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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 
 
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 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
A YEAR OF SACRED SONG 
 
$ ^ear of ^acreti ^oug 
 
 WITH SELECTIONS IN PROSE 
 FROM SOURCES OLD AND NEW 
 BY MARTHA CAPPS "OLIVER 
 AND WITH ILLUSTRATIONS FROM 
 WATER-COLOUR SKETCHES BY 
 
 €♦ Jfeiein 
 
 £>aj> bj> iDap toe 
 
 l^etp Sorft 
 
 RAPHAEL TUCK AND SONS 
 
 COMPANY, LIMITED 
 
 MDCCCXCV 
 
.or 
 
 Copyright, fSgj, by 
 
 Raphael Tuck and Sons 
 
 Company, Limited 
 
preface 
 
 AS little children gather shells from the pebbly 
 beach, and hold them to their ears to catch the 
 murmurs of the mighty sea, so we gather these 
 pearl-texts from the shore of Divine Love, and, 
 listening with the spirit, catch the message from 
 the sea of eternity which is breaking at our feet. 
 
 M. C. O. 
 
®\)t &tynott. 
 
 WHOEVER SINGS HIS SONG ARIGHT, 
 MUST CATCH THE KEYNOTE FIRST, 
 
 THEN WILL THE PERFECT STRAIN ASCEND, 
 AND INTO RAPTURE BURST. 
 
 AND IN THE SCALE OF EVERY LIFE 
 
 THIS NOTE RUNS THROUGH AND THROUGH — 
 
 NO TONES CAN MAKE A PERFECT CHORD 
 UNLESS THE KEY BE TRUE. 
 
 THE SECRET OF ALL HIGH RENOWN, 
 
 OF WORTH OR HONEST FAME — 
 WHAT IS IT BUT THE ECHO TRUE 
 
 OF SURE AND LOFTY AIM? 
 
 WE TOUCH THE VIBRANT KEYS OF SOUL 
 
 WITH SPIRIT-FINGER FINE, 
 AND ALL THE HARMONIES OF LIFE 
 
 BLEND IN A CHORD DIVINE. 
 
 EACH SOUL MUST SET ITS SONG OF LIFE, 
 
 IN OCTAVE LOW OR HIGH, 
 AND HE WHOSE STRAIN IS TRULY KEYED 
 
 SHALL HEAR IT IN THE SKY. 
 
 WHATEVER NOTE OUR LIPS ESSAY, 
 
 WHATE'ER THE THEME MAY BE, 
 WITH LISTENING HEART AND EAR ATTENT, 
 
 SO MAY WE TAKE OUR KEY ! 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 
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a gear of ^acreti ^ong 
 
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 jftot SDay 
 
 Z^zzY, I say, on the Lord. — Psalm 27 : 14. 
 
 'J ¥"NOTHER year of progress, another year 
 f \ of praise, 
 ^"" Another year of proving His presence all 
 
 the days ; 
 Another year of service, of witness for His love ; 
 Another year of training for holier work above. 
 
 Thank God, He gives no endless way 
 But lays His hand across the road, 
 
 Calls many a halt and bids thee stay 
 And rest thee of thy load. 
 
 He is too full of grace to deal 
 A breathless road that never swerves ; 
 
 But all things turn and pause and wheel 
 In restful, joyful curves. 
 
 Busy souls, try, this year, to see what you can 
 make of the broken fragments of time. Glean up 
 its precious dust, those leavings of days and rem- 
 nants of hours, which so many are sweeping out 
 into the vast waste of existence. Perhaps, if you 
 be a miser of moments and half-hours and unex- 
 pected holidays, your careful garnerings may ensure 
 you a full and profitable life, and you may become 
 richer in knowledge than those whose time is all 
 their own. phillips brooks. 
 
 [1] 
 
g»etonD 2Pa? 
 
 Because Thy loving-kindness is better than life, my lips shall 
 praise Thee. — Psalm 63 : 3. 
 
 GRAVE on thy heart each past "red-letter" 
 day! 
 Forget not all the sunshine of the way 
 By which the Lord hath led thee ; answered prayers 
 And joys unasked, strange blessings, lifted cares, 
 Grand promise — echoes ! Thus thy life shall be 
 One record of His love and faithfulness to thee. 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 Into all our lives, in many simple, familiar ways, 
 God infuses this element of joy from the surprises 
 of life, which unexpectedly brighten our days, and 
 fill our eyes with light. He drops this added sweet- 
 ness into His children's cup, and makes it to run 
 over. The success we were not counting on, the 
 blessing we were not trying after, the strain of music 
 in the midst of drudgery, the beautiful morning- 
 picture or sunset glory thrown in as we pass to or 
 from our daily business, the unsought word of en- 
 couragement or expression of sympathy, the sen- 
 tence that meant more for us than the writer or 
 speaker thought, — these and a hundred others that 
 every one's experience can supply are instances of 
 what I mean. 
 
 You may call it accident or chance — it often is ; 
 
 you may call it human goodness — it often is ; but 
 
 always, always call it God's love, for that is always 
 
 in it. These are His free gifts. — s. longfellow. 
 
 [2] 
 
Take, therefore, no thought of the morrow ; for the morrow 
 shall take thought for the things of itself . — S. Matthew 6 : 24. 
 
 THE New Year has a smiling face, 
 But tells no tales of what may be ; 
 In silent power he takes his place, 
 
 And wraps him in uncertainty. 
 And yet some things I count upon, 
 Which he must give ere he be gone ! 
 
 I count upon some tears to shed, 
 
 Some sleepless nights, some weary days, 
 
 Some heaviness of heart and head, 
 Some thorny paths, some stony ways ; 
 
 These, more or less, for every one, 
 But joy and rest when all is done. 
 
 The love of God I count upon, 
 
 As on the mountains in their strength, 
 
 It has not failed in the years gone, 
 
 It will last on through all life's length ; 
 
 I cannot count on my own love, 
 But His is sure as Heaven above. 
 
 Has the New Year a secret face ? 
 
 There are some things, he cannot hide, 
 Welcome him all, and give him place: 
 
 Long as he can he may abide ! 
 He has surprises for us ? Well, 
 
 We trust him — he the rest shall tell ! 
 
 MARIANNE FARNINGHAM. 
 
 [3] 
 
January 
 
 jpourtl) 2Da^ 
 
 So teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts 
 unto wisdom. — Psalm 90 : 12. 
 
 SO, here hath been dawning another blue day, 
 Think, wilt thou then let it slip useless away? 
 Out of eternity this new day is born; 
 Into eternity at night will return. 
 
 CARLYLE. 
 
 To shape the whole future is not our problem; 
 but to shape faithfully only a part of it, according 
 to rules already known. It is perhaps possible 
 for each of us, who will with due earnestness 
 inquire, to ascertain clearly what he, for his own 
 part, ought to do; this let him, with true heart, 
 do, and continue doing. The general issue will, 
 as it has always done, rest well with a Higher In- 
 telligence than ours. . . . This day thou knowest 
 ten commanded duties, seest in thy mind ten 
 things which should be done for one thou doest ! 
 
 Do one of them; this of itself will show thee ten 
 others which can and shall be done. — carlyle. 
 
 Sufficient for each day is the good thereof, equally 
 as the evil. We must do at once, and with our 
 might, the merciful deed that our hand fmdeth to 
 do, — else it will never be done, for the hand will 
 find other tasks to do, and the arrears fall through. 
 
 And every unconsummated good feeling, every 
 unfulfilled purpose that His spirit has prompted, 
 shall one day charge us as faithless and recreant 
 before God. — j. h. thom. 
 [4] 
 
jftftl) Da? 
 
 Ponder the path of thy feet. — Proverbs 4 : 26. 
 
 LIFE is before ye, — from the certain road 
 Ye cannot turn : then take ye up your load. 
 Not yours to tread or leave the unknown way, 
 Ye must go o'er it, meet ye what ye may. 
 
 A sacred burden is this life to bear, — 
 To suffer then is nobler than to dare. 
 Look on it, lift it, bear it solemnly, 
 Stand up and walk beneath it steadfastly; 
 Fail not for sorrow, falter not for sin, 
 But onward, upward, till the goal ye win; 
 Stop not for sloth, nor yet for pleasure stray; 
 God guard ye, and God guide ye on your way. 
 
 BUTLER. 
 
 Take life earnestly. Take it an earnest, vital, 
 essential matter. Take it just as though you 
 personally were born to the task of performing a 
 noble task in it — as though the world had waited 
 for your coming. Take it as though it was a grand 
 opportunity to do and to achieve, to carry forward 
 great and good schemes : to help and cheer a suffer- 
 ing, weary, it may be a heart-broken, brother. 
 The fact is, life is undervalued by a great majority 
 of mankind. It is not made half as much of as 
 should be the case. Now and then a man stands 
 aside from the crowd, labors earnestly, steadfastly, 
 confidently, and straightway becomes famous. 
 
 ROYAL PATH OF LIFE. 
 [5] 
 
s 
 
 Wherefore let him that thinketh he slandeth take heed lest he 
 f a ll — i Corinthians 10: 12. 
 
 you fell just now in the mud, poor heart! 
 ^J And to try to rise and be clean is vain? 
 Take both my hands now, and do your part; 
 
 So — you stand on your feet again. 
 
 Did nobody tell you your feet might slip? 
 
 Did some one push you? (such things are done !) 
 Was your path so rough that you needs must slip? 
 
 Ah ! the blame is on many — not one. 
 
 Sobbing still over that ugly stain! 
 
 1 may not comfort or hush you, dear ! 
 Through such sad tears in their burning rain 
 
 Christ and His cross show clear. 
 
 Must you go sorrowing all your day? 
 
 Sweet, in suffering souls grow white : 
 Keep my hand through this stony way — 
 
 See where the west turns bright. 
 
 Always put the best interpretation on a tenet. 
 Why not on Christianity, wholesome, sweet, and 
 poetic? It is the record of a pure and holy soul, 
 humble, absolutely disinterested, a truth- speaker, 
 and bent on serving, teaching, and uplifting men. 
 Christianitv taught the capacity, the element, to 
 love the All-perfect without a stingy bargain for 
 personal happiness. It taught that to love him 
 was happiness,— to love him in other's virtues. 
 
 EMERSON. 
 [6] 
 
lamias 
 
 g>etout) E>a? 
 
 / know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, 
 thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. 
 — Jeremiah 29 : 2. 
 
 A LITTLE flower so lowly grew, 
 So lonely was it left, 
 That heaven looked like an eye of blue, 
 Down in its rocky cleft. 
 
 What could the little flower do, 
 
 In such a darksome place, 
 But try to reach the eye of blue 
 
 And climb to kiss heaven's face? 
 
 And there's no life so lone and low 
 But strength may still be given, 
 
 From narrowest lot on earth to grow 
 The straighter up to heaven. 
 
 GERALD MASSEY. 
 
 A root set in the finest soil, in the best climate, 
 and blessed with all that sun and air and rain can 
 do for it, is not in so sure a way of its growth to 
 perfection, as every man may be, whose spirit as- 
 pires after all that which God is ready and infi- 
 . nitely desirous to give him. For the sun meets not 
 the springing bud that stretches toward him with 
 half that certainty, as God, the source of all good, 
 communicates Himself to the soul that longs to 
 partake of Him. — william law. 
 [7] 
 
Am I my brother's keeper ? — Genesis 4 : 9. 
 
 A SINGLE word is a little thing, 
 But a soul may be dying before our eyes 
 For lack of the comfort a word may bring, 
 
 With its welcome help and its sweet surprise. 
 A kindly look costs nothing at all, 
 
 But a heart may be starving for just one glance, 
 That shall show by the eyelids' tender fall 
 The help of a pitying countenance. 
 
 It is easy enough to bend the ear 
 
 To catch some tale of sore distress; 
 For men may be fainting beside us here 
 
 For longing to share their weariness; 
 These gifts nor gold nor silver may buy, 
 
 Nor wealth alone can love bestow, 
 But the comfort of word or ear or eye 
 
 The poorest may offer wherever he go. 
 
 C. F. RICHARDSON. 
 
 How many are the sufferers who have fallen 
 amongst misfortunes along the wayside of life! 
 "By chance" we come that way; chance, acci- 
 dent, Providence has thrown them in our way; 
 we see them from a distance, like the Priest, or 
 we come upon them suddenly, like the Levite; our 
 business, our pleasure, is interrupted by the sight, 
 is troubled by the delay; what are our feelings, 
 what our actions towards them? . . . "Who is 
 thy neighbor? " It is the sufferer, whoever, wher- 
 ever, whatsoever he may be. — a. p. Stanley. 
 [8] 
 
3januari? 
 
 ^tntlj sr>ap 
 
 We will remember thy love. — Song of Solomon 1 : 4. 
 
 WHAT thousands and millions of recollec- 
 tions there must be in us ! And every 
 now and then one of them becomes known to us; 
 and it shows us what spiritual depths are growing 
 in us, what mines of memory. ... In some age 
 or other, I shall say of some heavenly marvel, per- 
 haps, " It is wonderful, wonderful ! And yet in 
 the earth it was hinted to me, by the tones of the 
 wind, and the way the clouds went over my head." 
 I think, perhaps every sight in the world that now 
 is may avail in the world that is to come. On the 
 golden floor of heaven, it may be the better for 
 me that I have noticed even the worm's way in 
 and out of the earth. It may be that some of our 
 little observations now will open into wonderful 
 knowledge hereafter. A plant comes out of the 
 ground a little bud. It opens and grows and blos- 
 soms and seeds, and then dies. Now there is 
 much more in this than I know of yet; much, very 
 much more. If I knew all that is to be learned 
 from a daisy even, I should be less of a stranger 
 to God than I am. But I shall know it sometime. 
 All about me, tree unto tree is uttering speech, 
 and flower unto flower is showing knowledge. 
 But it is in a language that I do not well under- 
 stand, but which I shall remember; and so which 
 I shall learn the whole meaning of hereafter. 
 
 WILLIAM MOUNTFORD. 
 [9] 
 
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 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial among 
 you, which cometh upon you to prove you, as though a strange 
 thing happened unto you : but insomuch as ye are partakers 
 of Chrisfs suffering, rejoice ; that at the revelation of his 
 glory also ye may rejoice zvith exceeding joy. If ye are re- 
 proached for the name of Christ, blessed are ye ; because the 
 Spirit of glory and the Spirit of God resteth upon you. — 
 i Peter 4: 12-14. 
 
 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, 
 that he i7iay exalt you in due time ; casting all your care 
 upon him, for he careth for you. — I Peter 5 : 7. 
 
 WE have need of all our crosses. When we 
 suffer much it is because we have strong 
 ties which it is necessary to loosen. We resist 
 and thus retard the divine purpose; we repulse 
 the heavenly hand and it must be laid upon us 
 again and again. If we would at once bring our- 
 selves into harmony with divine will, our crosses 
 would seem light and our burdens easy to be borne. 
 
 Glad or sad, a dwindling span 
 Is the little life of man. 
 Love and hope and work and tears 
 Fly before the flying years. 
 
 •Yet shall tremulous hearts grow bold — 
 All the story is not told — 
 For around us as a sea 
 Spreads God's great eternity. 
 
 CHRISTIAN BURKE. 
 
 [10] 
 
Let your loins be girded about and your light burning. — 
 S. Luke 12:8. 
 
 A Prayer for the New Year. 
 
 OLORD, thou art the God of our fathers, 
 the King eternal, immortal, invisible; we 
 would bless thee at all times, in sorrow and in 
 joy, in privation and in plenty, in life and in 
 death, in time and in eternity. And now, with a 
 new sense of gratefulness, with glad memories of 
 the old year that is gone, and with hopeful confi- 
 dence in view of the new year that has begun, we 
 come afresh to thy feet; to thee who hast crowned 
 the year with thy goodness; to thee whose years 
 do not change; to thee who hast declared that thy 
 Son, our Mediator and Redeemer, is the same 
 yesterday, and to-day, and forever. With thank- 
 fulness for past mercies, with the prayer that our 
 times may ever be in thy hands in the future; 
 with the consecration of our lives anew to thy ser- 
 vice, and pleading that thy mercy shall be shown 
 toward our sins, that thy care shall be around us 
 forever, that our lives shall be fashioned after the 
 image of our Lord, that we may be solaced and 
 comforted in all our toils, and cares, and griefs, 
 and dangers of the coming year with thy continual 
 presence, even thus, O Lord our Father, we come 
 to thee. 
 
 CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE. 
 
®toclfti) spa? 
 
 The acceptable year of the Lord. — S. Luke 6: 19. 
 
 THE issues of life concentrate themselves into 
 a few special points of opportunity. The 
 success and failure of life depend upon whether 
 these opportunities are grasped when they present 
 themselves, or whether they are neglected and 
 permitted to pass. Life's greatest opportunities 
 are not like the great ships which sail from the 
 chief ports of the world, which sail and come 
 again, and sail at stated intervals from the same 
 ports. The great chances touch once at the pier 
 of our lives, throw out the planks of opportunity 
 over which our feet may pass, ring their signal 
 bells in our ears, and then sail out of the harbor 
 and away into the eternal sea and never come 
 again. The little chances linger and return, but 
 the great chances come and go and never come 
 again. ... If with illumined sight we could 
 look back over the lives of the people by whom 
 we are surrounded, how many great and rich op- 
 portunities would we see that they have permitted 
 to drift by them unimproved! 
 
 J. T. McFARLAND. 
 
 There is a tide in the affairs of men 
 Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; 
 Omitted, all the voyage of their life 
 Is bound in shallows and in miseries. 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 [12] 
 
31auuar? 
 
 / the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto 
 thee, Fear not; I will help thee. — Isaiah 12: 13. 
 
 WE never have more than we can bear. The 
 present hour we are always able to endure. 
 As our day, so is our strength. If the trials of 
 many years were gathered into one, they would 
 overwhelm us; therefore, in pity to our little 
 strength, He sends first one, then another, then 
 removes both, and lays on a third, heavier, per- 
 haps, than either; but all is so wisely measured to 
 our strength that the bruised reed is never broken. 
 We do not enough look at our trials in this contin- 
 uous and successive view. — h. e. manning. 
 
 He chose this path for thee. 
 No feeble chance, nor hard, relentless fate, 
 
 But love, His love, hath placed thy footsteps here; 
 He knew the way was rough and desolate, 
 
 He knew the heart would often sink with fear; 
 Yet tenderly He whispers, " Child, I see 
 This path is best for thee ! " 
 
 He chose this path for thee, 
 Though well He knew sharp thorns would tear thy 
 feet, 
 Knew how the branches would obstruct thy way, 
 Knew all the hidden dangers thou wouldst meet, 
 Knew how thy faith would falter day by day; 
 And still the whisper echoed, "Yes, I see 
 This path is best for thee ! " 
 [13] 
 
3|amiari? 
 
 §fouxtttnt\) 2Dap 
 
 I will guide thee with mine eye. — Psalm 37 : 8. 
 
 SO I sang in childhood's days, 
 "Father, thou shalt guide me.' 
 So I sang in darker ways, 
 Whatsoever betide me. 
 Young feet turn so oft aside, 
 But the older need a guide, 
 And I pray 
 Every day, 
 Father, Father, guide me. 
 
 Thou hast led o'er mountain slope, 
 
 And in deeper hollow; 
 Thee through many a vale of hope 
 
 Have I learned to follow. 
 In the dark and in the light, 
 Gladsome dawn and blackest night, 
 I have been 
 In changing scene, 
 Safe with thee to guide me. 
 
 Now I wait, as oft before, 
 
 Where the way is hidden; 
 Till the journey shall be o'er 
 
 I will go as bidden; 
 Naught there is for me to fear 
 When I know that thou art near. 
 Here I stand, 
 Take my hand, 
 O, my Father, guide me. 
 
jfifteentl) auap 
 
 Thy kindness to thy friend. — 2 Samuel 16: 17. 
 
 HAVE you ever noticed how much of Christ's 
 life was spent in doing kind things — in 
 merely doing kind things? Run over it with that 
 in view, and you will find that He spent a great 
 proportion of His time simply in making people 
 happy, in doing good turns to people. There is 
 only one thing greater than happiness in the world, 
 and that is holiness; and it is not in our keeping; 
 but what God has put in our power is the happi- 
 ness of those about us, and that is largely to be 
 secured by our being kind to them. 
 
 "The greatest thing," says some one, "a man 
 can do for his Heavenly Father, is to be kind to 
 some of His other children." I wonder why it is 
 that we are not all kinder than we are? How 
 much the world needs it. How easily it is done. 
 How instantaneously it acts. How infallibly it is 
 remembered. How superabundantly it pays itself 
 back — for there is no debtor in the world so hon- 
 ourable, so superbly honourable, as Love. 
 
 HENRY DRUMMOND. 
 
 Kindness is stored away in the heart like rose- 
 leaves in a drawer, to sweeten every object around 
 them. Little drops of rain brighten the meadows 
 and little acts of kindness brighten the world. We 
 can conceive of nothing more attractive than the 
 heart when filled with the spirit of kindness. 
 [15] 
 
Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope 
 the Lord is. — Psalm 17:7. 
 
 HOPE makes even the struggle of the daily 
 life and the wear and tear of it " not like 
 the convict's trample on the world's great tread- 
 mill, but like an ascent on the luminous steps of 
 duty to the very gates of heaven." "O blessed 
 hope," exclaims Thomas Carlyle, "whereby on 
 man's straight prison walls are painted beautiful, 
 far-stretching landscapes; and into the night of 
 every death is shed holiest dawn." 
 
 The great doers have always been great hopers. 
 . . . Loss of hope, when the heart dies and the 
 courage fails, and the hands hang listlessly, and 
 a man begins only and sadly to drudge — this, the 
 loss of hope, is the blackest loss. We should 
 always hope because the promises are. 
 
 " I stood amazed and whispered, ' Can it be 
 That he hath granted all the boon I sought? 
 How wonderful that he for me hath wrought ! 
 How wonderful that he hath answered me ! ' 
 O faithful heart ! He said that he would hear 
 And answer thy poor prayer; and he hath heard 
 And proved his promise! Wherefore didst thou 
 
 fear? 
 Why marvel that thy Lord had kept his word? 
 More wonderful if he should fail to bless 
 Expectant faith and prayer with good success." 
 
 WAYLAND HOVT. 
 [16] 
 
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 For every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh, find- 
 eth. — S. Matthew 7 : 8. 
 
 ARE you weak? Ask for strength. Are you 
 sad? Ask God and He will be your solace. 
 Are you distrustful and in darkness? He will be 
 a lamp to your feet. Are you indifferent? Seek, 
 and a new impulse shall be given your energy; 
 God's image shall fill your heart. 
 
 Fight the fight, Christian! Jesus is o'er thee; 
 Run the race, Christian! heaven is before thee; 
 He who hath promised faltereth never; 
 He will sustain you now and forever. 
 
 Upon a crutch — her girlish face 
 Alight with love and tender grace — 
 Laughing she limps from place to place, 
 Upon a crutch. 
 
 And you and I, who journey through 
 A rose-leaf world of dawn and dew, 
 We cry to heaven overmuch, 
 
 We rail and frown at fate, while she 
 And many more in agony, 
 Are brave and patient, strong and true, 
 Upon a crutch. 
 
 ROBERT LOVEMAN. 
 
 Do not be too moral. . . . Aim above moral- 
 ity. Be not simply good; be good for something. 
 
 THOREAU. 
 
 [17] 
 
Manila*? 
 
 <D;igl)teentl) 2Pa? 
 
 She hath done what she could. — S. Mark 14 : 8. 
 
 IT is not mine to run 
 With eager feet 
 Along life's crowded ways, 
 My Lord to meet. 
 
 He hath no need of me 
 In grand affairs, 
 
 Where fields are lost, or crowns 
 Won unawares. 
 
 Yet Master, if I may 
 Make one pale flower 
 
 Bloom brighter for thy sake, 
 Through one short hour; 
 
 Or sing one high, clear song, 
 On which may soar 
 
 Some glad soul heavenward, 
 I ask no more. 
 
 JULIA C. R. DORR. 
 
 Love's secret is to be always doing things for 
 God, and not to mind because they are such very 
 little ones. — f. w. faber. 
 
 My place of lowly service too, 
 
 Beneath Thy sheltering wings I see, 
 
 For all the work I have to do, 
 
 Is done through sheltering rest in Thee. 
 
 ANNA L. WARIN. 
 
 [18] 
 
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 Them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. — 
 i Thessalonians 4: 14. 
 
 AN awe of death we were meant to have ; and 
 fears of it have their use. Down the valley 
 of the shadow of death do dreadful mists arise; 
 then let the thought of God shine out from my 
 soul, and it will glorify the mists, and make them 
 golden with the light of heaven. Our life is a 
 dying daily, as Paul says; and at the longest, it is 
 not such a very long death. For a man may be 
 ever so young and strong, yet it is likely the wood 
 is growing in which he will be coffined; and there 
 is a divine dial-plate, on which the hour of his 
 death is pointed to; and what is to be his grave 
 will be his grave; and his body is waited for. 
 
 But do I not live in God? And shall I be afraid 
 of dying in God? Is it I that keep my heart go- 
 ing? And ought I then to dread its stopping? 
 Rather what I ought to fear is the will which it 
 does beat with, — the Divine will. 
 
 WILLIAM MOUNTFORD. 
 
 Sleep is a death. O, make me try, 
 By sleeping, what it is to die ! 
 And as gently lay my head 
 On my grave, as now my bed. 
 Howe'er I rest, great God, let me 
 Awake again at last with Thee ! 
 
 WILLIAM MOUNTFORD. 
 [19] 
 
He that taketh not up his cross and follozveth after me is not 
 worthy of me. — S. Matthew 10:38. 
 
 I WOULD follow after Christ because I have 
 heard Him speak a natural language, and be- 
 cause I have heard beating in His heart the heart 
 of all. Therefore He is not a person for me who 
 was, and is no more, but the eternal contemporary 
 of us all, the symbol of a spirit which rests with 
 us always. The visible truths of the human and 
 divine Evangel rise every morning on my hori- 
 zon, like new luminaries. I salute and adore 
 them with the same admiration as if I were seeing 
 them for the first time. Miracles, dogmas, strange- 
 ness of forms, which worried me at first, worry me 
 no longer. Across them all I see only one thing, 
 — " man in search of God, God in search of 
 man." 
 
 Nearer my God to Thee, 
 
 Nearer to Thee, 
 E'en though it be a cross 
 
 That raiseth me. 
 Still all my prayer shall be, 
 Nearer my God to Thee, 
 Nearer to Thee. 
 
 SARAH FLOWER ADAMS. 
 
 Flowers never emit so sweet and strong a fra- 
 grance as before a storm. Beauteous soul ! when 
 a storm approaches thee be as fragrant as a sweet- 
 smelling flower. — RICHTER. 
 
Who is among you that feareih the Lord, that obeyeth the 
 voice of his servant, that zvalketh in darkness, and hath no 
 light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon 
 his God. — Isaiah I : 10. 
 
 HE has an especial tenderness of love towards 
 thee for that thou art in the dark and hast 
 no light, and His heart is glad when thou dost 
 arise and say, " I will go to my Father." For He 
 sees thee through all the gloom, through which 
 thou canst not see Him. 
 
 Say to Him, " I am very dull and low and hard ; 
 but Thou art wise and high and tender, arid Thou 
 art my God. I am Thy child. Forsake me not." 
 Then fold the arms of thy faith in quietness until 
 light goes up in the darkness. Fold the arms of 
 thy Faith I say, but not of thy Action; bethink 
 thee of something thou oughtest to do, and go and 
 do it, if it be but the sweeping of a joom, or the 
 preparing of a meal, or a visit to a friend : heed 
 not thy feelings : do thy work. 
 
 GEORGE MACDONALD. 
 
 Hold thy murmurs, heaven arraigning, 
 The patient see God's loving face; 
 
 Who bear their burdens uncomplaining, 
 'Tis they who win the Father's grace. 
 
 He wounds himself who braves the rod, 
 
 And sets himself to fight with God. 
 
 [21] 
 
gjamtari? 
 
 And that ye study to be quiet. — I Thessalonians 4: n. 
 
 I CHARGE my thoughts be humble still, 
 And all my conduct mild; 
 Content, my Father, with Thy will, 
 And quiet as a child. 
 
 Unite, my roving thoughts, unite 
 
 In silence soft and sweet; 
 And thou, my soul, sit gently down 
 
 At thy great Sovereign's feet. 
 
 DODDRIDGE. 
 
 Let your words be few, especially when your 
 superiors or strangers are present, lest you betray 
 your own weakness, and rob yourself of the op- 
 portunity which you might otherwise have had to 
 gain knowledge, wisdom, and experience by hear- 
 ing those whom you silenced by your own talking. 
 
 SIR MATTHEW HALE. 
 
 Not only to say the right thing in the right 
 place, but, far more difficult still, to leave unsaid 
 the wrong thing at the tempting moment. — sala. 
 
 Of every noble work the silent part is best; 
 Of all expression that which cannot be expressed. 
 
 w. w, STORY. 
 Govern the lips 
 
 As they were palace doors, the King within. 
 Tranquil and fair and courteous be all words 
 Which from that presence win. 
 
 EDWIN ARNOLD. 
 
 [22] 
 
GPtomt^rtjut! spay 
 
 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of 
 God in Jesus Christ. — Philemon 3:14. 
 
 I PRESS toward the mark for the prize is there, 
 And the Lord Himself will give it, — 
 Oh, this life is bright and this life is fair, 
 
 If we know but how to live it; 
 But the life above is the best of all 
 If our Father's house our own we call 
 And the prize we all at last would claim 
 Is a starry crown, in the Saviour's name. 
 
 IDA SCOTT TAYLOR. 
 
 Mighty have been the contests of strength, 
 famous the victories which have declared their 
 ends; but to achieve mastery over self is man's 
 greatest and grandest victory. Moral energy, 
 tempered in the heat of adversity, is the great 
 engine-force which is moving the world, and, 
 united with Christianity, is making the nineteenth 
 century the manhood of the race. As men have 
 risen in stature of morality, they have demanded 
 higher measures and estimates of that stature, 
 and following the fainter rays of this lesser light 
 they have come nearer a that greater light, that 
 lighteth every man that cometh into the world." 
 
 Man should do nothing that he should repent; 
 But if he have, and say that he is sorry, 
 It is a worse fault if he be not truly. 
 
 BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER. 
 [23] 
 
•January 
 
 3ft»ftit£:ft»uttt) 2Pa? 
 
 Blessed are the dead tvhich die in the Lord from henceforth : 
 Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors ; 
 and their works do follow them. — Revelation 14: 13. 
 And God shall wipe azuay all tears from their eyes ; and 
 there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, 
 neither shall there be any more pain ; for the former things 
 are passed away. — Revelation 21:4. 
 
 " ^LEEP soft, beloved!" we sometimes say, 
 v3 But have no time to charm away 
 Sad dreams that through the eyelids creep; 
 
 But never doleful dream again 
 
 Shall break the happy slumber when 
 "He giveth His beloved sleep." 
 
 MRS. BROWNING. 
 
 Shall they forget us because they are "made 
 perfect"? Shall they love us the less because 
 they have power now to love us more? If we 
 forget them not, shall they not remember us with 
 God? No trial then can isolate us, no sorrow 
 can cut us off from the Communion of Saints. 
 Kneel down, and you are with them ; lift up your 
 eyes and the heavenly world, high above all per- 
 turbation, hangs serenely overhead; only a thin 
 veil, it may be, floats between. All whom we 
 loved, and all who loved us, whom we still love 
 no less while they love us yet more, are ever near, 
 because ever in His presence in whom we live 
 and dwell. — h. e. manning. 
 
Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. — Gala- 
 tians 6:7. 
 
 THAT which you are doing, be it good or 
 evil, that which you are doing to-day and 
 every day, each thought, each action, each event, 
 is contributing to form the character by which you 
 are to be judged. If there be any unchangeable 
 fate in the universe this is that fate, that the future 
 shall ever bring forth the fruits of the past. If I 
 have one wish above all other wishes for you it is 
 that you may sow in such manner that your har- 
 vest days may bring peace to your heart. 
 
 A Little Parable. 
 
 I made the cross myself whose weight 
 
 Was later laid on me. 
 This thought is torture as I toil 
 
 Up life's steep Calvary. 
 
 To think mine own hands drove the nails ! 
 
 I sang a merry song, 
 And chose the heaviest wood I had 
 
 To build it firm and strong. 
 
 If I had guessed — if I had dreamed 
 Its weight was meant for me — 
 
 I should have made a lighter cross 
 To bear up Calvary ! 
 
 ANNE REEVE ALDRICH. 
 [25] 
 
3Jamrati? 
 
 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay dotvn his 
 life for his friends. — S. John 4: 13. 
 
 I SEE, I see, those nail-pierced hands ! 
 . Which bleeding held my Lord 
 On Calvary's cross, 'mid hostile bands, 
 
 While sin's atonement poured. 
 Those blessed, lifted, glorious hands, 
 
 Opened for our supply — 
 All Heaven descends at their commands; 
 Salvation draweth nigh. 
 
 I see, I see, those mighty hands — 
 
 Deliverance and defence ! 
 My troubled heart in comfort stands, 
 
 While fears are driven hence. 
 Upholding, bleeding, hiding hands ! 
 
 Such wealth of grace they bring, 
 Weak faith grows strong, and joy expands, 
 
 And Glory wakes to sing. 
 
 I see, I see, those cross-scarred hands ! 
 
 They're graven with my name — 
 With every name, from out all lands, — 
 
 At Mercy's throne they flame. 
 Those pierced, crimson, loaded hands ! 
 
 Oh ! let them touch our hearts, 
 While Christ, the Lord, in pity stands, 
 
 And dying love imparts. 
 
 JOHN JAY McCABE. 
 
 [26] 
 
%anuaxv 
 
 Ye servants of the Lord. — Psalm 136 : 1. 
 
 ALL cannot be commanders-in-chief, for some 
 must fill up the ranks; but in neither case 
 need one fear to put forth his best effort. His- 
 tory deals principally with great names, but the 
 pulse of a nation is not always felt alone at its head. 
 Unity of action tends to a centralization of power; 
 for men are ever striving harder to rise in the 
 scale of humanity. The longing for their ideal 
 has taught them to build their theories upon solid 
 foundations, and not upon the shifting sands which 
 the waves of the great ocean of doubt wash to and 
 fro. A low ideal has always been degenerating 
 in its influence, while, on the other hand, a lofty 
 aim is always promotive of the best results, for it 
 tends to things above and not to things below. 
 There has never been a great man who has not 
 striven to mount the ladder to its topmost round, 
 for it is only from such heights that he can look 
 over the heads of the vast throng below him, and 
 note^the restless tide as it surges in its wild fury. 
 
 Be what thou seemest; live thy creed; 
 Hold up to earth the torch divine; 
 Be what thou prayest to be made, 
 Let the great Master's steps be thine. 
 
 HORATIUS BONAR. 
 
 [27] 
 
%\anuaty 
 
 t£fcoent^ngt)tti sr>a^ 
 
 When thou pray est, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast 
 shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret. — S. Mat- 
 thew 6 : 6. 
 
 " OOLITUDE is a harbor where the damages 
 v3 incurred on society's open sea may be re- 
 paired." The modest character, the pure life, 
 would be completely crushed, did it not have these 
 seasons of strengthening. As sleep rests the 
 wearied limbs and rebuilds the worn-out system, 
 so retirement invigorates the intellect overtaxed 
 by society's demands, "soothes the fretted dispo- 
 sition and the hurt feelings." In seclusion the 
 mind finds peace, finds also greatness. 
 
 " If the chosen soul could never be alone 
 In deep mid-silence, open-doored to God, 
 No greatness ever had been dreamed or done. 
 Among dull hearts a prophet never grew; 
 The nurse of full-grown souls is solitude." 
 
 It is an excellent plan to have some place to go 
 to be quiet when things vex or grieve us. There 
 are a good many hard times in this life of ours, 
 but we can always bear them if we ask help in the 
 right way. — miss alcott. 
 
 He that lacks time to mourn, lacks time to mend; 
 
 Eternity mends that. 'Tis an ill cure 
 
 For life's worst ills, to have no time to feel them. 
 
 HENRY TAYLOR. 
 
 [28] 
 
3|anuary 
 
 Draw them zvith bands of love. — Hosea 11:4. 
 
 If we love one another, God dzvelleth in us. — 1 John 4:12. 
 
 YOU will find as you look back upon your life 
 that the moments that stand out, the moments 
 when you have really lived, are the moments when 
 you have done things in the spirit of love. As 
 memory scans the past, above and beyond all the 
 transitory pleasures of life, there leap forward 
 those supreme hours when you have been enabled 
 to do unnoticed kindnesses to those round about 
 you, things too trifling to speak about, but which 
 you feel have entered into your eternal life. I 
 have seen almost all the beautiful things God has 
 made; I have enjoyed almost every pleasure that 
 He has planned for man; and yet, as I look back, 
 I see standing out above all the life that has gone 
 four or five short experiences when the love of 
 God reflected itself in some poor imitation, some 
 small act of love of mine, and these seem to be 
 the things which alone, of all one's life, abide. 
 Everything else in all our lives is transitory. 
 Every other good is visionary. — Phillips brooks. 
 
 She doeth little kindnesses 
 
 Which most leave undone or despise; 
 For nought which sets one heart at ease, 
 And giveth happiness and peace, 
 
 Is low esteemed in her eyes. 
 
 LOWELL. 
 
 [29] 
 
A man that hath friends must show himself friendly. — 
 Proverbs 1 8 : 24. 
 
 MAN is the artificer of his own happiness. 
 Let him beware how he complains of the 
 disposition of circumstances, for it his own dis- 
 position he blames. If this is sour, or that rough, 
 or the other steep, let him think if it be not his 
 work. If his looks curdle all hearts, let him not 
 complain of a sour reception; if he hobble in his 
 gait, let him not grumble at the roughness of the 
 way; if he is weak in the knees, let him not call 
 the hill steep. This was the pith of the inscrip- 
 tion on the wall of the Swedish inn, "You will find 
 at Trochate excellent bread, meat, and wine; 
 provided you bring them with you." — thoreau. 
 
 As a stove parts with its heat to bring all sur- 
 rounding objects into its own heated condition, 
 so we affect those surrounding us. Not more cer- 
 tainly does a rose diffuse its fragrance than human 
 beings dispense their influence wherever they go. 
 ... Is a man religious? Not more truly does 
 the sunshine impart its glory to surrounding ob- 
 jects than that man's religious influence passes 
 from him to all persons and things within its 
 sphere. Houses become so imbued with the influ- 
 ence of the people 1 that live in them that sensitive 
 persons can feel that influence as soon as they 
 enter. — william denton. 
 [30] 
 
Be kindly affectioned one towards another with brotherly love. 
 — Romans 12: 10. 
 
 IN our memories there is more storing up than 
 we can tell. And God is so wonderful, that 
 what is nothing as a sight, or an event, may prove 
 very precious as a recollection. — wm. mountford. 
 
 Alas ! I did not say it, 
 
 The little, kindly word; 
 I let some care delay it 
 
 From ears that might have heard. 
 
 . And last night in the silence, 
 And last night in the gloom, 
 Death went before and entered 
 That sorrow-haunted room. 
 
 This morn I stand with fingers 
 Upon the battered gate — 
 
 wee, white, frightened faces — 
 O babes all desolate ! 
 
 1 might have borne God's message 
 
 In humble phrase of prayer, 
 I might have given water 
 To lips that perished there. 
 
 But, clay upon the pillow; 
 
 My footsteps are too late, 
 And now — I stand with fingers 
 
 Upon the battered gate. 
 
 MARY M. BOWEN. 
 
 [31] 
 
 
tfthtuavy 
 9 
 
 Wi)t feeconO apontl) 
 
 jfirst 2Da? 
 
 He chasteneth us for our profit, that we may be partakers of 
 His holiness. — Hebrews 12 : 10. 
 
 OWHAT will that joy be, where the soul, being 
 perfectly prepared for joy, and joy prepared 
 by Christ for the soul, it shall be our business 
 eternally to rejoice ! Then shalt thou be suffi- 
 ciently convinced that thy Redeemer was saving 
 thee, as well when He crossed thy desires as when 
 He granted them, — when He broke thy heart as 
 when He bound it up. Thou poor soul, who 
 prayest for joy, complainest for want of joy, 
 longest for joy, thou shalt then have full joy, as 
 much as thou canst hold, and more than ever thou 
 hast thought on, or thy heart desired. 
 
 Then shall a new, a spirit-childhood come, 
 A fresher sense of life in thee have room ! 
 A life that knows no pain, no death, no tomb ! 
 There sight shall know what faith hath first be- 
 lieved, 
 There perfect trust thy heart hath not conceived, 
 There sad'ning thoughts be gone, thy mind here 
 
 grieved ! 
 Then for the work, my soul, that waits thee there, 
 A firm, bold heart within thee daily bear, 
 Undimmed by painful thoughts, unbowed by care. 
 [32] * 
 
iff ebruar^ 
 
 I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not. — Isaiah 
 13:16. 
 
 ONE of the most blessed promises in the Bible 
 is this : " And I will bring the blind by a way 
 that they knew not; and will lead them in paths 
 that they have not known; I will make darkness 
 light before them, and crooked things straight." 
 Surely this is something we can personally appro- 
 priate without question. For we are verily blind. 
 We know nothing that is before us; our eyes are 
 of no use whatever in foretelling either good or 
 ill; and, being blind, it is impossible for us to 
 know which is the best path for us to take in life. 
 In our perplexity God says : I will take you safely 
 through these ways that are dark and unknown to 
 you; in these paths that are so doubtful, that lie 
 along really dangerous places, I will lead you. 
 So may we take the infinite comfort of the promise 
 to our hearts. Blind though we are, and rough 
 the road over which we walk, our Guide knows 
 the path perfectly, and is not only able to take us 
 over it safely, but also to give us great comfort and 
 good cheer on the way. 
 
 Lord, I would clasp thy hand in mine, 
 Nor ever murmur or repine, 
 Content, whatever lot I see, 
 Since 'tis my God that leadeth me. 
 
 j. GILMORE. 
 
 Happy he who is willing to be led. 
 [33] 
 
fithtmty 
 
 Rejoice evermore. — I Thessalonians 5:16. 
 
 I 
 
 T is impious in a good man to be sad. 
 
 SHAKSPEARE. 
 
 Let us wipe our tears, lift up our heads, and 
 give ourselves to brave and cheerful toil. In due 
 time the release will come; rest so sweet after the 
 toil is over; glory so bright after the darkness is 
 passed; victory so grand, that we shall not wish 
 the conflicts to have been less fierce, or the perils 
 of the day less numerous or painful. 
 
 A heart rejoicing in God delights in all His 
 will, and is most surely provided with the most 
 firm joy in all estates; for if nothing can come to 
 pass beside or against His will, then cannot that 
 soul be vexed which delights in Him and hath 
 no will but His, but follows Him in all times, in 
 all estates; not only when He shines bright on 
 them, but when they are clouded. That flower 
 which follows the sun doth so even in dark and 
 cloudy days: when it doth not shine forth, yet it 
 follows the hidden course and motion of it. So 
 the soul that moves after God keeps that course 
 when He hides His face; is content, yea, even 
 glad at His will in all estates or conditions or 
 events. — r. leighton. 
 
 [34] 
 
fizhmavy 
 
 JFourtt) HDap 
 
 Comfort the feeble-7iiinded, support the weak, be patient towards 
 all men. — I Thessalonians 5:14. 
 
 THY love shall chant itself its own beatitudes, 
 after its own life working. A child-kiss set 
 on thy sighing lips shall make thee glad; a poor 
 man, served by thee, shall make thee rich; a rich 
 man, helped by thee, shall make thee strong; thou 
 shalt be served thyself by every sense of service 
 which thou renderest. — mrs. browning. 
 
 Doing good is the only certainly happy action 
 of a man's life. — sir philip Sidney. 
 
 A beneficent person is like a fountain watering 
 the earth, and spreading fertility; it is, therefore, 
 more delightful and more honorable to give than 
 to receive. — epicurus. 
 
 There do remain dispersed in the soil of human 
 nature seeds of goodness, of benignity, of ingenu- 
 ity which, being cherished, excited, and quickened 
 by good culture, do, by common experience, thrust 
 out flowers very lovely, and yield fruits very 
 pleasant, of virtue and goodness. — barrow. 
 
 To feel much for others and little for our- 
 selves; to restrain our selfish, and to indulge our 
 benevolent affections, constitute the perfection of 
 human nature. — adam smith. 
 
 [35] 
 
fizbmavy! 
 
 jTtftJ) E>ai? 
 
 The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 
 — I John I : 7. 
 
 IN one of our national industries there is a daily 
 miracle wrought. From the foul herding places 
 of the outcast, the thief, and the murderer, is 
 brought their infected, cast-off clothing, to feed 
 the hungry jaws of the paper-mills. The reeking 
 mass is torn asunder, submitted to chemical proc- 
 esses, and when the mighty cylinders cease turn- 
 ing, behold! "The beggar's rags are transformed 
 into a fair, white carpet, whereon royal Thought 
 may tread; " a stainless scroll where poets trace 
 their dreams; where psalms of praise glow like 
 clustered stars, and the name of God is inscribed. 
 
 There is a greater miracle. There are minds 
 perverted from all sweet influences, souls dwarfed 
 with greed, hearts seared with crime, lives tainted 
 with every passion. But in each the divine spark 
 still glows, unquenchable, deathless. 
 
 One pulse from the God-heart thrilling through 
 the hand we extend, one echo from the Eternal 
 Voice, in our whispered "brother," and sin, stain, 
 and hurt may drop away forever, from that shining 
 crystal, a purified soul. — mr£ john jay McCabe. 
 
 Say not 'twas all in vain, 
 The anguish and the darkness and the strife; 
 Love thrown upon the waters comes back again 
 In quenchless yearnings for a nobler life. 
 
 ANNA SHIPTON. 
 
 [36] 
 
fcbruar? 
 
 Speak not evil one of another. — S. James 4 : 2. 
 
 HE alone, whose hand is bounding 
 Human power and human will, 
 Looking through each soul's surrounding, 
 Knows its good or ill. 
 
 For thyself, while wrong and sorrow 
 Make to thee their strong appeal, 
 
 Coward vvert thou not to utter 
 What the heart must feel. 
 
 Earnest words must needs be spoken 
 When the warm heart bleeds or burns, 
 
 With its scorn of wrong, or pity 
 For the wronged, by turns. 
 
 But, by all thy nature's weakness, 
 Hidden faults and follies known, 
 
 Be thou, in rebuking evil, 
 Conscious of thine own. 
 
 Not the less shall stern-eyed duty 
 
 To thy lips her trumpet set, 
 But with harsher blasts shall mingle 
 
 Wailings of regret. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 There is nothing that calls us to so sharp a halt 
 in the habit of criticism or fault-finding as taking 
 one look into our own hearts, and beholding there 
 all our own weakness and inconsistency. 
 
 [37] 
 
fitbwavy 
 
 g>etierttl) 2Da^ 
 
 And in every work that he began in the service of the house 
 of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek 
 his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered. — 2 
 Chronicles 21 : 31. 
 
 WHEN one's whole life becomes dominated 
 by one fixed purpose, round which all other 
 purposes revolve, every day — if it be a worthy one 
 — witnesses the advancement to a higher plane of 
 feeling and of thought. When Turner, the great 
 artist, was asked where he gained his perfect com- 
 mand of nerve and muscle, he replied, "It cost 
 me my life." So the habit of close thought, the 
 charm of perfect diction, the power of soul beauty, 
 or mastery of unworthy purposes, must be paid 
 for with strong effort, even with life, if need 
 must. 
 
 " Heaven is not gained by a single bound, 
 But we build the ladder by which we rise, 
 From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies, 
 And we mount to its summit round by round." 
 
 The law of growth is from the inner to the out- 
 ward, and our souls expand with the expanding 
 thought. The informed nature is like the mock- 
 ing-bird in its native woods, echoing a thousand 
 varying voices, but the voice it hears most often, 
 and whose voice is sweetest to its sense, is the one 
 to which after a while its own notes will be at- 
 tuned. — MRS. JOHN JAY McCABE. 
 
 [38] 
 
Every marts work shall be made manifest. — I Corinthians 
 3=I3- 
 
 DO your own work. Ask no favors of any one, 
 and you will succeed better than one who is 
 always beseeching some one's patronage. No 
 one will help you as you will help yourself, be- 
 cause no one will be as heartily interested in your 
 affairs. The first step will not be such a long one 
 perhaps; but, carving your way up the mountain, 
 you make each step lead to another, and stand 
 firm in that while you chop another out. Men 
 who made fortunes are not those who had five 
 thousand dollars given them to start with, but 
 started fair with a well-earned dollar or two. Men 
 who by their exertions acquired fame have not been 
 thrust into popularity by puffs paid for or given 
 in friendly spirit. They have outstretched their 
 hands, and reached the public heart. Say bravely 
 "I will," and some day you will conquer. Never 
 let any man say, "I have dragged you up." Too 
 many friends hurt a man more than none at all. 
 
 GREENWOOD. 
 
 Through efforts long in vain, prophetic need 
 
 Begets the deed : 
 Nerve then thy soul with direst need to cope. 
 
 Life's brightest hope 
 Lies latent in Fate's deadliest lair — 
 
 Never despair ! 
 
 [39] 
 
fzhmavy 
 
 We walk by faith, not by sight. — 2 Corinthians 5 : 7. 
 
 " T T 7ALKING by faith " not only brightens our 
 V V hope for the world to come, but it sheds 
 a glow over the temporal life. In proportion as we 
 are seeking to do the will of our Father, in that 
 same proportion we have the divine approval. 
 And through this knowledge our unseen life is 
 irradiated with heavenly love and courage, and we 
 look to the days that are coming as bringing fuller 
 gifts and rit ''blessings. 
 
 In the braver, better Sometime, life will broaden 
 
 and expand; 
 Every impulse will be noble, every purpose will 
 
 be grand; 
 Speech shall put on loftier meanings, thought to 
 
 higher planes ascend, 
 And the action prove the motive, and the motive 
 
 show the end. 
 
 O my comrade in the struggle, O my comrade in 
 
 the strife ! 
 Keep thy courage and thy patience, fill thy station; 
 
 live thy life; 
 Twine thy hopes about the Sometime, trust it 
 
 ever, hold it fast, 
 Though it tarry, wait thou for it; it will surely 
 
 come at last. 
 
 REV. ANSON G. CHESTER. 
 [4o] 
 
fltbmavy 
 
 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. — I Thessa- 
 lonians 5 : 21. 
 
 THERE come times when it is most blissful to 
 be alone, for it means a quiet time to think 
 over your life, and whether what you are doing is 
 right or wrong. It means deciding with your- 
 self, as judge and jury, whether the words that you 
 have spoken have been the right ones at the right 
 times. It means the deciding that which is good 
 to be done, and the planning it c ,0 entirely 
 that you are urged on by an inward spirit of grace 
 to do the deed which seems just. It does not 
 mean the wasting of time in idle thoughts, though 
 it may mean closing your eyes and having some 
 day-dream of future happiness. This making 
 good dreams realities is a possibility, but we can't 
 have the dreams unless we have the little time 
 alone when we can think out how the heart can 
 beat for the right, how the brain can work well 
 for its realization. — ruth ashmore. 
 
 He liveth long who liveth well ! 
 
 All other life is short and vain ; 
 He liveth longest who can tell 
 
 Of living most for heavenly gain. 
 
 Fill up each hour with what will last, 
 Buy up the moments as they go; 
 
 The life above, when this is past, 
 Is the ripe fruit of life below. 
 
 BONAR. 
 
 [41] 
 

 i 
 
 My times are in his hand. — Psalm 31 : 15. 
 
 The Eternal Goodness. 
 
 KNOW not what the future hath 
 Of marvel or surprise, 
 Assured alone that life and death 
 His mercy underlies. 
 
 And if my heart and flesh are weak 
 
 To bear an untried pain, 
 The bruised reed He will not break, 
 
 But strengthen and sustain. 
 
 No offering of my own I have, 
 
 Nor works my faith to prove, 
 I can but give the gifts He gave, 
 
 And plead His love for love. 
 
 And so beside the Silent Sea 
 
 I wait the muffled oar; 
 N o harm from Him can come to me, 
 
 On ocean or on shore. 
 
 I know not where His islands lift 
 
 Their fronded palms in air; 
 I only know I cannot drift 
 
 Beyond His love and care. T ™ TT ,„ 
 
 J WHITTIER. 
 
 If you believe in God, do not vex yourself with 
 trying to look into the future. There is one 
 thought which ought to steady every man's heart. 
 It is that God is perfectly wise and perfectly 
 good. Let us accept God and rest in Him. 
 [42] 
 
fthvuavv 
 
 Be ye also patient. — S. James 5 : 8. 
 
 THERE are a thousand things whose attain- 
 ment cannot be hastened, but for which we 
 have to patiently wait, some to be realized on earth, 
 and more and better ones not to be enjoyed in 
 their perfection until the dawn of heaven, for which 
 indeed our whole earthly life is but the waiting- 
 time. The bright and lofty ideals we here pursue, 
 but never find, there, " if we both hope and quietly 
 wait," will be more than realized. The faculties, 
 of whose infinite power we sometimes feel such 
 strange and mysterious intimations within us, but 
 which are hampered and weighed down by mate- 
 rial hindrances, there, if we but wisely wait, will 
 burst forth in all the beauty and glory of a sancti- 
 fied and perfected humanity. Mere little seed- 
 germs now, we wait to be planted by the rivers of 
 life to the healing of the nations. — anon. 
 
 Old Year and New Year — 
 It is all God's year; 
 His time for sowing, 
 
 His time for reaping, 
 His time for growing, 
 
 For rest and quiet sleeping. 
 New Year and Old Year, 
 
 Their hoping, regretting, 
 Will all turn to God's year, 
 
 With no time for fretting. 
 [43] 
 
tfebruaty 
 
 tEtiirtmttt) 21>a? 
 
 The ivildemess and solitary place shall be glad for them, and 
 the desert shall blossom as a rose. — Isaiah 35 : 1 . 
 
 BLESSED be the man that really loves flowers ! 
 loves them for their own sakes, for their 
 beauty, their associations, the joy they have given, 
 and always will give; so that he would sit down 
 among them as friends and companions, if there 
 was not another creature on earth to admire or 
 praise them ! But such men need no blessing of 
 mine. They are blessed of God! Did He not 
 make the world for such men? Are they not 
 clearly the owners of the world and the richest of 
 all men ? — beecher. 
 
 A man ought to carry himself in the world as 
 an orange tree would if it could walk up and down 
 in the garden, — swinging perfume from every 
 little censer it holds up to the air. — beecher. 
 
 Thou canst not see grass grow, how sharp soe'er 
 thou be, 
 
 Yet that the grass is grown thou very soon canst 
 see; 
 
 So, though thou canst not see thy work now pros- 
 pering, know 
 
 The print of every work, time without fail shall 
 
 show. 
 
 ruckert. 
 
 Measure a man's divinity by the ways his flowers 
 love him. 
 
 [44] 
 
February 
 
 iFourtemti) HDap 
 
 For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. — Philippians 
 I : 21. 
 
 Living for Jesus. 
 
 LIVING for Jesus! my heart's whole devotion 
 Henceforth I offer, dear Saviour, to Thee; 
 Love, like the tide of an infinite ocean, 
 
 Swells in my heart, overflowing and free; 
 Deep unto deep in my spirit is calling, 
 
 Song after song do I joyfully sing, 
 He who redeemed me from earthly enthralling — 
 He is my Saviour, my Master, my King. 
 
