The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-06-27
Sc ERMONETTES r
BY THE PASTOR,

piness,' and I wish to give to every
one of you a neverfailing recipe.
shall give you my texts as I need
them, putting them in tho order in
which they will combine the best and
the most naturally. There are three
principal causes of unhappiness, any
one of which is sufficient to make mis-
ernble any person Some times nll
three causes are combined in one in.
dividual; but whether it be all three
or only one, if we can ascertain the
cause OF it it will help us on our way
TO discovery Of that which will re-
move them.
Man is so intimately related to time
that the past, the present, and the
future must be taken into account
when the condition OF the mind or
heart is TO be determined. 1t is 10
moro possible to divorce ones self
from the past than it is 10 divorce
ones self from tho present. Neither
may one divorce ones self from the
future and at the same time he Of any
benefit 10 ones self or to the rest OF
mankind. Memory and our relation to
things that arc past are the causes Of
much Of the unhapplness that comes
to us. If one could just shut out the
past with its unpleasant memories,
what relief it would be, They
haunt one in the waking hours and
disturb one in his dreams. Conscience
is ever and anon goadiug us for the
things left undone or for the things
we have done. Thus conscience does
make towards of us ALL If one
could only quiet conscience without
soaring it. or silence conscience with.
out killing it, what blessing it would
be. And men have resortcd TO almost
avery cypcdicnt 10 accomplish that
end; and today the crowds throngs the
places Of amusement, or plunge into
other excuses that they may still the
voice Of conscience, or forget the things
that worry The Apostle Paul says:
"Herein do I exercise myself to have
always Il conscience void Of offense
toward God or toward mem That
is, he iabors to keep right with God
and with his fellows; and there is no
doubt If this is closely followed the
past will have nothing with which to
haunt us ''That is all very we'll, -
SAYS one, for the fellow whose record
is clear; but what about the one who
has record that IS shadowed
over2' The Christ says. "Go, be rec
onciIed TO thy brother: get his for
oivcness That viii ease things up
Wonderfully. One can then look his
brother in the face and feel large
measure of satisfaction. And on the
God side, ''if VIC confess our sins He
is faithful and Just to forgive us our
sins aud TO cleanse us from all uu-
righteousness That Will clear up
the atmosphere IN that direction, With
the past cleared up one is long way
on the road TO happiness,
''But." says one, "what of the
rcsent? / can get over the past but
= ;s The present that troubles me. My
alition and environment sickness,
cr other bodily Affections, which hold
me down, and then comes the sickness
of my loved ones, and their sorrows,
which are my sOrrows; and then my
reverscs in fortune; the fight to keep
ihc wolf from the door. How can | be
happy under present circumstancesf'
Off, saws Que. - could change my
condition and my environment 10 suit
But this | cannot do. y | am aware
that this proposition presents a prob
lem of no small weight And if the
problem cannot he solved, then indeed
happiness is out Of the question with
the majority of the human race,
Let me asl, few questions. Does
health necessarily produce happiness
Docs sound physical body neccssar-
ily produce happiness Does prospert'
ty or wealth necessarily produce hap
piness? Does the health and the pros
pcrity Of your loved ones necessarily
produce happiness Is it not possible
that one may have all Of these and still
be miserable or unhappy Experience
and observation teaches us that the
presence or the absence Of any or all
Of the things mentioned do not pro
ducc happiness FOR deprive one of hap
pincSs. The Apostle Paul says: 81
have learned in whatsoever state
am herewith (thcrcin) to be content
Content is not a satisfactory word, nor
docs IL express Just what the Apostle
meant The word used BY him also
meant independent Of, or superior ia
Then in whatsoever state the apostle
found himself he was independent OF,
or superior 70, in his feelings Ine
soul is superior TO its temporal enVr-
onmeut, or the condition OF the body
which it inhabtg. This being true,
then whatever satisfies the soul-and
the soul is satisfied only when 1t IS IN
harmony with the purpose Of It's be
iug-produce happiness, or puts the
soul in state Of bicssedness,
Ones relation 10 the future has also
TO do with ones happiness or uDhap'
piness As the future Is fraught with
so much Of uncertainty, the chance OF
one IS plans being frustrated, and one s
hopes not materializing has tendency
TO DESTROY ones peace of mind and
thereby produce a state OF uuhappiness.
We are all the time building air cas-
lies, so TO speak, and the fear OF their
al p-Ir hnI.
ings. There are many, many people
who feel. or think they feel, an i'm
pending calamity that is Just about to
fall; OF they see an unsafe bridge to
cross, which exists only IN the mag
nation. in fact, there are thousands
of possibilities for the future which
NAV or may not amount TO a proba
bility, And then the future, which
reaches beyond the time limit, a9d re
ally ONLY begins when we reach the
grave. is cause for much uneasiness be
cause Of it's apparent uncertainty. But