EVERYDAY CHRISTIANITY

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 113, 29 May 1937, Page 12

EVERYDAY CHRISTIANITY

CANON "DICK^' SHEPPABD. \

Every Lane Has Its Turning

By

It is natural that in every language an enormous number of proverbiai sayings should cluster round the life and the work of the countrysdde. lu spite of the great growth of in(iustrialism- and the flow of young men and women from the villages to the towns, we ara a nation of countrymen at heart. Almost the first thought of the town-dweller on attaining a ltttle modest prosperity is to find a little house for himself and his family dn the country, and there to make a garden. Similarly, the reason so many ofiieeworkers in London are content to take what mnst be a rather tiring journey uight apd mornijig to and fi'Om their work is that by living in one of the Outer suburbs they can enjoy what seem to them the pleasures of the country. Our speech ds accordingly full of idiomatic allusions to open-air life. That at the head of this article is only oue of very many, One of the most famous, however, which speaks of "a place in the sun" is flrst found not in English literature but in Pascal's "Pensees. ' ' An unsubstantial man financially is spoken of as "a man of straw"; a statesman is sometimes said to be "ploughing a lonely furrow," another toj be "making hay while the sun sbines,' and yet another to "have a long row to * hoe. ' 1 One eould go on multiplying examples of expressions having thoir origin dn farming. Bigger Than Oixcumstanco. What I want you to notice this week is that the three most familiar proverbs by which we express optimism are all derived from the outdopr ldfe. To that already quoted we must add' "Every cloud has a silver lining" and "It's an ill wind that blows Uobody good." Each of these proverbs is a pithy mode of expressing our ref usal to be cast down by circumstances which seem unfavoutable. We may, in our country imagery, laugh at the incurable oiptimfet by saying "all his geese are swans"; but it is kindly banter for we all of us in our hearts love an optimist. Optimism is as natural to the spirit of man as pessimdsm is unnatural. I am writing this while the clouds of international anxiety atill hang over Europe (there is some more open-air imagery!) but it is the rare exception to meet with anyone who does not believe, or at any xate profess, that all will be well in the end. Gommercialised Optimism. Gambling and the football pools, about whieh we have been hearing lately, thrive on optimism. It is the professionai gambler who lays money that a horae will not win, just as on the Stock Exchange the vast bulk of speculation is on tiie part of people who buy stocks and shares they have no intention of keeping, in tlie belief that the price will have gone up befOre they are ealled upon to pay for them. They could as easily sell stocks and shares they do not hold in the belief that before settling day they can buy them at a lower price for deldvery to the purchaser. The professionai opertors do that, and are known as "bears"; but the speculatiug public are "bulls,' or optimists almost to a man. It is right that we should look on the bright side of things, that we should not bid the Devil good morning till we meet hdm and that we should not cross the stream till we reach it. Though it is not often suspected, optimism is largely the gift to the world of the Christian religion. The ancient world was ridden with fears and portents of evdl and the pagan religions were largely cOncerned in propitiating their angry dieties. The gods of the heathen world were an exceedr. ingly depressing collection. While you find many streaks of pessimism an the Old Testament it is th'e forward-looking joy which is the unique characteristie of the people of Israel; I open the Psalter at randotn. and the first words • olr which -my' eyCs fall are these from the 128th Psalm: Blessed. are all they that fear . fche Ldrd:'-and walk in his tfray's. '• * Por thou shalt eat the labours oi thine hapds: O well.is. thee and 'happy shalt thou be. . s . / * . Th'y wile shall be as the fruitful vanet upon the walls Of thine house. Thy children like the olive bpanches: round about thy table. ' With the coming of our L'ord all occasion fOr pessimism was banished. No sincere Christian Can, in fact, -be anything but: ap, optimast. .Though tlie world .may be evil, the victory over sin and death has been won and the final issue can hever be in the slightest doubt. , . /The long lane of human, history with its stony path, pitfalls and niires, and rflnk weeds by "the way, has its turning dn the end. Firm Hope. ,