 Strengthen me, Father! Oh, make my heart 
 tender, 
 Help me to gather the lost ones who roam, 
 Help me to show them their Guide and Defender, 
 Jesus, their Saviour, who bids them come home; 
 Help me to gather the sad and forsaken, 
 
 Teaching their voices new praises to sing, 
 Striving their hearts and their souls to awaken, 
 Witnessing ever for Jesus, my King! 
 
 Teach me to plead with the wayward who wander, 
 
 Help me to lead them from mazes of woe, 
 Giving the lonely some sweet word to ponder, 
 
 Cheering some soul on its way here below; 
 Saviour, my faith and my purposes strengthen, 
 
 Sheaves to the harvest of souls let me bring, 
 And while the days of eternity lengthen 
 
 Still let me witness for Jesus, my King. 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 
 [45] 
 
jftftemtt) sr>a£ 
 
 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 
 
 Psalm 119: 105. 
 
 Walk while ye have the light. — S. John 12 : 35. 
 
 I WANTED to see the miners on their way to 
 their homes with their lamps in their hats. I 
 saw them, and brought home with me a lamp as 
 a souvenir. I think it would be wise if we would 
 select a truth and carry it always with us, as the 
 miners do their lamps. How would "Love one 
 another" do for the family? How would "Do 
 unto others as you would they should do unto you " 
 do in our life-work? 
 
 Ah, the light makes manifest! The miners 
 need their lamps down in the darkness of the 
 mines, and we are in a world of darkness, and we 
 need lamps. There is a very striking passage in 
 the Psalms that says : " Thy word is a lamp unto my 
 feet, and a light unto my path." I am glad it 
 says feet; that looks like light for duty, not curi- 
 osity. " It is with the heart man believeth unto 
 righteousness." There is always light enough to 
 show us what to do, and the heart has to do with 
 doing. There is always light for honest souls. 
 
 MARGARET BOTTOME. 
 
 Thus grave these lessons on thy soul — 
 
 Hope, Faith, and Love — and thou shalt find 
 
 Strength when life's surges rudest roll, 
 Light when thou else wert blind. 
 
 FROM THE GERMAN OF SCHILLER. 
 [46] 
 
flzbmaty 
 
 gwteentJj sr>a^ 
 
 Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence. Thou 
 shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion fro??i the strife of 
 tongues. * — Psalm 3 1 : 20. 
 
 JUST at the outset of our work, to try us whether 
 we are good for our work, God's spirit takes 
 us into some solitude, some experience, which 
 whether it be enacted afar off from busy life, or 
 in the very centre of a crowded street, makes us 
 realize that our deepest life is alone and no other 
 man's. And in the hush of this holy quiet, we 
 see also that our deepest life is hid in Him. 
 
 So often, in the world's most crowded streets, 
 
 But often, in the din of strife, 
 
 There rises an unspeakable desire 
 
 After knowledge of our buried life, 
 
 A longing to inquire 
 
 Into the mystery of this heart which beats 
 
 So wild, so deep in us, — to know 
 
 Whence our thoughts come and where they go. 
 
 MATTHEW ARNOLD. 
 
 Since Thou hast called us children and brought 
 us into the secret of Thy presence, we will trust 
 in Thy leadings. Whatever we may be called upon 
 to do, may we do it with an eye single to Thy 
 glory, swayed not by the clamor of tongues, but 
 by the desire for Thy approval. 
 [47] 
 
fithtuaty 
 
 £>efomtemtt) 2Dap 
 
 Bear ye one another 's burdens. — Galatians 8 : 2. 
 
 I EXPECT to pass through this world but once. 
 Any good thing, therefore, that I can do, or 
 any kindness that I can show to any fellow human 
 being, let me do it now. Let me not defer or 
 neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again. 
 
 UNKNOWN. 
 
 Let thy alms go before, and keep heaven's gate 
 Open for thee, or both may come too late. 
 
 HERBERT. 
 
 The charities that soothe and heal and bless 
 Are scattered at the feet of man like flowers. 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 Do what thou dost as if the stake were heaven, 
 And that thy last deed ere the judgment day. 
 
 UNKNOWN. 
 
 Rest not! life is sweeping by; 
 Do and dare before you die. 
 
 GOETHE. 
 
 A helping word to one in trouble is often like a 
 switch on a railroad track — but one inch between 
 wreck and smooth-rolling prosperity. — beecher. 
 
 Not with the hope of gaining aught, 
 
 Nor seeking a reward, 
 But as Thyself hast loved me, 
 
 O ever-loving Lord ! 
 
 UNKNOWN. 
 [48] 
 
tfzhmaty 
 
 €i$)tttnti) 2Da^ 
 
 Let not your heart be troubled : ye believe in God, believe also 
 in me. — S. John 14: i. 
 
 THERE is no journey of life but has its cloudy 
 days; and there are some days in which 
 our eyes are so blinded with tears that we find it 
 hard to see our way or even read God's promises. 
 Those days that have a bright sunrise followed by 
 sudden thunder-claps and bursts of unlooked-for 
 sorrows are the ones that test certain of our graces 
 the most severely. Yet the law of spiritual eye- 
 sight very closely resembles the law of physical 
 optics. When we come suddenly out of the day- 
 light into a room even moderately darkened, we 
 can discern nothing; but the pupil of our eye 
 gradually enlarges until unseen objects become 
 visible. Even so the pupil of the eye of faith has 
 the blessed faculty of enlarging in dark hours of 
 bereavement, so that we discover that our loving 
 Father's hand is holding the cup of trial, and by 
 and by the gloom becomes luminous with glory. 
 
 The fourteenth chapter of John never falls with 
 such music upon our ears as when we catch its 
 sweet strains amid the pauses of some terrific 
 storm. "Let not your hearts be troubled: ye be- 
 lieve in God, believe also in Me. ... I will 
 not leave you comfortless." — cuyler. 
 
 All earth's discord, grating, 
 Will melt at last to love divine, complete. 
 
 MARY CLEMMER AMES. 
 [49] 
 
0mttmty 2Dap 
 
 To be spiritually minded is life. — Romans 8 : 6. 
 
 Like unto a New Life to You. 
 
 AS soon as you really say "My Father! My 
 Saviour ! " all life will be changed to you, — 
 your interior and outward life. You will feel you 
 are rich no matter what your outward circum- 
 stances are. You have a Father; your Father is 
 King; you are His child, — not His perfect child, 
 but you have a perfect Father, and Christ will be 
 to you your elder brother, your friend, and the only 
 friend that can save you from the love of sin; the 
 only friend that can make known to you more and 
 more the love of God. You will then know life, 
 not mere existence. A friend I once told you 
 about, used to tell of the three F's, — Facts, Faith, 
 Feeling ! We can only feel He is our Father by 
 faith; and faith is believing a fact. It is a fact 
 that God is our Father, who sent His Son to be 
 the Saviour of the world; and by believing this fact 
 we feel happy, we feel rich, and we come to know 
 God and Jesus Christ whom He hath sent. And 
 thus we feel the immortal tides of eternal life in 
 
 US. MARGARET BOTTOME. 
 
 Man is not God, but hath God's end to serve, 
 
 A Master to obey, a course to take, 
 Somewhat to cast off, somewhat to become. 
 
 BROWNING. 
 
 [50] 
 
The Lord preserveth the faithful. — Psalm 31 : 23. 
 
 Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee 
 
 ruler over many things. — S. Matthew 25 : 23. 
 
 I HAVE noticed that wherever there has been a 
 faithful following of the Lord in a conse- 
 crated soul, several things have followed, inevitably, 
 sooner or later. Meekness and quietness of spirit 
 become in time the characteristics of the daily 
 life. A submissive acceptance of the will of God 
 as it comes in the hourly events of each day; 
 pliability in the hands of God to do or suffer all 
 the good pleasure of His will; sweetness under 
 provocation; calmness in the midst of turmoil and 
 bustle; yieldingness to the wishes of others, and 
 an insensibility to slights and affronts; absence of 
 worry or anxiety; deliverance from care or fear, — 
 all these, and many similar graces, are invariably 
 to be the natural outward development of that 
 inward life which is hid with Christ in God. 
 
 H. W. S. 
 
 To His own the Saviour giveth 
 
 Daily strength, 
 To each faithful soul that liveth, 
 
 Peace at length; 
 Therefore whatsoe'er betideth, 
 
 Night or day, 
 Know His love for thee provideth 
 
 Good alway. 
 [51] 
 
tfebruati? 
 
 Ye people, pour out your heart before him : God is a refuge 
 for us. — Psalm 62 : 8. 
 
 WHATSOEVER it is that presses thee, go tell 
 thy Father; put over the matter into His 
 hand, and so thou shalt be freed from that divid- 
 ing, perplexing care that the world is full of. 
 When thou art either to do or to suffer anything, 
 when thou art about any purpose or business, go 
 tell God of it, and acquaint Him with it; yea, 
 burden Him with it, and thou hast done for the 
 matter of caring. — r. leighton. 
 
 Thou Refuge of my soul, 
 
 On Thee, when sorrows rise, 
 On Thee, when waves of trouble roll, 
 
 My fainting hope relies. 
 To Thee I tell my grief, 
 
 For Thou alone canst heal. 
 Thy word can bring a sweet relief 
 
 For every pain I feel. 
 
 But, oh, when doubts prevail, 
 
 I fear to call Thee mine; 
 The springs of comfort seem to fail, 
 
 And all my hopes decline. 
 Yet, Lord, where shall I flee? 
 
 Thou art my only trust; 
 And still my soul would cleave to Thee 
 
 Though prostrate in the dust. 
 
 ANNA STEELE. 
 [52] 
 
Suffer little children to come unto me and forbid them not. - 
 S. Matthew 19 : 14. 
 
 IT lies around us like a cloud, — 
 A world we do not see; 
 Yet the sweet closing of an eye 
 May bring us there to be. 
 
 Sweet hearts around us throb and beat, 
 Sweet helping hands are stirred, 
 
 And palpitates the veil between 
 With breathings almost heard. 
 
 The silence — awful, sweet, and calm — 
 They have no power to break; 
 
 For mortal words are not for them 
 To utter or partake. 
 
 So thin, so soft, so sweet they glide, 
 So near to press they seem — 
 
 They seem to lull us to our rest, 
 And melt into our dream. 
 
 Sweet souls around us ! watch us still, 
 
 Press nearer to our side, 
 Into our thoughts, into our prayers, 
 
 With gentle helpings glide. 
 
 Let death between us be as naught, 
 A dried and vanished stream; 
 
 Your joy be the reality, 
 
 Our suffering life the dream. 
 
 HARRIET BEECHER STOWE. 
 [53] 
 
fizbvuaty 
 
 ®toent£=tl)irD 2Dap 
 
 As water spilt upcui the ground. — 2 Samuel 14: 14. 
 
 CAN you put the spider's web back in its 
 place, that once has been swept away? 
 Can you put the apple again on the bough, which 
 
 fell at your feet to-day? 
 Can you put the lily-cup back on its stem, and 
 
 cause it to live and grow? 
 Can you mend the butterfly's broken wing, that 
 
 you crushed with a hasty blow? 
 Can you put the bloom again on the grape, or the 
 
 grape again on the vine? 
 Can you put the dewdrops back on the flowers, and 
 
 make them sparkle and shine? 
 Can you put the petals back on the rose? If you 
 
 could, would it smell as sweet? 
 Can you put the flour again in the husk, and show 
 
 me the ripened wheat? 
 Can you put the kernel back in the nut, or the egg 
 
 in its dainty shell ? 
 Can you put the honey back in its comb, and cover 
 
 with wax each cell ? 
 Can you put the perfume back in its vase, when 
 
 once it has sped away? 
 Can you put the corn-silk back on the corn, or the 
 
 down on the catkins — say ? 
 You think that my questions are trifling, dear? Let 
 
 me ask you another one : 
 Can a hasty word ever be unsaid, or a deed unkind, 
 
 undone? kate Lawrence. 
 
 [54] 
 
tfebruar? 
 
 ®tocnt?;fouitt) SDa? 
 
 He that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. — Zecha- 
 riah 1 1 : 8. 
 
 " T J^^ to °^ our infirmities." We love to 
 
 JL X clasp this truth to our hearts that all the 
 
 weak, fainting, falling ones of earth may know that 
 
 their Saviour sympathizes with all their struggles. 
 
 If I could only surely know 
 
 That all these things that tire me so 
 
 Were noticed by my Lord ! 
 The pang that cuts me like a knife, 
 The noise, the weariness, the strife — 
 
 What peace it would afford ! 
 
 It seems to me, if sure of this, 
 
 Blent with each ill would come such bliss 
 
 That I might covet pain, 
 And deem whatever brought to me 
 The loving thought of Deity, 
 And sense of Christ's sweet sympathy, 
 
 Not loss, but richest gain. 
 
 Dear Lord, my heart shall no more doubt 
 That Thou dost compass me about 
 
 With sympathy divine; 
 The love for me once crucified 
 Is not the love to leave my side, 
 But waiteth ever to divide 
 
 Each smallest care of mine. 
 
 SELECTED. 
 [55] 
 
®torotiJ=fifrt) Dap 
 
 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after. 
 Psalm 27 : 4. 
 
 SINGLENESS of aim is one great secret of 
 success. We cannot do better than by setting 
 before our souls some "one thing" for which we 
 mean to live. The Psalmist says : " One thing have 
 I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after." 
 Christ said to Martha of Bethany : " One thing is 
 needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part 
 which shall not be taken away from her." And 
 the Apostle Paul says, "This one thing I do." It 
 is profitable to direct our thoughts to these three 
 things, the "one thing desirable " ; the "one thing 
 needful"; the "one thing to be done." 
 
 "One thing," said David, "is my heart's desire: 
 I wish to dwell forever with my God ; 
 
 Within His holy temple to inquire, 
 
 And see His beauty in His own abode." 
 
 "One thing is needful," said the faithful Lord 
 To her who served Him with too bustling care; 
 
 " To listen to My voice, receive My word 
 Into thy heart, and entertain Me there." 
 
 "One thing," said Paul, "I do, and only one: 
 Forgetting things behind, I keep mine eyes 
 
 Fixed on the goal, till all my race be run, 
 And still press on, that I may win the prize." 
 
 E. CAMPBELL FINLAYSON. 
 
 [56] 
 
tfzbtmty 
 
 I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things 
 straight. — Isaiah 13 : 16. 
 
 ABOVE the battle of inquiry and falsehood is 
 clearly heard the prayer from the burdened 
 heart of young Schiller, " What am I without truth, 
 without her leadership through life's labyrinths? 
 A wanderer in the wilderness, overtaken by night, 
 with no friendly hand to lead me, no guiding star 
 to show me the way. Doubt, uncertainty, scepti- 
 cism ! But Truth, thou leadest us safely through 
 life, bearest the torch before us in the dark vale 
 of death, and bringest us home to heaven where 
 thou wast born. O my God, keep my heart in 
 peace in that holy rest during which Truth loves 
 best to visit us." — unknown. 
 
 When man in error gropes 
 Night under night still opes : 
 Goodness is horror then, 
 And demons dwell in men. 
 But when "he thinks aright, 
 A fount of dazzling light 
 From evil's darkness bursts 
 To satiate his thirsts. 
 
 ORIENTAL POETRY. 
 
 This is the thought all fears to soothe, 
 
 "Crooked made straight and rough made smooth." 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 [57] 
 
fizbxmty 
 
 Lord, increase our faith. — S. Luke 17:5. 
 
 I HEAR men praying everywhere for more faith; 
 but when I listen to them carefully and get at 
 the real heart of their prayers, very often it is not 
 more faith at all that they are wanting, but a change 
 from faith to sight. Faith says not, " I see that it 
 is good for me, and so God must have sent it," but 
 "God sent it, and so it must be good for me." 
 Faith walking in the dark with God only prays 
 Him to clasp its hand more closely, does not even 
 ask Him for the lifting of the darkness so that 
 the man may find the way himself. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 So runs the law, the law of recompense, 
 
 That binds our life on earth and heaven in one; 
 
 Faith cannot live where all is sight and sense, 
 But faith can live and sing when these are gone. 
 
 We grieve and murmur, for we can but see 
 The single thread that flies in silence by; 
 
 When if we only saw the things to be, 
 
 Our lips would breathe a song and not a sigh. 
 
 Wait then, my soul, and edge the darkening cloud 
 With the bright gold that Hope can always lend; 
 
 And if to-day thou art with sorrow bowed, 
 Wait till to-morrow and thy grief shall end. 
 
 HENRY BURTON. 
 [58] 
 
Be at peace. — Job 22 : 21. 
 
 BLESSED is that man who can retire from the 
 world to be alone with himself and God. 
 The reserved nature is often the fullest and rich- 
 est in its endowments, and is always, perhaps, the 
 one most directly in communion with unseen 
 things. The spirit of such a man becomes, while 
 yet on earth, the peaceful throne of the Divine 
 Being. Gentle, quiet, and reverent, it constrains 
 all who approach it to escape from the toils of 
 earthly life and enter into the calm and serenity 
 of the spiritual atmosphere. It is a silent witness 
 for truth and purity; it leads men invisibly to a 
 higher plane of action, and draws heaven and earth 
 closer together by the strength of its own high pur- 
 pose. The deeper one goes into such a nature as 
 this, the richer is the treasure that he finds. 
 
 There are some hearts like wells, green-mossed 
 and deep 
 
 As ever Summer saw; 
 And cool their water is, yea, cool and sweet; 
 
 But you must come to draw. 
 
 CAROLINE S. SPENCER. 
 
 Thought is deeper than all speech, 
 Feeling deeper than all thought; 
 
 Souls to souls can never teach 
 What unto themselves was taught. 
 
 CHRISTOPHER PEARSE CRANCH. 
 [59] 
 
februarv 
 
 Whether . . . life or death or things present or things to come, 
 all are yours. — I Corinthians 3 : 22. 
 
 PATHOS comes into our lives from the con- 
 sciousness that life still passes, and that all 
 of its associations, however tender, must at last be 
 broken. Many have left us, many more will go, 
 and sometime, we know not when, we also must go 
 out to come not back again. How that fact has 
 broken in startlingly upon our thoughts sometimes, 
 and we have looked in each other's faces with the 
 question, Which of us shall go and leave the other 
 behind? . . . We cannot be wholly glad while 
 this certainty of separation remains; a shadow 
 must fall upon our souls so long as this question 
 rises in our eyes when we look into each other's 
 faces. It ought not to destroy our happiness nor 
 cast a gloom over our lives, but it must give us 
 moments of tender and serious thoughtfulness. 
 
 J. T. McFARLAND. 
 
 Alas for him who never sees 
 The stars shine through his cypress trees; 
 Who hopeless lays his dead away, 
 Nor looks to see the breaking day 
 x^cross the mournful marbles play; 
 Who hath not learned in hours of faith 
 That truth to flesh and sense unknown, 
 That life is ever lord of death, 
 And love can never lose its own. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 f6o] 
 

t m a n y 
 
 . . merry days 
 
ifirst 2Dap 
 
 Let the peace of God rule in your hearts. — Colossians 3: 15. 
 
 ^JjOD is a tranquil Being, and abides in a tran- 
 ^^J quil eternity. So must thy spirit become 
 a tranquil and clear little pool, wherein the serene 
 life of God can be mirrored. Therefore shun all 
 that is disquieting and distracting, both within and 
 without. 
 
 Nothing in the whole world is worth the loss of 
 thy peace ; even the faults which thou hast com- 
 mitted should only humble, but not disquiet thee. 
 
 G. TERSTEGEN. 
 
 Drop thy still dews of quietness 
 
 Till all our strivings cease ; 
 Take from our souls the strain and stress, 
 And let our ordered lives confess 
 
 The beauty of Thy peace. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 With deeper voice than any speech 
 Of mortal lips from man to man, 
 
 What earth's unwisdom may not teach 
 The spirit only can. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 [61] 
 
g>econD 3Pa^ 
 
 The things which are seen are temporal, but the things which 
 are not seen are eternal. — 2 Corinthians 4:18. 
 
 WE wonder what they talk of in that other 
 world, and if they keep their interest in 
 things which were so dear to them and to us while 
 we were yet together. Do they who shared our 
 lives, our hopes and sorrows, and strivings, do they 
 know it all now? Or has it passed away from them 
 forever as being of the " things temporal " ? 
 
 It is not given us to know these things, but we 
 do know that we may look forward to our common 
 interests in " the things which are not seen but are 
 eternal," and that we will be " satisfied." 
 
 We know not when, we know not where, 
 We know not what that world will be, 
 But this we know : it will be fair 
 To see. 
 
 With heart athirst and thirsty face 
 
 We know and know not what shall be : — - 
 Christ Jesus bring us of His grace 
 To see. 
 
 Christ Jesus bring us of His grace 
 
 Beyond all prayers our hopes can pray, 
 One day to see Him face to face, — 
 One day. 
 
 CHRISTINA ROSSETTI. 
 
 [62] 
 
Wt)ixb 2Da£ 
 
 Epar not, but let your hands be strong. — Zechariah 8:13. 
 
 IT is not enough for a man to build a ship so that 
 it looks beautiful as it stands on the stocks. 
 What though a man build his vessel so trim and 
 graceful that all admire it, if when she comes to be 
 launched she is not fit for the sea, if she cannot 
 stand stormy weather, if she is a slow sailer and a 
 poor carrier, if she is liable to founder on the voy- 
 age? A ship, however comely she may be, is not 
 good for anything unless she can battle with the 
 deep. That is the place to test her. All her fine 
 lines and grace and beauty are of no account 
 if she fails there. It makes no difference how 
 splendidly you build so far as this world is con- 
 cerned, your life is a failure unless you build so 
 that you can go out into the great future on the 
 eternal sea of life. We are to live on. We are 
 not to live again, but we are to live without break. 
 Death is not an end. It is a new impulse. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 When through the torn sail the wild tempest is 
 streaming, 
 
 When o'er the dark wave the red lightning is 
 gleaming, 
 
 Nor hope lends a ray, the poor seaman to cherish, 
 
 We fly to our maker, — " Save, Lord, or we per- 
 ish ! " REGINALD HEBER. 
 
 [63] 
 
jfourtlj H>a^ 
 
 The Lord is my shepherd ; I shall not want. He restoreth 
 my soul ; he leadeth me in the paths 'of righteousness for his 
 name's sake- — Psalm 23 : I, 3. 
 
 THE Lord is my Shepherd, He leadeth my soul 
 In pastures all pleasant and green, 
 I rest in His shadow, I walk in His light, 
 
 And food from His harvests I glean ; 
 Beside the cool waters and rivers of peace 
 
 Which sparkle with life as they flow, 
 Refreshing my heart and reviving my strength 
 He guides me, as onward I go. 
 
 My soul He restoreth, when wandering astray, 
 
 His patience unfailing abides, 
 He heals me when broken, redeems when oppressed, 
 
 And loves me the while that He chides ; 
 My eyes may be holden from seeing His face — 
 
 He leadeth me, leadeth me still, 
 In paths of the righteous, by ways that He knows, 
 
 Where nothing can work me an ill. 
 
 The Lord is my Shepherd, a table He spreads 
 
 In presence of those whom I fear, 
 Anointing my head with a baptism sweet, 
 
 As ever He draweth more near. 
 His bounty provides for my every need, 
 
 With plenty He blesses my board, 
 Each day brings its manna, refreshing my strength, — 
 
 Tis mine ere the gift is implored. 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 [64] 
 
jfifrt) SDa? 
 
 If any man love God the same is known of him, — I Corin- 
 thians 8 : 3. 
 
 CHILD of my Love, lean hard ! 
 And let Me feel the pressure of thy care ; 
 I know thy burden, for I fashioned it ; 
 Poised it in My own Hand, and made its weight 
 Precisely that which I saw best for thee, 
 And when I placed it on thy shrinking form 
 I said, " I shall be near, and while thou leanest 
 On Me, this burden shall be Mine not thine." 
 So shall I keep within My circling arms, 
 The child of My own Love ; here lay it down 
 Nor fear to weary Him who made, upholds, 
 And guides the universe. Yet closer come ; 
 Thou art not near enough. Thy care, thyself 
 Lay both on Me, that I may feel my child 
 Reposing on my heart. Thou lovest me 
 I doubt it not ; then loving Me, lean hard. 
 
 Let the fearful and timid one see that God is 
 love — essentially and eternally — love to all and 
 therefore to him ; and that God has done and 
 suffered all that love could suggest for the well- 
 being of His creatures. Alexander raleigh. 
 
 Be what thou seemest ! live thy creed ! 
 Hold up to earth the touch divine ; 
 Be what thou prayest to be made, 
 Let the great Master's steps be thine. 
 
 BONAR. 
 
 [65] 
 
g>tjtl) ar>ai? 
 
 God is in heaven and thou tipon earth; therefore let thy 
 words be few. — Ecclesiastes 5 : 2. 
 
 POSSIBLY the highest point where human weak- 
 ness manifests itself is in an effort at expres- 
 sion. The human heart resembles the sea. One 
 day it lies like a calm, untroubled lake ; soon to be 
 lashed into fury, and then subside into moans and 
 sobs, as though longing to give voice to its sorrow, 
 or carry its mighty secret up to the surface, and 
 bear it proudly to the shore. Words are the only 
 vessels in which we can make our voyages on the 
 sea of thought, and weak and frail they are, indeed. 
 We struggle for recognition, for expression, for the 
 power of utterance, but we struggle sometimes in 
 vain. Not so with God. His forms of expression 
 are too manifest for our understanding. It is almost 
 impossible to open the eyes without beholding some 
 expression of divinity. j. t. macfarland. 
 
 The thoughts that in our hearts keep pace, 
 Lord, make a holy, heavenly throng, 
 
 And steep in innocence and grace 
 The issue of each guarded tongue. 
 
 T. H. GILL. 
 
 If singing breath or echoing chord 
 To every hidden pang were given, 
 
 What endless melodies were poured, 
 As sad as earth, as sweet as heaven ! 
 
 HOLMES. 
 [66] 
 
g>cbentt) ar>a? 
 
 Love is the fulfilling of the law. — Romans 13 : 10. 
 
 LOVE is lost by thoughtlessness, by incon- 
 sideration, and by selfishness, more than by 
 any other way. Do you want to lose your love ? 
 It is like those old Venetian glasses, fine, slender, 
 and delicate ; pour into one all the great wealth of 
 your affection and the glass will hold it, but let one 
 drop of the poison of self-will or indifference get 
 there and the glass is shattered into a thousand 
 pieces. 
 
 Where are only stems and thorns 
 Veiled in curled leaves, dead and brown, 
 Gardens where we only see 
 Where the roses used to be ! 
 
 ELIZABETH AKERS ALLEN. 
 
 Say never ye loved once, 
 
 God is too near above, the grave below, 
 
 And all our moments go 
 
 Too quickly past our souls for saying so. 
 
 The mysteries of life and death avenge 
 
 Affections light of range ; 
 
 There comes no change to justify that change. 
 
 MRS. BROWNING. 
 
 Oh ! cast thou not 
 
 Affection from thee ! In this bitter world, 
 Hold to thy heart that only treasure fast ; 
 Watch, guard it — suffer not a breath to dim 
 The bright gem's purity. felicia hemans. 
 [67] 
 
Grievous words stir up anger.- — Proverbs 15 : 1. 
 
 Put out the Fire. 
 
 WHEN our houses take fire, says Dr. Cuyler, 
 the first impulse is to go after a bucket of 
 water. But if temper takes fire, the first impulse 
 is to throw on more fuel. 
 
 Now the best bucket of water for a roused tem- 
 per is resolute silence. If, whenever an irritating 
 act were done, or an injury struck us, we should 
 firmly seal our lips for even ten minutes, we would 
 save ourselves many a quarrel, many a heartburn, 
 many a mortification, many a disgrace to our 
 religious profession. Speech is often explosive 
 and shattering. Silence is cooling. It cools us 
 off and cools other people. One of the calmest 
 men I ever knew told me that he used to be 
 violently passionate, but he broke his temper by 
 resolutely bridling his tongue until his anger died 
 away. 
 
 Come, here is work — and a rank field — begin ! 
 
 Put thou thine edge to the great weeds of sin ; 
 So shalt thou find the use of life, and see 
 Thy Lord at set of sun, 
 Approach and say, " Well done ! " 
 
 E. W. ELLSWORTH. 
 
 Let your spirit dwell upon the sunny hilltops of 
 serenity, where the shadows cast by ill-temper and 
 evil spirits can never reach. 
 
 [68 J 
 
jlimtl) U>wg 
 
 Wherefore, seeing we also are compassed about with so great 
 a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the 
 sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience 
 the race that is set before us. — Hebrews 12 : 1. 
 
 WE are compassed about by a cloud of wit- 
 nesses, whose hearts throb in sympathy 
 with every effort and struggle, and who thrill with 
 joy at every success. 
 
 HARRIET BEECHER STOWE. 
 
 " I am working alone and no one heeds ! " 
 
 Who says so does not know 
 There are clear eyes watching on every side, 
 
 And wherever our feet may go, 
 We are " compassed about with so great a crowd," 
 
 That if we could only see, 
 We never could think that our life is small, 
 
 Or that we may unnoticed be ! 
 
 We seem to suffer and bear alone 
 
 Life's burden and all its care ; 
 And the sighs and prayers of the heavy heart 
 
 Vanish into the air ; 
 But we do not suffer or work alone, 
 
 And after a victory won, 
 Who knows how happy the hosts may be 
 
 Who whisper a soft " Well done ! " 
 
 MARIANNE FARNINGHAM. 
 [69] 
 
tEcml) Dap 
 
 A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches. — Prov- 
 erbs 22: I. 
 
 A good name is better than precious ointment. — Ecclesiastes 
 7:1. 
 
 SUCH a name is better than "great riches." Its 
 money value is wealth. Its character value is 
 beyond estimate. He who has a large balance to 
 his credit in the confidence, the affection and sym- 
 pathies of his fellow-men, is far richer than one 
 whose name is worth just so many dollars. In the 
 one case, the money is the basis of confidence. 
 In the other, the man. To get a fortune and keep 
 a good name, is surely better than riches without a 
 good name. 
 
 But now and then there are cases where men 
 preserve their integrity, and yet do not achieve 
 financial success. Misfortune may pursue them, or 
 they may lack business judgment \ fire or storm 
 may keep a man's losses up with his gains, and he 
 may die poor, even though bearing a good name. 
 What have we to say of such an one? Why, just 
 what Scripture says : " A good name is better than 
 precious ointment." Riches are temporal, but 
 character is eternal. earl cranston. 
 
 His the name that's nearest heaven, 
 
 Godward breathed in full heart's praise, 
 Who most thorns has drawn, not driven ; 
 Mirrored back most tears on face 
 Of poor Humanity. 
 [70] 
 
CElrtcml) 2Pa? 
 
 Consider the lilies how they grow : they toil not, they spin 
 not; arid yet I say unto yon, that Solomon in all his glory 
 was not arrayed like one of these. — S. Luke 12 : 27. 
 
 MY heart is weary for the lilies. Qh, 
 That I might wander far beyond the snow 
 And find the garden where the lilies grow ! 
 
 Lilies, clean silver lilies to illume 
 And glorify the dimness of my room, 
 Lilies of light to penetrate the gloom. 
 
 Not the bright roses of the shining day ; 
 Roses are fittest when the hour is gay ; 
 For holy-hearted lilies now I pray. 
 
 Christ ! make Thine Easter lilies bloom again ! 
 See, how Thy poor are crying out in pain, 
 And all the land is full of snow and rain. 
 
 Sharp is the wind, and cutting is the sleet, 
 
 Cold and unclean we walk the street ; 
 
 Cold and unclean — the mire about our feet. 
 
 In vain we turn for hope toward Thy sky ; 
 
 Clouds are so dense, and Heaven — alas — so high. 
 
 No sun shines visible to human eye. 
 
 Show us, O Thou who once removed our stain, 
 We need not pray for purity in vain ! 
 Christ ! bid Thy solemn lilies bloom again. 
 
 BLANCHE NEVIN. 
 [71] 
 
®toclftt) 2Da? 
 
 He that loveth life shall lose it ; and he that hateth his life in 
 this zuor Id shall keep it unto life eternal. — S. John 12 : 25. 
 
 IF pain were banished from the earth life would 
 become utterly unfruitful. Neither nations nor 
 individuals make any history in peace. We are 
 always trying to make life what it never can be — 
 safe, constant, and equal. If we could succeed in 
 this effort, this severe and measured existence 
 would have little value ; for we are so made that 
 sad meanings are the highest meanings — the only 
 largely significant expressions of the eternal will as 
 revealed in us. 
 
 Pity and need 
 Make all flesh kin. There is no caste in blood, 
 Which runneth of one hue, nor caste in tears, 
 Which trickle salt with all ; neither comes man 
 To birth with title-mark stamped on the brow, 
 Nor sacred thread on neck. Who doth right deeds 
 Is twice-born, and who doeth ill deeds vile. 
 
 EDWIN ARNOLD. 
 
 Hear then this lesson ; hear and learn : 
 He who would save his soul, I say, 
 
 Must lose his soul ; must dare to turn 
 And lift the fallen by the way ; 
 
 Must make his soul worth saving by some deed 
 
 That grows and grows, as grows a fruitful seed. 
 
 JOAQUIN MILLER. 
 
 [72] 
 
tERiiitcnul) SDaj? 
 
 .Zfear _y<? one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of 
 Christ. — Galatians 6 : 2. 
 
 IF you were toiling up a weary hill 
 Bearing a load beyond your strength to bear, 
 Straining each nerve untiringly, and still 
 
 Stumbling and losing foothold here and there, 
 And each one passing by would do so much 
 
 As give one upward lift, and go his way, 
 Would not the slight reiterated touch 
 
 Of help and kindness lighten all the day ? 
 
 If you were breasting a keen wind, which tossed 
 
 And buffeted and chilled you as you strove, 
 Till, baffled and bewildered quite, you lost 
 
 The power to see the way, and aim and move, 
 And one, if only for a moment's space, 
 
 Gave you a shelter from the bitter blast, 
 Would you not find it easier to face 
 
 The storm again when the brief rest was past? 
 
 There is no little and there is no much ; 
 
 We weigh and measure and define in vain. 
 A look, a word, or a responsive touch 
 
 Can be the ministers of joy to pain ; 
 A man can die of hunger walled in gold, 
 
 A crumb may quicken hope to stronger breath, 
 And every day we give or we withhold 
 
 Some little thing which tells for life and death. 
 
 SUSAN COOLIDGE. 
 
 [73] 
 
ifourtemtl) SDa^ 
 
 Trust in the Lord and do good. — Psalm 37 : 3. 
 
 BUILD a little fence of trust 
 Around to-day, 
 Fill the space with loving work 
 
 And therein stay ; 
 Look not through the sheltering bars 
 
 Upon to-morrow, 
 God will help thee bear what comes, 
 Of joy or sorrow. 
 
 MARY F. BUTTS. 
 
 When God is in the midst of a kingdom or a 
 city, He makes it as firm as Mount Zion that can- 
 not be removed. When He is in the midst of a 
 soul, though calamities throng about it on all hands, 
 yet there is a constant calm within, such a peace as 
 the world can neither give nor take away. What is 
 it but want of God in men's hearts that makes them 
 shake like leaves at every blast of danger ? 
 
 R. LEIGHTON. 
 
 Why is sun more bright than rain? 
 
 Why does night bring forth the day? 
 Why do souls grow strong through pain ? 
 Tis God's way. 
 
 Him to trust though sunbeams fail, 
 
 Him to love though loves decay, 
 Him to see behind the veil, 
 Be my way. 
 [74] 
 
jFiftiemlj HDap 
 
 But this I say, brethren, the time is short. — I Corinthians 
 7:29. 
 
 I SOMETIMES feel the thread of life is slender 
 And soon with me the labor will be wrought, 
 Then grows my heart to other hearts more tender, 
 The time 
 The time is short. 
 
 Up, up, my soul, the long-spent time redeeming, 
 Sow thou the seeds of better deed and thought : 
 Light other lamps while yet thy light is beaming, 
 The time 
 The time is short. 
 
 By all the lapses thou hast been forgiven, 
 
 By all the lessons prayer to thee hath taught, 
 
 To others teach the sympathetic heaven. 
 
 The time 
 
 The time is short. 
 
 HEZEKIAH BUTTERWORTH. 
 
 He whose days pass without imparting and receiv- 
 ing is like the bellows of a smith : he breathes in- 
 deed, but he does not live. hindu proverb. 
 
 Thou fadest as a flower, O man ! 
 Of food for musing here is store. 
 O man, thou fallest as a leaf ! 
 Pace thoughtfully earth's leaf-strewn floor. 
 r. c. trench. 
 
 [75] 
 
&ixtmxt\) S>a^ 
 
 Serve him with a perfect heart and willing mind. — I Chron- 
 icles 28 : 9. 
 
 A'ot slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. — 
 Romans 12:2. 
 
 LET us bow our souls and say, " Behold the 
 handmaid of the Lord ! " Let us lift up our 
 hearts and ask, " Lord, what wouldst Thou have me 
 do?" Then light from the opened heaven shall 
 stream on our daily task, revealing the grains of 
 gold, where yesterday all seemed dust ; a hand 
 shall sustain us and our burden, so that, smiling at 
 yesterday's fears, we shall say, " This is easy, this is 
 light " ; every " lion in the way," as we come up to 
 it, shall be chained, and leave open the gates of the 
 Palace Beautiful ; and to us, even to us, feeble and 
 fluctuating as we are, ministries shall be assigned, 
 and through our hands blessings shall be conveyed 
 in which the spirits of just men made perfect might 
 
 delight. ELIZABETH CHARLES. 
 
 Mine be the reverent, listening love 
 
 That waits all day on Thee, 
 With the service of a watchful heart 
 
 Which no one else can see. 
 
 A. L. WARING. 
 
 Waste not thy being ; back to Him 
 Who freely gave it, freely give ; 
 
 Else is that being but a dream ; 
 
 Tis but to be, and not to live, bonar. 
 [76] 
 
%>cbcntctnt\) SDap 
 
 Ask and it shall be given you. — S. Matthew 7 : 8. 
 
 I ASKED for bread : God gave a stone instead. 
 Yet while I pillowed there my head, 
 The angels made a ladder of my dreams, 
 Which upwards to celestial mountains led. 
 And when I woke, beneath the morning's beams, 
 Around my resting-place fresh manna lay ; 
 And praising God, I went upon my way, 
 For I was fed. 
 
 I asked for strength ; for with the noontide heat 
 I fainted, while the reapers, singing sweet, 
 Went forward with ripe sheaves I could not bear. 
 Then came the Master with His blood-stained feet, 
 And lifted me with sympathetic care. 
 Then on His arm I leaned till all was done ; 
 And I stood with the rest at set of sun, 
 My task complete. 
 
 God answers prayer; sometimes, when hearts are 
 
 weak, 
 He gives the very gifts believers seek. 
 But often faith must learn a deeper rest, 
 And trust God's silence when He does not speak ; 
 For He, whose name is love, will send the best. 
 Stars may burn out, nor mountain walls endure ? 
 But God is true, His promises are sure 
 To those who seek. 
 
 MYRA GOODWIN PLANZ. 
 l77l 
 
StpatcU 
 
 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life where- 
 unto thou art also called. — I Timothy 6 : 12. 
 
 EVEN were the immortality of the soul a fiction, 
 I would be sorry not to believe it. I con- 
 fess I am not so humble as the atheists. I do not 
 follow their thoughts ; but for myself would not ' 
 barter the idea of my immortality for the happiness 
 of to-day, for I delight to deem myself immortal 
 as God himself. montesquieu. 
 
 Where our Captain bids us go 
 Tis not ours to murmur "No." 
 
 He that gives the sword and shield, 
 
 Chooses too the battle-field 
 Where we are to fight the foe. anonymous. 
 
 Who art thou that complaineth of thy life of toil ? 
 Complain not ! Look up, my wearied brother ; see 
 thy fellow-workmen there, in God's eternity ; sur- 
 viving there, they alone surviving ; sacred band of 
 the immortals, celestial body-guard of the empire 
 of mankind. To thee heaven, though severe, is 
 not unkind ; heaven is kind, — as a noble mother ; 
 as that Spartan mother, saying, while she gave her 
 son his shield, "With it, my son, or upon it." Thou 
 too shalt return home in honor ; doubt it not, — 
 if in the battle thou keep thy shield ! 
 
 Thou, in the Eternities and deepest death-king- 
 doms art not an alien ; thou art everywhere a deni- 
 zen. Complain not. carlyle. 
 [78] 
 
$intttmt)) SPa? 
 
 Like as a father pitieth his children so the Lord pitieth them 
 that fear him. For he know eth our frame ; heremembereth 
 that we are dust. — Psalm 103 : 13, 14. 
 
 FATHER ! How much of strength and conso- 
 lation centres in that word ! In this single 
 view of God how much there is to bind us to Him 
 with fervent and ever-growing love ! 
 
 He knows the bitter, weary way, 
 The needless striving by the way, 
 The souls that weep, the souls that pray — 
 He knows ! 
 
 He knows how hard the fight hath been, 
 The cloud that came our lives between, 
 The wounds the world hath never seen, 
 He knows ! 
 
 He knows when faint and worn we sink, 
 How deep the pain, how near the brink 
 Of dark despair we pause and shrink ; 
 He knows ! 
 
 He knows : O heart take up thy cross, 
 And know earth's treasures are but dross, 
 And He will prove as gain our loss ! 
 He knows ! 
 
 MARIAN LONGFELLOW. 
 
 The merciful compassion of our heavenly Father 
 broods over us, as the blue sky bends over the earth. 
 The great Father heart is everywhere. 
 [79] 
 
®torattert) 2Dai? 
 
 L thank my God, making mention of thee always in my 
 prayers, hearing of thy love and faith. — Philippians 4:5. 
 Walk worthy of the vocation zvherewith ye are called. — 
 Ephesians 4:1. 
 
 Let such as love thy salvation say continually, The Lord be 
 magnified. — Psalm 50 : 16. 
 
 LET us hold fast the threefold cord that cannot 
 be broken, the friend wishing, the friend re- 
 ceiving, and the mighty Friend loving to give as 
 much as is needed. 
 
 ANDREW MURRAY. 
 
 "Love makes drudgery divine." Love cannot 
 help itself, it outruns and leaves law far behind. 
 The question is not what must I do, but what may 
 I do? Love will stop at nothing. It takes up its 
 cross and travels after its object over every hill and 
 mountain of difficulty. Love desires all to partake 
 of its bliss ; it runs on with unceasing cry " What 
 shall I render for such benefits?" 
 
 POWERSCOURT. 
 
 Without or star or angel for their guide, 
 Who worship God shall find Him. Humble love 
 And not proud reason keeps the door of heaven. 
 Love finds admission when proud science fails. 
 
 YOUNG. 
 
 [80] 
 
®tonxti?;first Da? 
 
 Blessed is the man that maketh the Lord his trust. — Psalm 
 11:4. 
 
 GO forth to meet the solemnities and to conquer 
 the trials of existence, believing in a Shep- 
 herd of your souls. Then faith in Him will support 
 you in duty, and duty firmly done will strengthen 
 faith ; till at last your faith will raise the song of 
 conquest, and in its retrospect of the life which has 
 ended, and its forward glance upon the life to come, 
 take up the poetic inspiration of the Hebrew King. 
 
 STOPFORD A. BROOKE. 
 
 Upon God's providence I lean, 
 
 As lean in faith I must ; 
 The lesson of my life hath been, 
 
 A heart of grateful trust. 
 No burden yet was on me laid 
 
 Of trouble or of care, 
 But He my trembling step hath stayed 
 
 And given me strength to bear. 
 
 I know not what beyond may lie, 
 
 But look in humble faith, 
 Into a larger life to die 
 
 And find new birth in death. 
 And so my onward course I fare 
 
 With happy heart and calm, 
 And mingle with my daily care 
 
 The music of my psalm. 
 
 FREDERICK L. HOSMER. 
 [81] 
 
Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. — S. Matthew 
 6:34. 
 
 HE that hath many causes of joy, and so great, 
 is very much in love with sorrow and peevish- 
 ness, who loses all these pleasures, and chooses to sit 
 down upon his little handful of thorns. 
 
 JEREMY TAYLOR. 
 
 We know not what the path may be 
 
 As yet by us untrod ; 
 But we can trust our all to Thee, 
 
 Our Father and our God. 
 
 WILLIAM J. IRONS. 
 
 O my friend, look not out at what stands in 
 the way ; what if it looks dreadful as a lion, is not 
 the Lord stronger than the beasts of prey? But 
 look in where the law of life is written, and the will 
 of the Lord revealed, that thou mayest know what 
 is the Lord's will concerning thee. 
 
 I. PENNINGTON. 
 
 Griefs Clearing Sky. 
 Who knows whither the clouds have fled ? 
 
 In the unscarred heaven they leave no wake; 
 And the eyes forget the tears they have shed, 
 
 The heart forgets its sorrow and ache. 
 
 LOWELL. 
 [82] 
 
t£toentE=tl)iri) SDai> 
 
 Iji all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy 
 
 paths. — Proverbs 3 : 6. 
 
 He leadeth me. — Psalm 23 : 2. 
 
 WE are like to Him with whom there is no 
 past or future, with whom a day is as a 
 thousand years, and a thousand years as one day, 
 when we do our work in the great present, leaving 
 both past and future to Him to whom they are 
 ever present, and fearing nothing because He is 
 our future as He is our past, as much as, and 
 far more than we can feel Him to be in our pres? 
 ent. Partakers thus of the divine nature, resting 
 in that perfect All-in-All in whom our nature is 
 eternal too, we walk without fear, full of hope and 
 courage and strength to do His will, waiting to do 
 the endless good which He is always giving as fast 
 as He can get us able to take it in. 
 
 GEORGE MACDONALD. 
 
 "In pastures green ? " Not always ; sometimes He 
 Who knoweth best, in kindness leadeth me 
 In weary ways, where heavy shadows be. 
 
 So, whether on the hilltops high and fair 
 I dwell, or in the sunless valleys, where 
 
 The shadows lie, what matter? He is there. 
 
 HENRY A. BARRY. 
 
 Keep to the present little inch that is before 
 you, and accomplish that in the little moment that 
 belongs to it. m. a. kelly. 
 
 [83] 
 
®tent^fourtt) SDap 
 
 Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son 
 whom he receiveth. — Hebrews 12: 6. 
 
 HE took them from me, one by one, 
 The things I set my heart upon ; 
 They looked so harmless, fair and blest, 
 Would they have hurt me ? God knows best ; 
 He loves me so, He would not wrest 
 Them from me if it were not best. 
 
 I will not say I did not weep 
 As doth a child that wants to keep 
 The pleasant things in hurtful play 
 His wiser parent takes away ; 
 But in this comfort I will rest : 
 He who hath taken knoweth best. 
 
 F. H. MAER. 
 
 Let Christ's love flow into our souls and fill them. 
 Then struggles and sacrifices will lose their bitter- 
 ness, even if they must keep some of their pain. 
 God's work begun within is a pledge of His work 
 finished. Until the day of the Lord Jesus, then 
 let us look up, rejoice and hope and love. 
 
 God chastens thee because He loves thee ! . . . 
 He loved thee into sorrow, and He will love thee 
 through it. Love is the reason of all He does. 
 
 MACDUFF. 
 
 God's love with keen flame purges like the light- 
 ning flash. 
 
 [8 4 ] 
 
Thou under stand est my thought afar off. — Psalm 139 : 2. 
 
 WISELY the great Plato wrote, " Thinking is 
 the soul talking with itself." The visible 
 part of man dies and is forgotten, but his soul, his 
 thought, is immortal. As thought is the breath of 
 men's spirit, so it is the character of his thought 
 which determines the character of his immortality. 
 Whether the magnetism of his influence shall stimu- 
 late other men to worthy and lofty purposes, or 
 whether it shall leave upon succeeding generations 
 such black stains of crime as no angel tears can 
 wash away, shall be determined by the character 
 and power of a thought. There are thoughts which 
 are plague-spots, thoughts which are prophecies, 
 thoughts which are convictions, thoughts which are 
 pledges and prayers, thoughts which are wounds 
 in the world's deep heart. Battle and bloodshed, 
 cruelty and wrong, murder and oppression, have all 
 sprung and grown from the first murderous thought 
 of Cain. There are thoughts which are symbols. 
 The Taj Mahal, stainless in its matchless beauty and 
 purity, sprang, a white flower of sorrow, from the 
 grave where were buried together the dead and the 
 living heart, and so shall forever symbolize the love 
 of the Indian King whose loyal soul clung to one 
 woman living and mourned her dead. Thought is 
 mysteriously transformed into beliefs ; into laws ; 
 into creeds. Under every thought lies a feeling 
 too deep for perfect expression. 
 [85] 
 
In the night-time his song shall be with me. — Psalm 42 : 8. 
 He shall give thee songs in the night. — Job 35 : 10. 
 
 OH ! still those precious words remain, 
 The strains of trust and love 
 Which beat the air, like spirit-wings 
 
 And lift the heart above. 
 Those songs on which the saints of old 
 
 Scaled heaven's loftiest height, 
 And 'cross the blue horizon's rim 
 Secured their crowns of light. 
 
 I bind the memory of those songs 
 
 Close to my reverent heart, 
 They turn temptation's face away 
 
 And bid my griefs depart ; 
 They soothe me, soft as spirit-hands 
 
 That fan the fainting soul, 
 And all invisibly they lift 
 
 My life to heaven's goal. 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 
 If there be memory in the world to come, 
 
 If thought recur to some things silenced here, 
 Then shall the deep heart be no longer dumb, 
 
 But find expression in that happier sphere ; 
 It shall not be denied the utmost sum 
 
 Of love to speak without or fault or fear, 
 But utter to the harp, with changes sweet, 
 
 Words that, forbidden still, then heaven were 
 incomplete. jean ingelow. 
 
 [86] 
 
Zoz//? suffer eth long and is kind. — I Corinthians 13:4. 
 
 THE love of Jesus reproduces itself in the lives 
 of His working and suffering children. In 
 some shape they are ever giving themselves to God 
 and for their fellow-men. True love is no thin dis- 
 embodied sentiment. Love asserts its presence in 
 a practical, visible way, when once it really lives. 
 
 CANON LIDDON. 
 
 Let your friends have your sympathy and your 
 help . . . and let simplicity, love, and humility be 
 your great aim — just to do God's work without an 
 atom of self-love in it. Keep this aim ever true 
 and pure and all will come out right, even though 
 many a weary step has to be trod in the footsteps 
 
 Of JeSUS. H. MONSELL. 
 
 Who saith, " I loved once "? 
 Not angels, whose clear eyes love, foresee, 
 
 Love through eternity, 
 Who, by " to love," do apprehend " to be " ; 
 Not God, called love, His noble crown-name, cast- 
 ing 
 A light too broad for blasting ! 
 The great God, changing not from everlasting, 
 
 Saith not, "I loved once." 
 
 E. B. BROWNING. 
 
 [87] 
 
Thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that 
 pass azvay. — Job 1 1 : 1 6. 
 
 I LOOK around me and think how many there 
 are in the same trouble as myself, perhaps 
 much greater, and they have no Father to go to. 
 I look behind me and think of all the way I have 
 been led, and the mercy upon mercy which I have 
 experienced. I look before and above me and 
 think of my heaven at the door. Jesus my fore- 
 runner there, my God there, where, through won- 
 drous grace, I shall soon be myself. 
 
 BISHOP BULL. 
 
 My mind was full of troubles wild, 
 
 And all my heart was filled with sorrow, 
 
 When, by my side, a little child 
 
 Pointed toward the sky and smiled, 
 
 And said, " The sun will shine to-morrow." 
 
 I looked, and all my pain had flown • 
 
 Would He, who e'en takes thought of sparrows, 
 Give me, instead of bread, a stone ? 
 Or never heed my weary moan ? 
 
 Or pierce my soul with many arrows ? 
 
 O weary souls ! however black 
 
 Your lives may be, this comfort borrow ; 
 Look ever forward, look not back, 
 But keep upon the homeward track, 
 
 And look for sunshine on the morrow. 
 
 EDITH HELENA COOKE. 
 [88] 
 
/ will lift up my eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my 
 strength. — Psalm I : 21. 
 
 AND now, O Lord, our God, we desire to be 
 caught up out of the fever and turbulence of 
 the times in which we dwell. We desire to find 
 Thee a very present help in time of trouble. Lord, 
 Thou hast promised to make Thyself a refuge. 
 Thou art a mountain in a weary land. We remem- 
 ber in days gone by, when we have gone up out of 
 the city and troubled vale unto the tops of moun- 
 tains, and found, while it was heated and full of 
 summer burnings below, that there it was cool and 
 transparent, that there no sound was heard, and 
 everything dwelt in eternal calm and purity. Be 
 pleased, O Lord, to grant, since Thou art lifted far 
 above toil and heat and turbulence, that we may be 
 able to find Thee, and to refresh ourselves in Thy 
 presence. beecher. 
 
 " Unto the Hills" 
 
 O restless heart, so full of cares, 
 
 Yet longing so for better things, 
 
 Impatient even in thy prayers, 
 
 And vexed at trifling happenings, 
 
 Receive the strength that calms and stills, 
 
 Lift up thine eyes "unto the hills." 
 
 MARY THOMPSON. 
 
 [89] 
 
Wt)ittitt\) 2Dap 
 
 Whoso is wise, will ponder these things. — Psalm 107: 43. 
 
 G 
 
 OOD will, like a good name, is got by many 
 actions and lost by one. Jeffrey. 
 
 Every event of life points, if it does not carry us, 
 on to the cross. Jonathan edwards. 
 
 Show me the man you honor; I know by that 
 symptom better than by any other, what kind of a 
 man you are yourself; for you show me what your 
 ideal of manhood is, and what kind of a man you 
 long to be. carlyle. 
 
 Make each day a critic on the last. pope. 
 
 Be noble ; and the nobleness that lies 
 In other hearts, sleeping, but never dead, 
 Will rise in majesty to meet thine own. 
 
 LOWELL. 
 
 Taking the first step with the good thought, the 
 second with the good word, and the third with the 
 good deed, I entered Paradise. zoroaster. 
 
 In the midst of much failure have the heart to 
 begin again. Fear not so long as you have Christ 
 with you as your friend and defender. 
 
 JOHN HALL. 
 
 Seeing much, suffering much, and endeavoring 
 much are the pillars of learning. d'israeli. 
 
 [90] 
 
Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish. — S. Luke 13: 3. 
 
 OF all acts, is not, for man, repentance the 
 most divine? The deadliest sin were the 
 consciousness of no sin. The heart so conscious 
 is divorced from sincerity, humility, and fact. 
 Hence the experience of David is the truest em- 
 blem of man's moral progress and warfare ever 
 written. carlyle. 
 
 Coming to Jesus is the desire of the heart after 
 Him. It is to feel our sin and misery, and to believe 
 that He is willing and able to pardon, comfort, 
 and keep us ; to ask Him to help us, and to trust 
 Him as in a friend. To have the same feelings and 
 desires as if He were visibly present, and we came 
 and implored Him to bless us, is to come to Him, 
 though we do not see His face nor hear His voice. 
 The penitent's desire for pardon, his prayer, "Lord, 
 save me ; I perish" — this is coming to Him. 
 
 NEWMAN HALL. 
 
 A true repentance shuns the evil itself 
 
 More than the external suffering or the shame. 
 
 SHAKSPEARE. 
 
 Pass me not, O God, my Father, 
 Sinful though my heart may be ; 
 
 Thou mightst leave me, but the rather 
 Let Thy mercy rest on me, 
 Even me. 
 
 MRS. ELIZABETH CODNER. 
 [91] 
 
apni 
 
 9 
 
 Wi)t jfourtti apontl) 
 iftrst 2t>a? 
 
 Z><?# / *%/ bread to the hungry. — Isaiah 58 : 7. 
 
