Chapter 4

May 9th.

Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth. Heb. xii. 6.

It has been well said that "earthly cares are a heavenly discipline," but they are even something better than discipline; they are God's chariots, sent to take the soul to its high places of triumph. In the Canticles we are told of "a chariot paved with love." We cannot always see the love lining to our own particular chariot—itoften looks very unlovely; but every chariot sent by God must necessarily be paved with love, since God is love. It is His love, indeed, that sends the chariot.

Look upon your chastenings, then, no matter how grievous they may be for the present, as God's chariots, sent to carry your souls into the "high places" of spiritual achievement and uplifting, and you will find that they are, after all, "paved with love."—Smith.

May 10th.

The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John i. 7.

Learn a lesson from the eye of the miner, who all day long is working amid the flying coal dust. When he emerges in the light of day his face may be grimy enough; but his eyes are clear and lustrous, because the fountain of tears in the lachrymal gland is ever pouring its gentle tides over the eye, cleansing away each speck of dust as soon as it alights.

Is not this the miracle of cleansing which our spirits need in such a world as this? And this is what our blessed Lord is prepared to do for us by His cleansing blood, if only we will trust Him.—F. B. Meyer.

May 11th.

Whatsoever He sayeth unto you, do it. John ii. 5.

Florence Nightingale said: "If I could give you information of my life, it would be to show how a woman of very ordinary ability has been led by God in strange and unaccustomed paths to do in His service what He has done in her. And if I could tell you all, you would see how God has done all, and I nothing. I have worked hard, very hard, that is all; and I have never refused God anything."

May 12th.

I know how to abound. Phil. iv. 12.

It is a dangerous thing to be prosperous. The crucibleof adversity is a less severe trial to the Christian than the refining-pot of prosperity. It needs more than human skill to carry the brimming cup of mortal joy with a steady hand; yet Paul had learned that skill, for he declares, "In all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry." When we have much of God's providential mercies it often happens that we have but little of God's grace; satisfied with earth, we are content to do without heaven. Rest assured, it is harder to know how to be full than it is to know how to be hungry, so desperate is the tendency of human nature to pride and forgetfulness of God. Take care that you ask in your prayers that God would teach you "how to be full."—Spurgeon.

May 13th.

Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. Luke xiv. 11.

. . . If you ask the way to the crown—'tis by the cross; to the mountain—'tis by the valley; to exaltation 'tis he that humbleth himself.—J. H. Evans.

May 14th.

For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. John xvii. 19.

Do you remember, when Jesus was sitting with His disciples at the last supper, how He lifted up His voice and prayed, and in the midst of His prayer there came these wondrous words: "For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified"? Is there anything in all the teachings that man has had from the lips of God that is nobler, that is more far-reaching than that—to be my best not simply for my own sake, but for the sake of the world? You can help your fellow-men—you must help your fellow-men; but the only way you can help them is by being the noblest and the best man that it is possible for you to be.—Phillips Brooks.

May 15th.

He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city. Prov. xvi. 32.

More dear in the sight of God and His angels than any other conquest is the conquest of self, which each man, with the help of heaven, can secure for himself.—Dean Stanley.

May 16th.

For this child I prayed, and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of Him: therefore also I have lent him to the Lord; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the Lord. 1 Sam. i. 27, 28.

God sometimes bestows gifts just that love may have something to renounce. The things that He puts into our hands are possibly put there that we may have the opportunity of showing what is in our heart. Oh, that there were in us a fervor of love that would lead us to examine everything that belongs to us, to ascertain how it might be made a means of showing our affection to Christ!—George Bowen.

May 17th.

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Matt. vi. 33.

We need have only one care, that we put the first thing first—faithfulness to God. Then all else we need for both worlds will be supplied. God will never fail us; but we forget, sometimes, in our rejoicing over such an assurance, that we must fulfil our part if we would claim the divine promise.

