Character Building

Character Building CHARACTER BUILDING
W. F. LEDLOW This is an age of improvement. Development is the slogan of the day. Men seek to rival one another in raising better hogs, cattle, and horses. Factories strive to see which can give the world the best machine. Schools and colleges vie with one another to offer the world the best in education. Luther Burbank has spent his long life at work with plants. He has made many improvements and has greatly blessed the world.

Child life is the most important life on earth. It is criminal to spend our time, talent, and money to develop animals and plants, and neglect the boys and girls of our land. With them rests the future of the home, society, church and state. "The child is the father of the man," and upon him rests the responsibility of every thing. Some one has said: "The child's education should begin a hundred years before its birth." The world needs better men and better women worse than it needs better horses and cattle. Shall we not do more for our children and less for animals? To develop the child means to improve every worthy institution; to retard it means the ruin of all. The child's influence will extend in every field, and will affect every phase of life.

"Character" is the only source of happiness. Money, cattle, and land can not produce genuine pleasure: such is found only in heart and soul purity. Jesus said: "Man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things that he possesses." If it does not lie in what he has, his worth must consist of what he is. The child's own life is in­volved in his raising. It is a positive sin against the child as well as against society to neglect to train it as best we can, and fit and prepare it for its place in the world. The man who works with material things, works for time and time only. His work cannot be permanent. Death and decay are stamped on all things earthly. The finest house in the world, the greatest monument on earth, and . the most costly invention known to man are doomed to perish. The human soul is immortal. Labor and effort spent with the soul will not be lost: the soul and its culture will live forever! Can we afford to neglect that which is eternal and give our time to that which is earthly? The child is born without a character. It has no "treasure of righteousness" nor "inherited sin." It has the possibilities out of which character may be made. Like the rose bud, it contains material, but it needs growth and de­velopment. The rose must have soil, rain, and sunshine: the child must have physical, mental and moral training. To fail in one of these, it suffers in all.

Youth is the critical age. Character is easier "formed" than "reformed." It is much better to teach a child the right than it is to show him the wrong, when a man, and turn him from it. Youth is the tender age. This rule holds in every held. The human body, the mind, plant life, and every animal are "weak and tender" at birth. If trained at all, they must be trained in youth. The bones in a child's body are much more tender than bones in an old man. With age our bodies harden, our minds mature, and our life settles. It has been said: "You cannot teach an old dog new tricks." This means that the old are settled and cannot be so easily changed as can a child. We know that one's mind is more easily impressed in youth than in age. The first impressions are the most lasting. The moral nature, like the body and mind, can be trained in youth, and can be made to be either good or bad. An old man recently visited the place of his childhood. He saw a large tree which was only a bush when he was a child. In his childish play, at least forty years ago, he tied a knot in this little tender tree. It has now grown to be a very tall, large tree, yet the knot is still in it. As the old man looked at the deformed tree, he said: "How easy that knot would have been to untie when it was first tied, but how difficult would the task be now? The same way it is with life. In childhood, bad habits may be easily overcome, but it is very difficult for the mature man to change his life." How true!

Young life is wholly dependent. At birth the child is totally helpless. It must look to parents for all it has. Its mother is its principal support, and its greatest bene­factor. Physically, mentally, and morally the child is a child. The way it starts so many times determines the way it goes. "Train a child in the way it should go and when it is old it will not depart from it." The first few years of a child's life are spent with "mother." She gives it its first impulses and earliest aspirations. "The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world." The first few years of a child's life are imitative. It copies and borrows from others. It thinks, talks, and acts as others do. It has but little individuality. Its mind is blank at birth and is filled by matters that it meets. How important is it that we say and do the right thing in the presence of a child? No one would knowingly give pois­oned milk, bread or water, yet we give it poisoned words and deeds! The crime is much greater. He who injures my body does me a temporary wrong, but he who corrupts my soul has ruined me forever! The Catholics have said: "Give me your child till he is ten years old, you may then have him; but he will be a Catholic as long as he lives." The seed is sown in childhood, and cultivated in youth. The harvest is reaped in mature life. The spring is the seed-sowing season, the fall is the harvest. The human life must resemble the year. The first of life—as in the year—is the time to plant. He who waits till late in the spring to plant his grain, fails to reap a crop. The same is true with life. No man can build a great character who does not begin early. From the years of twelve to twenty-five, the child forms his habits and settles his methods of living. What he has gathered in his earlier life and held as collected mass, he now assimilates, organizes, and makes his own. Life assumes with him a more settled form. As the mind and body grow to maturity and he feels that he has become a man, the human being becomes settled and is inclined to remain where he is. There are very few men who ever make an important change after they are twenty-five years old. They seldom adopt a new habit or quit an old one. Like the grain in the field, the human life grows in the spring: it settles with summer, and ripens with the fall.

