SQLite format 3@  ii!%%atableTopicsTopicsCREATE TABLE Topics (Title NVARCHAR(100), Notes TEXT) hA01 Preparation for the Journey{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 PREPARATION FOR THE JOURNEY\par \par "Then Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me and will watch ovF | W8)m taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father's house, then the Lord will be my God." Genesis 28:20-21\par \par When he uttered these words, the patriarch was a solitary, friendless exile. He had left his father's home--his heart big with sorrow, and his eyes suffused with tears. The path of life, all dark and uncertain, lay before him, and the close of his first day's journey found him weary and benighted, with no better accommodation than the cold earth for a bed, and a stone for his pillow. More than 400 miles of wild and inhospitable deserts were to be traversed, and he was quite uncertain what reception he might meet with at Haran. Most wisely, therefore, did he resolve to enter into covenant with God, and supplicate the Divine protection and blessing at the outset of his journey. His desires were moderate, his wishes few--"to be kept in the way"--"to have bread to eat and clothing to put on"--these were the requests he humbly put forth when erecting the remembrance-stone at Bethel.\par \par What a suitable preparation for his journey! Reader, have you thus besought the Divine blessing?--have you thus covenanted with God, and dedicated yourself to Him? You have entered on your pilgrimage--an unknown path lies before you; are you still a traveler through the 'desert of the world' without a Guide?--journeying you know not where, with no Friend to "keep you in the way"--no "covenant" blessings, which alone are worth possessing. Oh, think how it fared with Jacob. He trusted God. He entered on a long and painful course of discipline--dark clouds gathered round him--the storm and tempest beat--he passed through years of mingled joy and sorrow--he could sing of "mercy and of judgment"--was he disappointed in the end?\par \par Listen to his language, when, once more returning, with joy and gladness, to his native plains, and pitching his tent in security and peace--"God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said unto me, Return unto your country, and to your kindred, and I will deal well with you; I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which you have showed unto your servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I have become two bands." From the days of his youth he had been an exile from his father's house--his best years had been spent in a strange land, amid toil and hardship. But we find him now, at the end of twenty years, once more within sight of his nat ive land. "There, by his side, rolls the river, once so familiar to his eye--there lie the plains and the hills, over which, when a boy, he had so often roamed, and what is his testimony? Does he dwell on the years of bitterness and toil that have rolled over him, since last he climbed these hills, and wandered by this stream?" Have the terms of the Bethel covenant remained unfulfilled? and does he think with regret upon his chequered pathway? Ah, no; not a word of complaining is heard; not a feeling of d issatisfaction finds place in his soul--the faithfulness, the care, the love of his covenant God--the blessings strewed so profusely on his pathway--are all he can now think of. He speaks of nothing else. "With my staff," he says, "a poor, friendless, destitute wanderer, I left my paternal home. Well do I remember this flowing stream. Well do I recollect the time when last I crossed it, my staff my only support, and almost my only property. But now, how altered are my circumstances!--oh the unerring faith fulness--the amazing goodness and mercy of my God!--'I have become two bands;' I have flocks and herds, men-servants and women-servants; the outcast has become a prince! God's promise is fulfilled. He has kept me by the way, and therefore I have prospered." "I am with you," was the Bethel promise, "and will bring you again into this land." Truth has accomplished what mercy covenanted.\par \par Reader! God's servants have ever found Him faithful to His word. "He cannot deny Himself." That covenan t has never been broken on His part. However chequered may have been their history, like Jacob, they have at length had reason to declare, "I have never been forsaken--the Lord has never left me." And why? He is ever the same. Has He said that He will never leave His people nor forsake them? the word He has spoken must be fulfilled. "Heaven and earth may pass away, but not one jot or tittle which He has spoken shall pass until all be fulfilled." Enter, then, into covenant with God. Take Him as your Guide "by the way," and you too will one day be able to say, "He promised to keep me, and He has kept me. He said that He would strengthen me in the hour of trial, and He has strengthened me. He said that He would be a present help in trouble, and in trouble He has been my help. He told me that if I would acknowledge Him in all my ways, He would direct my paths, and He has directed them. He said that He would be my refuge in storms, and, when storms have assailed me, He has been my refuge. Though heart and flesh should faint and fail me, the Lord will be the strength of my heart, and my portion forever."\par \par Reader! let this be your prayer--"O God, the Strength of the needy, the Helper of all those who flee to You for support, give to be my Guide in life. Pour upon me the riches of Your Grace, and so sanctify and bless me, that I may serve You henceforth in body and soul, and live in Your holy love and fear unto my life's end."\par \par "Our night may be a starless night,\par Our path a tangled maze;\par But yet, our eyes shall soon behold\par The morning's golden blaze;\par Keeping our gaze upon the East,\par Leaving the night behind,\par With the will to find the light increased\par And strengthened in our mind;\par The sun shall rise, the gloom depart,\par Lost in the strength of day,\par For earnest love and truthful heart\par Are sure to find a way."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } ,\par seedtime and harvest,\par cold and heat,\par summer and winter,\par day and night\par will never cease." Genesis 8:22\par \par Centuries have elapsed since this promise was given, and to many it now appears as an idle word. The bright and beautiful opening blossoms of spring--the rich glow of summer verdure, the profusion and bounty of harvest--the frost and cold of winter--are regarded merely as matters of course--inspiring neither hope nor fear--awakening no emotion of gratitude or consolation in the soul. Not so was it at the time when they were first uttered. Then, the whole earth had just been swept by the devouring deluge--then everything seemed unfixed and uncertain--the fountains of the great deep had been broken up--the sea, once confined within its boundaries, had rolled in upon the land--the windows of heaven had been opened, and the waters that are above the skies swelled those that were below. Each gathering cloud might mantle the world in final ruin. Each falling drop might open the sluices of another deluge. All was uncertainty. What had happened yesterday might occur again--the hills and valleys might once more be submerged--the mighty deep might again burst its accustomed limits, and the whole earth become a desolation and a wreck. Where was the security to Noah and his sons? Who could assure them that the scarcely-subsided sea would not again devastate the land, and pour its rushing torrents over the face of nature?--Only that God who made heaven and earth--who guides and governs all things according to His will and pleasure.\par \par And so it was. He gave back to the earth the blessing which had been removed from it for a time, and restored the feeling of peace and safety to the little remnant that was still left. And ever since, the seasons have returned in their order, the sun has gone forth on his mighty journey--the earth has been refreshed by the gentle showers of heaven--and the husbandman has gathered in the rich treasures of harvest.\par \par What a proof of the faithfulness of God! He remembers His promise, and, mindful ever of His grace and truth, "He gives us all things richly to enjoy." In every returning harvest, in every passing year, He has been saying to the children of men, "My covenant I will not break, nor alter that which has gone out of my lips."\par \par What a proof of the infinite power of God! Man may alter the surface of the earth; he may sow, and plant, and reap, but all his genius and science cannot clothe the field with golden corn, or fashion one leaf of the forest tree. The power of creation God alone has retained; it is sacred and incommunicable; and His glory will He not give to another.\par \par What a proof of the goodness of God! Men have despised and defied Him; they have sought to banish Him from His own creation; yet, still he has continued to shower down His blessings. He his given them "rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness." Wherever, on the wide surface of the world, there is the cry of need, or the utterance of necessity, there is a hidden yet intelligible voice that points to the supply. "Man requires sustenance, and the earth springs with teeming produce, and spreads its wide and unremitting supply of manna for his maintenance! Man asks for bread, and the dews have furnished their ministry, and the sower has gone forth and sown, and the gracious rains have descended, and the sun, that mighty, vegetative principle, has poured his light and warmth! A working has been going on, still and unseen, but certain in its result. The seed cast into the ground has not lain dormant--first, has appeared the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear, and then, waving with myriad golden spears, the hosts of the harvest have awaited the rejoicing husbandmen, and the needs of man have been supplied." Reader, you see in all this the incessant illustration of a goodness of God--a confirmation of the truth, that, "though the mountains may depart, and the hills be removed, yet His kindness shall not depart, neither shall the covenant of His peace be removed."\par \par Four thousand years have well-near elapsed since God thus spoke to Noah. Generations on generations have all passed away, and yet it is as true now as then, that "God has appointed the moon for seasons, and the sun knows his going down." Christian, see, in the return of harvest, and the succession of seasons, an evidence of the faithfulness, the power, and the goodness of your covenant God.\par \par "Father of mercies, from whom comes down every good and every perfect gift, and who keeps covenant unto all generations, impress me with a sense of Your faithfulness, of Your power, and of Your unmerited goodness; and enable me to show my gratitude by a sober, faithful, and charitable use of all Your mercies, to the good of my brethren, and the glory of Your blessed name."\par \par "Since You, the everlasting God,\par My Father has become,\par Jesus, my Guardian and my Friend,\par And heaven my final home--\par I welcome all Your sovereign will,\par For all that will is love,\par And, when I know not what You do,\par I wait the light above.\par Your covenant, in the darkest gloom,\par Shall heavenly rays impart,\par Which, when my eyelids close in death,\par Shall warm my chilling heart."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } --A01 Preparation for the Journey{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 PREPARATION FOR THE JOURNEY\par \par "Then Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I a qa02 Promised Blessings{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 PROMISED BLESSINGS\par \par "As long as the earth endures the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." Genesis 9:16\par \par Nature again smiles, and emerges from beneath her watery covering. The promise of Him who cannot lie is given, that a second flood shall no more destroy the earth. And what is to be the sign--the enduring remembrance-token? "I will set My rainbow in the cloud." There it had been, perhaps, before, encircling the heavens with its belt of golden hues, but now it was destined to awaken new thoughts, and to inspire grateful emotions in the heart of man--now, it was to testify of God's promise--to be a lasting memorial of His covenant through all generations. Often, as the stormy cloud should gather in the heavens, threatening to pour its pent-up waters on a sinful world, when the "rainbow" appeared, it was to be as the voice of God declaring, "the waters shall no more destroy all flesh." No, in condescension to human weakness, the Almighty was henceforth to regard it as a remembrancer to Himself of His gracious promise, "I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant."\par \par "The rainbow in the cloud" was a pledge of temporal blessings. But to the believer, it is also a striking type of spiritual. Is there no rainbow of promise which gilds another sky--which tells of wrath averted, of security insured? Yes; Jesus is the "rainbow in the cloud" of heaven's wrath, assuring the believer, that a fiercer storm, than any that ever devastated the world, has passed away. When, to the eye of faith, He appears in the spiritual skies, every fear is dispelled--God "will not return to destroy;" and, as the rainbow appears with blended colors, all melting into each other with the most perfect harmony, so, in Christ, justice and mercy, holiness and love, power and goodness, all combine to form one glorious and resplendent arch.\par \par The rainbow tells of the perpetuity of the covenant. Four thousand years have passed, and! still it spans the heavens. Christian! you see in this, an emblem of the immutability of your God, in redemption. He Himself regards it as such--"Thus says the Lord, If you can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season, then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant"--that is, with Christ and His people, of whom David was the type. Thus, the God of nature is alike unchangeable as a God of grace.\par \par The" rainbow is a token of God's covenant with His people. "For this," says He, "is as the waters of Noah unto me; for, as I have sworn, that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with you nor rebuke you. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed, but my kindness shall not depart from you; neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, says the Lord, that has mercy on you." Here, and here alone, is the security of the Christian, the u#nalterable purpose of a covenant God. He has given them also a "rainbow in the cloud," to which, in every season of impending danger, they may direct the eye of faith.\par \par Reader! is yours a dark and cheerless day? Is your horizon obscured by threatening clouds? Remember, there is the "rainbow in the cloud," the token of the unalterable covenant of God. Like the mariner in a stormy sea, you may be appalled at the indications of a coming tempest, you may be listening with alarm to the roar o$f the angry waves and the hoarse howling of the wind. Lift up the eye of faith--see, yonder opening in the clouds--yonder faint ray of light--yonder splendid "rainbow in the cloud." It is to you the covenant-token that relief is at hand, for "the Lord will look upon it." It is His own promise. Your sorrowing eye, and the eye of your Father in heaven, will meet in one spot--on Jesus Christ--and then, as the Lord remembers His covenant, and thinks upon you for good, you will be enabled to "trust in the name% of the Lord, and stay upon your God." Yes, the darker the cloud, the more brilliant will be the reflection--the heavier the trial, the sweeter the promise; for, amid God's most mysterious dealings, you may discover marks of His power, His love, and His faithfulness.\par \par There are views of Christ which can only be obtained beneath a cloudy sky, and amid many showers of tears. Believer, strive, when the darkness begins to gather around you, to look upwards, and soon reviving faith will disco&ver the "rainbow of promise;" the storm will be hushed, the lowering portentous clouds will roll away, and you will take up the language of the Psalmist--"Your mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens, and your faithfulness reaches unto the clouds."\par \par Think, too, of that glorious day, when there shall be a serene and cloudless sky--a sky, which can no more become darkened and obscured--when you will not need this emblem, for you will have the reality of God's faithfulness and love.\par \par ' Here, while on earth, you have no rainbow without a cloud. But then shall rise that glorious Sun which shall never set, whose radiant beams shall no more be broken by misty shadows. Soon, believer, throughout eternity's calm brightness, you will gaze upon the rainbow of your Redeemer's glory; and, as you gaze, you will shine, even as He shines. For "we shall be like Him, when we shall see Him as He is."\par \par "O God of all grace and mercy, who is able to supply every loss, to heal every (wound, to dry up every tear, and to dispel every cloud--Grant that when my sorrows abound, my consolations may much more abound. May I be still and know that You are God, acknowledging Your right to do with me as You will, and confiding in the wisdom and goodness of Your dispensations."\par \par "The sun's bright rays are hidden,\par The rains in floods descend\endash\par The winds with angry murmurs,\par The stoutest branches bend.\par A gloom, the face of nature\par As with a pall does shroud;\par Its influence all are feeling,\par But--look beyond the cloud!\par \par "For, lo! at length appears\par A little streak of light,\par Increasing every moment\par Until all again is bright.\par So, however dark our prospects,\par However by grief we're bowed,\par It will not last forever--\par We'll look beyond the cloud!"\par \par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } i%03 The Bow in the Cloud{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 THE RAINBOW IN THE CLOUD\par \par "Whenever the rainbow appears in+rael, for the Lord is not with Israel. He will not help those people of Ephraim! If you let them go with your troops into battle, you will be defeated no matter how well you fight. God will overthrow you, for he has the power to help or to frustrate."\par Amaziah asked the man of God, "But what should I do about the silver I paid to hire the army of Israel?"\par The man of God replied, "The Lord is able to give you much more than this!" 2 Chron. 25:7-9\par \par Amaziah, King of, Judah, had sinfully leagued himself with idolaters. From principles of worldly policy, he had formed an alliance with the kingdom of Israel, then at enmity with God. The prophet of the Lord was thereupon commissioned to warn him of the consequences, in these words--"But a man of God came to him and said, "O king, these troops from Israel must not march with you, for the Lord is not with Israel." Still, he was left free to act as he pleased. "Even if you go and fight courageously in battle, God will overt-hrow you before the enemy, for God has the power to help or to overthrow." The king hesitated. He had given, out of his treasury, a hundred talents of silver for the promised help; and now, he would receive no equivalent. No assurance even is granted by the prophet that the loss should be repaired. He is simply told, that the silver and the gold are God's, to give or to withhold--"The Lord is able to give you much more than this." Amaziah at length yields to the voice of warning. He separates himself from. the army that came out of Ephraim, and obtains a remarkable victory in the Valley of Salt.\par \par Reader, this narrative is most instructive. We have only given the outline. Read it in your Bible, prayerfully. You may discover points of striking resemblance between the case of Amaziah and your own; and, at some period, you may remember having asked the same question, "What shall I get for the hundred talents?" The claims of the world often conflict with those of religion, and a struggle ensue/s. Duty says, "Do this;" inclination, self-interest, worldly policy demand, "But what shall I have in return for the sacrifice?" See, the man who has been induced by the Spirit of God to yield himself to the service of Christ, has he no sacrifices? Must he not surrender old habits, desires, and companions--habits, which had become ingrained in his nature, and friends in whose society he once took delight. Yes; there are sacrifices. He must exchange the smile of the world for its withering frown; he must a0bstain from pleasures, once congenial to his taste--pursuits, which promised high advancement, and objects, on which his every desire was fixed. And this he must do, trusting simply to the assurance--"The Lord is able to give you more than this."