It will not always be easy. To-morrow it may mean a distasteful task, a disagreeable duty, a costly sacrifice for one who does not seem worthy. Life is full of sore testings of our willingness to follow the Good Shepherd. We have not the slightest right to claim this assurance unless we have taken Christ as the guide of our life.—J. R. Miller.

May 18th.

His praise shall continually be in my mouth. Psa. xxxiv. 1.

Let not thy praises be transient—a fit of music, and then the instrument hung by the wall till another gaudy day of some remarkable providence makes thee take it down. God comes not guestwise to His saints' house, but to dwell with them. David took this up for a life work: "As long as I live, I will praise thee."—Gurnall.

May 19th.

I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. Num. xi. 14.

It is most needful for all servants of Christ to remember that whenever the Lord places a man in a position of responsibility, He will both fit him for it and maintain him in it.

It is, of course, another thing altogether if a man will rush unsent into any field of work, or any post of difficulty or danger. In such a case we may assuredly look for a thorough breakdown, sooner or later. But when God calls a man to a certain position, He will endow him with the needed grace to occupy it.

This holds good in every case. We can never fail if we only cling to the living God. We can never run dry if we are drawing from the fountain. Our tiny springs will soon dry up; but our Lord Jesus Christ declares, "He that believeth in Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."—C. H. M.

May 20th.

Then said I, Woe is me, for I am undone: because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Isa. vi. 5.

It is not the sight of our sinful heart that humbles us; it is a sight of Jesus Christ. I am undone because mine eyes have seen the King.—Andrew A. Bonar.

May 21st.

While I was musing the fire burned. Psa. xxxix. 3.

My soul, if thou wouldst muse more, the fire would burn more. Why dost thou not retire oftener with thyself? Thou wouldst be better fitted for the world if thou wert less worldly. If thou hadst more heavenly fire thou wouldst have more earthly power.

Is there no secret pavilion into which thou canst go and warm thyself? Is there no holy of holies where thou canst catch a glow of impulse that will make thee strong? Is it not written of the Son of Man that "as Heprayedthe fashion of His countenance was altered"? Yes; it was from His prayer that His transfigured glory came. It was from the glow of His heart that there issued the glow of His countenance. It was when He was musing that the fire kindled.

O my soul, wouldst thou have thy life glorified, beautified, transfigured to the eyes of men? Get thee up into the secret place of God's pavilion, where the fires of love are burning. Thy life shall shine gloriously to the dwellers on the plain. Thy prayers shall be luminous; they shall light thy face like the face of Moses when he wist not that it shone. Thy words shall be burning; they will kindle many a heart journeying on the road to Emmaus. Thy path shall be lambent; when thou hast prayed in Elijah's solitude thou shalt have Elijah's chariot of fire.—George Matheson.

May 22nd.

Whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in nowise lose his reward. Matt. x. 42.

We are in danger of looking too far for opportunities of doing good and communicating. In reaching for rhododendrons we trample down the daisies.—Selected.

May 23rd.

Hide thyself by the brook. 1 Kings xvii. 3.

Not by theriver, but by thebrook. The river wouldalways contain an abundant supply, but the brook might dry up at any moment.

What does this teach us? God does not place His people in luxuriance here. The world's abundance might withdraw their affections from Him. He gives them not the river, but the brook. The brook may be running to-day, to-morrow it may be dried up.

And wherefore does God act thus? To teach us that we are not to rest in His gifts and blessings, but in Himself. This is what our hearts are always doing—resting in the gift, instead of the Giver. Therefore God cannot trust us by the river, for it unconsciously takes up His place in the heart. It is said of Israel that when they were full they forgot God.—F. Whitfield.

May 24th.

His kingdom ruleth over all. Psa. ciii. 19.

His kingdom ruleth over all—therefore thou canst find nothing which is not matter for praise, since there is nothing which is not the matter of thy Lord's gracious permission, or planning, or control.Over all—nowhere canst thou step outside His realm, nor in anything get beyond His care and government.Over all—therefore take all as from God; hold all as from God; and by thy gratitude give all back to God again, and thus complete the circle, making Him the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending of all things.—Mark Guy Pearse.