 IF there be a pleasure on earth which angels 
 cannot enjoy, and which they might almost 
 envy a man the possession of, it is the power 
 of relieving distress ; if there be a pain which devils 
 might pity a man for enduring, it is the death-bed 
 reflection that we have possessed the power of 
 doing good, but that we have abused and perverted 
 it to purposes of ill. colton. 
 
 In all the human gifts and passions, though they 
 advance nature, yet they are subject to excess ; 
 but charity alone admits no excess. For so we see, 
 by aspiring to be like God in power, the angels 
 transgressed and fell ; but by aspiring to be like 
 God in goodness or love, neither man nor angel 
 ever did or shall transgress. For unto the imita- 
 tion we are called. bacon. 
 
 Beneficence is a duty. He who frequently prac- 
 tises it, and sees his benevolent intentions realized, 
 at length comes really to love him to whom he has 
 done good. kant. 
 
 [92] 
 
iUavenj) cboice^f- ble55in6s PGjh on klyee ! 
 
Evening and morning and at noon, will I cry and pray 
 aloud : and he shall hear my voice. — Psalm 15 : 17. 
 
 MOST holy and eternal God, Lord and Sover- 
 eign of all the creatures, I humbly present 
 to Thy divine majesty myself, my soul and body, 
 my thoughts and my words, my actions and inten- 
 tions, my passions and my sufferings, to be dis- 
 posed by Thee to Thy glory, to be blessed by Thy 
 providence, to be guided by Thy counsel, to be 
 sanctified by Thy Spirit, and afterwards that my 
 soul and body may be received into glory : for 
 nothing can perish which is under Thy custody; 
 and the enemy of souls cannot devour what is Thy 
 portion, nor take it out of Thy hand. This day, 
 O Lord, and all the days of my life I dedicate to 
 Thy honor, and the actions of my calling to the 
 uses of grace, and the religion of all my days to be 
 united to the merits and intercession of my holy 
 Saviour Jesus, that in Him and for Him I may be 
 pardoned and accepted. Amen. 
 
 JEREMY TAYLOR. 
 
 We kneel how weak, we rise how full of power. 
 Why therefore should we do ourselves this wrong, 
 Or others — that we are not always strong, 
 That we ever are overborne with care, 
 That we should ever weak or heartless be, 
 Anxious or troubled, when with us in prayer, 
 And joy and strength and courage are with Thee? 
 
 R. C. TRENCH. 
 
 [93] 
 
Slprtl 
 
 GTInro HDap 
 
 Thy zvordis a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. — 
 Psalm 119: 105. 
 
 ON land and ocean men have rejoiced at the 
 shining of a guiding star. The thankful mar- 
 iner steers over the pathless sea by one steadfast 
 star that befriends him out of the North. The 
 caravan crawling by night across the trackless 
 desert makes the tinkling of the camel bells fol- 
 low the twinkling of the star that points the way. 
 In years now forever happily gone, the bondman 
 fleeing through the forests, wading swamps and 
 swimming streams to elude the bloodhound's scent 
 and escape the overseer's lash, hiding by day, and 
 hurrying by night, rejoiced to see a kindly star that 
 burned in the northern sky like a light in Liberty's 
 window, signalling the way to friendly soil, man- 
 hood, and the powerful shelter of the flag of our 
 Union flying over the border. As surely in spiritual 
 realms as on sea and land a guiding light shines 
 from above. In the sky of every human soul is 
 some starry revelation which, if followed, will lead 
 to the manifold liberty with which Christ makes 
 men free. 
 
 When we cannot see our way, 
 Let us trust and still obey ; 
 He who bids us forward go, 
 Cannot fail the way to show. 
 
 [94] 
 
aprtl 
 
 jpourtl) 2Dap 
 
 Nozv faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of 
 things not seen. — Hebrews n : I. 
 
 AT present I only feel that there is a chamber 
 whose name is Peace, and which opens 
 toward the sun-rising. ... I know that the little 
 film which covers the pupil of my eye is the 
 only wall between her world and mine, but that 
 hair-breadth is as effectual as the space between 
 us and the sun. I cannot see her, I cannot feel 
 when I come home that she comes to the door to 
 welcome me as she always did. I can only hope 
 that when I go through the last door that opens for 
 all of us I may hear her coming step upon the 
 other side. lowell. 
 
 Be patient and be wise ! The eyes of Death 
 
 Look on us with a smile : her soft caress 
 That stills the anguish and that stops the breath, 
 
 Is Nature's ordination, meant to bless 
 Our mortal woes with peaceful nothingness. 
 
 Be not afraid ! The Power, that made the light 
 In your kind eyes, and set the stars on high, 
 
 And gave us love, meant not that all should die 
 Like a brief day-dream quenched in sudden night. 
 
 Think that to die is but to fall asleep 
 And wake refreshed when the new morning breaks, 
 
 And golden day her rosy vigor takes 
 From winds that fan Eternity's white height 
 
 And the white crests of God's perpetual deep. 
 
 [ 95 ] WILLIAM WINTER. 
 
&prtl 
 
 jFtfttj H>a^ 
 
 I flee unto thee to hide me. — Psalm 143 : 9. 
 
 OUR life is hid with Christ in God. Our present 
 life in Him may be compared to that of the 
 seed, a hidden life contending underground, against 
 cold and darkness and obstructions, yet bearing 
 within its breast the indestructible germ of vitality. 
 Death lifts the soul into sunshine for which a 
 hidden, invisible work in the life of the flower has 
 prepared it. 
 
 Then bless thy sacred growth, nor catch 
 At pain; but thrive unseen and dumb ; 
 
 Keep clean, bear fruit, earn life and watch, 
 Till the white-winged reapers come. 
 
 HENRY VAUGHAN. 
 
 I could not ask for you a greater gift than that in 
 the future, when your autumn time of life shall 
 come, you may have the spring-time in your heart. 
 There is only one life where the new never becomes 
 old, where the love is always kept fresh, and is 
 always a first love with increasing freshness ; and 
 that is having the One who says " I am the life ! " 
 
 MARGARET BOTTOME. 
 
 Whate'er events betide, 
 
 Thy will they all perform ; 
 Safe in Thy heart my head I hide, 
 
 Nor fear the coming storm. 
 
 H. F. LYTE. 
 
 [96] 
 
Slprtl 
 
 £>irtl) Da? 
 
 In my Father 's house are many mansions : if it zvere not so 
 I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. — S. 
 John 14: i. 
 
 WHERE does it lie — that land of rest 
 To which the over-wearied pass ? 
 Where are the ways which they have pressed, 
 
 Or the soft meadows green with grass, 
 Through which they go into the shade 
 Of the home-place the Lord has made ? 
 
 So close the door shuts after them, 
 
 Nor sight nor sound can reach us here ; 
 
 Faintly we speak the requiem, 
 
 And still it seems that they are near. 
 
 We cannot tell ; we only know 
 
 That Christ receives them where they go. 
 
 But that is surely heaven enough ; 
 
 Where Jesus is, their home shall be. 
 The storms have ceased which once were rough, 
 
 And gently, o'er a tranquil sea, 
 ICnowing no care because He cared, 
 They reached the home He has prepared. 
 
 Love made it ready. Love is wise. 
 
 Oh, happy they who, safe at home, 
 Have had the tears wiped from their eyes, 
 
 Assured that no more grief will come ; 
 For Christ has borne away their cares, 
 And He has answered all their prayers. 
 
 MARIANNE FARNINGHAM. 
 
 [97] 
 
g>efoentl) Das 
 
 Behold how great a matter a little fire kindleth ! — S. James 
 3=5- 
 
 SHE told a lie, a little lie — 
 It was so small and white, 
 She said, " It cannot help but die 
 
 Before another night." 
 And then she laughed to see it go, 
 And thought it was as white as snow. 
 
 But oh, the lie ! It larger grew, 
 
 Nor paused by night or day, 
 And many watched it as it flew, 
 
 And if it made delay, 
 Like something that was near to death, 
 They blew it onward with their breath. 
 
 And on its track the mildew fell, 
 And there was grief and shame, 
 
 And many a spotless lily-bell 
 Was shrivelled as with flame. 
 
 The wings that were so small and white 
 
 Were large, and strong, and black as night. 
 
 One day a woman stood aghast, 
 
 And trembled in her place, 
 For something flying far and fast 
 
 Had smote her in the face — 
 Something that cried in thunder-tone, 
 I come ! I come ! Take back your own ! 
 
 ELLEN M. H. GATES. 
 [98] 
 
aptti 
 
 €i%l)ti) SPa? 
 
 S c 
 
 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening tvithhold not 
 thy hand. — Ecclesiastes 1 1 : 6. 
 
 A OW with a generous hand ; 
 Pause not for toil or pain ; 
 Weary not through the heat of summer ; 
 
 Weary not through the cold spring rain ; 
 But wait till the autumn comes 
 
 For the sheaves of golden grain. 
 Sow, and look onward, upward, 
 
 Where the starry light appears — 
 Where, in spite of the coward's doubting, 
 
 Or your own heart's trembling fears, 
 You shall reap in joy the harvest 
 
 You have sown to-day in tears. 
 
 ADELAIDE A. PROCTER. 
 
 Once in a while I think of my little orange tree 
 I had a few winters ago. It was very small, in a 
 small pot, but it had so many oranges on it I won- 
 dered whether they would grow or shrink up and 
 fall from the tree. They didn't fall, and they 
 didn't seem to grow, but they lived. ... I came 
 to love my little orange tree. One day when I 
 stood by admiring it, I fancied it said, " O, I am 
 nothing now, but you should see me in my home 
 in California, then you would see an orange tree." 
 It never reached there. But ... we shall some 
 day be where our environment will be perfectly 
 suited to our nature and we shall come to our best. 
 
 MARGARET BOTTOME. 
 
 [99] 
 
Lo I am with you ahvay, even unto the end of the world. — 
 S. Matthew 38 : 20. 
 
 O CHARM to drive away the power of dark- 
 ness, " The Father is with me ! " solace 
 to the poor wounded spirit, "The Father is with 
 me ! " O light for the desolate and broken heart, 
 whatever is taken away, " The Father is with me ! " 
 Have you grasped this precious revelation? You 
 who live in happy homes ; you whose lives are easy 
 and free from want ; you whose wishes are fulfilled, 
 and upon whom life smiles brightly — have you 
 taken to heart this truth, "My Father is with me "? 
 Learn it now. Dwell on it now. Let it give a 
 deeper meaning to your prosperous life, a deeper 
 earnestness to your way of feeling and acting. 
 "The Father is with me wherever I am." And 
 then, when the storms begin to blow, and the great 
 billows break upon you, and in the rush of salt 
 waves you taste at last the bitterness of suffering, 
 then you will know as a comfort which nothing can 
 take from you : "The Father is with me." 
 
 CANON WYNNE. 
 
 My bark is wafted to the strand 
 
 By breath divine ; 
 And on the helm there rests a hand 
 
 Other than mine. 
 
 [100] 
 
j% ///«/ receiveth seed into the good ground is he that heareth 
 the zvord, and under standeth it; which also beareth fruit, 
 and bringeth forth, some an hundred fold, some sixty, sofjie 
 thirty.— S. Matthew 13: 13. 
 
 THOUGH to-day may not fulfil 
 All thy hopes, have patience still. 
 
 P. GERHARDT. 
 
 He does not need to transplant us into a different 
 field, but right where we are, with just the circum- 
 stances that surround us, He makes His sun to shine 
 and His dew to fall upon us, and transforms the very 
 things that were before our greatest hindrances, into 
 the chiefest and most blessed means of our growth. 
 . . . No difficulties in your case can baffle Him. 
 No dwarfing of your growth in years that are past, 
 no apparent dryness of your inward springs of life, 
 no crookedness or deformity in any of your past 
 development, can in the least mar the perfect work 
 that He will accomplish, if you will only put your- 
 selves absolutely into His hands, and let Him have 
 His own way with you. h. w. s. 
 
 It is the spring ! prepare the seeds . 
 
 And tender plants new bloom to show, 
 Turn the rich earth, pull up the weeds, 
 
 And clear each cumbered garden row. 
 Waste not the wealth of April showers, 
 
 For sunshine which our need befriends, 
 Think ! on these evanescent hours 
 
 The harvest of the year depends. 
 
 [101] CAROLINE NORTON. 
 
aprtl 
 
 The Lord shall guide thee continually. — Isaiah 63 : 2. 
 
 THE light of God's wisdom can make a path 
 for us even across the stormy sea of life. 
 His guidance shows a track where we can pilot our 
 little human craft safely. His love will bring us 
 into port when the voyage is over. 
 
 Light of life so sweetly streaming, 
 Down upon life's troubled sea, 
 
 With the love of Jesus beaming, 
 Shine, shine on me. 
 
 Light of life that knows no fading 
 From all changes Thou art free ; 
 
 Holy light that knows no shading 
 Shine, shine on me. 
 
 Light of life, in days of gladness 
 To Thy radiance I would flee ; 
 
 Be my strength in days of sadness, 
 Shine, shine on me. bonar. 
 
 May none of us founder before we reach the har- 
 bor, but may every one of us have that pilot in the 
 ship, that guidance, that living Christ, that we shall 
 be sure, through calm and conflict, of reaching the 
 land which He appoints ; and may it be Immanuel's 
 land — that place of rest where no storms are, and 
 where no tears wet the eye. beecher. 
 
 [102] 
 
®toclfd) 2Pa? 
 
 Be of good courage. — Numbers 13: 20. 
 
 AT the bloody battle of Marengo the French 
 lines fell back in a complete rout, and the 
 officers rushed up to their commander, crying : 
 "The battle is lost ! " "Yes," exclaimed the gen- 
 eral, " one battle is lost, but there is time to win 
 another." Inspired by his faith and courage, the 
 officers hurried back, turned the head of the re- 
 treating column, and when in a few hours the last 
 gun was fired, the French camped on the field of 
 battle. Marengo had been won. 
 
 So if we are thinking of battles lost the past 
 year, in school or in business, or, worse still, in 
 character — lost temper, lost patience, lost spirit- 
 uality or prayerfulness — let us remember that 
 there is yet time to win another battle. Raise 
 the standard once more, take fresh courage, put 
 on the whole armor, and God will surely give us 
 the victory. w. h. pope. 
 
 If the day's brief pain and passing care 
 Have seemed too much and too hard to bear ; 
 If under its trivial press and smart 
 Thou hast failed in temper and lost in heart ; 
 If the undiscouraged, journeying sun, 
 As it sinks to rest with its travail done, 
 Leaves thee all spent with trouble and sorrow - 
 How shalt thou face the harder to-morrow ? 
 
 SUSAN COOLIDGE. 
 
 [103] 
 
aprtl 
 
 Ye cannot serve God and mammon. — S. Matthew 6 : 24. 
 
 IT is the old choice which still is presented to 
 every soul ; the old crisis which reappears in 
 every experience. Caesar, or Christ, that is the ques- 
 tion ; the vast, attractive, sceptical world, with its 
 pleasures and ambitions, and its prodigal promise, 
 or the meek, majestic, and winning figure of Him 
 of Nazareth? 
 
 The election remains for each of us ; and the 
 moment of the election, in the shaded and solemn 
 " Valley of Decision," will be memorable in our 
 history, when suns for us have ceased to shine ! 
 
 It is not the lower appetites in man which offer 
 the sharpest or stubbornest resistance to the man- 
 dates of Christ, though these have their place, and 
 often a large one, in such opposition. 
 
 The love of ease ; the indisposition to any pro- 
 tracted and patient labor for an ideal cause ; the 
 eager passion for secular success, the pride which 
 insists on determining its own plan and path ; the 
 weakened impression of things supernatural ; even 
 the intellectual habit which finds miracles unscien- 
 tific, and insists on applying its own measures to the 
 whole career and office of the Lord — all these and 
 other kindred forces now affect minds encompassed 
 by the world, to encourage and confirm their reluc- 
 tance toward Christ. 
 
 [104] 
 
aprti 
 
 ifourteentl) Da? 
 
 Your Father knozveth what things ye have need of. — S. 
 Matthew 6 : 8. 
 
 BE content to be a child, and let thy Father 
 proportion out daily to thee what light, what 
 power, what exercises, what straits, what fears, what 
 troubles Fie sees fit for thee. i. pennington. 
 
 Song of the Seeds. 
 
 'Tis so dark, so dark, here underground ! 
 
 We reach and we struggle, we know not where ; 
 We long for something we have not found, 
 
 We seek and we find not, but cannot despair. 
 
 It is warm and sweet here under the earth, 
 And so peaceful too, — why can not we stay? 
 
 What is this change that is named a birth ? 
 And what is that wonderful thing called Day? 
 
 But a power is on us, we may not wait j 
 Within us we feel it struggle and thrill, 
 
 While upward we reach to find our fate, 
 
 And this ceaseless, mysterious want to fulfil. 
 
 They say that at last we shall reach the Air — 
 Will breathing be freedom, and Light be Life ? 
 
 What mystic change shall we meet with there 
 When the blossom shall crown this mute, strange 
 
 life? FLORENCE SMITH. 
 
 God goes before and ploughs, and we are but the 
 seed dropped into His furrows. 
 
 [i°5] 
 
9lpril 
 
 tfifttmti) H>ap 
 
 Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. — S. 
 Matthew 12: 34. 
 
 LET us beware of losing our enthusiasm. Let 
 us ever glory in something ; and strive to 
 retain our admiration for all that would ennoble, 
 and our interest in all that would enrich and beau- 
 tify our life. phillips brooks. 
 
 Enthusiasm is more than anything else, a broad 
 consciousness of real relations, and a joyous activ- 
 ity therein. The fuller one's appreciation of his 
 proper relation to God's enterprises, and the more 
 lively his efforts therein, the larger the life he 
 lives. He beholds raying off from himself a thou- 
 sand-fold chords of oneness with God's world and 
 universe. He realizes that over every one he can 
 send thrilling influences of power and good. Doing 
 it, he lives joyously in the highest intents of his 
 existence. He humbly discovers himself to be a 
 fountain of beneficence, achieving possibilities of 
 blessing earth and gladdening heaven. 
 
 JOHN J. McCABE. 
 
 Beautiful is young enthusiasm ; keep it to the 
 end, and be more and more correct in fixing on 
 the object of it. It is a terrible thing to be wrong 
 in that — the source of all our miseries and confu- 
 sions whatever. carlyle. 
 [106] 
 
aprtt 
 
 fyimmti) TOE 
 
 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteous- 
 ness, for they shall be filled. — S. Matthew 5 : 6. 
 
 I WEARY, for the day is hard and long ; 
 I have forgot my early morning song ; 
 Footsore and faint, upon the ground I lie ; 
 Out of the dust I only send a cry 
 For Thee. 
 
 I hunger, for my food is bitter bread, 
 
 Mingled with falling tears that I have shed ; 
 
 Out of the arms of death or ere I die, 
 
 My soul lifts up her pleading cry 
 
 For Thee. 
 
 I thirst ; the cooling springs no more o'erflow, 
 The summer drouth has touched their sources so ; 
 
 My spirit fails beneath a fervid sky, 
 Yet my hot lips still tremble with a cry 
 For Thee. 
 
 O Way of Life ! draw in my weary feet ! 
 
 O Bread of Life ! of thee I fain would eat ! 
 O Living Water ! fill my chalice high ! 
 
 O Blessed Christ ! now hear my suppliant cry 
 For Thee. mary a. ripley. 
 
 The mountains lift their crests so high, that weary 
 clouds, which have no rest in the sky, love to come 
 to them, and, wrapping about their tops, distil their 
 moisture upon them. Thus mountains hold com- 
 merce with God's invisible ocean, and, like good 
 men, draw supplies from the unseen. 
 
 [107] BEECHER. 
 
s&fbmteentl) arm? 
 
 april 
 
 A man that hath friends must shoiv himself friendly. — 
 
 Proverbs 33 : 24. 
 
 A friend loveth at all times. — Proverbs 17: 17. 
 
 IF we would build on a sure foundation in friend- 
 ship, we must love our friends for their sakes 
 rather than our own. charlotte bronte. 
 
 Be careful to make friendship the child and not 
 the father of virtue ; for many strongly knit minds 
 are rather good friends than good men. 
 
 PHILIP SIDNEY. 
 
 The friendship of high and sanctified spirits loses 
 nothing by death but its alloy : failings disappear, 
 and the virtues of those whose " faces we shall 
 behold no more " appear greater and more sacred 
 when beheld through the shades of the sepulchre. 
 
 ROBERT HALL. 
 
 The greatest medicine is a true friend. 
 
 SIR WILLIAM TEMPLE. 
 
 A faithful friend is the true image of the Deity. 
 
 NAPOLEON. 
 
 How are holy friendships possible? In mutual 
 devotedness to the good and true. A man, be the 
 heavens ever praised, is sufficient for himself; yet 
 were ten men, united in love, capable of being and 
 of doing what ten thousand singly would fail in. 
 Infinite is the help man can yield to man. 
 [108] 
 
apta 
 
 Ctgljtemtl) 2r>a? 
 
 Whosoever is bom of God overcometh the world. — S. John 
 
 4=5- 
 
 Follozvers of them zvho through faith and patience inherit the 
 promises. — Hebrews 6:12. 
 
 THOSE who are now at rest were once like 
 ourselves. They were once weak, faulty, sin- 
 ful ; they had their burdens and hindrances, their 
 slumbering and weariness, their failures and their 
 falls. 
 
 But now they have overcome. Their life was 
 once homely and commonplace. Their day ran out 
 as ours. Morning and noon and night came and 
 went to them as to us. Their life, too, was as lonely 
 and sad as yours. Little fretful circumstances and 
 frequent disturbing changes wasted away their hours 
 as yours. There is nothing in your life that was 
 not in theirs ; there was nothing in theirs but may 
 be also in yours. They have overcome, each one, 
 and one by one ; each in his turn, when the day 
 came, and God called him to trial. And so shall 
 you likewise. h. e. manning. 
 
 Where now with pain thou treadest, trod 
 The whitest of the saints of God ! 
 To show thee where their feet were set, 
 The light which led them shineth yet. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 When we comprehend the fulness of what death 
 will do for us, in all our outlook and forelook, dying 
 is triumphing. beecher. 
 
 [109] 
 
Slprtl 
 
 0mtm\t\) HOa^ 
 
 To every thing there is a season. . . . He hath made every 
 thing beatitiful in his time. — Ecclesiastes 3:1. 
 For, to, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone ; the 
 flowers appear on the earth ; the time of the singing of birds 
 is come. . . . The fig tree putteth forth her green figs. — 
 Song of Solomon 2: 11, 12, 13. 
 
 NATURE becomes to the soul a perpetual 
 letter from God, freshly written every day 
 and each hour. 
 
 The sun does not shine for a few trees and 
 flowers, but for the wide world's joy. 
 
 Flowers are the sweetest things that God ever 
 made, and forgot to put a soul into. 
 
 The superfluous blossoms on a fruit tree are 
 meant to symbolize the large way in which God 
 loves to do pleasant things. 
 
 As flowers never put on their best clothes for 
 Sunday, but wear their spotless raiment and exhale 
 their odor every day, so let your Christian life, free 
 from stain, ever give forth the fragrance of the love 
 of God. 
 
 The lonely pine on the mountain-top waves its 
 sombre boughs and cries: "Thou art my sun!" 
 And the little meadow-violet lifts its cup of blue, 
 and whispers with its perfumed breath, " Thou art 
 my sun ! " And the grain in a thousand fields 
 rustles in the wind and makes answer, " Thou art 
 my sun ! " beecher. 
 
 [HO] 
 
april 
 
 ®tomtietlj SDay 
 
 Is there no balm in Gilead ? is there no physician there? — 
 Jeremiah 9 : 22. 
 
 Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, hath eternal 
 life; and I will raise him tip at the last day. — S. John 6: 54. 
 
 THERE are necessities in our hearts which 
 nothing human can supply ; passions which 
 nothing human can either satisfy or control ; powers 
 which nothing human can either adequately excite 
 or occupy ; and oh, there are sorrows, deep sor- 
 rows, which will not be assuaged ; wounds which, 
 if the balm in Gilead cannot heal, must fester for- 
 evermore ; sins, far beyond the reach of all skill 
 but that of the Great Physician of souls. 
 
 R. J. BRECKINRIDGE, D.D. 
 
 We shall not be critics then, pedants then, little 
 technical inquirers then. We shall feel that the 
 cross, and that alone, can go right into our life, 
 with the answer to our difficulties, and the balm 
 for our wound and sorrow. Joseph parker. 
 
 Just as I am, — poor, wretched, blind ; 
 Sight, riches, healing of the mind, 
 Yea, all I need, in Thee I find, — 
 O Lamb of God, I come ! 
 
 Just as I am, — Thou wilt receive ; 
 Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve ; 
 Because Thy promise, I believe, — 
 O Lamb of God, I come ! 
 [in] 
 
aptfi 
 
 For my name's sake will I defer mine anger. . . . For 
 ntine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it. — 
 Isaiah 48: 9-1 1. 
 
 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on 
 thee; because he trusteth in thee. — Isaiah 26 : 3. 
 
 IT requires a great amount of courage to conquer 
 self. " He that ruleth his own spirit is greater 
 than he that taketh a city ; " and though the name 
 of the one that conquers himself may not be em- 
 blazoned and immortalized as that of the general 
 who captures a city, yet it may be noticed by a 
 child who may be led in the same way to conquer. 
 
 " For my name's sake will I defer 
 
 Mine anger," said the King. 
 For His name's sake, for His own sake, 
 
 Still unfaltering 
 In His kindly patience, He 
 
 Doth silent wait as then, 
 Doth silent wait, and silent watch, 
 
 This Lord and King of men. 
 
 " For my name's sake, for mine own sake : " 
 Oh, wise and subtle speech, 
 That leadeth us, that showeth us, 
 
 The height that we might reach ; 
 That height of heights, where Love enthroned, 
 
 Reins sov'reign of the soul, 
 And guides the impulse and the will 
 With sure and sweet control. 
 [112] 
 
£pril 
 
 Then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught tip 
 together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; 
 and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort 
 one another with these words. — I Thessalonians 17: 18. 
 
 WHEN our last summons shall come to us, 
 may it not be the surprise of sorrow, but 
 rather of joy, and may we hear in the voice of 
 death the call of God, " Come up hither." And 
 when we reach home and Christ may we find there 
 awaiting us, safe and glorified, those whom we have 
 loved and lost — those who have been called from 
 our side to await us in the clouds. 
 
 The heart which, like a staff, was one 
 For mine to lean and rest upon, 
 The strongest on the longest day 
 With steadfast love, is caught away — 
 And yet my days go on, go on. 
 
 Whatever's lost, it first was won ; 
 We will not struggle nor impugn. 
 Perhaps the cup was broken here 
 That heaven's new wine might show more clear. 
 I praise Thee while my days go on. 
 
 I praise Thee while my days go on ; 
 I love Thee while my days go on ! 
 Through dark and dearth, through fire and frost, 
 With emptied arms and treasure lost, 
 I thank Thee while my days go on. 
 
 MRS. BROWNING. 
 [US] 
 
Gttoent^tlnrti E>ap 
 
 For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten 
 Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but 
 have everlasting life. — S. John 3 : 16. 
 
 LOVE strong as death — nay, stronger, 
 Love mightier than the grave, 
 Broad as the earth, and longer 
 
 Than ocean's wildest wave ; 
 This is the love that sought us, 
 This is the love that bought us, 
 This is the love that brought us 
 
 To gladdest day from saddest night, 
 
 From deepest shame to glory bright, 
 
 From depths of death to life's fair height ; 
 This is the love that leadeth 
 
 Us to His table here, 
 
 This the love that spreadeth 
 
 For us the royal cheer. 
 
 When temptation sore is rife, 
 When we faint amidst the strife, 
 Thou, whose death hath been our life, 
 Save us, Holy Jesu. 
 
 So, with hope in Thee made fast, 
 When death's bitterness is past 
 We may see Thy face at last : 
 
 Save us, Holy Jesu. 
 
 LITANY OF THE PASSION. 
 [114] 
 
3£toeM£=fourtt) 2Dap 
 
 Ye have not passed this way heretofore. — Joshua 3 : 4. 
 
 DO not draw back from any way because you 
 never have passed there before. The truth, 
 the task, the joy, the suffering on whose border you 
 are standing, oh, my friend, to-day go into it with- 
 out a fear : only go into it with God who has been 
 always with you. phillips brooks. 
 
 And thither thou, beloved, and thither I 
 May set our heart, and set our face, and go 
 Faint, yet pursuing home on tireless feet. 
 
 CHRISTINA ROSSETTI. 
 
 Heaven the country, Christ the way. 
 
 We know the way : thank God who hath shown us 
 
 the way ! 
 Jesus Christ our way to beautiful Paradise, 
 Jesus Christ the Same forever, the Same to-day. 
 
 CHRISTINA ROSSETTI. 
 
 Through love to light ! Oh, wonderful the way 
 That leads from darkness to the perfect day ! 
 From darkness and from sorrow of the night 
 To morning that comes singing o'er the sea. 
 Through love to light ! Through light, O God, to 
 
 Thee 
 Who art the love of love, the eternal light of light. 
 
 RICHARD WATSON GILDER. 
 ["5l 
 
®toentp ; fiftl) sr>ag 
 
 For the goodness of God endureth continually . — Psalm 52:1. 
 For his merciful kindness is great toward us : and the truth 
 of the Lord endureth forever. — Psalm 117: 2. 
 
 IN the petty round of duties 
 When the strength and patience fail, 
 In the heat and stress of battle 
 
 When the bravest spirits quail, 
 In the hour of self- surrender, 
 
 Dwell not on the painful strife, 
 But remember God who loves thee 
 Planned thy lot and place in life. 
 
 Every battle with thy self-hood, 
 
 Every failure overcome, 
 Every harshness unresented 
 
 While the lips keep bravely dumb, 
 Brings us nearer to God's promise 
 
 And His pardoning gift of love, 
 lifts the soul from earthly shadows 
 
 To the perfect life above. 
 
 Lean far out into the future, — 
 
 It will teach thee how to wait ; 
 Look alone to God's sweet mercy, 
 
 With no thought of chance or fate ; 
 And beyond earth's transient echoes, 
 
 Leading, spirit-like, before, 
 Hear the promise still repeated, 
 
 " It endures forevermore ! " 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 [116] 
 
{Etoent^sijrtf) ar>ai? 
 
 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in 
 trouble. — Psalm 46 : I . 
 
 THERE is need in adversity to cling fast to 
 God's hand. The Scripture precepts are full 
 of point and meaning as to the perils of merely 
 human success. But great and dreadful is the peril 
 of those about whom a fierce and relentless army 
 of human reverses has encamped, who see the 
 failure of one human hope after another, with only 
 winter and night as the emblems of their life. How 
 precious to all in such sorrow is the sun of God's 
 love, that is always shining, the blessings always 
 ready to spring up in the heart worn with the cares 
 of earth, when that heart turns to receive the in- 
 fluences of heaven. 
 
 Ah ! feeble, deftless hands of time, 
 
 That are not apt their tasks to do ! 
 Ah ! dim, weak eyes that ought to shine, 
 
 Dull thought that cannot thought pursue ! 
 Yet some wise hand controls my hand, 
 And light gleams till I understand. 
 And through the days, whate'er betide, 
 
 I feel a mystery of aid 
 Within me, and on every side, 
 
 So that I need not be dismayed. 
 Where'er I go, a Helper there 
 
 Receives me into tender care. 
 
 MARIANNE FARNINGHAM. 
 [117] 
 
We walk by faith, not by sight. — 2 Corinthians 5 : 7. 
 
 NOT by mere moods, not by how I feel to-day, 
 or how I felt yesterday, may I know whether 
 I am indeed living the life of God, but only by 
 knowing that God is using me to help others. No 
 mood is so bright that it can do without that 
 warrant. No mood so dark that, having that war- 
 rant, it need despair. phillips brooks. 
 
 We cannot kindle when we will 
 The fire which in the heart resides, 
 
 The spirit bloweth and is still, 
 In sympathy our soul abides : 
 
 But tasks in hours of insight willed 
 
 Can be through hours of gloom fulfilled. 
 
 With aching hands and bleeding feet 
 We dig and heap, lay stone by stone ; 
 
 We bear the burden and the heat 
 
 Of the long day and wish 'twere done. 
 
 Not till the hours of light return 
 
 All we have built do we discern. 
 
 MATTHEW ARNOLD. 
 
 Follow the teachings of God's providence blindly 
 if He so wills it, but looking back at the end of 
 life we shall see that it was the only possible way for 
 us to reach our best development. 
 
 [118] 
 
Slprtl 
 
 Great is 'thy faith ; be it unto thee even as thou wilt. — S. 
 Matthew 15: 28. 
 
 FAITH is the king's knowledge of his own 
 kingdom. A weak man who has no faith in 
 Christ is a king who does not know his own royalty. 
 But the soul which in its need cries out and claims 
 its need's dominion ..." Come to me, O Christ, 
 for I need Thee," finds itself justified. Its bold 
 and humble cry is honoured and answered instantly. 
 The answer comes, " Great is thy faith : be it unto 
 thee as thou wilt." "What wilt thou that I should 
 do unto thee?" 
 
 Faith adds new charms to earthly bliss, 
 And saves me from its snares ; 
 
 Its aid, in every duty, brings 
 And softens all my cares. 
 
 Wide it unveils celestial worlds 
 Where deathless pleasures reign ; 
 
 And bids me seek my portion there, 
 Nor bids me seek in vain. 
 
 There, there unshaken would I rest, 
 
 Till this frail body dies ; 
 And then on faith's triumphant wings, 
 
 To endless glory rise. 
 
 TURNER. 
 
 [119] 
 
april 
 
 For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth co??ieth knowl- 
 edge and understanding. — Proverbs 2 : 6. 
 
 BIBLE study teaches how to grapple with spir- 
 itual problems before those questions become 
 so profound as to defy solution. What a safeguard 
 is this from folly — what a protection from danger ! 
 When temptations come it finds the soul so an- 
 chored in the faith that it is not moved from its 
 foundations of righteousness. Its convictions are 
 clear and well-wrought out, for it has settled the 
 solemn question of life once for all and is freed 
 from doubt and unrest. Bible study develops 
 latent powers. It brings into the life an object, 
 into the heart a joy, into the future a hope. New 
 desires and beliefs start into being. Then thoughts 
 which had been but dimly outlined become visible, 
 and thus the soul-education is begun. Divine 
 meanings sometimes flash into view from the study 
 of some single verse which has long seemed ob- 
 scure, and then the spiritual perceptions start up 
 into swift and beautiful creation. With magnetic 
 force they grasp the complex meanings and the 
 hidden strength. martha capps Oliver. 
 
 What glory gilds the sacred page ! 
 
 Majestic, like the sun, 
 It gives a light to every age ; 
 It gives, but borrows none. 
 
 WILLIAM COWPEPv. 
 
 [120] 
 
X&tyttitty 2Dap 
 
 A still, small voice. — I Kings 19: 12. " 
 
 HOW the sorrows and perplexities of life mul- 
 tiply and darken around us in the midnight 
 watches ! Then is the time when the soul should 
 lean hard upon the Everlasting Arms, remembering 
 that if we have wandered there is one strong to 
 restore. If we have sinned there is one ready to 
 forgive. 
 
 Oh, the waiting in the watches of the night ! 
 
 In the darkness, desolation, and contrition, and 
 
 afright ; 
 In the awful hush that holds us shut away from 
 
 all delight ; 
 The ever weary fancy that forever weary goes, 
 Recounting ever over every aching loss it knows, 
 The ever weary eyelids gasping ever for repose — 
 In the dreary, weary watches of the night. 
 Dark, stifling dark — the watches of the night. 
 With tingling nerves at tension, how the blackness 
 
 flashes white. 
 With spectral visitations smitten past the inner sight ! 
 What shuddering sense of wrongs we've wrought 
 
 that may not be redressed. 
 Of tears we did not brush away — of lips we left 
 
 unpressed, 
 And hands that we let fall, with all their loyalty 
 unguessed ! 
 Ah ! the empty, empty watches of the night ! 
 
 [121] JAMES W. RILEY. 
 
9 
 
 i?irsft sr>ap 
 
 / must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day. — 
 S. John 9 : 4. 
 
 May Song. 
 
 <* f*% EE, sipping sweets from the nodding white 
 j£j clover, 
 
 Lingering long where the honey-dew drips, 
 Teach me a lesson, O busy brown rover, 
 Tell me what theme I should keep on my lips. 
 " Work," hums the bee, " be ceaselessly doing, 
 Garner your stores in the bright morning hours ; 
 Fair is the day, but the dim night pursuing 
 Drops her dark mantle o'er close-folded flowers." 
 
 Lily, my priestess, so white and so saintly, 
 Lifting your face to the sun's golden glow, 
 Preach me a sermon, oh, whisper it faintly, 
 Can they live purely who live here below ? 
 
 " Turn your face skyward ; base souls in depres- 
 sion, 
 
 Bend the gaze downward, where clods bound the 
 view ; 
 
 Nature makes ever her silent confession ; 
 
 Growth seeks the light, pure souls seek the true." 
 
 MRS. JOHN JAY McCABE. 
 [122] 
 
$®ay 
 
 gtfxonti 2Da^ 
 
 The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be the 
 name of the Lord. — Job 1 : 21. 
 
 DEATH is the swelling of the seed that is dried 
 up, and that is waiting for its planting. 
 Death is the bursting April that all winter long has 
 lain close-bound within itself, waiting for its life of 
 efflorescence. Death is entering on summer from 
 the frigid zone. When you look on it in the light 
 of this grander disclosure, this prophetic thought 
 of the apostle, the wonder is that men want to live, 
 that they do not hunger and thirst for dying. For 
 death is coronation ; it is stepping from bond- 
 age into liberty, from darkness into light, it is blos- 
 soming ; it is going out of a prison-house into the 
 glory of the Father's community. When the hero 
 goes do not cover him with black, nor with any of 
 the circumstances that related to him here. Chris- 
 tianity after a few thousand years ought to have 
 taught man, that the going out of life is for honour 
 and glory and immortality. beecher. 
 
 Oh, to be ready when death shall come ; 
 Oh, to be ready to hasten home ; 
 
 No earthward clinging, 
 
 No lingering gaze, 
 
 No sigh at parting, 
 
 No sore amaze, 
 But sweetly, gently to pass away, 
 From the world's dim twilight into day. 
 
 [123] 
 
$$ay 
 
 ®tnrt) HDap 
 
 Yea, I will help thee. — Isaiah 16 : 10. 
 
 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like- 
 minded one towards another according to Christ Jesus. — > 
 Romans 5:5. 
 
 BE angel to some one to-day : 
 Thou knowest not who it may be ; 
 Some fallen one found by the way, 
 That asketh assistance from thee. 
 
 Mayhap at the Beautiful Gates, 
 
 Where circumspect worshippers throng, 
 A wandering beggar awaits 
 
 To catch the sweet service of song. 
 
 It may be that somebody's child, 
 
 Aweary with wages of sin, 
 Bedraggled with filth and defiled, 
 
 Is anxious true life to begin. 
 
 Then open thy heart and thy hand, 
 The supplicant turn not away, 
 
 But give what thou hast at command — 
 Be angel to some one to-day. 
 
 Thou knowest not but in that hour 
 Thou checkest the sob or the tear, 
 
 The Author of life-giving power, 
 The Master Himself may appear. 
 
 [124] 
 
^a? 
 
 jfourtl) 2Dap 
 
 But they shall sit every man under his vine and his fig 
 tree. — Micah 4 : 4. 
 
 THERE are abodes in all of our cities, poor, 
 humble rooms ; yet the men who live in them 
 would die rather than to surrender them. For each 
 house is home to some of these men. Whenever 
 he thinks of it he sees angels of God hovering 
 around it. The ladders of heaven are let down to 
 it. The children may come up after awhile, and 
 win high position, but not until their dying day 
 will they forget that humble roof, under which 
 their father rested and their mother sang. Oh, if 
 you would gather up all the tender memories, all 
 the lights and shades of the heart, and had only 
 four letters to spell out their magnitude and eter- 
 nity of meaning, you would, with streaming eyes 
 and trembling hand, write it out in these four living 
 capitals, " HOME." talmage. 
 
 Our Mothers. 
 Hundreds of stars in the lovely sky, 
 
 Hundreds of shells on the shore together, 
 Hundreds of birds that go singing by, 
 Hundreds of birds in the sunny weather. 
 
 Hundreds of dewdrops to greet the dawn, 
 Hundreds of bees in the purple clover, 
 
 Hundreds of butterflies on the lawn, 
 
 But only one mother, the wide world over. 
 
 THE ADVANCE. 
 
 05] 
 
iftftt) a>ap 
 
 They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great good- 
 ness. — Psalm 1 65 : 7. 
 
 HE will revere those times, and in our memo- 
 ries preserve and still keep fresh, like flowers 
 in water, those happier days. richter. 
 
 Memory seizes the passing moment, fixes it upon 
 the canvas, and hangs the picture on the walls of 
 the inner chamber of the soul, for her to look upon 
 when she will. haven. 
 
 There are recollections as pleasant as they are 
 sacred and eternal. There are words and faces 
 and places that never lose their hold upon the 
 heart. There may be words that we seldom hear 
 amid the whirl of life ; faces that we may never see 
 on earth again ; but they had a controlling influence 
 over us, and they can never be wholly forgotten. 
 The flight of years cannot sully their innocence, 
 nor diminish their interest, and eternity will pre- 
 serve them among the dearest reminiscences of 
 earth. We may meet and love other faces, we may 
 treasure other words, we may have other joys, 
 but those familiar faces, and those dear old places, 
 remain invested with a fadeless beauty. They be- 
 come the stars in the firmament of youth, lighting 
 up the night of the past, and when in later years 
 the shades of sorrow gather around the soul, 
 memory reveals those stars still shining. 
 
 HENRY A. WALKER. 
 
 [126] 
 
The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. 
 — Jeremiah 17:9. 
 
 SELFISHNESS may masquerade as love. It 
 may christen its own sins, foibles, by condon- 
 ing the offences of others, meaning at the same 
 time to lug its own sins through the breach in the 
 legal wall that it has made for other people's delin- 
 quencies. That self-cheat is a fruit of the heart that 
 is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. 
 
 To escape this error the Bible must be constantly 
 studied. It is a " lamp unto the feet and a light 
 unto the path," but if it is left on a book-shelf 
 opened only on special occasions, ... it cannot 
 light one through these difficult ways. 
 
 "The heart is deceitful" ; this defines sin clearly, 
 warns the transgressor plainly, and swings its lurid 
 danger signal over the abyss of despair, and sets 
 forth distinctly the fact that no amiability, not 
 even the moralities, can cure sin. 
 
 Lord ! we would put aside 
 The gauds and baubles of this mortal life — 
 Weak self-conceit, the foolish tools of strife, 
 
 The tawdry garb of pride — 
 
 And pray, in Christ's dear name, 
 Thy grace to deck us in the robes of light ; 
 That at His coming we may stand aright, 
 
 And fear no sudden shame. 
 
 AN ADVENT CAROL. 
 [197] 
 
§>ei)entl) SDap 
 
 We shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on 
 incorrtiption, and this mortal must put on immortality. — 
 I Corinthians 15 : 53. 
 
 IF life be regarded as the commencement of 
 immortality, it will be freed from trifling asso- 
 ciations, and still more from those which are low 
 and degrading. It will assume a permanence in 
 our eyes from its first moment to its last. It will 
 be the opening of a boundless career. Death will 
 no more be a violent extinction, a fathomless and 
 frightful chasm, a blank oblivion ; but it will be a 
 change, a landing-place, an entrance into the ever- 
 lasting abode of spirits and of God. It will be 
 regarded by the contemplative as 
 Life's last shore, 
 
 Where vanities are vain no more, 
 
 Where all pursuits their goal obtain, 
 
 And life is all retouched again ; 
 
 When in their bright results shall rise 
 
 Thoughts, virtues, friendships, griefs, and joys. 
 
 With rest almost in sight the spirit faints, 
 And flesh and heart grow weary at the last ; 
 
 Our feet would walk the city of the saints, 
 Even before the silent gate is passed. 
 
 Teach us to wait until Thou shalt appear — 
 To know that all Thy ways and times are just : 
 
 Thou seest what we believe and fear, 
 Lord, make us also to believe and trust ! 
 
 [128] PHCEBE CARY. 
 
0pay 
 
 Ctg^tl) 2Dap 
 
 Say to them that are of a fearful heart : Be strong, fear 
 not. — Isaiah 35 : 4. 
 
 LET not future things disturb thee, for thou 
 wilt come to them, if it shall be necessary, 
 having with thee the same reason which thou now 
 usest for present things. 
 
 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. 
 
 Be quiet, why this anxious heed 
 
 About thy tangled ways ? 
 God knows them all, He giveth speed, 
 
 And He allows delays. e. w. 
 
 Let God do with me what He will, anything He 
 will ; whatever it be, it will either be heaven itself 
 or some beginning of it. william mountford. 
 
 Cast all thy care on God. See that all thy cares 
 be such as thou canst cast on God, and then hold 
 none back. Never brood over thyself ; but cast 
 thy whole self, even this very care which distresseth 
 thee, upon God. Be not anxious about little things, 
 if thou wouldst learn to trust God with thine all. 
 Act upon faith in little things, commit thy daily 
 cares and anxieties to Him ; and He will strengthen 
 thy faith for any greater trials. e. b. pusey. 
 
 What though I stand and work alone? 
 
 In some fair, unborn year 
 From seed which I in tears have sown 
 
 A harvest will appear. 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 [129] 
 
$int\) HDap 
 
 Let all thy ways be established. — Proverbs 4 : 26. 
 
 DO you know what it is to be established ? God 
 give us the power to form habits that we may 
 crystallize character. All improvement in the fin- 
 gers of the knitter, the eye of the painter, the 
 tongue of the speaker, the hand of the artisan, is 
 the gift of habit. Prayer, faith, regularity, all that 
 builds up steadiness of character, is augmented by 
 habit. Habit is the parent's hold upon the child, 
 the good man's power against Satan. To form 
 habit apply yourself to a given plan industriously, 
 punctually, and persistently. 
 
 Having this power in your mind, use it in acquir- 
 ing habits of obedience and of faith. 
 
 To repel one's task will only make it more diffi- 
 cult ; to accept it is the sole way to make it tolera- 
 ble. And, rightly accepted, peace, if not happiness, 
 will follow its fulfilment, " as waves flow in the fur- 
 row of the ship's strong keel." 
 
 j. j. Mclaughlin. 
 
 My half-day's work is done, 
 
 And this is all my part, 
 I give a patient God 
 
 My constant heart, 
 And clasp His banner still, 
 
 Though all the blue be dim ; 
 These stripes, no less than stars, 
 
 Lead after Him. 
 [130] 
 
Day unto day utter eth speech. — Psalm 19: 2. 
 
 THERE is no day born but comes like a stroke 
 of music into the world, and sings itself all 
 the way through. No event is discordant. All times 
 and passages are full of melody, if we would but 
 hear it; as in tumultuous floods and rushing falls of 
 water, every drop is as obedient to the laws of 
 nature as if it lay in the bosom of the tranquil lake, 
 so all things, wildest excesses as well as calmest 
 flows, are obedient to God ; His providence is in 
 them, stately and as serene going on to its own 
 ends and manifestations. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 This is the earth He walked on ; not alone 
 That Asian country keeps the stain ; 
 'Tis not alone that far Judean plain, 
 Mountain and river ! Lo, the sun that shone 
 
 On Him shines now on us ; when day is gone 
 The moon of Galilee comes forth again 
 And lights our path as His : an endless chain 
 Of years and sorrows makes the round world one. 
 
 The air we breathe, He breathed, — the very air 
 That took the mould and music of His high 
 And God-like speech. Since then shall mortal 
 dare 
 
 With base thought front the ever-sacred sky, — 
 Soil with foul deed the ground whereon He laid 
 In holy death His pale, immortal head ? 
 
 RICHARD WATSON GILDER. 
 [131] 
 
Clebentf) 2Dap 
 
 Grievous words stir up anger. — Proverbs 15 : 1. 
 
 THE silence of our innocence persuades when 
 speaking fails. Shakespeare. 
 
 Since I cannot govern my tongue, though within 
 my own teeth, how can I hope to govern the tongues 
 of others? franklin. 
 
 The Tone of the Voice. 
 It is not so much what you say 
 
 As the manner in which you say it ; 
 It is not so much the language you use, 
 
 As the tone in which you convey it. 
 
 " Come here ! " I sharply said, 
 
 And the baby cowered and wept ; 
 " Come here ! " I cooed, and he looked and smiled, 
 
 And straight to my lap he crept. 
 
 The words may be mild and fair, 
 
 And the tones may pierce like a dart ; 
 
 The words may be soft as the summer air, 
 And the tones may break the heart. 
 
 For words but come from the mind, 
 
 And grow by study and art ; 
 But the tones leap forth from the inner self, 
 
 And reveal the state of the heart. 
 
 THE YOUTH'S COMPANION. 
 
 Think before you speak. The ones we wound by 
 unkind speech are most often those whose intimate 
 relation with us affords us opportunity for the sud- 
 den thrust. [132] 
 
tlPtoelftl) st>a? 
 
 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. — 
 Psalm 116 : 15. 
 
 DEATH is made the conqueror's coronation. 
 The sunset means eternal day with the 
 trusting soul. Faith looks beyond the veil, where 
 voices call and hands beckon from the eternal future. 
 Hence, we ever "look up," and from the seat on 
 the throne with Christ we shall wait the ingathering 
 of the cycles of eternity. When the stars have 
 grown old, we shall be young. When the moon 
 turns pale, our garlands will be fresh. When we 
 have been singing ten thousand ages, the song we 
 sing will be new. .Heaven will never be exhausted. 
 
 c. P. MASDEN. 
 
 " Sailor ! " we cried, " tell us where lies thy port ! " 
 And still came back the answer, clear and strong, 
 " I know not where, yet am I homeward bound, 
 This is His sea ; its pulses rise and fall 
 As His breath moves them, and its currents set 
 Steady and deep, to bear me where He will." 
 So he sailed on, and once, when stars were large 
 And luminous, through changeful purple mists, 
 Rocked by slow waves that bore him from our sight, 
 And calm with peace that lay too deep for smiles, 
 He drifted gently to a palm-girt shore, 
 And knew, at last, where God's fair islands lie. 
 
 EMILY HUNTINGTON MILLER. 
 [133] 
 
0&V 
 
 For nowzve see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. — 
 I Corinthians 13 : 12. 
 
 WHEN Alston died, he left sketches, with here 
 and there a part finished with wonderful 
 beauty. So Christians go to heaven with their vir- 
 tues in outline, only here and there a part completed. 
 But " that which is in part shall be done away," and 
 God shall finish the pictures. beecher. 
 
 I was so near the garden wall, 
 The drooping vines and maples tall, 
 The lawn, the house, each well-known place, 
 And yet the fog hid every trace 
 Of any dear remembered face. 
 A little world drew near apace 
 And shut me in — so small and round, 
 So narrow, cold, and dark, I found 
 No hint of all that lay so near 
 Of beauty, light, and love's good cheer. 
 But soon the rift grew wide and high, 
 And sunlight, flashing from blue sky, 
 Revealed each well-remembered spot 
 The fog had lately blotted out. 
 So after days brought mist and doubt, 
 And shut the love of God without ; 
 And then again a sunbeam sped 
 Through waves of cloud above my head, 
 And as I looked through rifts of cloud 
 I found familiar paths to God. 
 
 ETTA R. McCAUGHEY. 
 [134] 
 
jfourtmul) sr>a? 
 
 The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil ; he shall preserve 
 thy soul. — Psalm 131 : 7. 
 
 YOUR external circumstances may change, toil 
 may take the place of rest, sickness of health, 
 trials may thicken within and without. Externally, 
 you are the prey of such circumstances ; but if your 
 heart is stayed on God, no changes or chances can 
 touch it, and all that may befall you will but draw 
 you closer to Him. Whatever the present moment 
 may bring, your knowledge that it is His will, and 
 that your future heavenly life will be influenced by 
 it, will make all not only tolerable, but welcome. 
 
 JEAN NICOLAS GROU. 
 
 But when the sharp strokes flesh and heart run 
 
 through, 
 For thee and not another : only known, 
 In all the universe, through sense of thine ; 
 Not caught by eye or ear, not felt by touch, 
 Nor apprehended by the spirit's sight, 
 But only by the hidden, tortured nerves, 
 In all their incommunicable pain, — 
 God speaks Himself to us, as mothers speak 
 To their own babes, upon the tender flesh 
 With fond familiar touches close and dear ; — 
 Because He cannot choose a softer way 
 To make us feel that He Himself is near, 
 And each apart His own beloved and known. 
 
 UGO BASSI. 
 
 [135] 
 
jftfteentl) aDap 
 
 The tree is known by his fruit. — S. Matthew 12 : 33. 
 
 MANY great projects have their beginnings in 
 littleness and obscurity. We are prone to 
 dwell upon certain epochs in the history of nations, 
 or upon crisis-hours in the lives of men, rather than 
 upon the common level of every-day life. We 
 wonder over results without considering causes. 
 Little heeding the undercurrent of feeling, which 
 silently gathers force and form, as it nears the 
 shores of visible success, we fail to divine the 
 secret unrest which impels its direction. 
 
 A poet, gazing upon a Moslem temple, marvelled 
 over the massive grandeur of its ancient walls which 
 centuries had not shaken. Faith forsook his soul, 
 when he saw the shrine of the false prophet firmly, 
 planted where men had striven in vain to estab- 
 lish a temple of the living Christ. But scaling 
 the giddy wall, he found the stones broken and 
 crumbled, where a peepul-tree had sprung from a 
 seed, chance-flung upon the roof. That was the 
 atom which was to shatter the temple of a false 
 religion. The little seed 
 
 " Did more to shiver the ancient wall, 
 Than earthquake, war, simoon, and all 
 The centuries in their lapse and fall." 
 So it is in the spiritual realm. Our lives are wrought 
 upon by invisible forces, and the world recognizes 
 the power of those agencies only when it sees their 
 accomplished work. mrs. john jay McCabe. 
 
 [136] 
 
/ zvill be glad and rejoice in thy mercy. — Psalm 31:7. 
 
 MY little leaves, why are you glad ? 
 Answer, quivering little leaves, 
 Small clapping leaves, so freshly clad, 
 In a green world that never grieves. 
 Answer me, for my heart is sad ! 
 "Love God, love God ! " they sing, 
 Gay as the birds a-wing. 
 
 My little flowers, what's your delight? 
 
 Now answer, for my soul believes 
 In your sweet petals, pure and white, 
 
 Sweet purity no man deceives. 
 Answer, my flow'rets fair and bright. 
 
 " Love God, love God ! " they sing, 
 
 Gay as the birds a-wing. 
 
 The flowers and grass make their reply, 
 
 With all the merry clapping leaves, 
 And echoing the holy cry, 
 
 The drooping heart its joy retrieves. 
 All voices to their maker fly. 
 
 " Love God, love God ! " they sing, 
 
 Gay as the birds a-wing. 
 
 CONSTANCE HOPE. 
 
 The utterances of God are all around us if we 
 will but hear them. Even in the discords that jar 
 the music of every life, the accents of goodness 
 and mercy and divine love may be heard. 
 
 [ J 37] 
 
&tbmttmt\) 2T>a£ 
 
 Unto the land flowing with milk and honey. — Jeremiah 
 32 : 22. 
 