Bo it is that the. Christian can take for his' own the simple vereo of Emer-son,si:-i- " • Over the winter glacieis I see the summer giow, And thtough the wild-piled snowdrift The warm rose-buds belaw. The life of the country teaches men and women to live thedr lives trustfully. The -evidenee of God's beneflcient power is all about them. It is to the countryside tiiat. we townfolk turn for the inspiration which gives colour and reality to ' our language of hope aud of belief in the good pur poses of God for us. The Voice. (Repidnted by request from "Tho Stti dent MoVement," January, 1937.) Me: I am listening, Lord, for Thec, I am listening, Lord, Louder.) I airt listening. (Aside: No One speaks, Is there anybody theret) I am listening, Lord. (Shouting) . I am listening.

Voice: No! you're not. Me: Yes. I am! I am listening, Lord. Vodce: No! you're shouting. Me: So I am. I won't shout any more. I'll be quiet. I am listening, Lord. I am listening, listening, listening. (Aside: Nothing seems to happen). I am listening, listening, listening, Voice: No, you're talking. Me: Well, what must I dot Yoice: Li&ten. Me; Yes, but nothing happens when I do, and I don't believe anything is going to happen. Voice; Oh, yes; something wdll happen. Me: Whatf Voice: A nervous breakdown. Me (bitterly): Yes, likely enough if I go on like this. Why is it so hara? Why is it so hard? I think I'U give it all up. Voace: He won't let you. Me: Won't He? Well, I'll try again. I am listening, Lord. (Pause.; Voice: Why are you in a hurryl Me: I'm not— -at least am I? Still, I have a great deal to do, and things are waiting, an.d — there isn 't much time, and— - Voice (slowly): You have all the time there is. What do you spend dt on? You are not so busy as you think you are. You are frightened. Me: Frightened? Frightened of What? Voice: Frightened of being alone. Frightened of remembering. Frightened of thinking. Frightened of what I may say. Me* Yes, I am, I am. But what can I do? Voice: Ferhaps nothing. Have you asked what I cau do? Me: What can you do? VoiCe: All that nCeds doing. Me: Who are you? Voice: I am the one who are runaiUg away from. Cease. Sit down and be at peaee, and learn what I ean do. IHE HOPE OF CIVILISATION Aparfc from Jesus, I see no hope for civilisation. To-day, amid the tramp of armies, and the roar of guns, the voice ot Jesus cannot be heara. My frueuds, I lbelieve, quite honestly, that if the world refuses to listen to Him, scivilisation will crash, and disaster and misery will be the lot of this and other countries. It d$ either Christ or chaos. " A new commaudment give I unto you, that ye love one another, ' says Jesus. "Where there is no vision the people perish." When I was a young minister, working under Rev. Hugh Price Hughea, I formed a friendship with one who became quite a distdnguished writer, Mr. Coulston Kernahan. He pubUshed some amazing little booklets", and in one of them he said that he dreamed he was in a cathedral in the mightiest city of earth. The cathedral was crowded with people, and inhis dream he saw a man come out of Ihe crowd. a strong-look'ing man; he stood before the Holy Table, and he seized the Crucifix, and dashed it to the ground, and said: ' ' The reign of Jesus is ended. ' ' And in his dream he heard the people shout, "Hurrah " And the church bella crashed out, and in the streets the people shouted: "Hurrah! There is no Jesus!" In his dream he saw the World withOut Jesus; he saw the reign ,of force and of hate. But he awakened, and said: "Thsnk God, dt was only a dream1! ' ' I want to say to "you this: All that I have, all that I hope to be, is' in Christ And to you who are unsaved, let me say there is only one name given uncler Eeaven by which he can be saved, and that name is Jesus. ' 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." — Eev. C. Ensor Walters.