May 25th.

If we suffer we shall also reign with Him. 2 Tim. ii. 12.

The highest bidder for the crown of glory is the lowliest wearer of the cross of self-denial.—A. J. Gordon.

May 26th.

Keep thy heart with all diligence: for out of it are the issues of life. Prov. iv. 23.

He who would keep his heart pure and holy, mustplant a sentinel at every avenue by which sin may find access there, guarding against none more than the "little" sins, as they are called.

The man of God has hiseyesto keep, and so Job said, "I have made a covenant with mine eyes"—histongue, and hence the exhortation, "Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile"—hisears, and hence the warning, "Cease, my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err"—hisfeet, and hence David says, "I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep Thy word." And since there is no gate of the five senses by which the enemy may not come in like a flood, unless the Spirit lift up a standard against him, we have need to guard every port, and write over every portal, "Here there entereth nothing to hurt or to defile."—Guthrie.

May 27th.

Whatsoever ye do, . . . do all in the name of the Lord Jesus. Col. iii. 17.

Do little things as if they were great, because of the majesty of the Lord Jesus Christ, who dwells in thee; and do great things as if they were little and easy, because of His omnipotence.—Pascal.

May 28th.

Him they compelled to bear His cross. Matt. xxvii. 32.

There are many Christians of whom this is true. They are compelled to bear the cross, but how does it come? It comes by their running away from it. They make up their minds they won't have Christ's cross; and they find when the cross does come that it comes in a more terrible form, with a more crushing weight than ever it would have come had they only been content to submit themselves to the divine direction; for the cross has to come to all who are to be prepared for glory hereafter.—W. Hay Aitken.

May 29th.

Our Lord Jesus Christ . . . gave Himself for our sins that He might deliver us from this present evil world. Gal. i. 4.

Attachment to Christ is the only secret of detachment from the world.—A. J. Gordon.

May 30th.

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Matt. v. 14.

Lamps do not talk, but they do shine. A lighthouse sounds no drum, it beats no gong; and yet far over the waters its friendly spark is seen by the mariner. So let your actions shine out your religion. Let the main sermon of your life be illustrated by all your conduct.—Spurgeon.

May 31st.

Without me ye can do nothing. John xv. 5.I can do all things, through Christ which strengtheneth me. Phil. iv. 13.

Without me ye can do nothing. John xv. 5.

I can do all things, through Christ which strengtheneth me. Phil. iv. 13.

Apart from Him we can do nothing. Whilst we are abiding in Him nothing is impossible. The one purpose of our life should therefore be to remain in living and intense union with Christ, guarding against everything that would break it, employing every means of cementing and enlarging it. And just in proportion as we do so, we shall find His strength flowing into us for every possible emergency. We may not feel its presence; but we shall find it present whenever we begin to draw on it. There is no temptation which we cannot master; no privation which we cannot patiently bear; no difficulty with which we cannot cope; no work which we cannot perform; no confession or testimony which we cannot make, if only our souls are living in healthy union with Jesus Christ; for as our day or hour, so shall our strength be.—F. B. Meyer.

JUNE

June 1st.

As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. John xx. 21.

We should never leave our room until we have seen the face of our dear Master, Christ, and have realized that we are being sent forth by Him to do His will, and to finish the work which He has given us to do. He who said to His immediate followers, "As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you," says as much to each one of us, as the dawn summons us to live another day. We should realize that we are as much sent forth by Him as the angels who "do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His word." There is some plan for each day's work, which He will unfold to us, if only we will look up to Him to do so; some mission to fulfil; some ministry to perform; some lesson patiently to learn, that we may be able to "reach others also." As to our plans we need not be anxious; because He who sends us forth is responsible to make the plan, according to His infinite wisdom; and to reveal it to us, however dull and stupid our faculties may be. And as to our sufficiency, we are secure of having all needful grace; because He never sends us forth, except He first breathes on us and says, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." There is always a special endowment for special power.—F. B. Meyer.

June 2nd.

A fountain . . . for sin and for uncleanness. Zech. xiii. 1.