It is extremely important that these years be care­fully guarded. To neglect this development period, means disaster to the whole life. Any accepted truth deepens its hold upon the mind with its repetition; the more you believe a thing and the more frequently you hear it dis­cussed, the more firmly do you cling to it; but a re­jected proposition tends to harden the mind each time it is repeated. The human mind is a delicate thing. To turn the mind, heart, and soul the wrong way early in life means a great risk for the future. If the gospel is rejected for ten years, the chances are that it will be re­jected forever! Each time it is heard and refused, it has less charm and apparently less power. There are many exceptions, but the rule is that one who rejects Christianity till he is twenty-five years old will never accept it. He grows harder with age.

Sin has a most destructive effect on human life. It dulls the sense of right and wrong; it mars the vision; it clouds the sky; lowers the ideals; and renders one in­capable of attaining the heights that he otherwise might have climbed. We see the principle illustrated in every day life. The wounded limb is never so strong again: "each pain brings us nearer the grave." There was once a small bird that came each day to a certain brook to drink. After it quenched its thirst, it would fly away into the open sky. Its flight was upward. A wicked boy had often watched it and had envied it the heights it attained; for it flew so high it could not be seen. One day he hid him­self near the brook with the intention of killing the bird. When it came, he shot and broke one of its wings, but it made its escape. In the course of time the pain ceased and the wing grew together, but the bird could never fly "so high" again. We see men and women with crippled limbs whose gait has been much retarded. Sin cripples the soul. You may obtain pardon for the evil done, but the scar is left and the results remain. Its deadly effects cannot be removed. It is by far the best to avoid sin. No boy has the time to "sow wild oats" and the world does not need them. The markets are flooded now. The influence of children is great. One child with strong personality can control half the children in the community. It is often true that boys with this strong magnetism are neglected. They become magnets and con­trol the morals of the neighborhood. What a blessing to the country if such boys are trained in Christianity; but what an awful curse to the world if they are encouraged in sin!! Parents have the most responsible place to fill, and many do not know it. Carelessly and thoughtlessly we drift and our children "do as they please". They have not the instruction needful in early life. The building of character much resembles the building of a house: it takes materials. The worth and durability of any structure is determined by the nature of the material that composes it. No workman can construct a costly and substantial building with worthless materials. In the build­ing of character, thoughts, words, and deeds are essential materials.

Thoughts are the raw material out of which life's structure is built. Much depends upon the "rough mater­ial." Thoughts originate in the heart and either build or destroy the finer nature of the soul. "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he;" and " keep thine heart with all dili­gence; for out of it are issues of life" are statements worthy of consideration. The child should be encouraged to think properly: all evil thoughts should be excluded form the mind. Men can control their thoughts and can select matters of pure thought. When an undesirable character comes to your home, you are not compelled to invite him to share with you your hospitality. You know he will ruin your family. You close the door, do not ask him to come in, and he leaves. In all probability he will never return. But if he is made welcome, is treated courte­ously, and urged to return, he will visit you frequently. He may be emboldened to propose some vital and prominent relation with the family. It is so with thoughts. An evil thought treated coolly and spurned, will not likely' return. It will make but few visits if it receives no encouragement, In a man's sober moments, be should contemplate the noblest and best; and allow his soul to take flight to realms of purity and love; he should ponder "the world to come"; should set his affections on things above and not on things on earth,"—these thoughts will contribute much toward the building of the proper character.

Words are the oral expression of inward feeling; not always, but usually. A thought may perish in the germ and never harm another, but words, if poisoned, will cor­rupt and ruin the world. One word spoken wrongly in Paradise, caused the fall of our parents. Satan did the world inestimable harm by the use of one word. Solomon says, "words fitly spoken are like apples of gold in pic­tures of silver." No artist can draw a prettier picture!! Well chosen and well spoken words carry a charm and beauty that moves and sways the world. Wicked words are filled with death. They are like the Indian's arrow, filled with poison. But words that are pure and healing to the soul—they contain "Gilead's balm." The child borrows what it hears and incorporates the words into its own vocabulary. In turn other children copy the remarks, and God only knows where the influ­ence will end. Some one has said: "A pebble thrown into the ocean will produce a wave that will wash both shores." Words carry an influence that effects both time an eternity. If I could fully feel that one word wrongly spoken by me, might change the map of time and eternity for a dozen souls, I should certainly not speak it. Such may be true. One word has often changed a human life!