\par \par Unbelief may whisper, "But is He also willing?" Experience might afford convincing proof that He is; but such doubts are unworthy of being entertained for a moment. God must be trusted. He asks for a childlike confidence. He says, as of old to 1Amaziah, "Even if you go and fight courageously in battle, God will overthrow you before the enemy, for God has the power to help or to overthrow." If you are resolved to continue the unholy alliance with the enemies of God, then, hold to these pleasures of the world, retain your love for old habits and pursuits; but remember the fatal consequences. Reader, do you know anything of this feeling--this conflict between duty and self-interest? You listen to the Sabbath bell, as it rings out a loving invitatio2n to the house of God. Do you ever feel the risings of a wish to absent yourself on some trivial pretext?--the state of the weather, the visit of a neighbor, or the few miles of distance. Ah! it is the old Amaziah doubt, "What shall I get for my sacrifice?" You have a family altar. The sacred hour of devotion comes round; business, pleasure, urge their demands--there is a hesitation, a struggle between duty and worldly interest, and the question returns, "What shall I get for my sacrifice of time?"\par \3par A poor sufferer lives in your neighborhood; he has few to speak the word of comfort--few to read to him the promises of God--duty bids you visit his solitary chamber, and bear glad tidings to the tried, afflicted one; but your worldly affairs press hard upon you, and again you ask, "What shall I get for the loss I may sustain?"\par \par Christian! trust God; and be assured, that whatever labor you may undergo--whatever sacrifices you may make--"the Lord is able to give you much more4 than this." Does God require the performance of any duty? Then, let it be done at whatever cost, for there your true interest lies. Duty called Moses to relinquish his high position in Pharaoh's household--his apparent interest lay in keeping it; but he looked onward to the future--he took the balances in his hand, and fairly weighed, what he must now forego, against what he should hereafter receive--what he must now endure, against what he should hereafter enjoy--and, eventually he secured his true and 5best interest.\par \par Reader! follow his example, and his reward shall be yours. Be assured, you cannot be a loser, by resolving, at all hazards, not to lose the favor and the friendship of God. He can give you all you need, for "all things are His." Yes, and if you act thus, He will give you peace and comfort, hope and joy here--and glory, honor, and immortality hereafter.\par \par "Grant, O Lord, unto Your servant, the spirit to think and to do always such things as be rightful. Gi6ve me grace to trust You, and to feel assured, that the path of duty is the path of true and lasting happiness. Teach me Your will, and incline my heart unto Your testimonies, that in all my works begun, continued, or ended in You, I may glorify Your name, and, finally, by your mercy, obtain everlasting life through Jesus Christ my Lord."\par \par "Is this the way, my Father?" "Yes, my child.\par You must pass through the tangled, dreary wild,\par If you would reach the City un7defiled\endash\par Your peaceful home above."\par \par "But enemies are round!" "Yes, child, I know\par That where you least expect you will find a foe,\par But victor you shall prove o'er all below\endash\par Only, seek strength above."\par \par "My Father, it is dark!" "Child, take my hand;\par Cling close to Me--I'll lead you through the land;\par Trust My all-seeing care--so shall you stand\par Midst glory bright above."\par \par "My footsteps seem to slide!" "Child, only raise\par Your eye to Me, then in these slippery ways\par I will hold up your goings; you shall praise\par Me for each step above."\par \par "O Father, I'm weary!" "Child, lean your head\par Upon My breast; it was My love that spread\par Your rugged path; hope on still, until I have said,\par Rest--rest forever above." \endash Monsell\par \par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } |;I=05 Guardianship{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fchars9E]=04 Duty and Interest{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 DUTY AND INTEREST\par \par But a man of God came to the king and said, "O king, do not hire troops from Is*:et0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 GUARDIANSHIP\par \par "He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; He led him about, He instructed him, He kept him as the apple of His eye." \endash Deut. 32:10\par \par Thus Moses describes God's care of ancient Israel. How accurate the description! In the land of Egypt--groaning under oppressive slavery, and writhing under ;the lash of heartless taskmasters--God found His chosen people. And, when His eye of love was fixed upon them, He "led them about," from the Red Sea shore to the Promised Land--sometimes along a straight, sometimes a circuitous path--and all the while "He instructed them" by many a providential dealing, and many a token of loving-kindness. He instructed them--by mercies, by warnings, by judgments, by frequent interpositions of His power, and, by remarkable proofs of His determination to bless the obedient<, and to punish the transgressor.\par \par Yes, "He kept them as the apple of His eye"--He shielded them in the hour of peril--He manifested Himself strong in their behalf--He placed around them the broad shield of omnipotence, until at length He brought them to the goodly land promised to their fathers.\par \par Christian! see the emblem of yourself in Israel. Where did God find you? He found you in a "desert land." Yes, earth with all its loveliness and beauty is a desert place, unti=l the sinner has been found by God. There is much, it is true, to attract the eye and to gratify the sense, but fair and lovely though it be, in a moral and spiritual view it is "a desert land." The soul can find in it no sustenance--no refuge; and, as in a "waste howling wilderness," it is surrounded, on every side, by dangers, and exposed to countless perils. But, oh! it is a blessed thing to know, that God seeks out, and finds the wanderer, in the desert; and, when He has found him, "He leads him," not> always by a direct path, to the promised land, but by a circuitous route, and in the right way, to "a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God."\par \par Reader! has God permitted you to encounter the sharp stroke of affliction? Has He taken from you the earthly prop, upon which you were used to lean all too fondly? Remember! God is leading you about. These unexpected trials--these heart-rending bereavements--are just so many turnings in your pilgrimage. No thorn has been? scattered on your path, but what is common to the one family of God. "This honor have all the saints." The Shepherd is leading you, as all the flock are led, with a skillful hand, and in the right way. It is yours to stand, if He bids you, or to follow, if He leads.\par \par And, O Christian! is it well you don't know the future path, along which God is leading you. How disheartened would Israel have been, had they known the long and weary pilgrimage which was before them--the need, and sufferi@ng, and privation of their forty years travel! Even so would it be with you, if you could look into the dark and mysterious future, and see the rough and stony places in life's path--the thorns and briars in the hills of difficulty--if you could mark, how often and how painfully you were to be wounded and stricken--if you could gaze on those grassy mounds, which will yet cover the ashes of the loved and cherished, and behold yourself, at the close of life's journey, it may be, a worn and weary pilgrim, toAttering on the verge of the grave, feeble and exhausted, with the perils you have encountered. Oh! it is better far to leave all to God\endash\par "Blind unbelief is sure to err,\par And scan His work in vain;\par God is his own interpreter,\par And He will make it plain."\par \par Although, in leading His people, "God gives no account of any of His matters," yet, if we put ourselves confidingly into His hands, the longer He leads us, the more we shall be inclBined to trust Him. It is even thus He "instructs us"--instructs us in His love, and faithfulness, and goodness; He instructs us in our own weakness and His all-sufficiency--our impotence and His omnipotence--our corruption and His grace--our own frailty and His steadfastness--our unbelief and His unwavering faithfulness to His word.\par \par And, mark the believer's security, "He keeps him as the apple of His eye." Such is God's watchful guardianship over His saints--such His unceasing vigilanceC. Yes! humble, unknown, obscure believer, dwelling in a lowly cottage, in some sequestered glen, far removed from the hum of human voice or occupation, if only you can say of God, that He is your reconciled Father in Christ, you are more to be envied than princes of the earth, for you are in possession of a blessedness, such as no monarch can bestow, no wealth can purchase, no earthly power procure. Be sure that God, even your God, does not, for a solitary instant, forget or overlook you; your most triviaDl actions are not without interest in His sight--not a hair falls to the ground without your Father; He orders all things, for the sake of His own great name, and for the discipline of your soul, to prepare you for the glories and the blessings of eternity.\par \par Christian! God has found you--God is leading you--God is instructing you--oh, then, leave to Him to choose your path in life! Rest, calmly and unhesitatingly, upon the sure word, "kept by the mighty power of God," and, the nearer youE come to the land of your inheritance, the stronger will grow the conviction that God is faithful to all His promises. As He carries you, securely, over the rough and stony places of life's journey, you will sing of "mercy and of judgment;" and, when descending the brink of the dark waters of Jordan, which divide Canaan from the wilderness, you will take up the language of the Psalmist, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not lack. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yes, though IF walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff they comfort me."\par \par And oh! thrice-animating prospect! As you stand upon the cloudless summits of the heavenly Zion, welcomed by angelic bands, greeted with the loud hosannas of the redeemed, methinks this will prove the theme of your song, "He found me in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; He led me about, He instructed me, He kept me as the apple of His eyeG."\par \par "Oh God! who has sent Your own Son into the world to seek and save the lost, and who has prepared for those who love You, such good things as pass man's understanding; pour into my heart such love towards You, that, loving You above all things, I may obtain Your promises of guidance and strength in this world, and of joy and happiness at Your right hand in the world to come."\par \par "Oh! for that bright and happy land\par Where, far amid the blest,\par The wicked cease from troubling, and\par The weary are at rest.\par \par "Where friends are never parted,\par Once met around Your throne;\par And none are broken-hearted,\par Since all, with You, are one!\par \par "Yet oh! until then, watch o'er us keep,\par While far from You away;\par And soothe us, Lord, often as we weep,\par And hear us when we pray."\par \endash J. S. Monsell\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } Id\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 JEHOVAH\par \par Gen. 22:14--"And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh." (The Lord will provide)\par \par The most severe trial of Abraham's faith had just ended--his well-beloved Isaac was saved from the sacrificial altar, and another offering was presented in his stead. Well, then, might the patriarch raise a stone of remembrance, with the inscription engraved on his own heart, "The Lord will provide."\par \par Exod. 17:15--"AJnd Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi." (The Lord is my Banner)\par \par Moses, the leader of Israel, with the rod of God in his hand, was seated on the top of a hill, in the valley of Rephidim. Beside him stood Aaron and Hur, supporting his arms in the attitude of prayer. Beneath, the hosts of Israel and Amalek were engaged in stern and bloody conflict. Victory, hitherto, had leaned to neither side for any length of time. When the hands of Moses were raised, then IsraKel prevailed; and, when they were let down, Amalek prevailed. But now it was no longer uncertain. The three united suppliants implored Divine help--"and Joshua destroyed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword." No wonder a feeling of security was experienced by Moses, and that future danger was no longer dreaded--no wonder that the motto of his remembrance-stone was this, "The Lord my Banner."\par \par Judges 6:24--"Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called it Jehovah-Lshalom." (The Lord is my Peace)\par \par A dark cloud had gathered upon Israel--they had forgotten the wonders of the Lord, and His mighty doings in their behalf. The hosts of Midian prevailed against them, and the last ray of hope seemed to have vanished. Their cry for help and deliverance, sent up in the hour of extremity, was answered by the Lord, in reminding them of their transgressions, and of His patience and forbearance. No promise of immediate help was given. But now, as ever, "man's exMtremity became God's opportunity"--an angel appeared unto Gideon, "as he threshed wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites," and revealed the purpose of the Lord, to make him the deliverer of Israel. Poor, and without influence, Gideon feared to occupy this high and responsible position, but he was cheered by the promise, "I will be with you." A sign was granted, to assure him that he was the appointed messenger of God. Upon the offering which he presented to the angel, fire descended from hNeaven, "and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread." Need we wonder that, when entering on the great undertaking, his heart, oppressed and downcast, at the thought of Israel's woes, and of the horrors of war, which wrung from them the cry of bitterest anguish, the altar-stone should be inscribed by Gideon, "Jehovah-shalom"--"The Lord send peace!"\par \par Ezek. 48:35--"And the name of the city from that day shall be Jehovah-shammah." (The Lord is there)\par \par The prophet EzekielO, when declaring the division of the land among the twelve tribes, and the extent of the glorious city, gave this as its great and glorious distinction, "Jehovah-shammah"--"The Lord is there."\par \par Jer. 23:6--"And this is his name whereby he shall be called, Jehovah-tsidkenu." (The Lord our Righteousness)\par \par The prophet Jeremiah, when foretelling the advent of Messiah, the righteous Branch, who was to make satisfaction for the sins of His people, and by His obedience, and sufPferings, and death, reconcile them to an offended God, speaks of Him by a name dear to every believer, "Jehovah-tsidkenu"--"The Lord our righteousness."\par \par Christian! have you no stones of remembrance? Along the pathway of your life are there no memorials of Jehovah's love? Ah, yes! You, too, can tell of seasons of danger and distress--when prayer prevailed on high--when, from the depths of your troubled soul, the cry ascended heavenward, "Lord send help out of Zion," and deliverance was gQiven. The enemy came in upon you like a flood; but even then, when the contest was fiercest, and the battle raged hottest, "the Spirit of the Lord" lifted up His standard, and the victory was yours. Surely, in such an hour, this was the language, of your soul, "Jehovah-nissi"--"The Lord my banner."\par \par Or, look backward again. Remember that time, when some heavy trial was impending over you, some sore bereavement was dreaded, at the prospect of which, your very heart failed you, and the sunRshine of your life was wrapped in deepest gloom. But your God in mercy spared the blow--the trial came not--the bereavement was stayed, and again the voice of rejoicing was heard in your home. And, if an anxious thought still lingered in your heart, and the shadow of the cloud still darkened at times your pathway, oh! was not this, to you, a cheering and consolatory thought, that come what may, He who listened to your prayer for deliverance, would also listen to your prayer for grace, and that the covenanSt between you and your God, permitted you to utter these blessed words "Jehovah-jireh"--"The Lord will provide?"\par \par Yes, believer! and times there may have been in your past history, when the burden of sin was peculiarly oppressive, when your soul was bereft of comfort and peace, and as, with trembling step and aching heart, you pursued your weary journey, the language of your burdened spirit was that of David, "My soul is cast down within me." For you, there was no comfort in the Word, noT joy in the means of grace, no happiness in prayer. Like a benighted traveler, you were groping in darkness, and, all the while, the whispered inquiry and taunt of the great adversary was, "Where is now your God?"\par \par But your trial hour came to a close. The Comforter's voice again was heard; the light of your Father's countenance shone upon you; and, once more glad and joyous, the prayer of Gideon became yours, "Jehovah-shalom"--"The Lord send peace."\par \par Reader! you have enUtered the sanctuary; you have taken your place at the communion table. Has the language of your soul been this--"Jehovah-shammah"--"The Lord is there?" Trusting no longer in yourself, but coming to the mercy-seat, poor, hungry, and penitent, was this your prayer?--"O God, have mercy upon me a miserable sinner. Pardon and accept me, for the sake of Him whom You have revealed as 'Jehovah-tsidkenu,'--'The Lord our righteousness.'"\par \par "Why should I fear the darkest hour,\par Or tremblVe at the tempest's power?\par Jesus vouchsafes to be my Tower!\par \par "Though hot the fight, why quit the field?\par Why must I either flee or yield,\par Since Jesus is my mighty Shield?\par \par "When creature comforts fade and die,\par Worldlings may weep, but why should I?\par Jesus still lives, and still is nigh!\par \par "I know not what may soon betide,\par Nor how my needs may be supplied;\par But Jesus knows and 'will provide.'\par \par "Though sin would fill me with distress,\par The throne of grace I dare address,\par For Jesus is my Righteousness.\par \par "Though faint my prayers and cold my love,\par My steadfast hope shall not remove,\par While Jesus intercedes above.\par \par "Against me earth and hell combine,\par But on my side is power Divine--\par Jesus is all and He is mine."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } 22IE]07 Contentment{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 CONTENTMENT\par \par "It is better to have little with fear for the Lord than to have great treasure with turmoil.X5a06 Jehovah{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\parHY" Proverbs 15:16\par \par The verdict of the world is very different. Notwithstanding the often-repeated declarations of Scripture, myriads are daily hastening to become rich. Onwards they rush with unabated ardor, to reach the object of their ambition; and, despite failure, misfortune, and frequent disappointment, they return afresh to the struggle. And, alas! how often do they receive, as their miserable reward, premature old age, and the unquenched cravings of avarice and passion! Wise was thZe prayer of Agur--"give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs" for the pangs of poverty excite complaining, and the possession of riches is sure to arouse the envious. He, who would walk securely along the pathway of life, will choose the middle course; and his prayer will be "Teach me, O Lord, in whatever state I am, therewith to be content."\par \par Christian! religion does not forbid you to acquire RICHES--nor to be industrious in your worldly calling. But, i[f your plans should prosper--your barns be filled with plenty, and your treasures be increased--remember, there is danger in your fullness. Your heart may be weaned from God, and all your best and purest affections may be perverted. "The fear of the Lord" alone can keep you safe. Then will you regard yourself as a steward, bound to devote your substance to the glory of God, and to promote His cause and kingdom on the earth.\par \par And, should your lot be one of POVERTY, still, "the fear of the\ Lord" will keep you from repining. Think how many are in sorer straits, who have to bear heavier burdens, and on whose every plan seems to have been written the inscription, "Failure and disappointment." Because your path has for a season been a thorny one--because some of your hopes have been blasted--because everything is not ordered according to your wishes, are you to sit down, murmuring and dissatisfied? Are you wiser than your heavenly Father? Would He lay upon you an unnecessary burden? No, has He] not told you--has not your own experience proved; that riches alone cannot confer happiness?