 PROSPECT closely resembles retrospect. The 
 traveller, who stands at a journey's end, weary, 
 and travel-stained with the dust of the way, looks 
 back over his road, with ■ a mind enriched by in- 
 cidents of the journey. Travel has made him 
 wise ; we call him a sage. But the traveller, with 
 his voyage yet before him, sees all things, not in 
 retrospect, but in prospect. . . . He sees visions 
 of holy peoples, heavenly lands and wonderful 
 scenes, towards which he is setting his face. He 
 becomes a seer. edward g. Baldwin. 
 
 Oh, as I rest when the long march is over, 
 Loosing* my sandals at close of the day, 
 Journeyings ended, no longer a rover, 
 
 Still keep me near Thee forever and aye. 
 Then while I swell the glad strain of rejoicing 
 
 Pealing far over Eternity's sea, 
 This is the theme I will ever be voicing, 
 Nearer my Saviour, still nearer to Thee ! 
 Pilgrimage ended, 
 Lights and shades blended, 
 Then face to face will I see 
 
 How Thou did'st lead me, 
 How Thou did'st speed me, 
 Nearer and nearer to Thee ! 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 [138] 
 
(Bigtltemtt) 2Dap 
 
 Give us this day our daily bread. — The Lord's Prayer. 
 
 "/^MVE us our daily bread," we pray, 
 Vjf And know but half of what we say. 
 
 The bread on which our bodies feed 
 Is but the moiety of our need. 
 
 The soul, the heart, must nourished be, 
 And share the daily urgency. 
 
 And though it may be bitter bread 
 On which the nobler parts are fed, 
 
 No less we crave the daily dole, 
 O Lord, of body and of soul ! 
 
 Sweet loaves, the wine must all afoam, 
 The manna and the honey-comb, 
 
 All these are good, but better still 
 
 The food which checks and moulds the will. 
 
 The sting for pride, the smart for sin — 
 The purging draught for self within, 
 
 The sorrows which we shuddering meet, 
 Not knowing their after-taste of sweet, 
 
 All these we ask for when we pray, 
 "Give us our daily bread this day." 
 
 SUSAN COOLIDGE. 
 
 O Father, give us, we pray Thee, not what we 
 in our blindness ask for, but what Thou in Thy 
 wisdom seest that we need ! 
 
 [139] 
 
apa? 
 
 $imtetntb HDap 
 
 For if ye forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father 
 will also forgive you. — S. Matthew 6: 14. 
 
 MY heart was heavy, for its trust had been 
 Abused, its kindness answered with foul 
 wrong ; 
 So, turning gloomily from my fellow-men, 
 
 One summer Sabbath-day I strolled among 
 The green mounds of the village burial-place ; 
 
 Where, pondering how all human love and hate 
 
 Find one sad level ; and how, soon or late, 
 Wronged and wrong-doer, each with meekened face, 
 And cold hands folded over a still heart, 
 
 Pass the green threshold of our common grave, 
 Whither all footsteps tend, whence none depart, 
 Awed for myself, and pitying my race, 
 Our common sorrow, like a mighty wave, 
 
 Swept all my pride away, and trembling I forgave. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 Think on thy wants, on thy faults. Recollect all 
 the patience, all the kindness, all the tenderness, 
 which has been shown thee. Think also on life — 
 how short it is, how much unavoidable bitterness it 
 possesses ; how much which it is easy either to 
 bear or chase away ; and think how the power of 
 affection can make all things right. 
 
 FREDERIKA BREMER. 
 
 Not how much we have borne, but how freely 
 we have forgiven, will be the plea which wins our 
 own pardon. 
 
 [140] 
 
fl£a? 
 
 Wtatntittf) Dap 
 
 Restore tinto me. — Psalm 51 : 12. 
 
 I LOST a friend the other day — 
 His heart was pure and strong and true ; 
 Our days were sweet, but all too few ; 
 He passed from earth — the other day. 
 But while I see him here no more, 
 I know that on a happier shore, 
 Not here, but in eternity, 
 God will give back my friend to me. 
 
 I lost a friend long years ago — 
 
 Awhile our paths together lay, 
 
 And we were happy by the way 
 Until we parted — years ago. 
 From out each other's lives we passed ; 
 Each went his way, but yet, at last, 
 
 Or here, or in eternity, 
 
 God will give back my friend to me. 
 
 I lost a friend — or, shall I say, 
 
 He lost himself ! For sin and shame 
 Have left me little but the name 
 
 Of him I loved, and love to-day. 
 
 My friend, as lost, I weep, deplore ; 
 
 But faith says : " One can save, restore." 
 To Thee I come, I pray to Thee, 
 O Christ, give back my friend to me. 
 
 PATON H. HOGE. 
 
 [141] 
 
My grace is sufficient for thee. — 2 Corinthians 12:9. 
 
 GOD is enough ! thou, who in hope and fear 
 Toilest through desert-sands of life, sore-tried, 
 Climb trustful over death's black ridge, for near 
 The bright wells shine : thou wilt be satisfied. 
 
 God doth suffice ! O thou, the patient one, 
 Who puttest faith in Him, and none beside, 
 
 Bear yet thy load ; under the setting sun 
 
 The glad tents gleam : thou wilt be satisfied. 
 
 By God's gold Afternoon ! peace ye shall have ; 
 
 Man is in loss except he live aright, 
 And help his fellow to be firm and brave, 
 
 Faithful and patient : then the restful night ! 
 
 EDWIN ARNOLD. 
 
 I have seemed to see a need of everything God 
 gives me, and want nothing that He denies me. 
 There is no dispensation, though afflictive, but 
 either in it, or after it, I find that I could not be 
 without it. Whether it be taken from or not given 
 me, sooner or later God quiets me in Himself 
 without it. I cast all my concerns on the Lord, 
 and live securely on the care and wisdom of my 
 Heavenly Father. 
 
 My ways, you know, are, in a sense, hedged up 
 with thorns, and grow darker and darker daily; 
 but yet I distrust not my God in the least, and live 
 more quietly in the absence of all faith, than I 
 should do, I am persuaded, if I possessed them. 
 [142] 
 
$®ay 
 
 Abide till ye go thence. — S. Matthew io : 1 1. 
 The Master of flie Isles. 
 
 J 
 
 UST beyond our utmost fathom 
 Is the anchorage we crave, 
 
 But the Master knows the soundings 
 By the reach of every wave 
 
 What imperial adventure 
 
 Some wide morning it will be, 
 
 Sweeping to the Lonely Haven 
 From the chartless round of sea ! 
 
 How imposing a departure, 
 While this little harbor smiles, 
 
 Steering for the outer sea-rim 
 With the Master of the Isles ! 
 
 BLISS CARMAN. 
 
 As strangers and voyagers our city of habitation 
 is not here ; the houses we build are but for the 
 hour ; the city, whose builder and maker is God, 
 shines everlastingly ; and those mansions, not made 
 with hands but eternal in the heavens, are our 
 home. Thitherward we flock in companies and in 
 families — thither each is tending. And we rejoice 
 that God is sending forth messages to us by the 
 hour ; that we are remembered, and that we are 
 secured. beecher. 
 
 [143] 
 
Ye have need of patience. — Hebrews io : 36. 
 
 THERE are many trials in life which do not 
 seem to come from unwisdom or folly. They 
 are silver arrows shot from the bow of God, and 
 fixed inextricably in the quivering heart. They are 
 to be borne. They are not meant, like snow on 
 water, to melt as soon as they strike. But the 
 moment an ill can be borne patiently, it is disarmed 
 of its poison, though not of its pain. beecher. 
 
 There will come a weary day 
 When, overtaxed at length, 
 Both hope and love beneath 
 The weight give way. 
 Then with a statue's smile, 
 A statue's strength, 
 Patience, nothing loth, 
 And uncomplaining, does 
 The work of both. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 We have very little command over the circum- 
 stances in which we may be called by God to do 
 our part, but unlimited command over the temper 
 
 Of OUr SOUls. J. H. THOM. 
 
 God has but one duty at a time for any child of 
 His to perform. If we are doing the one duty He 
 has for us to do at the present moment, that is all 
 that He requires. The results are His. 
 [144] 
 
^av 
 
 I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk 
 worthy of the vocation wherezvith ye are called. — Ephesians 
 4:1. 
 
 DO not dare to think that a child of God can 
 worthily work out his career or worthily serve 
 God's other children unless he does both in the 
 love and fear of God, their Father. Be sure that 
 ambition and charity themselves will grow mean 
 unless they are both inspired and exalted by re- 
 ligion. PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 What Might Be Done. 
 
 What might be done if. men were wise — 
 What glorious deeds, my suffering brother, 
 Would they unite, 
 In love and right, 
 And cease their scorn of one another. 
 
 Oppression's heart might be imbued 
 
 With kindling drops of loving-kindness, 
 
 And knowledge pour, 
 
 From shore to shore, 
 
 Light on the eyes of mental darkness. 
 
 The meanest wretch that ever trod, 
 The deepest sunk in guilt and sorrow, 
 Might stand erect, 
 In self-respect, 
 And share the teeming world to-morrow. 
 
 CHARLES MACKAY. 
 [145] 
 
®$ay 
 
 Watch therefore ; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth 
 come. — S. Matthew 24 : 42. 
 
 What of the Day ? 
 
 WHAT of the day? Do you ask? 
 Then assuredly know 
 That the day which began weary ages ago 
 Speeds on to an issue sublime ; 
 And the King — whose glad coming draws hourly 
 
 more near — 
 Will, haply, when least you expect Him, appear, 
 And the blessed, long-prayed-for Sabbatical year 
 Usher in, in the fulness of time. 
 
 Will you hasten the day? 
 
 Will you labour and pray ? 
 
 Will you thrust in the sickle and reap while you 
 
 may, 
 The plenteous harvests that lie 
 Waiting still for our hand 
 In every land, 
 
 And rip'ning 'neath every sky ? 
 Will you gather the stones for His temple divine ? 
 And the gems in the crown of His glory to shine 
 Brighter far than the sun ? 
 
 And then when He comes, bowing low at His feet, 
 With rapture unspeakable hear Him repeat, 
 " Well done, thou good servant, well done ! " 
 
 Four things come not back : the spoken word, the 
 sped arrow, the past life, the neglected opportunity. 
 
 [146] 
 
$®ay 
 
 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. 
 i Peter i : 7. 
 
 TO-MORROW you have no business with. 
 You steal if you touch to-morrow. It is 
 God's. Every day has in it enough to keep every 
 man occupied, without concerning himself with the 
 things which lie beyond. beecher. 
 
 Be not anxious about to-morrow. Do to-day's, 
 fight to-day's, temptation ; and do not weaken and 
 distract yourself by looking forward to things which 
 you cannot see, and would not understand if you 
 saw them. Charles kingsley. 
 
 It is not the cares of to-day, but the cares of 
 to-morrow, that weigh a man down. For the need 
 of to-day we have a corresponding strength given. 
 For the to-morrow we are told to trust. It is not 
 ours yet, and it may never be. It is enough to be 
 patient unto the coming of the Lord and to do the 
 work of the present hour, george macdonald. 
 
 Thou, who hast made the weakest strong 
 
 In holy trust and high endeavor, 
 And taught the fainting soul to sing, 
 
 "Thy God forsakes the righteous never," 
 On Thee, the Rock, Thy people rest, 
 
 And bear unmoved each wave of sorrow, 
 Knowing, Who giveth present good 
 
 Will strength impart for each to-morrow. 
 
 MRS. ANNA M. HUNTLEY. 
 
 [147] 
 
I am a burden to myself. — Job 7 : 20. 
 
 THIS is sometimes the language of the afflicted. 
 Thus it was the exclamation of Job. We 
 talk of trouble. He could say, " Behold, and see if 
 ever there was sorrow like unto my sorrow." If we 
 cannot approve of the strength of his complaint, 
 we hardly know how to condemn it. God Himself 
 overlooks it, and only holds him forth as an exam- 
 ple of patience. . . . Afflictions may be great in 
 themselves from their number and frequency, and 
 suddenness and subject. But yield not to im- 
 patience and despondency. Such afflictions have 
 often introduced a train of mercies, and the valley 
 of Achor has been a door of hope/ How many in 
 heaven, how many on earth, are now thanking God 
 for their trials. He knows how to deliver. Say, 
 " Lord, I am oppressed ; undertake for me." 
 " Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall 
 sustain thee." william jay. 
 
 Faith, patience, love, we need to cultivate, 
 
 Our faint hearts are so ready to despair, 
 So prone to cry the burden is too great 
 
 For us to bear. 
 He sends the bitter who has sent the sweet, 
 
 And it is best, 
 And often 'tis in sorrow and defeat 
 
 That we are blessed. 
 
 [148] 
 
Lord, not my feet only, but my hands and my head. — S. 
 John 13:9. 
 
 THE secret which selfishness never masters 
 is this of the joy of consecration. In self- 
 devotion for king or cause, those who would lose 
 their life have found it, and in carelessness of them- 
 selves have gained grace and renown. But no 
 such joy, elsewhere known among men, has risen 
 to the pitch of his or hers on whom the vision of 
 Christ has shone. Emancipation from all defer- 
 ence to the world has been their prerogative. The 
 hardest and bleakest conditions of life have become 
 to them as jasper walls and crystal pavements. 
 The heart dilates now with equal triumph, while 
 gathering to itself divinest quality, whenever de- 
 voted in a similar sense to the King of the World. 
 And he now feels it has in it the vital and sure 
 presage of victory. He follows the banners that 
 never go down. His Leader is one who knows no 
 defeat. 
 
 Take my life, and let it be 
 Consecrated, Lord, to Thee. 
 Take my heart : it is Thine own; 
 It shall be Thy royal throne. 
 Take my love ; my Lord, I pour 
 At Thy feet its treasure-store. 
 Take myself, and I will be 
 Ever, only, all for Thee. 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 [149] 
 
0MV 
 
 tKtuent?=ntntl) 2i>ap 
 
 Let those that trust in thee rejoice. — Psalm 5:11. 
 
 HAPPINESS, according to the laws of nature 
 and of God, inheres in voluntary and pleas- 
 urable activities; and activity - increases happiness 
 in proportion as it is diffusive. No man can be so 
 happy as he who is engaged in a regular business 
 that tasks the greatest part of his mind. I had 
 almost said that it was the beau-ideal of happiness 
 for a man to be so busy that he does not know 
 whether he is or is not happy ; who has not time 
 to think about himself at all. The man who rises 
 early in the morning, joyful and happy, with an 
 appetite for business as well as for breakfast ; who 
 has a love for his work, and runs eagerly to it as a 
 child runs to its play ; who finds himself refreshed 
 by it in every part of his day, and rests after it as 
 from a wholesome and delightful fatigue, — has one 
 great and very essential element of happiness. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 Take joy home, 
 And make a place in thy great heart for her, 
 And give her time to grow, and cherish her, 
 Then will she come, and oft will sing to thee 
 When thou art working in the furrows ; aye, 
 Or weeding in the sacred hour of dawn. 
 
 It is a comely fashion to be glad ; 
 
 Joy is the grace that we say to God. 
 
 JEAN INGELOW. 
 [ISO] 
 
jttai? 
 
 ®\)ittitt\) E>ap 
 
 And thus this man died, leaving his death for an example of 
 a noble courage, and a memorial of virtue, not only unto 
 young men, but unto all his nation. — n Maccabees 6: 31. 
 
 IT is rather for us to be here dedicated to the 
 great task remaining before us, that from these 
 honored dead we take increased devotion to that 
 cause for which they gave the last full measure of 
 devotion ; that we here highly resolve that these 
 dead shall not have died in vain ; and this nation, 
 under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and 
 that government of the people, by the people, and 
 for the people, shall not perish from the earth. 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN AT GETTYSBURG. 
 
 Thank God for deeds of valor done ! 
 
 Thank God for victories hardly won ! 
 That such as you need never know 
 The anguish of those dark days of woe ; 
 
 For time and peace old wounds have healed, 
 
 And flowers now strew the battle-field. 
 
 HELEN HUNT. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln — for them, as for him, char- 
 acter decreed a life and a death. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 [151] 
 
mv. 
 
 ®l)irtg=fiist sua? 
 
 Thy will be done. — The Lord's Prayer. 
 
 WHEN the loss of property and the severance 
 of friendships has come, when the future 
 is overcast, and we know nothing of what is before 
 us except simply this, that God's will must be done, 
 and when we try to leave all to Him, the endurance 
 which then reveals itself is the masterful power of 
 the human will. Men trained in this experience 
 cannot be frightened nor disheartened by troubles, 
 however great. r. s. storrs. 
 
 Lord, carry me. — Nay, but I grant thee strength 
 To walk and work thy way to heaven at length. 
 
 Lord, why then am I weak ? — Because I give 
 Power to the weak, and bid the dying live. 
 
 Lord, I am tired. — He hath not much desired 
 The goal, who at the starting-point is tired. 
 
 Lord, dost Thou know? — I know what is in man; 
 What the flesh can, and what the spirit can. 
 
 Lord, dost Thou care ? — Yea, for thy gain or loss 
 So much I cared, it brought Me to the cross. 
 
 Lord, I believe ; help Thou mine unbelief. — 
 Good is the word; but rise, for life is brief. 
 The follower is not greater than the Chief; 
 Follow thou Me along My way of grief. 
 
 CHRISTINA ROSSETTI. 
 
 [152] 
 
Slime 
 
 t 
 
 i?£r0t 2T>a^ 
 
 ^ friend loveth at all times. — Proverbs 17 : 17. 
 
 §TpY friend he was ; my friend from all the rest ; 
 ^'* With child -like faith he oped to me his heart : 
 No door was locked on altar, grave or grief; 
 No weakness veiled, concealed no disbelief; 
 The hope, the sorrow, and the wrong were bare, 
 And oh, the shadow only showed the fair ! 
 
 I gave him love for love ; but deep within, 
 I magnified each frailty into sin ; 
 He smiled upon the censorship, and bore 
 With patient love the touch that wounded sore ; 
 Until at length, so had my blindness grown, 
 He knew I judged him by his faults alone. 
 
 At last it came — the day he stood apart, 
 
 When from my eyes he proudly veiled his heart . . . 
 
 When in his face I read what I had been 
 
 And with his vision saw what I had seen. 
 
 Too late ! too late ! O, could he then have known 
 
 When his love died that mine had perfect grown ; 
 
 And when the veil was drawn, abused, chastised, 
 
 The censor stood, the lost one truly prized. 
 
 Too late we learn that man must hold his friend 
 
 Unjudged, accepted, faultless to the end. 
 
 JOHN BOYLE O'REILLY. 
 
 [153] 
 
3|une 
 
 g>econD sr>a^ 
 
 Knoiv ye not thai ye are the temple of God, and that the spirit 
 of God dwelleth in you. — I Corinthians 3: 16. 
 
 S 
 
 LOWLY through all the universe, that temple 
 
 world, a soul, by free-willed obedience, catches the 
 fire of God's likeness, it is set into the growing 
 wall a living stone. When in your hard fight, your 
 tiresome drudgery, or in your terrible temptation, 
 you catch the purpose of your being, and give your- 
 self to God, and so give Him the chance to give 
 Himself to you, your life, a living stone, is taken 
 up and set into that growing wall. . . . Wherever 
 souls are being tried and ripened, in whatever com- 
 monplace and homely ways ; — there God is hew- 
 ing out the pillars for His temple. Oh, if the stone 
 can only have some vision of the temple of which 
 it is to lie a part forever, what patience must fill it 
 as it feels the blows of the hammer, and knows 
 that success for it is simply to let itself be wrought 
 into what shape the Master wills. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 Blessed is any weight, however overwhelming, 
 which God has been so good as to fasten with His 
 own hands upon our shoulders. faber. 
 
 If only dear to God the strong 
 
 That never trip nor wander, 
 Where were the throng whose morning song 
 
 Thrills His blue arches yonder ? lowell. 
 
 [154] 
 
9Iime 
 
 ®i)tro 2E>at? 
 
 SIGH and grieve that you are so carnal and 
 worldly, and your passions so unmortified. 
 
 That you are so full of corrupt inclinations, so 
 unguarded in your outward senses, so often ensnared 
 by many vain imaginations. 
 
 So much inclined to outward things, so negligent 
 as to inward. 
 
 So ready for laughter and dissipation, so unready 
 for weeping and compunction. 
 
 So prompt for relaxation and bodily comfort, so 
 disinclined for austerity and fervor. 
 
 So curious to hear news and see fine sights, so 
 slack to embrace what is lowly and common. 
 
 So eager to have much, so sparing in giving, so 
 close in retaining. 
 
 So inconsiderate in speech, so unable to keep 
 silence, so undisciplined in manners, so impetuous 
 in actions. 
 
 So hasty to take rest, so slow to labor. 
 
 So wakeful to attend to stories, so sleepy at holy 
 vigils. 
 
 So anxious to finish devotions, so wandering in 
 attention. 
 
 So soon distracted, so rarely fully collected. 
 
 So suddenly stirred to anger, so apt to take 
 offence. 
 
 So often making good resolutions, so seldom 
 bringing them to good effect. 
 
 THOMAS A KEMPIS. 
 
 [155] 
 
3]une 
 
 jfouttlj Dap 
 
 Take heed to your spirit. — Malachi II : 15. 
 
 THFRE is no situation which we cannot 
 sweeten or embitter at will. If the past 
 is gloomy, there is no need of dwelling upon it. If 
 the mind can make one vigorous exertion, it can 
 another. The same energy you put forth in acquir- 
 ing knowledge would enable you also to baffle mis- 
 fortune. Determine not to think of what is pain- 
 ful, resolutely turn away from vexatious subjects, 
 bend all your attention to more elevating interests, 
 and then you defeat the woes of the past. It is for 
 the future and in the future that we live. 
 
 Strength of character is not mere strength of 
 feeling ; it is the resolute restraint of strong feeling. 
 It is unyielding resistance to whatever would dis- 
 concert us from without or unsettle us from within. 
 
 DICKENS. 
 
 A man's house should be on the hill-top of cheer- 
 fulness and serenity, so high that no shadows rest 
 upon it, and where the morning comes so early that 
 the day has twice as many golden hours as those of 
 other men. He is to be pitied whose house is in 
 some valley of grief between the hills, with the 
 longest night and the shortest day. Home should 
 be the centre of joy, equatorial and tropical. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 [156] 
 
3iune 
 
 jftftt) 2Pa? 
 
 Be ye doers of the zvord and not hearers only. — S. James 
 I : 22. 
 
 O PATIENT, willing doers of the word — 
 Who worship tireless at the Master's shrine, 
 With hearts that gentle charity has stirred 
 
 To acts and deeds of pity half divine — 
 O blessed, faithful children of trie King, 
 
 To whom the Saviour's shield of faith is given, 
 Full many a golden sheaf your arm shall bring 
 When all the reapers gather home in heaven ! 
 
 IDA SCOTT TAYLOR. 
 
 We must love the Lord if we would learn to 
 serve Him and win others to Him. 
 
 WILLIAM ORMISTON. 
 
 Do something in this busy, bustling, wide-awake 
 world. Move about for the benefit of mankind, if 
 not for yourselves. john b. gough. 
 
 Better a day of strife 
 
 Than a century of sleep. ryan. 
 
 I count this thing to be grandly true : 
 
 That a noble deed is a step toward God, 
 Lifting the soul from the common sod 
 
 To a purer air and a broader view. 
 
 HOLLAND. 
 
 Cast forth thy act, thy word, into the ever-living, 
 ever-working universe. carlyle. 
 
 [iS7] 
 
31wne 
 
 g>tjttt) 2Pap 
 
 As the duty of every day required. — 2 Chronicles 8 : 14. 
 
 THE heroes of the race shrank doubtless from 
 their work as you are shrinking now from 
 yours, — from a sense of unfitness. 
 
 At length, unable longer to resist the call of duty, 
 " each forgot his weakness and went and worked 
 his fragment." So for each of us the duty waits. 
 Our deed may not seem worth the doing, because 
 so small. But it is our "fragment" and must be 
 done; and no one else can do it for us. Let not 
 life, then, be frittered away in vacillation and weak 
 compliances, "like those meagre streamlets which 
 seem to lose their way at every new impediment, 
 forever turning backward or turning around; nor, 
 on the other hand, emulate the headlong mountain 
 torrent, boisterous and destructive." Let the ideal 
 of your strength rather be that of the ocean, which, 
 as one finely observes in the calmest hour, still 
 heaves its resistless might of waters to the shore 
 with an imperial consciousness of strength that 
 laughs at opposition. 
 
 Practise thy spirit to great thoughts and things ; 
 
 We can foretell the future of ourselves, 
 And fateful only to himself is each." 
 
 WILLIAM J. TILLEY. 
 [158] 
 
3|ime 
 
 g>etimrt) SDa^ 
 
 Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment? — 
 S. Matthew 6 : 25. 
 
 IF a man's mind be thoroughly alive, he cannot 
 be content with good health, good revenue, and 
 good dwelling. There are heart-achings and out- 
 goings which waste the life, which cannot be soothed 
 or appeased by bread alone. On the one hand you 
 find sad hearts surrounded by the highest personal 
 and social advantages, and on the other you will 
 find hearts glad with unspeakable joy in spite of 
 circumstances the most untoward and harassing. 
 It is therefore, in the opinion of Christian thinkers, 
 a superficial and mocking theory of human happi- 
 ness which concerns itself mainly with circum- 
 stances. What is wanted is a principle which will 
 put all accidental conditions in their right place, 
 and persistently remind man that " the life is more 
 than bread," and that apparent failure may be real 
 
 SUCCeSS. JOSEPH PARKER. 
 
 It is God who prepares men when He intends 
 to use them, and who gives them just what they 
 require for their work, and that by a marvellous 
 succession of events, the connection of which can 
 only be seen when we examine the whole chain. 
 As I glance over my own life, from whatever side, I 
 view it all converging to the point where I now 
 stand. LACORDAIRE. 
 
 [159] 
 
91ime 
 
 Happy shalt thou be. — Psalm 128 : 2. 
 
 HAPPY is the man who has that in his soul 
 which acts upon the dejected as April show- 
 ers upon violet roots. Gifts from the hand are sil- 
 ver and gold ; but the heart gives that which neither 
 silver nor gold can buy. To be full of goodness, 
 to be full of cheerfulness, full of hope, full of sym- 
 pathy, causes a man to carry blessings of which he 
 himself is as unconscious as a lamp of its own 
 shining. Such an one moves on human life like as 
 stars move on dark seas to bewildered mariners ; as 
 the sun wheels, bringing all the seasons with him 
 from the south. beecher. 
 
 Forget the past, and live the present hour ; 
 
 Now is the time to work, the time to fill 
 
 The soul with noblest thought, the time to will 
 Heroic deeds, to use whatever dower 
 Heaven has bestowed, to test our utmost power. 
 
 Now is the time to love, and better still, 
 
 To serve our loved ones ; over passing ill 
 To rise triumphant. Thus the perfect flower 
 
 Of life shall come to fruitage ; wealth amass 
 For grandest giving ere the time is gone. 
 
 Be glad to-day, to-morrow may bring tears ; 
 
 Be brave to-day, the darkest night will pass, 
 And golden rays will usher in the dawn ; 
 
 Who conquers now shall rule the coming years. 
 
 SARAH K. BOLTON. 
 [160] 
 
91ime 
 
 0nt\) 2Pa^ 
 
 I will not forsake my people. — I Kings 6: 13. 
 
 I will not fail thee nor forsake thee. — Isaiah 41 : 17. 
 
 Forsake Me Not 
 
 FORSAKE me not, though fast the night is falling 
 And shadows gather in the darkened sky. 
 I cannot fear, when Thou, O God, art calling, 
 I cannot fall when Thy kind arms are nigh. 
 Stay Thou with me ! be Thou my refuge ever, 
 My strength, my all — whatever be my lot ! 
 Oh, bless me with Thy gracious love forever, 
 And in the gloom of night forsake me not ! 
 
 Forsake me not in time of tribulation, 
 
 Be Thou my Rock and Fortress in despair ; 
 Oh, fill my burdened soul with Thy salvation, 
 
 And pour Thy spirit's balm on all my care. 
 Though sorrows break my heart, O gracious Father, 
 
 Thy rod and staff can comfort my distress ! 
 Though grief oppress, and heavy tear-drops gather, 
 
 Thy pitying love can bring me sweet redress. 
 
 Forsake me not ! breathe Thou into my being 
 
 The very breath of heaven from above • 
 Unseal my eyes, that I Thy goodness seeing 
 
 May know and feel Thy deep, Thy boundless love. 
 In storm or calm, be Thou, O God, beside me — 
 
 That I, Thy child, may never be forgot ; 
 Through shade or sun, by day or night-time guide me 
 
 Through all my journey, oh, forsake me not ! 
 
 IDA SCOTT TAYLOR. 
 [161] 
 
3|ime 
 
 tEenti) H>ap 
 
 Ponder the path of thy feet. — Proverbs 15 : 26. 
 
 AMONG the pitfalls in our way, 
 The best of us walk blindly ; 
 So, man, be wary, watch and pray, 
 And judge your brother kindly. 
 
 ALICE CARY. 
 
 We are all wicked ; what one of us blames in 
 another each will find in his own breast. 
 
 SENECA. 
 
 Into the path of sin 
 One step may take you, 
 For wrong lies near 
 To the path of right ; 
 But lower down 
 From right to wrong, 
 The way descends ; 
 But back again to right 
 Tis steep and rugged. 
 
 How often do we confess the same sins and pray 
 against them, and yet still commit them as much 
 as ever, and lie as deeply under the power of them ! 
 We raise a great deal of dust under our feet, but we 
 do not move from off the ground on which we stood. 
 We do not go forward at all. We do, and undo. 
 We weave sometimes a web of holiness, but we let 
 evil and thoughtless purposes in, and unravel all 
 again. Nothing but the grace of God can save 
 us from sin. 
 
 [162] 
 
3Iune 
 
 He chasteneth us for our profit, that we may be partakers of 
 his holiness. — Hebrews 12 : 10. 
 
 OWHAT will that joy be, where the soul, being 
 perfectly prepared for joy, and joy prepared 
 by Christ for the soul, it shall be our business eter- 
 nally to rejoice ! william j. tilley. 
 
 A Husk. 
 I take it in my hand, 
 
 A form whose use is o'er, 
 Cast off by the ripe soul 
 
 That needed it no more. 
 
 A withered, worthless thing, 
 
 The mocking whirlwind's scorn — 
 
 Would God have cared to fashion it 
 Except to shield the corn? 
 
 MARY F. BUTTS. 
 
 Then shall a new, a spirit childhood come, 
 A fresher sense of life in thee have room ! 
 A life that knows no pain, no death, no tomb ! 
 There sight shall know what faith hath first 
 
 believed, 
 There perfect trust thy heart hath not conceived, 
 
 There saddening thoughts be gone, thy mind here 
 grieved ! 
 Then for the work, my soul, that waits thee there, 
 A firm, bold heart, within thee bear, 
 
 Undimmed by painful thoughts, unbowed by care. 
 
 WILLIAM J. TILLEY. 
 [163] 
 
lime 
 
 ®toelftl) Da? 
 
 Follow that which is good. — i Thessalonians 5:15. 
 
 GOODNESS is the only orthodoxy that God 
 cares one particle about, and every man that 
 is living the Christ-life is orthodox — doctrine go 
 to the winds. If you ask me if some representa- 
 tions of truth are not more likely to produce this 
 than others, Yes ; and therefore it is important that 
 men should study to be true according to the test 
 of Scripture. But so long as that blazing centre re- 
 mains, " I am determined to know nothing but Christ, 
 and Him crucified " — because He represented the 
 God of love who suffered for all the universe and 
 all it contains — so long as that is the grand ideal 
 of life, it is nonsense for the man that does not 
 pattern after that, to pattern after the intellectual 
 elements of it, or the mere auxiliary institutions. 
 But if he has both he is doubly blest, beecher. 
 
 Tis only noble to be good. 
 
 Count not thy life by calendars ; for years 
 Shall pass by thee unheeded, whilst an hour — 
 Some little fleeting hour, too quickly past — 
 May stamp itself so deeply on thy brain, 
 Thy latest years shall live upon its joy. 
 
 KENNEDY. 
 
 If the heart be right with God, He will weigh 
 the rest in a balance of compassion. 
 
 CARDINAL MANNING. 
 [164] 
 
31xme 
 
 Thou shalt abide for me. — Hosea 3: 3. 
 
 " r I ^AKE my life ! " We have said it or sung it 
 A before the Lord, it may be many times ; 
 but if it were only whispered but once in His ear 
 with full purpose of heart, should we not believe 
 that He heard it? And if we know that He heard 
 it, should we not believe that He has answered it, 
 and fulfilled this, our heart's desire? For with 
 Him hearing means heeding. Then why should 
 we doubt that He did verily take our lives when we 
 offered them — our bodies when we presented 
 them ? Have we not been wronging His faithful- 
 ness all this time by practically, even unconsciously, 
 doubting whether the prayer ever reached Him? 
 And if so, is it any wonder that we have not 
 realized all the power and joy of full consecration? 
 By some means or other He has to teach us to 
 trust implicitly every step of the way. And so, if 
 we do not really trust in this matter, He has had 
 to let us find out our want of trust by withholding 
 the sensible part of the blessing, and thus stirring 
 us up to find out why it is withheld. 
 
 An offered gift must be either accepted or re- 
 fused. Can He have refused it when He has said, 
 " Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast 
 out"? If not, then it must have been accepted. 
 
 [165] 
 
3I«ne 
 
 ifouiteeittl) a>ai? 
 
 Your father knoweth what things ye have need of — S. Mat- 
 thew 6 : 8. 
 
 He Knows. 
 
 HUSH, child ! doth not thy Heavenly Father 
 know ? 
 Love causelessly would never wound thee so. 
 Sometimes the chastened lean upon His breast, 
 And, sobbing, find themselves more closely pressed. 
 
 Hereafter thou shalt better understand 
 What discipline was needed from His hand. 
 Be patient, then, and to His will resigned, 
 And thou shalt be more Christ-like and refined. 
 
 Implicit trust is thine, but He imparts 
 
 His fulness only unto emptied hearts ; 
 
 Who asks His love will in return receive 
 
 Far more than tongue can tell, or thought conceive. 
 
 Then give Him children, home, thy weight of care ; 
 They are too heavy for thy strength to bear. 
 The pitying Father will thy fears relieve, 
 And bind the wounds His children must receive. 
 
 MRS. ANNA M. HUNTLEY. 
 
 My son, suffer me to do with thee what I please. 
 I know what is expedient for thee. Thou thinkest 
 as man ; thou judgest in many things as human 
 affection persuadeth thee. 
 
 THOMAS A KEMPIS. 
 [166] 
 
3Iune 
 
 iftftemttj H>ap 
 
 Take my yoke tipon you and learn of me ; for I am meek 
 and loivly in heart : and ye shall find rest unto your souls. — 
 S. Matthew n : 29. 
 
 CHRIST'S invitation is a call to begin life over 
 again upon a new principle — upon His own 
 principle. "Watch my way of doing things," He 
 says. " Follow me. Take life as I take it. Be 
 meek and lowly and you will find rest." . . . 
 Christ's life outwardly was one of the most troubled 
 lives ever lived : tempest and tumult, tumult and 
 tempest, the waves breaking over it all the time 
 till the worn body was laid in the grave. But the 
 inner life was a sea of glass. The great calm was 
 always there. At any moment you might have 
 gone to Him and found rest. And even when the 
 bloodhounds were dogging Him in the streets of 
 Jerusalem, He turned to His disciples and offered 
 them, as a last legacy, " My peace." Nothing ever 
 for a moment broke the serenity of Christ's life 
 on earth. 
 
 There was nothing that the world could do to 
 Him, that could ripple the surface of His spirit. 
 Such living, as mere living, is altogether unique. 
 It is the mind at leisure from itself. It is the 
 perfect poise of the soul ; the stability of assured 
 convictions; the eternal calm of an invulnerable 
 faith; the repose of a heart set deep in God. 
 It is the mood of the man who says, with Browning, 
 " God's in His heaven, all's well with the world." 
 
 HENRY DRUMMOND. 
 [167] 
 
3|xme 
 
 &>ixtm\tl) H>ap 
 
 My flesh and my heart faileth : but God is the strength of my 
 heart, and my portion forever. — Psalm 73 : 26. 
 
 THERE are heart sicknesses known to earth 
 more real and distressing than any physical 
 malady. Times there are in each human life 
 when the sharp sword pierces to the very centre 
 of the soul. Speaking after the manner of this 
 world, the agony seems greater than can be borne. 
 What then? Shall we sink down in despair? No. 
 There is a better way. Summon thy soul to new 
 courage, and patience. Say to thy soul within 
 the thick shadows, even where no light enters, 
 " My soul, wait thou only upon God." 
 
 SPURGEON, 
 
 Pain's furnace heat within me quivers, 
 God's breath upon the flame doth blow, 
 
 And all my heart in anguish shivers, 
 And trembles at the fiery glow ; 
 
 And yet I whisper : As God will ! 
 
 And in His hottest fire hold still. 
 
 Why should I murmur? For the sorrow 
 Thus only longer lived would be ; 
 
 Its end may come, and will, to-morrow, 
 When God has done His work in me ; 
 
 So I say, trusting : As God will ! 
 
 And, trusting to the end, hold still. 
 
 FROM THE GERMAN. 
 [168] 
 
9!une 
 
 &tbmtttiit\) Hr>ap 
 
 Rules for Making Sunshine. 
 
 WHEN you rise in the morning, form a reso- 
 lution to make the day a happy one to a 
 fellow-creature. It is easily done ; a left-off gar- 
 ment to the man who needs it, a kind word to the 
 sorrowful, an encouraging expression to the striving, 
 trifles in themselves light as air, will do it, at least 
 for the twenty-four hours ; and if you are young, 
 depend upon it, it will tell when you are old ; and 
 if you are old, it will send you gently and happily 
 down the stream of human time to eternity. By 
 the most simple arithmetical sum, look at the result; 
 you send one person, only one, happily through 
 the day, — that is three hundred and sixty-five 
 during the course of the year ; and suppose you 
 live only forty years after you commence that of 
 medicine, you have made fourteen thousand six 
 hundred human beings happy, at all events for 
 a time. Now is not this simple ? It is too short 
 for a sermon, too homely for ethics, too easily 
 accomplished for you to say, " I would if I could." 
 
 SYDNEY SMITH. 
 
 Be like the bird, that, halting in her flight 
 
 Awhile on boughs too slight, 
 Feels them give way beneath her and yet sings, 
 Knowing that she hath wings. 
 
 VICTOR HUGO. 
 
 [169J 
 
3Itme 
 
 d;tgt)temtf) 2T>ap 
 
 Be sober, be vigilant. — I Peter 5 : 8. 
 
 The prudent man looketh well to his own going. — Proverbs 
 
 14: 10. 
 
 TT/ r "EEP at some work of usefulness. 
 
 We forge our own fetters. 
 
 To thine own self be true. shakspeare. 
 
 The worst things are the perversion of good 
 things. Abused intellectual gifts make the danger- 
 ous villain ; abused sensibilities make the accom- 
 plished tempter. f. w. Robertson. 
 
 The lost days of my life until to-day, 
 
 What were they ; could I see them on the street 
 Lie as they fell ? Would they be ears of wheat 
 
 Sown once for food but trodden into clay ? 
 
 Or golden coins squander'd and still to pay ? 
 
 Or drops of blood dabbling the guilty feet? 
 
 Or such spilt waters as in dreams must cheat 
 The undying throats of Hell, a thirst alway ? 
 
 I do not see them here ; but after death 
 
 God knows I know the faces I shall see, 
 Each one a murdered self, with low last breath. 
 
 " I am thyself, — what hast thou done to me? 
 
 And I — and I — thyself " lo ! each one saith, 
 And thou thyself to all — eternity. 
 
 d. g. rossetti. 
 [170] 
 
3fime 
 
 0nettmtfy H>a£ 
 
 Little children, keep yourselves fro7?i idols. — I John 5 : 21. 
 
 T 
 
 O make idols, and find them clay 
 And to bewail their worship. Therefore pray. 
 
 FELICIA HEMANS. 
 
 Two Lost Heroes. 
 
 And so Death took your hero, 
 How kind to you was Fate ! 
 For Death but crystallizes Life, 
 And you need only wait. 
 Death keeps him, dear, safe from all tainting touch, 
 I, in your place, could scarcely weep so much. 
 
 For, I, too, lost my hero. 
 
 Would God it were by Death ! 
 Would God that he were sainted, 
 That I might spend my breath 
 In praying to heaven to make my deeds so sweet 
 That he might welcome me when we should meet ! 
 
 Alas, alas, my hero ! 
 
 How often we bow down, 
 Deceived, to crown a coward king 
 And deify a clown ! 
 Pass on ; compared to me you know not grief. 
 You have lost him, but I have lost Belief. 
 
 ANNE REEVE ALDRICH. 
 [171] 
 
3]une 
 
 2M»cMtetl) SDa? 
 
 For we must all appear before the jtidgment-seat of Christ ; 
 that every one may receive the things done in his body, 
 according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. — 
 2 Corinthians 5 : 10. 
 
 PERHAPS it may have been little thought of, 
 in the days of careless unconcern, which you 
 have spent hitherto ; but I call upon you to think 
 of it now ; to lay it to heart ; and no longer delay 
 when the high waters of death and judgments and 
 eternity are thus set before you. It is my prayer 
 to carry you beyond the regions of sight and sense, 
 to the regions of faith, and to assure you in the 
 name of Him who cannot lie, that as sure as 
 the hour for the laying of the body in the grave 
 comes, so surely will also come the hour of the 
 spirit returning to Him who gave it. Yes, the day 
 of final reckoning will come, and the appearance of 
 the Son of God in the heaven, and the opening 
 of the books will come, and the standing of men 
 of all generations before the judgment-seat will 
 come, and the solemn passing of that sentence 
 which is to fix your destiny for eternity, will come. 
 
 CHALMERS. 
 
 And I know of the future judgment, 
 
 How dreadful soe'er it be, 
 That to sit alone with my conscience 
 
 Will be judgment enough for me. 
 
 [172] 
 
Hiwe 
 
 We ought to love one another. — S. John 4:11. 
 
 THE world is full of love that is not much 
 better than no love at all. The fuel of the 
 stove makes the room warm, but there are great 
 piles of trees among the rocks on the top of the 
 hill, where nobody can get them ; but these do 
 not make anybody warm. Just so in family, love 
 makes the parents and children, the brothers and 
 sisters, happy ; but if they take care never to say 
 a word about it, as if it were a crime, they will 
 not be much happier than as if there was no love 
 among them ; the house will seem cold even in 
 summer. 
 
 We long for tenderness like that which hung 
 
 About us, lying on our mother's breast ; 
 A selfish feeling that no pen or tongue 
 
 Can praise aright, since silence sings its best. 
 A love, as far removed from passion's heat 
 
 As from the dullness of its dying fire ; 
 A love to lean on when the failing feet 
 
 Begin to totter and the eyes to tire. 
 In youth's brief heyday hottest love we seek, 
 
 The reddest rose we grasp — but when it dies 
 God grant the latter blossoms, violets meek, 
 
 May spring for us beneath life's autumn skies. 
 God grant some loving one be near to bless 
 Our weary way with simple tenderness. 
 
 ALL THE YEAR ROUND. 
 [173] 
 
9I«ne 
 
 He that riisteth in his riches shall fall ; but the righteous 
 
 shall flourish as a branch. — Proverbs 1 1 : 28. 
 
 Contentment zvith godliness is great gain. — 1 Timothy 6 : 6. 
 
 They that will be rich fall into temptation. — 1 Timothy 6 : 9. 
 
 I zvas a father to the poor. — Job 29 : 16. 
 
 Both lozv and high, rich and poor together. — Psalm 49: 2. 
 
 The cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches. — S. 
 
 Mark 4: 19. 
 
 The rich he hath sent empty away. — S. Luke 1 .-53. 
 
 LET us learn to be content with what we have, 
 with the place we have in life. Let us get 
 rid of our false estimates, let us throw down the 
 god Money from its pedestal, trample that sense- 
 less idol under foot, set up all the higher ideals — 
 a neat home, vines of our own planting, a few 
 books full of the inspiration of genius, a few friends 
 worthy of being loved, and able to love in turn ; 
 a hundred innocent pleasures that bring no pain 
 or remorse, a devotion to the right that will never 
 swerve, a simple religion empty of all bigotry, full 
 of trust and hope and love, and to such a philoso- 
 phy this world will give up all the joy it has. 
 
 Wealth has now all the respect paid to it which 
 is due only to virtue and to talent, but we can see 
 what estimate God puts upon it, since He often 
 bestows it upon the meanest and most unworthy 
 of all His creatures. swift. 
 
 [174] 
 
31tme 
 
 To every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have 
 abundance, but from him that hath not shall be taken away 
 even that which he hath. — S. Matthew 25 : 29. 
 
 THE heart dwindles in contact with small things 
 and narrow interests ; but when brought into 
 harmony with great ideas, striving for great ends, 
 with strong feeling excited and pouring upon the 
 altar of success the most costly and precious sacri- 
 fices, then the human heart, developing the germ 
 of its immortal nature, rises to the height of the 
 loftiest ideas, and enlarges to the compass of 
 the broadest principles. george m. robeson. 
 
 It was the martyr who saw " the heavens open 
 and the Son of God standing on the right hand 
 of God." It is when we have borne submissively 
 some dreadful sorrow that we see the golden ladder 
 reaching upward, as did Perpetua from the dark- 
 ness of the dungeon ; when we have given our- 
 selves to some great work and wrought it, by God's 
 help and the inspiration of His spirit, triumphantly 
 to the end, — that the vision is granted us. 
 
 r. s. STORRS. 
 
 Build up heroic lives, and all 
 
 Be like a sheathen sabre, 
 Ready to flash out at God's call, 
 
 O chivalry of labor ! 
 
 GERALD MASSEY. 
 [175] 
 
31tme 
 
 He is their strength. — Psalm 37 : 39. 
 
 I WOULD present true sainthood to you as the 
 strong chain of God's presence in humanity 
 running down through all history, and making of 
 it a unity, giving it a large and massive strength 
 able to bear great things and to do great things 
 too. The unity which the line of sainthood gives 
 to history is the great point that shows its strength. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 But all through life I see a cross, 
 
 Where sons of God yield up their breath ; 
 There is no gain except by loss, 
 
 There is no life except by death, 
 
 There is no vision but by faith, 
 No glory but by bearing shame, 
 No justice but by taking blame ; 
 
 And that Eternal Passion saith, 
 Be emptied of glory and right and name. 
 
 OLRIG GRANGE. 
 
 The highest of us is but a sentry at his post. 
 
 WHYTE MELVILLE. 
 
 Dome up, O heaven ! yet higher o'er my head ! 
 Back ! back, horizon ! widen out my world ! 
 Rush in, O Infinite sea of the Unknown, 
 For though He slay me I will trust in God. 
 
 GEORGE MACDONALD. 
 [176] 
 
3!wne 
 
 ®toent?=fiftlj a>ap 
 
 These things I command you, that ye love one another. — 
 S. John 15: 17. 
 
 IS it worth while that we jostle a brother 
 Bearing his load on the rough road of life ? 
 Is it worth while that we jeer at each other 
 
 In blackness of heart ? that we war to the knife ? 
 God pity us all in our pitiful strife. 
 
 God pity us all as we jostle each other ; 
 God pardon us all for the triumph we feel 
 
 When a fellow goes down 'neath his load on the 
 heather, 
 Pierced to the heart ; words are keener than steel, 
 And mightier far for woe than for weal. 
 
 Were it not well, in this brief little journey, 
 On over the isthmus, down into the tide, 
 
 We give him a fish, instead of a serpent, 
 Ere folding the hands' to be or abide 
 Forever and aye in the dust at his side ? 
 
 Look at the roses saluting each other ; 
 
 Look at the herds all at peace on the plain ; 
 
 Man, and man only, makes war on his brother, 
 And laughs in his heart at his peril and pain, 
 Shamed by the beasts that go down on the plain. 
 
 Is it worth while that we battle to humble 
 Some poor fellow-creature down in the dust ? 
 
 God pity us all ! Time eftsoon will tumble 
 All of us together, like leaves in a gust, 
 Humbled, indeed, down into the dust. 
 
 [177] JOAQUIN MILLER. 
 
9I«nc 
 
 We knoiv that all things work together for good to them that 
 love God. — Romans 8 : 28. 
 
 THE crosses of the present moment always 
 bring their own special grace and consequent 
 comfort with them ; we see the hand of God in 
 them when it is laid upon us. But the crosses 
 of anxious foreboding are seen out of the dispen- 
 sations of God ; we see them without grace to 
 bear them ; we see them indeed through a faith- 
 less spirit which banishes grace. So everything in 
 them is bitter and unendurable ; all seems dark 
 and helpless. Let us throw self aside; no more 
 self-interest, and then God's will, unfolding every 
 moment, will console us for all that He shall do 
 around us, or within us. fenelon. 
 
 Being perplexed, I say, 
 Lord, make it right ! 
 Night is as day to Thee, 
 
 Darkness is light. 
 I am afraid to touch 
 Things that involve so much ; — 
 
 My trembling hand may shake, 
 My skilless hand may break ; 
 Thine can make no mistake. 
 
 ANNA WARNER. 
 
 Should we feel at times disheartened and dis- 
 couraged, a confiding thought, a simple movement 
 of heart towards God will renew our powers. 
 
 [i 7 8] FENELON. 
 
Slime 
 
 Above all that we ask or think. — Ephesians 3 : 20. 
 
 THEY were living to themselves ; self, with its 
 hopes and promises and dreams, still had 
 hold of them; but the Lord began to fulfil their 
 prayers. They had asked for contrition, and He 
 gave them sorrow ; they had asked for purity, and 
 He sent them anguish ; they had asked to be 
 meek, and He had broken their hearts ; they had 
 asked to be dead in the world, and He slew all 
 their living hopes ; they had asked to be made 
 like unto Him, and He had placed them in a fur- 
 nace till they should reflect His image ; they had 
 asked to lay hold of His cross, and when He 
 had reached it to them, it lacerated their hands. 
 
 But if, impatient, thou let slip thy cross, 
 
 Thou wilt not find it in this world again, 
 
 Nor in another ; here, and here alone 
 
 Is given thee to suffer for God's sake. 
 
 In other worlds we shall more perfectly 
 
 Serve Him and love Him, praise Him, work for Him, 
 
 Grow near and nearer Him with all delight ; 
 
 But then we shall not any more be called 
 
 To suffer, which is our appointment here. 
 
 And while we suffer let us set our souls 
 
 To suffer perfectly : since this alone, 
 
 The suffering, which is this world's special grace, 
 
 May here be perfected and left behind. 
 
 UGO BASSI'S SERMON IN THE HOSPITAL. 
 [179] 
 
3]ime 
 
 Oh that I might have my request ; and that God wou/d grant 
 me the thing that I long for ! — Job 6 : 8. 
 
 YEA, leave it with Him, 
 The lilies all do, 
 
 And they grow — 
 
 They grow in the rain, 
 
 And they grow in the dew — 
 
 Yes, they grow. 
 
 They grow in the darkness, all hid in the night ; 
 
 They grow in the sunshine, revealed by the light, 
 
 Still they grow. 
 
 They ask not your planting, 
 
 They need not your care 
 
 As they grow. 
 Dropped down in the valley, 
 The field anywhere — 
 
 There they grow. 
 They grow in their beauty, arrayed in pure white, 
 They grow clothed in glory, by heaven's own light, 
 Sweetly grow. 
 
 Yea, leave it with Him ; 
 
 'Tis more dear to His heart 
 
 You will know 
 Than the lilies that bloom, 
 Or the flowers that start 
 'Neath the snow. 
 What you need, all you need, if you ask it in prayer, 
 You can leave it with Him, for you are His care, 
 You, you know. 
 
 [180] 
 
3Iime 
 
 That your joy may be full. — I John 1 6 : 24. 
 
 MANY objects in this earth are what things in 
 heaven will be like. Meadows we shall lie 
 down in ; and there will be the murmur in our ears 
 of the river of life ; and over us there will be 
 a tree of life, and through the leaves of it some 
 rays of the light of God will shine upon us in that 
 blessed shade ; and we shall eat of the fruit of the 
 tree, because it is for the healing of the nations. 
 And God will be all in all. He will be in the river 
 of life, flowing alongside of us, and in the light 
 that shines through it ; and He will be in us, 
 ourselves. He will be everlasting growth of spirit 
 in us, and He will be peace and joy. Ay, there 
 will be then one soul of joy in us and in God. 
 We in Him, He will be in us. We shall be nerves 
 in His infinite blessedness, and forever be thrilled 
 with delight. mountford. 
 
 Open our eyes, thou Son of life and gladness, 
 
 That we may see that glorious world of Thine ! 
 It shines for us in vain, while drooping sadness 
 Enfolds us here like mist ; come, Power benign, 
 Touch our chilled hearts with vernal smile, 
 Our wintry course do Thou beguile. 
 Nor by the wayside ruins let us mourn, 
 Who have th' eternal towers for our appointed bourn. 
 
 KEBLE. 
 
 [181] 
 
3Iunc 
 
 Wtyittitty a>ai? 
 
 Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before 
 a fall. — Proverbs 16 : 18. 
 
 PRIDE slays thanksgiving, but a humble mind 
 is the soil out of which thanks naturally grow. 
 A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he 
 never thinks he gets as much as he deserves. 
 When any mercy falls, he says, " Yes, but it ought 
 to be more. It is only manna as large as a cori- 
 ander seed, whereas it ought to be like a baker's 
 loaf." How base a pool God's mercies fall into, 
 when they plash down into such a heart as that ! 
 If one should give me a dish of sand, and tell me 
 there were particles of iron in it, I might look 
 for them with my eyes, and search for them with 
 my clumsy fingers, and be unable to detect them ; 
 but let me take a magnet and sweep through it, 
 and how would it draw to itself the almost invisi- 
 ble particles, by the mere power of attraction ! 
 The unthankful heart, like my finger in the sand, 
 discovers no mercies ; but let the thankful heart 
 sweep through the day, and as the magnet finds 
 the iron, so it will find in every hour some heavenly 
 blessings ; only the iron in God's sand is gold. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 Ah ! languid hand, safe in some scented glove, 
 Give alms of bread — give truer alms of love — 
 To other hands whose stains and scars you scorn ! 
 
 MRS. S. M. B. PIATT. 
 
 '[182] 
 
0\>Q,3 
 
 nd plea5U 
 
9 
 
 The end of that man is peace. — Psalm 37 : 37. 
 
 Peace. 
 
 I STOOD in a crowd on pleasure bent, 
 And heard the ripple of laughter and song ; 
 But the song was stilled ere night was spent, 
 And the laughter sank and died ere long. 
 Mirth and melody, fume and fret 
 Were there ; but Peace I found not yet. 
 
 Then I saw a cottage where want and care 
 
 Had entered every day for years, 
 And a woman was there, whose face was fair, 
 
 Tho' scarred by pain and marked by tears — 
 A face that was fair with the light of faith, 
 And a love that was stronger still than death. 
 
 I stood at the open door, and heard 
 A voice like an angel's, sweet and low : 
 
 " Who doeth my will and keepeth my Word, 
 Nor grief nor pain at last shall know." 
 
 And the woman answered, with dying breath, 
 
 "True, Lord !" Then I knew there was Peace in 
 Death. 
 
 J. T. BURTON WOLLASTON. 
 [183] 
 
g>etonD SPag 
 
 The law of kindness. — Proverbs 31 : 26. 
 
 I WAS once present at the funeral service of a 
 man who was held in high esteem in his com- 
 munity. 
 
 He had served terms in the state legislature 
 both as representative and senator, and had made a 
 record of unblemished honor. He was a deacon, 
 and trustee and Sunday-school superintendent in 
 his church, and had always been influential in all 
 church and philanthropic work. But the thing for 
 which he will be most lovingly remembered was his 
 tenderness of heart and the genius he had for doing 
 little things to brighten the lives of others. As 
 illustrative of this spirit and habit, an incident 
 occurred at his church one Sabbath morning. A 
 woman came to the service, evidently a stranger. 
 
