Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-01
CHRISTIAN ENDEAVOR HOUR
Conducted by Grace Livingston Hill


| Others Deuteronomy "a 7-12; Joshua :; l. z.
Deuteronomy, 34:7. And Moses was an
hundred and twenty years old when he died'
his eye was not dim, nor his natural force
abated
| g. And the children of Israel wept- for
| Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; SO
the days of weeping and mourning for
| Moses were ended.
| 8. And Joshua, the of Nun, was full
of wisdom: for Moses had laid his hands
| upon him; and the children of Israel heark-
| ened unto him, and did as the Lord COM
| manded Moses.
10. And there arose not prophet since in
| Israel like unto Noses whom the LORD
| knew face to face.
| II. In all the signs and wonders which the
! Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt
to Pharoah. and to all his servants. and to
| all his land.
II. And in all that mighty land. and in
all the great terror which Moses showed in
| the sight of all Israel.
Joshua. IL. Now after the death Of Moses.
| the servant of the Lord, 1t came to pass
| that the Lord spake unto Joshua, the son
of Nun. Moses minister saying,
2. Moses. my servant is dead; now there
| fore arise, go over this Jordan thou and all
| this people. unto the land which l do give
| to them, even to the children of Israel.
The Lesson.
What a shock the world receives when
/
1t Is like the swift horror of the crash that
| comes when giant oak of the forest falls.
| We look at the empty sky where it waved,
| at the yawning earth where it stood, and
| wonder and grieve, and are even offended
4 with the hand that felled it. We look about
| upon the spindling growths that have been
overtowered and almost stunted by this
luXuriant tree, and wonder when in the
years any of them will ever be able to fill
| its place, and turn away in despair. 49,.
1t is SO with the great men Of earth
| often. Men wonder why they are taken
| when the weak and small could be so much
| better spared. Yet God knows that some
| times His great ones have to be taken to
| give the others a chance to grow before
| they are too old to hope to be of any use.
| We sit for years growing content under
| the preaching of some great divine and
never once feel that there is need for us to
| get up and go to work bearing the burdens
of the church ourselves. He is guiding the
1 church Alright, and what need is there of
| us? We are but a part of the congrega-
| ton. sort of necessary filling in for the
| surrounding landscape, but the great work
or the church We naturally leave to him.
| Suddenly there comes the call for him. and
one morning we read his name in the pa
| per with shock of sorrow. We are be-
| reft. Where is there another to fill his
| place? How Will the work go on? There
| is the prayer meeting and Sunday school,
| the Bible class and the Young Peoples So.
| ciety, the visiting, and the sick, and the
| for the sad, the many uncounted ways in
| which he ministered to the church and
community! We sit helpless looking at his
| printed name and know not how things
| can possibly go on without him. and not
| one whit of burden take we upon ourselves
| 1t never occurs to US that we could go and
| visit those new families or give comfort
| to some sad one. We stand back and look
helplessly at heaven to supply the need
| Have you not seen it SO in many a church
when beloved AL talented pastor has
| been taken suddenly away?
This Is good topic for Christian En-
deaVorerS to take up. We need to realize
that we are corps of workers being train
| ed and kept ready to fill the vacancies, not
set of helpless hangers-on to the skirts
OF the present leaders of all the church
work.
Take yourself, for example You per-
maps. are a member of the Christian En-
deavor Society who never take much active
part. You go to the meetings and sit in the
PACK seat, and regularly read some ex-
tract from paper call for hymn IN
the meeting, but further than that YOU do
nothing, except perhaps to help little in
what use would you be If suddenly the
president, and the chairmen of all the COM
mlttees, and the good leaders, should all
happen to be i'll, or prevented from coming
and there should come time when there
were a number met together to have a
meeting and there was no one but you to
lead to pray, to speak, to keep things 60
DeODle
have to go away without a meeting If it
depended upon you? Or suppose that you
are one who, not having failed in such
things has nevertheless taken no interest
in your fellow members, or in the general
| workings Of the church. and there comes
time when many of the old workers are
stricken from the roll suddenly in one way
or another. Can the Lord single you out
as being ready for His service? Can He
say: Moses, my servant, is Dead or
John, my servant. the pastor of this
church, is i'll now, therefore, you Mary. or
James. or Joshua, whoever you be- arise
and go over this Jordan. There is the
prayer meeting tonight. There isn't an
other minister to be had at this late hour
Go lead it yourself. You cannot be the
minister for you are not wise and accus-
| toned as he, but you know that he has
often urged you to help him in this way,
and he thinks you fit for the work. Pray
| to God for help and do your best
Why is 1t that so many good people hang
! back from doing the very helpful, little
/ great things that would carry the work OF
| the Lord forward even though some giant
| stand back and hesitate, and shake our
| heads, and then crticise others who have
been holder than we. and ventured to take
| the position? We accuse them of pride
| and vain glory and conceit. And yet we
| would not do the work ourselves. We
need to remember that it is for just such
time as this that God wants US to be ready
| and that our whole Christian life should
! be a getting ready to do anything God
| wants to do when He calls. as matter
| of course. 1t is harder for grown people
| to submit to training than for children
| If we could only get the child spirit and
say to ourselves that all Christian work Is
| getting us ready to take the place of some
one else. 1t may be some great one, it may
be some small one, but the time will surely
come when we shall be needed. We fret at
the lowly positions we are now sometimes
called to fill. but remember that it is those
only who are faithful in that which is
| least who receive the reward of being called
to do much.
And the one 81 eat thought of this whole
lesson. and of our Christian training, lies
| In that single sentence, the secret of Moses
gree tness and fitness for his high work:
Whom the Lord knew face to face"
Applied Truth.
We'll. bow do you like your new pastor?'
asked one woman OF another. 20, I sup
pose he's well enough In his way" said
the other, but he'll never be DIR. Brown.
| Is1 ,novor love aYother uaator II aaeran