--that better is the crust of bread and the cup of water, with God's blessing, than all the riches of the earth without His favor? Seek, by His grace, to learn contentment with your lot, to regard it as the appointment of your heavenly Father. When your cup is full, pray that it may be carried with a grateful hand; when the stream of earthly happiness is dried up, lean on the arm of your covenant God, and say, "Al^l was needed." Look forward, Christian, whatever be your circumstances, to your portion in eternity. Let the language of your soul be\endash\par "From darkness here, and dreariness,\par We ask not full repose;\par Only be Thou at hand, to bless\par Our trial hour of woes.\par Is not the pilgrim's toil o'erpaid\par By the clear rill and palmy shade?\par And see we not, up earth's dark glade,\par The gate of heaven unclose?"\par \par _ "Riches profit not in the day of wrath;" but, having the "fear of God," and being numbered among His chosen ones, you are secure of happiness. Heaven and its joys await you; the pleasures which are at God's right hand shall be yours; the riches of eternity you shall inherit, when thrones and dominions, and all that earth contains, shall crumble into ashes. Submit yourself, then, without a murmur to the hand of God, to assign you prosperity, or to visit with adversity. Seek thus, not only to secure` your own peace and comfort, but to be a blessing to all around you; for, a contented mind sheds a halo on every side, and diffuses happiness wherever it exists. And, do not forget, that true contentment consists "in a ready and cheerful compliance with the will of God--in our patient continuance in our honest employments and callings--in our thankful use of external blessings, and our honest endeavors to procure them--in the diligent effort to do good in our stations, so long as we continue in them; and anot, either in shunning all contact with the world, or murmuring because some other position has not been assigned us." Let this, then, be the spirit of your daily prayer\endash "Give us, O Lord, Your heavenly grace, that we may learn, in whatever state we are, therewith to be content. May we so learn to do and endure Your will, that at length, through the discipline here undergone, we may be fitted for Your heavenly kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord."\par \par "O faithless, unbelieving hebart!\par So slow to trust that tenderest Friend,\par Who aye will needful strength impart,\par Who loving, 'loves unto the end.'\par \par "No longer doubt, nor fear nor grieve,\par Nor on uncertain evils dwell;\par Past, present, future, calmly leave\par To him who will 'do all things well.'"\par \par "Father, I know that all my life\par Is portioned out for me;\par And the changes that will surely come,\par c I do not fear to see;\par But I ask You for a patient mind,\par Intent on pleasing Thee.\par \par "I ask You for a thoughtful love,\par Through constant watching, wise,\par To meet the glad with joyful smiles,\par And to wipe the weeping eyes;\par And a heart at leisure from itself,\par To soothe and sympathize.\par \par "I would not have the restless way,\par That hurries to and fro,\par Seeking for sodme great thing to do,\par Or secret thing to know;\par I would be treated as a child,\par And guided where I go.\par \par "Wherever in the world I am,\par In whatsoever estate,\par I have a fellowship with hearts\par To keep and cultivate,\par And a work of lowly love to do,\par For the Lord on whom I wait.\par \par "So I ask You for the daily strength,\par To none that ask denied,\par And a mind eto blend with outward life\par While keeping at Your side\endash\par Content to fill a little space,\par If You be glorified.\par \par "And if some things I do not ask\par In my cup of blessing be,\par I would have my spirit filled the more\par With grateful love to Thee,\par And careful less to serve You much,\par Than to please You perfectly.\par \par "There are briars besetting every path,\par Which call for patient care;\par There is a cross in every lot,\par And an earnest need for prayer;\par But a lowly heart that leans on You\par Is happy everywhere.\par \par "In a service which Your love appoints\par There are no bonds for me,\par For my secret heart is taught 'the truth'\par That makes Your children 'free;'\par And a life of self-renouncing love,\par Is a life of liberty."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } g{\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 DILIGENCE\par \par "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where yaou are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom." Eccles. 9:10\par \par We have here a solemn warning, peculiarly impressive to some, yet applicable to all. To the AGED CHRISTIAN, these words seem to say, "You are nearing the grave, and you have still much to do. Seekh to realize the position in which you stand. You are 'a worker, together with God,' in the world--placed here to advance His glory--to promote the interests of His kingdom--to improve every talent entrusted to your care. The time, in which you can labor and show diligence, is rapidly passing away. Opportunities of doing good are not to be recalled at will. If not seized upon at the moment, they are gone forever. The sunshine is declining--the shadows are falling longer and deeper around you--the evening oif life is closing in--the last, the eleventh hour will soon be here; therefore take heed, and 'whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might.'"\par \par To the YOUNG, a similar warning is given, "Look abroad on the world--see, there, the field for labor, the field you are called upon to assist in tilling. Are there no hungry to be fed? no naked to be clothed? no ignorant to be instructed? Have you time for pleasure and gaiety--time for worldly interaction and the festive scene--but none jfor works of charity and labors of love? How is it with your own spiritual condition? Are you growing in grace? increasing in the love of prayer? more earnest in studying God's Word? in seeking the illumination of the Holy Spirit? Remember who it was that suggested the momentous question, 'What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?'"\par \par He, who is indifferent about his own state before God, will scarcelyk be interested in regard to the condition of his fellow-men. To struggle in behalf of others, we must first struggle for ourselves--real religion knows nothing of that spurious charity which would attend to all to the neglect of self, and seek to promote the salvation of the souls of others, while the man allows his own to perish. Every man's own soul is, to him, a treasury of heavenly treasures--the salvation of that soul ought to be to him "the one thing needful." See yon swimmer struggling amid the foalming billows--he gazes round him with an anxious eye--he grasps the floating spar--his shipmates are wrestling with the angry waves--but what to him is the danger of others compared with his own?--he sees the distant shore--oh! that he might plant his foot on the stable rock--he presses on--leaves behind him the struggling crowds; his first and chief anxiety is to reach the shore--to save his own life.\par \par Or, see that crowded hall where thousands have assembled to hear the message of the gmospel--a cry is raised that the building has given way--the immense assemblage is moved--onwards the excited thousands rush--friends, acquaintances, all are left behind--escape is the only, the all-pervading thought; and, as they hurry along, every eye is fixed on the doorway, and every heart beats with the desire for self-preservation. Even so, with regard to the salvation of the soul. "Escape for your life," is the warning given; the time is short and uncertain--if you do not secure it before you go to nthe grave, afterward it will be impossible.\par \par And, if there is much to be done for ourselves, there is much, too, for others. How numerous the claims from the domestic circle! Parents! those children who surround you, look up to you for instruction; and this you are to enforce, by the uniform illustration of a holy and devoted life, and by the fervor of persevering and importunate prayer. Have you a family altar? Is the Sabbath hallowed in your dwelling? Have you endeavored to obey the Saovior's injunction, "allow them to come unto me, and forbid them not?"\par \par Reader! whoever you are, there is a work assigned you. Something may be done for God--some department of Christian benevolence there is, in which you are called to put forth the activities of your nature. It does not require very splendid talent to be useful. The great thing needed, is a sincere and earnest desire to do good. God requires of you, not according to what you have not, but according to what you have. Oh, phow many are there, living on from day to day in selfish indolence, instead of laboring "to do what they can," in the circle in which they move, for the good of men, and for the glory of God! How many are spending their lives without one effort to make "a bad world better!" They are satisfied if they led, as they imagine, harmless lives--forgetting, that sins of omission as well as sins of commission--duties neglected as well as duties performed, are noted down in the book of God's remembrance.\par \par q Christian reader! are you doing "what your hand finds to do" in the work of the Lord? Thank God! there is no one without opportunity--no one without encouragement. The man, to whom God has entrusted the talent of wealth, may help in sending the gospel--the good news of a Savior's love--to those who have never yet heard of the name of Jesus. He may send the devoted missionary to bear the tidings of salvation to far-distant lands, and what is his encouragement? "My word shall not return unto me voird, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it." This is his encouragement--better far and more enduring than the monumental grave-stone--that every soul converted, is reclaimed to God--every soul brought to the saving knowledge of Christ, becomes an heir of eternal life--every soul rescued from the dominion of Satan, from the tyranny of sin, is a glorious monument of Divine power and Divine grace, that will stand imperishably through eternity to honor God.\pasr \par The Christian whose power is more limited, may still contribute to this glorious work according as the Lord has blessed him, yes even although he treads the path of poverty, and can spare but little of his worldly substance--he may give kind and sympathizing words--he may cheer and encourage others in well-doing--he may be a friend to the friendless and a strengthener of those who are ready to faint--he may address the words of warning to those who are careless and indifferent about theirt religious interests--and, above all, he may exercise a powerful and persuasive influence, by a daily, consistent Christian walk--by showing to all around him, "brotherly kindness and charity," and by manifesting in every word and action, "meekness, forbearance, patience, humility, long-suffering."\par \par To give diligence in all this, he must be a man of watchfulness and prayer--he must feel and realize that the cause of Christ has been, as it were, committed to his care, and that he must losue no opportunity, while life is prolonged, to uphold and to extend it. Just in proportion as he apprehends what Christ has done for his own soul, will he be constrained "henceforth to live, not unto himself, but unto Him who died for him, and rose again," and feel that he is bound to lay out his time and talents for the promotion of his Master's glory, and the good of his fellow-men. And knowing that life is short--and the time for showing fidelity in the vineyard of his Lord rapidly passing away, he willv put forth all his energies--and strive with ever-increasing diligence, to do the work of Him who has sent him.\par \par Reader! remember the animating promise, "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life." The rewards of eternity--while all purchased by the blood of Christ--will be conferred according to the amount of diligence and fidelity shown upon earth. And while it is, indeed, a glorious thing, to have an entrance into that bright world of bliss, which "eye has not seen, wnor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man;" yet, oh, surely the true child of God should desire, not only to enter, but to enter joyfully--to enter "abundantly"--to secure the most radiant prize--the choicest crown of glory--to have a place near the celestial throne, a lofty station in the Savior's kingdom.\par \par To be privileged to enter the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem, is an honor far too great for sinful man; and, he who is permitted to mingle with the glorious company wxho stand upon the sea of glass, will find eternity too short to utter all his Savior's praise. But, as an eminent servant of God has said, "it is indolence, and not humility, which would make contentment with the lowest, a reason for not aspiring to the highest. To tell you, therefore, that "in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom"--it is telling the wrestler, that the glass is running out, and the game is not won--it is telling the warrior, that tyhe shadows are thickening, and the victory is not complete--it is telling the racer, that night is drawing on, and the goal is not reached. It is just blowing an alarm-peal--just the upbraiding of lethargy--just the animating to effort. Is it a time to be idle, when each moment's delay may take a pearl from the crown--sway from the scepter? Is it a time to be inactive, when every second leaves me a step lower than I might have ascended in the scale of triumph and of majesty? Is it a time to sit with foldezd hands, when the grave is opening, and there is work to be done which can only be done here, and the day is approaching, on which rewards shall be bestowed, and perhaps, as yet, I am but last in the rank of candidates?"\par \par Rather, ought we not to rouse ourselves to redoubled diligence--to manly, vigorous effort--to toil, endurance, suffering, and shame, if need be, for the cause of Christ? saying, "Whatever our hand finds to do," God helping us, "we will do it with our might," for "the ni{ght is far spent, and the day is at hand."\par \par Reader! labor to do God's work, and be this your daily prayer\endash\par \par "Now may grace be imparted to each one of us--so to believe and to rejoice in Christ Jesus--so to follow His footsteps, and to imitate His example--that, finally, we may all meet together, as His ransomed people, in the heavenly kingdom!"\par \par "Oh! grant that I may love You first,\par The source of all my heart desires;\par While forth upon my brethren burst\par The kindly beams Your love inspires.\par \par "Give me strong faith, to know, to feel,\par And to believe You ever near;\par Watching my wayward spirit's weal,\par Receiving each repentant tear.\par \par "So, safely through this world's turmoil,\par Unhurt, untainted, may I roam,\par Until o'erpast each mortal toil,\par I find in heaven a welcome home."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } m#m? 9U10 Progress{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;C QE09 Daily Strength{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 DAILY STRENGTH\par \par Deut. 33:25--"As your days, so shall y}}=M08 Diligence{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} f~our strength be."\par \par The Christian is frequently compared to a pilgrim--traveling onwards through a dreary wilderness, to the promised land of Canaan--and his experience is varied and chequered. The path before him may be steep and arduous--he may have to pass through rough and stony places--through dark, thick forests, and rapid streams, and raging hurricanes--his days may be such, as to require great strength, and energy, and perseverance. Oftentimes, when he strives to anticipate the future, his heart sinks within him, his courage fails, and he is apt to give way to despondency and doubt. But, such a promise as that given to Asher, and to all the true Israel of God, may well suffice to calm the believer's fears, and reanimate his fainting spirit.\par \par It is true, that changes and vicissitudes will come--true, that the heart, which today is cheerful and happy, may tomorrow be wounded and bleeding--true, that the full cup, now held with gladness, may be dashed in pieces, before the lips have tasted the refreshing draught--true, that the bright hope, which, like a guiding star, allures the traveler onwards, may speedily be enwrapped in pitchy gloom--but what of that?\par \par To the child of God, there is a supply of strength to meet the hour of trial. He is not permitted to escape from the burden, the cross, the difficulty--but he is enabled to make his way through them all--to struggle with and finally to overcome them. Many a time, when the believer has been well-near crushed under the oppressive weight--when, conscious that ordinary strength would not avail, he has cried unto the Lord, and a fresh supply of grace has been given to meet the emergency--so that he could say with David, "I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he has put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God--many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord."\par \par It would be easy for God, to make the path heavenward, plain and unobstructed to His children--easy, to remove all care, anxiety, and sorrow--but such is not His purpose. Earth is the training-school for Heaven. He wills that they should be tried--that "through much tribulation they should enter the kingdom"--that their spiritual natures should be refined and purified in the furnace of affliction--and that thus, by the very struggles and pains of their earthly pilgrimage, they should become more and more fit for serving Him in this world, and more and more fit for the inheritance of the saints in light. Even as the racer in a course has to undergo preparation, and, by regimen and exercise, becomes better fitted for the severe trial that awaits him--even as the mariner, by successive voyages on the stormy ocean, becomes more skillful and daring--even as the soldier who has passed through a long and dangerous campaign, becomes bold, courageous, and self-denying--so the Christian, by each difficulty he is called on to encounter, by each trial he is summoned to bear, by each virtue he is required to call into exercise, becomes more vigorous, earnest, faithful, and Christ-like. His soul is gradually training and strengthening--by duty, trial, and endurance here--for glory, honor, and immortality hereafter.\par \par And if, at any time, amid the rough and rugged parts of life's journey, his feet are not kept from falling nor his eyes from tears, the reason most probably is, that he has already failed to improve the strength and grace imparted--that, like a sword lying in the scabbard, his religion has not come into active, daily exercise, amid the lesser duties, trials, and struggles which have marked his previous history. For if, when overwhelming griefs and soul-agonizing troubles come upon us, we would be calm, patient, and submissive, we must have long and sedulously exercised the graces of the Christian character, amid the minor anxieties and the lesser sorrows of daily life.\par \par Reader! imagine not, that only when in severe trials and pressing emergencies, are you required to make religion your stay, and to exercise the spirit which it enjoins--imagine not, that in the time of sickness or the solemn hour of death, you can lay hold of gospel promises at will, and derive from them consolation and support, if, in the season of health and the day of your prosperity, they are not in all your thoughts. If you do, you will be miserably disappointed. To be "strong in the Lord and in the power of His might," when the dark storm gathers overhead, and the rumbling thunder is heard, you must have used the grace given for past emergencies, and exercised the powers which He has already graciously conferred.\par \par Remember, "growth in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ," does not consist so much "in extent of knowledge, as in depth of knowledge--knowing things better--not so much in new duties as in old duties better done, the drudgeries of life gone through in a brighter, happier, and more Christian spirit--knowing that life is made up, in a great measure, of little and common and trivial things, but still doing these little and trivial things with a more single eye to the Lord--with more self-distrust, and therefore with more dependence upon God--with greater humility--with more prayer so that self is gradually but surely extinguished, and we become strong, both to do and endure the will of God."\par \par Yes, believer, you are insensibly, it may be, yet most assuredly increasing your spiritual strength, by each single act of faith and charity and self-denial--by showing in your daily walk, more love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance--by your Christian deportment; in your family circle and in the haunts of business, amid all the occupations and requirements of life. In the right performance of one duty, you will become better fitted for the performance of the next. Every fresh victory over pride--over vanity--over avarice, over selfishness--over fretfulness, makes us stronger for the time to come, and insures the fulfillment of the promise, "As your days, so shall your strength be."