 Mr. M observed her and divined her feeling 
 
 of loneliness, and when he passed down the aisle 
 with a collection basket, he quietly unpinned a 
 rose which he wore upon his coat and dropped it in 
 the lonesome woman's lap. Instantly the whole 
 atmosphere of the church changed to that woman, 
 the sense of strangeness vanished, she felt herself 
 among friends, and her heart entered warmly into 
 all the service that followed. It takes a great soul 
 to do a little thing like that. j. t. mcfarland. 
 
 The kindly deeds which their own balm impart, 
 These are not lost. 
 
 [184] 
 
31ul? 
 
 ®l)irD Dap 
 
 While we look not at the things which are seen, but the things 
 that are not seen : for the things which are seen are temporal ; 
 but the things which are not seen are eternal. — 2 Corin- 
 thians 4: 18. 
 
 If in this life only zue have hope in Christ, we are of all men 
 most miserable. — 1 Corinthians 15 : 19. 
 
 A Blind Spinner. 
 
 LIKE a blind spinner in the sun, 
 I tread my days ; 
 I know that all the threads will run 
 
 Appointed ways. 
 I know each day will bring its task, 
 And, being blind, no more I ask. 
 
 I do not know the use or name 
 
 Of what I spin ; 
 I only know that some one came 
 
 And laid within 
 My hand the thread, and said, " Since you 
 Are blind, but one thing you can do." 
 
 I know not why, but I am sure 
 
 That tint and place, 
 In some great fabric to endure, 
 
 Past time and race, 
 My threads will have ; so from the first, 
 Though blind, I never felt accurst. 
 
 HELEN HUNT JACKSON. 
 [I8 5 ] 
 
%m 
 
 jfourti) 2Da^ 
 
 Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to 
 inherit the land. — Psalm 37 : 34. 
 
 OH, keep your armor bright, 
 Sons of those mighty dead, 
 And guard ye well the right, 
 
 For which such blood was shed ! 
 Your starry flag should only wave 
 O'er freedom's home, or o'er your grave. 
 
 BOTTA. 
 
 It is our duty to celebrate this day, not merely by 
 idle pomp and vain display, but in a manner wor- 
 thy of the great men and the great principles with 
 which it is associated, by high purposes and mag- 
 nanimous resolves, by deeper gratitude and a loftier 
 faith. The character of man is always more 
 severely tried by the passive than the active vir- 
 tues. The same dignity of mind and elevation of 
 character which gave our fathers the power to do, 
 gave them also the power to bear and suffer. Their 
 noble example demands from us to watch for the 
 overshadowing presence of that spirit of the Lord, 
 without which there is no true liberty. 
 
 Faith of our fathers ! Good men's prayers 
 Shall win our country all to thee ; 
 
 And through the truth that comes from God 
 Our land shall then indeed be free. 
 
 Faith of our fathers ! Holy faith ! 
 
 We will be true to thee till death ! 
 [186] 
 
 
3Jul? 
 
 jfiftl) SDap 
 
 Pray without ceasing. — I Thessalonians 5:17. 
 
 M 
 
 ORE things are wrought by prayer than this 
 world dreams of. 
 
 Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance, it is 
 laying hold of His highest willingness. 
 
 ARCHBISHOP TRENCH. 
 
 I have lived to thank God that all my prayers 
 have not been answered. jean ingelow. 
 
 Now, soul, be very still and go apart. 
 
 Fly to thy inmost citadel, and be thou still. 
 Dost thou not know the trembling, shrinking heart 
 
 That feels the shadow of some coming ill? 
 Ah ! no. Tis not delusion ; some kind care 
 Touches thee, soul, and whispers thee, " Beware ! " 
 
 So, soul, come with me, and be sure we'll find 
 A sanctuary, wherein dwells faith and prayer ; 
 
 Then, if misfortune come, cast doubt behind ; 
 We shall have strength to fight or strength to bear ; 
 
 No prisoners of evil fate are we, 
 
 For in our breast we carry Hopeful's key. 
 
 MARY A. BARR. 
 
 It is an introspection on which all religion has 
 been built, man going into himself, and seeing the 
 struggle within him, and thence getting self-knowl- 
 edge, and thence knowledge of God. mozley. 
 
 [187] 
 
mv 
 
 Sing unto him a new song. — Psalm ^Z '- 3- 
 
 THE power of a Christian hymn has been one 
 of the great beneficent forces in human life. 
 It is almost impossible to overestimate it. Litera- 
 ture and art and oratory influence the emotions and 
 conduct of man. Noble poetry haunts and inspires 
 us. But in the trying crises of life — in tempta- 
 tion, or misfortune, or sickness, or sorrow, or even 
 death — myriads of souls have been comforted and 
 helped by the sustaining influence of Christian song. 
 
 Two Songs. 
 
 A singer sang a song of tears, 
 
 And the great world heard and wept ; 
 
 For he sang of the sorrows of the fleeting years 
 And the hopes which the dead past kept ; 
 
 And souls in anguish their burdens bore, 
 
 And the world was sadder than before. 
 
 A singer sang a song of cheer, 
 
 And the great world listened and smiled ; 
 For he sang of the love of a Father dear 
 
 And the trust of a little child ; 
 And souls that before had forgotten to pray 
 Looked up and went singing along the way. 
 
 [1883 
 
%nlv 
 
 g>efoOTtf) 2Da^ 
 
 Be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think jiot the Son 
 of man cometh. — S. Matthew 24 : 44. 
 
 T 
 
 HE vain regret that steals above the wreck of 
 squandered hours. whittier. 
 
 The Foolish Virgin. 
 
 " The midnight comes on and my lamp unfilled ! ' 
 (Black and stormy the night wanes on.) 
 
 " Sisters, help ! ere my hope be killed ; 
 
 Give of your store, that my lamp be filled." 
 (The Bridegroom into the House hath gone.) 
 
 "Sisters, help ! " They have closed the door. 
 
 (Black and stormy the night wanes on.) 
 Naught they give of their brimming store, 
 Each one watching the lamp she bore. 
 
 (The Bridegroom into the House hath gone.) 
 
 " I will knock, though the door be closed." 
 (Black and stormy the night wanes on.) 
 
 " Lord, thy handmaid waits. Unclose ! 
 
 Around me night like a river flows." 
 
 (The Bridegroom into the House hath gone.) 
 
 "Who knocks so late from the darkened East?" 
 
 (Black and stormy the night wanes on.) 
 " Depart ! I know nor greater nor least, 
 Who brings no light to the marriage feast." 
 (The Bridegroom into the House hath gone.) 
 
 MARIE B. WILLIAMS. 
 [189] 
 
%va$ 
 
 Ctgljtt) HDap 
 
 A people that jeopardized their lives unto the death in the high 
 places of the field. — Judges 5:18. 
 
 COME, Howard, from the gloom of the prison 
 and the taint of the lazar-house, and show us 
 what philanthropy can do when imbued with the 
 spirit of Jesus ; come, Eliot, from the thick forest 
 where the red man listens to the Word of Life; 
 come, Perm, from the sweet counsel and weapon- 
 less victory, and show us what Christian love can 
 accomplish with the rudest barbarians and the 
 fiercest hearts. Come, Raikes, from thy labors 
 with the ignorant and the poor and show us with 
 what an eye this faith regards the lowest and the 
 least of our race ; and how diligently it labors for 
 the plastic soul that is to course the ages of immor- 
 tality. And ye, who are a great number, ye name- 
 less ones, who have done good in your narrow 
 spheres, content to forego renown on earth, and 
 seeking your reward on high — come and tell us 
 how kindly a spirit, how lofty a purpose, or how 
 strong a courage the religion ye professed can 
 breathe into the poor, the humble, and the weak. 
 Go forth, then, Spirit of Christianity, to thy great 
 work of Reform ! The past bears witness to thee 
 in the blood of thy martyrs, and the ashes of 
 thy saints and heroes ; the present is hopeful be- 
 cause of thee ; the future shall acknowledge thy 
 omnipotence. chapin. 
 
 [190] 
 
%m 
 
 $iint\) 2Dap 
 
 Lord, thou hast heard the desire of the humble : . . . thou 
 wilt cause thine ear to hear. — Psalm 10 : 17. 
 
 " T EARN to entwine with prayers the small 
 1 v cares, the trifling sorrows, the little wants 
 of daily life. Whatever affects you — be it a 
 changed look, an altered tone, an unkind word, a 
 wrong, a wound, a demand you cannot meet, a sor- 
 row you cannot disclose — turn it into prayer, and 
 send it up to God. Disclosures you may not make 
 to man you can make to the Lord. Only give your- 
 self to prayer, whatever be the occasion that calls 
 for it." 
 
 He Knows. 
 
 He knows it all at set of sun, 
 
 The little errands I have run, 
 How hard I tried and where I failed, 
 
 Where dreadful wrong and sin prevailed ; 
 He knows the burden and the cross,. 
 
 The heavy trial and the loss 
 That met me early on the way, 
 
 And lingered still at close of day. 
 He knows it all — how tired I grew 
 
 When pressing duties that I knew 
 Were mine, I left in part undone, 
 
 And how I grieved at set of sun, 
 And could not rest till His sweet tone 
 
 Of calming love had gently shown 
 Me that He did not blame — He knew 
 
 That I had tried my best to do. 
 [191] 
 
miv 
 
 Wcntfy ww 
 
 The race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong. 
 Ecclesiastes 9: u. 
 
 I SAW them start, an eager throng, 
 All young and strong and fleet ; 
 Joy lighted up their beaming eyes, 
 
 Hope sped their flying feet. 
 And one among them so excelled 
 In courage, strength, and grace, 
 That all men gazed and smiled and cried : 
 " The winner of the race ! " 
 
 But ah, what folly ! See, he stops 
 
 To raise a fallen child, 
 To place it out of danger's way 
 
 With kiss and warning mild. 
 A fainting comrade claims his care, 
 
 Once more he turns aside ; 
 Then stays his strong, young steps to be 
 
 A feeble woman's guide. 
 
 The race is o'er. 'Mid shouts and cheers 
 
 I saw the victors crowned ; 
 Some wore fame's laurels, some love's flowers, 
 
 Some brows with gold were bound. 
 But all unknown, unheeded, stood — 
 
 Heaven's light upon his face — 
 With empty hands and uncrowned head, 
 
 The winner of the race. 
 
 SUSAN MARR SPAULDING. 
 [192] 
 
%m 
 
 dftetomtlj sr>ap 
 
 It is God that girdeth me zvith strength and maketh my way 
 perfect. — Psalm 18 : 32. 
 
 THE Christian learns by frequent experience 
 that he cannot live without prayer. And so 
 he prays daily and hourly, not as a duty, but as a 
 necessity, — prays when it is necessary, be it sel- 
 dom or often, — prays till the need is supplied, till 
 the hunger has ceased, till the empty soul is filled, 
 till his weakness has been made strength, till his 
 weariness has changed to inward rest. And then, 
 having prayed from necessity, he prays again spon- 
 taneously, the prayer of thanksgiving and gratitude, 
 the acknowledgment of his new life. 
 
 Silent the starry sails go down 
 
 Upon the western sea ; 
 Silent they bear away our cares 
 
 And leave us glad and free ; 
 So calm each overburdened heart, 
 
 So still each burning chord, 
 So glad to sink down at His feet, 
 
 And listen to the Lord. 
 
 AGNES E. MITCHELL. 
 
 No soul can preserve its strength or the bloom 
 of its consecration without lonely musing and silent 
 prayer ; and the greatness of this necessity is in 
 proportion to the greatness of the soul. 
 
 FARRAR. 
 
 [193] 
 
mv 
 
 ®toflftl) 2Da? 
 
 A nezv commandment I give unto you, That ye love one 
 another, as I have loved you. — S. John 13 : 34. 
 
 THE love of Christ is not an absorbing, but a 
 radiating love. The more we love Him, the 
 more we shall most certainly love others. Some have 
 not much natural power of loving, but the love of 
 Christ will strengthen it. Some have had the 
 springs of love dried up by some terrible earth- 
 quake. They will find " fresh springs " in Jesus, 
 and the gentle flow will be purer and deeper than 
 the old torrent could ever bear. Some have spent 
 it all on their God-given dear ones. Now He is 
 come whose right it is ; and yet in the fullest 
 resumption of that right, He is so gracious that He 
 puts back an even larger measure of the old love 
 into our hand, sanctified with His own love, and 
 energized with His own blessing, and strengthened 
 with His new commandment, "That ye love one 
 another, as I have loved you." havergal. 
 
 Oh, sweet command, that goes so far beyond 
 The mightiest impulse of the tenderest heart ! 
 A bare permission had been much ; but He 
 Who knows our yearnings and our fearfulness, 
 Chose graciously to bid us do the thing 
 That makes our earthly happiness, 
 A limit that we need not fear to pass, 
 Because we cannot. Oh, the breadth and length, 
 And depth and height of love thatpasseth knowledge ; 
 Yet Jesus said, " As I have loved you." 
 [194] 
 
{Cijuteenttj Hoa^ 
 
 The Lord knoweth the days of the upright : and their in- 
 heritance shall be for ever. — Psalm 37 : 18. 
 
 HAVE they days of affliction? The Lord 
 knows them. Have they days of danger? 
 He knows them, and will be a refuge and defence 
 in them. Have they days of duty? He knows 
 them, and will furnish the strength and the help 
 they require. Have they days of inaction, when 
 they are laid aside from their work by accident 
 or disease ? He knows them. Have they days of 
 privation when they are denied the ordinances 
 of the church? He knows them, and will follow 
 His people when they cannot follow Him, and be 
 a little sanctuary to them in their losses. Have 
 they days of feebleness and of old age, in which 
 their strength is fled, and their senses fail? He 
 knows them, and says, " I remember thee, the 
 kindness of thy youth. Even to old age I am 
 He, and to hoary hairs will I bear and carry you." 
 
 WILLIAM JAY. 
 
 Among so many, can He care? 
 
 Can special love be everywhere ? 
 
 A myriad homes, — a myriad ways, — 
 
 And God's eye over every place ? 
 
 I asked : my soul bethought of this : — 
 
 In just that very place of His 
 
 Where He hath put and keepeth you, 
 
 God hath no other thing to do ! 
 
 MRS. A. D. T. WHITNEY. 
 
 [195] 
 
%w 
 
 jfourtemti) SDap 
 
 Search me, O God, and know my heart : try me, and knozu 
 my thoughts : and see if there be any wicked zuay in me. — 
 Psalm 139:23-24. 
 
 " OHALL not God search this out? for He 
 vZ5 knoweth the secrets of my heart." The 
 greatness of guilt arises chiefly from the greatness 
 of God's goodness towards us, from the favors, 
 the lights and instruction that we have received 
 from Him. In order to know your own guilt, 
 you must consider your own circumstances, your 
 health, your sickness, your youth or age, your 
 special duties, the happiness of your education, 
 the degree of light and instruction you have re- 
 ceived, the admonition that you have had, the 
 resolutions of amendment that you have so often 
 broken, and the checks of conscience that you 
 have disregarded. It is from this examination 
 that each one must learn the measure and great- 
 ness of his own guilt. Frequent reflection will 
 cause us to seek for pardon and strength from God. 
 
 Deep regret for follies past, 
 
 Talents wasted, time misspent, — 
 Hearts debased by worldly cares, 
 
 Thankless for the blessings lent ; — 
 These and every secret fault, 
 
 Filled with grief and shame, we own ; 
 Humbled at Thy feet we bow, 
 
 Seeking strength from Thee alone. 
 [196] 
 
miv 
 
 jfittttntf) 2Dap 
 
 Cleanse vie from secret faults. — Psalm 19: 12. 
 
 LORD, have compassion upon us. Chastise us. 
 By any means clear the guilt that is in us. 
 Make us to feel the sinfulness of sin, but yet, 
 have compassion, and chastise us because Thou 
 
 lovest US ! BEECHER. 
 
 If, every time conscience was wronged, it sighed, 
 and every time reason was perverted, it uttered 
 complaints, no one could live for the moaning 
 which would fill his soul. 
 
 Strangled. 
 
 There is a legend in some Spanish book 
 About a noisy reveller who, at night, 
 Returning home with others, saw a light 
 
 Shine from a window, and climbed up to look 
 
 And saw within the room hanged to a hook 
 His own self-strangled self, grim, rigid, white, 
 And who, struck sober by that livid sight, 
 
 Feasting his eyes, in tongue-tied terror shook. 
 
 Has any man a fancy to peep in 
 
 And see, as through a window in the past, 
 
 His noble self self-choked with toils of sin, 
 
 Or sloth or folly? Round the throat whipped 
 fast 
 
 The nooses give the face a stiffened grin. 
 
 'Tis but thyself. Look well. Why be aghast? 
 
 EUGENE LEE HAMILTON. 
 
 [197] 
 
3I«ir 
 
 &ixttmt\) HDap 
 
 What time I am afraid I will call on thee. — Psalm 56 : 3. 
 JE have all taken a sorrow or a perplexity 
 
 w 
 
 out into the noontide or the midnight and 
 felt its morbid bitterness drawn out of it, and 
 a great peace descend and fill it from the depth 
 of the majesty under whose arch we stood. . . . 
 The sweet and solemn influence which comes to 
 you out of the noontide or the midnight sky does 
 not take away your pain, but it takes out of it its 
 bitterness. It lifts it to a higher peace. It says, 
 "Be still and wait." It gives the reason power 
 and leave and time to work. It gathers the partial 
 into the embrace of the universal. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 Who of us has not bowed his will to some 
 supreme law, accepted some obedience as the 
 atmosphere in which his life must live, and found 
 that his mind's darkness at once turned to light, 
 and that many a hard question found its answer? 
 Who has not sometimes seemed to see it all as 
 clear as daylight, that not by the sharpening of the 
 intellect to supernatural acuteness, but by the sub- 
 mission of the nature to its true authority, man 
 was at last to conquer truth ; that not by agonizing 
 struggles over contradictory evidence, but by the 
 harmony with Him in whom the answers to all 
 our doubts are folded, a harmony with Him brought 
 by obedience to Him, our doubts must be en- 
 lightened? PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 [198] 
 
91ul? 
 
 &tbzntztnt\) SDap 
 
 The work of our hands establish thou it. — Psalm 90: 17. 
 MLENTLY the work of our lives goes on. 
 
 S 1 
 
 It proceeds without intermission, and all that 
 has been done is the under-structure for that which 
 is to be done. Young man and maiden, take heed 
 to the work of your hands. That which you are 
 doing is imperishable. You do not leave it behind 
 you because you forget it. It passes away from 
 you apparently, but it does not pass away in 
 reality. Every stroke, every single element abides, 
 and there is nothing that grows so fast as character. 
 
 The Work of Our Hands. 
 "The work of our hands, establish Thou it." 
 
 So often with thoughtless lips we pray ; 
 
 But He who sits in the heavens shall say, 
 " Is the work of thy hands so fair and fit, 
 
 That ye dare so pray ? 
 
 " Is it strong as the wonderful bonds that knit 
 All truth as one ? Is it pure as snow ? 
 As gracious and sweet as the winds that blow ? 
 
 As true as the stars that are nightly lit 
 For the world below? " 
 
 Softly we answer : " Lord, make it fit, 
 The work of our hands, that so we may 
 Lift our voices and dare to pray, 
 
 The work of our hands, establish Thou it, 
 Forever and aye. 
 
 CARLOTTA PERRY. 
 [199] 
 
%nly 
 
 €i$)tm\tl) 2Dap 
 
 Lord, teach us to pray. — S. Luke 2:1. 
 
 IT is not only in the beginning of a devotional 
 life that assistance is required. " Likewise 
 the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities," says the 
 apostle ; " for we know not what we should pray 
 for as we ought, but the Spirit itself maketh inter- 
 cession for us with groanings which cannot be 
 uttered." And where is the Christian who would 
 not often have given over the exercise, under 
 a sense of his imperfections and weaknesses, but 
 for the hope of the supply of the Spirit of Jesus 
 Christ ; and the promise, " If ye then, being evil, 
 know how to give good gifts to your children, 
 how much more shall your Heavenly Father give 
 the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?" This 
 has revived him again, and out of weakness he 
 has been made strong, and delighted himself in 
 the Almighty. Happy they who, by the great 
 Teacher, are thus taught to pray. william jay. 
 
 Prayer is the breath of God in man, 
 
 Returning whence it came ; 
 Love is the sacred fire within, 
 
 And prayer the rising flame. 
 
 The humble suppliant cannot fail 
 
 To have his wants supplied, 
 Since He for sinners intercedes, 
 
 Who once for sinners died. 
 
 BENJAMIN BEDDOME. 
 [200] 
 
3!ul? 
 
 0nttttnt\) 2Dap 
 
 Go tvork in my vineyard. — S. Matthew 21 : 28. 
 
 "\I 7HY stand ye here idle? " when dewy and 
 
 VV bright, 
 
 The vine's purple clusters wave in the morn's light ; 
 "Why stand ye here idle?" when noon's golden 
 
 glare 
 Falls over the vineyard — ripe, waiting and fair. 
 " Why stand ye here idle ? " when broad fields in view 
 Are white for the harvest, and reapers are few. 
 " Why stand ye here idle still, all the day long," 
 While the sunset is near and the glad harvest song ? 
 
 " Go work in the vineyard ! to-day must thou share 
 The heat and the burden my laborers bear." 
 Thus the voice of the Master for each of us calls, 
 Though sealed be our ears when the pleading voice 
 
 falls. MARY A. LEAVITT. 
 
 Oh, if every one could put his arms round one 
 other one, and save him from perdition, it would 
 be worth a lifetime of exertion. If you can lie 
 down on the bed of death, and ask, of what avail 
 has been my living? and only one redeemed by 
 your agency, only one shall stand before you, only 
 one upon whom you can fix your dying eyes, and 
 feel, " God has given me that as a seal to my 
 ministry," oh, it were enough ! It were enough ! 
 For the redemption of one human soul is worth 
 ... a lifetime of self-denial. john b. gough. 
 
 [201] 
 
Little children, keep yourselves from idols. — S. John 5 : 21. 
 
 "^\H, not by loving less, but loving more. 
 
 \^J It is not that we love our precious ones 
 Too much, but God too little. As the lamp 
 A miner bears upon his shadowed brow 
 Is only dazzling in the grimy dark, 
 And has no glare against the summer sky, 
 So, light the tiny torch of our best love 
 In the great sunshine of the love of God, 
 And, though full fed and fanned, it casts no shade 
 And dazzles not, o'erflowed with mightier light." 
 
 There is no love so deep and wide as that which 
 is kept for Jesus. It flows both fuller and farther 
 when it flows only through Him. Then, too, it 
 will be a power for Him. It will always be un- 
 consciously working for Him. In drawing others 
 to ourselves by it, we shall necessarily be drawing 
 them nearer to the fountain of our love, never 
 drawing them away from it. It is the great magnet 
 of His love which alone can draw any heart to 
 Him ; but when our own are thoroughly yielded 
 to its mighty influence, they will be so magnetized 
 that He will condescend to use them in this way. 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 Idols of dust, 
 Idols of clay, 
 
 Crumble and fall, — 
 Vanish for aye. 
 [202] 
 
%W 
 
 These all continued with one accord in prayer and suppli- 
 cation. — Acts I : 14. 
 
 PUBLIC devotion has claims upon us. God 
 has commanded us not to forsake the assem- 
 bling of ourselves together as the manner of some 
 is ; and He has said, " In all places where I record 
 my name, I will come unto thee and I will bless 
 thee." The worship of the sanctuary enlivens 
 our feelings, endears us to each other, and keeps 
 the distinctions of life from becoming excessive. 
 There the rich and the poor meet together, and 
 seek and serve a Being with whom there is no 
 respect of persons. Let me always avail myself 
 of the privilege, and be glad when they say unto 
 me, " Let us go up into the house of the Lord." 
 
 With One Accord. 
 " With one accord ! " The day had brought 
 Its vexing cares ; its anxious thought ; 
 With labor worn, with doubts perplexed, 
 With toils and troubles sorely vexed ; 
 When evening brought its hour of prayer, 
 With sweet accord we gathered there. 
 
 " The door was shut ! " " With one accord " 
 We kneeled before our risen Lord ; . 
 Some needed strength • some needed peace ; 
 Some prayed that wrongs and woes might cease ; 
 All felt the need of humble prayer, 
 All needed Christ, and Christ was there. 
 [203] 
 
Every purpose of the Lord shall be performed. — Jeremiah 
 51:29. 
 
 A MAN cannot choose his own life. He can- 
 not say : " I will take existence lightly, and 
 keep out of the way of the wretched, mistaken, 
 energetic creatures, who fight so heartily in the 
 great battle." He cannot say : " I will stop in 
 the tents while the strife is fought, and laugh at 
 the fools who are trampled down in the useless 
 struggle." He cannot do this. He can only do, 
 humbly and fearfully, that which the Maker who 
 created him has appointed for him to do. If he 
 has a battle to fight, let him fight it faithfully. But 
 woe betide him if he skulks when his name is 
 called in the mighty muster-roll ! woe betide him 
 if he hides in the tents when the tocsin summons 
 him to the scene of war ! m. e. braddon. 
 
 Exactly thus men stand to God : 
 
 I with my courier, God with me. Just so 
 
 I have His bidding to perform ; but mind 
 And body, all of me, though made and meant 
 For that sole service, must consult, contest 
 With my own self and nobody beside, 
 How to effect the same : God helps not else. 
 
 ROBERT BROWNING. 
 
 [204] 
 
%m 
 
 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed 
 on thee. — Isaiah 26 : 3. 
 
 A TRUE Christian, that hath power over his 
 own will, may live nobly and happily, and 
 enjoy a clear heaven within the serenity of his own 
 mind perpetually. 
 
 He can look about him, and with an even and 
 indifferent mind behold the world either to smile 
 or frown upon him ; neither will he abate of the 
 least of his contentment for all the ill and unkind 
 usage he meets withal in this life. He that hath 
 got the mastery over his own will feels no violence 
 from without, finds no contests within ; and when 
 God calls for him out of this state of mortality, 
 he finds in himself a power to lay down his own 
 
 life. DR. JOHN SMITH. 
 
 In heavenly love abiding 
 
 No change my heart shall fear, 
 And safe is such confiding, 
 
 For nothing changes here : 
 The storm may roar without me, 
 
 My heart may low be laid, 
 But God is round about me, 
 
 And can I be dismayed? 
 His wisdom ever waketh, 
 
 His sight is never dim, 
 He knows the way He taketh, 
 
 And I will walk with Him. 
 
 WARING. 
 
 [205] 
 
None of them that trust in him shall be desolate. — Psalm 
 34 : 22. 
 
 WE cannot always be doing a great work, but 
 we can always be doing something that 
 belongs to our condition. To be silent, to suffer, 
 to pray when we cannot act, is acceptable to God. 
 A disappointment, a contradiction, a harsh word, 
 an annoyance, a wrong received and endured as 
 in His presence, is worth more than a long prayer ; 
 and we do not lose time if we bear its loss with 
 gentleness and patience, provided the loss was 
 inevitable, and was not caused by our own fault. 
 
 FENELON. 
 
 Trust. 
 Though the rain may fall and the wind be blowing, 
 
 And cold and chill is the wintry blast, 
 Though the cloudy sky is still cloudier growing, 
 
 And the dead leaves tell that summer has passed, 
 My face I hold to the stormy heaven, 
 
 My heart is as calm as the summer sea, 
 Glad to receive what my God has given, 
 Whate'er it be. 
 
 If I trust Him once I must trust Him ever, 
 
 And His way is best though I stand or fall. 
 Through wind and storm He will leave me never ; 
 He sends it all. 
 
 MRS. FRANK TAYLOR. 
 [206] 
 
Be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, 
 I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. — Hebrews 13 : 5. 
 
 MY future will not copy fair the past 
 On any leaf but heaven's. Be fully done, 
 Supernal Will ! I would not fain be one 
 Who, satisfying thirst and breaking fast 
 Upon the fulness of the heart, at last 
 Says no grace after meat. My wine has run 
 Indeed out of my cup, and there is none 
 To gather up the bread of my repast, 
 Scattered and trampled — yet I find some good 
 In earth's green herbs, and streams that bubble up 
 Clear from the darkling ground — content until 
 I sit with angels before better food. 
 Dear Christ ! when Thy new vintage fills my cup 
 This hand shall shake no more, nor that wine spill. 
 
 E. B. BROWNING. 
 
 Contentment is not to be caught by long and 
 foreign chases: he is likliest to find it who sits at 
 home and duly contemplates those blessings which 
 God has placed within his reach. 
 
 Each pilgrim, weary of a changing life, 
 
 Who ceases battling with its constant strife ; 
 Who turns to Him by whom all things are made, 
 
 Shall be contented still and unafraid. 
 Be content ; God's promise covers both present 
 and future needs. " My cup" for the present, 
 my "inheritance" for the future, "my lot" for all 
 conditions and places. 
 
 [207] 
 
Sim? 
 
 A zvounded spirit who can bear? — Proverbs 18: 14. 
 
 IN how many cases the hasty temper flashes out, 
 and does its work with the precision and the 
 pain of the swift stiletto ! Singularly enough, the 
 hasty word oftenest wounds those we love. We 
 know the weak points in the armor of our friend ; 
 we are aware of his caprices, and are ordinarily 
 tender and compassionate even of his vanities ; 
 but there dawns a day when it is written in the 
 book of fate that we shall be as cruel as loving. 
 We are cold, or tired, or hungry. So politeness 
 fails us, fortitude is vanished, and we say that 
 which we repent in sackcloth and ashes. But 
 though the hasty word may be forgiven, it is not 
 forgotten. It has flawed the crystal of our friend- 
 ship; there is a shadowy scar on the gleaming 
 surface. harper's bazar. 
 
 We have careful thought for the stranger, 
 And smiles for the sometime guest, 
 But oft for " our own " 
 The bitter tone, 
 Though we love our own the best. 
 Ah ! lip with the curve impatient ; 
 Ah ! brow with that look of scorn, 
 'Twere a cruel fate 
 Were the night too late 
 To undo the work of the morn. 
 
 MARGARET SANGSTER. 
 
 [208] 
 
9!«lr 
 
 tEtomt^sebentl) Dap 
 
 /, the Lord, search the heart ; I try the reins, even to give 
 every man according to his tvays, and according to the fruit 
 of his doings. — Jeremiah 17 : 10. 
 
 HAVE patience with all things, but chiefly 
 have patience with yourself. Do not lose 
 courage in considering your own imperfections, 
 but instantly set about remedying them ; every 
 day begin the task anew. The best way of at- 
 taining to Christian perfection is to be aware 
 that you have not yet reached it ; but never be 
 weary of recommencing. Whosoever is overcome 
 with a sense of his own faults, will not be able to 
 subdue them. 
 
 Be thou faithful, watch and pray ; 
 
 Murmur not, nor dare repine, 
 If thy labor seems in vain, 
 
 From the dawn to day's decline. 
 
 Where the foot of sin has trod, 
 There, unwearied, do thou toil ; 
 
 Still renew with ready zeal 
 Effort to reclaim the soil. 
 
 There are briars besetting every path, 
 
 That call for patient care, 
 There's a cross in every lot 
 
 And an earnest need for prayer ; 
 But the heart that leans on Thee 
 
 Is happy everywhere. waring. 
 
 [209] 
 
3Jui? 
 
 Watching . . . with all perseverance. — Ephesians 6 : 18. 
 Faint, yet pursuing. — Judges 8 : 4. 
 
 IF, losing all that makes life smooth and sunny, 
 one still retains that which is more than houses 
 or lands, or prosperity or friends ; if, under sickness 
 or temptation, when heart and flesh fail, one still 
 follows on after God, ignoring the bitterness of 
 life, and taking up its burdens " for Christ's sake," 
 be sure that that courage and that support come 
 from a vital religion. 
 
 Because I hold it sinful to despond, 
 And will not let the bitterness of life 
 
 Bind me with burning tears, but look beyond 
 Its tumult and its strife ; 
 
 Because I lift my head above the mist 
 
 Where the sun shines and the broad breezes blow. 
 
 By every ray and every raindrop kissed 
 That God's love doth bestow, — 
 
 Think you I find no bitterness at all ? 
 
 No burden to be borne, like Christians' pack? 
 Think you there are no ready tears to fall 
 
 Because I keep them back? 
 
 And in each one of these rebellious tears 
 
 Kept bravely back He makes a rainbow shine. 
 
 Grateful, I take His slightest gift : no fears 
 Nor any doubts are mine. celia thaxter. 
 
 [210] 
 
®tonttg=ttmtl) H>a? 
 
 .//<? j/ja // flourish like the palm tree : he shall grow like 
 a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house 
 of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. — 
 Psalm 92: 12, 13. 
 
 THE wind that blows can never kill 
 The tree God plants ; 
 It bloweth east, it bloweth west, 
 The tender leaves have little rest, 
 But any wind that blows is best. 
 
 The tree God plants 
 Strikes deeper root, grows higher still, 
 Spreads wider boughs, for God's good will 
 Meets all its wants. h. c. bunner. 
 
 " He shall flourish like the palm tree : he shall 
 grow like a cedar in Lebanon." Of the wicked 
 the Saviour had said just before, "When the 
 wicked spring as the grass, and when all the 
 workers of iniquity do flourish, it is that they 
 shall be destroyed forever." They flourish as the 
 grass, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into 
 the oven. What a contrast with the weakness 
 and destiny of grass are the palm tree and cedar 
 in Lebanon. They are evergreen. How beauti- 
 fully, how firmly, how largely they grow. How 
 strong and lofty is the cedar. How upright and 
 majestic and tall is the palm tree. "Those that 
 be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish 
 in the courts of our God, and shall bring forth 
 fruit in their old age." 
 
 [211] 
 
%m 
 
 Wqittitfy SPa^ 
 
 Seest thou a man diligent in business? He shall stand before 
 kings. — Proverbs 22 : 29. 
 
 D 
 
 ILIGENCE and perseverance, in the right 
 paths of life, bring God's blessings with them. 
 
 Perseverance. 
 
 The proudest motto for the young ! 
 
 Write it in lines of gold 
 Upon thy heart, and in thy mind 
 
 The stirring words unfold ; 
 And in misfortune's dreary hour 
 
 Or fortune's prosperous gale, 
 Twill have a holy, cheering power, 
 
 " There's no such word as fail ! " 
 
 MRS. NEAL. 
 
 Perseverance will not only make friends, but it 
 will make favorable circumstances. It will change 
 the face of all things around us ; clouds of dark- 
 ness, evil forebodings, opposition, enemies, barriers 
 of every kind, will vanish before a stout heart and 
 resolute energy of soul. The Alps stood between 
 Napoleon and Italy which he desired to conquer. 
 He scaled the mountain and descended upon 
 his prey. His startling descent more than half 
 conquered the country. He forced every circum- 
 stance into his favor. His greatest barrier proved 
 a sure means of victory. So a barrier once scaled 
 affords a vantage-ground for our future efforts. 
 
 [212] 
 
With cheerfulness. — Romans 12:8. 
 
 Cheerfulness. 
 
 I THINK we are too ready with complaint 
 In this fair world of God's. Had we no hope, 
 Indeed, beyond the zenith and the scope 
 Of yon gray bank of sky, we might grow faint 
 To muse upon Eternity's constraint 
 
 Round our aspirant souls ; but since the scope 
 Must widen early, is it well to droop 
 For a few days consumed in loss and taint ? 
 Oh, pusillanimous heart, be comforted ; 
 
 And like a cheerful traveller take the road, 
 Singing beside the hedge. What if the bread 
 
 Be bitter in thine inn and thou unshod 
 To meet the flints ? At least it may be said 
 
 " Because the way is short, I thank Thee, God." 
 
 MRS. BROWNING. 
 
 Keep the sunshine of a living faith in the heart. 
 Do not let the shadow of discouragement and 
 despondency fall upon your path. However weary 
 you may be, the promises of God will, like the 
 stars at night, never cease to shine, to cheer and 
 strengthen. The best harvests are the longest in 
 ripening. It is not pleasant to work in the 
 earth plucking the ugly tares and weeds, but it 
 is as necessary as sowing the seed. The harder 
 the task, the more need of singing. 
 
 ROYAL PATH OF LIFE. 
 [213] 
 
august 
 
 iFfow Wuy 
 
 Though he may slay me yet will I trust him. — Job 31 : 15. 
 
 0UIDE me, O Lord, in all the changes and 
 vanities of the world ; that in all things 
 that shall happen, I may have an evenness and 
 tranquillity of spirit ; that my soul may be wholly 
 resigned to Thy divinest will and pleasure, never 
 murmuring at Thy gentle chastisements and fatherly 
 corrections. Amen. jeremy taylor. 
 
 Our hearts are temples of the living God; and 
 though idols have been set up there, Thou, O God, 
 dost not desire the temple, but the idol only. Thou 
 wilt lead us through grief to exaltation; thou wilt 
 lead us downward, that we may stand not far from 
 Thy throne. Thou wilt make us like Thyself. 
 Knowing the baptism, and knowing the cup, we 
 still say, " Let us not sit far from Thy right hand 
 and Thy left in Thy glory. We, knowing what it is 
 to follow Christ, desire still to follow. Though it 
 be a crown of thorns, and the road to the cross, we 
 desire to keep Thee company." beecher. 
 
 bi 4 ] 
 
ppy year^. 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
Him that overcometh . . . I will write upon him my new 
 name. — Revelation 3:12. 
 
 A FAITH, a life that overcomes, — 
 A warfare unto victory. 
 And then reward ! A pure white stone, 
 
 x\nd in the stone a secret name, — 
 A strange, new name, and no two stones 
 
 Shall bear inscription quite the same. 
 And thus the sacred record reads : 
 
 " No man may know it saving he 
 Who shall receive it " — his alone 
 
 This new and blessed name shall be. 
 
 This is the thought that thrills me through : 
 
 We have a secret — God and I ! 
 He keeps it now, but unto me 
 
 He will reveal it by and by. 
 And while I wait, my heart still holds 
 
 Some fancy, beautiful and fair, 
 Of what the glad surprise will be 
 
 When He His thought with me shall share. 
 
 MRS. HERRICK JOHNSON. 
 
 O God, Thou knowest what is the battle with 
 each one. Wilt Thou help every one of us to gain 
 victories in his own place and over his own nature. 
 May we not be weary in well-doing ; may none of 
 us feel as though it were too long a strife, or too 
 hard to bear. beecher. 
 
 [215] 
 
Qu&mt 
 
 iEfyixb sr>a^ 
 
 The Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them. 
 — Revelation 7:17. 
 
 THE Lamb which is in the midst of the throne 
 shall feed them. Here the imagery is pastoral. 
 His people are held forth as sheep, and He per- 
 forms the office of shepherd. His concern with 
 them begins here. He seeks after them when lost. 
 He brings them to His fold and feeds them. They 
 can rely on His care, and say, "The Lord is my 
 shepherd, I shall not want." 
 
 While He affords His aid, 
 I cannot yield to fear ; 
 Though I should walk through Death's dark shade, 
 My Shepherd's with me there. 
 
 Nor is this all. When they shall have washed 
 their robes, and made them white in the blood of 
 the Lamb ; when they shall be before the throne, 
 and serve Him day and night, even then, He shall 
 feed them; not, as now, in the wilderness, but in 
 the heavenly Canaan ; not, as now, surrounded with 
 enemies, but where all shall be quietness and assur- 
 ance forever. He shall be the dispenser and the 
 source of happiness. " He that sitteth on the throne 
 shall dii> ell among them. They shall hunger no more, 
 neither thirst any more ; neither shall the sun light 
 on them, nor any heat : for the Lamb which is in 
 the midst of the throne shall feed them. 
 
 WILLIAM JAY. 
 
 [216] 
 
august 
 
 ifourtf) 2Dap 
 
 Godliness with contentment is great gain. — i Timothy 6 : 6. 
 
 NO man can tell whether he be rich or poor by 
 turning to his ledger. It is the heart that 
 makes a man rich. 
 
 Enjoy the present, whatever it may be, and be 
 not solicitous for the future; for if you take your 
 foot from the present standing, and thrust it for- 
 ward to to-morrow's event, you are in a restless 
 condition • it is like refusing to quench your thirst 
 by fearing you will want to drink the next day. If 
 to-morrow you should want, your sorrow would 
 come time enough, though you do not hasten it ; 
 let your trouble tarry till its own day comes. En- 
 joy the blessings of this day, if God sends them, 
 and the evils of it bear patiently and sweetly, for 
 this day is ours. We are dead to yesterday and 
 not yet born to to-morrow. A contented mind is 
 the greatest blessing a man can enjoy in this world. 
 
 T. L. HAINES AND L. W. SAGGY. 
 
 To us remains nor place nor time ; 
 Our country is in every clime ; 
 We can be calm and free from care 
 On any shore, since God is there. 
 While place we seek or place we shun, 
 The soul finds happiness in none ; 
 But with our God to guide our way, 
 'Tis equal joy to go or stay. 
 
 MADAME GUYON. 
 [217] 
 
aUQUSSt 
 
 iftftl) spa? 
 
 Fulfil the law of Christ. — Galatians 6 : 7. 
 
 " T)EAR ye one another's burdens and so fulfil 
 X3 the law of Christ." Enter into each other's 
 life. Be helpful. Let those who have joy minister 
 to those who are without it. From the cross, I seem 
 to hear a voice which comes straight to us, saying : 
 " Thou shalt love one another as I have loved you." 
 That means that you should enter into one another's 
 life and bear one another's burdens. Over against 
 sorrow and suffering the Master has put Fatherhood 
 and immortality. 
 
 " Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, 
 worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal 
 weight of glory." "Blessed are they that mourn, 
 for they shall be comforted." 
 
 Ring out the message wherever hearts are break- 
 ing and eyes filled with tears ! All things are in the 
 Father's hands ; not one is utterly alone ; no life is 
 without purpose, and all things are moving upward. 
 
 AMORY H. BRADFORD. 
 
 Our God is love ; and all His saints 
 
 His image bear below : 
 The heart with love to God inspired, 
 
 With love to man will glow. 
 Teach us to love each other, Lord, 
 
 As we are loved by Thee ; 
 None who are truly born of God 
 
 Can live in enmity. 
 
 THOMAS COTTERILL. 
 [218] 
 
august 
 
 Behold the eye. of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon 
 the?n that hope in his mercy. — Psalm 33 : 18. 
 
 YOUR life and mine may be vaulted very low, 
 yet it has its outlook of shining possibilities. 
 We are insignificant when placed side by side with 
 illustrious names. But there are those, in contrast 
 with whom we are strong. With such, daily associ- 
 ation makes us very familiar. 
 
 Walk up and down this weary, suffering world, 
 with eyes like Christ's. Let issue from your lives 
 an influence so blessed, that, though you be not her- 
 alded as the great benefactors of the race, though 
 your death produce no universal shock, — there 
 shall rise to God the silent testimony of sorrowing 
 souls that you have comforted. e. a. tanner. 
 
 Who calls thy glorious service hard? 
 Who deems it not its own reward ? 
 Who, for its trials, counts it less 
 A cause of praise and thankfulness? 
 
 For where our duty's task is wrought 
 In unison with God's great thought, 
 The near and future blend in one, 
 And whatsoe'er is willed is done ! 
 
 And were this life the utmost span, 
 The only end and aim of man, 
 Better the toils of fields like these 
 Than waking dreams and slothful ease. 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 [219] 
 
august 
 
 Thou hast been a shadow from the heat. — Isaiah 25 : 4. 
 
 A SHADOW from the heat ! Heat means evil— 
 every evil from which it is desirable to be 
 screened. Heaven is a state — and many have 
 reached it — where the sun does not light on them, 
 or any heat. But it is otherwise in this world. 
 Here many things affect the mind as heat does the 
 body, — afflictions, trials, temptations ; here is the 
 heat. Where is the shadow? Behold Me, "Come 
 unto Me," "This is the rest," says God, "and this 
 is the refreshing." william jay. 
 
 Beneath the cross of Jesus 
 
 I fain would take my stand, 
 The shadow of a mighty Rock, 
 
 Within a weary land. 
 A home within the wilderness, 
 
 A rest upon the way, 
 From the burning of the noontide heat, 
 
 And the burden of the day. 
 
 O safe and happy shelter, 
 
 O refuge tried and sweet, 
 O trysting-place where heaven's love 
 
 And heaven's justice meet ! 
 As to the holy patriarch 
 
 That wondrous dream was given, 
 So seems my Saviour's cross to me 
 
 A ladder up to heaven. 
 
 ELIZABETH CLEPHANE. 
 
 [220] 
 
august 
 
 €i$)tl) 2r>ap 
 
 Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, Lord, and teach- 
 est him out of thy law. — Psalm 94 : 12. 
 
 IF we could be half sufficient to ourselves, we 
 should soon lose the secret sense of depend- 
 ence upon God. We build our plans up about us, 
 and so we shut out the sight of heaven, and very- 
 soon the thought of it, and we say to ourselves we 
 will be merry with the goods we shall have stored 
 up with us. 
 
 But some earthquake of Providence shakes our 
 building, and overhead it is unroofed, and the walls 
 of it give way. And then there is heaven to be 
 seen again, and infinity is open round us, and the 
 dews of divine grace can fall on us again, and 
 again we feel ourselves at the mercy of God, to be 
 spared from cold, and storms, and enemies. And 
 so, among the ruins of our pride, we grow to be 
 loving children of the Most High instead of worldly 
 creatures. mountford. 
 
 My Jesus, as Thou wilt : 
 
 Though seen through many a tear, 
 Let not Thy star of hope 
 
 Grow dim or disappear. 
 Since Thou on earth hast wept 
 
 And sorrowed oft alone, 
 If I must weep with Thee, 
 
 My Lord, Thy will be done. 
 
 BENJAMIN SCHMOLKE. 
 [221] 
 
august 
 
 0nt\) E>a^ 
 
 Absent in the body but present in spirit. — I Corinthians 5 : 3. 
 
 THE nearer we draw to Christ, the nearer we 
 are to all the joys that have been, or are yet 
 to be ours. For in the heart of things, at the cen- 
 tre of the spiritual universe, there is neither past 
 nor future, but a grand, glorious, eternal present, 
 where the Author of all existences dwells, and where 
 it is our privilege to abide, even here among the 
 earth-shadows. There should be no sadness in 
 memory, as there is none in hope. We can never 
 leave in the past aught of the beautiful and true 
 that has once been received into our lives. It is 
 the soul's permanent possession, into the full enjoy- 
 ment of which we shall come when we take on the 
 resurrection body. Do we ever leave the morning 
 behind us? The instant it becomes a memory 
 does it not become a hope also? As it recedes 
 from view, are we not journeying straight toward its 
 reappearing as truly as we journey toward the night 
 that lies between ? Ah, Memory and Hope are not 
 two angels ; they are the two outspread wings of the 
 one beautiful angel Faith, who stands ever with ra- 
 diant countenance fronting God's eternal present, 
 at the heart of which sits enthroned our humanity 
 in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, who holds 
 in His hands the thread of each individual life, every 
 gem, every jewel, ever strung thereon. Ah ! the dear 
 Lord takes care of our past as well as of our future, 
 else what were life worth. mrs. e. l. skinner. 
 [222] 
 
august 
 
 Oh ! that I had wings like a dove, for then I would fly away 
 and be at rest. — Psalm 4 : 6. 
 
 NOT now, my child, — a little more rough toss- 
 ing, 
 A little longer on the billow's foam ; 
 A few more journeyings in the desert darkness, 
 And then the sunshine of thy Father's home ! 
 Not now ; for I have loved ones sad and weary : 
 Wilt thou not cheer them with a kindly smile ? 
 Sick ones, who need thee in their lonely sorrow ; 
 Wilt thou not tend them yet a little while ? 
 
 MRS. CAROLINE PENNEFEATHER. 
 
 Our work on earth is not alone within ourselves ; or 
 rather, as the inward work is being accomplished, it 
 will find expression in all blessed helps and benefi- 
 cences to others. We will minister to the bereaved 
 in the midst of the strokes that have desolated their 
 joys. If frosts have seared and killed their gardens 
 of earthly joy, we will remind them that though 
 frosts must come, Spring, too, will come again with 
 its resurrection-time. We will sustain those who 
 are under temptation by pointing to the promise 
 that none of those who trust in God can ever be 
 tempted above that they are able to bear. We will 
 comfort the sick in their pain, and relieve the poor 
 in their poverty. And thus going forward from one 
 good work to another we will be brought safely and 
 triumphantly to " the rest that remaineth for the 
 people of God." 
 
 [223] 
 
Clefeenti) H>a£ 
 
 I will arise and go to my father. — S. Luke 1 5 : 18. 
 
 WHAT time we plead our poverty, what time 
 we come abjectly to ask for the lowest place, 
 Thou dost throw about us the royal robe of forgive- 
 ness ; Thou dost put sandals upon our feet and a 
 ring upon our hand ; Thou callest for the prepara- 
 tion of the feast, and we are received again in the 
 estate of children in our Father's house. Our chas- 
 tisements have been fewer than our sins, and when 
 Thou hast mingled bitterness in our cup, Thou hast 
 still forborne ; Thou hast watched our need, ever 
 taking counsel of the generosity of Thine own 
 heart — Thou hast dealt according to the measure 
 that was in Thee, and not according to the measure 
 of desert in us. beecher. 
 
 Come home ! Come home ! 
 You are weary at heart, 
 For the way has been dark 
 And so lonely and wild, 
 O prodigal child ! 
 Come home ! Oh ! come home, 
 
 Come home ! Come home ! 
 From the sorrow and blame, 
 From the sin and the shame, 
 And the tempter that smiled, 
 
 O prodigal child ! 
 Come home ! Oh ! come home ! 
 
 MRS. ELLEN H. GATES. 
 [224] 
 
august 
 
 tKtoelftt) H>ap 
 
 He that taketh not his cross and folloiveth after me is not wor- 
 thy of me. — S. Matthew 10 : 38. 
 
 IN the old Anglo-Saxon versions of the Scriptures, 
 the word disciple is rendered " leorning-cniht " 
 — a learning servant or follower. Christian Knight- 
 hood or discipleship demands an absolute devote- 
 ment of the life to the service of Christ. The 
 candidate for knighthood in the holy orders in 
 mediaeval times spent the night preceding his induc- 
 tion in solemn vigils before the altar of the church, 
 in solemn meditations, prayers, and confessions, 
 and before he received his sword and spurs, he 
 bound himself by the most solemn vows to the ser- 
 vice of the church and the order. 
 
 So too, only with deeper heart-searching, must 
 he who becomes a " leorning-cniht " of Christ, bind 
 himself to his Divine Master with the most solemn 
 vows and the most absolute self-surrender. 
 
 This is Christ's imperative demand : " If any 
 man come after Me, let him deny himself, and take 
 up his cross and follow Me. For whosoever shall 
 save his life shall lose it : and whosoever will lose 
 his life for My sake, shall find it." 
 
 J. T. McFARLAND. 
 
 Long though my task may be, 
 
 Cometh the end. 
 God 'tis that helpeth me, 
 His is the work, and He 
 
 New strength will lend. 
 [225] 
 
august 
 
 Wbixttmtfy SDap 
 
 The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man. — Psalm 94 : II. 
 
 THOUGHTS of my soul how swift ye go ! 
 Swift as the eagle's glance of fire, 
 Or arrows from the archer's bow 
 To the far aim of your desire ! 
 Thought after thought ye thronging rise 
 
 Like spring- doves from the startled wood, 
 Bearing, like them, your sacrifice 
 
 Of music unto God. whittier. 
 
 Subtile and intangible are the forms in which 
 thought steals upon us and proves it deathlessness. 
 A rude stave from a plantation melody reaches us, 
 and we strain our ears to catch the beating of 
 a human heart ; the heart which years ago, per- 
 haps, crowded all the want' and oppression, the 
 anguish and simple-hearted devotion of a helpless 
 people into a cry that was at once petition and 
 triumphal outburst. We gaze upon the constel- 
 lations at midnight, and across two thousand years 
 floats the immortal thought of the psalmist : " The 
 heavens declare the glory of God; and the firma- 
 ment showeth His handiwork." We read the 
 quaint old hymn, "Jerusalem, the golden, how 
 pants my heart for thee," and our souls swell 
 within us as we picture the gates of pearl and 
 the street of gold, and that wonderful city, built 
 without hands. mrs. john j. mccabe. 
 
 [226] 
 
augusst 
 
 ifourteentlj 2Da? 
 
 We ought also to lay down our lives for the brethren. — 
 S. John 3 : 14. 
 
 " r I ^ O lay down our lives for the brethren." 
 X Yes, some one will say, that is a beautiful 
 sentiment, but the opportunity for fulfilling it is 
 rare. We are not likely to be called upon to lay 
 down our lives. If we should be, then we ought 
 to be heroic enough to do it. Nay, this is the 
 opportunity of every one of us. Not a rare call 
 to the few, but the daily duty of all. 
 
 Let any man resolutely set out to live as Christ did 
 and he will find that his life will be the way of the 
 cross. This was Christ's ideal — that His disciples 
 should re-enact His voluntary substitutional sacri- 
 fice until sin shall be driven from the world. He 
 never intended that His cross should be a kind 
 of magical sign to which we should look and be 
 saved, but that it should be a perpetual reality 
 in the lives of his followers. The cross was the 
 law of His life; it must also be the law of life 
 for every genuine disciple of His. It was the 
 instrument of His exaltation. It must also be 
 the instrument of our exaltation. 
 
 J. T. McFARLAND. 
 
 O hearts of love ! O souls that turn 
 Like sunflowers to the pure and best ! 
 To you the truth is manifest : 
 
 For they the mind of Christ discern 
 Who lean, like John, upon His breast. 
 
 [227] WHITTIER. 
 
aup#t 
 
 iftfteentlj ar>as 
 
 In quiet resting places. — Isaiah 32 : 18. 
 
 SHE folded up the worn and mended frock 
 And smoothed it tenderly upon her knee, 
 Then through the soft web of a wee red sock 
 She wove the bright wool, musing thoughtfully : 
 " Can this be all ? The great world is so fair, 
 I hunger for its green and pleasant ways ; 
 A cripple prisoned in her restless chair 
 
 Looks from her window with a wistful gaze — 
 
 " I can but weave a fair thread to and fro, 
 
 Making a frail woof in a baby's sock ; 
 Into the world's sweet tumult I would go, 
 
 At its strong gates my trembling hand would 
 knock ; " 
 Just then the children came, the father too ; 
 
 Their eager faces lit the twilight gloom ; 
 
 " Dear heart," he whispered, as he nearer drew, 
 
 " How sweet it is within this little room. 
 
 " Home is the pasture where my soul may feed, 
 This home a paradise has grown to be ; 
 
 And only where these patient feet shall lead 
 Can it be home for these dear ones and me." 
 
 The mother drew the baby to her knee 
 
 And, smiling, said : " The stars shine soft to-night ; 
 
 My world is fair ; its edges soft to me, 
 And whatsoever is, dear Lord, is right." 
 
 MAY RILEY SMITH. 
 [228] 
 
august 
 
 fyixttrntf) s>a^ 
 
 A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance; but by 
 sorrozv of heart the spirit is broken. — Proverbs 15 : 13. 
 
 GOD bless the cheerful people — man, woman 
 or child, old or young, illiterate or educated, 
 handsome or homely. What the sun is to nature, 
 what God is to the stricken heart, are cheerful 
 persons in the house and by the wayside. They 
 go unobtrusive, unconsciously, about their mission, 
 happiness beaming from their faces. We love to 
 sit near them. We love the nature of their eye, 
 the tone of their voice. Little children find them 
 out quickly, amid the densest crowd, and passing 
 by the knitted brow, and compressed lip, glide 
 near, laying a confiding hand on their knee, and 
 lift their clear young eyes to those loving faces. 
 