Human conduct is the most tangible thing in life. We associate with people, and every day see what they do. Words so often reveal what we claim to be, but deeds show what we are. Words and deeds often conflict. They sometime run parallel. When a man's words and conduct agree, they present a double influence and each supplements the other; but when the tongue and life take different paths, the deeds are taken as the true index to the life. In either case—with words or deeds—we furnish material for public comment, and can never recall nor erase. Words spoken are public property and deeds committed become history. If you do not want your life mixed with the great Ocean of humanity, you must close the windows, shut the doors and live a secluded life. You must live alone or give the world your life. If you mix with men, you must help them or harm; them.

"The deed returns to the doer;" no man can escape what he does. Paul says: "Whatsoever a man sows that shall he reap. He who sows to the flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that sows to the spirit, shall of the spirit reap life everlasting." At the close of each day we send material to eternity and out of this material our destiny is constructed. You largely build your own house —and seal your own fate.

There are two fundamental principles without which no child can hope to be a "man". These are "honesty and truthfulness." They constitute the only foundation of every good life. "The good and honest heart is the good ground" into which God's word falls and produces fruit. The gospel cannot grow in the dishonest soil: Christianity cannot thrive in an untrue life.

Every child should be impressed early with the awful­ness of the sin of lying. There is no better way to do this than to inspire him and encourage him to tell the truth. Thousands of children have been inspired to speak the truth by the story of "Washington and the hatchet." One who loves truth more than he fears punishment will make a great man; but the child who will lie to avoid correc­tion will sooner or later come to ruin. Truth is a twin sister to honesty and the two are the greatest jewels in the world. The world loves an honest man. Abraham Lincoln was once a clerk in a store. One day he made a mistake of a few pennies in giving a woman her change. That night he walked several miles to her home to correct the error rather than wait till morning. His extreme desire to do the right won for him the title of "honest Abe." The lives of great men are a great help in lifting boys to a higher life. The world is full of good examples. No other book contains so many as does the Bible. The best way to arouse the patriotism of a nation is to appeal to the heroes of the past. The "battle of Marathon" and the splendid type of Greek heroism shown there has inspired thousands of Athenian boys to do their best. Abraham, Moses, Daniel, Job, John the Baptist, Jesus, Paul, and others may be used as worthy of the most faithful imitation. The Christ should have the first place in all description; for He has in the absolute what others have in a measure. In Him is blended all the colors of the rain-bow, and He contains all the traits in His own character that are diffused among all the sages of the past and present.

One of the greatest scientists of today was a poor boy. His father died early and his mother worked and planned to procure an honest living. One day the child overheard his teacher say: "That little boy is addled: he has not enough sense to learn his lessons, and we had as well tell his mother, and save her of further expense." The child hurried home and told his mother what he had heard, and she with him returned at once to the school house to see the teacher. Indignantly she told the teacher that her son had more sense than any teacher in the school, and they would live to see him a great man. When she and the boy returned home, the mother mad and the child heart­broken, he fell into her lap and cried. After she had ex­pressed the strongest faith in him and his future, he raised his head and looked through his tears to his mother and said: "Mother, if you have such confidence in me, I will die before I will disappoint you." Mothers and fathers so many times complain rather than praise; blame, more than pity; scold rather than sympathize, and blight the hopes of the child. We should seek to inspire a child to the highest and best, and this can be done only by an appeal to his better self. In England some are born "common" and some "lords" and the great principle taught the child is that "each shall be satisfied with the rank in which he was born;" but in our country all are born with a right to greatness and fame, and he who wins may have the laurels. There are some birds content to live in the barnyard and be fattened for the food of man, yet there are others who build their nest in the mountain tops. The proper ambition will place the child among the highest, greatest and best; but low ideals and no ambition will cause him to sit at the foot of the ladder. A small boy once was injured and lost his eyes and became totally blind. His parents said: "We will send him now to the blind school." The neighbors came with their advice and suggested that his parents secure him a "hand organ and send him to the streets as a beggar." Both parents and neighbors failed to impress him. He had a more lofty aim. "I shall be a United States Senator some day, and shall serve my country," the boy said. "No one ever does much in a blind school; I do not want to go there. Let me go to school with my brothers, and as they learn they can read to me, and I shall learn also." He carried out his plan, and lived to see his dream a reality. If a blind child can battle against poverty and blindness, and can climb to the United States Senate, there is no rea­son why the normal boy cannot attain the highest point of usefulness. To trust a boy and show love and sympathy for him will greatly assist him in making a man. The human soul is so constituted that it dies when distrusted and grows when loved. I have a good friend who was once a teacher, and he told me the following story:

