The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-10-13

incoming wave washes them away.
Such building may do for a ehtld's play
t1Tues but II Is terrible mistake when
We are putting together our life struc-
ture. Builders for eternity need to
choose each stone and timber with MI
nutest care and 70 set It in place with
most careful diligence.
We commonly speak Of pleasure
seeking persons as leading a butterfly
life. Our thought is primarily OF the
carelessness and usel essness OF the life.
We see its lack Of serious purpose and
It's devotion to trihing pursuits, and
therefore we iiken 1t to the frail, fair
weather insect which fits lightly from
flower to flower. There Is even more
IN the figure OF speech than this, how
ever, for the most characteristic fea-
ture Of a hutterfly'sl life is its brevity.
The person who gives himself over to
pleasure and seldshness Is living the
smallest and shortest life It is only
for 8 day. A short space OF sunlight
and fowers-and that Is all. The but
terf1y style Of life never endures; itsis
one Of the perishing things When We
choose it we choose to live neither long
nor well.
It takes courage and resolution to
live for first things. Only rare souls
succeed In doing so. For II is easy to
slip down to the level of second-rate
life. There is great significance in the
fact that the larger part of the world
is pursuing secondary things. To dress
well. to live well, to win mems praises,
to impress ones neighbors, to crafty
ones pride, to pile up money. to show
ones SELF superior to the next man
such as these are the ambitions Of most
of US. True, we may not care to see
them catalogued thus, for they do not
impress US as being very noble. yet the
plain truth is that for ends like these
we are giving the best of our davs and
the reddest of our hearts blood. All
the objects that have been enumerated
may be condensed IS life's first things,
because they do not endure: they are
Of time. perishing. and not Of eternity
everlasting. Because man Is eternal
all his goals should be eternal also.
Lives are like buildings They can
not endure without good foundations
the silent, unseen powers of the sDir-
itual nature on whose depths deDend
all achievement. If we would build
high and permanently. we r7ust pre-
- =
The great Indictment that Christ
brought against the things for which
men were giving their lives was that
they were not worth while. They were
not in themselves bad. but they were
of minor Importance; they did not last.
His summons to men was a summons
to rise 10 loftier conception of life
He babe them lift uD their aims and
quit the mere existence which took
no count of highest things. Jesus inn
planted in mems breasts a divine and
eternal ambition. Seek first the king
dom" cried he; these lesser and Incl
dental things Will then fall into their
proper place and be added unto you.
They Of themselves, as life aims are
not worth a thought.
X
How we live determines where we
shall live.
II we concede that the soul is i'm
mortal. then the question of its final
destination becomes OF supreme i'm
portance. If we are to live again and
forever, nothing else in the universe is
of such moment as making sure that
our eternal life is to be a blessed one.
eminent question is sheer folly, for it
is infinitely graver and more pressing
than the question of what we shall eat
and wear. or Of what we shall do in
this infinitesimal fragment Of eternity
called time.
A Prayer.-From thee. most high
God, we have life. mysterious and won
derful. Thou hast breathed upon our
clay and we have been thereby endued
and unmeasured power are ours Yet,
we confess with humiliation. we have
often spent these lives on vanishing
things. We have given our best to the
pursuit of vain and ignoble ends. We
have lived for the fleeing day. despite
thine admonition to live for the eter-
nifty which Dasseth not We need thy
help. o God. to set our lives right. Be
stow upon US, we pray. wisdom to dis
Germ values. Enable US to distinguish
between things essential and non-es-
sential. and to know what IS worth
while. Help US to put first things first.
Be thou the goal Of our. endeaXors. to