\par \par Christian! mark again these words. They do not give the pledge, that we shall not feel the burden and heat of the day. All they promise is, that we shall get safely through. They do not say, that we shall not feel the weight of our duties, trials, temptations, conflicts; all they say is, that we shall have strength to bear their weight, and journey on with our load. The grace imparted, will then be "sufficient" for us--not superabundant, but sufficient for our actual necessities--strength equal to our day.\par \par Christian! distress not yourself about impending evils. You think, you have not strength for the hour of sickness. Use the strength you now have, in the day of health, and the promise will not then fail you. You fear, you have not strength for the thorny path of adversity--tread humbly and thankfully the path of prosperity, and you will not then be refused consolation and support. You fear that you are unprepared to meet the King of Terrors, and to enter the gloomy valley. Live to the glory of God, and, as beseems your Christian profession, and, when you are summoned to depart, His rod and staff will then uphold and comfort you. It is by putting forth the strength already gained, that you may hope to stand your ground, when greater exertion and more vigorous effort are demanded. Strength to encounter the tempest will be given when the tempest rages--strength to breast the foaming surges will be given when the hurricane has actually come--strength to grapple with the last enemy will be given when he comes forth to meet you. Yes, Christian! be assured, grace and strength will be imparted when you need them, as certainly as they will be withheld before you need them. He who guides you, knows your necessities, and, in the day of trouble, will not leave you comfortless. Journey on, then, with firmness--relying on the promise of Him who is faithful and true!--your day is coming--you will, before long, enter into your final rest, and repose from all your labors--you will take possession of the promised inheritance, and will then acknowledge with a grateful heart, "As my days, so my strength has been." Let this be your daily cry\endash\par \par "O Lord, increase my strength, and give me grace, to use it daily for the promotion of Your glory, and for the healthy development of my own soul, that, in Your good time, I may be prepared for another and a better world."\par \par "Source of my life's refreshing springs,\par Whose presence in my heart sustains me,\par Your love appoints me pleasant things,\par Your mercy orders all that pains me.\par \par "If lonely hearts were never lonely,\par If all they wish might always be,\par Accepting what they look for only,\par They might be glad--but not in Thee.\par \par "Well may Your own beloved, who see\par In all their lot their Father's pleasure,\par Bear loss of all they love, save Thee,\par Their living, everlasting Treasure.\par \par "Well may Your happy children cease\par From restless wishes prone to sin,\par And, in Your own exceeding peace,\par Yield to Your daily discipline.\par \par "We need as much the cross we bear\par As air we breathe, as light we see\endash\par It draws us to Your side in prayer,\par It binds us to our strength in Thee."\par \endash A. L. Waring\par \par \par \par "Dreary and long our course may be,\par \par But, O our God, it leads to Thee!\par \par You are the Light by which we roam,\par \par You are our everlasting Home.\par \par "Earth and its pains we still may feel,\par \par But You are ever near to heal;\par \par Still as our day, our strength shall be,\par \par For all our cares are borne by Thee.\par \par "Your mighty arm to smooth our way,\par \par Your Light to turn our night to day,\par \par Onward with firmer steps we roam,\par \par On to our everlasting Home.\par \par "Afflicted soul, to Christ draw near,\par \par Your Savior's gracious promise hear;\par \par His faithful word declares to thee,\par \par That 'as your day, your strength shall be!'\par \par "Let not your heart despond, and say,\par \par How shall I stand this trying day?\par \par He has engaged, by firm decree,\par \par That 'as your day, your strength shall be!'\par \par "Your faith is weak, your foes are strong,\par \par Perhaps the conflict may be long;\par \par Yet shall at last your sorrows flee,\par \par And 'as your day, your strength shall be!'\par \par "When hovering death appears in view,\par \par Christ's presence shall your fears subdue;\par \par He smiles, and sets your spirit free,\par \par For 'as your days your strength shall be!'\par \par "When in that after-world of rest,\par \par Where ransomed souls are fully blest,\par \par How time in retrospect shall prove,\par \par The word which told you 'all is love!'"\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } }} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 PROGRESS\par \par Prov. 4:18--"The path of the just is as the shining light, that shines more and more unto the perfect day."\par \par If, in the Word of God, the Christian is likened to a pilgrim, we find also his life compared to a journey; and, perhaps, one reason for this comparison is, that he is always making progress in the way. There is no standing still. Days, and months, and years, hurry on with resistless impetuosity. The child soon passes into the youth; the youth into the man; the man into the aged veteran leaning on his staff.\par \par There is another progress made by every one of us. There is a path in the formation of CHARACTER, equally inevitable, which must be trodden, whether the result be good or bad. The events which happen--the companions with whom we associate--the deeds of daily life--the very thoughts which pass through the mind--all combine in leading on the man, and in forming his character. This is especially true with regard to the believer in Christ; and how often is he exhorted to press forwards and onwards! "Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of Christ." "Give diligence to make your calling and election sure." "Press forward to the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." "Be not weary in well-doing, for in due season you shall reap if you faint not." "Furthermore, we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as you have received of us how you ought to walk and to please God, so you would abound more and more."\par \par It is impossible for the believer to pause in his heavenward journey. He is either advancing or going backward--not, while the pulse though feeble yet beats--not, while the eye though dim yet moves, is there a single period when he can say, "Here will I rest." "Forwards and onwards" must ever be his motto; and, as he grasps with firmness the banner of the Cross, and gazes upon it in its blood-stained beauty, and sees those golden letters "by this conquer" inscribed upon it, he must follow where it leads--engaging in fresh conflicts, surmounting fresh difficulties, and gaining fresh laurels, and the loftiest flight of his ambition must be, to heave his last sigh beneath its shadow--assured that his path is to terminate in glory--that his death will be the death of victory, and that victory the victory of heaven.\par \par Christian! behold the path of the just--of those who, all guilty in themselves, are justified in Christ. It is, as a "shining light." Yes, the believer was "once darkness," but now he is "light in the Lord." Once, he was ignorant of God in Christ, now he can say "Abba, Father." Once, he dwelt in the darkness of sin, but now he has been called into God's "marvelous light." Once, he trod the path of obscurity and gloom, now he follows "the Light of the world." No longer blinded by the god of this world--no longer governed by that spirit which hides all that is invisible, real, and eternal--he "lets his light shine before men"--he "holds forth the word of life." Christian! have you ground to believe that such is your path?\par \par If so, it is also as a progressive light. Even as the dawn of morn creeps gradually on the earth--gray streaks of light brightening the eastern horizon, revealing the dark and distant outline of the lofty hills--gradually illuminating glen and valley, and sweeping away the lingering mists of night--so, from the first dawn of spiritual light upon the soul--even amid gloom and shadow, there is an onward progress--faith, and hope, and love are invigorated--the spiritual understanding is matured--richer consolations are enjoyed, and the heart expands to the warm rays of the "Sun of Righteousness."\par \par And this path is most surely to conduct to the "perfect day." What certain harbingers of the rising sun are the first streaks of dawn! Thick mists may hover over the earth--dark clouds may shroud her--wild storms may sweep along the plains; still, in silent and undeviating progress, the sun will rise--and, as surely as he rises, so will he attain his meridian splendor. Equally certain may we be, that the first dawn of spiritual light is the undeviating precursor of a perfect day of glory. The day of grace once begun, must advance. There may be many hindrances--clouds of dark and mysterious providences; but nothing shall impede its course--nothing shall arrest its progress. The Sun risen on the soul, with healing in His wings, shall never stand still--onwards it will roll in its glorious orbit, penetrating with its beams every dark recess, until all mental shadows are merged and lost in its unclouded and eternal splendor.\par \par See the Christian, after he has descended into the gloomy valley, and crossed the billows of the Jordan! He stands upon Immanuel's shore, amid the splendors of that everlasting day, whose sun shall set no more. Grace, the day-dawn, has now yielded to glory "the perfect day." The weary pilgrim has emerged from the shadows of his pilgrimage, and has entered that world, of which it is said, "There shall be no night there." Does he dwell on the perils and dangers through which he has passed--the pains, and sufferings, and privations of his journey--the toils, and trials, and anxieties of his life--as if they had been too numerous, painful and agonizing? Ah, no!\par \par Methinks, as he enters within the portals of the eternal city, with its wall of sapphire, and its gate of pearl--as he gazes on the eternal throne, and Him who sits upon it, and takes up his golden harp--this, as it has been beautifully said, will form the burden of his song--"Bless the Lord, O my soul, for His converting grace--His providential dealings--His unceasing care and love. Savior God, You have led me by the right way--I now see by what Your dispensations towards me were regulated, and in what happiness they have ended. I was chastened of the Lord, that I might not be condemned with the world. Though I then did sow in tears, yet now I reap in joy. Often did you turn my gloomy night into sunny day. Many a dark cloud of my pilgrimage have You fringed with Your golden beams. By Your light I have walked through darkness many a long and lonely stage of my journey. Blessed Savior! I praise You for Your sustaining grace--for Your cheering presence--for Your unwavering faithfulness, for Your tender love--I praise You for the pains and sorrows, the afflictions and bereavements of my earthly lot. All were needed. With not one stormy cloud--not one night of suffering--with not one ingredient in my cup of sorrow could I safely have dispensed. Now I can see with what infinite wisdom and tender love You were appointing all, and guiding all, and overruling all the varied turnings, and windings of my earthly journey. Now I find, by blessed experience, the truth of those words which I so often heard in the days of my flesh, that my 'labor has not been in vain in the Lord.'"\par \par Reader, be this your prayer\endash "Give, O God, to lead and guide me by Your counsel here, and afterward receive me into glory."\par \par "Soon--and forever,\par The breaking of day\par Shall drive all the night-clouds\par Of sorrow away.\par Soon--and forever,\par We'll see as we're seen,\par And learn the deep meaning\par Of things that have been.\par When fightings outside us,\par And fears from within,\par Shall weary no more\par In the warfare of sin;\par Where tears, and where fears,\par And where death shall be never,\par Christians with Christ shall be\par Soon--and forever."\par \endash Monsell\par \par \par "Let Reason vainly boast her power\par To teach her children how to die\endash\par The sinner, in a dying hour,\par Needs more than Reason can supply\endash\par A view of Christ, the sinner's Friend,\par Alone can cheer him in the end.\par \par "When nature sinks beneath disease,\par And every earthly hope is fled,\par What then can give the sinner ease,\par And make him love a dying bed?\par Jesus! Your smile his heart can cheer,\par He's blest, even then, if You are near.\par \par "The gospel does salvation bring,\par And Jesus is the gospel theme;\par In death redeemed sinners sing,\par And triumph in the Savior's name\endash\par 'O death, where is your sting?' they cry,\par 'O grave, where is your victory?'\par \par "Then let me die the death of those\par Whom Jesus washes in His blood,\par Who on His faithfulness repose,\par And know that He indeed is God;\par Around His throne we all shall meet,\par And cast our crowns beneath His feet."\par \endash Kelly\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } ed20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 ASSURANCE\par \par "And that is why I am suffering here in prison. But I am not ashamed of it, for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return." 2 Tim. 1:12\par \par How calm and tranquil was the spirit that dictated these words--how full of joyful anticipation! And, under what circumstances were they penned? Not in the morning of life, when hope sheds her brightest radiance--not in the full vigor of manhood, when death appears still far distant. No; the hand of Time was upon the great apostle. He was about to lay his hoary head upon the block, and to terminate his long and faithful ministry--his unexampled labors and sufferings for the cross of Christ--amid the cruel agonies of martyrdom. From that eventful hour, when the dazzling light from heaven shone upon his pathway, year after year had been devoted to the service of Him whose religion he had sought so eagerly to extirpate, and every year had seen him more ardent and zealous--bolder and more abundant in labors. If we want to know what his life was, we have only to turn to 2 Cor. 11:24-27\endash "Five different times the Jews gave me thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have traveled many weary miles. I have faced danger from flooded rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the stormy seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be Christians but are not. I have lived with weariness and pain and sleepless nights. Often I have been hungry and thirsty and have gone without food. Often I have shivered with cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm."\par \par That was his daily, outward life; yet we shall greatly mistake the life of that glorious apostle if we suppose it to have been a gloomy and unhappy one. It was filled with blessedness--the blessedness which arises from inward peace, from communion with God in Christ, and from self-sacrifice and consecration to His service. But, we notice chiefly the fact, that it is no beginner who utters these hopeful words. No; it is Paul, "the aged"--Paul, bending beneath the burden of many years--the veteran spiritual warrior; for he tells us, "I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand." It was thus, at the close of life's journey--on the very brink of the Jordan, when its dark waters were rushing by his side--that he encouraged the young Timothy, feeble in constitution, whom he so tenderly loved as his son in the gospel--who was entering into the service from which he was about to be removed, and who was exposed to the perils and hardships from which he was escaping, "to watch in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, and make full proof of his ministry."\par \par It was at this momentous crisis, that his faith approved itself--not the leaf, driven by the tempest--not the reed, shaken with the wind--but an oak, more deeply rooted, by the raging blasts of a thousand storms, and unmoved, when the last mighty whirlwinds were sweeping through its branches. He stands before us, in the attitude of calm Christian assurance, with the fire of heaven lighting up his eye, even while the chain of persecution is fretting his aged frame, and the fire or sword of martyrdom is waiting for its prey. The shades of eventide are beginning to gather, but the gleam of a brighter sky is seen beyond, and, with the assured conviction, that the object of his life is fully accomplished, these are his impressive words, "I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return."\par \par We may imagine him in his lonely, gloomy cell, reviewing his past eventful life, casting his eye on the perilous path he had traversed, and on the Ebenezers with which it was marked. He seems to say, "Time was when I had other hopes and prospects--when another ground of confidence was mine--when, if I had trusted in the world's promises, I had a brilliant prospect before me--wealth, honor, fame--all these were the gilded toys which urged me onward; but, another vision was presented--Jesus, whom I persecuted, spoke to me. His service was void of all earthly honor; I had nothing to anticipate but suffering and shame--the bitter hostility of foes--the unkind desertion of friends--I had sinful habits to break--guilty passions to subdue, and countless dangers to brave--but He said unto me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, and my strength is made perfect in weakness.' I took Him at His word--I embraced Him as my Savior--I placed myself at His disposal, 'Lord, what will You have me to do?' Though the very chief of sinners, He welcomed me; and then I learned the depth and sincerity of His love--the strength and security of His friendship; then I learned the deep enormity of sin--so stern and crushing, that it bowed down a Head of spotless innocence; then I learned that, had I stood alone upon the earth--the God-man must have wrestled, and toiled, and wept, and died, to preserve me from sinking beneath the vengeance of Heaven, and from being stricken by the wrath of the Almighty. I beheld my sins through the bleeding wounds of my Savior, and realized my own share in the dark tragedy of Calvary. Faith brought Christ into my heart, and I believed on the Son of God. He told me at the outset, that I would have the flesh to crucify, and corruption to mortify--that I would have a battle to fight, enemies to conquer, a wilderness to traverse, and a race to run. And I have found His every word come true--the warning and the promise, the danger and deliverance, the toil and the tranquility, the outward suffering and the inward calm; and now I declare, as with my dying breath, that my estimate of Jesus has undergone no change--that what I said, in prospect of trial and suffering for His sake, I am still ready to say--now that the trial, fierce and fiery as it is, has been partly undergone, and even now is at its sharpest. For His cause I suffer these things, 'nevertheless, I am not ashamed.' He is still my all in all--the Faithful and True. 'As for me, God forbid that I should boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.' 'I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live; yet not I--but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.' I have entrusted my soul to Him, and I am persuaded that it is safe in His keeping. I am not making a plunge into eternity in the dark--I am not flinging myself into the fires of martyrdom blindfold; but I have weighed the grounds of my conviction--I have looked at the soundness of the Rock, to see whether it will bear me--I have tasted that 'the Lord is gracious,' and, therefore, 'and I am sure that God, who began the good work within me, will continue his work until it is finally finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back again.'"\par \par Oh, strong assurance! most comforting persuasion! Christian! do you desire to have the same confidence in Jesus in a dying hour? Then live to Jesus as did the apostle. Give Him your confidence, your love--and He will prove himself faithful to the end. It may not be, that you shall exhibit the same strong faith, or give expression to the same feelings of unshaken reliance on the Savior, but you will have peace, you will have security. Let the shadows gather round you, dark and gloomy--let the night close in upon your weary footsteps, threatening and tempestuous--still the eye of faith will discover the Soul-guardian--the Treasure-keeper--the Friend that sticks closer than any brother.