r all the requirements of man.
He has provided man himself with an intellect to fathom and develop the
mysteries of His handiwork. Now He commands that mortal man shall do the
rest, and what a generous command it is! And this is the world that owes
you a living, is it?

This reminds me of a man who built and thoroughly equipped a beautiful
church, and presented it as a gift to the congregation. After expressing
their gratitude, a leading member of the church said to the generous
donor: "And now may we request that you put a lightning-rod on the church
to secure it against lightning?" The giver replied: "No. I have built a
church wherein to worship Almighty God, and if He sees fit to destroy it
by lightning, let Him strike."

There was a church struck by lightning in New Jersey, where the big trust
magnates met for worship, and the Lord is excused for visiting it with
lightning. No, the Lord is not going to strike down your good works at
all. He has laid out an earthly Paradise for each of us, and nothing is
due us except what we earn by honest toil and noble endeavor. We owe the
world a debt of gratitude we can never repay for making this a convenient
dwelling-place. We owe the world the best there is in us for its
development. Gerald Massey put it right when he said: "Toil is creation's
crown, worship is duty."

Another important lesson life has taught me is the value, the priceless
value, of good friends, and with Shakespeare I say: "Grapple them to thy
soul with hooks of steel." Some sage has said: "A man is known by the
company he can not get into." But truly this would be a barren world
without the association of friends. But a man must make himself worthy of
friends, for the text teaches us that "A man who wants friends must show
himself friendly." What I am today, or strive to be, I owe largely to my
friends--friends to whom I fail in language to express my gratitude, which
is deeper than the lips; friends who led us to believe that "stone walls
do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage;" friends who understand that
human nature and sincerity are often clothed in prison garb; friends who
have decreed that one false step does not lame a man for life.

Oh, what a generous doctrine! And, although unwritten, I believe God has
set his seal upon it. Honest friendship is a grand religion, and if we
are true to ourselves, the poet tells us, we cannot be false to any man.

However, I am forced to admit