"POINT OF PERIL
"UNBLEMISHED let me live or the unknown; Oh, grant an honest fame or " grant me none!"—Pope.
The desire to be recognized is natural in human nature. And further, it is not sinful to receive just recognition for services faithfully performed. But that one should crave attention to the degree that its absence adversely affects his work, is the point of peril. Praise is an inducement in early childhood with which parents stimulate their children to improved performances. With maturity comes pride in excellence for duty's sake, thus eliminating the necessity of the crutch of praise.
It bears repeating—the sincere expression of appreciation is not sinful. But the Christ-centered life is not dependent on this heady elixir.
Need we mention the dishonesty of receiving credit due another? Magnanimity requires that we share credit for any worth-while accomplishment. Seldom is the isolated individual solely responsible for any positive good.
Happy is that man who is neither elated by praise nor depressed by its absence, who is so in love with his job that he does it for the sheer delight of doing. Happy indeed is that man to whom constructive criticism is not abrasive, and a kick in the pants is an assist forward. And happy is he to whom anonymity is not a depressant—it being understood that if the spotlight brings him into focus, he will wear the cloak of humility, fashioned in secrecy, in the bright light of day.
E. E. C.
TAKE AIM
STEAM diffused is powerless; confined and centralized it is a force. Focalized rays make heat. Concentration is power. Drops of water from high in the sky fall on a baby's cheek with hardly a notice, but when concentrated these soft drops become hydraulic pressure, able to move mountains.
Blessed is the preacher who recognizes these simple truths and applies them to his sermons. It is good sermon strategy not to present a smattering flood of ideas, but to specialize on a few major points and then funnel all facets of the message to enrich and embellish these truths. This oneness of aim, this focalization of statement with supporting evidence and illustration and appeal, will surely set the speaker's mind on fire and grip those absorbing his message.
I remember a minister friend from way back. He was youthful and eloquent in those days but the results of his preaching were sparse. Candidly analyzing his disappointments, he became convicted that too much of his preaching was purposeless. As he put it, "I seldom missed the mark because I seldom aimed at one. I merely blazed away in a miscellaneous manner dealing in generalities. It was then I determined I would aim at definite objectives in every discourse and make sure they were properly and prominently displayed and understood."
This he has done for many years. His hair is now white and his face wrinkled. He has passed the so-called "deadline" of ministerial acceptability. Yet, at this writing he is a desired speaker. He is sought by churches and schools even for youth rallies and evangelistic campaigns. He himself feels that the turning point in his preaching came when he purposed to be organized in his outlines, took directness of aim, made sure the audience comprehended his carefully chosen themes, and then concluded his sermons with a recapitulation of each point. The people understood what they heard and remembered what they heard. That is good preaching.
A. C. F.
"AGONY OF ROT"
"STRIVING for leadership means putting ourselves in competition with others, with the accompanying and obvious danger of failure. The easiest way to avoid getting a bloody-nosed ego is not to stick your ego out. But since the personality is not content with the status quo, the anguish we avoid this way comes to us in a much worse fashion—the agony of rot."—JAMES JAUNCEY.
Of course, the selfless spirit of the gospel ministry will allow competition only with one's own past. Interpersonal competition is in a sense a pagan form. It is vital, however, that the essential sense of this paragraph not escape us. In the great program of gospel preaching something must be ventured. It is too much to ask of human beings that they take no thought of failure. It is imperative that we not allow our fear of failure to exceed our willingness to risk. The nature of our mission demands this of us. At stake is the eternal destiny of living souls. The lifeguard accepts the failure possibility when he takes his job.
A venturesome evangelistic ministry is essential to the minister's own development. The path between a "bloody-nosed ego" and the "agony of rot" is exceedingly narrow. But it is negotiable. Better that we venture and fail than have it said,
"He never tried."
E. E. C.