\par \par Do you long for the grace of assurance?--do you feel, at times, a doubt of your soul's safety? So did the apostle. He dreaded, lest "after having preached to others, he himself should be a castaway." Assurance is not a grace given to the believer, and never again weakened or removed. His experience is varied, his journey is not all sunshine. There are times of cloud, and storm, and tempest--yes, even when his heart is glad and joyous--when, with a holy rapture, he can exclaim, "You have anointed my head with oil, and made my cup to run over," there are unseen yet powerful agencies at work, to depress and sadden his soul. Today, he is bold and ardent--tomorrow, weak and feeble; today, he realizes the assurance, "I have blotted out your transgressions as a cloud, and your iniquities as a thick cloud from before me;"--tomorrow, he is sunk in the very depths of despondency, and cries out, "wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" Long years of training and discipline are needed, before the Christian can hope to take up the language of the great apostle.\par \par But, fear not, trembling one!--Still "cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you," still cling to the assurance, "I will not leave you nor forsake you." Oh! look back on the page of your experience, as did the apostle, and "be not afraid." See your pilgrimage-path, studded thick with Ebenezers, testifying to your Savior's faithfulness and mercy. Think of His manifold gracious interpositions in the past--sustaining you in trial, supporting you in perplexity, helping you, when vain was the help of man. Take these things as the pledges of faithfulness in the future, and let this ever be your prayer\endash\par \par "Lord, give me grace to trust You at all times--in joy and in sorrow--in sickness and in health--and, in Your good time, enable me truly to say with Your servant of old, 'I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to Him against that day.'"\par \par "The leaves around me falling,\par Are preaching of decay;\par The hollow winds are calling,\par 'Come, pilgrim, come away!'\par The day, in night declining,\par Says, 'I must too decline;'\par The year, its life resigning,\par Its lot foreshadows mine.\par \par "The light my path surrounding,\par The loves to which I cling,\par The hopes within me bounding,\par The joys that round me wing;\par All melt, like stars of even,\par Before the morning's ray,\par Pass upwards into heaven,\par And chide at my delay.\par \par "The friends gone there before me,\par Are calling from on high,\par And joyous angels o'er me,\par Tempt sweetly to the sky.\par 'Why wait?' they say, 'and where\par Mid scenes of death and sin?\par Oh, rise to glory here,\par And find true life begin.'\par \par "I hear the invitation,\par And fain would rise and come,\par A sinner to salvation,\par An exile to his home.\par But while I here must linger,\par Thus, thus, let all I see\par Point on with faithful finger,\par To heaven, O Lord, and Thee."\par \endash H. F. Lyte\par \par \par "Lord, when we bend before Your throne,\par And our confessions pour,\par Teach us to feel the sins we own,\par And shun what we deplore.\par \par "Our contrite spirits pitying see,\par And penitence impart;\par And let a healing ray from Thee\par Beam hope upon the heart.\par \par "When we disclose our needs in prayer,\par No we our wills resign;\par And not a thought our bosoms share,\par Which is not wholly Thine.\par \par "Let faith each meek petition fill,\par And waft it to the skies;\par And teach our hearts 'tis goodness still\par That grants it or denies."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } 3 -I12 Worry{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 WORRY\par \par "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow =11 Assurance{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Rich will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34\par \par "I would like you to be free from concern." 1 Cor. 7:32\par \par We associate the Savior's injunction and the apostle's wish together, because both set before us the same great truth, and indicate the same line of Christian conduct. Let not these words be misunderstood. Neither the Savior nor His apostle would desire men to be "free from concern" in regard to their highest--their eternal interests. The words are addressed to believers--to those who have been led to look for pardon, peace, and safety in Christ, the Redeemer; and what is meant by worry is not prudent attention, but anxious corroding care, and that chiefly in regard to temporal matters. Our Lord enjoins, not the dismissal of fore-thought, but that we should suppress all painful anxiety as to what the future may be storing up for us, and rest assured that we will find all our strength and energy needed when the hour of trial actually arrives.\par \par Indeed, He commended forethought--for in the preceding verse He had said, "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness," and in like manner the apostle exhorts Christians--to "give diligence to make their calling and election sure"--to "forget those things which are behind, and reach forth unto those things which are before"--to "labor that they may enter into the heavenly rest." In a matter of such infinite moment as our hope for eternity, we ought not--we cannot be, without thought or anxiety. We should be anxious to "grow in grace and in the knowledge of Christ"--anxious to "show diligence to the full assurance of hope"--"anxious to "work out our own salvation with fear and trembling"--anxious to "fight the good fight of faith, and lay hold on eternal life."\par \par Even with regard to our temporal interests, we may be sure the Savior does not forbid thought--prudence--care. God has placed us in the world, and assigned to us all duties which require daily thought and attention. From the king to the peasant, there is no lot in life where prudent carefulness can be either dispensed with or rightly suppressed. The Word of God enjoins everywhere--diligence, industry, painstaking perseverance--and, without them, there can be nothing but ruin and wretchedness. "The literal dismissal of all thought for the morrow, would involve the neglecting the culture of the soil--we would cease to sow, and, therefore, we would starve"--it would involve the neglect of those remedies which are needful for the preservation of health--neglect of precautions absolutely required to ensure our property and our lives--neglect of necessary provision against a time of sickness and old age. The artisan--the laborer, would live only for the day, and leave the morrow to shift for itself--No; this never could be our Savior's meaning.\par \par It is the duty of the Christian to labor honestly and earnestly in the calling in which God has placed him--to use all lawful and innocent means to obtain a competent livelihood--and to be thankful that his heavenly Father has enabled him, by patient industry, or even by hard and toilsome labor, to earn his daily bread. Such is not the care about which we are warned--such is not the thoughtfulness which should be banished from the mind. We may be careful in "providing things honest in the sight of all men"--careful in laying out to the best advantage the portion of worldly good with which God has blessed us--without infringing on the precept here given; no, the apostle elsewhere declares, that "if any provides not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."\par \par But, then, while so doing, we must bear in mind, our entire--our constant--daily dependence upon God. We must seek to realize that without His blessing, all our care, and thought, and diligence will be fruitless--and we must, to rid ourselves of sinful fears and apprehensions about the future, "cast all our care upon Him, knowing that He cares for us." We are to enter upon no undertaking--form no plan, make no arrangements for the morrow, with out committing them into His hands, in firm reliance on the declaration of Scripture, that "the blessing of the Lord makes rich, and He adds no sorrow with it."\par \par How many, alas! disregard and wholly neglect this in their daily lives! They scheme and plan for the future, as if all depended on their own energy and forethought--as if they themselves could turn the current of future events. No wonder "they rise up early and sit up late, and eat the bread of sorrows." Mark the furrows on the brow--listen to the anxious inquiry--see the restless running to and fro--the setting aside, sometimes the total disregard, of higher and nobler interests, for the things of time. Now, it is this carking care--this wearing worry, which is forbidden by Christ, and is inconsistent with a true and lively faith.\par \par Not all the blighting of cherished hopes--the frustrating of plans, and the failure of the most carefully arranged schemes, will teach some men how utterly powerless they are over tomorrow. The merchant enters into perilous speculations, and tomorrow the crash of disappointment comes--he is left ruined and penniless. The wealthy citizen invests his thousands in some fair and flattering scheme--tomorrow it is found false and deceptive--all his "carefulness" has been of no avail. The farmer, elated by a time of unusual prosperity, extends more widely his operations, and undertakes far more than he is able to accomplish--tomorrow comes, and the sunshine has departed--misfortune and calamity are now his portion. The laborer, dissatisfied with the wages of today, abandons his work, sure that he will largely increase his gains in some other quarter. Tomorrow his hopes are unrealized--he encounters only disappointment and loss.\par \par The true Christian, however, who has committed his interests to God, and left the issue in His hands, should be, "without worry." He has the promise of his heavenly Father, that "all things shall work together for his good." If tomorrow brings heavier duties or severer trials, tomorrow will also bring a larger measure of grace and patience. No combination of adverse events--no stroke of calamity, however unexpected, can deprive him of that gracious care which follows every step of his earthly pilgrimage. He need have no anxious apprehension about the future, for it is in the hands of Him who "does all things well and wisely;"--of Him who knows "the end from the beginning," and sees what is best for the welfare of His children.\par \par Christian! the great and important matter is, to act our part well and faithfully in the present, leaving the disposal of the future entirely to God. It is ours to be careful in discharging the duties of today--it will be His to impart strength for the contingencies of tomorrow. We cannot indeed expect to pass through life without our share of trouble, but we may at all times confidently rely on the assurance, "as your days, so shall your strength be." And, the anxious apprehension about impending evils, can only have the effect of weakening our trust in God, and unfitting us for the discharge of present duty. Surrounding ourselves with gloomy forebodings and anticipating evils which may never cross our path, we will become faint and disheartened, and our anxieties will but increase the more. Let us "cast all our care upon Him who cares for us," confident that, let tomorrow bring what it may, He will sustain us in every difficulty--comfort and relieve us in every emergency, and "make His grace sufficient for us." The interests of God's people are His constant care--and by His most sure word He has undertaken to "supply all their need." He will not, it is true, impart grace before it is needed--but neither will He fail to communicate it when it is actually needed.\par \par If only we would look to the past, and reflect on God's dealings with us, we will find that such has been His procedure. Oh! how often, in the day of sorrow and distress, has He given the very comfort we stood in need of--the measure of strength by which we were enabled to bear the trial! How often, in the time of sickness, has He relieved our pain when most severe--and mitigated our sufferings, when "vain was the help of man!" How often, too, have His gracious promises come to us in the very extremity of our need--and, "in the multitude of our thoughts within us, His comforts delighted our souls!"\par \par May we not then say, "The Lord has been mindful of us, and He will bless us still?" "He who spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all," will not withhold that daily care we need for our comfort. He who adopted us into His family--accepted us in the Beloved--and made us partakers of the promises which are in Christ Jesus--He who has loved us with an everlasting love, will watch over us in every hour of danger, and overrule and control all for our final good. We know not what the future may bring--but we know that it is His to order everything in heaven and in earth, and that, in every emergency, we may look to Him for support. Every need He can supply--every difficulty He can remove--every fear dispel, and, trusting to His guardianship--relying on His care, we may, regarding the unknown and inscrutable events of tomorrow unhesitatingly say, "The Lord will provide."\par \par Yes, Christian, many troubles may surround you--many dangers may threaten you--your hearth may become dreary and desolate, and every earthly comfort be removed--still, amid all these outward ills, anchor your soul on the sure word of promise--"I am with you aways, even to the end;" and let this be your prayer\endash\par \par "O Lord, give me Your heavenly grace, that I may cast all my care upon You, knowing that You care for me; and, by whatever path You lead me, oh! save me from all doubt of Your love, and bring me closer to Yourself."\par \par "Though some good things of lower worth\par My heart is called on to resign,\par Of all the gifts in heaven and earth,\par The best, the very best is mine:\par The love of God in Christ made known,\par The love that is enough alone,\par My Father's love is all my own.\par \par "My soul's Restorer, let me learn\par In that deep love to live and rest\endash\par Let me the precious thing discern\par Of which I am indeed possessed\endash\par My treasure let me feel and see,\par And let my moments as they flee,\par Unfold my endless life in Thee.\par \par "Let me not dwell so much within\par My wounded heart with anxious heed,\par Where all my searches meet with sin,\par And nothing satisfies my need\endash\par It shuts me out from sound and sight\par Of that pure world of life and light\par Which has nor breadth, nor length, nor height.\par \par "Let me Your power, Your beauty see,\par So shall my vain aspiring cease,\par And my free heart shall follow Thee\par Through paths of everlasting peace\endash\par My strength Your gift, my life Your care,\par I shall forget to seek elsewhere\par The joy to which my soul is heir.\par \par "I was not called to walk alone,\par To clothe myself with love and light;\par And for Your glory, not my own,\par My soul is precious in Your sight\endash\par My evil heart can never be\par A home, a heritage for me;\par But You can make it fit for Thee."\par \endash A. L. Waring\par \par \par "When waves of trouble round me swell,\par My soul, be not dismayed;\par But hear a Voice you know full well\endash\par 'Tis I, be not afraid.'\par \par "When black the threatening clouds appear,\par And storms my path invade,\par That Voice shall tranquillize each fear\endash\par 'Tis I, be not afraid.'\par \par "There is a gulf that must be crossed,\par Saviour! be near to aid;\par hisper, when my frail bark is tossed\endash\par "Tis I, be not afraid.'\par \par "There is a dark and fearful vale,\par Death hides within its shade;\par Oh! say, when flesh and heart shall fail\endash\par "Tis I, be not afraid.'"\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } inth. It had become matter of doubt with the early converts--who were few in number, and thinly scattered throughout society--who were, besides, exposed to much and bitter persecution from their relatives and neighbors--what was the true line of Christian conduct. "Was the believing wife to forsake the unbelieving husband? or the believing husband to forsake the unbelieving wife? Was the believing child to desert the unbelieving parent?--the believing slave to sever all connection with an unbelieving master? Were they to break asunder all family and social ties--to form themselves into a separate and distinct community, and live apart from the world's society--presenting a united front to the world's persecutions?" The apostle says, "No; Christianity was never intended to interfere with existing relationships; it was no part of the religion of Christ to alter the forms of civil government. On the contrary, it even set itself to the support of existing institutions, by requiring of its disciples that they should be content, whatever their condition." Christian men were to remain in those relationships in which they were, and in them to develop the inward spirituality of the Christian life. No doubt, Christianity would gradually tell upon the politics, as well as the morals of a land. It would, if thoroughly followed out, abolish war and slavery, and every form of oppression; but not by exciting prejudice, or attempting to overturn existing institutions. The slave, who had with joy embraced a religion which taught the worth and dignity of the human soul--a religion which declared that rich and poor, king and peasant, master and slave, were equal in the sight of God--the slave, who had come to know that there was such a thing as brotherhood and Christian equality, and who might thus be tempted and excited to throw off the cruel and oppressive yoke by force, was not taught to labor for the acquisition of his freedom. No; but he was told of a higher feeling--a feeling that would make him free, even with the chain and shackle upon his limbs. He was told of the possibility of being a high and lofty Christian, even though in bondage--told of his true dignity as a man, as a child of God, an heir of glory. Were he to have his choice, then, indeed, Paul bids him prefer liberty. But the great Christian rule was this, "Let every man wherein he is called therein abide with God."\par \par Now, this great truth cannot be too frequently insisted upon, that it matters not what a Christian's walk in life may be, he has opportunities, if he only takes advantage of them, of truly serving and honoring his Divine Master. And one great reason why religion does not advance more rapidly, may be found in this, that Christian men and women, albeit they are earnest and sincere, do not realize the fact, that they can labor for God, and advance His cause, even in the midst of the most common and menial occupations--that Christianity does not call a man away from his occupation or residence; but in these to adorn the doctrine of God his Savior in all things.\par \par The Savior likened His kingdom to good seed. It was to spring up and grow, raising up other plants to scatter forth seed also, until the whole land should become one fruitful field. He likened it to a grain of mustard seed--the least of all seeds--which when it is grown, becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. He likened it to leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, until the whole was leavened. It was by the leaven coming into contact with the meal that the whole became leavened; and so the followers of Christ, coming into contact with the children of the world, are to commend His religion, and spread its influence wider, by their pure, earnest, and Christlike temper and bearing. Their daily lives, so to speak, are to be perpetual pleadings with man for God; and, by exhibiting the softening power of Christ's grace, by holding up the mirror of a life bright with purity and love and goodness, they are to attract those around them, and win them to the Savior--they are to let their "light so shine before men, that they seeing their good works, may glorify their Father in heaven."\par \par It is true that, in every age, some have imagined that religion must best thrive in retirement, far from the din and bustle of the world--that, in some convent's quiet gloom, away from the dwellings of careworn men, the soul would attain a deeper devotedness and higher sanctity, and cultivate closer and more uninterrupted communion with things above. But experience has proved all this to be mere fancy. The growth of character which is there promoted is stunted and unhealthy. Outward temptations may be avoided; but, from the sinful heart there is no escape. The eye may never gaze on the world's wealth and grandeur, and, by penance and fasting, the body may be bruised and broken; but, to the eye of the soul, other and equally seductive pleasures may be presented, and, while the flesh is writhing beneath the lash, the heart may be lifted up with spiritual pride, and the faith of the enthusiast be a faith on works, and not on Christ.