Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1906-07-13
THE WINDOWS OF THE SOUL.

writing was signed, he went into MS
house; and his windows being open in
his chamber toward Jerusalem. he
knceled upOn his knees three times a
day. and prayed, and gave thanks be-
fore God, as he did observation-disclosures
6: 10.
If we began the day by throwing
Omen the windows and looking out upon
the wide reaches Of Gods love ana
goodness, we would so singing to
work. SO it has been written. SO
Lnther thought. When he was virtual
" a prisoner at Wartburg castle in the
perilous times Of the Reformation. he
went every morning to his q
threw it open. looked up to the skies
and sang, God is our Refuge and
Strength a Very Present Help in Trou-
BILE" Then he carried a bouyant heart
to the labor of the day.
The value of an outlook which takes
In Gods handiwork rather than mans
is not to be overestimated. There IS
small inspiration in brick walls, IN
stone walks and iron fences; small
music in the rattle of carts over paved
streets and the cpaseless patter of a
thousand feet on the sidewalks. But
windows that look ont on the ocean or
towards the mountains, Or over field
and forest become windows OF q mans
soul.
NV study window looks toward a
mountain. I see all the changes OF It's
life; the tender green of spring, It's
luxuriance of leaf and blossom in sum-
mer, the flaming colors Of it's fall at
tire and it's white garb of winter. Now
It is fecked with sun and shadow, and
now it CLOVIS red in the sunset. And
betveen the trees 1 catch the CLINT Of
q river. 1t flows on day after day,
ceaselessly. These seem to us symbols
of eternity. A thousand generations of
men come and go, and the mountain
still stands there and the river flows
by it; but Before the mountains were
brought forth-even from everlasting
to everlasting Thou Art God"
Ruskin was an artist, a poet, and
more than both, a good man. He was
accustomed to waken his guests at
Brentwood by knocking at their doors
early in the morning and calling, Are
YOU looking out?' When in response to
this they pushed back their
window blinds a scene of beauty greet
ed their eyes. The glory of sunlight
and the grandeur of forest dispelled
care, quoted fret and put a morning
anthem into the hearts of all.
There Is scarcely anything in life
which determines the souls welfare
more than the nature Of its outlook.
If our spiritual outlook is toward the
shadow our whole life will be gloomy ;
but if we look through the windows Of
faith toward a God of love and beauty,
our life will be full of joy and sunshine.
"From a small window n may see
the infinite Carlyle wrote. That was
Daniels belief. The windows Of his
soul were always open to the infinite.
In Eastern lands to-day, the Mohamme-
dan, wherever he may be, turns his
face to Mecca III prayer. So in olden
times the Israelite thought of Jerusa-
lem as the place of the temple and the
place where the wOrshiS of God was
worthiest. Daniel. as the premier Of
the great Medo-Persian empire, had his
own palatial residence. and one room
there was whose windows looked to-
ward Jerusalem. Into this room Dan
lei was accustomed to go three times
a day. throw open the lattice. look to-
ward Jerusalem and then kneel in
prayer to God. Now. King Darius is
sued a decree that the man who prayed
to any other than himself should be
cast into the den of lions. This was
not an extraordinary decree for divine
honors were accustomed to be paid to
the Persian kings. and it was a way
Of testing the loyalty of his subjects.
Daniel knew the decree. He also knew
=, that envious men would be watching
him. But he went to his upper room"
and opened the windows toward Jeru-
alem and prayed 'as he did afore-
time 1t was no new thing with him.
If matters of life were comfortable
and pleasant he did this: and if mat
tiers of life We're difficult and he was
threatened by danger. he did the same.
1t was a part of his life to keep the
windows of his soul open to the best,
and no threat had power to divert him
from his course.
Daniel kept the windows of his soul
open to the best religion. To him Je-
rusalem stood for the best religion on
earth. Since Il lad of IA he had left
home. He had lived among people of
different faiths. He had known the
religion of the Chalneans and Persians.
But he opened his windows toward
Jerusalem and prayed to the God Of
his fathers. So the early training of
many a youth in later years becomes
his salvation. Intolerance in religious
matters should be a thing of the past,
but loyalty to the old home church
has been the saving of many q boy
thrown among strangers.
Daniel kept his windows open to the
commands of the best religion. His
daily surroundings We're demOralizing.
Religious life in Babylon was mere
form. Ideals We're low, public life was
dishonest, domestic life was unsound.
Bribery was considered a necessary
feature of authority. The weak were
crushed by the mighty. The difficult
ties of his position were great. His
one source of safety was his daily con-
sideration of the commands of God.
Those commands charged him to be
upright, to be pure, to do his duty
faithfully even to a heather master,
to use his life in the service of others.