I prefer a sermon in which there may be no vast talent, and no great depth of thought, but what there is has come fresh from the crucible, and like molten metal burns its way. I once knew a lad who, when he used to go home from the smithy where he worked, was roughly handled by the boys of the village until his master suggested to him a plan of defense that was wonderfully productive. He took a rod of iron, and just before he went home he blew up the fire and made the iron hot.
When the boys came around him he warned them not to touch his stick. After one trial of it, they obeyed the admonition and reverently kept their distance.
I do not quote the example with any commendation of the actual fact, but with this moral in view—heat your sermon red hot, and it will likely be remembered by all who come into contact with it. Everything gives way before the fire.
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