\par \par Besides, the world is our appointed sphere of action; there, we are not merely to cease to do evil, but learn to do well; there we are to be proof against temptation, and to fight the good fight; there, we are to maintain, not a negative, but a positive character; and, as the servants of Christ, we are to be blameless, not through freedom from temptation, but through overcoming it by His imparted grace. Christian! you are called to carry your religion into the world; and in the performance even of its lowest and most trivial duties, to serve God. You are to strive by His help to "make a bad world better;" and, so to live in it, that men may honor you, and, when you die, that they may miss you. Do not think, that yours is a calling in which you cannot "abide with God." If it is lawful, however humble it may be, therein you may conform to the apostolic injunction, and be a faithful and diligent servant of Christ.\par \par Religion does not demand the forgetfulness of our worldly duties. It is not to be confined to the Sabbath day or the house of prayer, but is to be diffused through all our week-day employments and occupations. It is true, that these must be attended to--true that business, with its manifold requirements, must be attended to--true, that we must labor diligently for our daily bread--true, that we must associate with our fellow-men, and take part in the secularities of life. But into all these religion may, and if we would "abide with God" must, accompany us. We may ply the busy hand through the hours of labor--prosecute our daily employment--relax our feelings amid the enjoyments of the domestic circle--indulge in the prattle of infancy, and in all the joyousness of an innocent heart--yet carry religion with us into all, and diffuse it as a coloring through all the substance of life. Our commonest daily occupation may thus be sanctified--the spirit of our inner life may run through all our words and actions, and while "diligent in business," we may yet be "fervent in spirit, serving the Lord." We may discharge every duty--partake of every innocent joy--engage in every honest and lawful occupation, in the spirit of the Lord, whose "food and drink it was to do the will of God." There is not one of us--no matter what be his situation in life--but may thus "abide with God." And, so far from religion being incompatible with a due regard to the just interests and engagements of the present life, it will ever be found that a proper attention to them is secured by religious principles; for, it is by a "patient continuance in well-doing," that we are to "seek for glory, honor, and immortality."\par \par Reader! be active, be industrious, be diligent in your ordinary pursuits. This is your Father's will. Be an example of blameless integrity and of self-denying benevolence--be faithful in the discharge of all the duties which are lawfully required of you, belonging to the station which God's providence has called you to fill. Do all this from a purer and higher principle than worldlings do it, on the high principle of approving yourself to your "Father in heaven." Do it with a view to glorify God on earth--that the religion you profess may be honored--that Christ may be glorified--that the cause of the gospel may be advanced. While you aim, as you may lawfully aim, at success in the business of this life--never forget that your birthright it eternal life--that heaven is the home for which you are summoned to prepare--that immortality is the prize for which you ought to be seeking. And be this your prayer\endash\par \par "O God, You who alone work in Your people, both to will and to do of Your good pleasure, grant me grace, at all times, to abide with You. In all my wanderings here upon the earth, may I seek Your glory, and steadfastly look up to heaven as my eternal home."\par \par "Abide with me! fast falls the eventide;\par The darkness thickens--Lord, with me abide.\par When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,\par Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me.\par \par "Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;\par Earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away;\par Change and decay in all around I see;\par O You, who change not, abide with me.\par \par "Not a brief glance, I beg, a passing word;\par But as You dwell with Your disciples, Lord\endash\par Familiar, condescending, patient, free,\par Come, not to sojourn, but abide with me.\par \par "Come, not in terrors, as the King of kings,\par But kind and good, with healing in Your wings,\par Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea\endash\par Come, Friend of sinners, and abide with me.\par \par "You on my head in early youth did smile,\par And, though rebellious and perverse meanwhile\par You have not left me, oft' as I left Thee;\par On to the close, O Lord, abide with me."\par \endash H. F. Lyte\par \par \par \par "Why thus longing, thus forever sighing,\par For the far off, unattained and dim,\par While the beautiful, all round you lying,\par Offers up its low, perpetual hymn?\par \par "Would you listen to its gentle teaching,\par All the restless yearnings it would still;\par Leaf and flower, and laden bee, are preaching.\par Your own sphere, though humble, first to fill.\par \par "Poor indeed you must be, if around you\par You no ray of light and joy can throw\par If no silken cord of love has bound you\par To some little world through weal and woe.\par \par "If no dear eyes your fond love can brighten,\par No fond voices answer to your own;\par If no brother's sorrow you can lighten,\par By daily sympathy and gentle tone.\par \par "Not by deeds that the crowd applauses,\par Not by works that give the world renown,\par Not by martyrdom, or vaunted crosses,\par Can you win and wear the immortal crown.\par \par "Daily struggling, though enclosed and lonely,\par Every day a rich reward will give;\par You will find, by hearty striving, only,\par And truly loving, you can truly live."\par \endash Anon.\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par }  Ye13 Abiding with God{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 ABIDING WITH GOD\par \par 1 Cor. 7:24--"Brethren, let every man wherein he is called therein abide with God."\par \par Such was Paul's memorable decision in reply to certain questions proposed to him by the Church of Cor "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits to me?" Psalm 116:12\par \par The Christian, as he journeys onwards in the pathway of life, ought frequently to look back, and standing, as it were, on the shadowy side of the hill, review the way by which God has led him. If we would keep alive our gratitude--if we would have it to increase more and more, until, like a holy flame, it burns within us--we must often, in thought, retrace the varied turnings and windings of our earthly pilgrimage. We are so prone, amid our daily duties and our converse with the world, to forget and overlook the benefits received, that only by a careful and frequent retrospect, can we continue, from day to day, cherishing a spirit of true and ever-increasing thankfulness to God. But, the oftener we make the review, the greater cause will we have for saying, with David, "Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my father's house, that you have brought me hitherto?"\par \par Christian! you cannot indeed reckon up all the benefits you have received from the hand of God--for they are numerous as the stars of heaven or the drops of the mighty ocean. Your common mercies--alas! too lightly valued--the air you breathe--the return of the gladsome sunlight--the succession of the seasons--and the quiet and gentle stillness and repose of night--all these, with their unnumbered host of attendant blessings, are scattered on your path. But, select a few of the benefits you have received, if only to awaken fresh gratitude.\par \par You have enjoyed, it may be, years of unbroken HEALTH--or, if you have been visited by sickness, you have been, through God's infinite mercy, restored. While others have been tossing for weary months upon the bed of languishing, and many been hurried into eternity, as in the suddenness of a moment, unprepared and impenitent--you are still in the land of the living and the place of hope. Look into the full graves around you--think of the myriad sick-beds, with their suffering tenants, and, surely the language of the Psalmist is yours, "What shall I render unto the Lord for all His benefits to me?"\par \par Consider, too, your FAMILY MERCIES. To some who read these pages, the past may have brought bereavement and sorrow. It must be so, in this ever-changing world\endash\par "The air is full of farewells to the dying,\par And mournings for the dead."\par \par But, there are others who have been spared such sorrows, Reader! your wife, your children, are this day by your side--the family hearth has been unbroken, the family circle undiminished--diseases, which have thinned the ranks of other little groups, and darted the arrow into other family bands, have passed by your door. Or, if some are absent from you, having gone forth into the world to fight the battle of life, you have reason to hope that they are well, and are prospering in that state of life to which it has pleased God to call them, and, in thus preserving these loved ones, have you not had cause to mark the good hand of an all-wise and watchful Providence, secretly and wonderfully working for your happiness and comfort?\par \par Reflect, too, on the manifold SPIRITUAL MERCIES you have enjoyed--mercies, from so many withheld--the Word of God in your home--the house of God to worship in--the means of grace--the hallowed rest of the Sabbath--seasons of holy communion--times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord. Think, too, of the communications of grace from above--comforting, sustaining, preventing grace--grace for the family and the closet, the church, and the world--and, will you not again say, "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits!"\par \par Christian! let us help you to give an answer to the question. If you are truly grateful, you will love the Lord. This is the best return you can make for His innumerable blessings--His unmerited favors--it is what He chiefly demands, without which, all other returns are valueless and of no account. This is "the first and great commandment"--the sum and substance of all religious and grateful obedience, that we "love the Lord our God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our strength, and with all our mind."\par \par If you are truly grateful to God, you will honor Him with your hope and trust--you will make Him the object of devout address and prayer for time to come. In nothing does God declare Himself more honored by His children, than in being regarded with firm trust and confidence--and, not only is it true that the more we ask, the more we shall receive--but the oftener we ask, the more readily and cheerfully will the blessing be bestowed. Nothing is more pleasing and delightful to Him who is the Fountain of all grace, than to have humble, trusting souls coming to His footstool, and, by earnest prayers offered up in faith, drawing forth out of the inexhaustible stores of His bounty, what they stand in need of, to strengthen them for daily duty, or to support them under painful trial.\par \par If you are truly grateful to God for His benefits, you will strive to walk before Him in the land of the living. It will be your effort to serve God in all the duties of a sincere and exemplary--of a holy and grateful obedience. You will make the pious regularity of your life, testify to your sincere gratitude. You will endeavor to maintain always on your mind a lively sense of His abiding presence, in order that you may make it your chief and constant care, to approve yourself in His sight.\par \par If you are truly grateful, you will be careful to pay your vows unto the Lord. Such was the resolution of the Psalmist, and, surely, it is an indispensable return for the countless benefits received. Reader! here there is much room for heart-searching--the promise, made upon a sick-bed, where is its fulfillment? the resolution, formed when the star of hope again glimmered on your pathway, where is it now? the secret purpose, awakened in the soul by some providential deliverance, has it ever reached its accomplishment?\par \par Finally, gratitude to God for His benefits, will tend to increase your delight in His service. Your gratitude and obedience are sure to rise and fall together. Gratitude to God for benefits received, recommends us to His favor, and ensures the bestowal of others yet more precious and soul-satisfying. Gratitude keeps His hand ever open--dispensing His gifts yet more profusely. Christian! be this then your prayer\endash\par \par "O God, endue me with a spirit of true and pious gratitude for all Your benefits--temporal and spiritual; maintain and increase the same in my heart. Grant me the blessing of a thankful spirit, and dispose me ever to take delight in Your service."\par \par "And will You now forget me, Lord?\par Oh, no! it cannot be;\par No earthly tongue can ever tell\par What You have been to me.\par \par "Through all the chequered scenes of life\par Your love has sheltered me;\par And will You now forsake Your child?\par Oh, no! it cannot be.\par \par "In life, or death, I take my stand,\par Where I have ever stood,\par Beneath the shelter of Your cross,\par And trusting in Your blood.\par \par "And then, when youth, and health, and strength,\par And energy have fled,\par The shades of evening peacefully\par Shall close around my head."\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } HHu==14 Gratitude{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 GRATITUDE\par \par find grace to help us when we need it." Hebrews 4:16\par \par To the Christian pilgrim, no promises are more encouraging, than those which assure him of an answer to believing prayer. His times of need are so numerous--his neediness so pressing--his hours of anxiety and fear so frequent, that this thought alone sustains his soul, "I have a prayer-hearing and a prayer-answering God." Is it a time of prosperity? then he has need to pray, "Lord, allow me not to forget You." Is it a time of adversity? then he has need to pray, "Lord, let me not be forgotten by You." Is it a time of health? then he has need to pray, "Lord, give me grace to use it for Your Glory." Is it a time of sickness? then he has need to pray, "Lord, make me patient and submissive to Your will." At all times, indeed--even when no words are uttered--when imploring no special blessing from on high--the Christian ought to cherish the spirit of prayer. That time, assuredly, is the time of severest need, when no need is felt, and no desire is cherished for a yet larger increase of grace and strength.\par \par True, times there often are in the Christian life, when the soul, burdened--distracted--filled with earthly things, cannot enter into sweet and prayerful communion with its God--when the consciousness of sin and of unworthiness causes it, with fear and trembling, to "stand afar off." But blessed be God, there is, for such a "time of need," a gracious promise--"And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don't even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words."\par \par Yes, in the fullness of His grace and tenderness, He reveals the Savior to the soul, as the all-prevailing Intercessor--the Advocate at God's right hand. He turns the eye away from self and sin, to the Lamb of God whose blood is all-sufficient to cleanse and purify. He inspires the earnest supplication, "Lord, undertake for me." He clothes the weeping penitent in the robe of the Redeemer's righteousness, so that it may appear with acceptance before him who is "of purer eyes than to behold iniquity;" and He draws persuasively to a Throne of Grace--Himself "praying for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words." Precious encouragement! Jesus at the Father's right hand--the Holy Spirit breathing in us the longing--the desire--the humble petition--Jesus presenting the merits of His perfect sacrifice--the Spirit enabling us to rest by faith on the blood of sprinkling; Jesus with His eye of love on the kneeling suppliant--the Spirit animating the soul with hope, and reinfusing "peace and joy in believing."\par \par Christian! remember the throne to which you are invited is peculiarly the throne of grace. God has His throne of justice--His throne of holiness--His throne of providence, but this is the throne of grace. He occupies it as the God of grace, and He holds out from it the scepter of grace. All the blessings He bestows from it are blessings of grace. They are not to be purchased, but are given "without money and without price." They are not conferred because of any merit or worthiness of ours, but are the free, generous gift of divine grace. Not to the rich and mighty only are they offered, but to the poorest, the humblest--the most abject. Oh, is not this the very throne we need? We are poor and wretched--blind and helpless--sinful and vile. We have no righteousness of our own--no merits of our own--no plea of our own. But, blessed be God, here we may have every need supplied. It was erected for poor and needy suppliants just as we are. And, from age to age, myriads of helpless and heavy-laden souls have gathered round it, and poured forth their desires to "the Hearer and the Answerer of prayer." Toiling painfully through a world of woe, they have here found rest--faint and thirsty in the valley of tears, they have here been refreshed and invigorated--wandering solitary through earth's dreary wilderness, they have here enjoye d holy and heavenly communion with the Father of their spirits--opposed and beset by hostile enemies, they have here found strength, and support, and protection. Yes, the weak have been strengthened--the downcast encouraged--the helpless relieved--the sorrowful comforted--the poor enriched, by drawing near to a throne of grace.\par \par And it is, besides, ever near at hand. Go where the Christian may, he is never distant from a throne of grace. In the quiet of his chamber, or amid the bustle of daily toil--on the bed of sickness, or engaged in the anxieties of business--in the sanctuary, or in the market place--on the Sabbath, or during the week--in his home, or in the street--wherever he may be, he can, at any moment, lift up his heart to the Lord, assured that he shall be heard; and, if good for him, his request shall be granted. "It shall come to pass," says the Lord, "that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear." "The eyes of the Lord are upon the righ teous, and His ears are open unto their cry. The righteous cry, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near unto those who are of a broken heart, and saves such as be of a contrite spirit."\par \par Yes; the humble cottager, when he gathers round him his little flock, and, at the family altar, kneels in his lowly dwelling, is worshiping in heaven--the very scene where ten thousand times ten thousand bright and beautiful beings weave the high chorus of enrapt ured adoration. The wanderer on the waters, whose voice seems drowned amid the din of the tempest, is speaking audibly within the veil, where is cast that 'anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast,' by which a universe might hold, and never know shipwreck. The soldier, who, amid the thunders of the battle field, or by his lonely watch-fire, breathes forth a prayer indited by the Holy Spirit, his utterance is heard above, far away from the tented field and the crash of war--where the pilgrim rests from  all his labors. On the land and on the sea, at home or abroad, in the publicity of business, or in the privacy of retirement, "the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry."\par \par Christian! if you would have strength for duty--patience for trial, and deliverance out of trouble--if you would have that inward peace which the world can neither give nor take away--if you would tread the Pathway of Promise cheerfully and hopefully, you must give yourself unto prayer. It is alike your blessed privilege, and your solemn duty. It brings you into the nearest and most intimate communion with your God you can have upon earth. It gives new life to the drooping spirit--it imparts new vigor to faith--new fervor to love--new intensity to zeal. It raises the desires and affections above the things of the present world, and fastens them on the things which are above. It draws down from the heavenly storehouse the richest blessings of the covenant of grace. It secures, in every time of need, the help of Him who is all-mighty--the guidance of Him who cannot err--the protection of Him who rules in heaven and on earth--the love and sympathy of Him, who "spared not His own Son but gave Him up unto death for us all," and who, with Him, will also "freely give us all things."