You that have faith in the Fountain,frequent it. Beware of two errors which are very natural and very disastrous. Beware of thinking any sin too great for it; beware of thinking any sin too small. There is not a sin so little, but it may be the germ of everlasting perdition; there is not a sin so enormous, but a drop ofatoning blood will wash it away as utterly as if it were drowned in the depths of the sea.—James Hamilton.

June 3rd.

I am black . . . as the tents of Kedar. Song of Sol. i. 5.I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me. Song of Sol. vii. 10.

I am black . . . as the tents of Kedar. Song of Sol. i. 5.

I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me. Song of Sol. vii. 10.

Nothing humbles the soul like sacred and intimate communion with the Lord; yet there is a sweet joy in feeling thatHeknowsall, and, notwithstanding, loves us still.—J. Hudson Taylor.

June 4th.

David enquired of the Lord. 2 Sam. v. 19.

Christian, if thou wouldst know the path of duty, take God for thy compass; if thou wouldst steer thy ship through the dark billows, put the tiller into the hand of the Almighty. Many a rock might be escaped if we would let our Father take the helm; many a shoal or quicksand we might well avoid if we would leave it to His sovereign will to choose and to command. The Puritan said, "As sure as ever a Christian carves for himself he'll cut his own fingers." "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go," is God's promise to His people. Let us, then, take all our perplexities to Him and say, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Leave not thy chamber this morning withoutenquiring of the Lord.—Spurgeon.

June 5th.

A certain man . . . who never had walked . . . heard Paul speak: who . . . perceiving that he had faith to be healed, said . . . Stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked. Acts xiv. 8, 9, 10.

Where true faith is, it will induce obedience and where it does induce obedience, it will always, in one form or another, bring a blessing.—W. Hay Aitken.

June 6th.

Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord . . . I know that . . . whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee. Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto Him, Iknow that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. John xi. 21, 22, 23, 24.

Beware, in your prayer, above everything, of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things,above all thatwe ask or think. Each time you intercede, be quiet first and worship God in His glory. Think of what He can do, of how He delights to hear Christ, of your place in Christ; and expect great things.—Andrew Murray.

June 7th.

As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Gal. iii. 27.

Not simply the righteousness of our Savior, not simply the beauty of His holiness or the graces of His character, are we to put on as a garment. The Lord Himself is our vesture. Every Christian is not only a Christ-bearer but a Christ-wearer. We are so to enter into Him by communion, to be so endued with His presence, and embued with His Spirit that men shall see Him when they behold us, as they see our garments when they look upon our bodies.—A. J. Gordon.

June 8th.

Thou shalt never wash my feet. John xiii. 8.

Whatever hinders us from receiving a blessing that God is willing to bestow upon us is not humility, but the mockery of it. A genuine humility will ever feel the need of the largest measures of grace, and will be perfected just in the degree in which that grace is bestowed. The truly humble man will seek to be filled with all the fulness of God, knowing that when so filled there is not the slightest place for pride or for self.—George Bowen.

June 9th.

Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee. Psa. lv. 22.

He that taketh his own cares upon himself loads himself with an uneasy burden. The fear of whatmaycome, expectation of whatwillcome, desire of what willnotcome, and the inability to redress all these, must needs bring him continual torment.Iwill cast my cares uponGod:He hath bidden me. They cannot hurt Him: He can redress them.—Hall.

June 10th.

Well done, good and faithful servant. . . . Thou wicked and slothful servant. Matt. xxv. 21, 26.

God holds us responsible not for what wehave, but for what wemight have;not for what weare, but for what wemightbe.—Mark Guy Pearse.

June 11th.

Jesus constrained His disciples to get into a ship. Matt. xiv. 22.

Jesusconstrainedthem to go! One would think that if ever there was the certain promise of success in a mission, it was here. Surely, here, if anywhere, a triumphant issue might have been confidently predicted; and yet here, more than anywhere, there was seeming failure. He sent them out on a voyage, and they met such a storm as they had never yet experienced.

