Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1911-11-08
IL j. !. !. j. !. j. i. j. !. !. j.
!. CHRISTIAN STEWARDSHIP. =.
+ (By Matte May Morgan.) d
i j. j. !. j. !. j. y ]. !. !. j

| halla Methodist Church,
| Martin Luther said, "If any one
would knock on the door Of my
breast and say, Who lives here?' |
would not say Martin Luther but
the Lord Jesus Christ "
Paul must have felt in a singular
way when he declared, Il am cruel
lied With Christ; nevertheless | live,
yet not l, but Christ liveth in me-"
and Paul believed that every disci-
pie should recognize the divine own
ership of his life when he said, "Ye
are not your own, for ye are bought
with price; therefore glorify God
IN your body, and in your spirit"
and Il beseech you therefore, breth-
eren, by the mercies Of God, that We
present your bodies living sacri-
hce, holy, acceptable unto God, which
is your reasonable service"
This lordship Of Jesus Christ an
plies not only to our lives, but to all
our power and to all our possessions:
for the earth is the Lords, and the
fullness thereof, the world and they
that dwell therein" "The silver is
mine, and the gold is mine, saith the
! Lord of Hosts, and the cattle upon n
thousand hills" And when the
! spirit came in great power upon the
| early church, it is written of them
that mot one Of them said that
ought of the things he possessed was
his own. There is no doubt but
that Jesus Christ regards himself as
the owner OF our lives. Have we
recognized his Lordship?
If, then, God is the owner of our
lives. we are stewards, not owners.
Thou shalt remember the Lord:
Tor 1t is He that giveth thee power
to get wealth. Therefore, our liy
ing should be upon a stewardship
OASIS, embracing all we keep as well
as what we give, all of our methods
OF gain, the use Of our time, Of our
strength, and Of our talents. We re-
member the parable Of the house
holder who let out his vineyard to
| husbandmen, and when he desired
| some of the fruits Of his own lands
ne sent his servants for them, but
| they were beaten, and when he sent
( others, they were slain Finally he
said, 81 will send my son; surely
! ihc% MiN reverence him" Uul alas
! h1 was hilicd Chen The }aud was
taken irou tie unjust stowara This
reminds as That when tGc lclgs 7an-
ed IN the terms. Of s,cwaIG.aip,
carefully outlined in tithcs and offer
ings, the land was taken from them,
and they were scattered abroad.
| There are some few general prin-
ciples that should control our giving
to-day:
|. God should have first place,
not last How many Of us observe
this in our daily life. and when. at
the beginning Of season, we make
out long list Of things we want and
must have, stop first and plan what
we shall give to God? This does not
mean we shall deprive ourselves Of
everything. DR.. Josiah Strong saws,
|
larger return Of usefulness in the
| world, by being spent on ourselves
or families, is used for the glory of
God, and is better spent than given
to missions; but whatever money is
spent on self that would have YIELD
ed larger returns Of usefulness other
wise, is misspent, and, if it Is done
intelligently, is a case Of embezzle-
| ment.' 'The first of the first fruits
of the land thou shalt bring unto the
house Of the Lord thy God"
2. Giving should be intelligent,
not thoughtless. This means we
should study the needs of our broth
| ers and sisters at home and abroad.
| When we know, we arc concerned;
| but so often we do not know, and we
do not want to know, the sufferings
| OF others. If tragedy happens in
| our own little town, we would give
anything in our power to help re-
| lievc the sorrow of those we love.
DO we think Of the horrible happen
| ings in the slumS Of our great cities?
| DO we know about the tiny children
| dying there for a breath OF fresh,
pure air, while we have time and
| money for summer recreation? Do
| we ever think of the wOrsc-t than-mis-
cradle women in the heathcn lands?
| No, we arc too indOlent to think; It
might cause us much worry and cost