those in the glorf- ous catalogue of them "of whom the world was not worthy" the heroes of faith enumerated by the Apostle, who were sawn in sunder, were slain with the sword, were destitute. afflicted. tor mented." It is the heroes whose bodies strew the battle fields. the towards es- cape. Even the Son of God died at the hands of his enemies. The promise is not of conscious triumph. There are burdens that crush, there are battles that are lost. What does 1t mean. then? It means that he who links his life with God shall acquit himself worthily in the struggle. He shall give an account of himself for which he will have no cause to be ashamed If struck down in the fight 1t will be only after he has done we'll his part If crushed by the burden 1t will be af- ter he has thrust an earnest and sturdy shoulder under it.
 Through God we shall do valiantly. Why? Because first, spiritual strength is thus secured. And in the great war Of life this Is the strength most needed Physical strength is good so far as 1t goes. He who has a we'll developed, vigorous body, who excells in the pos session of thews and muscles, is, to be congratulated. But he is not neces- sarily the most potent of men. A trained and agile intellect Is better. In times when men have been subjected to great trial, it has been found that the giant in physical strength was of ten inferior to the man who was phy- sically much more poorly endowed but possessed of a trained and active intel lect
 The fatigues of the march, the strain, of camp life, the trials of the battle- field, are borne better by men who think than by men who simply have strength of body. Brawn is good. but brain Is better. And trained mental ity constitutes a form of soul strength. But back of and beneath all this there is another and more important kind of strength. It is the strength of the spir- 1t. which alone can cope with spiritual force. This comes from God. This Is God in the life. Without 1t we are cut off from the best of the victory Tri- umph over material things may be splendid to look upon. and be coupled with miserable defeat in the strife with spiritual powers. It is spiritual strength that counts most of all.
 Through God we shall do valiantly," because through Him will be given the proper direction to the forces and en- ergy of our life. Without this life is ineffective. The analogy is found in the case of steam. Water evaporated developes energy. but only enclosed in the boiler and directed by pipes to the piston does it become power for accom- plishment. So the control of life by the power and will of God, revealed through His laws, determines It's effcc- tiveness. Many seem to think that the service of God is paralysis to the pow CTS of life. The reverse is the truth. Liberty unrestrained, instead of mean ing power, really determines the expen- allure of force without effect. It rem ders life futile. License Is paralysis.
 Viewed from another standpoint, the truth is the same. Life to be most effective requires leadership. It must come under the influence of a personal directive force. Otherwise 1t becomes like the stream running through hundred channels. It is without pow er This personal directive force. for the race, is found only in God. Its in- dication and direct application may sometimes be through His chosen rep resentatives on earth. These become, then, by divine calling and fitting, leaders of men. But always under Him. His Is really the directive power that makes life anything else than fu-, tile.
 Through God we shall do valiantly,"' because through Him there is furnish ed us a purpose sufficiently high and broad to absorb all our powers and to stimulate us to the greatest enthusI- asm. A life that is without enthusi- asm is life bound up in shallows; a life that Is stirred. by a powerful feel- ing can never be entirely common place. One of the strongest hindrances to greatness in life Is the fetering con- sciousness of self. We cannot get far enough away from our own personality to act freely or effectively. We are tied by convention, fetered by human customs. What we need is an interest that will lift us, out of ourselves and enable us to concentrate upon some
 
 ment that leads men not only to attempt, but actually to do the impossible is one of the finest things that can come into mans life
 IL is God alone who can give this to us in It's fullness. The great things of the universe stir us; the greatest of all must stir us most deeply. The very fact that We cannot know God to perfection, makes our contemplation of him the most stir ring of pursuits.
 The practical tendency of the text then is to turn our thoughts strongly towards Goo as the one from whom is to be de- rived the courage of life. Through Him We shall do valiantly. Let it be our ef- fort to cultivate a sense of His pres ence, conviction and conception of His being. a consciousness that in Him is our strength. The task Is not unworthy of our effort. Faith is not an easy thing. There are some who think that faith Is unmanly and doubt virile. Their mis- take is great. Faith is an energy of the soul. Its exercise is a mark of strength. Doubt is the vacillation of the soul be- tween conviction and denial. It is at on3s easy and shameful. It is a braver thing to deny than to doubt It is a braver thing still to believe.
 To cultivate the sense of God in the universe. to try earnestly to be in tune with the infnlte Is not only a worthy pursuit, but one that requires the full energy of the soul
 It cannot and must not be carelessly attempted. The casual consideration of God and His claims; the occa asIonal en- Raeement in the forms of relioious vvor-