Let me ponder this, for it has been so with me, too. I have sometimes felt myself impelled to act by an influence which seemed above me—constrained to put to sea. The belief that I was constrained gave me confidence, and I was sure of a calm voyage. But the result was outward failure. The calm became a storm; the sea raged, the winds roared, the ship tossed in the midst of the waves, and my enterprise was wrecked ere it could reach the land.

Was, then, my divine command a delusion?

Nay; nor yet was my mission a failure. He did send me on that voyage, but He did not send me formypurpose. He had one end and I had another. My end was the outward calm; His was my meeting with the storm. My end was to gain the harbor of a materialrest; His was to teach me there is a rest even on the open sea.—George Matheson.

June 12th.

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Tim. ii. 15.

Have thy tools ready; God will find thee work.—Charles Kingsley.

June 13th.

Come out from among them, and be ye separate. 2 Cor. vi. 17.

With all the world in his choice, God placed His ancient people in a very remarkable situation. On the north they were walled in by the snowy ranges of Lebanon; a barren desert formed their eastern boundary; far to the south stretched a sterile region, called the howling wilderness; while the sea—not then, as now, the highway of the nations, facilitating rather than impeding intercourse—lay on their west, breaking on a shore that had few harbors and no navigable rivers to invite the steps of commerce.

May we not find a great truth in the very position in which God placed His chosen people? It certainly teaches us that to be holy, or sanctified, we must be a separate people—living in the world, but not of it—as oil, that may be mixed, but cannot be combined with water.—Guthrie.

June 14th.

I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land. Gen. xxviii. 15.

"With thee," companionship; "Keep thee," guardianship; "Bring thee," guidance.

June 15th.

I have set thee . . . that thou shouldst be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. Acts xiii. 47.Ye shall be witnesses unto me . . . unto the uttermost parts of the earth. Acts i. 8.

I have set thee . . . that thou shouldst be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. Acts xiii. 47.

Ye shall be witnesses unto me . . . unto the uttermost parts of the earth. Acts i. 8.

Men are questioning now, as they never have questioned before, whether Christianity is, indeed, the true religion which is to be the salvation of the world. Christian men, it is for us to give our bit of answer to that question. It is for us, in whom the Christian church is at this moment partially embodied, to declare that Christianity, that the Christian faith, the Christian manhood can do that for the world which the world needs.

You ask, "What can I do?"

You can furnish one Christian life. You can furnish a life so faithful to every duty, so ready for every service, so determined not to commit every sin, that the great Christian church shall be the stronger for your living in it, and the problem of the world be answered, and a certain great peace come into this poor, perplexed, phase of our humanity as it sees that new revelation of what Christianity is.—Phillips Brooks.

June 16th.

I know whom I have believed. 2 Tim. i. 12.

Personal acquaintance with Christ is a living thing. Like a tree that uses every hour for growth, it thrives in sunshine, it is refreshed by rain—even the storm drives it to fasten its grip more firmly in the earth for its support. So, troubled heart, in all experience, say, "This comes that I may make closer acquaintance with my Lord."—Selected.

June 17th.

Wait for the promise of the Father. Acts i. 4.When the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place . . . and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost. Acts ii. 1, 4.

Wait for the promise of the Father. Acts i. 4.

When the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place . . . and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost. Acts ii. 1, 4.

Obedience to a divine prompting transforms it into a permanent acquisition.—F. B. Meyer.

June 18th.

We have known and believed the love that God hath to us. 1 John iv. 16.

The secret of walking closely with Christ, and working successfully for Him, is to fully realize that we are His beloved. Let us but feel that He has set His heart upon us, that He is watching us from those heavens with tender interest, that He is working out the mystery of our lives with solicitude and fondness, that He is following us day by day as a mother follows her babe in his first attempt to walk alone, that He has set His love upon us, and, in spite of ourselves, is working out for us His highest will and blessing, as far as we will let Him, and then nothing can discourage us. Our hearts will glow with responsive love. Our faith will spring to meet His mighty promises, and our sacrifices shall become the very luxuries of love for one so dear. This was the secret of John's spirit. "We have known and believed the love that God hath to us." And the heart that has fully learned this has found the secret of unbounded faith and enthusiastic service.—A. B. Simpson.