 A. A. WILLITS. 
 
 Why do we not always smile when we meet a 
 fellow-being? That is the true recognition which 
 ought to pass from soul to soul. Little children 
 do this involuntarily. The honest-hearted Ger- 
 man peasant does it. It is the magical sunlight 
 all through that simple land, the perpetual greeting 
 on the right hand or the left between strangers 
 as they pass each other, never without a smile. 
 This then is the " Fine art of smiling," like all 
 fine art, true art, perfection of art, the simplest 
 following of nature. helen hunt. 
 
 [229] 
 
Sugugt 
 
 g>etomtmttt) sr>ai? 
 
 If a man die shall he live again ? — Job 14 : 14. 
 
 WE find in every sound mind a passionate 
 desire for immortality. Wherever, since 
 the morning stars sang together, man or woman 
 has asked the question, "What is Truth? " and has 
 patiently sought the answer, and has beaten against 
 the bars of the earth, and has confronted the limits 
 of time, the Comforter has whispered Immortality ! 
 
 Wherever man or woman has been profoundly 
 moved to become strong, pure, and beneficent, 
 but from weakness and passion and selfishness 
 has been sorely tempted to abandon the ideal, the 
 Comforter has whispered Immortality / 
 
 Wherever man or woman has caught the in- 
 spiration of service, and has longed to do some- 
 thing for the permanent well-being of self and 
 others, and after unspeakable weariness and sinful- 
 ness has looked upon meagre accomplishment, 
 and has cried in bitterness, " What doth it profit ? 
 Let me eat and drink, for to-morrow I die ! " the 
 Comforter has whispered Immortality ! 
 
 E. A. TANNER. 
 
 Be still ! Just now be still ! 
 
 There comes a presence very mild and sweet, 
 
 White are the sandals on his noiseless feet ; 
 
 It is the Comforter whom Jesus sent 
 
 To teach what all the words He uttered meant. 
 
 The waiting, willing spirit He doth fill : 
 
 If thou wouldst hear His message, soul, be still ! 
 
 [230] MRS. S. M. I. HENRY. 
 
augugt 
 
 It doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that 
 when he shall appear zve shall be like him. — S. John 3 : 2. 
 
 OUR highest thoughts do not reach the level 
 of our happiness hereafter. For every in- 
 stant it will be sublimer than first hearing the 
 organ in York Minster, more tender than lovers' 
 faith, more earnest than any act of self-sacrifice. 
 Oh, the truths I shall know, the beauty I shall see, 
 and the friends I shall have ! At first our ever- 
 lasting life will be like a summer's day, so calm, 
 and beautiful, and long ; it will last on and on and 
 on. And when no nights come, then, little by little, 
 we shall begin, in awe and wonder, to feel what 
 it is to be immortal. mountford. 
 
 As little children in a darkened hall 
 
 At Christmas-tide await the opening door, 
 Eager to tread the fairy-haunted floor 
 Around the tree with goodly gifts for all, 
 Oft in the darkness to each other call — 
 Trying to guess their happiness before — 
 Or knowing elders eagerly implore 
 To tell what fortune unto them may fall : 
 So wait we in Time's dim and narrow room, 
 
 And, with strange fancies or another's thought, 
 Try to divine before the curtain rise 
 The wondrous scene ; forgetting that the gloom 
 
 Must .shortly flee from what the ages sought — 
 The Father's long-planned gift of Paradise. 
 
 CHARLES HENRY CRANDALL. 
 [231] 
 
august 
 
 0nttemty HPag 
 
 I have sinned. — Job 7 : 20. 
 
 Sin. 
 
 KNOWEST thou not all germs of evil 
 In thy heart await their time ? 
 Not thyself, but God's restraining, 
 
 Stays their growth of crime. whittier. 
 
 O Sin, what hast thou done to this fair earth? 
 
 DANA. 
 
 Remember that falls are not always by the grosser 
 sins which the world takes count of, but by spiritual 
 sins, subtle and secret, which leave no stain upon 
 the outward life. manning. 
 
 Earnest toil and strong endeavor 
 
 Of a spirit which within 
 Wrestles with familiar evil 
 
 And besetting sin. whittier. 
 
 All sin, unrepented of, must be punished ; and 
 even the most noxious criminals, the enemies of 
 God and His creatures, are not useless in the 
 universe, but answer the terrible but benevolent 
 end of warning all other creatures against diso- 
 bedience, which would involve them in the same 
 misery, just as the execution of a few malefactors 
 in human governments is of extensive service to 
 the rest of the subjects. lyman beecher. 
 
 [232] 
 
®toentiett) sr>ay 
 
 The way which thou shalt go. — Psalm 32 : 8. 
 
 THERE are heart-sicknesses known to earth 
 more real and distressing than any physical 
 malady. Times ther£ are in each human life when 
 the sharp sword pierces to the very centre of the 
 soul. Speaking after the manner of this world, 
 the agony seems greater than can be borne. What 
 then? Shall we sink down into despair, or shall 
 we take refuge then in stoicism? No. There 
 is a better way. Summon thy strength to new 
 courage. Say to thy soul within the thick shadows, 
 where no light enters : This is the way God would 
 have me go. 
 
 " He chose this path for thee. 
 No feeble chance, nor hard, relentless fate, 
 
 But love, His love, hath placed thy footsteps here ; 
 He knew the way was rough and desolate, 
 
 He knew the heart would often sink with fear ; 
 Yet tenderly He whispers, ' Child, I see 
 This path is best for thee ! ' " 
 
 " He chose this path for thee, 
 Though well He knew sharp thorns would tear thy 
 feet, 
 Knew how the branches would obstruct thy way, 
 Knew all the hidden dangers thou wouldst meet, 
 Knew how thy faith would falter day by day ; 
 And still the whisper echoed, ' Yes, I see 
 This path is best for thee ! ' " 
 [233] 
 
august 
 
 None of them that trust in him shall be desolate. — Psalm 
 34 -S 2 - 
 
 I WILL not doubt though all my ships at sea 
 Come drifting home with broken masts and sails ; 
 I shall believe the hand that never fails 
 From seeming evil worketh good for me. 
 
 And though I weep because the sails are tattered, 
 Still will I cry, while my best hopes lie shattered, 
 " I trust in Thee ! " 
 
 We are not wandering in darkness and forgetful- 
 ness ; we are not cast into the midst of confusions 
 and undirected turmoils of life. Thou sittest re- 
 gent : all things are naked and open before Thee, 
 and Thou beholdest the end from the beginning. 
 In Thy hand the most complex things are simple ; 
 the strangest things to our thought are plain to 
 Thine. Thou wilt restrain the wrath of man, and 
 cause the remainder of wrath to praise Thee ; 
 and the things that run adverse, all those causes 
 which conflict in time, we shall behold them from 
 the other side ; and in the order of eternity all 
 things shall then appear wise, nothing fugitive, 
 nothing erratic. beecher. 
 
 Yes ! I believe, and only thou 
 Canst give my soul relief : 
 Lord ! to thy truth my spirit bow ; 
 Help thou my unbelief. 
 
 DR. JOHN R. WREFORD. 
 [234] 
 
august 
 
 •S<?rz/<? /«w with a perfect heart and a willing mind. Whereby 
 zue may serve God acceptably. — Hebrews 12: 28. 
 
 IF you cannot on the ocean 
 Sail among the swiftest fleet, 
 Rocking on the highest billows, 
 
 Laughing at the storms you meet, 
 You can stand among the sailors 
 Anchored yet within the bay ; 
 You can lend a hand to help them, 
 As they launch their boat away. 
 
 If you are too weak to journey 
 
 Up the mountains, steep and high, 
 You can stand within the valley 
 
 While the multitudes go by ; 
 You can chant in happy measure, 
 
 As they slowly pass along : 
 Though they may forget the singer, 
 
 They will not forget the song. 
 
 ELLEN H. GATES. 
 
 God is a kind Father. He sets us all in the 
 places where He wishes us to be employed ; and 
 that employment is truly " our Father's business." 
 He chooses work for every creature which will be 
 delightful to them, if they do it simply and humbly. 
 He gives us always strength enough, and sense 
 enough, for what He wants us to do ; if we either 
 tire ourselves o? puzzle ourselves, it is our own 
 fault. RUSKIN. 
 
 [235] 
 
august 
 
 Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and 
 health to the bones. — Proverbs 1 6 : 24. 
 
 An Open Secret. 
 
 LAUGH, my young daughters, and keep your 
 hearts gay — 
 The secret of happiness lies 
 In holding the sunshine and driving away 
 
 The shadows that sometimes arise. 
 Remember this truth in your childhood years — 
 That laughter is better than tears. 
 
 This to you, maidens — 'tis sunshine that wins. 
 
 The light of a true, loving heart — 
 Shining out through eyes that doubt never dims — 
 
 Is the secret of beauty's art. 
 'Tis also the secret of love, my dears, 
 For smiles are more potent than tears. 
 
 ROSE HARTWICK THORPE. 
 
 I am asked how I have found life to be ? I have 
 found life good. It has been good always — in 
 poverty or wealth, in joy or sorrow, tenting awhile 
 or wandering about. I have found life a war- 
 fare, but the weapons provided were sufficient 
 for victory. And the God of my childhood has 
 been the Guard and Guide of my youth, and the 
 friend of my gray hairs. 
 
 AMELIA A. 13ARR. 
 [236] 
 
august 
 
 Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. — Psalm 25 : 1. 
 
 WE are naturally sluggish and grovelling. 
 Who has not reason to acknowledge with 
 sorrow, " My soul cleaveth unto the dust"? It is 
 easy enough, in duty, to lift up our hands and our 
 eyes and our voices, but it is another thing to 
 enter into the secret of His tabernacle, and to 
 hold intercourse with the God of heaven. Yet 
 without this a real Christian is no more satisfied 
 than God. He will not indeed undervalue the 
 means of grace, or neglect public and private 
 devotion • but he is disappointed unless he can 
 lift up his soul to God in them. And this marks 
 the spiritual worker and worshipper. He is not 
 distinguished by always enjoying liberty and fervor 
 in his holy exercises, but he mourns the want of 
 them ; while the formalist looks no farther than 
 the performance itself. But it is good to draw 
 near to God. Then, there is a sacred charm that 
 keeps our thoughts from wandering. Then, we 
 attend on the Lord without distraction. Then, 
 we feel no weariness of spirit. And our medita- 
 tion of Him is sweet. 
 When such a man, familiar with the skies, 
 Has filled his urn where those pure waters rise, 
 And once more mingles with us meaner things, 
 'Tis e'en as if an angel shook his wings : 
 Immortal fragrance fills the circuit wide, 
 Which tells us whence his treasures are supplied. 
 
 [237] WILLIAM JAY. 
 
august 
 
 Behold I stand at the door and knock. — Revelation 4 : 20 
 
 THE certainest, surest thing I know 
 Whatever, what else, may yet befall, 
 Of blessings or bane, of weal or woe, , 
 
 Is the truth that is fatefullest far of all, 
 That the Master will knock at my door some night, 
 
 And there, in the silence hushed and dim, 
 Will wait for my coining with lamp and light, 
 To open immediately to Him. 
 
 I wonder if I at His tap will spring 
 
 In eagerness up, and cross the floor, 
 With rapturous step, and freely fling, 
 
 In the murk of the midnight, wide the door ; 
 Or will there be work to put away ? 
 
 Or the taper, that burns too low, to trim ? 
 Or something that craves too much delay 
 
 To open immediately to Him? 
 
 If this is the only thing foretold 
 
 Of all my future, — then 1 pray, 
 That quietly watchful, I may hold 
 
 The key of a golden faith each day 
 Fast shut in my grasp, that when I hear 
 
 His step, be it dawn or midnight dim, 
 Straightway may I rise without a fear 
 
 And open immediately to Him. 
 
 MARGARET J. PRESTON. 
 [238] 
 
august 
 
 Forgive us* our sins for we also forgive every one that is 
 indebted to us. — S. Luke n : 12 (Revised Version). 
 
 MEASURE our pity, not in our poor scale, 
 But in Thine own, which weighs eternities; 
 We do our little part, we strive, we fail ; 
 Our wine of charity has bitter lees, 
 Our best unselfishness seeks self to please. 
 
 Forgive us, Lord, because we have forgiven, 
 Not as we have forgiven, is our prayer ; 
 
 Earth is so lower far than highest heaven, 
 Man is not even as the angels are, 
 And Thou to angels art as sun to star. 
 
 Is not forgiveness the noblest exercise of the 
 soul? When the heart is wounded and bleeding 
 over the unfaith of some one in whom we trusted, 
 and our whole world is dark with the shadow that 
 has fallen upon us, then, if we can say " I forgive," 
 the blessed dews of God's compassion may drop 
 upon our wounds until we find them a healing 
 balm. And when we have forgiven, we may ap- 
 proach the divine Presence and implore forgiveness 
 for our own errors and offences. 
 
 Endeavor to be patient in bearing with the de- 
 fects and infirmities of others, of what sort soever 
 they be; for that thyself hast also many failings 
 which must be borne with by others. 
 
 THOMAS A KEMPIS. 
 
 [239] 
 
By love serve one another, — Galatians 5 : 3. 
 
 SERVICE and sacrifice are the natural language 
 of love. Other men may have ambition for 
 themselves, but a Christian must do as his Master 
 did — serve humanity. The life that ended on the 
 Cross, how little it is understood ! How many 
 know that there is but one material of which 
 a cross can be made ? There was never yet one 
 cross of gold or silver or precious stones ; the 
 only material that can get into that shape is love ; 
 love that manifests itself in service which will not 
 shrink from sacrifice. The first recorded word of 
 Christ was : " Wist ye not that I must be about my 
 Father's business? " and His last : " It is finished." 
 What lies between these words ? Constant ministry. 
 When He said, " Let him that is chiefest among 
 you be servant of all," He outlined the form that 
 the Christ-like must take, amory h. Bradford. 
 
 He stood beside his fellow-man and asked 
 
 " What need'st thou ? " — then gave with freest hand ; 
 
 But not of gold alone ; the greater part 
 
 Of what he gave was as the quiet rain 
 
 That blesseth all the thirsty ground — it fell 
 
 And quenched the sorrows in a thousand hearts 
 
 With sympathy and love unspeakable. 
 
 He held all things in trust for God ; each day 
 Was filled with kindnesses that live and move 
 And gather majesty. w. bradway. 
 
 [240] 
 
august 
 
 My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle. — Job 7 : 6. 
 
 THROUGH the long tiresome day she went 
 With quiet sweetness, everywhere ; 
 I watched her tender, tireless hands, 
 
 Caressing here, relieving there ; 
 No recompense, no answering smile, 
 No words of cheer were hers the while. 
 
 " Tell me, thou patient one," I cried, 
 " What secret hope sustains thy heart, 
 
 That through a thankless ministry 
 So gentle unto all thou art? " 
 
 She turned on me her soft eye's light ; 
 
 " I heed them not. He comes to-night." 
 
 O soul, whose hope is high as heaven, 
 
 Cease thy unprofitable plaint ! 
 A watcher, waiting for the Lord, 
 
 How canst thou grieve, how dar'st thou faint? 
 Work on, rejoice, while yet 'tis light, 
 Thy Bridegroom's voice may call to-night. 
 
 A day of toil — what matters it ? 
 
 So short this life of tears and pain. 
 Lift up thy face ! What dost thou fear? 
 
 Thou hast not given thine all in vain. 
 Soon thou shalt walk with Him in white, 
 Who knoweth? It may be to-night. 
 
 ADELAIDE ALLISON. 
 [241] 
 
august 
 
 tEfomtgminti) soap 
 
 Let every nian take heed how he buildeth. — I Corinthians 3 : 10. 
 
 The Builder. 
 
 I HAVE laid each stone in its measured space, 
 Turret, and tower, and stair, 
 Pillars and carvings that stand on their face ; 
 And I know that my work is fair. 
 
 Yet the doubt of its beauty and worth grows strong, 
 
 Now that my work is done ; 
 And I find the thought I have held so long 
 
 Not worthy to stand in stone. 
 
 And the question comes, as its towers beam high 
 
 O'er the lower walls of the town, 
 Have I raised earth's dirt to thy feet, O sky, 
 
 Or dragged thy crystal down ? 
 
 ANNA ROBESON BROWN. 
 
 It is not by regretting what is irreparable that 
 true work is to be done, but by making the best 
 of what we are. It is not by complaining that we 
 have not the right tools, but by using well the tools 
 we have. What we are, and where we are, is God's 
 providential arrangement, — God's doing, though 
 it may be man's misdoing ; and the manly and 
 wise way is to look your failures in the face, and 
 see what can be made out of them. 
 
 F. W. ROBERTSON. 
 
 [242] 
 
augugt 
 
 tEljtttirtlj ffl>a^ 
 
 / was an hungered and ye gave me meat, I was thirsty and 
 ye gave me drink. — S. Matthew 25 : 35. 
 
 BE assured that in lowly service the highest 
 treasures of life will be reckoned. An emi- 
 nent man was once asked, " What incident in your 
 life has made the most lasting impression upon 
 your mind?" It was expected that he would 
 recur to some circumstance of worldly distinction, 
 for he had associated with both civil and commer- 
 cial princes. He replied that the only thing he 
 remembered worth mentioning was the giving a 
 breakfast to a poor working-girl who had lost her 
 purse. " I can never forget," he said, "the look 
 of sweet humility with which she said, ' I cannot 
 pay; I can only thank you, and pray for you.' 
 Her voice was like that of a little child saying its 
 evening prayer, and I felt that it was she who was 
 giving, and I was receiving." And I fancy when 
 life's course has been run with us and we have 
 entered, as God grant we may, into the Paradise 
 above, if any one shall ask us what incident in our 
 earth-life made the strongest impression upon us, 
 we will recall some occasion when we put forth 
 our hands for the help of the needy, when the 
 " blessing of Him who was ready to perish " came 
 upon us. 
 
 " The Holy Supper is kept, indeed, 
 In whatso we share with another's need. 
 
 J. T. McFARLAND. 
 [ 2 43] 
 
augttgt 
 
 As for me I will behold thy face in righteousness. — 
 Psalm 17 : 15. 
 
 WE will behold His face, and oh, what will 
 that mean to us ? When the tides of 
 God's nature shall sweep through ours, when His 
 light shall shine through our glorified souls, when 
 all our tastes are quickened and exalted, when our 
 natures are purified and redeemed, when we rise 
 from blessing to blessing and glory to glory, and 
 know the eternal life in all its fulness, then and 
 not until then, will we comprehend what it means 
 to "behold His face." 
 
 There is that in our natures which longs for 
 the visible presence of God — and then it will 
 be satisfied. We are like children waking in the 
 night and calling for a light that we may see our 
 Father's face. Now, we hold His hand and grope 
 after Him in the dark, but then we will indeed 
 " behold His face." 
 
 " Under the grand green palms of heaven 
 I yet shall walk, 
 With the good and the wise of the ages past 
 Shall some day talk. 
 
 " I shall lay my cross at the gate of pearl 
 And take my crown, 
 And then at the shining feet of my Lord 
 Shall cast it down." 
 
 [244] 
 
J- 
 
lip© prom day 
 ho day 
 
 
9 
 
 Keep not silence : O Lord, be not far from me. — Psalm 
 25 : 22. 
 
 J\\* HAT is the saddest, sweetest, lowest sound 
 ill Nearest akin to perfect silence ? Not 
 
 The delicate whisper sometimes in the hot 
 
 Autumnal morning heard the corn-fields round ; 
 
 Nor yet to lonely man, now almost bound 
 
 By slumber, near his house a murmuring river 
 Buzzing and droning o'er the shores forever. 
 
 Not such faint voice of Autumn oat-encrowned, 
 
 And not such liquid murmur, O my heart ! 
 
 But tears that drop o'er graves, and sins, and fears, 
 A sound the very weeper scarcely hears, 
 
 A music in which silence hath some part. 
 
 O Thou, all gentle, who all-hearing art, 
 
 Hold not Thy peace, sweet Saviour, at my tears ! 
 
 WILLIAM ALEXANDER. 
 
 I never think of the silences of God without think- 
 ing how great is the delight which comes when any 
 man discovers that God really has been answering 
 him all the time when he thought that his prayers 
 were all unheard. That must be one of the most 
 exquisite joys of heaven. phillips brooks. 
 
 [245] 
 
September 
 
 g>econ& SDap 
 
 He that abideth in me, the same bringeth forth much fruit. — 
 S.John 15:5. 
 
 FRUIT first, Joy next ; the one the cause or 
 medium of the other. Fruit-bearing is the 
 necessary antecedent; and Joy the necessary con- 
 sequent. It lies partly in the bearing fruit, partly 
 in the fellowship which makes that possible. Joy 
 lies in mere constant living in the presence of 
 Christ, with all that that implies of peace, of shel- 
 ter, and of love, and in the inspiration to live arid 
 work for others. 
 
 There is no mystery about Happiness. Put in 
 the right ingredients and it must come out. He 
 that abideth in Him will bring forth much fruit; 
 and bringing forth much fruit is Happiness. 
 
 Fill up each hour with what will last ; 
 
 Buy up the moments as they go ; 
 The life above when this is past 
 
 Is the ripe fruit of life below. 
 
 Sow truth if thou the truth wouldst reap ; 
 
 Who sows the false shall reap the vain ; 
 Erect and sound the conscience keep, 
 
 From hollow words and deeds refrain. 
 
 Sow love, and taste its fruitage pure ; 
 
 Sow peace, and reap its harvest bright ; 
 Sow sunbeams on the rock and moor, 
 
 And find a harvest home of light. 
 
 E. BONAR. 
 
 [246] 
 
September 
 
 Redeem the time. — Ephesians 5:16. 
 
 While We May. 
 
 THE hands are such dear hands ; 
 They are so full, they turn at our demands 
 So often ; they reach out 
 With trifles scarcely thought about, — 
 If their fond wills mistake 
 We well may bend, not break. 
 
 They are such fond, frail lips 
 
 That speak to us. Pray if love strips 
 
 Them of deception many times, 
 
 Or if they speak too slow, or quick, such crimes 
 We may pass by ; for we may see 
 Days not far off when those small words may be 
 
 Held not as slow, or quick, or out of place, but dear 
 
 Because the lips are no more here. 
 
 They are such dear, familiar feet that go 
 Along the path with ours — feet, fast or slow, 
 
 And trying to keep pace — if they mistake 
 
 And tread upon some flower that we would take 
 Upon our heart, or bruise some reed, 
 Or crush poor hope until it bleed, 
 
 We may be mute 
 
 Nor turning quickly to impute 
 Grave faults ; for they and we 
 Have such a little way to go — can be 
 
 Together such a little while upon the way, 
 
 We will be patient while we may. 
 [247] 
 
September 
 
 jfourt!) HOap 
 
 This is the whole duty of man. — Ecclesiastes 22 : 13. 
 
 THE world now as ever needs not so much 
 men of genius and brilliancy, as men who 
 are sternly and unswervingly loyal to duty. The 
 word which Wellington, the great and invincible 
 "Iron Duke," kept always before him, was duty; 
 the word which, like a bright but delusive ignis 
 fatuus, was forever before the mind of Napoleon, 
 was glory. The glory of Napoleon went out sud- 
 denly and forever like the flash of a meteor ; while 
 the name of Wellington will stand through all the 
 centuries for those elements by which men and 
 nations are made strong. 
 
 The path of Duty is the way to Glory, 
 He that walks it, only thirsting 
 For the right, and learns to deaden 
 Love of self, before his journey closes 
 He shall find the stubborn thistle bursting 
 Into glossy purples, which out-redden 
 All voluptuous roses. 
 
 J. T. McFARLANDo 
 
 One's first duty is the one that lies nearest. 
 
 Oh ! what a glory doth this world put on 
 For him who, with a fervent heart, goes forth 
 Under the bright and glorious sky, and looks 
 On duties well performed and days well spent ! 
 
 LONGFELLOW. 
 
 [248] 
 
September 
 
 iftftl) HPa^ 
 
 That whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with 
 him. — I Thessalonians 5 : 10. 
 
 GOD'S children live with Him now, but not as 
 they will live with Him hereafter. Now He 
 is invisible ; then they will see Him as He is. Now 
 their intercourse with Him is mediate, and often 
 interrupted j then it will be immediate and free 
 from any annoyance. Now they are with Him in 
 the wilderness ; then they will be with Him in the 
 land flowing with milk and honey. Now they 
 groan, being burdened with infirmities, cares, and 
 troubles ; then they will be presented faultless 
 before the presence of His glory, with exceeding 
 joy. Yet, whether they wake or sleep, they live 
 together with Him. Here is your happiness, Chris- 
 tian. It is your union with Christ. 
 
 And therefore whatever be your circumstances, 
 you may boldly say, " Nevertheless I am continually 
 with Thee ; Thou hast holden me by my right hand." 
 
 " Forever with the Lord ! " 
 
 Amen, so let it be ! 
 Life from the dead is in that word, 
 
 'Tis immortality. 
 
 No cloud those regions know, 
 Realms ever bright and fair ; 
 
 For sin, the source of mortal woe, 
 Can never enter there. 
 
 MONTGOMERY. 
 
 [249] 
 
September 
 
 Hold fast till I come. — Revelation 2 : 25. 
 
 Paradise. 
 
 WE do not know how far it lies, 
 Beneath what bending sapphire skies, 
 Through what unmeasurable deeps of space 
 May be thy mystic, heavenly place, 
 But to our lips these words arise, 
 « We're on our way to Paradise ! " 
 
 Oh, land beyond our fading sight ! 
 
 Oh, realm which ne'er had known the night ! 
 
 Oh, rest of heart and peace of soul ! 
 
 Into our trembling lives doth roll 
 
 The thought of all that grand surprise 
 
 Awaiting us in Paradise ! 
 
 The glimpse of far-off, hopeless years, 
 
 With twilight gleams of stars, through tears, 
 
 Recalls a foregone life again, 
 
 With shock of tempest-doubt and pain, 
 
 As from this spirit-level's rise 
 
 We think " Not far from Paradise ! " 
 
 Not far ! Ah no ! A prophecy 
 
 Floats on the air of what shall be ! 
 
 The incense, music, tint, and gleam 
 
 Float o'er the walls — blend in the dream — 
 
 Flood through the veins, brim up the eyes, 
 
 Till souls cry out, " Blest Paradise ! " 
 
 [250] 
 
September 
 
 Ye call me Master and Lord : and ye say ivell ; for so I am. 
 S. John 13: 13. 
 
 IN our most exalted moods we ought to be the 
 most ready to render the lowliest service to our 
 fellow-men. The proof that we have the divine 
 fellowship, the evidence that we have the Holy 
 Spirit dwelling within us, should appear in the 
 promptness and gladness with which we discharge 
 the offices of a servant. It is significant that 
 Christ never commands us to do those things which 
 men consider great, that He never holds up for 
 admiration the things which the world applauds ; 
 but, over and over again, He lays stress upon those 
 small deeds of kindness which it is possible for 
 every one to perform, but which are counted insig- 
 nificant in the eyes of the world. In that wonder- 
 ful foreview which He gives of the final judgment, 
 He does not recite the great and distinguished 
 things which the righteous have done. But He 
 speaks of those things which lie within the possi- 
 bility for every man and woman. " I was an hun- 
 gered and ye gave me meat ; I was thirsty and ye 
 gave me drink ; I was a stranger and ye took me 
 in : naked and ye clothed me : I was sick and ye 
 visited me ; I was in prison and ye came unto me." 
 " Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of 
 these My brethren, ye did it to Me." 
 
 J. T. McFARLAND. 
 [251] 
 
September 
 
 Being dead yet speaketh. — Hebrews 11:4. 
 
 ANYTHING the dead leave unfinished, makes 
 one feel the nothingness of human purposes ! 
 I remember the pain in which I once saw what 
 would have been a beautiful picture, only it was 
 not finished ; for the painter had died suddenly. 
 And there was a statue which was just being 
 brought out of the marble when the artist died. 
 Whatever purpose death cuts a man off from has 
 for his surviving friends a look, as though it had 
 been shone on by light, not of this world. 
 
 MOUNTFORD. 
 
 This is the prerogative of the noblest natures, — 
 that their death exercises a no less blessed influ- 
 ence than did their life ; that they lighten us from 
 above, like stars by which to steer our course. 
 
 GOETHE. 
 
 And now, sometimes, from upper heights, 
 
 From spaces wide and blue, 
 The echoes of the voice we loved 
 
 Floats down to us anew ; 
 " We hail thee, comrade," comes the word 
 
 And swift the answer flies, 
 As evermore we send response 
 
 " We hail thee in the skies." 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OUVER. 
 
 [252] 
 
September 
 
 Let patience have her perfect work. — James I : 4. 
 
 MANY a one is asking in the midst of hard- 
 ship and sorrow, "Is life worth living?" 
 We must not be swept away by such thoughts. 
 Ours is a God-given life, and every soul is precious 
 in His sight. 
 
 Why was I born? God, who never made a 
 human being without some purpose, plans a high 
 destiny for every one of us. Beautiful fabrics are 
 woven by weavers who never see their work but on 
 the wrong side. They sit before the loom with 
 rough edges always before them. But the master- 
 workman knows just what he wants ; he has chosen 
 the pattern and set the weaver at work, and by and 
 by, when the tapestry is finished, the workman is 
 astonished at the beauty his own hands have 
 created. 
 
 We have the pattern of a perfect character in 
 the Lord Jesus Christ. He sets us at the task of 
 weaving from that pattern every day. " How dis- 
 appointing and wearisome is my life ! " we say. 
 Where is the use in this monotonous round ? But 
 if our eyes are upon the pattern, and we faithfully 
 obey orders, though we may not see now how the 
 right side looks, it will be a glad surprise when it is 
 finished. 
 
 [253] 
 
September 
 
 ®entt) 20a? 
 
 Light is sown for the righteous, and gtadness for the upright 
 in heart. — Psalm 97 : 11. 
 
 WHAT inexpressible joy for me, to look up 
 through the apple-blossoms and the flutter- 
 ing leaves, and to see God's love there ; to listen to 
 the thrush that has built his nest there, and to feel 
 God's love who cares for the birds, in every note 
 that swells his little throat ; to look beyond to the 
 light blue depths of the sky, and feel they are a 
 canopy of blessing, — the roof of the house of my 
 Father ; that if clouds pass over it, it is the un- 
 changeable light they veil ; that, even when the day 
 itself passes, I shall see, that the night itself only 
 unveils new worlds of light ; and to know if I could 
 unwrap fold after fold of God's universe, I should 
 unfold only more and more blessing, and see 
 deeper and deeper into the love which is at the 
 heart of all. Elizabeth charles. 
 
 There are in this loud stunning tide 
 
 Of human care and crime, 
 With whom the melodies abide 
 
 Of th' everlasting chime ; 
 Who carry music in their heart 
 Through dusty lane and wrangling mart, 
 
 Plying their daily task with busier feet, 
 
 Because their secret souls a holy strain repeat. 
 
 KEBLE. 
 
 [254] 
 
Clefcnttl) HDap 
 
 Singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. — 
 Ephesians 5 : 19. 
 
 SING ! as the birds shall teach thee 
 A song of love and trust ; 
 Sing ! till the world shall listen, 
 Till thine own eyes shall glisten 
 As joy or grief shall reach thee, 
 
 As a true singer must ; 
 May the brave music swelling, 
 From thy good heart upwelling, 
 Its message still be telling 
 
 Long after thou art dust. 
 
 Sing ! for the world is weary 
 
 With burden of its care ; 
 And men are heavy-hearted, 
 Perplexed, misjudged, and thwarted, 
 And sin has made life dreary, 
 
 Temptation everywhere ; 
 Sing ! as true singer may, 
 Driving these clouds away 
 With promises of day 
 
 Whose coming shall be fair. 
 
 God sent His singers upon earth 
 
 With songs of sadness and of mirth, 
 
 That they might touch the hearts of men 
 And bring them back to heaven again. 
 
 LONGFELLOW. 
 
 [255J 
 
How beautiful are the feet of them who bring glad tidings of 
 good things. — Isaiah 52:7. 
 
 ONCE the question was asked, " Wherefore 
 wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou hast 
 no tidings ready?" If we want to have beautiful 
 feet, we must have tidings ready which they are to 
 bear. If the clouds be full of rain, they empty 
 themselves upon the earth. There are plenty of 
 cups of cold water to be carried in all directions ; 
 not to the poor only, — ministries of love are often 
 as much needed by a rich friend. In such ser- 
 vices we are treading in the blessed footsteps of 
 His most holy life, who "went about doing good ! " 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 He hath said, " How beautiful the feet ! " 
 
 The feet so weary, travel-stained, and worn — 
 The feet that humbly, patiently have borne 
 
 The toilsome way, the pressure, and the heat. 
 
 The feet, not hastening on with winged flight, 
 Nor strong to trample down the opposing foe ; 
 So lowly, and so human, they must go 
 
 By painful steps to scale the mountain height. 
 
 Not unto all the tuneful lips are given, 
 
 The ready tongue, the words so strong and sweet ; 
 
 Yet all may turn, with humble, willing feet, 
 And bear to darkened souls the light of heaven. 
 
 SARAH GERALDINE STOCK. 
 [256] 
 
He was wounded for our transgressions. — Isaiah 53 : 5. 
 
 O CHRIST, what burdens bowed Thy head ! 
 Our load was laid on Thee ; 
 Thou stood'st in the sinner's stead, 
 
 Did'st bear all ill for me. 
 A Victim led, Thy blood was shed ; 
 Now there's no load for me. 
 
 Jehovah lifted up His rod — 
 
 O Christ, it falls on Thee ! 
 Thou wast sore stricken of Thy God ; 
 
 There's not one stroke for me. 
 Thy tears, Thy blood beneath it flowed, 
 
 Thy bruising healeth me. 
 
 MARY A. R. COUSIN. 
 
 With silent, soft, and mighty pressure, the sight 
 of the Sufferer's holiness, and the gratitude for the 
 Sufferer's pity, as one complete power, one perfect 
 love, has drawn the depths of men's lives on to the 
 nature of the Sufferer, and there their oneness to 
 Him has become known to them, and they, in and 
 through Him, have been renewed into the image 
 of their Father, and His Father. The robber who 
 was crucified with Him felt that power first. It 
 was a baptism of blood, and the power which our 
 baptisms re-echo found its first utterance in Him. 
 " Being by nature, born in sin and the child of 
 wrath," there by the fellowship of suffering, there 
 by the power of love ... he was made the child 
 of grace. phillips brooks. 
 
 [ 2 57] 
 
September 
 
 jfourtenttt) 2Da£ 
 
 Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task ? — Exodus 5:14. 
 
 THERE is some duty which God has made 
 ready for you to do to-day ! He has built 
 it like a house for you to occupy. You have not 
 to build it. He has built it, and He will lead you 
 up to its door and set you with your feet upon its 
 threshold. Will you go in and occupy it? Will 
 you do the duty which He has made ready? Per- 
 haps it is the great comprehensive duty of the 
 consecration of yourself to Him. Perhaps it is 
 some special task. Whatever it is, may He who 
 anticipated your love by His own in giving you the 
 task, now help you to fulfil His love with yours by 
 doing it. Amen. phillips brooks. 
 
 Oh, how many deeds 
 Of deathless virtue and immortal good 
 The world had wanted, had the actor said 
 
 " I will do this to-morrow ! " 
 
 LORD JOHN RUSSELL. 
 
 And as the path of duty is made plain 
 
 May grace be given that I may walk therein, 
 
 Not like the hireling, for his selfish gain, 
 
 With backward glances, and reluctant tread, 
 
 Making a merit of his coward dread, — 
 
 But, cheerful in the light around me thrown, 
 
 Walking as one to pleasant service led ; 
 
 Doing God's will as if it were my own, 
 
 Yet trusting not in mine, but in His strength alone. 
 
 [253] WHITTIER. 
 
September 
 
 jfiftmtt!) 2Day 
 
 For who hath despised the day of small things. — Zechariah 
 4: 10. 
 
 SPRINGS are little things, but they are sources 
 of large streams ; a helm is a little thing, but 
 it governs the course of a large ship ; a bridle-bit 
 is a small thing, but see its use and power ; nails 
 and pegs are little things, but they hold parts of 
 large buildings together ; a word, a look, a frown, 
 are all little things, but powerful for good or evil. 
 Think of this, and mind the little things. Pay that 
 little debt — its promise redeem. Little acts are 
 elements of true greatness. . . . They are tests of 
 character and disinterestedness. They are the 
 straws upon life's deceitful current, and show the 
 current's way. The heart comes all out in them. 
 They move on the dial of character and responsi- 
 bility significantly. They indicate the character 
 and destiny. They help to make the immortal 
 man. It matters not so much where we are as 
 what we are. It is seldom the acts of moral 
 heroism are called for. Rather the real heroism 
 of life is, to do all its little duties promptly and 
 faithfully. royal path of life. 
 
 The lives which seem so poor, so low, 
 
 The hearts which are so cramped and dull, 
 
 The baffled hopes, the impulse slow, 
 Thou takest, touchest all, and lo ! 
 They blossom to the beautiful. 
 
 SUSAN COOLIDGE. 
 
 [259] 
 
September 
 
 The Lord have patience with me. — S. Matthew 18: 26. 
 
 THE soul loses command of itself when it is 
 impatient. Whereas, when it submits with- 
 out a murmur, it possesses itself in peace, and 
 possesses God. To be impatient, is to desire what 
 we have not, or not to desire what we have. When 
 we acquiesce in an evil, it is no longer such. 
 Why make a real calamity of it by resistance? 
 Peace does not dwell in outward things, but within 
 the soul. We may preserve it in the midst of 
 bitterest pain, if our will remains firm and sub- 
 missive. Peace in this life springs from acquies- 
 cence even in disagreeable things, not in an 
 exemption from bearing them. fenelon. 
 
 Oh ! lose not patience, weary heart ! 
 
 Tangled life's web may seem ; 
 But thread by thread the Master's hand 
 
 Unravels what we deem 
 Inextricable ; then we see 
 How skilled a guide that hand must be. 
 
 And so in faith we day by day 
 
 Take both the toil and pain, 
 Knowing the work and warfare each 
 
 Shall end in heavenly gain, 
 And those who have through patience won, 
 Shall hear the Master's word, "Well done !" 
 
 G. M. TAYLOR. 
 
 [260J 
 
September 
 
 =a>et>enteentl) SDap 
 
 To do my duty in that state of life unto which it shall please 
 God to call me. — Book of Common Prayer. 
 
 "TT 7HO speaks for this man?" From the 
 
 V V great white throne, 
 
 Veiled in its roseate clouds, the voice came forth ; 
 Before it stood a parted soul alone. 
 
 And rolling east and west, and south and north, 
 The mighty accents summoned quick and dead ; 
 " Who speaks for this man, ere his doom be said ? " 
 
 Shivering he listened, for his early life 
 Had passed in dull, unnoted calm, away ; 
 
 He brought no glory to his early strife, 
 No wreath of fame, or genius' fiery ray ; 
 
 Weak, lone, ungifted, quiet, and obscure, 
 
 Born in the shadow, dying 'mid the poor. 
 
 Lo ! from the solemn concourse, hushed and dim, 
 The widow's prayer, the orphan's blessing rose ; 
 
 The struggler told of trouble shared by him, 
 
 The lonely of cheered hours and softened woes ; 
 
 And like a chorus spake the crushed and sad, 
 
 " He gave us all he could and all he had." 
 
 And little words of loving-kindness said, 
 
 And tender thoughts, and help in time of need, 
 
 Sprang up like leaves by soft spring showers fed, 
 In some waste corner, sown by chance-flung seed. 
 
 In grateful wonder heard the modest soul, 
 
 Such trifles gathered to so blest a whole. 
 
 ALL THE YEAR ROUND. 
 
 [261] 
 
September 
 
 I am their music. — Lamentations 3 : 63. 
 
 WHEN troubles come, go at them with songs. 
 When griefs arise, sing them down. Lift 
 the voice of praise against care. They sing in 
 heaven, and among God's people on earth ; song 
 is the appropriate language of Christian people. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 Music should strike fire from the heart of man 
 and bring tears from the eyes of woman. 
 
 BEETHOVEN. 
 
 What martial music is to marching men, should 
 song be to humanity. Alexander smith. 
 
 I stand by every word I utter when I sing, and 
 feel that I must to the death. It is not alone song 
 with me, — melodious sounds, — it is the lesson 
 inculcated ; hope in the future, bright joys to come, 
 the mercy of an all-wise God. I would not sing 
 a frivolous word before my audience for anything 
 on earth. Antoinette sterling. 
 
 The glory of heaven, 
 
 The sorrow of earth, 
 Were breathed in one whisper, 
 
 When music had birth. 
 
 God set a harp in nature's beating breast ; 
 
 The secret of the music yet to be 
 Lay latent in the strings. At His behest 
 
 Love breathed upon the wires and set it free, 
 
 [262] 
 
September 
 
 0mtttnt\) 2Da^ 
 
 I am the good shepherd : the good shepherd giveth his life for 
 his sheep. — S. John io : 2. 
 
 HIS life " for thee " ! Oh, wonderful gift ! not 
 promised, but given; not to friends, but to 
 enemies. Given without condition, without reserve, 
 without return. Himself unknown and unloved, 
 His gift unsought and unasked, He gave His life 
 for thee ; a more than royal bounty — the greatest 
 gift that Deity could devise. Oh, grandeur of 
 love ! " I lay down My life for the sheep ! " And 
 we for whom He gave it have held back, and hesi- 
 tated to give our lives, not even for Him (He has 
 not asked us to do that), but to Him ! But that 
 is past, and He has tenderly pardoned the unloving, 
 ungrateful reserve, and has graciously accepted the 
 poor little fleeting breath and speck of dust which 
 was all we had to offer. And now His precious 
 death and His glorious life are all "for thee." 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 I gave My life for thee, 
 
 My precious blood I spilt 
 That thou might ransomed be 
 
 And saved from woe and guilt. 
 I gave My life for thee — 
 «. What hast thou given for Me? 
 
 May we set before us Thine own image, calmly 
 beholding us, and forever looking forth upon the 
 strife of life, not indifferent to its least act; and 
 may we live as seeing Thee who art invisible. 
 [263] 
 
September 
 
 Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not. — 
 Jeremiah 14: 5. 
 
 OH ! to be nothing — nothing ! 
 Only to lie at His feet, 
 A broken and emptied vessel, 
 
 For the Master's use made meet ! 
 Emptied that He may fill me, 
 
 As forth to His service I go ; 
 Broken that so, unhindered, 
 Through me His life may flow. 
 
 Oh ! to be nothing — nothing ! 
 
 An arrow hid in His hand, 
 Or a messenger at His gateway, 
 
 Waiting for His command ; 
 Only an instrument, ready 
 
 For Him to use at His will ; 
 And willing, should He not require me, 
 
 In patience to wait on Him still. 
 
 G. M. TAYLOR. 
 
 Oh ! be little, be little ; and then thou wilt be 
 content with little ; and if you feel, now and then, 
 a check or a secret smiting, — in that is the Father's 
 love; be not over- wise, nor over-eager, in thy own 
 willing, running, and desiring, and thou mayst feel 
 it so ; and by degrees come to the knowledge of 
 thy Guide, who will lead thee, step by step, in the 
 path of life, and teach thee to follow. Be still, 
 and wait for light and strength. 1. pennington. 
 [264] 
 
D E 
 
 September 
 
 Have mercy upon me, O God . . . blot out my transgressions. 
 Psalm 51 : I. 
 
 ^EPTH of Mercy, can there be 
 Mercy still reserved for me ? 
 Can my God His wrath forbear — 
 Me, the chief of sinners, spare?" 
 The Salvation Army records tell how often this 
 hymn has been sung in the slums of London, and 
 how men and women deep in sin, feeling that for 
 them there could be no forgiveness, have heard 
 the message of " salvation to the uttermost," sung 
 in this hymn and been saved by it. Dr. Lyman 
 Abbott says : " The man who has committed a great 
 sin and followed it with a great repentance, is fur- 
 ther along in the moral life than the man who has 
 never committed a great sin and does not know 
 that he is a sinner." The outcasts of Christ's time 
 were not the men with stains upon their garments- 
 and with shame upon their brows \ they were the 
 men and women who did not know that they had 
 sins to be forgiven. I have read stories of men 
 who were walled up in some dungeon castle and 
 left to die there ; and as I look out in life, as I 
 look sometimes into my own heart and my own 
 life, it seems to me that we who preach the Gospel 
 and we who sit in the pews and come to the 
 prayer-meetings are in danger of that very doom ; 
 we are in danger of walling up ourselves through 
 our own self-satisfaction and dying of asphyxia. 
 
 [265] JENNIE M. BINGHAM. 
 
September 
 
 Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice. — I Samuel 15 : 22. 
 
 THERE is no action so slight nor so mean but 
 it may be done to a great purpose, and en- 
 nobled therefore ; nor is any purpose so great but 
 that slight actions may help it, and may be so done 
 as to help it much, most especially, that chief of all 
 purposes — the pleasing of God. ruskin. 
 
 Not at the battle front, writ of in story ; 
 
 Not on the blazing wreck, steering to glory, 
 
 Not while in martyr-pangs, soul and flesh sever, 
 
 Died he this hero new, hero forever. 
 
 No pomp poetic crowned, no forms enchained him, 
 
 No friends applauding watched, no foes arraigned 
 
 him, 
 Death found him there, without grandeur or beauty, 
 Only an honest man, doing his duty : 
 Death found and touched with finger in flying : 
 Lo ! he rose up complete — hero undying. 
 
 DINAH MULOCH CRAIK. 
 
 It is not the multitude of hard duties, it is not 
 constraint and contention that advance us in our 
 Christian course. On the contrary, it is the yield- 
 ing of our wills without restriction and without 
 choice, to tread cheerfully every day in the path 
 in which Providence leads us, to seek nothing, to 
 be discouraged by nothing, to see our duty in the 
 present moment, to trust all else without reserve 
 to the will and power of God. fenelon. 
 
 [266] 
 
September 
 
 These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right 
 hand. — Revelation II : I. 
 
 ALL the promises are "To him that over- 
 cometh." Listen ! " He that overcometh 
 shall be clothed with white raiment and ... I 
 will confess his name before my Father, and before 
 the angels." "To him that overcometh will I 
 grant to sit with Me in My throne, even also as 
 I overcame, and am set down with my Father in 
 His throne." " He that overcometh shall inherit 
 all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be 
 My son." All the symbolisms of that glory are 
 symbolisms of victory, palms, sceptres, crowns, 
 thrones. 
 
 It is possible for a man to drift along with life's 
 great army of martyrs, reformers, philanthropists, 
 and victors, and yet develop none of their soldierly 
 spirit. One may go through life and win no vic- 
 tories, compromise with every foe, overcome noth- 
 ing, achieve nothing; but it is not for such that 
 heaven waits. 
 
 Not to the vanquished, 
 Heaven opens its portals. 
 
 Rest is the glory given 
 To crowned immortals, 
 
 Where never foes surprise, 
 
 Where never storms arise, 
 
 Past all uncertainties, 
 
 His rest shall be glorious. 
 
 [267] W. F. BARTHOLOMEW. 
 
September 
 
 The love of Christ, which passeth knozuledge. — Ephesians 
 3= 19- 
 
 IF ever human love was tender, and self-sacri- 
 ficing, and devoted ; if ever it could bear and 
 forbear ; if ever it could suffer gladly for its loved 
 ones ; if ever it was willing to lavish itself for the 
 comfort or pleasure of its objects ; then infinitely- 
 more is Divine love tender, and self-sacrificing, and 
 devoted, and glad to bear and forbear, and to 
 suffer, and to lavish its best blessings upon the 
 objects of its love. Put together all the tenderest 
 love you know of, the deepest you have ever felt, 
 and the strongest that has ever been poured out 
 upon you, and heap upon it all the love of all the 
 loving hearts in the world, and then multiply it by 
 infinity, and you will begin, perhaps, to have some 
 faint glimpse of what the love of God is. h. w. s. 
 
 It passeth Knowledge. 
 It passeth knowledge ; that dear love of Thine ! 
 My Jesus ! Saviour ! Yet this soul of mine 
 Would of that love, in all its depth and length, 
 Its height, and breadth, and everlasting strength, 
 Know more and more. 
 
 But ah ! I cannot tell, or sing, or know, 
 The fulness of that love, whilst here below : 
 Yet my poor vessel I may freely bring, — 
 O Thou who art of love the living spring, 
 
 My vessel fill. mary shekleton. 
 
 [268] 
 
September 
 
 The Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy. — S. James 5 : 2. 
 
 WE never have more than we can bear. The 
 present hour we are always able to endure. 
 As our day so is our strength. If the trials of 
 many years were gathered into one day they would 
 overwhelm us ; therefore in pity to our little 
 strength, He sends first one, then another, then 
 removes both, and lays on a third, heavier, perhaps, 
 than either; but all so wisely measured to our 
 strength that the bruised reed is never broken. 
 We do not enough look at our trials in this con- 
 tinuous and successive view. Each one is sent 
 to teach us something, and altogether they have 
 a lesson which is beyond the power of any to 
 teach a line. h. e. manning. 
 
 Be still and trust, 
 
 For His strokes are strokes of love, 
 Thou must for thy profit bear ; 
 He thy filial fear would move, 
 Trust thy Father's loving care, 
 Be still and trust. 
 
 Know God is near 
 Though thou think Him far away, 
 Though His mercy long hath slept, 
 He will come and not delay 
 When His child enough hath wept, 
 For God is near. 
 
 ANTON ULRICH (1667). 
 
 [269] 
 
I would not live always. — Job 7:16. 
 
 OH, the woods and the hill- sides, the meadows 
 and the gardens, the valley with the river in 
 it, summer morning with its long shadows in the 
 moist grass, and the summer evening going away 
 in the west, calm and sublime, like the last words 
 of a blessing ! — Oh, in all these things, the beauty 
 there has been, — what has it been, and what is 
 it now ? It is God ; and so it is what my soul will 
 be living in forever. ... Oh, how my soul used to 
 yearn after Him ! Strange feeling it was ! Sorrow, 
 joy, love, worship, — it was all these, — and an in- 
 finite longing. It was what would have felt wealth 
 like poverty, and what no sceptre would have 
 pleased, — an infinite longing, to which the whole 
 world felt little and nothing. mountford. 
 
 Wings ! Wings ! 
 
 To touch the hem of the veil that swings, 
 As moved by the breath of God between 
 The world of sense and the world unseen ; 
 To swoon where the mystic folds divide 
 And wake, a child, on the other side ! 
 To wake and wonder if it be so, 
 And weep for joy at the loss of woe ; 
 To know the seeker is sought and found ; 
 To find Love's being, but not his bound ; 
 Oh ! for the living that dying brings ! 
 
 Wings ! Wings ! mary a. lathbury. 
 [270] 
 
September 
 
 In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. — Isaiah 
 30:15. 
 
 THE blessing of her quiet life 
 Fell on us like the dew ; 
 And good thoughts, where her footsteps pressed, 
 Like fairy blossoms grew. whittier. 
 
 It is the lives, like the stars, which simply pour 
 down on us the calm light of their bright and 
 faithful being, to which we look and out of which 
 we gather the deepest calm and courage. No man 
 or woman can really be strong, gentle, pure, and 
 good, without the world being better for it, without 
 somebody being helped and comforted by the very 
 existence of that goodness. phillips brooks. 
 
 The deliverance of the soul from all useless and 
 selfish and unquiet cares, brings to it an unspeak- 
 able peace and freedom ; this is true simplicity. 
 And the effect of this simplicity is felt, not in one's 
 life alone, but it shines into other lives with a clear 
 serene light like that of moonlight or star-shine. 
 This is the strength of the quiet soul-: other souls 
 will come to it for rest and quieting ; other lives 
 will grow peaceful by viewing its peace. Small 
 anxieties and frets will vanish in its presence, and 
 earthly shadows will be pierced and interfused with 
 its heavenly light. 
 
 [271] 
 
®tontt^rigt)tt) SDay 
 
 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction. — Psalm 103:4. 
 
 THE ideal embodied in a redeemed life is high. 
 It means not alone your own salvation, but 
 that you are called to the work of saving the world. 
 William Scott, the Vermont boy whose life Lincoln 
 saved, after he had been condemned to be shot, 
 is an example of how a redeemed life spent itself 
 in sacred service. Scott, in telling of his interview, 
 said that Mr. Lincoln came to him and said : — 
 
 a My boy, you are not going to be shot to- 
 morrow. I am going to trust you, and send you 
 back to your regiment. I have come to Washing- 
 ton when it was hard to come, and now, how will 
 you pay my bill?" Scott said : "There was a big 
 lump in my throat ; I could scarcely speak, but I 
 managed to say, ' I will pay you some way.' " " But 
 it is a great deal," said Mr. Lincoln ; and then he 
 put his hands on my shoulders, and said : " My 
 bill is a very large one, my boy. There is only 
 one man in the world who can pay it, and his name 
 is William Scott. If from this day he does his 
 duty so that at life's close he can say,/ I have kept 
 my promise and have done my duty as a soldier, 
 then my debt will be paid. Will you make that 
 promise, and try to keep it?' " 
 
 The record says that Scott became one of the 
 truest, best soldiers ever known, and that he died 
 risking his life in the rescue of wounded men. 
 
 [272] 
 
September 
 
 Whom having not seen, ye love. — I Peter I : 8. 
 
 IN reflecting the character of Christ, it is no real 
 obstacle that we may never have been in visible 
 contact with Himself. 
 
 There lived once a young girl whose perfect 
 grace of character was the wonder of those who 
 knew her. She wore on her neck a gold locket 
 which no one was ever allowed to open. One day, 
 in a moment of unusual confidence, one of her 
 companions was allowed to touch its secret spring 
 and learn its secret. She saw written these words 
 — " Whom having not seen, I love" That was the 
 secret of her beautiful life. She had been changed 
 into the Same Image. drummond. 
 
 Whom Having Not Seen, Ye Love. 
 
 " Not seen ! " The veil of flesh 
 Doth dim our spirit's eyes, 
 
 Nor shall we see, until 
 We mount the vaulted skies. 
 
 But we will love Thee still, our Lord ! 
 
 Believing all Thy gracious word. 
 
 " Not seen ! " but dearer far 
 Than aught that greets the sight ; 
 
 We seek Thee through the day, 
 And trust Thee through the night. 
 
 In busy toil or silent sleep, 
 
 Thy loving watch around us keep. 
 
 [273] 
 
September 
 {TOtnrttetl) a>a^ 
 
 That Rock was Christ. — I Corinthians 10:4. 
 
 The Wondrous Rock of Ages. 
 
 O WONDROUS Rock of Ages, 
 What power and might are Thine, 
 What memories 'round Thee cluster 
 
 As pilgrims 'round a shrine ! ■ 
 Rock, ever firm and steadfast, 
 
 Confessed in prayer and song, 
 In whom our fathers trusted, — 
 What hopes around Thee throng ! 
 
 The storms of life may gather, 
 
 The winds beat to and fro, 
 But always there is refuge, 
 
 Where we may freely go ; 
 No dark or dread disaster 
 
 Can e'er oppress the day, 
 For 'neath Thy sacred shelter 
 
 All griefs are swept away. 
 
 O precious Rock of Ages ! 
 
 Since Thou wert cleft for me, 
 I'm sheltered from all danger 
 
 If I but hide in Thee ; 
 Securely there abiding 
 
 On Thee I calmly rest, 
 Whatever be my portion 
 
 I count it good and blest. 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 [274] 
 
SPetoIbep. 
 
