Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-03-30
A STRONG MANS NEW START.
The International Sunday School Les
sen for April 2 is "The Conversion OF
Saul."-Acts 9: 1871.
(By William T. Ellis.)

| How a strong man, going the wrong
way was violently stopped and set tt
moving in the opposite direction, If
the lesson of today. The man was
known by the city of his birth; now
that city is known by the man; fol
| where the records once spoke OF Sau
of Tarsus they now speak OF the Tar
sus of Saul AS for the man himself
he belongs to that select little com
pany who are fully described by the
mention of his name. There have been
many millions Of Pauls in the world
but only one Of them is meant when
we simply say Paul"
Bigger than any news that gets into
the newspapers are the decisions made
by great men. The real turning points
of history are the convictions formu
lated in the silence by men OF
strength 1t may be years before the
events that sprang from the decision
are known; but the real crisis was
when the choice was made. Before
ever the public sees an engagement
ring on girls finger she herself has
known the revelation of the love that
it represents. So Paul on Mars hill
or before Agrippa, when all the com
munity was set by the ears, was mere
ly rejecting the consequences Of that
great day on the road outside of Dam
ascus. when he ceased being Saul, the
prosecutor of Christians, and became
Paul, Christ's apostle to the Genttles
The Men Who Are Going Somewhere
Please observe that Saul was going
somewhere: he was not sitting on a
fence finding fault with the looks and
walk and equipment of other travellers.
The men and women who have not
even gumption enough to be bad are
the real problem Of society. The virile
youngster-the bad boy'-who is al
ways getting into scrapes is really less
to be worried about than the colorless
lad whose goodness is merely lack or
force and courage. There is more hope
of an out and out prosecutor and bias
phemer than of the spineless. feckless,
fearful fellow who Is best represented
by a minus or a zero sign. 1t Is often
the big sinners who make the great
saints.
It took a miracle to convert Saul Of
Tarsus. But he was worth 1t. He was
stopped in mid career by a binding
vision of the Lord, while on the way to
Damascus to harry the Christians. Like
the good workman that he always was
whether serving God or Satan, Saul
had made careful preparation for his
task, carrying with him letters from
the high priest at Jerusalem to the Da
mascus synagogues. Whatever he did,
he did it with all of his might. 1t was
no second rate character that saw the
light on the road Of persecution. Why
is it I wonder, that the churches do
not deliberately go after the strong
men who are not Christians? 1t does
almost seem at times as if present day
church work were guaged to the level
of the mediocre and the commonplace.
A lot of little men want special
miracle to persuade them to do right;
but God does not drive tacks with a
sledge hammer. Paul was worth a
miracle Looking back over what he
has meant to the world, we can see
how God could have afforded to empty
heaven of angels and arch angels that
day, in order to cause that brilliant
young man to fright about face" There
was no bigger business on hand in
heaven that day than the conversion Of
Saul.
A Light That outshone Noon.
Wealthy, aristocratic, self assured,
Saul rode on toward the oldest city in
the world, musing, perhaps, upon the
sacred associations of this beautiful
place with it's memories of Abraham
and Naaman and the proud Syrian
kings whom the armies Of Israel had
put to naught. And he felt himself to
be on the same service. His retinue
rode respectfully in the rear. If there