June 19th.

Endure . . . as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 2 Tim. ii. 3.

Life is not victory, but battle. Be patient a little longer. By and by, each in his turn, we shall hear the sunset gun.—Selected.

June 20th.

Whosoever doth not bear his cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple. Luke xiv. 27.

There is always the shadow of the cross resting upon the Christian's path. Is that a reason why you should avoid or not undertake the duty? Have you made up your mind that you will follow your Master everywhere else, save when he ascends the path that leads to the cross? Is that your religion? The sooner you change it, the better. The religion of the Lord Jesus Christ is the religion of the cross, and unless we take up our cross, we can never follow Him.—W. Hay Aitken.

June 21st.

These . . . have turned the world upside down. Acts xvii. 6.

The serene beauty of a holy life is the most powerful influence in the world next to the might of God.—Pascal.

June22nd.

What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. John xiii. 7.

God keeps a school for His children here on earth and one of His best teachers is Disappointment. My friend, when you and I reach our Father's house, we shall look back and see that the sharp-voiced, rough; visaged teacher, Disappointment, was one of the best guides to train us for it. He gave us hard lessons; he often used the rod; he often led us into thorny paths; he sometimes stripped off a load of luxuries; but that only made us travel the freer and the faster on our heavenward way. He sometimes led us down into the valley of the death-shadow; but never did the promises read so sweetly as when spelled out by the eye of faith in that very valley. Nowhere did he lead us so often, or teach us such sacred lessons, as at the cross of Christ. Dear, old, rough-handed teacher! We will build a monument to thee yet, and crown it with garlands, and inscribe on it:Blessed be the memory of Disappointment!—Theodore Cuyler.

June 23rd.

As thy days, so shall thy strength be. Deut. xxxiii. 25.I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Phil. iv. 13.

As thy days, so shall thy strength be. Deut. xxxiii. 25.

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Phil. iv. 13.

He will not impose upon you one needless burden. He will not exact more than He knows your strength will bear. He will ask no Peter to come to Him on the water, unless He impart at the same time strength and support on the unstable waves. He will not ask you to draw water if the well is too deep, or to withdraw thestone if too heavy. But neither at the same time will He admit as an impossibility that which, as a free and responsible agent, it is in your power to avert. He will not regard as your misfortune what is your crime.—Macduff.

June 24th.

Thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Acts viii. 21.

The worst of all mockeries is a religion that leaves the heart unchanged: a religion that haseverythingbut the love of Christ enshrined in the soul.—F. Whitfield.

June 25th.

The Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Acts xiii. 2.

We have such a nice little quiet, shady corner in the vineyard, down among the tender grapes, with such easy little weedings and waterings to attend to. And then the Master comes and draws us out into the thick of the work, and puts us in a part of the field where we never should have thought of going, and puts larger tools into our hands, that we may do more at a stroke. And we know we are not sufficient for these things, and the very tools seem too heavy for us, and the glare too dazzling and the vines too tall. Ah! but would we dally, go back? He would not be in the shady corner with us now; for when He put us forth He went before us, and it is only bycloserfollowing that we can abide with Him.—Frances Ridley Havergal.

June 26th.

Small things. Zech. iv. 10.

It is the little words you speak, the little thoughts you think, the little things you do or leave undone, the little moments you waste or use wisely, the little temptations which you yield to or overcome—the little things of every day that are making or marring your future life.—Selected.

June 27th.

Be perfect, be of good comfort. 2 Cor. xiii. 11.

A glance at the words is enough to make us feel how contradictory they are.Be perfect—that is a word that strikes us with despair; at once we feel how far away we are from our own poor ideal, and alas! how much further from God's ideal concerning us.Be of good comfort—ah, that is very different! That seems to say, "Do not fret; do not fear. If you are not what you would be, you must be thankful for what you are."

