Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1906-04-28

Want n Short Cut.
We are in exactly the same position
in a spiritual sense as is the young
man in Il temporal sense who wishes
TO leave the we'll beaten paths Of work
and take d short cut up the mountain
of fame. Here, for instance, is the
young man. He wishes to be a lawyer.
He goes to an old lawyer and says:
Judge. would like to be a lawyer.
What shall doY what do you know,
my boy?' is the natural question.
"Oh," says the young man, Il have
only been to school few years and
studied the common branches"
"Then," says the old lawyer, what L
would do is to go back to school,
Study, study, study! Fit yourself for
college. Then go through the law
school. Sharpen your weapons first be-
fore YOU 90 into BATTLE "Unnecessa-
ry," answers the young man. what
is the good Of spending the next ten
years of my life in rummaging through
nusty tomes2 L do not care what the
Roman law was. What | wish to know
is what is the law of today" So the
young man refuses to sit at the feet OF
the wise GamaIiels Of the great law
schools. He goes at once into a law Of
] fce. He is coached along and stumDleS
along. and in a couple Of years, an un'
developed boy, or, rather, an immature
man. he is admitted to the bar. lie IS
like 4 cripple with two wooden crutch-
es and one good leg trying to win d
race in the Oympian games against
she finest athletes Of all Greece. lie IS
like an Old Chinese junk, with its long
banks of oars and antiQuated jayellns,
going forth to naval conflict with the
armor plated cruisers Of the modern
navy. Thus with us We want to DO
Gods work. We desire to win Gods
victories. But we are not willing 10
make our necessary spiritual prepara-
tions for the same We are not willing
TO do what God commands us to do.
we are not willing to regularly and
Systematically hold certain hours Oh
each day sacred for prayer and for Sc
cret communion with God.
Got Their Moneys Worth.
Sometimes it is religious work itseli
that monopolizes the tiBle l remem'
her n dear classmate Of mine who as
theological student was asked to preacl
I'm q little church near to where l used
TO preach as a student. This churcl
was not able to support a regular pas
tor. 1t was way back in the country
So when it got a man to preach Ior 0
Sunday 1t worked him as hard as some
people drive horse which they hlrt
from the livery stable for a day. They
wanted to get the full worth of then
money. Thus they got this young mar
nm early TO lead the Sunday school anC
teach Bible class. Then he conduct
ed morning service; then after hur
ried dinner they drove him back int
the mountains, where he had anothe
Sundav school TO lead and another ser
mon TO preach and Christian Endeay
or society to address; then they raj
him back to the main church again
where he had a Young Peoples societ!
meeting at which to speak and thel
another sermon to preach In Othe
words from early morning until II
o'clock at night he was speaking o
working all the time. | met him mex
dav and said. well, Howard, how di(
YOU get on?" "Get on" he answered
"Why. | had so much to do that Whel
I crawled into bed that night l wa
completely tagged out | was so tireC
that could not even say my prayers
| lust said, % Lord, have been pray
ing so much for other people that
am lust too tired to pray for myself!
laughed But for years and year
that picture Of that tired boy has al
wavs been before me- All, | say t
myself. how often we get so tired Wit
meeting the many engagements OF III
that we do not take the needed hour
for prayer, for Bible reading and TO
communion with God for our owl
sOulsl
But, though you and l may hav
! many engagements. have we any en-
gagements 50 important that we CA
afford to neglect the sacred hours W
! ought to take every day Of our life 70
secret communion with Christ? Yo
know that many and many literar
! mans usefulness has been destroye'
J because by the flattery or the success
, Of the world lie has been enticed ava
from his study. What is true Of tn
literary man is absolutely true of tn
| Christian. Many a Christians spiritua
. usefulness has been absolutely destroy
i cd because that Christian has been Ell
ticed away from the sacred hours o
l holy communion with Christ No mai
ter how early the march was to tax
+ place for the rescue OF Lucknow Ger
. eral Havelock always arose two hour
> earlier to read his Bible and kneel i
) PRAYER No matter how hard the cor
0 dict was raging Martin Luther alway
took at least two hours away from tn
, world each day TO pour out his soul I
L God in prayer. Tell me. 0 man, wha
d art thou doing with those sacred hour
: which Jesus Christ bids you give
5 him alone? The world does not kno'
what you are doing with those hour
L but Christ knows Are you neglectin
S your proper spiritual preparation fc
q Christian work? Are you taking tn
e proper spiritual nourishment for you
/ own soul? Then, if you are not doin
Il this. in the sight Of God you are con
t hitting secret sin. You may hid
d that sin from the world, but you ca
8 never hide it from Christ.
The Unpopular Side.
= Next to our neglect of secret prayt
u and quiet Bible reading l believe OF
y greatest secret sin is our unwillingne'
:, to bravely and firmly 90 forth to adv
u cate the causes Of right which are @
>, the unpopular side. We see blatal