\par \par Oh, then, whatever be your need, come "with boldness" to the Throne of grace--not the boldness which would attempt to dictate to God--not the boldness which would prescribe to Him who "knows what things we have need of before we ask Him"--but the boldness of a loving, trustful child who confides in a Father's tenderness--who is conscious of a Father's love, and who is ready to unburden itself of all its cares, and griefs, and anxieties, assured that He will "withhold no good thing." Come thus to the mercy-seat, and you will not be sent empty away. You will "obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need"--reviving, quickening, restraining, sanctifying grace--grace for sunshine and for storm--grace for health and for sickness--grace for joy and for sorrow--grace for the family and for the world--grace for living and for dying. Let nothing keep you at a distance from the throne of grace--not even your sins and shortcomings--your unbelief--your coldness--your ingratitude. Mourn over these; let tears of penitence flow at the remembrance of them--but stay not away--seek the renewal of the "blood of sprinkling"--go to Him who is "a merciful God, full of compassion, long-suffering, and of great pity." Detail your every anxiety in the ear of Divine sympathy--plead for mercy through the merits of Christ's atoning blood, and rely with humble faith on God's promises of pardon. Repair with every difficulty to Divine wisdom, and seek the supply of every want out of the Divine resources.\par \par Remember, the gate of access is ever open, and the winged prayer will, in an instant, bring the Savior near--in all the intensity of His love--in all the fullness of His grace--in all the omnipotence of His strength--in all the sweetness of His sympathy, and assurance of His death-destroying might, into your faint and failing heart. Your experience will be that of David, "I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my voice; and He gave ear unto me. You have kept my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings will I rejoice."\par \par Let this, then, be the language of your soul\endash\par  "O merciful God, who have graciously promised Your Holy Spirit to those who ask You, grant that I may enjoy His blessed influence. May He teach me how to pray, and stir me up to greater earnestness, that, loving You above all things, and relying ever upon Your grace, I may be able to rejoice in the hope of eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."\par \par "My God! is any hour so sweet,\par From blush of morn to evening star,\par As that which calls me to Your feet\endash\par The hour of prayer?\par \par "Blessed is the tranquil hour of morn,\par And blessed that hour of solemn eve,\par When on the wings of prayer upborne,\par The world I leave.\par \par "Then is my strength by You renewed,\par Then are my sins by You forgiven;\par Then do You cheer my solitude\par With hope of heaven.\par \par "No words can tell what sweet relief\par There for my every need I find;\par What strength for warfare, balm for grief\endash\par What peace of mind.\par \par "Hushed is each doubt, gone every fear,\par My spirit seems in heaven to stay;\par And even the penitential tear\par Is wiped away.\par \par "Lord! until I reach that blissful shore,\par No privilege so dear shall be\par As thus my inmost soul to pour\par In prayer to Thee." \endash Anon.\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } wUI16 Divine Teaching{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\)1115 Prayer{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 PRAYER\par \par "So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 DIVINE TEACHING\par \par Psalm 25:5--"Lead me in your truth, and teach me."\par \par The Bible is the Christian pilgrim's guide-book. It points out the path he is to follow; it reveals the mountains of difficulty, and the valleys of doubt and fear along which he is to traverse; it tells him of the dangers he has to encounter, and the enemies that lie in ambush to assail and overcome him. It encourages his heart, by directing the eye of faith to Him who has already trodden every step of the wilderness journey, and to the noble band of followers whom He has safely conducted to the heavenly Canaan. It traces man's progress, from the corruptible to the incorruptible--from the feeble and dishonored to the mighty and the glorious--from the companionship of the worm to the presence of God and the enjoyment of celestial communion. It gives him the assurance of strength for the journey, and blessing at its close--of redemption begun, carried forward, and completed.\par \par Blessed be God! the time has gone by, when the pages of this sacred volume were shut by the tyranny of man--when the light was hidden, which God intended should give comfort and peace to myriads. The poorest in our land can now make it his morning and his evening companion--he can there satisfy the yearnings of his heart, and find a rich and sufficing and gracious provision for all his needs. He can cling to it in his darkest and saddest times--in his hours of trial--in the day of his strife and his struggle with inbred corruption, and with the powers of darkness--and he may bear witness at the close of his experience, that "nothing has failed him of any good thing which the Lord has promised," and, with glowing language, though it be with the faint and the faltering voice of a dying man, bear his testimony in the confession, "Your Word, O God, is Truth."\par \par  But the Bible is a sealed book--it is dark, unmeaning, profitless, without Divine teaching. Our eyes must be opened by a heavenly agency, before we can perceive, much less embrace, its truths as we ought--before we can adopt and apply them--as our guide and stay, amid the wilderness of this world--our hope and expectation of life and immortality in the world that is to come. Ours must be the prayer of the Psalmist, "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Your law." We must read our Bibles with the prayer to the God of all grace, that He would reveal to us the wisdom, and love, and blessedness contained in the sacred volume--that He would impress them on our hearts, and enable us to make them "our song in the house of our pilgrimage." If thus we pray, and read, and look for the Spirit, He will meet us in the Book of God--He will shine upon the sacred page--He will testify of Christ to us, we will find Jesus in the Bible--our Savior, our God, our Lord, our All in All. Truths will flash in upon our minds we never knew before--comfort will be derived from promises we had often read with little interest, and, gradually, the volume of inspiration will become more plain--in every season of doubt or emergency, we well know where to look for guidance, and strength, and comfort.\par \par Christian! is it thus you read the Word of God, with the prayer that God would teach you, that He would unfold the riches of His grace in Christ, that He would open up the wondrous page of revelation to your heart, and give you grace to believe those deeper truths, whose meaning you are now, while in the infancy of your being, unable fully to comprehend? We doubt not, you can recall many "wondrous things," already revealed to your soul--revealed, not by the mere perusal of the words, but by the inspiration and teaching of God's Holy Spirit. You can remember that sweet PROMISE which calmed your troubled heart, and made you erect an Ebenezer in your pathway. Was it not "wondrous" in its power?\par \pa r You can remember, when the world and the things of the WORLD were drawing you farther and farther from God--when your gourd withered in a night--when, perhaps, some cherished idol was dashed in pieces--how these words appeared on the sacred page, invested with new and mightier power, "It is I, be not afraid."\par \par You can remember when TEMPTATION assailed you, or when summer friends deserted you, or when the enemy came in like a flood--how "wondrous" were the disclosures of God's !Word--how exactly suited to your case--how comforting to your soul. Not until then, had the verses struck you--not until then, had the words been invested with living power. You had read them often, but you needed not their comfort--only when that wound was open and bleeding--only when that cross became heavy and painful--only when that grief was sorest and most overwhelming, did you take them to your heart; and then, impressed by the Spirit of the living God, they were full of peace and comfort, "immedia"tely there was a great calm."\par \par Believer! continue to implore that Spirit's help, and still "wondrous" things will come to you in your hours of need. Still, the longer you live, you will get the promise, when it is required--the comfort, when nothing else can soothe--the assurance, when doubt and disquietude are doing their worst to harass and agitate your soul--and, onwards still, through all eternity, these "wondrous" things will be revealed. You will read in the open volume of God's Wo#rd, explanations of difficulties--the wisdom of appointments--the love and tenderness of a Father in all your Father's dealings. You will realize then how needful was the discipline you had to undergo on earth--how needful the heavy trial, and the heartrending bereavement--the blighting of fond hopes and the failure of cherished plans. No longer will be heard the murmur, "All these things were against me," but the willing, grateful acknowledgment, "All these things wrought together for my good." "Faithful$ is He that promised." He knew the path which would certainly conduct to glory--the path which He Himself had trodden, and He led me by "the right way."\par \par Yes, Christian! there will be bright unfoldings in yonder world. Ardently as you loved your Savior on earth, oh, what will be your ardor!--what the overflowing of your love in heaven!--when you find His every promise fulfilled--His every assurance realized--His every word made good--and the whole of your earthly experience stamped with %the seal of Divine faithfulness and Divine love! No more doubts or fears--no more unbelieving questionings--no more dark and mysterious moments--no more sad and sorrowful days, but, "fullness of joy and pleasures at God's right hand for evermore."\par \par Believer, these joys yet await you. They may not be far distant. But your journey is not ended, your home is not reached. If, then, you would have comfort by the way--if you would have courage, and skill, and strength, to surmount the obstacle&s which may lie in your path--oh, let your daily prayer be\endash\par \par "Lead me in Your truth, and teach me. Lord\endash 'teach me' that You have loved me, and given Yourself for me--that You have bought me with Your blood--that I am Yours. 'Teach me' that You are my Wisdom, my Righteousness, my Sanctification, my Redemption, my Help in difficulty, my Refuge in danger, my Ark of safety across the swelling Jordan, and my All in All throughout eternity. 'Teach me' that Your Spirit is my Comfor'ter, my Counselor, my Guide. 'Teach me' that the promises of Your Word are mine--its precepts, and testimonies, and statutes, all mine--its entreaties, and warnings, and preservatives, all mine--mine by the free gift of the Father--mine by the purchase of the blood of God's dear Son--mine by the teaching of the Holy Spirit the Comforter--mine by a perpetual covenant, never to be violated or forgotten--mine whereby to live, and mine wherein to die."\par \par "There are those who sigh that no fond( heart is theirs;\par None loves them best. Oh vain and selfish sigh!\par Out of the bosom of His love He spares\endash\par The Father spares the Son, for you to die.\par For you He died. For you He lives again;\par O'er you He watches in His boundless reign."\par \endash Keble\par \par \par "Lord, many times I am aweary quite\par Of mine own self, my sin, my vanity;\par Yet be not You, or I am lost outright,\par Weary of me.\par \par "And hate against myself I often bear,\par And enter with myself in fierce debate;\par Take not my part against myself, nor share\par In that just hate.\par \par "Best friends might loathe us, if what things perverse\par We know of our own selves, they also knew:\par Lord, Holy One! if You, who know worse,\par Should loathe us too!"\par \endash R. C. Trench\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } *1.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 FAITHFULNESS\par \par "Remain faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life." Rev. 2:10\par \par The pathway to heaven is not alike to all. There are those who become speedily ripe for glory--those who reach the close of their journey, before, to human appearance, it has been well begun; while others have to bear the burden and heat of the day, to toil onwards for many stages, and to see the shadow+s of the evening slowly gathering in upon their weary footsteps. But to all, the words are addressed, "Remain faithful even when facing death"--"be faithful, even should your life be periled--be faithful until the hour of your departure comes." Life is not always to be reckoned by the number of its days; it is possible for the longest to be really briefer than the shortest, for\endash\par "We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths;\par In feelings, not in figures on a dial.\p,ar We should count time by heart-throbs.\par He most lives\par Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best."\par \par Yet, as we know not how long the journey may be, we should remember that we are called to be "faithful unto death." It is time that tries a man's love to the Savior--time, with its changes and sorrows, its varying labors and temptations. It is the long dark night that puts to the test the watchful servant, and the winds and storms that beat upon h-im. It is not the fierce onset that tries the soldier, it is the march through the burning sands--it is passive courage and endurance the soldier requires. And so, it is the passive virtues the Christian has to exercise to the close of life that try his fidelity.\par \par Not far has he journeyed, when he finds, that the road to Canaan is through an enemy's country, that a wilderness intervenes, in which there is many a brier and many a thorn, and that his courage and endurance will be severely .tested. Foes lie in wait, to tempt him from his allegiance, at every turn in his path. Wherever he is--in the mart of commerce--when he toils in the workshop--when he returns to his home--when he rests on his bed, in the bustle of the day, and in the silence of the night--in the bosom of his family--in society--alone--in the fields--in the church--in his secret retirement--he can never elude the enemy--he carries the foe in his own breast, the conflict ceases not--there is no intermission of time--no seas/on of rest--there are no truces sounded--no flag is ever unfurled that can be trusted; if he halts, it is at his peril; if he pauses, it is to be wounded; if he temporizes, it is to prove himself unfaithful.\par \par It is a conflict "until death;" until the end, it is true, "we wrestle." The oldest Christian cannot relax his vigilance--cannot lay aside his weapons, if he would be a "faithful soldier of Christ Jesus." Faith must be in constant exercise. He must "put on the whole armor of God:"--0righteousness as his breastplate, the hope of salvation as his helmet, the sword of the Spirit, bright and shining--keeping ever near his Captain--looking ever to Him, relying ever on His guidance, and following ever His footsteps. Oh! it is not so easy to remain "faithful," surrounded as we here are by countless enticements to infidelity. It is easy, to live the lives of some Christians--easy, to wander languidly over the soft and flowery meadow--easy, to float dreamily down the smooth and placid stream 1of time; but, not easy, to climb the rough and craggy cliff--not easy, to stem the tempestuous billows, and resist the downward current. And this is what the faithful Christian has to do. He has to be in the world, yet not of the world; he has to come out of it--not by monastic seclusion, but by mastering its temptations--to be diligent in its duties, yet not absorbed by them--appreciating its innocent delights, yet not ensnared by them--gazing upon its attractions, and yet rising superior to them. If he 2would be "faithful," he must live surrounded by objects which appeal to the sight, and, yet "endure as seeing Him who is invisible." He must pray, often seeing no answer to prayer, and still pray on--he must war in this warfare, finding fresh foes continually rising up, and still war on--harassed with doubts and fears, he must walk on in darkness, though he see no light, staying himself daily upon his God.\par \par Christian! to be thus faithful is no easy task. It is not in your own might that 3you will continue steadfast. Like the great apostle, you must look for your "sufficiency" in God. See what Divine strength enabled him to achieve! "He kept the faith" at Antioch, even when the infatuated crowd attempted to drown his voice with their clamor, and "interrupted him, contradicting and blaspheming." He "kept the faith" at Iconium, when the "envious Jews stirred up the people to stone him." He "kept the faith" at Lystra, when the fate of Stephen became almost his, and he was dragged, wounded and4 bleeding outside the ramparts of the town, and left there to languish, and, for anything they cared, to die. He "kept the faith" against his erring brother Peter, and "withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed." He "kept the faith" when "shamefully treated at Philippi," and made the dungeon echo back the praises of his God. He "kept the faith" in Thessalonica, when "lewd fellows of the baser sort accused him falsely of sedition." He "kept the faith" at Athens, when, to the world's sages, he 5preached of Him whom they ignorantly worshiped as "the Unknown God." He "kept the faith" at Corinth, when compelled to abandon that hardened and obdurate city, and to shake off the very dust from his garments as a testimony against it. He "kept the faith" at Ephesus, when he pointed his hearers, not to Diana, but to Jesus Christ, as their only Savior. He "kept the faith" in Jerusalem, when stoned by the enraged and agitated mob--when stretched upon the torturing rack and bound with iron fetters. He "kept 6the faith" in Caesarea, before the trembling conscience-stricken Felix, when he "reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come." He "kept the faith" before Agrippa, and, by his earnestness, compelled the king to say, "you almost persuade me to be a Christian;" and, even in the closing hours of life--when the last storm was gathering over his head--when lying in the dark and dismal Roman cell--he wrote these triumphant words, "I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at h7and. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith--henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day."\par \par "Look in and see Christ's chosen saint\par In triumph wear his Christ-like chain\endash\par No fear lest he should swerve or faint\endash\par His life is Christ, his death is gain."\par \par Christian! the same strength to continue faithful is p8romised you--for, to every true believer the assurance is given, that if they abide steadfast by the Cross, they shall fear no evil. The conflict, in which they are to engage, is arduous and incessant, but they are not left without encouragement. They have solid armor--they have a mighty Champion--victory is insured to the brave. Others have stood on the same battle-field--they have contended with the same foes--and, having continued "faithful unto death," they now enjoy their triumph. Not one faithful wa9rrior ever perished--none who ever enlisted beneath the Savior's banner ever fell upon the field, for, upon that banner there is written, in unfading characters, "No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper." Our foes are not mightier than the foes they mastered who are now in glory; but our strength is still the same, they overcame by the same blood of the covenant--they triumphed through the same Lord. Let us, then, enter the lists with the enemy, fearless--confiding in Him who has all power in h:eaven and in earth.\par \par Christians! sheathe not the sword, and it shall never be wrested from you--lay not down the shield, and no fiery dart shall ever penetrate it--face the foe, and he shall never trample you down or drive you back. Listen to your Captain--how He animates you onward, "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life." Remember! "here is the time of the enemy, eternity is the time of the conqueror--here is the time of the cross, eternity is the time of the crow;n--here is the time of the sword, eternity is the time of the palm--here is the time of the tempest, eternity is the time of peace."\par \par Amid your daily struggles--your fightings within and fears without--in the dark hour of sorrow--in the cheerless night of sickness--in the stern conflict with the world, the flesh, and the devil--let the eye of faith gaze on the incorruptible crown, the golden harp, and the tree of life--above all, contemplate the blood-stained banner of the Cross which flize, on high you will receive it; and, if at any time your spirits seem to flag in the midst of the strife, and the conflict--if, through manifold temptations, your hearts begin to grow cold in the cause and service of your Lord--then, call to mind your Savior's animating words, "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life."