The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1912-07-11
The Country Church

Inc country ChurCn
CONTINUED from page threel
the trouble with country churches,
broadly speaking. might be expressed
In the neglect by country people OF
what is called business management.
and yet | do not like to use that
term. | will illustrate what / mean
little better by story. A young
woman who fell in love, by the advice
/ Of young man who was interested
In the matter, went to visit n kins-
woman, a wise woman, a woman OK
the world, her elder, who could see
nothing in this proposed marriage ex.
cept the overflowing and aboundin :
love she had for the young man. ~
want to ask one question about this
man." she said: els his future assur-
ed?" And Edith said. '0h, yes, aunty.
he was baptized as child" Now
! Edith had about the same view OF
marriage as some people have about
the church. They think 1t is all right
IL they have the sacrament, the BIZ
BILE and the preaching Of the word.
None Of those men would marry their
daughters to a young man who TOOK
the sacrament right and understood
the Bible right and no more. IL he
put his daughter into an institution
like marriage he would expect her
to be taken care Of and provided for
well He would ask the question. "ls
this man able to provide my daughter
with an income?' But some people
say about a church, "All II needs is
the word preached and the sacra-
ments, and the rest will follow"
Dut the Lord In heaven did not mean
that his church should be carried
on in any such way. and this is what
[ want to say, that the Church Is
meant by the Lord to be good kind
OF a Thermometer OF how well the
people are getting on. II the people
are not doing well the church will
rot do we'll. II the people are mean
the church will be meant cannot
help 1t. IL the people are large-heart-
ed the church will be large-hearted.
The church can never be much but
what the people are. God meant II
so.
Now We have had in this country
four kinds OF farmers. They have
rot all come In every place. but they
seem to go across the stage In the
one, two. three. four order. And II
you have had one you are likely
to have two and three. and four will
probably come. This is the kind OF
farmers we have had in this country.
In the state Of Indiana they have all
four.
There is the man who is the soli-
tary farmer, there Is the household
farmer, there Is the Spectator IN
farm land, and then there is the hus-
bandman, or the man who marries
the land and makes II his wife. The
thing / want to tell you about Is this,
that each man has had church like
unto himself and his church was dis-
ferent from his neighbours church.
The solitary farmer is the man that
tjlls the land alone. lie went into
the woods to cut down the forests
and clear the land and use the plow
to break and prepare the sod. His
wife worked at home while he was
away. all day long. preparing the foof
spinning, or weaving. or mendin6.
or sewing and going her ways about
the house. with her children about
her. She was thinking her own
thoughts, very often getting tho
habit OF talking to herself. 80 lonely
she was. And that man out with his
axe alone was thinking his own
thoughts, and sometimes a tree fell
as he did not think 1t would fall. Now
that man had a religion just as lone
~ db MS WOlhs tio uiu NV shhfe
OF anything In religion but himself
and how his soul could get saved. II
asked about his soul he would say:
Brethren and sisters, l will tell
you about the time was converted"
lie works all day alone to save his
body and his life and he prays at
night for God TO save his soul, and
that is his religion. He does not be-
lieve in foreign missions. nor in Sun
day School. He does not believe In
young peoples societies but believes
In the religion Of one man. and a
sermon TO one man. Another thing
about CHS man. he was very emotion
al. The solitary farmer was full Of
rassion; he would fight and did not
OBJECT to fighting and being shot. ]