The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-03-08

rather that ambitions are too little
Purposes are not high enough Some
petty qualification for self-a pile OF
dollars, or bit of honor, or an of1sce'
or an easy time-is made the NE geal.
We have somewhat lost the habit OF
hitching our wagon to a star We
covet earnestly only second-oese
gifts.
AS a result, where are the giants
Who are our mighty reformers
Where are the Clays and Websters in
law and statecraft? Where are our
great preachers, the great editors
only in business and science has our
day produced men equal in power TO
the mighty men of other days
The reason is that we are too easily
satisfied. We stop too often in our
pursuit of excellence. We seem 10
have no desire to become better tnan
the best who have gone before. We
are content to reach comfortap pie
niche, we'll this side of the top TOO
often a youth exchanges his amoition
for large usefulness for an ambition
panion Thus the world loses leaders
and benefactors. 1t is an offense
against society to be satisfied with
less than our best in anything. -
We must be strong in ourself before
we can be strong for Christ. A d.
cided character is a first requlrement
in him who would help push outward
the borders OF GOQ 5 kluSQOlh- II We
are to count for Christ and righteous
ness in the world, we must first count
as men. Cyphers only complicate the
problem of life. We who are sons OF
God, princes of the blood royal should
live the strongest, comp1etest, and
most powerful life. For it is by our
strength, by our power, and by our
activeness, that the gospel OF our
Father is to be commended to the
world.
The average person needs an infu-
sion of strength. He is inclined to
! weakness. His temptation is to be
part of a conglomerate crowd, When
he should be an independent, indi-
Vidua1 personality. Instead of stand
ing out, in sun-crowned manliness,
against ignoble tendencies, he becomes
| a craven follower of them. 1t is easier
| for him to be good natured and COM
plant than to be right and peculiar.
Yet whoever would acquit himself
| like a man must be strong; Tor
strength is the supreme seal of man
| hood. I
Strong characters all have strong
| convictions. They are accustomed to
the use of the short and mighty yes
and mo" And their yes means
yes and their mo" means no"
They dare to disagree with anybody
and with everybody, if their con-
Sciences so dictate. Majorities have
no terrors for them. To them it is a
| small matter whether they are praised
| or not; but it is a gerat matter
whether they are right or not. F,
That Christians are often looked
upon by the world as weak and I'M
manly is as unquestionably true as it
| is unjust and undeserved. The church
| is often declared to be good enough
| for women and children. but no place
| for strong men. The best way to re-
move this wrong impression is for
| church members to rise up in their
| strength and to manifest the virility
and power of Christian character. 1t
should be double shame in a Chris
| tan to be weakling. For the glory
| of the kingdom, Christian young men
| should cultivate strong, symmetrical
| characters. They should be the sue
| cessful influential men of their COM
| munfties. They should weigh as much
| as possible as men, that their inf1I-
| ence as Christians may weigh the
| most. Strong disciples are the best
commentator of our strong Master.
| The church seriously need today
| Christians who know how ito stand"
1t is full of wabbling and weak
kneed saints; its call is for disciples
who change not, but who in their de-
| votion to Christ and His kingdom are
decided and constant. The victory of
the church is to come thru the di-
vinely-given strength of its members,
by which it will best demonstrate the
truth of the gospel of the strong Son
of God.