Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1905-02-09
THE PULPIT.
AN ELOQUENT SUNDAY SERMON BY
CHAPLAIN CLARK: OF THE
NAVAL ACADEMY;

Subject: Tho Unlooked-For Increment.
Baltimore, Md.-The following bril-
liant sermon was contributed to- the.
Sunday SUN by the Rev. Fl. II. Clark,
D. D., chaplain of the United States
Naval Academy, at Annapolis. It is
entitled "The Unlooked-For 1ncre-
ment," and was preached from the
text:
"Behold, I have done according to
Thy words; Lo! I have given thee
wise and understanding heart. And
have also given thee that which thou
hast not asked.'-II Kings, iii, 1913.
Solomon's request is a surprise.
Left to the promptings of ambition it
is not characteristic of men to ask for
simple gifts or few. The natural re-
quest would have been Gor the things
the King did not asl-NMg. life, riches,
honor, victory over enemies. Instead
the request was simple and unselfish.
1t was made with most becoming
humility. It was for wise and under
standing heart This would be enough.
Then came the Jehovah's answer: 81
have given thee wise and understand
ing heart. And I have also given thee
that which thou hast not asked, This
was increment, increase, that Solomon
had not counted on.
How much is involved in doing the
right thing at the outset! Somehow
first things take hold on last things.
The energy of the first block the child
pushes over in the row is not expended
till the last block is down. The first
branches you bend and tie into shape
make way for the beauty and SYM
metry of the full grown tree. The
shipbuilder can tell from the keel that
is laid the sort of ship that is going, to
be built. From the dimensions of
growing columns the architect can
quickly estimate the weight of arches
or dome. So God sees in some simple,
| honest prayer we may offer the be-
ginning of all. we may eyer. achieve of
knowledge, goodness service; sees in
| it all our, life shall ever mean to our
selves and other fellow men. Wonder
! full are the connections be -Ween first
| things and last!
It is, too, an im9ea snrab BILE: satisfas-
ton that when we have. done the right
act, said the right word, offered. the
right prayer, put ourselves in the right
attitude in anything our responsibility
ceases. Then the way of Divine Provi
dence is opened in our lives. Solomon
made just the right prayer; then GOO
gave him what he had. not asked. 80 AZ
l.: How this simplifies life!f We have
:. only to do the right thing at the right
time; the rest takes:.car Of itself. III
ordinary circumstances we all know
well enough. what the right thing is
In the Old Testament wellknow1
character said: II, being in the way
| the Lord led me.'' The secret of i
was that Eliezer started on the righ
road; then the Lord led him to th'
we'll The happy outcome we all know
When our prayer is: "Make me trul
to this work, this demand, this occa
sion, this duty using the light we get
we need give ourselves no further trou
bic. Results are not in our hands.
The disciples all began their career
= by the use of this method. Withou
thought of what was to come. the
simply obeyed the Masters call. Hi
command: was: ''Follow Mew an
straightway Simon and Andrew lef
the net they were casting into th
lake, and James and. John the net the
were mending in the boat, and foilowe
Him. So with all the others. The
left what they were doing to do wha
Christ told them to do. They had n
more conception of what, was to fol!o'
than the child Shakespeare or the chill
Milton had Of what was to follow hi
; learning of the alphabet. In the sin
plest, honestest manner the disciple
put: themselves in right relations
Christ, and their act changed tt
course of history.
Admiral Farragut touched this trut
on another side. In the darkest day
of the Civil War the President calle
! him to Washington for consultation
The people we're finding fault with tn
= General and that General, with IL
President, with pretty much ever
thing. One evening in large COZ
pany the Admiral sat listening to tt
complaints of the hearthstone warrior
At length he said in quiet tones, b.
: with the strength of moving fleets
o them: Il have one great advantage
I have only to go where am sent
o The thing in hand occupied him a
y sorbingly, wholly. What he soug
!. was the wise and understanding hea