Christian fiction; City and town life -- Fiction; Clergy -- Fiction; Ozark Mountains -- Fiction
And what place is there in the scheme of things as they are for the
unacceptable preaching of any gospel? What gospel can a preacher deliver
in order to be acceptable to his peculiar church save that church's
peculiar gospel? Dan was not one to ask the oft repeated question of
the ministry, "What must I preach in order that I may be saved?"
In the semi-secret workers meetings; in the still more private planning
of the committees; in the jubilant reports of the uneasiness of the other
churches; and in the satisfying accounts of the awakened opposition and
answering sermons of the other preachers; in the evidence of the general
stirring up of the community; and in the schemes for further advertising
and boosting the evangelist and the cause, Dan felt himself growing ever
more and more out of harmony--felt himself more and more alone.
In those days the sadness of his face grew fixed; his color lost its
healthy freshness; strange lines, that did not belong to his young
manhood, appeared; and the brown eyes that were wont to look at you so
openly, hopefully, expectantly, with laughter half-hidden in their
depths, were now doubting, questioning, fearful, full of pain.
The Doctor saw, and silently "stood by." Dr. Harry saw and wished that
it was all over.
Then came a letter from the officials of the Chicago church of which Dr.
Miles was a member. The letter asked if Dan would consider a call to that
congregation. Again and again Dan read the letter. What should he do? He
could not stay in Corinth. The sense of failure haunted him, while he was
unable to fix upon the reason for it. He condemned himself for committing
unknown offenses. Could he honestly go to another church? How should he
answer the letter? He could not answer it at once--perhaps in a few days!
While he hesitated the meeting drew to its triumphant close. After one
last, mighty, farewell effort, the evangelist departed to some other
grand harvest of souls, to some other church that needed "setting in
order." His work was well done! So well done that he was justified,
perhaps, in making another substantial increase in his stated weekly
"terms."
That night when the farewell meeting was over, and the last "good-bye"
and "God bless you" had been said to the evangelist, Dan stood alone in
his study, by the window that looked out upon Denny's garden. He was
very tired. Never before in his life had he known such weariness. He
felt that in the past few weeks he had neglected the garden down there.
For Denny and Deborah he had planned that the little plot of ground
should be more profitable that year than it had ever been before. He
would not neglect it longer. There at least were visible, actual returns
for his labor. Tomorrow he would spend in the garden.
But to-night--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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