Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1904-11-26
Our Share in Gods Work.

Our Share in Gods Work.
Jesus said, Take We away the stone.-St.
John XII, 80.
Jesus said this at the grave OF Lag
arus. The question naturally sug-
gests Itself, Why could not the pow
'er about to restore the dead to life
do this smaller thing as well? The
answer is. that it could, but so could
human power and, therefore, it was
required of human power to do it.
This incident reveals a principle of
Gods working in the world. 1t is
Gods will TO help men; it is also His
will that men shall develop by using
their own strength. Hence his set
tied purpose is to do nothing for us
which we can and should do for our
selves. He lays no burdens on us
which we cannot bear. He helps us
Gear the burdens we must to the
limit of our need; but He will not let
rus unload on Him any work or duty
or responsibility which belongs to
us. IL we shirk or throw it off, it
lies where we abandoned it until some
better man takes it up. Mans work
and there is a great deal of it which
we are praying God to do, and won
dering why He is so long about it;
wondering, it may be, whether He is,
since He does not do it-man's work
must be done by men.
More and more as we grow into
the meaning of life we ought to thank
Almighty God that He holds us to
our work; thank Him for the rough
and the sting and the climb and the
fight of life, through which come the
strength and heights and victories;
thank Him that He lays responsible
ty upon us; that He leans down
Father that He is-and says to each
OF us: There is a work to be done,
,our work; here is right thing to be
forwarded; here is a truth to be
brought to light and a wrong to be
swept away; here soul to be given
lite. The miracle beyond your power
is Mine, but Take We away the
stone;" put away this habit, this in.
'fiuence, this self-conceit, this ignor-
aLce-whatever it is that blocks the
way. That is the first condition.
1t happens. however, that some of
us are FOND of this very thing, and so
we keep it a day longer and another
day, till a day comes at last when it
is sunk and embedded and we are sat-
isfied that the life behind should de-
And some of us are certain that 1t
would do no good to try-the stone
is too heavy. And so we content our
selves with saying, calling 1t per-
haps a prayer: 81 am very weak; it
is too much for me. You do it, Lord!"
and let 1t go at that.
And some of us are frightened
when we think what strange, unearth-
Iy thing may be behind the stone;
what it's coming forth might mean,
white-faced and holy from Gods near
presence: what changes it might de-
mand; what new duties it might lay
upon us; what dear companionships
it might bid us break. And so we
do not try to roll the stone away, but
say in our hearts, like the fool of old,
There is no God, there is no soul
crying to come FORTH" and go away
and try TO forget.
Around us, too, there are things
ready to enter and glorify this human
life of ours-new standards OF man
hood and womanhood, higher ideals
realized in business and society, in
politics and religion; more generosi-
ty, more love. more hope, more truth
than ever the world has seen. Before
the door OF each, blocking its en-
trance. lies a stone of human selfish
ness or Indifference or greed or false
lhool. To remove these is not Gods
work. but ours. "Take we away the
stone;" lift. at any rate, your share
That is our responsibility and our
bearing toward it will at the last be
the true measure of our lifes signifi-
,cance.-Rev Herbert Shipman.