SDctober 
 
 * 
 
 jptjt#t E>a^ 
 
 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so 
 great a cloud of zvitnesses, let us lay aside every zveight, and 
 the sin which doth so easily beset us. — Hebrews 1 2 : I . 
 
 yjV*E a re encompassed about by a cloud of wit- 
 %Xw nesses, whose hearts throb in sympathy with 
 every effort and struggle, and who thrill with 
 joy at every success. How should this thought 
 check and rebuke every feeling that is worldly and 
 every unworthy purpose, and enshrine us, in the 
 midst of a forgetful and unspiritual world, with an 
 atmosphere of heavenly peace ! They have over- 
 come — have risen — are crowned, glorified ; but 
 still they remain to us, our assistants, our com- 
 forters, and in every hour of darkness their voice 
 speaks to us : " So we grieved, so we struggled, so 
 we fainted, so we doubted ; but we have overcome, 
 we have obtained, we have seen, we have found, — 
 and in our victory behold the certainty of thy own." 
 
 HARRIET BEECHER STOWE. 
 
 Not a vain and cold ideal, 
 
 Not a poet's dream alone, 
 But a presence warm and real, 
 
 Seen and felt and known. 
 
 WH1TTIER. 
 
 [=75] 
 
flDctobet 
 
 £>econti HDap 
 
 Take my yoke upon you and learn of me . . . and ye shall 
 find rest. — S. Matthew 1 1 : 20. 
 
 CHRIST never said much in mere words about 
 the Christian graces. He lived them, He 
 was them. Yet we do not merely copy Him. We 
 learn His art by living with Him, like the old 
 apprentices with their masters. He says " Follow 
 me . . . and you will find rest." Perhaps if we 
 knew how much was involved in the simple " learn" 
 of Christ, we would not enter His school with so 
 irresponsible a heart. For there is not only much 
 to learn, but much to unlearn. Many persons 
 never go to this school at all until character has 
 almost taken on its fatal set. But it can be done 
 — and there is Rest in the school although there is 
 also' much Work. henry drummond. 
 
 The heart bereft of all its brood of singing hopes, 
 
 and left 
 'Mid leafless boughs, a cold, forsaken nest, 
 With snowflakes in it : folded in Thy breast 
 Doth lose its deadly chill ; and grief that creeps 
 Unto Thy side for shelter, finding there 
 The wound's deep cleft, forgets its moan and weeps 
 Calm, quiet tears ; . . . pain on Thee doth press 
 Its quivering cheek, and all the weariness, 
 The want that keep their silence, till from Thee 
 They hear the gracious summons ; none beside 
 Hath spoken to the world-worn, " Come to me ! " 
 [ 27 6] 
 
October 
 
 If a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual 
 restore such an one in the spirit of meekness ; considering thy- 
 self, lest thou also be tempted. — Galatians 6: I. 
 What doest thou here, Elijah ? — I Kings 9:13. 
 
 GOD well knew where Elijah was when He 
 asked, "What doest thou here?" But He 
 would know from Elijah himself, that, being called 
 upon to account for his conduct, he might be con- 
 vinced of his folly. God has a right to know where 
 we are, and what we are doing ; He is interested in 
 observing our conduct ; interested as a judge who 
 is to pass sentence upon our actions ; as a friend, 
 who would check us when we go astray. Elijah's 
 reproof was a reproof given to a good man. But 
 while God does not cast him off, He reprehends 
 him. It is thus His gentleness makes us great 
 If a brother be overtaken in a fault, let us not 
 employ the earthquake, the wind, and the fire, but 
 the small still voice. Let us take him aside, and 
 tell him his fault between him and us alone. 
 
 Jesus, let Thy pitying eye 
 
 Call back a wandering sheep ; 
 False to Thee, like Peter, I 
 
 Would fain like Peter weep ; 
 Let me be by grace restored, 
 
 On me be all long-suffering shown, 
 Turn and look upon me, Lord, 
 
 And break this heart of stone. 
 
 C. WESLEY. 
 
 [277] 
 
jfourd) 2Da£ 
 
 In our low estate. — Psalm 136 : 23. 
 
 NOT a few in their last hours find themselves 
 tried because the future is so uncertain, be- 
 cause their life has been so imperfect. . . . When 
 they think what God is in His purity and majesty, 
 they tremble, and dare not die. Why, then, do they 
 not think what God is in His mercy ! He stands in 
 the plenitude of all-comforting grace — grace not 
 to be given to those that have, but grace to be 
 given as raiment is given to those that are naked, 
 as medicine is given to those that are sick, as food 
 is given to those that are hungry, as charity is 
 bestowed on those that are needy. God supplies, 
 not the supplied, but the unsupplied ; He strengthens, 
 not the strong, but the weak ; He comforts, not the 
 rejoicing, but the sorrowing. beecher. 
 
 Leave all to God, 
 Forsaken one, and stay thy tears ; 
 For the Highest knows thy pain, 
 Sees thy suffering, and thy fears ; 
 Thou shalt not wait His help in vain. 
 Leave all to God. 
 
 If thou love Him, 
 Walking truly in His ways, • 
 Then no trouble, cross, or death, 
 E'er shall silence faith and praise ! 
 All things serve thee here beneath 
 If thou love God. anton ulrich. 
 
 [ 27 8] 
 
flDctotier 
 
 jfiftfj SDap 
 
 All things to all men. — I Corinthians 9 : 22. 
 
 VERY largely we ourselves become what others 
 are to us. . . . Love truly, and then other 
 men's souls will be sources of your soul's growth. 
 Sympathize with the good in their endeavors, and 
 you yourself will be morally stronger. Revere the 
 wise, and yours will be the state of mind into which 
 wisdom comes most freely. Love little children, 
 and something of their innocence will come over 
 your mind, and whiten its darker spots. Love them 
 that are old, and your soul will be as though the 
 longer experienced in life. This life that we are 
 living in is not empty of power, but full of it, — 
 power that is on us and about us always, and into 
 the nature of which we have vision given us, that 
 we should not perish. 
 
 Wish to be a child of God ; and then sunshine 
 and frost, and friends and enemies, and youth and 
 age, and business and pleasure, and all things will 
 help to make you one. mountford. 
 
 Attainment. 
 
 The soul that longs for higher things unknown, 
 Shall not forever long unsatisfied ; 
 
 The heart's desire shall of itself alone 
 
 Lift up the soul to that for which it cried. 
 
 MARY A. LEWIS. 
 
 [279! 
 
October 
 
 £>ijrtlj Way 
 
 Thy law is within ?/iy heart. — Psalm 40 : 8. 
 
 Within. 
 
 WITHIN the circling storm there is a centre 
 Of perfect rest ; 
 Within the cloud we so much fear to enter 
 
 Are visions blest. 
 Within the husk the harvest lies enfolded ; 
 
 The chaff falls dead, 
 But the sweet life the summer months have moulded 
 
 Becomes our bread. 
 Within the bark, all rough and deeply wrinkled, 
 
 Flow hidden streams, 
 Bearing a thousand flowers with perfume sprinkled — 
 
 The sun's bright beams. 
 Within the shell are wings, and songs unspoken, 
 
 A perfect bird ; 
 All useless wings, until the shell be broken, 
 
 And songs unheard ! 
 Within, the spirit dwells ; the outer letter 
 
 Is not the whole ; 
 'Tis but the body, or at times a fetter 
 
 Binding the soul. 
 Within the veil, beyond the world's pollution, 
 
 Are seas of light, 
 Giving to each enigma its solution — 
 
 The perfect sight ! 
 
 HENRY BURTON. 
 [280] 
 
SDctobcr 
 
 For the very works' sake. — S. John 14 : II. 
 
 OTHERS shall sing the song, 
 Others shall right the wrong, 
 Finish what I begin, 
 And all I fail of, win. 
 
 What matter, I or they? 
 Mine or another's day, 
 
 So the right word be said 
 
 And life the sweeter made? 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 I will not say that humility is the only way to 
 excellence, but I am sure that it is one road. 
 
 LONGFELLOW. 
 
 Labour as if the success of this life and the life 
 eternal rested upon you alone. And yet keep to 
 that sweet humility which allows others to build 
 upon the low foundation of that which you have 
 begun but could not finish. 
 
 Keep in mind the idea that it is the work itself 
 that is of consequence to the world, and not the 
 worker. 
 
 No matter whether He calls us into ways of 
 honour or of scorn, it is all one if His work is 
 thereby done. The consecrated soul will merge 
 all thoughts of self in the one thought of helping 
 on the kingdom of God. 
 
 [281] 
 
SDctober 
 
 As for man, his days are as grass : as a flower of the field, so 
 he flourisheth. — Psalm 103: 15. 
 
 THERE is a past which is gone forever, but 
 there is a future which is still our own. 
 
 F. W. ROBERTSON. 
 
 Looking calmly yet humbly for the close of my 
 mortal career, which cannot be far distant, I rever- 
 ently thank God for the blessings vouchsafed me in 
 the past, and with an awe that is not fear, and a 
 consciousness of demerit that does not exclude 
 hope, await the opening before my steps of the 
 gates of the eternal world. Horace greeley. 
 
 The places that know you will soon know you no 
 more forever. The cares that made you fret yester- 
 day are already below the horizon. Your friends 
 have gone on before ; but what of that ? You will 
 soon be with them. Your life is full of troubles 
 and mischiefs ; but what of that ? Your mischiefs 
 and troubles are nearly over — nearer than you 
 think. The glorious future is almost yours. 
 
 It is not death to close 
 
 The eye long dimmed with tears, 
 
 And wake, in glorious repose, 
 In God's Eternal Years. 
 
 ABRAHAM H. C. MOLAN. 
 [282] 
 
GDttObZY 
 J]5tntt) 2Da£ 
 
 When I fail I shall arise. — Micah 7 : 8. 
 / will arise atid go to my Father. — S. Luke 15 : 18. 
 
 BE patient with every one, but above all with 
 yourself. I mean, do not be disturbed because 
 of your imperfections, and always rise up bravely 
 from a fall. I am glad that you make a daily new 
 beginning ; there is no better means of progress in 
 the spiritual life than to be continually beginning 
 afresh. s. francis de sales. 
 
 It is not that I feel less weak, but Thou 
 Wilt be my strength ; it is not that I see 
 Less sin ; but more of pardoning love with Thee, 
 And all-sufficient grace. 
 
 F. W. HAVERGAL. 
 
 O child, hast thou fallen ? arise, and go, with 
 child-like trust, to thy Father, like the prodigal son, 
 and humbly say, with heart and mouth, " Father, I 
 have sinned against heaven and before Thee, and 
 am no more worthy to be called Thy son ; make 
 me as one of Thy hired servants." And what will 
 thy heavenly Father do but what that father did in 
 the parable. Assuredly He will not change His 
 essence, which is love, for the sake of thy mis- 
 doings. Is it not His own precious pleasure, and a 
 small thing for Him to forgive thy trespasses, if 
 thou believe in Him ? for His hand is not shortened 
 that it cannot make thee fit to be saved. 
 
 JOHN TAULER. 
 
 [283] 
 
The Lord is my helper. — Hebrews 13:6. 
 
 DO not be discouraged at your faults ; bear 
 with yourself in correcting them, as you 
 would with your neighbor. Lay aside this ardor 
 of mind, which exhausts your body, and leads you 
 to commit errors. Accustom yourself gradually to 
 carry prayer into all your daily occupations. Speak, 
 move, work, in peace, as if you were in prayer, as 
 indeed you ought to be. Do everything without 
 excitement, by the spirit of grace. As soon as you 
 perceive your natural impetuosity gliding in, retire 
 quietly within, where is the kingdom of God. Listen 
 to the leadings of grace, then say and do nothing but 
 what the Holy Spirit shall put in your heart. You 
 will find that you will become more tranquil, . . . 
 and that you will accomplish more good. 
 
 FENELON. 
 
 Just to trust and yet to ask 
 
 Guidance still ; 
 Take the training or the task 
 
 As He will. 
 Just to follow, hour by hour, 
 
 As He leadeth, 
 Just to draw the moment's power 
 
 As it needeth ; 
 Just to trust Him — that is all, 
 Then the day will surely be 
 Peaceful, whatsoe'er befall, 
 
 Bright and blessed, safe and free. 
 [284] 
 
October 
 
 Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him 
 while he is near. — Isaiah 55 : 6. 
 
 NEARER to Thee, O my Father, still nearer, 
 This is my song and my reverent plea, 
 This is the theme of my fervent petition, 
 
 Nearer to Thee, Saviour, nearer to Thee ! 
 When I am heedless Thy hand will restrain me, 
 
 Gently my feet all the way will be led, 
 When I am weary Thy love will sustain me, 
 Sweetly thy dews will descend on my head. 
 
 Waking or sleeping, smiling or weeping, 
 
 What recks it how my days be — 
 If they but lead me, if they but speed me 
 Nearer and nearer to Thee ? • 
 
 Or, if in darkness my path must be followed, 
 
 Speak through the silence, my spirit constrain, 
 Show me what providence, sacred and hallowed, 
 
 Urges my steps through the valley of pain ! 
 Show me how service or sacrifice lowly 
 
 Leads to the heights and to visions divine, 
 Whisper a message all tender and holy, — 
 
 Thus through the gloom will Thy voice answer 
 mine. 
 Trusting or fearing, listening or hearing, 
 
 All my days let them be 
 Envoys to lead me, heralds to speed me 
 Nearer and nearer to Thee ! 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 
 [285] 
 
fiDctober 
 
 By grace ye are saved. — Ephesians II : 5. 
 
 IT is not strength of intellect that saves a man, 
 or the most respectable surroundings, or ortho- 
 doxy of creed. All these under pressure have 
 proved to be but ropes of sand attached to anchors 
 of straw ; they never hold a man against the tides 
 of strong temptation. He must have Christian 
 principle, or he is lost. No man is safe in business 
 or safe in politics or safe in personal character, 
 when conscience cuts loose from God. He may 
 float for a while, but it is a question of time how 
 soon he shall strike and go to the bottom. God 
 never insures any one, not even in the church, who 
 has refused to guide his course by the Bible com- 
 pass, and to fasten his soul to Jesus Christ. But 
 the cable of Christ's love will not only keep you 
 steadfast through life's storms and through its 
 treacherous under-currents, but will advance you 
 heavenward. The refusal of Jesus Christ means 
 the shipwreck of your immortal soul. Fasten in 
 faith your weakness to His strength, your sinful 
 heart to His cleansing grace, and you are saved. 
 If you reach heaven, my friend, you will come in, 
 like that returning ship from its long voyage, with 
 your anchor at the prow. You will give all the 
 glory not to your own skill or your own seamanship, 
 but to Him whose atoning blood purchased your 
 redemption, and whose mighty arm of love brought 
 you into the heavenly port. theodore l. cuyler. 
 [286] 
 
October 
 
 ®t)i«tmtli Da? 
 
 In him we live and move and have our being. — Acts 
 17:28. 
 
 ABIDE in me : o'ershadow by thy love 
 Each half-formed purpose and dark thought 
 of sin ; 
 Quench ere it rise, each selfish, low desire 
 And keep my soul as Thine, calm and divine. 
 
 HARRIET BEECHER STOWE. 
 
 Yea ! In Thy life our little lives are ended, 
 Into Thy depths our trembling spirits fall ; 
 
 In Thee enfolded, gathered, comprehended, 
 
 As holds the sea her waves — Thou hold'st us all. 
 
 SCUDDER. 
 
 To whatever worlds He carries our souls when 
 they shall pass out of these imprisoning bodies, in 
 those worlds these souls of ours shall find them- 
 selves part of the same great Temple : for it 
 belongs not to this world alone. There can be 
 no end of the universe where God is, to which 
 that growing temple does not reach — the temple 
 of a creation to be wrought at last into a perfect 
 utterance of God by a perfect obedience to God. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 Nothing of joy or grief, of pleasure or pain that 
 we experience but has some part in the experience 
 of Christ. When we make prayer the scaling ladder 
 to reach Him, we not only find Him, but we may 
 indeed live in Him as He in us. 
 [287] 
 
SDctober 
 
 jfourteentf) H>a^ 
 
 We walk by faith, not by sight. — 2 Corinthians 5 : 7. 
 
 "POME day," we say, and turn our eyes 
 w3 Toward the fair hills of Paradise. 
 Some day, some time, a sweet, new rest 
 Shall blossom, flower-like, in each breast, 
 Some time, some day, our eyes shall see 
 The faces kept in memory, 
 Some day their hands shall clasp our hands 
 Just over in the morning lands. 
 Some day our ears shall hear the song 
 Of triumph over sin and wrong. 
 Some day, some time ; but oh ! not yet ; 
 But we will wait, and not forget 
 That some time all these things shall be, 
 And rest be given you and me. 
 So wait, my friend, though years move slow, 
 The happy time will come, we know. 
 
 NEW ORLEANS ITEM. 
 
 This is what it is to walk by faith — to feel that 
 we are ever drawing nearer to our home. You 
 that are called of God, you that have a hope in 
 Jesus Christ, have not only a duty, but a right of 
 joy. It is a part of that treasure which God has 
 given you, and you have a right to be increasingly 
 joyful. The nearer you come to the end of life 
 and to the kingdom of heaven, the more your 
 heart should shine and your tongue rejoice. 
 
 [288] 
 
 j 
 
October 
 
 jftftentrt) SDai? 
 
 Be ye kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one 
 another, even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven you. — 
 Ephesians 4 : 32. 
 
 CHARITY does not demand of us that we 
 should not see the faults of others ; we must 
 in that case shut our eyes. But it commands us to 
 avoid attending to them unnecessarily, and that 
 we be not blind to the good, while we are so clear- 
 sighted to the evil that exists. 
 
 No man is obliged to live so free from passion 
 as not to show some resentment ; and it is rather 
 stoical stupidity than virtue, to do otherwise. 
 Anger may glance into the breast of a wise man, 
 but rest only in the bosom of fools. Fight hard 
 against resentment. Anger will come, but resist it 
 strongly. A spark may set a house on fire. A fit 
 of passion may give you cause to mourn all the 
 days of your life. Never revenge an injury. 
 
 I bow before the noble mind 
 
 That freely some great wrong forgives ; 
 
 Yet noble is the one forgiven 
 
 Who bears that burden well, and lives. 
 
 ADELAIDE PROCTER. 
 
 The soul which sin has overtaken is like a bruised 
 reed. It must be raised up gently, that it may once 
 more aspire heavenwards. e. bersier. 
 
 Reproof is not an act of butchery, but of surgery. 
 
 ARCHBISHOP SECKER. 
 
 [289] 
 
®ttobtt 
 
 <a>ijrteentl) 2Dai> 
 
 With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. — 
 Isaiah 12:3. 
 
 A FOUNTAIN, or a well, in the sacred writings, 
 is an emblem of that which produces joy 
 and refreshment ; which sustains and cheers. The 
 figure is often employed to denote that which 
 supports and refreshes the soul; which sustains 
 man when sinking from exhaustion — as the bub- 
 bling fountain or well refreshes the weary and faint- 
 ing pilgrim. It is thus applied to God as an over- 
 flowing fountain, fitted to supply the wants of all. 
 The water of life is sweet and refreshing, the 
 wells of salvation are deep and inexhaustible ; but 
 none can drink save those who draw. " With joy 
 we are to draw water out of the wells of salvation. 
 Faith is the bucket, but joy and love are the hands 
 that move it. 
 
 O Christ, we come to draw, 
 
 For we are thirsty, faint, and worn, 
 Thine are the living wells 
 
 Whence cooling waters flow, 
 And healing for our wounds : 
 O give us strength to draw. 
 But help us, Lord, we pray, 
 Our vessels are so small, 
 That we must dip and dip again 
 Before our thirst is quenched 
 Or hearts made whole again ; 
 O give us strength to draw ! 
 [290] 
 
October 
 
 &ttimttmt\) sr>ay 
 
 Lord, iJwu hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt 
 cause thine ear to hear. — Psalm 10 : 17. 
 
 LEARN to entwine with prayers the small 
 cares, the trifling sorrows, the little wants of 
 daily life. Whatever affects you — be it a changed 
 look, an altered tone, an unkind word, a wound, 
 a demand you cannot meet, a sorrow you cannot 
 disclose — turn it into prayer, and send it up to 
 God. Disclosures you may not make to man you 
 can make to the Lord. Only give yourself to 
 prayer, whatever be the occasion that calls for it. 
 
 From this sinful heart of mine, 
 To Thy bosom I would flee ; 
 
 I am not my own, but Thine, 
 " God be merciful to me ! " 
 
 There is one beside Thy throne, 
 And my only hope and plea 
 
 Are in Him, and Him alone, 
 " God be merciful to me ! " 
 
 He my cause will undertake, 
 
 My interpreter will be ; 
 He's my all — and for His sake, 
 
 " God be merciful to me ! " 
 
 J. S. B. MONSELL. 
 
 [291] 
 
With lovingkindness. — Jeremiah 31 : 3. 
 
 WHAT was the secret of such a one's power? 
 What had she done ? Absolutely nothing, 
 hut radiant smiles, beaming good humor, the tact 
 of divining what every one felt and every one 
 wanted, told that she had got out of self and 
 learned to think of others ; so that at one time it 
 showed itself by sweet words ; at another, by 
 smoothing an invalid's pillow ; at another, by sooth- 
 ing a sobbing child. None but she saw those 
 things. None but a loving heart could see them. 
 That was the secret of her heavenly power. The 
 one who will be found in trial capable of great acts 
 of love, is ever the one who is always doing con- 
 siderate small ones. f. w. Robertson. 
 
 Sow love, and taste its fruitage pure ; 
 
 Sow peace, and reap its harvests bright ; 
 Sow sunbeams on the rock and moor, 
 
 And find a harvest home of light. bonar. 
 
 May I reach 
 That purest heaven, be to other souls 
 The cup of strength in some great agony, 
 Enkindle generous ardor, feed pure love, 
 Be the sweet presence of a good diffused, 
 And in diffusion ever more intense ! 
 So shall I join the choir invisible 
 Whose music is the gladness of the world. 
 
 GEORGE ELIOT. 
 
 [292] 
 
ADctober 
 
 0ntttmt\) 2Da^ 
 
 With patience. — S. Luke 8: 15. 
 
 GO bend to God, and leave to Him 
 The mystery of thy brother's heart, 
 Nor vainly think his faith is dim 
 
 Because in thine it has no part. 
 He too is mortal, and, like thee, 
 
 Would soar to immortality. 
 There may be hope as pure, as bright, 
 
 As ever sought eternity, — 
 There may be light, clear, heavenly light, 
 
 Where all seems cold and dark to thee. 
 
 And as a bird each fond endearment tries 
 To tempt its new-fledged offspring to the skies, 
 He tried each art, reproved each dull delay, 
 Allured to brighter worlds, and led the way. 
 
 GOLDSMITH. 
 
 God can and does render sinners happy in spite 
 of their sins, for Christ's sake, remitting to them 
 its penalty, while its power is only partially broken, 
 fostering them, and rejoicing over them until their 
 restoration to spiritual health is complete. Any- 
 thing that turns the sinner's regard inward on him- 
 self as a ground of hope, instead of bidding him 
 look to Christ, must plunge him into despair, and 
 despair is the portal of death, charles hodge. 
 
 Be patient under trials, and always look at the 
 reverse side for the mercy that may be concealed 
 beneath the " forming providence." 
 [293] 
 
^October 
 
 ®tomttetlj SDap 
 
 Bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of 
 Christ. — I Corinthians io: 5. 
 
 THEY are never alone who are accompanied 
 by noble thoughts. sir philip Sidney. 
 
 A broad-minded selection of noble passages, 
 though it may not be able to do all we 'could 
 wish in a moral way, can certainly do much to 
 raise men to a high moral, political, and social 
 plane. I believe that gems of literature introduced 
 into our schools, if properly taught, will be able 
 to do this, partly by their own directive influence, 
 on the young mind, but particularly and partly as 
 it shall result in an abiding thirst for noble reading. 
 
 JOHN B. PEASLEE. 
 
 Certain thoughts are prayers. There are mo- 
 ments when, whatever be the attitude of the body, 
 the soul is on its knees. victor hugo. 
 
 For your own sakes, brethren, for God's sake, 
 let your thought rise. Bid it, force it to rise. 
 Think of the face of Jesus, of your future home 
 in heaven, of the loved ones who have gone before 
 you. Think of all that has ever cheered, quick- 
 ened, braced you. In such thoughts, to such 
 thoughts, Jesus will assuredly and increasingly re- 
 veal Himself. liddon. 
 
 The key to every man is his thought. 
 
 THACKERAY. 
 
 [294] 
 
October 
 
 ©inent^first arm? 
 
 The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. — Galatians 6:14. 
 
 My Cross. 
 
 HE lays on me my cross, 
 It is my own ; 
 I know, alone, 
 My suffering, my loss. 
 He binds it on my heart ; 
 
 Its fibres press 
 
 With sore distress, 
 From it I never part. 
 My cross is meted me : 
 
 Its breadth and length 
 
 Fitted my strength ; 
 Though weighted heavily. 
 No less than this 
 
 Enough could be 
 
 To chasten me, 
 Until the Hand I kiss. 
 
 You have your cross, my friend. . . . There is 
 pain in the duty which you do. But if in all your 
 pain you know that God's love is becoming a dearer 
 and plainer truth to you ; and that the vision of the 
 world's redemption is growing more certain and 
 bright, then you can be more than brave ; you can 
 triumph in every task, in every sacrifice. Your 
 cross has won something of the beauty and glory 
 of your Lord's. Rejoice and be glad, for you are 
 crucified with Christ. phillips brooks. 
 
 [ 2 95] 
 
October 
 
 Because I live ye shall live also. — S. John 14 : 19. 
 
 GOD'S I am — if the soul has God within it 
 it is His everlastingly, — His to grow forever. 
 There will grow in it the whole wisdom in which 
 this world is made. 
 
 In the dark everything is shut out from us but 
 the omnipotent present, and so in darkness the 
 Godhead wraps us around like a felt presence. 
 A clear night calms me, and while I am walking 
 in it, high truths rise upon my soul, like stars above 
 the horizon. In nature, one view calms the soul, 
 another purifies it, and another sublimes it. But 
 it is possible, in the sight of the same scene, and 
 at the same time, for one man to feel one way, 
 and another another ; for one looker to be solem- 
 nized, and another to be made more hopeful. Just 
 as, looking on the blessed face of Christ, a happy 
 person would rejoice more purely, and a tearful 
 one sorrow more holily. So it is with nature. 
 O, out in the country, sometimes, my soul feels 
 wrapped, as though in the arms of the Great 
 Father. It is as though the wind whispered me 
 divine messages ; and it is as though divine mean- 
 ing broke upon me from out of the clouds, and the 
 hillsides, and from among the stars. And I know 
 that I am growing into the spirit of it all, — the 
 brightness of the sun, the majesty of the night, — 
 the purity of the winter, and the contentment of 
 the summer. mountford. 
 
 [296] 
 
October 
 
 My meat is to do the will of him that sent me. — S. John 
 4:24. 
 
 NOTHING is small or great in God's sight; 
 whatever He wills becomes great to us, how- 
 ever seemingly trifling, and if once the voice of 
 conscience tells us that He requires anything of us, 
 we have no right to measure its importance. On 
 the other hand, whatever He would not have us 
 do, however important we may think it, is as 
 nought to us. How do you know what you may 
 lose by neglecting this duty, which you think so 
 trifling, or the blessing which its faithful perform- 
 ance may bring ? Be sure that if you do your very 
 best in that which is laid upon you daily, you will 
 not be left without sufficient help when some 
 weightier occasion arises. Give yourself to Him, 
 trust Him, fix your eye upon Him, listen to His 
 voice, and then go on bravely and cheerfully. 
 
 JEAN NICHOLAS GROU. 
 
 I am glad to think 
 I am not bound to make the world go right ; 
 But only to discover and to do, 
 With cheerful heart, the work that God appoints. 
 
 I will trust in Him, 
 That He can hold His own ; and I will take 
 His will, above the work He sendeth me, 
 To be my chiefest good. jean ingelow. 
 
 [297] 
 
October 
 
 {Ktomt^fourtf) Dap 
 
 Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love. — Jeremiah 
 3i:3. 
 
 WE know how to love our friends because 
 they are no worse than we ; but how Christ 
 can stoop from without the circle of blessed spirits 
 to love us, who are begrimed with sin, and be- 
 stormed with temptation, and wrestling with the 
 lowest parts of humanity, — that is past our rinding 
 out. He has loved us from the foundation of the 
 world ; and because heaven was too far away for us 
 to see, He came down to earth to do the things 
 which He has always been doing profusely above. 
 Christ's life of earth was not an official mission ; 
 it was a development of His everlasting state, 
 a dip to bring within our horizon those character- 
 istics and attributes which otherwise we could not 
 comprehend; — God's pilgrimage on earth as a 
 shepherd, in search of His wolf-imperilled fold. 
 And when I look into His life I say to myself, "As 
 tender as this, and yet on earth ? What is He now, 
 then?" BEECHER. 
 
 It passeth knowledge : that dear love of Thine ! 
 My Jesus ! Saviour ! Yet this soul of mine 
 Would of that love in all its depth and length, 
 And height and breadth and everlasting strength 
 Know more and more. 
 
 MARY SHACKELTON. 
 [298] 
 
®toent? ; fiftl) aDap 
 
 Get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. — • 
 Proverbs 15:7. 
 
 Think of It. 
 
 THE secret of success of one of England's 
 most learned men was bound up in four 
 little words, which he took as a motto, " I'll think 
 of it." And although to-day we may think it 
 a little thing to think, let us learn that it is the 
 power that moves the world. That it is the great 
 drive-wheel of progress, driving, with its propelling 
 force, humanity from wrong to right ; driving it 
 from the dark shades of barbarity into the sun-lit 
 regions of civilization ; lifting it higher, step by 
 step, into that glorious realm, manhood. And as 
 surely as terrestrial power is drawn from the sun, 
 so surely is the propelling power and influence over 
 man drawn from that fountain ever rich and full, 
 the mind. 
 
 Great truths are dearly bought. The common truth, 
 Such as men give and take from day to day, 
 
 Comes in the common walks of easy life, 
 Blown by the ceaseless wind across our way. 
 
 Great truths are greatly won. Not found by chance, 
 Nor wafted on the breath of summer dream, 
 
 But grasped in the great struggle of the soul 
 Hard buffeting with adverse wind and stream. 
 
 HORATIUS BONAR. 
 
 [299] 
 
I say unto thee, Arise. — S. Luke 7: 14. 
 
 HE meets us bearing forth our dead hopes 
 through the city's gate ; He meets us when 
 our hearts are faint and weary ; when we feel the 
 emptiness of all with which this world has sought 
 to cheat our earnest longings for the great, the 
 real, and the true. He stands beside the bier, He 
 bids us weep no more, He stops our mourning 
 steps ; the dead hear Him ; hopes of youth, aspira- 
 tion of heart, dreams of purity, of high service, 
 with which once our spirits kept glad company, but 
 which had withered, and sunk, and died, as the 
 hot and scorching sun of common life arose upon 
 us — these revive ; they turn to Him, and He gives 
 them back to us, and bids us cherish them for 
 
 Him. BIBLE STUDIES. 
 
 Bring warmth to this coldness, bring life to this death • 
 Renew the great miracle ; let us behold 
 The stone from the mouth of the sepulchre rolled, 
 And hope, like to Lazarus, rise as of old ! 
 
 Let our faith, which in darkness and coldness has lain, 
 Revive with the warmth and the brightness again, 
 And in blooming of flower and budding of tree 
 The symbols and types of our destiny see ; 
 The life of the spring-time, the life of the whole, 
 And as the sun to the sleeping earth love to the 
 
 SOul ! WHITTIER. 
 
 [300] 
 
October 
 
 i/<?;r a little and there a little. — Isaiah 28 : 10. 
 
 THERE are no such things as trifles in the 
 biography of man. Drops make up the sea. 
 Acorns cover the earth with oaks and the ocean 
 with navies. Sands make up the bar in the har- 
 bor's mouth, on which vessels are wrecked ; and 
 little things in youth accumulate into character in 
 age, and destiny in eternity. If you cannot be 
 a great river, bearing great vessels of blessing 
 to the world, you can be a little spring by the 
 wayside of life, singing all the day and all the 
 night, and giving a cup of cold water to every 
 weary, thirsty one who passes by. Life is made up 
 of little things. He who travels over a continent 
 must go step by step. He who writes books must 
 do it sentence by sentence. What is the happiness 
 of our life made up of ? Little courtesies, little 
 kindnesses, pleasant words, genial smiles, a friendly 
 letter, good wishes, and good deeds. One in 
 a million — once in a lifetime — may do a heroic 
 action ; but the little things that make up our life 
 come every day and every hour. If we make the 
 little events of life beautiful and good, then is 
 the whole life full of beauty and goodness. 
 
 ROYAL PATH OF LIFE. 
 
 See that you have enough of the little virtues and 
 common fidelities, and you need not mourn because 
 you are neither a renowned hero nor a saint. 
 
 [301] 
 
October 
 
 This is my Beloved and this is my Friend. — Song of Solo- 
 mon 5:16. 
 
 Calvary. 
 Under an Eastern sky, 
 Amid a rabble's cry, 
 A man went forth to die 
 
 For me. 
 Thorn-crowned His blessed head, 
 Blood-stained His every tread ; 
 Cross-laden, on he sped, 
 
 For me. 
 Pierced glow His hands and feet, 
 Three hours o'er Him beat 
 Fierce rays of noon-tide heat 
 
 For me. 
 Thus were Thou made all mine : 
 Lord make me wholly Thine ; 
 Grant grace and strength divine 
 
 To me. 
 In thought, and word, and deed 
 Thy will to do. Oh, lead 
 My soul, e'en though it bleed, 
 
 To Thee. boston pilot. 
 
 He who was the holiest among the mighty, and 
 the mightiest among the holy, has, with His pierced 
 hand, lifted heathenism off its hinges, and turned 
 the dolorous and accursed centuries into new chan- 
 nels, and now governs the ages. richter. 
 [302] 
 
October 
 
 ®toentv=mntt) 2Da£ 
 
 JVozv no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but 
 grievoits : nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable 
 fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. 
 Hebrews 12 : II. 
 
 THOSE who are now at rest were once like our- 
 selves. They were once weak, faulty, sinful ; 
 they had their burdens and hindrances, their slum- 
 bering and weariness, their failures and their falls. 
 But now they have overcome. Their life was once 
 homely and commonplace. Their day ran out like 
 ours. Morning and noon and night came and 
 went to them as to us. Their life, too, was as 
 lonely and sad as yours. Little fretful circum- 
 stances and frequent disturbing changes wasted 
 away their hours as yours. There is nothing in 
 your life that was not in theirs ; there was nothing 
 in theirs but may be also in your own. They have 
 overcome, each one, and one by one ; each in his 
 turn, when the day came, and God called him to 
 the trial. And so shall you likewise. 
 
 H. E. MANNING. 
 
 Around me, like a silver bell 
 
 Rung down the listening sky to tell 
 Of holy help, a sweet voice fell. 
 
 " Still hope and trust," it sang ; " the rod 
 Must fall, the wine-press must be trod, 
 But all is possible with God ! " 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 
 [303] 
 
October 
 
 tEt)trttetl) 2Da^ 
 
 I have chosen the way of truth. — Psalm 119: 30. 
 
 Truth. 
 
 THE seat of truth is in our secret hearts, 
 Not in the tongue, which falsehood oft 
 imparts. brandon. 
 
 Truth crushed to earth shall rise again, 
 The eternal years of God are hers ; 
 
 But error, wounded, writhes in pain, 
 And dies among his worshippers. 
 
 BRYANT. 
 
 His yea is Yea forevermore ! 
 
 MARGARET I. PRESTON. 
 
 No power can die that ever wrought for truth. 
 
 J. R. LOWELL. 
 
 God js the author of truth, the devil the father 
 of lies. If the telling of a truth shall endanger 
 thy life, the Author of truth will protect thee from 
 danger, or reward thee for thy damage. If the 
 telling of a lie may secure thy life, the father of 
 lies will beguile thee of thy gains, or traduce the 
 security. Better by losing of a life to save it, than 
 by saving of a life to lose it. However, better 
 thou perish than the truth. 
 
 [304] 
 
SDctober 
 
 And the work of righteousness shall be peace ; and the effect 
 of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. — Isaiah 
 32: 17. 
 
 AH ! why by passing clouds oppressed, 
 Should vexing thoughts distract thy breast : 
 Turn thou to Him in every pain, 
 Whom suppliant never sought in vain ; 
 Thy strength in joy's ecstatic day, 
 Thy hope, when joy has passed away. 
 
 H. F. LYTE. 
 
 We have only to be patient, to pray, and to do 
 His will, according to our present light and strength, 
 and the growth of the soul will go on. The plant 
 grows in the mist and under clouds as truly as under 
 sunshine. So does the heavenly principle within. 
 
 W. E. CHANNING. 
 
 Reparation. 
 
 In the midnight darkness deep, 
 
 Shrouding all my room, 
 Somewhere tender violets 
 
 Hide their purple bloom. 
 
 Darker, softer, grows the night, 
 
 Deeper still the gloom; 
 Penetrating, rich, intense, 
 
 Breathes the blest perfume. 
 
 GRACE DUFFIELD GOODWIN. 
 [305] 
 
9 
 
 His mercy endure th for ever. — Psalm 107: I. 
 
 0TAR of heaven to light our pathway, 
 Word our fainting souls to cheer, 
 Peace to calm our sad forebodings 
 
 When our spirits shrink with fear, — 
 Courage for renewed endeavor 
 
 When our failures we deplore — 
 " God's great mercy still endureth 
 Now and always, evermore." 
 
 Calm assurance for misgiving 
 
 When we falter by the way, 
 Sweet reply to anxious questions 
 
 When we know not what we say, 
 Strength and wisdom for our guidance, 
 
 Word of truth from heaven's lore, 
 Given for our consolation, — 
 
 " Mercy stands forever more." 
 
 Like a heavenly benediction 
 
 Falling on us from above, 
 Sinking deep in every spirit, 
 
 Are those precious words of love ; 
 And the message thrills us ever 
 
 As we whisper o'er and o'er, 
 " O the mercy pure, transcendent — 
 
 Which endures forever more ! " 
 [306] 
 
^M ©.<(!' mfe<g 
 
 \ 
 
jl^otiember 
 
 In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. ■ 
 Colossians 2 : 9. 
 
 L 
 
 AY hold of Christ with both your poor, empty 
 hands. Elizabeth prentiss. 
 
 Every day we see something new in Christ. His 
 love hath neither brim nor bottom. 
 
 We may have as much of God as we will. Christ 
 puts the key of the treasure-chamber into our hand, 
 and bids us take all we want. If a man is admitted 
 into the bullion vault of a bank, and told to help 
 himself, and comes out with one cent, whose fault 
 is it that he is poor? Whose fault is it that Chris- 
 tian people generally have such scanty portions of 
 the fine riches of God? McLaren. 
 
 Thou, O most compassionate, 
 Who didst stoop to our estate, 
 Drinking of the cup we drain, 
 Treading in our path of pain, 
 Through the doubt and mystery, 
 Grant to us Thy steps to see, 
 And the grace to draw from thence 
 Larger hope and confidence. 
 Show Thy vacant tomb and let 
 As of old the angels sit 
 Whispering by its open door, 
 " Fear not, He hath gone before." 
 
 WHITTIER. 
 [3°7] 
 
®i)trD Dap 
 
 To die is gain. — Philippians 1 : 21. 
 
 If a man die he shall live again. — Leviticus 18 : 5. 
 
 WE are glad for those who go, going forth by 
 permission by the door of life and death. We 
 are glad for those whose work is completed ; who 
 rest from it ; whose life is purified upon this sphere, 
 and begins to blossom in the other. We rejoice 
 that Thou art taking from out of the company of 
 sinful men, and from the midst of troubles in this 
 life, one and another into the dear delights of their 
 Father's kingdom, and that they that sang here are 
 to-day singing more sweetly above. beecher. 
 
 If one had watched a prisoner many a year, 
 Standing behind a barred window-pane, 
 Fettered with heavy hand-cuff and with chain, 
 And gazing on the blue sky, far and clear ; 
 And suddenly some morning he should hear 
 The man in the night had contrived to gain 
 His freedom, and was safe, would this bring pain ? 
 Ah, would it not to dullest heart appear 
 Good tidings ? 
 
 Yesterday I looked on one 
 Who lay as if asleep in perfect peace. 
 His long imprisonment for life was done. 
 Eternity's great freedom his release 
 Had brought. Yet they who loved him called him 
 
 dead, 
 And wept, refusing to be comforted. h. b. m. 
 
 [308] 
 
IFourtl) E>a? 
 
 As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul 
 after thee, O God. — Psalm 42: 1. 
 
 IN the soul the elements of decay do not enter — 
 it longs for things immortal ; it perpetuates 
 nationalities, and builds pyramids to the skies ; its 
 nature is instinctively far-reaching and goes out in 
 its longings after the eternal — the Infinite ; its 
 powers develop themselves while striving to build 
 something lasting, which shall survive the wrecks of 
 time. The soul continually longs for something 
 beyond its reach ; it even longs for a perfection 
 which will satisfy its ideal, and is never satisfied — 
 is ever restless. Death is the point where Divinity 
 claims its own — eternity dawns on the soul in its 
 grandeur at last ; the mortal has put on immortal- 
 ity — that which was inherent still remains. Death 
 is the portal where the soul and body part forever, 
 from which the soul wings its flight to its future 
 abode. 
 
 God only is the creature's home, 
 Though long and rough the road ; 
 
 Yet nothing less can satisfy 
 The love that longs for God. 
 
 How little of that road, my soul, 
 
 How little hast thou gone ! 
 Take heart, and let the thought of God 
 
 Allure thee further on. 
 
 [3°9] 
 
^ofoember 
 
 jfiftl) 2Pa? 
 
 As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you. - 
 Isaiah 66: 13. 
 
 LIKE a cradle, rocking, rocking, 
 Silent, peaceful, to and fro, 
 Like a mother's sweet looks dropping 
 On the little face below, 
 Hangs the green earth, swinging, turning, 
 Jarless, noiseless, safe, and slow ; 
 Falls the light of God's face bending 
 Down and watching us below. 
 
 And as feeble 'babes that suffer, 
 Toss and cry and will not rest, 
 Are the ones the tender mother 
 Holds the closest, loves the best ; 
 So when we are weak and wretched, 
 By our sins weighed down, distressed, 
 Then it is that God's great patience 
 Holds us closest, loves us best. 
 
 O great heart of God ! whose loving 
 Cannot hindered be or crossed, 
 Will not weary, will not even 
 In our death itself be lost — 
 Love divine ! of such great loving, 
 Only mothers know the cost — 
 Cost of love, which all love passing, 
 Gave a Son to save the lost. 
 
 SAXE HOLM. 
 
 [310] 
 
Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might ; for 
 there is no work, nor device, nor knozuledge, nor wisdom in 
 the grave. — Ecclesiastes 9 : 10. 
 
 ONE secret act of self-denial, one sacrifice of 
 inclination to duty, is worth all the mere 
 good thoughts, warm feelings, passionate prayers, 
 in which idle people indulge themselves. 
 
 NEWMAN. 
 
 Without a diligent and faithful obedience to the 
 calls and claims of others upon us, our religious 
 profession is simply dead. Neglect of charitable 
 offices will miserably darken our own hearts, and 
 hide the face of God from us. h. e. manning. 
 
 We mean to do it : some day, some day, 
 We mean to slacken this fevered rush 
 
 That is wearing our very souls away, 
 And grant to our goaded hearts a hush 
 
 That is holy enough to let them hear 
 
 The footsteps of angels drawing near. 
 
 The day we dreamed of comes at length, 
 When, tired of every mocking guest, 
 
 And broken in spirit and shorn of strength, 
 We drop, indeed, at the door of rest j 
 
 And wait, and watch, as the days wane on — 
 
 But the angels we meant to call are gone. 
 
 MARGARET J. PRESTON. 
 [3"] 
 
g>eimttf) 2Pa^ 
 
 / have trodden the wine press alone. — Isaiah 63 : 3. 
 Surely he hath borne our sorrows. — Isaiah 53:4. 
 
 LIFE'S battles thou must fight all single-handed, 
 </ No friend, however dear, can bear thy pain. 
 No other soul can ever bear thy burdens, 
 No other hand for thee the prize may gain. 
 
 Lonely we journey through this vale of sorrow, 
 No heart, in full, respondeth to our own ; 
 
 Each one alone must meet his own to-morrow, 
 Each one must tread the weary way alone. 
 
 Ah ! weary heart ! why art thou sad and lonely ? 
 
 Why this vain longing for an answering sigh ? 
 Thy griefs, thy longings, trials and temptations 
 
 Are known and felt by Him who reigns on high. 
 
 ANNA HOLYOKE HOWARD. 
 
 An hour of solitude, passed in sincere and ear- 
 nest prayer in conflict with, and conquest over, a 
 single passion or subtle bosom sin, will teach us 
 more of thought, will more effectually awaken the 
 faculty and form the habit of reflection than a 
 year's study in the schools without them. 
 
 COLERIDGE. 
 
 By all means, use sometimes to be alone ; 
 
 Salute thyself, see what thy soul doth wear ; 
 Dare to look in thy chest, for 'tis thine own — 
 And tumble up and down whate'er thou findest 
 there. Herbert. 
 
 [312] 
 
Ciglitt) a>a? 
 
 If ye endure chastening God dealeth with you as sons ; for 
 zvhat son is he whom the father chasteneth not ? — Hebrews 
 12:7. 
 
 GOD is as incapable of being indifferent towards 
 His lost mankind, as is a mother towards her 
 lost child. Lost mankind are not only His lost, 
 but His lost children. Does not the Source of all 
 hearts feel? And is He not concerned for His lost? 
 In the Divinity of indifference I cannot believe. I 
 could far more easily believe that the Divine Heart 
 carries a huge grief; and that "the Man of Sor- 
 rows " only partially represents the tenderness of 
 Infinite Love. In human hearts, in mother's love, 
 in angelic love, and in the person of Jesus, the 
 affections of God have a wide and wonderful revela- 
 tion ; but what the Divine Affections are in their 
 Fountain-head must be beyond all revealing and 
 conceiving. pulsford. 
 
 God liveth ever ! 
 Wherefore, soul, despair thou never ! 
 What though thou treadest with bleeding feet 
 
 A thorny path of grief and gloom, 
 Thy God will choose the way most meet 
 To lead thee heavenward, lead thee home. 
 
 For this life's long night of sadness 
 
 He will give thee peace and gladness ; 
 
 Soul, forget not in thy pains 
 
 Good o'er all forever reigns. zibu. 
 
 [313] 
 
jfeobember 
 
 i|5mtl) SDap 
 
 My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. — 
 Exodus 33 : 14. 
 
 HOW shall we rest in God? By giving our- 
 selves wholly to Him. If you give yourself 
 by halves you cannot find full rest ; there will ever 
 be a lurking disquiet in that half which is withheld. 
 Martyrs and saints have tested this rest "and 
 counted themselves happy in that they endured." 
 A countless host of God's faithful servants have 
 drunk deeply of it under the daily burden of a 
 weary life — dull, commonplace, painful, or deso- 
 late. All that God has been to them He is ready 
 to be to you. The heart once fairly given to God, 
 with a clear conscience, a fitting rule of life, and a 
 steadfast purpose of obedience, you will find a 
 wonderful sense of rest coming over you. 
 
 JEAN NICHOLAS GROU. 
 
 By Thine unerring Spirit led, 
 
 We shall not in the desert stray ; 
 
 We shall not full direction need, 
 Nor miss our providential way ; 
 
 As far from danger as from fear 
 
 While love, Almighty love, is near. 
 
 CHARLES WESLEY. 
 
 With God for my friend I pass through my life in 
 peace. In fellowship with Him I find a rest from 
 all earthly dangers and fatigues. 
 
 [314] 
 
Member 
 
 tEtntt) E>a£ 
 
 The Lord shall lift you up. — S. James 4: 10. 
 
 Lift Me Higher. 
 
 LIFT me higher, O my Saviour, 
 As I journey on my way, 
 Help me over life's deep pitfalls, 
 Draw me nearer day by day ; 
 Lift me up from doubt and darkness, 
 
 Let me feel Thy loving care, 
 While I hear Thy tender accents 
 Like a whisper in the air. 
 
 Lift me from unworthy self-hood, 
 
 Let me set my will aside 
 While I measure Thy forbearance, 
 
 While I count Thy mercies wide ; 
 Every burden, every trial, 
 
 Every sorrow I may feel, 
 Every act of lowly service, — 
 
 May they lift me higher still ! 
 
 When I drink from broken cisterns 
 
 Lead me to Thy living wells, 
 Drop my bucket in the waters 
 
 Where life's current freely swells ; 
 That my thirsty, fainting spirit, 
 
 Worn with toil and weary strife, 
 May be lifted to salvation 
 
 And to everlasting life. 
 
 MARTHA CAPPS OLIVER. 
 
 [315] 
 
$oi>embcr 
 
 detentl) 2Da? 
 
 Be ye angry and sin not : let not the sun go down upon your 
 wrath. — Ephesians 4 : 26. 
 
 " T)E angry and sin not!" — the easiest charge 
 JLJ under the hardest condition that can be. 
 He that will be angry and not sin, let him be angry 
 at nothing but sin. j. trapp. 
 
 " Forgiveness before sundown ! " He who never 
 feels the throb of indignation is imbecile. He 
 who can walk among the injustices of the world 
 inflicted upon himself and others, without flush of 
 cheek or flash of eye, or agitation of nature, is 
 either in sympathy with wrong, or devoid of feel- 
 ing. It all depends on what you are angry at, and 
 how long the feeling lasts, whether anger is right 
 or wrong. talmage. 
 
 Anger becomes sinful if wrongly directed, or if 
 there be an inadequate cause for it. A natural 
 manifestation of indignation is manly, and is often 
 absolutely necessary to resent an injury. 
 
 A lesson which I well may heed, 
 A word of fitness to my need. 
 
 Search thine own heart. What paineth thee 
 In others in thyself may be ; 
 All dust is frail, all flesh is weak ; 
 Be thou the man that thou dost seek. 
 
 [316] WHITTIER. 
 
©toelftl) 2Dap 
 
 Yet a little while and he that shall come will come, and will 
 not tarry. — Hebrews 10 : 37. 
 
 GOD comes to His people in an undisclosed 
 and unrecognized form, in the hours of their 
 despondency. That which seems to us to be a 
 cloud and darkness is, after all, but fhe garment 
 in the midst of which Christ is walking. All right 
 occupations, all duties, all fidelities, bring along 
 with them a divine presence. We are never alone. 
 The most menial callings, routine, occupations, 
 things not agreeable in themselves, but necessary, 
 and things of duty, all of them have or .may have 
 with them a Christ. 
 
 I cannot think but God must know 
 About the thing I long for so ; 
 I know He is so good, so kind, 
 I cannot think but He will find 
 
 Some way to help, some way to show 
 Me to the thing I long for so. 
 
 SAXE HOLM. 
 
 Patiently wait, for His steps will not tarry, 
 Patiently listen — He cometh apace ; — 
 
 " Only a little time " — thou who art weary, 
 Then shalt behold Him and gaze on His face. 
 
 All thou hast longed for He brings at His coming ; 
 
 Down the dim ages Thy gift cometh sure, 
 See that thy hands are made fit to receive it, 
 
 See that thy heart and thy spirit are pure. 
 
 [317] M - c - °- 
 
j&o&ember 
 
 Wfyittttnty Day 
 
 Mighty to save. — Isaiah 63 : I. 
 
 JESUS CHRIST takes men, not because they are 
 clean, but because they are willing to be taken. 
 He takes them in all their poorness and leanness, 
 and irregularities, and says, " I am willing to carry 
 you and bear with you through your whole life if 
 I can see that in the end my affection and patience 
 will bring you into the enjoyment of the eternal 
 inheritance." It is the cleansing, forgiving, endur- 
 ing, remedial love of Christ Jesus that gives a man 
 hope. When wrong rises up in me I feel that there 
 is something higher than that. It is the faithful- 
 ness of Christ, and the wonderful power of Christ's 
 love to redeem men from sin, that gives me hope. 
 
 Mine is a day of fear and strife, 
 A needy soul, a needy life, 
 A needy world, a needy age ; 
 Yet, in my perilous pilgrimage, 
 
 I cast my soul on Thee, 
 
 Mighty to save, even me, 
 
 Jesus, Thou Son of God. 
 
 To Thee I come ; ah ! only Thou 
 Canst wipe the sweat from off this brow ; 
 Thou, only Thou, canst make me whole, 
 And soothe the fever of my soul ; 
 I cast my soul on Thee, 
 Mighty to save e'en me, 
 Jesus, Thou Son of God. 
 [318] 
 
jfourteentt) SDap 
 
 Hitherto hath the Lord helped us. — I Samuel 7 : 12. 
 
 WE are often speculating on what is to come. 
 You who trust that you are God's children 
 may take one answer as regards the coming years : 
 you are going forth into nothing but goodness. I 
 cannot say that you may not be going forth to meet 
 trouble, toil, disappointment. It may be ; but if 
 you are at God's side you are going forward to 
 nothing but good. If the worst that you fear shall 
 come to pass, you will find His goodness hidden 
 in the very heart of the disaster. 
 
 M. R. VINCENT. 
 
 The years have taught me many things, 
 
 But none so sure as this : 
 That shelter, solace, joy, and strength 
 
 Are always where God is. 
 
 So now, when hope and courage fail, 
 
 And only fear is strong, 
 My heart will sing, as in the past, 
 
 An unforgotten song. 
 
 God is my refuge and my strength, 
 
 I will not be afraid ; 
 And though the night be wild and dark, 
 
 I meet it undismayed. 
 
 MARIANNE FARNINGHAM. 
 [319] 
 
jfifteeuti) St>a^ 
 
 The sufferings of this present time are not tvorthy to be com- 
 pared with the glory which shall be revealed in tis. — Romans 
 8:18. 
 
 THERE come times in every life when men 
 must undergo a crucial test. But the per- 
 fection of Christian loyalty is to trust God even 
 though He slays us through those affections and 
 desires that are dearest to us. 
 
 How blest is that man who receives every pain 
 and trouble as a divine messenger sent by his 
 Heavenly Father, and so enters into a fuller fel- 
 lowship and sympathy with his Saviour ! 
 
 What will it matter, by and by, 
 
 Whether with cheek to cheek I've lain 
 Close by the pallid angel, Pain ; 
 
 Soothing myself through sob and sigh ? 
 
 " All will be elsewise by and by ! " 
 
 What will it matter? Naught, if I 
 Only am sure the way I've trod, 
 Gloomy or gladdened, leads to God ; 
 
 Questioning not of the how, the why, 
 If I but reach Him, by and by. 
 
 Ah ! it will matter, by and by, 
 
 Nothing but this — that joy or pain 
 Lifted me skyward, helped me gain, 
 Whether through rack or smile or sigh, 
 Heaven, — home, — all in all, by and by ! 
 
 HELEN HUNT JACKSON. 
 [320] 
 
&ixttmt\) Dap 
 
 Thy thoughts shall be established. — Psalm 16:3. 
 
 ONE thought I have, my ample creed, 
 So deep it is and broad, 
 And equal to my every need, — 
 It is the thought of God. 
 
 At night my gladness is my prayer ; 
 
 I drop my daily load, 
 And every care is pillowed there 
 
 Upon the thought of God. 
 
 Make yourselves nests of pleasant thoughts. 
 None of us yet know what fairy palaces we may 
 build of beautiful thought — proof against all ad- 
 versity. Bright fancies, satisfied memories, noble 
 histories, faithful sayings, treasure-houses of pre- 
 cious and restful thoughts, which care cannot dis- 
 turb, nor pain make gloomy, nor poverty take away 
 from us, — houses built without hands, for our souls 
 to live in. ruskin. 
 