"A father and mother came to see me and told me what a bad boy they had. They said that he was beyond their control and that no teacher had ever been able to manage him. We are going to send him to you, but we know you will not be able to control him; for he is the worst boy in Texas.
"The boy came to school and was just as bad as his parents had represented him. Punishment did him no good. The harder I punished him, the worse he grew. One day I decided to adopt a new plan. I asked the boy to eat dinner with me, and he agreed. He and I went into the woods and sat down on a log and ate together. As we were eating I discussed with him our experience together. He said that he knew he was bad and hardly knew why.
"I had noticed that the boy had never told me a lie. He seemed to have the profoundest regard for truth, and from this standpoint I appealed to him. I told him that a boy who always spoke the truth could be a great man. I placed my arms around the little fellow and told him that I loved his soul, and wanted to see him a great man. The child cried and said: 'You are the first human being that ever told me he loved me. My father and mother never do. They complain when I do wrong and have always said I would never be worth any thing. But if there is one man who loves me, I will do my best to be a man.'" That teacher believes that somewhere in this world that little boy now lives as a useful man. Love, confidence, and sym­pathy furnish much food for the soul; they drive the cob­webs from a man's sky, and help him to see the star of hope. Hot water thrown upon a tender plant will produce its instant death, but water accommodated to its temper­ature will cause it to grow. Words, works, and general treatment may either save or destroy the child. If you blur its vision, cloud its sky, and lower its aim, you de­stroy its future; but if you make the world bright and fill the child's life with hope, you pave the way for its success and happiness.

It was my pleasure some years ago to see the greatest painting of its kind in the world—it was a painting of the Crucifixion. It was the most impressive picture I ever saw. It moved and touched every part and faculty of my being. Thousands went to see it and all were moved by it. I am told that it cost its present owner one hundred thousand dollars. As I viewed this wonderful production. I asked myself the following questions: If this picture is worth one hundred thousand dollars to one man, how much is the real Christ worth to the whole world? If this picture can move me and others to tears and deep emotion, what can Christ himself do for us? The painter on perfecting this work was both sad and glad. As he contemplated his work and reviewed his ef­forts, gladness filled his heart. He had surpassed others and had reached the high water mark in the world's paint­ing. He felt that the world would record him as one of its greatest men, and his work as one of its wonders. He felt the satisfaction that can come only to one who has done his best, and has reached the ideal for which he lives. But when he viewed the picture again and contem­plated its decay, his joy turned to sadness. He saw in it elements purely earthly and qualities essential to death and decay. Time will destroy it all. How sad the thought? All material things must perish and rot with the fading hand of time. But he who builds character works not for time and need contemplate only perpetual joy. He who takes the human soul as his canvas and God's truth as his paint, and produces in the soul the image of Christ, creates a work of art that will live forever! The Sun, moon, and stars may cease to shine, the earth may no longer perform its daily work, and all matters may perish in the wreck and ruin of worlds, but this picture will last forever! What a glorious thought! What a gracious blessing!

Solomon saw the world and men as they lived. He presents in Ecclesiastes human life in drama. The dif­ferent types of men and their ideals pass before us in re­view, and we are allowed to see the world as it is. The rich man appears to display his wealth. The cur­tain rises and we see him with his millions. Certainly he is happy: for he has that for which the world strives. But the curtain falls and we hear him say: "All is vanity and vexation of spirit." Money fails to satisfy. It makes none happy but often wrecks and ruins the soul. We need some­thing better. The educated man appears on the stage to display the culture of mind and brain. Thousands have felt that an education will bring happiness. Solomon was the wisest but not the happiest. The curtain falls the second time and we hear: "It is all vanity and vexation of spirit." Education is useful as a means to an end, but the word must have something deeper. The king appears in his glory. Political power is displayed in all its splendor. The king has his servants, attendants and friends. He rules a mighty nation. Is he happy? The curtain falls, and he exclaims: "It is all vanity and vexation of spirit." The man who seeks pleasure and wishes to have the best in life—wishes to revel in sensual life—comes to the stage and play his part. The world's charms fade with age. What appeals to youth disgusts the old. Time can offer no permanent charm. All must fade and lose their power. As the world sits in contemplation and wonders what is the best for man—what will bring him permanent hap­piness and fit him best for time and eternity, the curtain rises and an old man appears on the stage. His hair is gray, his eyes dim, his body bent, and his voice shattered; but we can hear him speak distinctly:

"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter; fear God and keep His commandments; for this is the whole duty of man."