\par \par Christian! "be not weary in well-doing, for in due season you shall reap if you faint not." Toil on, patiently and manfully, in the Master's work--d?o battle with evil, both within and without. Be gaining daily some new victory over sin. Deny yourself. Be a willing cross-bearer for your Savior's sake, and, then, the long, long rest will come--rest, in heaven, from sin and sorrow, from conflict and temptation. Anticipate that rest, and, let the thought of it nerve you for your daily struggle, and stir you up to fight the battle, to which the Captain of your salvation has called you. "Then, in the border land, to you, as to the pilgrims of old, angel vo@ices will come from the heavenly city--the air of the country of Beulah will be sweet and pleasant, and, as you near your home, its glories will expand to your wondering heart. With Hopeful in the 'Pilgrim's Progress,' look up at the Celestial Gate, and see men in bright clothing ready to receive you--see, the shining crown prepared, which is to grace your brow, and the golden harp ready, from whose chords you are to bring the melody of praise, and the seat awaiting you, which you are to occupy as eternalA ages roll on."\par \par Christian! be patient--be faithful, "until the coming of your Lord;" let your soul anchor itself on the unshaken Rock of the Divine faithfulness. It is not life, and it is not death, which shall be able to separate you from your Redeemer--all shall be overcome. The triple band of the world, the flesh, and the devil, shall be vanquished in the might of the Triune God; and, when your spirit has departed for the realms of everlasting recompense, angel spirits will chant theB anthem over your bier, "Rest, warrior, rest," and surviving relatives take comfort in the thought, "He overcame the world, and the victory was by faith."\par \par Then, "all will be peace--no tempest will beat upon you there, no storms will disturb you there, no foe will assail you there. The tear will be dried, the throbbing heart will be hushed, and the harp, which has often sounded no note, but when fitfully swept by the passing breeze, will be strung for the rich and sweet music of the skieCs. Then will you take your place triumphant upon the summit of Mount Zion--amid that countless army of the Faithful, who have retired forever from the field of conflict, where every man has been a soldier, every soldier a hero, and every hero a conqueror. With them, you will repose beneath the fig-tree, and enjoy the fruits of peace; and those fruits will be all the sweeter, by the contrast of the perils through which you have passed on the way. In the enjoyment of victory, you will think of the conflict-D-while waving the palm, you will think of the sword--while there in peace and happiness, you will think of the danger and the peril through which you pressed to reach that blessed world of safety." Believer! be this your prayer\endash\par \par "O God! enable me, by Your grace, to fight the good fight--to continue faithful unto death, that I may at length receive the crown of life."\par \par "Lay down the shield, and leave the sword,\par For now your work is done;\par EAnd swiftly towards the glowing east,\par Ascends the rising sun.\par Angelic guards wait with the day\par Your crown of light to bring;\par 'O grave, where is your victory?\par O death, where is your sting?'\par \par "Bravely first you upheld the shield\par The path of conquest trod;\par And followed in the battlefield\par The banner of your God.\par The hour of rest approaches near,\par And waiting heralds sing,\par 'O grave, where is your victory?\par O death, where is your sting?'\par \par "They come, they come, and high in air\par Is borne the Victor's wreath,\par Who overthrew, in glorious war,\par The world, the grave, and death.\par There, there they wait to welcome you,\par And high their triumphs ring,\par 'O grave, where is your victory?\par O death, where is your sting.'"\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par }  QU18 God's Presence{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkiG!I 17 Faithfulness{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.1)Hnd4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 GOD'S PRESENCE\par \par Exodus 33:14--"And He said, My presence shall go with you."\par \par The children of Israel had grievously sinned--the cloudy pillar had disappeared--the anger of the Lord was kindled, and the courage of Moses failed. Earnestly he pleaded in behalf of the erring people, and at length he prevailed. The Lord assured His servant, that His gracious presence would still accompany him, in leading Israel to Canaan, the promisIed rest.\par \par God's presence! Reader! reflect on this high honor. That He who reigns supreme amid the hosts of heaven--who is King of kings and Lord of lords, should condescend to become the friend, the companion of sinful, erring man. Was ever pilgrim more honored? ever traveler in better company? Yet God has ever been, and ever will be, the companion of those who fear Him. Enoch walked with God. Abram was addressed in these words--"Walk before Me, and be perfect." Christian! have you not aJlso realized the fulfillment of the gracious promise? "Yes," methinks I hear you say, "It has been the mainstay--the very life of my faith and trust, in the hour of trial--it has enabled me to lift up my head on high, and to exclaim, even from the deep waters, 'Yet will I rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.'"\par \par To the true believer, there is no promise so precious and encouraging--it nerves him for conflict--fills him with peace, and animates him with hope. With GoKd by his side, what enemy need he fear? what path refuse to enter? Is he stripped of worldly prosperity? He has One who can a thousandfold make up for the loss. Is he called to resign the loved and the cherished, and to pass through the troubled waters of affliction? "I am still with you," calms the anguish of his soul, and is as balm to the wounded spirit. Whatever else maybe taken from him, he knows that if "he keeps near to God, God will keep near to him;" that, amid flame and flood, amid storm and calLm, in pain and health, in peril and safety, "the eternal God will be his refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."\par \par Reader! do you sometimes feel that God is not near to you--that your confidence, your faith, your strength have failed you? Ah! may not this be the reason? You have wandered from God. His presence is near, but you perceive it not, The world--its joys, and pleasures, and cares, have come between, and darkness is spreading, all around and within you. Oh! hasten to youMr Father and your God; away from these passing vanities, and, again, He will take you by the hand, and lift up upon you the light of His countenance. Let our past experience of "the joy of His presence" constrain you to "count all things else but loss"--that you may have the fulfillment, the realization of this sweet promise.\par \par For, if ever you have truly known what it is to have "God by your side," then you know how precious, how delightful is the companionship. It can make the cottage bNright and warm; it can sweeten the hard crust, and make even a cup of water blessed; it can inspire the soul with peace and triumph, in the dark night season of sorrow; and breathe sweet music over the scene of sadness and of gloom. Has it not, in times past, hushed the tempestuous billows, with the gentle command, "Peace, be still?" Has it not filled the dungeon with the voice of praise, and made the inner prison re-echo with the songs of joy? Has it not enabled many a tried believer to say\endash\par O "Let good or ill befall,\par It must be good for me;\par Secure of having You in all,\par Of having all in Thee."\par \par Christian! Be it yours to "walk with God;"--strive to behold Him, by faith, amid your joys and sorrows--in the family, and in the world--in the secrecy of the closet, and in the daily walks of life. See Him, as He fills your cup and makes it run over. See Him, as He dashes it from your lips, not in anger, but to draw you to Himself. See Him,P in the smiles and love of the unbroken family circle, and in the sorrow and sadness which you must feel, as you gaze on the empty chair, or the picture on the wall. See Him, leading you onward, step by step, never failing nor forsaking you, but "faithful unto all His promises." Let this be the language of your soul\endash\par "What though the world deceitful prove,\par And earthly friends and joys remove,\par With patient, uncomplaining love\par Still would I cling to QYou!\par \par "Oft', when I seem to tread alone\par Some barren waste, with thorns o'ergrown,\par Your voice of love, in tenderest tone,\par Whispers, 'Still cling to me!'\par \par "Now that the sun is gleaming bright,\par Implore we, bending low,\par That He, the uncreated Light,\par May guide us as we go.\par \par "No sinful word, nor deed of wrong,\par Nor thoughts that idly rove;\par But simple truth be on our tongue,\par And in our hearts be love.\par \par "And while the hours in order flow,\par O Christ, securely fence\par Our gates, beleaguered by the foe\endash\par The gate of every sense.\par \par "And grant that to Your honor, Lord,\par Our daily toil may tend,\par That we begin it at Your word,\par And in Your favor end."\par \endash Translation of an old Mediaeval Hymn\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } S favor, and the love of God. Apart from Him, the soul is like the troubled sea--it is driven to and fro with perplexing doubts and fears. Only in the consciousness of His "presence" is there security, peace, rest. So Moses knew and felt. The "Shechinah," the visible symbol of the Divine presence, had been withdrawn--there was no longer the assurance of guidance and protection. But, along with the promise of His "presence," God also given the promise of "rest."\par \par Thus was the leader of IsrTael strengthened and encouraged--He trusted God, and verily he was not put to confusion. In the depths of his soul, there was always a consciousness that God was with him--that he had a Friend ever near--a Companion in the journey of life--a Counselor, in whom in every difficulty he could confide, and to whom he could reveal every anxiety, and doubt, and fear. And, when he reached the end of his pilgrimage, the promise was fully realized. When near the borders of the promised land, he received the Divine Umandate, to ascend and survey, from Pisgah's summit, the earthly inheritance of Israel. Obedient to the summons, this aged servant of the Lord commenced his last earthly journey. With quiet, unshaken confidence in the God who had led him hitherto, he prepared to resign his spirit into His hands.\par \par Reader! mark the fulfillment of the promise, "I will give you rest." See the venerable patriarch, "whose eye was not dim, and whose natural force was not abated," beholding with admiring eye, "tVhe land of Gilead, unto Dan, and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea," with the blue waters of the Mediterranean, glittering in the distant sunbeams, "and the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm-trees, unto Zoar." He meditates, and then exclaims, "Your presence, O God, has indeed gone with me. Your promise has been fulfilled. You are true and faithful. Here, then, is the land where my fathers sojourned--the land, fWor the gaining of which, I led the people across the waters of the Red Sea--when Jehovah made bright the shining of His glorious arm--the land, of which He told me it was a good land and large, flowing with milk and honey, full of fertility and beauty--the land, where the hosts whom I have conducted, are destined to dwell in magnificence and might, beneath the banner of the Lord." And, oh! what peace, what rest of soul he enjoys in the prospect of the future--how his eye kindles, as the thought of the gloXrious Antitype--the heavenly Canaan--rises within him, and he feels that he shall shortly and assuredly be there! And how peacefully he bows his head and dies!\par \par Believer, the promise of "rest" is also yours--rest, in the assurance of God's favor here, and rest in the full enjoyment of heaven hereafter. Do not think, because toil and trial, danger and difficulty are before you, that the promise will fail. Remember, amid outward ills there may be inward quiet. When the surface of the lake Yis ruffled by the rough wind, far down in its depths there is perfect calm. Even so in your spirit, when on its surface there is a tossing to and fro, deep down in its secret chambers there is the "peace" of God--the rest of a forgiven soul--the quiet of a beloved, confiding child.\par \par Judge not, that all are at rest who meet you with gleaming eye, and joyous countenance, and merry laugh. Ah? no, their soul "knows its own bitterness." Could you read the pages of their hearts, you would findZ the record of many woes--secret, painful, agonizing griefs, known only to themselves--unforgiven sins, distracting fears, perplexing doubts, which ever and anon, amid the ceaseless whirl of gaiety, send an arrow through the soul. The "rest" which is found in the "presence" of God, alone can be said to have any reality. Then, amid the sorest trials and heaviest bereavements--amid pain and sickness--amid the wildest, the fiercest gusts of outward fortune--it is no strange thing, to mark the continuance of [a holy, of an almost unearthly peace. On the cheek wasted by disease, or on the pale and pain-contracted brow, or on the Christian pilgrim, just standing on the brink of Jordan's stream, has not seldom been witnessed the calmness of a heavenly "rest;" and, from lips quivering with anguish--yes, convulsed in the throes of death, have fallen words of meek resignation, and even joyful hope, that told, how the peace of the spirit can triumph over all outward pain.\par \par "No smile is like the smil\e of death,\par When, all good musings past,\par Rise, wafted with the parting breath,\par The sweetest thought, the last."\par \par And, O believer! think of the future fulfillment of this sweet promise--when the battle of life will be ended, the conflict over, the stormy ocean crossed, the haven of eternal repose at last entered--"there remains a rest for the people of God." Yes! there is a "rest" in heaven--not the rest of inactivity--not the indolence of a Pagan el]ysium, or a carnal Mohammedan paradise; but the quiet of a soul reposing on its God, and delighting ever in His service. Labor is rest to the loving spirit--congenial work is not toil; and in heaven, though the redeemed "rest not day nor night," yet theirs is a peaceful, congenial activity. The work, which on earth gave rise to the feeling of effort, then passes into pleasure; and the soul's repose is in goodness--a goodness, which has become a very necessity, and in which, holy thoughts and works are as ^devoid of effort as song to a bird, or fragrance to the summer flower. There is endless repose, yet endless activity--unwearied, yet delightful employment in the service of God. No more shall the redeemed grieve and mourn--no more shall tears of sorrow and disappointment fall, or the heart be surcharged with affliction and distress. The anxious troubles and the bitter cares of life are never felt in the realms of glory; for there, no seductive pleasure misleads--no ambition unduly excites--no carking thou_ghts fetter and cramp the soul.\par \par Then will you enjoy a peace and tranquillity--a heavenly "rest," which even an angel's voice could not describe, and be with Him, who has been the source of all your earthly happiness--Him, by whose sorrow you were made to rejoice--Him, by whose grace your nature was renewed--Him, who was your Advocate when you offended--who blessed you all your life long--who communicated to you His Holy Spirit--who showed towards you a patience which nothing could exhau`st, a love which passes understanding--who, though you outraged, and dishonored, and forgot, and turned away from Him, would never turn away from you, until He had conducted you in safety to His everlasting kingdom.\par \par Believer! fear not the passage to that "rest." The apostle was willing to brave the swellings of Jordan, because of the beauty of the land that lies beyond it. "I have a desire," he says, "to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better." He was ready to pass through thae fiery ordeal, because conscious of the truth, that the skirts of his garment only should be injured, while the soul, safe as in the citadel of God, should only shine with greater luster, rising on imperishable pinions, and resting not, until it should soar and sing with the seraphim beside the throne.\par \par Journey on, then, child of God, grasping firmly the promise, "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest."\par \par Be calm in the contemplation of your departure;b leave every future step of your earthly pilgrimage in the hands of Him who will lead you by "the right way." Seek to have more of the mind of Christ. Be earnest in prayer. Let the Word of God be your daily study--"a light to your feet, and a lamp to your path." Live ever to the glory of God--and, by the faithful, conscientious discharge of the duties of your calling, be "an example to the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." Thus advance onward in the "Pathwayc of Promise;" and, when the close of the journey is reached, the voice of Him "whom having not seen, you love," will then whisper these encouraging words, "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, thde Holy One of Israel, your Savior." Isaiah 43:1-3\par \par "Rise, my soul, and stretch your wing,\par Your better portion trace;\par Rise from transitory things\par Towards heaven, your native place."\par \par "God of all grace, by whose good hand upon me I have hitherto been guided in my pilgrimage, hold me up, and so I shall be safe. Allow me no more to wander from Your ways, or to grow weary in keeping Your commandments. Make me watchful against temptatione, strong in faith, diligent in duty, patient in trial, and fervent in prayer. And, in Your own good time, may I be permitted to enter into that rest which remains for the people of God."\par \par "Only, O Lord, in Your dear love,\par Fit us for perfect rest above;\par And help us, this and every day,\par To live more nearly as we pray."\par \par "'Spirit, leave your house of clay;\par Lingering dust, resign your breath;\par Spirit, cast yourf chains away;\par Dust; be you dissolved in death!'\par Thus the Almighty Savior speaks,\par While the faithful Christian dies\endash\par Thus the bonds of life He breaks,\par And the ransomed captive flies.\par \par "'Prisoner, long detained below;\par Prisoner, now with freedom blest\endash\par Welcome, from a world of woe;\par Welcome, to a land of rest!'\par Thus the choir of angels sing,\par As they begar the soul on high;\par While, with hallelujahs ring\par All the region of the sky.\par \par "Grave, the guardian of our dust;\par Grave, the treasury of the skies;\par Every atom of your dust\par Rests in hope again to rise.\par Hark! the judgment-trumpet calls\endash\par 'Soul, rebuild your house of clay,\par Immortality your walls,\par And eternity, your day.'"\par \endash Montgomery\par \par \par "One sweetly solemn thought\par Comes to me o'er and o'er;\par I'm nearer my home today\par Than I've ever been before!\par Nearer my Father's house,\par Where the many mansions be;\par Nearer the great white throne,\par Nearer the jasper sea!\par Nearer the bound of life,\par Where I lay my burden down;\par Nearer leaving my cross!\par Nearer wearing my crown!"\par \par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par } \}MMacDuff - Pathway of Promise{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pardi)!19 Rest{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 REST\par \par Exodus 33:14--"I will give you rest."\par \par True rest is only found in the presence, theRj\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\f0\fs22 THE PATHWAY OF PROMISE\par Words of Comfort to the Christian Pilgrim\par by John MacDuff\par \par It is the purpose of this volume to set before the believer some of the gracious promises of God's Word, and to suggest some thoughts which may prove consolatory and encouraging to the Christian pilgrim, as he journeys onward to his heavenly home. May the Divine blessing attend an earnest and humble effort to minister comfort to the downcast, strength to the weak, and courage to those who have set their faces Heavenward!\par \par 01 Preparation for the Journey\par 02 Promised Blessings\par 03 The Bow in the Cloud\par 04 Duty and Interest\par 05 Guardianship\par 06 Jehovah\par 07 Contentment\par 08 Diligence\par 09 Daily Strength\par 10 Progress\par 11 Assurance\par 12 Worry\par 13 Abiding with God\par 14 Gratitude\par 15 Prayer\par 16 Divine Teaching\par 17 Faithfulness\par 18 God's Presence\par 19 Rest\par \par \pard\cf1\fs23\par }