 The truth and sincerity of God to His people 
 appears in the openness and plainness of His 
 thought as He makes it known to them. A friend 
 who is reserved naturally comes under a cloud in 
 the thoughts of his companions, but he who carries 
 a window of crystal in his breast delivers himself 
 from all suspicion of unfaithfulness. And thus is 
 God open-hearted to His saints. 
 
 [321] 
 
g>etoenteenrt) Dap 
 
 There shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, 
 neither shall there be any more pain ; for the former things 
 have passed azvay. — Revelation 21:4. 
 
 METHOUGHT I walked along a pleasant way, 
 Sunlight and shadow flecking leaf and sod, 
 And, hand in my hand, was one beside me 
 trod, 
 Her fair face adding brightness to the day. 
 
 Sudden we came upon a hidden door, 
 
 And she that walked beside me passed within, 
 Nor did return. But where she late had been 
 
 There came a voice that clamored " Nevermore !" 
 
 That Voice I knew ; but straightway, seemingly, 
 From the shut door a gentle echo rung, 
 And " Evermore ! " still " Evermore ! " it sung, 
 
 And ever softer and more dreamingly. 
 
 God of the living ! from within the door — 
 No echo — came that blest word " Evermore ! " 
 
 JOHN W. CHADWICK. 
 
 And even now we may anticipate the glory of 
 that time when "there shall be no more death, 
 neither sorrow nor crying." If we keep the city 
 of our heart holy with the presence of a living 
 Christ we may believe that they are even now with 
 us in sympathy and sweet communion, and that it 
 is not death, but fulness of life upon which they 
 have entered through the door of the grave. 
 
 [322] 
 
The Lord has set apart him that is godly for himself. — 
 Psalm 6:3. 
 
 CONSECRATION is not wrapping one's self 
 in a holy web in the sanctuary, and then 
 coming forth after prayer and twilight meditation 
 and saying, "There, I am consecrated." Conse- 
 cration is going out in the world where God is, and 
 using every power for His glory. It is taking all 
 advantages as trust funds, as confidential debts 
 owed to God. It is simply dedicating one's life 
 in its whole flow to God's service, bible studies. 
 
 Take my soul and body's powers ; 
 
 Take my memory, mind, and will, 
 All my goods and all my hours ; 
 
 All I know and all I feel ; 
 All I think, or speak, or do ; 
 Take my heart but make it new. 
 
 Now, O God, Thine own I am, 
 
 Now I give Thee back Thine own ; 
 
 Freedom, friends, and health and fame, 
 Consecrate to Thee alone ; 
 
 Thine I live, thrice happy I ; 
 
 Happier still if Thine I die. 
 
 CHARLES WESLEY. 
 
 God wants more than our money — He wants 
 ourselves. If self is consecrated, that will settle 
 all else. 
 
 [323] 
 
0mtmitt) H>a|> 
 
 My grace is sufficient for thee ; for my strength is made 
 perfect in xveakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather 
 glory in my infirmities. — 2 Corinthians 12:9. 
 
 DR. GEORGE MATHERSON of Scotland is 
 totally blind, and yet he is one of the most 
 learned and gifted men in all Britain. The fol- 
 lowing touching words from his pen ought to 
 strengthen the Christian patience of God's afflicted 
 children : " My God, I have never thanked Thee 
 for my thorn. I have thanked Thee a thousand 
 times for my roses, but not once for my thorn. I 
 have been looking forward to a world where I shall 
 receive compensation for my cross, but I have 
 never thought of my cross as itself a present glory. 
 Thou, Divine Love, whose human path has been 
 perfected through sufferings, teach me the glory 
 of my cross ; teach me the value of my thorn. 
 Show me that I have climbed to Thee by the path 
 of pain. Show me that my tears have made my 
 rainbow. Reveal to me that my strength was the 
 product of the hour when I wrestled until the break 
 of day. Then shall I know that my thorn was 
 blessed by Thee. 
 
 Nearer, my God, to Thee, 
 
 Nearer to Thee ; 
 Even though it be a cross 
 
 That raiseth me. 
 
 SARAH FLOWER ADAMS. 
 
 [3 2 4] 
 
Hold me up and I shall be safe. — Psalm 119: 117. 
 
 WHEN on my day of life the night is falling, 
 And in the winds from unsunned spaces 
 blown, 
 I hear far voices out of darkness calling 
 My feet to paths unknown. 
 
 Thou who hast made my home of life so pleasant, 
 Leave not its tenant when its walls decay ; 
 
 Love divine, O Helper ever present, 
 Be Thou my strength and stay ! 
 
 Be near me when all else is from me drifting — 
 Earth, sky, home's picture, days of shade and 
 shine, 
 
 And kindly faces to my own uplifting 
 The love which answers mine. 
 
 Suffice it if my good and ill unreckoned, 
 
 And both forgiv'n through Thy abounding grace, 
 
 1 find myself by hands familiar beckoned 
 
 Unto my fitting place. 
 
 Some humble door among Thy many mansions, 
 Some sheltering shade where sin and striving cease, 
 
 And flows forever through heaven's green expansions, 
 The river of Thy peace. 
 
 [325] 
 
iiiJofcentibet: 
 
 Thou art my hiding-place ; thou shalt preserve me from 
 trouble ; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliver- 
 ance. — Psalm 32 : 7. 
 
 CHRIST is the " hiding-place from the wind," 
 the " covert from the tempest," the " Great 
 Rock " in a weary land. He hides His own in the 
 cleft of the rock till danger be past. He shelters 
 them when the tempest rages. He defends them 
 when assaulted by temptation, and covers their 
 defenceless heads in the day of battle. Fleeing to 
 the Refuge, they find ample protection, and are 
 made to rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 
 No wind can blight them there ; no tempest dis- 
 turb the serenity of their souls. Almighty love is 
 their refuge ; incarnate mercy is their solace, life, 
 and repose. barrow. 
 
 I know not what my life shall hold 
 
 Of love, or light ; 
 Only, that safe within the fold, 
 It shall be right. 
 
 I only seek to find the ways 
 
 His feet have pressed ; 
 And feel, through dark or fairer days ? 
 
 " He knoweth best." 
 
 All my trust on Thee is stayed, 
 All my help from Thee I bring ; 
 
 Cover my defenceless head 
 With the shadow of Thy wing ! 
 
 [326] CHARLES WESLEY. 
 
When my father and mother forsake me. — Psalm 27 : 10. 
 
 BACKWARD, turn backward, O Time, in your 
 flight, 
 Make me a child again, just for to-night ! 
 Mother, come back from the echoless shore, 
 Take me again to your heart as of yore ; 
 Kiss from my forehead the furrows of care, 
 Smooth the few silver threads out of my hair ; 
 Over my slumbers your loving watch keep — 
 Rock me to sleep, mother, rock me to sleep ! 
 
 Backward, flow backward, O tide of the years ! 
 I am so weary of toil and of tears — 
 Toil without recompense — tears all in vain — 
 Take them, and give me my childhood again ! 
 I have grown weary of dust and decay — 
 Weary of flinging my soul-wealth away ; 
 Weary of sowing for others to reap — 
 Rock me to sleep, mother, rock me to sleep ! 
 
 1 ! 
 
 Tired of the hollow, the base, the untrue, 
 Mother, O Mother, my heart calls for you ; 
 Many a summer the grass has grown green, 
 Blossomed and faded, our faces between ; 
 Yet with strong yearning and passionate pain, 
 Long I to-night for your presence again. 
 Come from the silence so long and so deep — 
 Rock me to sleep, mother, rock me to sleep ! 
 
 FLORENCE PERCY. 
 [327] 
 
tfftoentE=tl)ira 2Pa? 
 
 The upright shall dwell in thy presence. — Psalm in : 13. 
 
 SOME Christians seem to think that they must 
 be always going up to mounts of extraordinary 
 joy and revelation. This is not after God's method. 
 Those spiritual visits to high places, and that won- 
 derful intercourse with the unseen world are not 
 in the promises ; the daily life of invisible com- 
 munion is; and it is enough. We shall have the 
 exceptional revelation if it be right for us. No one 
 can stay on the mount of privilege. There are 
 duties in the valley. j. vaughn. 
 
 There were but three disciples allowed to see the 
 transfiguration, and those three entered the gloom 
 of Gethsemane. storrs. 
 
 Oh, if this living soul, that many a time 
 Above the low things of the earth doth climb 
 Up to the mountain-top of faith sublime, — 
 
 If she could only stay 
 
 In that high place alway, 
 
 And hear in reverence bowed 
 
 God's voice behind the cloud ! 
 Ah ! what a world were ours to journey through, 
 What deeds of love and mercy we should do ; 
 Making our lives so beautiful and true, 
 
 That in our face would shine 
 
 The light of love divine, 
 
 Showing that we had stood 
 
 Upon the mount of God. 
 
 [328] PHCEBE CARY. 
 
$ot>emI>er 
 
 ®tomt^fottixl) SDai? 
 
 Forgetting those things which are behind. — Philippians 1 : 13. 
 Let the Grass Grow. 
 
 LET the grass grow over your graves 
 Of sorrow and sin and care ; 
 Let the grass grow over your saddened shame, 
 
 And your misery of despair ; 
 Let the grass grow over your long-nursed woe, 
 
 And the fear of that awful doubt ; 
 Let the grass grow over the sin and the hate 
 That brought the trouble about. 
 
 There is a balm in forgetfulness. It heals all 
 hurts and soothes all sorrows, and gives the soul 
 time to grow strong again. We have sinned, we 
 have suffered. Aye, but we have repented those 
 sins in bitterness and tears. Now leave it all with 
 the pitiful Father, and " forgetting the things which 
 are behind, reach forth unto those things which are 
 before." Sorrow, if too long indulged, enfeebles 
 the soul. The best proof of our repentance of 
 past sins is to try bravely to retrieve them, to sow 
 flowers where we planted thorns — to be an active 
 power for good. Sin is a terrible blot upon the 
 life, but great is God's mercy to those who have 
 repented, to those who fear Him. "As far as the 
 east is from the west, so far hath he removed our 
 transgressions from us." The trusting heart will 
 show its gratitude for the blotting out of its sins by 
 " forgetting those things which are behind." 
 [329] 
 
They desire a better country, that is, an heavenly. — He- 
 brews n : 1 6. 
 
 IF dying were to be thrust out of life into a land 
 where we have no friends, where there are none 
 that know us and where we know none, it would be 
 a sad thing indeed. But if our names are known 
 in heaven ; if they are written in the Lamb's Book 
 of Life ; then heaven will be familiar to us, and 
 dying will not be deplored. After this life is over 
 heaven will seem to us like home. Our losses fly 
 up there and become riches. We give to heavenly 
 fields what we lose from earth. And the belief that 
 in heaven our fathers have long dwelt, that we are 
 going there ... is everlasting indeed. 
 
 Who would not go 
 
 With buoyant steps to gain that blessed portal 
 
 Which opens to the land we long to know, 
 Where shall be satisfied the souls immortal ; 
 Where we shall drop the wearying and the woe 
 In resting so ? 
 
 Oh, wondrous land ! 
 
 Fairer than all our spirits' fairest dreaming, 
 " Eye hath not seen " — no heart can under- 
 stand 
 The things prepared, the cloudless radiance 
 streaming. 
 How longingly we wait our Lord's command, 
 His opening hand ! 
 [330] 
 
0oUmhtt 
 
 The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble ; the name of the 
 God of facob defend thee. — Psalm 20 : I . 
 
 WHAT wish could be more sympathetic or 
 more consolatory, " The Lord hear thee 
 in the day of trouble" ! And who is there of the 
 sons of men to whom " a day of trouble " does not 
 come, whose path is not darkened at times ? " Few 
 plants," says old Jacomb, " have both morning and 
 evening sun " ; and one far older than he said, 
 "Man is born to trouble." "A day of trouble," 
 then, is the heritage of every child of Adam, but 
 there is One who can sustain us. 
 
 BARTON BOUCHIER. 
 
 How precious, then, is the promise, " I will hear 
 thee in the day of trouble " ! It is the prayer of 
 another in behalf of some troubled one, and yet 
 it implies that the troubled one himself had also 
 prayed. 
 
 When I tread life's weary path, 
 Give me faith, O Lord, to see 
 In the trials that surround me 
 Naught but Thee. 
 
 When I reach the valley dark 
 Give me eyes, O Lord, to see 
 In that cloud of awful darkness 
 Round me — Thee. 
 
 [331] 
 
He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth 
 much fruit. — S. John 15:5. 
 
 WHEN we see the multitude of Christ's peo- 
 ple, all united in Him, all drawing sap 
 and life and strength and fruitfulness from Him, 
 what can more beautifully represent Jesus and His 
 people than the rich vine and the fruitful branches ? 
 The best evidence of the Christian life is " more 
 fruit." That is the meaning of the pruning and 
 girdling, as well as the milder agencies of His 
 grace and goodness. Chastisements are occa- 
 sional ; ' God's goodness constant. Bearing fruit 
 is the business of the Christian life. And however 
 God may endure barrenness out of the church, yet 
 He will never endure it in the church. To be 
 a bramble or a weed where we should be fruitful 
 branches, will the Great Husbandman endure this? 
 Whatsoever is not for fruit is for fire. Ye are God's 
 husbandry. 
 
 Sower divine, 
 Sow the good seed in me, 
 Seed for eternity. 
 'Tis but a rough, barren soil, 
 Yet by Thy care and toil, 
 Make it a fruitful field, 
 An hundred fold to yield. 
 Sower divine, 
 
 Sow deep this heart of mine. 
 [332] 
 
tIDtoent£=etgl)tl) ar>a? 
 
 God, who giveth richly all things to enjoy. — I Timothy 6:17. 
 
 GOOD, grand, old-fashioned Thanksgiving Day- 
 has come. . . . Through the gates of this 
 morning it came, carrying on one shoulder a sheaf 
 of wheat, and on the other a shock of corn. 
 "Children, in holiday dress, hold up their hands to 
 bless it, and old age goes out to welcome it, asking 
 that it come in, and by the altars of God rest 
 awhile. Come in, O day fragrant with a thousand 
 memories, and borne down under the weight of 
 innumerable mercies, and tell to our thankful hearts 
 how great is the goodness of God. talmage. 
 
 We should remember past mercies and blessings. 
 If we do, our past will shine down upon us like 
 a clear sky full of stars. Such remembering will 
 keep the gratitude ever fresh in our hearts and the 
 incense ever burning on the altar. Such a house 
 of memory becomes a refuge to which we may flee 
 in trouble. When sorrows gather thickly, when 
 trials come, when the sun goes down and every star 
 is quenched and there seems nothing left to our 
 hearts in all the present, then the memory of a past 
 full of goodness becomes a holy refuge for our souls. 
 
 For summer's bloom and autumn's blight, 
 For bending wheat and blasted maize, 
 
 For health and sickness, Lord of light, 
 And Lord of darkness, hear our praise. 
 
 HOLLAND. 
 
 [333] 
 
They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which 
 cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. — Psalm 125 : 1. 
 
 THE godly, though in affliction, are in a state 
 infinitely better than the prosperous wicked. 
 For God is the portion of the Christian, and he 
 that hath God hath all. And even when in trouble, 
 the godly are blessed of their sorrows in this world, 
 in that He guides them by His counsel, and when 
 He takes them out of it they are still happy, in 
 that He receives them to glory. 
 
 He who has God needs no other portion either 
 in heaven or upon earth. Jonathan edwards. 
 
 He fought his doubts and gather'd strength, 
 He would not make his judgment blind, 
 He faced the spectres of the mind 
 And laid them. tennyson. 
 
 I will not doubt. Well anchored in this faith 
 Like some staunch ship, my soul braves every gale ; 
 So strong its courage that it will not quail 
 To breast the mighty, unknown sea of death. 
 Oh ! may I cry, though body parts with spirit, 
 " I do not doubt," so listening worlds may hear it, 
 With my last breath. 
 
 [334] 
 
®t)irttetl) SPag 
 
 Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every 
 son whom he receiveth. — Hebrews 12:6. 
 
 GREATEST proof of love is this, that I press 
 near the inmost heart of Him I love, and am 
 permitted with Him to bear some of His own 
 heart's sorrow. I can be called by His name when 
 I drink the cup with Him. "Bitter" is it? Yes, 
 bitter; yet not so bitter as to be denied His 
 presence. Sweet is the pain itself when it knits 
 into closer sympathy my Saviour and me ! Oh, the 
 unfolding, the transforming power of love ! 
 
 My share ! No deed of house or spreading lands, 
 
 As I had dreamed ; no measure 
 Heaped up with gold ; my Elder Brother's hands 
 
 Had never held such treasure. 
 Foxes have holes and birds in nests are fed — 
 My Brother had not where to lay His head. 
 
 My share ! The right like Him to know all pain 
 Which hearts are made for knowing ; 
 
 The right to find in loss the surest gain ; 
 To reap my joy from sowing 
 
 In bitter tears ; the right with Him to keep 
 
 A watch by day and night with those who weep. 
 
 Now through my tears I call to each, " Joint heir 
 With Christ, make haste to ask Him for thy share ! " 
 
 HELEN HUNT JACKSON. 
 [335] 
 
%>ztzmbzt 
 
 Sfirst spa? 
 
 I will give you rest. — S. Matthew n : 28. 
 
 "V IV "HAT is it, child ? Art worn and weary ? 
 CIS Ah, so was I. 
 
 Art treading o'er a pathway dreary, 
 
 Where shadows lie? 
 The thorns spring up and pierce thy tender feet? 
 
 I felt them too. 
 Art grieving for the friends whose love was sweet, — 
 
 Mine were untrue. 
 Art tempted sorely from within and out ? 
 
 I met it, child. 
 Art battling 'gainst the sweeping tide of doubt 
 
 'Mid darkness wild ? — 
 I know it all, each heart-throb full of pain, 
 
 Each hour of gloom, 
 The blinding sweep of sorrow's heavy rain — 
 
 The open tomb. 
 Come unto Me and I will give you rest — 
 
 I hear Him say — 
 Lean thou with all thy care upon My breast, 
 
 The better way 
 Of blessedness — the high and holy life 
 
 Is all for thee. 
 My love will keep thee through the storm and strife, 
 
 Rest thou in Me. 
 [336] 
 
**Jy»* 
 
December 
 
 g>econD sr>at> 
 
 God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever. — 
 Psalm 73 : 26. 
 
 GOING home ! Gathering there with soundless 
 tread, which they only hear, are the innu- 
 merable hosts of those whose robes have been 
 washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. 
 They are those over whom sin hath no more power, 
 and death hath no more dominion. They are going 
 through many doors, but they are all going home. 
 
 "Ah ! could thy grave at home, at Carthage, be ! " — 
 Care not for that, and lay me where I fall ! 
 Everywhere heard will be the judgment call; 
 But at God's altar, oh, remember me. 
 
 Thus Monica, and died in Italy. 
 Yet fervent had her longing been, through all 
 Her course, for home at last, and burial 
 With her own husband, by the Libyan sea. 
 
 Had been ! but at the end, to her pure soul 
 All tie with all beside seem'd vain and cheap, 
 And union before God the only care. 
 
 Creeds pass, rites change, no altar standeth whole, 
 Yet we her memory, as she pray'd, will keep, 
 Keep by this : Life in God, and union there ! 
 
 MATTHEW ARNOLD. 
 [337] 
 
December 
 
 Though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, 
 and have not love, I am nothing. — I Corinthians 13 : 12. 
 
 BLESSED is the man who has the gift of making 
 friends ; for it is one of God's best gifts. It 
 involves many things, but above all, the power of 
 going out of one's self, and seeing and appreciating 
 whatever is noble and loving in another. 
 
 THOMAS HUGHES. 
 
 Rich in Love. 
 And sweet humanity, he was, himself, 
 To the degree that he desired, beloved. 
 
 Love is its own perennial fount of strength. The 
 strength of affection is a proof, not of the object, 
 but of the largeness of the soul which loves. . . . 
 Love descends, not ascends. f. w. Robertson. 
 
 He prayeth best, who loveth best, 
 
 All things both great and small ; 
 
 For the dear God who loveth us, 
 
 He made and loveth all. coleridge. 
 
 To love is better than to be great, it is better 
 than to be refined, it is better than to be wise. 
 Love takes precedence of all prophecy, of every 
 kind of knowledge, and of the gift of tongues ; love 
 is higher than hope or faith, and is the very royalty 
 of God. 
 
 [338] 
 
December 
 
 Jfouttlj SDa^ 
 
 O woman, great is thy faith. — S. Matthew 15 : 28. 
 
 "\A 7 OMAN, how great is thy faith ! I have not 
 V V found so great faith, no, not in Israel," said, 
 wonderingly, the highest authority whose lips ever 
 found utterance on this earth, in reference to woman. 
 And it is true : so marvellous and beautiful a thing 
 as the faith of a woman who loves, nowhere else 
 exists. Ordinarily, this wonder-working power is 
 neither seen nor felt, and its existence is scarcely 
 noted ; but let a sudden emergency come, and it 
 springs, full grown, and like a guardian spirit, to 
 the side of the stricken one, and its confident whis- 
 per sustains amid the din of a hundred accusing 
 
 Voices. JENNIE JUNE. 
 
 Fain would I hold my lamp of life aloft 
 
 Like yonder tower built high above the reef; 
 
 Steadfast, though tempests rave or winds blow soft, 
 Clear, though the sky dissolve in tears of grief. 
 
 For darkness passes ; storms shall not abide. 
 
 A little patience and the fog is past. 
 After the sorrow of the ebbing tide 
 
 The singing flood returns in joy at last. 
 
 The night is long and pain weighs heavily ; 
 
 But God will hoM His world above despair. 
 Look to the east, where up the lucid sky 
 
 The morning climbs ! The day shall yet be fair. 
 
 CELIA THAXTER. 
 
 [339] 
 
December 
 
 jftftt) ar>a? 
 
 I am going the way of all the earth. — Joshua 23 : 14. 
 My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle. — Job 7 : 6. 
 The house appointed for all the living. — Job 30: 23. 
 
 AS in our advance we leave earthly things behind 
 us, may all the sweet influences of the other 
 world come forth to meet us ; and if we are coming 
 upon the other world in the darkness of the night, 
 may we have foretastes and sweet-wafted premoni- 
 tions to cheer us in the dark passage. 
 
 Up Hill. 
 
 Does the road wind up hill all the way? 
 
 Yes, to the very end. 
 Will the day's journey take the whole day long? 
 
 From morn to night, my friend. 
 
 But is there for the night a resting-place? 
 
 A roof for when the slow dark hours begin ? 
 May not the darkness hide it from my face ? 
 
 You cannot miss that inn. 
 
 Shall I meet other wayfarers at night ? 
 
 Those who have gone before. 
 Then must I knock or call when just in sight ? 
 
 They will not keep you standing at the door. 
 
 Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak? 
 
 Of labor you shall find thB sum. 
 Will there be beds for me and all who seek ? 
 
 Yes, beds for all who come. 
 
 CHRISTINA ROSSETTI. 
 [34o] 
 
December 
 
 gwttj soap 
 
 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh. — 
 Genesis 22 : 14. 
 
 TEHOVAH-JIREH means " The Lord will pro- 
 J vide." 
 
 Write deep in your heart this day this word of 
 sublime confidence, Jehovah-jireh. It tells you 
 that you can trust God always, that no promise of 
 His ever fails, that He doeth all things well, that 
 out of all seeming loss and destruction of human 
 hopes He brings blessing. You have not passed 
 this way heretofore. There will be joys and sor- 
 rows, failures and successes. You cannot forecast 
 individual experiences. You cannot see a step 
 before your feet. Yet Jehovah-jireh calls you to 
 enter the new year with calm trust. miller. 
 
 I care not what the approaching year brings, if 
 it results only in good. I care not though it may 
 be undriven like a chariot whose driver has been 
 thrown to the ground, if God only sits and holds 
 the coursers of Time. If God is in the chariot, I 
 care not what else is in it or around it. If God 
 will take care of my thoughts and feelings ; if He 
 will mark out my ways and lead me in them ; if 
 He will appoint my burdens ; if He will give to my 
 faith the vision of eternal life ; if He will touch and 
 refine my affections ; if He will direct my aspira- 
 tions toward heavenly estate, I shall be content, and 
 shall rejoice in whatever scenes I may be called to 
 pass through. phillips brooks. 
 
 [341] 
 
December 
 
 This God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide 
 even unto death. — Psalm 48 : 14. 
 
 WE have often to travel solitary ways. Some 
 of us have perplexed paths to tread. 
 Some of us have sad memories of times when we 
 journeyed in company with those who will never 
 share our tent or counsel or steps any more, and, 
 as we sit lonely by our watch-fire in the wilderness, 
 we have aching hearts and silent nights. Some of 
 us may be as yet rich in companions and helpers, 
 whose words are wisdom, whose wishes are love to 
 us, and may tremble to think that after a while 
 they or we shall have to tramp on by ourselves. 
 There is a Presence which never departs, which 
 moves before us as we journey, and hovers over us 
 as a shield when we rest ; a cloud to veil the sun 
 that it smite us not by day, and a pillar of flame 
 as the night falls, being ever brightest when we 
 need it most, and burning clearest of all in the 
 valley at the end, where its guidance will only 
 cease, because then " the Lamb that is in the 
 midst of the throne will lead them." 
 
 ALEXANDER McLAREN. 
 
 The soul that walks with God upon the heights 
 
 Hath secrets voiceless to the alien air ; 
 
 To him who is of God, the things of God are clear. 
 
 [342] 
 
December 
 
 Whoso trusteth hi the Lord, happy is he. — Proverbs 1 6 : 20. 
 
 TIRED fathers, weary mothers, when is your 
 happy day coming? Long since you ex- 
 pected it to dawn. It is not here yet, nor will it 
 ever be so long as you do not determine that it 
 shall be to-day. This failure to take comfort as 
 you pass along life's pathway, but ever looking 
 forward for all enjoyment of good, is throwing 
 away the real sweets of life. You may as well 
 attempt to store up summer sunshine to warm in 
 winter, or bottle moonshine for cloudy nights. 
 The jal and only true way is to find in the pres- 
 ent all the good God gives us. Our whole lives 
 may be filled with joy if we are only willing to 
 learn that in all good work there is profit, in all 
 sorrow there are some rays of sunshine, and in 
 all care some compensation. Make the most of 
 to-day. BIBLE STUDIES. 
 
 If thou art blest, 
 Then let the sunshine of thy gladness rest 
 On the dark edges of each cloud that lies 
 Black in thy brothers' skies. 
 
 If thou art sad 
 Still be thou in thy brothers' gladness glad. 
 
 Gold hath its roses, blue skies a cloud, 
 Fortune a fall, and hope a shroud ; 
 But Trust upon its mountain height, 
 Reflects a ray of heaven's own light. 
 [343] 
 
December 
 
 Why stand ye here all the day idle ? — S. Matthew 20 : 6. 
 
 A LAZY Christian shall always want four things, 
 viz. : Comfort, content, confidence, and assur- 
 ance. God hath made a separation between joy 
 and idleness, between assurance and laziness, and 
 therefore it is impossible for thee to bring these 
 together. t. brooks. 
 
 Jacob saw the angels, some ascending, others 
 descending, but none standing still. God hath 
 made Behemoth to play in the water, not so men ; 
 they must be doing, that will keep with God. 
 
 JOHN TRAPP. 
 
 He who God's will has borne and done, 
 And his own restless longings stilled ; 
 
 What else he does, or has foregone, 
 His mission he has well fulfilled. 
 
 FROM THE GERMAN. 
 
 Cheered by the presence of God, I will do at 
 each moment, without anxiety, according to the 
 strength which He shall give me, the work that His 
 providence assigns me. I will leave the rest with- 
 out concern ; it is not my affair. I ought to con- 
 sider the duty to which I am called each day, as 
 the work that God has given me to do, and to 
 apply myself to it in a manner worthy of His glory, 
 that is to say, with exactness and in peace. 
 
 FENELON. 
 
 [344] 
 
December 
 
 And there shall be no night there ; and they need no candle, 
 neither light of the 'sun ; for the Lord giveth them light. — 
 Revelation 22 : 5. 
 
 IT is winter here and we are frost-bitten or ice- 
 clad. It will be summer there, and we shall 
 be in fragrant blossom and glorious leaf. To us 
 here the glory of God shines as the sun shines in a 
 cloudy day. Now it is hidden altogether ; now a 
 procession of clouds pass over it, and there comes 
 through them a fitful, checkered light ; and now it 
 is disclosed to full view. But there is a place 
 where the glory of God shall be an uninterrupted 
 stream, which shall be so clear, so apparent, that 
 we shall live in the presence of it. . . . We shall 
 see Him as He is, for there is no night there. 
 
 BEECHER. 
 
 Oh, where the living waters flow, 
 
 Along that radiant shore, 
 My soul, a wanderer here, shall know 
 
 The exile thirst no more. 
 And, borne on eagle's wings afar, 
 
 Free thought shall claim its dower, 
 From every realm, from every star, 
 
 Of glory and of power. 
 
 MRS. F. D. HEMANS. 
 [345] 
 
December 
 
 (LDletettf) 2Da^ 
 
 Cast down but not destroyed. — 2 Corinthians 4: 9. 
 
 THE cloud of trial while it drops, Christian, is 
 rolling over thy head, and then comes fair 
 weather with eternal sunshine of glory. " Canst 
 thou not watch with Christ one hour? " 
 
 GURNALL. 
 
 Think how completely all the griefs of this 
 mortal life will be compensated by one age, of the 
 felicities beyond the grave, and then think that one 
 age multiplied by ten thousand times is not so 
 much to eternity as one grain of sand to the whole 
 material universe. john foster. 
 
 Count each affliction, whether light or grave, 
 God's messenger sent down to thee. Do thou 
 With courtesy receive him ; rise and bow 
 
 And, ere his shadow pass thy threshold, crave 
 
 Permission for his heavenly feet to lave ; 
 Then lay before Him all thou hast ; allow 
 No cloud of passion to usurp thy brow 
 
 Or mar thy hospitality, no wave 
 
 Of mortal tumult to obliterate 
 
 The soul's marmoreal calmness : grief should be 
 
 Like joy, — majestic, equable, sedate ; 
 
 Confirming, cleansing, raising, making free ; 
 
 Strong to consume small troubles ; to commend 
 
 Great thoughts, grave thoughts, thoughts lasting to 
 the end. aubrey de vere. 
 
 [346] 
 
December 
 
 Lord make me to know mine end and the measure of my 
 days, zuhat it is ; that I may know how frail I am. — Psalm 
 39:4. 
 
 THEY are slipping away — these sweet, swift 
 years, 
 
 Like a leaf on the current cast ; 
 With never a break in the current flow, 
 We watch them as one by one they go 
 
 Into the beautiful past. 
 As silent and swift as a weaver's thread, 
 
 Or an arrow's flying gleam ; 
 As soft as the languorous breezes bid, 
 That lift the willow's long golden lid, 
 
 And ripple the glassy stream. 
 As light as the breath of the thistle-down, 
 
 As fond as a lover's dream ; 
 As pure as the flush in the sea-shell's throat, 
 As sweet as the wood-bird's wooing note, 
 
 So tender and sweet they seem. 
 One after another we see them pass, 
 
 Down the dim-lighted stair ; 
 We hear the sound of their steady tread 
 In the steps of the centuries long since dead, 
 
 As beautiful and as fair. 
 There are only a few years left ; ah, let 
 
 No envious taunts be heard; 
 Make life's fair pattern of rare design, 
 And fill up the measure with love's sweet wine, 
 
 But never an angry word. 
 [347] 
 
December 
 
 ®l)ttteentt) ar>a^ 
 
 N [ 
 
 Fear not, little flock : for it is your Father 's good pleasure to 
 give you the Kingdom. — S. Luke 12 : 32. 
 
 fEW YEAR met me somewhat sad : 
 Old Year leaves me tired. 
 Stripped of favorite things I had, 
 
 Balked of much desired : 
 Yet further on my road to-day, 
 God willing, further on my way. 
 
 New Year coming on apace, 
 
 What have you to give me ? 
 Bring you scathe, or bring you grace, 
 
 Face me with an honest face : 
 You shall not deceive me : 
 Be it good or ill, be it what you will, 
 It needs shall help me on my road, 
 My rugged way to heaven, please God ! 
 
 CHRISTINA ROSSETTI. 
 
 All of our courage will be in vain and all our 
 good resolutions will sleep as sentinels over-wearied 
 at their post if Thou, O God, art not vigilant for us 
 during the year that is dawning before us. May 
 we have clearer and truer conceptions of duty with 
 each successive year until we are lifted up into the 
 higher life. Amen. beecher. 
 
 Eternity has no gray hairs. Here the flowers fade, 
 the heart withers, man grows old and dies, the world 
 lies down in a sepulchre of ages. But time writes 
 no wrinkles on the brow of eternity. 
 
 [34S] 
 
December 
 
 jfoummtf) 2Da^ 
 
 The former things are passed away. — Revelation 21 .-4. 
 
 GOD sometimes gives to man a guileless and 
 holy second childhood, in which the soul 
 becomes childlike, not childish, and the faculties, 
 in full fruit and ripeness, are mellow without sign 
 of decay. This is that sought- for land of Beulah, 
 where they who have travelled manfully the Chris- 
 tian way abide awhile, to show the world a perfect 
 manhood. Life, with its battles and its sorrows, 
 lies far behind them ; the soul has thrown off its 
 armor, and sits in an evening undress of calm and 
 holy leisure. Thrice blessed the family or neigh- 
 borhood that numbers among it one of those not 
 yet ascended saints. 
 
 Shall I complain because the feast is o'er, 
 
 And all the banquet lights have ceased to shine ? 
 
 For joy that was and is no longer mine ; 
 For love that came and went, and comes no more ; 
 For hopes and dreams that left my open door ; 
 
 Shall I, who hold the past in fee, repine ? 
 
 Nay ! there are those who never quaffed life's 
 wine — 
 That were the unblest fate one might deplore. 
 
 LOUISE CHANDLER MOULTON. 
 
 We are what the past has made us. The results 
 of the past are ourselves. Robertson. 
 
 [349] 
 
December 
 
 fittttnti) 2Da£ 
 
 These light afflictions are but for a moment. — 2 Corinthians 
 4:17. 
 
 THERE is no cup of joy so sweet but that if 
 we hold it attently to our spirit's taste we 
 shall detect in it the salt-flavor of tears. There is 
 no laughter so silvery clear but that some quality in 
 it shall suggest the cry of pain ; there are no eyes 
 so bright with joy but that some gleam from their 
 depths shall suggest the fountain of tears. Tragedy 
 haunts the footsteps of happiness as night haunts 
 the footsteps of day, and death is the dim shadow 
 that glides inseparably and silently at the heels of 
 all life. . . . 
 
 What philosophy shall we bring to our support 
 in the presence of all this ? What estimate shall 
 we place upon life with all this sorrow in it ? . . . 
 What is the answer of faith? Job rendered it 
 thousands of years ago, "Though He slay me, yet 
 will I trust in Him." j. t. McFARLAND. 
 
 To every one on earth 
 God gives a burden to be carried down 
 The road that leads between the cross and crown ; 
 
 No lot is wholly free, 
 
 He giveth one to thee. 
 
 Take thou thy burden then 
 Into thy hands, and lay it at His feet, 
 And whether it be sorrow or defeat, 
 
 Or pain, or sin, or care, 
 
 Oh, leave it calmly there. Marianne farningham. 
 [3So] " 
 
December 
 
 &ixttmt\) 2>a£ 
 
 Nevertheless, afterward. — Hebrews 12: 2. 
 
 NOW the pruning, sharp, unsparing ; 
 Scattered blossom, bleeding shoot ! 
 Afterward, the plenteous bearing, 
 Of the Master's pleasant fruit. 
 
 Now the spirit conflict-riven, 
 
 Wounded heart, unequal strife ; 
 Afterward the triumph given 
 
 And the victor's crown of life. 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 To maintain a steady and unbroken mind, amidst 
 all the shocks of adversity, forms the highest honor 
 of man. Afflictions supported by patience and sur- 
 mounted by fortitude, give the last finishing stroke 
 to the heroic and the virtuous character. Thus the 
 vale of tears becomes the theatre of human glory ; 
 that dark cloud presents all the beauties in the 
 bow of virtue. Moral grandeur, like the sun, is 
 brighter in the day of the storm, and never is so truly 
 sublime as when struggling through the darkness of 
 an eclipse. 
 
 Patience is the guardian of faith, the preserver of 
 peace, the cherisher of love, the teacher of humility. 
 Patience governs the flesh, strengthens the spirit, 
 sweetens the temper, stifles anger, extinguishes 
 envy, subdues pride ; she bridles the tongue, re- 
 strains the hand, tramples upon temptations, en- 
 dures persecutions. royal path of life. 
 [351] 
 
December 
 
 &thznttmt\) 2T>ap 
 
 A man of sorrows. — Isaiah 13:3. 
 
 IF Jesus had walked in paths that were without 
 stone or thorn, and with eyes that were never 
 tear-stained and a heart that was never grief-rent, 
 He might be to us a vision of radiant beauty, but 
 we could never understand Him nor feel that He 
 understood us. But the wound in the hand which 
 He extends to us, and the sorrow underlying the 
 smile of the face which He turns toward us, give 
 us mutual understanding. Now we can believe 
 that He understands our tears, and our heartaches, 
 and our agonies. It is the deep-laid cable of 
 sorrow which runs under the great salt-sea of tears, 
 and along which throb flashes of pain, that binds 
 together the continents of life. . . . 
 
 He trod the wine-press of the wrath of God 
 alone. Gathering about Him the folds of sorrow 
 as heavy and sombre as the gloom with which the 
 starless midnight mantles the hills, bearing the sins 
 of the world in His martyr-heart, He went down 
 into the valley and shadow of death, that the gates 
 of Paradise might be opened to repentant sinners. 
 Behold the Man — "a Man of sorrows, and ac- 
 quainted with grief! " j. t. mcfarland. 
 
 O Christ, what burdens bowed Thy heart, 
 
 What sins were laid on Thee ! 
 A victim led, Thy blood was shed — 
 
 That blood avails for me. 
 
 [352] 
 
December 
 
 (I];tgt)teetttl) H>ap 
 
 The hope of the righteous shall be gladness. — Proverbs io : 28. 
 
 WE may be all wrong in our thoughts of the 
 special form in which our blessings will 
 come ; we can never be wrong about the blessing. 
 It may be like the mirage, shifting from horizon to 
 horizon as we plod wearily along, but the soul is 
 bound to find at last the resting-place and the spring. 
 A true hope we can touch somehow through all 
 the lights and shadows of life. It is a prophecy 
 fulfilled in part ; God's earnest-money paid into 
 our hand that He will be ready with the whole 
 when we are ready for it ; the sunlight on the hill- 
 top when the valley is as dark as death ; the spirit 
 touching us all through our pilgrimage, and then 
 when we know that the end is near, taking us on 
 its wings and soaring away into the blessed life. 
 
 ROYAL PATH OF LIFE. 
 
 Hope not so fearfully, 
 
 Hope and be strong, 
 Go thy way cheerfully, 
 
 Though it be long. 
 
 BELLE G. McAULEY. 
 
 The sorrows, and hungering of the world change 
 faces as they change hearts ; but with the righteous 
 man the troubled clouds pass off and leave heaven's 
 surface clear. dickens. 
 
 L'353] 
 
December 
 
 0rttttmti) 2Da^ 
 
 The Lord preserveth the faithful. — Psalm 30 : 23. 
 
 NEARLY one hundred years ago, there was 
 a day of remarkable gloom and darkness, 
 still known as the Dark Day — a day when the 
 light of the sun was slowly extinguished as if by 
 an eclipse. The legislature of Connecticut was in 
 session, and as the members saw the unexpected 
 and unaccountable darkness coming on, they shared 
 in the general awe and terror. It was supposed by 
 many the last day — the Day of Judgment — had 
 come. Some one, in the consternation of the 
 hour, moved an adjournment. Then there arose 
 an old Puritan legislator, Davenport Stanford, who 
 said that if the last day had come he desired to 
 be found at his post of duty, and therefore moved 
 that candles be brought so that the House could 
 proceed with its business. So, my son, when in 
 the conflict of life the cloud and the darkness 
 come, stand unflinchingly by your post ; remain 
 faithful to the discharge of your duty. 
 
 GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE. 
 
 To do the thing we deem 
 
 Enjoined by duty ; 
 To walk in faith nor dream 
 Of questioning God's scheme 
 
 Of truth and beauty. 
 
 To those who long God's work to do, 
 Ways are not scarce nor chances few, 
 
 [354] 
 
December 
 
 Bearing precious seed. — Psalm 1 26 : 6. 
 
 IF in the soul's still garden-place 
 A seed God sows — 
 A little seed, it soon will grow, 
 And far and near all men will know, 
 For heavenly lands He bids it blow, 
 The seed God sows. h. c. bunner. 
 
 Make life a garden-spot with a hedge of roses 
 round your little place of peace. . . . Plant within 
 all precious seeds of love and kindness. So will 
 the rough ground be made smooth for whoever 
 passes that way. You would think it a pleasant 
 magic if you could bid the dew fall in the drought, 
 and say to the south wind, in time of frost, " Come 
 thou south wind and breathe upon my garden, that 
 the spices of it may flow out ! " And is there not 
 a greater thing than all this ? 
 
 One is waiting at the gate of your soul's garden 
 to take your hand, and go down to see whether the 
 vine has nourished and the pomegranate budded. 
 
 So here we set a little seed 
 
 And trust its tender boughs to Time ; 
 
 To grow to touch the stars sublime ; 
 
 For thus will grow each small, good seed. 
 
 Set deep, where lilies ever nod, 
 
 Walled round by everlasting snows, 
 
 To grow as some great strong soul grows 
 
 When growing upward to its God. 
 [355] 
 
December 
 
 XKtomtyMm E>a^ 
 
 If it be possible let this cup pass' from me. — S. Matthew 
 27:29. 
 
 HOW oft, O Father, do we bring to Thee 
 The prayer His lips made sacred : " Not 
 this cup." 
 My God, my God ! hast Thou forsaken me ? 
 
 And must I drink this bitter portion up ? 
 And then, when grief goes by and peace is won : 
 Come grateful praises that Thy will is done. 
 
 LUCY M. BLINN. 
 
 Christians are sometimes perplexed and discour- 
 aged because of their trials. They know not what 
 God is doing with them. They fear that He is 
 angry with them. But they are His workmanship. 
 He is preparing them for their destination in the 
 temple of His grace. These trials are applied to 
 qualify and advance them. They will only perfect 
 that which concerneth them. Howard was taken 
 by the enemy and confined in prison. There he 
 learned the heart of the captive, and his experience 
 originating in his suffering, excited and directed his 
 thoughts and led him into all his extraordinary 
 course of usefulness and fame. " It is good for 
 me," says David, " that I have been afflicted." " I 
 know," says Paul, " that this shall turn to my salva- 
 tion." " For our light affliction, which is but for a 
 moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and 
 eternal weight of glory." william jay. 
 
 [356] 
 
Try hi?n every moment. — Job 7 : 18. 
 
 TO realize the importance of moments, let us 
 hear what God says about them : "In a 
 moment shall they die," "We shall all be changed 
 in a moment." Eternal issues may hang upon any 
 one of them, but it has come and gone before we 
 can even think about it. Nothing seems less within 
 the possibility of our own keeping, yet nothing is 
 more inclusive of all other keeping. 
 
 Are they not the tiny joints in the harness through 
 which the darts of temptation pierce us ? Only give 
 us time, we think, and we should not be overcome. 
 Only give us time, and we could pray and resist, 
 and the devil would flee from us ! But he comes all 
 in a moment ; and in a moment — an unguarded, 
 unkept one — we utter the hasty or exaggerated 
 word, or think the un-Christ-like thought, or feel 
 the un-Christ-like impatience or resentment. So 
 let us commit these slippery moments to God, and 
 say, " Lord, keep them for me ! I cannot keep them 
 for Thee." havergal. 
 
 Catch the flying moments 
 
 As they come and go, 
 Hold them till the blessing 
 
 In thy heart shall grow ; 
 Lessons they will teach thee, 
 
 Let them have their will, 
 Let them leave their message 
 
 And their work fulfil. m. c. o. 
 
 [357] 
 
December 
 
 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with 
 the feeling of our infirmities ; but was in all points tempted 
 like as we are, yet zvilhout sin. — Hebrews 4:15. 
 
 TO be a savior, it is not necessary that you 
 should commit the same crime as he whom 
 you seek to rescue, but you must show that you 
 have felt the same fierce temptation, and have 
 barely escaped, so that you suffer with the crim- 
 inal, almost as if you yourself were the reprobate. 
 That brings you near, and gives you grasp, and 
 clasp, and uplifting and transforming power. All 
 these hair-breadth escapes from moral disaster, 
 which you and I have hidden among the secrets that 
 no other mortal knows about, are our best equipment 
 for rescuing the perishing. We need not make spe- 
 cific confessions, but we must suggest enough, so 
 that he whom we approach shall, with a start of sur- 
 prise, say, " Why, this man whom the world calls im- 
 maculate has just missed being what I am ; he 
 suffers with me ; he cannot bear to have me lost ; 
 I will not be lost." This is the secret of moral 
 leadership. The leader must have his baptism of 
 grief and of tears. It is the suffering deeply cut 
 into the heroic face that makes you always turn 
 for one look more at Lincoln's picture in history, 
 and Dante's picture in poetry, while in tragedy the 
 central figure is that of the Man of Sorrows, whose 
 lifting up on Gethsemane is drawing the world that 
 
 Way. E. A. TANNER. 
 
 [358] 
 
December 
 
 I know whom I have believed. — 2 Timothy 1 : 12. 
 
 YOU are certain to be assailed with troubles. 
 No hurricane can strike a full-rigged ship 
 more suddenly than storms of adversity may burst 
 upon you. But if Jesus Christ is in your soul, you 
 cannot suffer wreck. The anchor sure and stead- 
 fast will hold you. People do not see what holds 
 a vessel when the gale is sending the billows over 
 her bows. The anchor is invisible, as it lies full 
 many a fathom deep on the solid ground beneath 
 the waves. So when we see a good man beaten 
 upon with heavy adversities and yet preserving 
 a cheerful spirit, we do not discover the secret of 
 his serenity. " But the eye of God sees that there 
 is an interior life hid with Christ in that soul which 
 no storm can touch." 
 
 There is many a bereavement, many a trouble 
 that may strip a man of canvas or cordage, but 
 never touch the solid strength of his godly char- 
 acter. I have seen just such fast-anchored Chris- 
 tians. THEODORE L. CUYLER. 
 
 Oh, small shall seem all sacrifice 
 
 And pain and loss, 
 When God shall wipe the weeping eyes, 
 For suffering give the victor's prize, 
 
 The crown for cross ! whittier. 
 
 [359] 
 
f&tomtyMt\) 2Da£ 
 
 Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, 
 which is Christ the Lord. — S. Luke 2 : 2. 
 
 CHRISTIANS, stand at Bethlehem and open 
 every door and window of your being Christ- 
 ward. Look back. Look forward. Magnify Beth- 
 lehem. Recount to your souls the things for which 
 it stands. It stands for the " fulness of time." It 
 stands for the fulfilment of glorious prediction. 
 It stands for the coming of the Son of God Him- 
 self into our nature. It stands for the glorious 
 past and for the more glorious future. 
 
 Let the Star shine. Let the Magi give gifts. 
 Let the shepherds worship. Let the angel-faces 
 flash out from the great dome overhead. Let the 
 church-bells chime. Let the sacred harps and 
 organs respond to the master-hand that sweeps 
 their strings and flies over the keys, and let them 
 turn the common air into praise. Let Christmas 
 carols roll over this wide earth and echo among 
 the stars. Let everything in heaven and earth 
 shout " Hosanna to the Son of David ; blessed is 
 He that cometh in the name of the Lord ; Hosanna 
 in the highest." david gregg. 
 
 O Holy Child of Bethlehem ! 
 
 Descend to us, we pray; 
 Cast out our sin and enter in, 
 
 Be born in us to-day. 
 
 PHILLIPS BROOKS. 
 
 [360] 
 
December 
 
 Thou shall remember all the zuay which the Lord thy God 
 led thee. — Deuteronomy 8 : 2. 
 
 WE thank Thee, O God, for the ministration 
 of the year that is just closing. Our 
 record is indeed sadly blotted, and if we look to the 
 year only as we have marked it, it is not a year to 
 be remembered nor sighed after as something to 
 be brought back again ; but when we look at Thy 
 way with us, it is a year robed in beauty — a year 
 of divine love, of pardoning mercy, of gracious 
 guidance. Thou hast held us up and carried us 
 even as a mother carries her little child. And now 
 we beseech Thee to guide us through the year 
 upon which we are now entering. We are strangers 
 to it ; we do not know one single path ; we are 
 pilgrims, and wander up and down our several 
 ways, but we commend ourselves to Thee to whom 
 the darkness and the light are alike, and who seest 
 the end from the beginning. beecher. 
 
 Retrospect. 
 He guided by paths that I could not see, 
 
 By ways that I have not known ; 
 The crooked was straight and the rough made plain 
 
 As I followed the Lord alone. 
 
 Never a watch on the dreariest halt 
 
 But some promise of love endears ; 
 I read from the past that my future shall be 
 
 Far better than all my fears. 
 
 [361] 
 
December 
 
 So teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts 
 unto wisdom. — Psalm 90 : 12. 
 
 LOOKING calmly yet humbly for the close of 
 my mortal career, which cannot be far dis- 
 tant, I reverently thank God for the blessings vouch- 
 safed me in the past, and with an awe that is not 
 fear, and a consciousness of demerit that does not 
 exclude hope, await the opening before my steps 
 of the gates of the eternal world. 
 
 HORACE GREELEY. 
 
 The Sentinel Year. 
 
 The bells are tolling in the towers of time 
 Solemnly now, for midnight and for morn. 
 Another sentinel year has passed his rounds 
 And, weary of his watch, now grounds his arms, 
 Gives up his post to the new sentinel, 
 And gathers him to rest and to his dreams — 
 Dreams of the strange things that his watch hath 
 seen. william osborn stoddard. 
 
 Look backwards ! from the hill-top and survey 
 Thy days of toil, of peaceful victories won, 
 
 Of dreams made real, of largest hopes outrun ! 
 
 Look forward ! brighter then earth's morning ray 
 Streams the pure light of Heaven's unsetting sun, 
 
 The all-unclouded dawn of life's Immortal Day. 
 
 HOLMES. 
 
 [362] 
 
December 
 
 / sleep, but my heart zvaketh ; it is the voice of my beloved 
 that knocketh, saying, Open to me. — Song of Solomon 5 : 2. 
 
 LOVE in this world is like a seed taken from 
 the tropics and planted where the winter 
 comes too soon; and it cannot spread itself in 
 flower- clusters and wide twining vines, so that the 
 whole air is full of the perfume thereof. But there 
 is to be another summer for it yet. Care for the 
 root now and God will care for the top by-and-by. 
 Our sweetest experiences of affection are meant to 
 be suggestions of that realm which is the home of 
 the heart. beecher. 
 
 With love as a guide, 
 Every day is a fresh beginning ; 
 Listen, my soul, to the glad refrain, 
 And spite of old sorrow and older sinning, 
 And puzzles forecasted and possible pain, 
 Take heart with the day and begin again. 
 
 Love should be the supreme thing, because it is 
 going to last ; because in the nature of things it is 
 Eternal Life. drummond. 
 
 I hold it true, whate'er befall ; 
 
 I feel it, when I sorrow most ; 
 
 Tis better to have loved and lost 
 Than never to have loved at all. 
 
 TENNYSON. 
 
 [363] 
 
December 
 
 Reaching forth unto those things which are before. — Philip- 
 pians 3: 13. 
 
 THE time will come when these shoes which 
 we wear now, lest we be cut of the sharp 
 places of this world, shall be taken off, and with 
 unsandalled feet we will step into the bed of the 
 river; with feet untrammelled, free from fatigue 
 and pain, we will gain that last journey ; then, with 
 one foot in the bed of the river, and the other foot 
 on the other bank, we struggle upward ; that will 
 be heaven. talmage. 
 
 " Heimgang ! " So the German people 
 
 Whisper when they hear the bell 
 Tolling from some gray old steeple, 
 
 Death's familiar tale to tell ; 
 When they hear the organ dirges 
 
 Swelling out from chapel dome, 
 And the singers chanting dirges, 
 
 " Heimgang ! " always going home. 
 
 " Heimgang ! " Quaint and tender saying, 
 
 In the grand old German tongue, 
 That hath shaped Melanchthon's praying, 
 
 And the hymns that Luther sung ; 
 Blessed is our loving Maker, 
 
 And where'er our feet shall roam, 
 Still we journey towards " God's acre," 
 
 " Heimgang ! " always going home. 
 
 A. J. DUGANNE. 
 
 [364] 
 
December 
 
 GHjirttetij SDay 
 
 / am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. — Reve- 
 lation 21 : 6. 
 
 Thoti shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led 
 thee. — Deuteronomy 8 : 12. 
 
 I DOUBT not that there are very many to whom, 
 as they look through the year, it seems like 
 some old cathedral that once was resonant with 
 music, and radiant with altar fires, and filled with 
 the glory of God, but that now stands with the roof 
 broken in, with the windows out, with the altar 
 desolate, with the priest gone, with the congrega- 
 tion dispersed. 
 
 Look again. Turn back and see if there has been 
 nothing in the year but the transient. Although 
 individual histories and experiences and feelings 
 have been fluctuating and changing, yet the great 
 framework of God's purposes of mercy and love 
 and justice and humanity has stood sure, and is 
 unchanged and unchangeable. beecher. 
 
 He was better to me than all my hopes, 
 
 He was better than all my fears ; 
 He made a road of my broken works, 
 
 And a rainbow of my tears. 
 The billows that guarded my sea-girt path, 
 
 But carried my Lord on their crest ; 
 When I dwell on the day of my wilderness march 
 
 I can lean on His love for a rest. 
 
 ANNA SHIPTON. 
 
 [365] 
 
December 
 
 FEAR death ? — to feel the fog in my throat, 
 The mist in my face, 
 When the snows begin, and the blasts denote 
 
 I am nearing the place ? 
 The power of the night, the press of the storm, 
 
 The post of the foe ; 
 Where he stands, the Arch-Fear in a visible form, 
 
 Yet the strong man must go : 
 For the journey is done and the summit attained, 
 
 And the barriers fall, 
 Though a battle's to fight ere the guerdon be gained, 
 
 The reward of it all. 
 
 I was ever a fighter, so — one fight more, . 
 
 The best and the last ! 
 I would hate that death bandaged my eyes and for- 
 bore, 
 
 And bade me creep past. 
 No ! let me taste the whole of it, fare like my peers, 
 
 The heroes of old, 
 Bear the brunt, in a minute pay glad life's arrears 
 
 Of pain, darkness, and cold. 
 
 For sudden the worst turns the best to the brave, 
 
 The black minute's at end, 
 And the element's rage, the fiend voices that rave, 
 
 Shall dwindle, shall blend, 
 Shall change, shall become first a peace out of pain, 
 
 Then a light, then thy breast, 
 O thou soul of my soul ! I shall clasp thee again, 
 
 And with God be the rest ! browning. 
 [366] 
 
Printed under the supervision of 
 D. B. Updike, 6 Beacon Street 
 Boston, at the Norwood Press 
 
 The poem, Living for Jestis, is used by permission of 
 the John Church Company, owners of the copyright 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 HHHf 
 
 013 997 469 4