Now the question is this—How can these two be reconciled?

It is only the religion of Jesus Christ that reconciles them. He stands in our midst, and with the right hand of His righteousness He pointeth us upward, and saith, "Be perfect." There is no resting-place short of that. Yet with the left hand of His love He doth encompass us, as He saith, "Soul, be of good comfort; for that is what I came to do for thee."—Mark Guy Pearse.

June 28th.

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Matt. v. 48.

Seeking the aid of the Holy Spirit, let us aim at perfection. Let every day see some sin crucified, some battle fought, some good done, some victory won; let every fall be followed by a rise, and every step gained become, not a resting-place, but a new starting-point for further and higher progress.—Guthrie.

June 29th.

Sleep on now, and take your rest. Mark xiv. 41.

Never did that sacred opportunity to watch with Christ return to His disciples. Lost then, it was lost forever. And now when Jesus is still beholding the travail of His soul in the redemption of the world, if you fail to be with Him watching for souls as they that must give account, remember that the opportunity willnever return. "Watch, therefore," says your Lord, "lest coming suddenly, He may find you sleeping."—A. J. Gordon.

June 30th.

Let us not sleep, as do others. 1 Thess. v. 6.

There are many ways of promoting Christian wakefulness. Among the rest, let me strongly advise Christians to converse together concerning the ways of the Lord. Christian and Hopeful, as they journeyed towards the Celestial City, said to themselves:

"To prevent drowsiness in this place, let us fall into good discourse."

Christians who isolate themselves and walk alone are very liable to grow drowsy. Hold Christian company, and you will be kept wakeful by it, and refreshed and encouraged to make quicker progress in the road to heaven.—Spurgeon.

JULY

July 1st.

He laid His right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not. Rev. i. 17.

One of Wellington's officers, when commanded to go on some perilous duty, lingered a moment as if afraid, and then said:

"Let me have one clasp of your all-conquering hand before I go; and then I can do it."

Seek the clasp of Christ's hand before every bit of work, every hard task, every battle, every good deed. Bend your head in the dewy freshness of every morning, ere you go forth to meet the day's duties and perils, and wait for the benediction of Christ, as He lays His hands upon you. They are hands of blessing.Their touch will inspire you for courage and strength and all beautiful and noble living.—J. R. Miller.

July 2nd.

Being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. Acts i. 3.

This lingering for forty days is the crowning proof of Christ's tender regard for His little flock. He who had laid down His life for them is loath to leave them. Though they had forsaken Him, and doubted Him, they had not wearied, much less had they worn out, His love. He stays to look again, and yet again, and yet again, upon them, as if turning back and lingering to bless them. It is all of a piece with His life of love. Everywhere He meets them without a touch of upbraiding, without recalling a single memory of all His bitter suffering, revealing Himself to the disciples with a tenderness and blessedness indescribably beautiful.

How can He go till He has healed the Magdalene's broken heart? He must linger till poor Peter can venture near to have his forgiveness assured. He must stay to strengthen Thomas' faith. He must tarry with them till He has made them feel that He is just the same friendly, brotherly Jesus that He has ever been, caring for them in their work, watching them with a yearning pity, stooping to kindle a fire for their warmth, and to cook the fish for their meal, and then to bid them come and dine.—Mark Guy Pearse.

July 3rd.

Jesus, . . . being wearied with His journey, sat thus on the well. . . . (For His disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) . . . And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on Him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did. John iv. 6, 8, 39.

The bits of wayside work are very sweet. Perhaps the odd bits, when all is done, will really come to more than the seemingly greater pieces!. . . It is nice to know that the King's servants are always really on duty,even while some can only stand and wait.—Frances Ridley Havergal.

July 4th.

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you . . . let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John xiv. 27.

Dark hours come to us all; and if we have no clew to a peace that can pass unbroken through their murky gloom, we shall be in a state of continual dread. Any stone flung by a chance passer-by may break the crystal clearness of the Lake of Peace and send disturbing ripples across it, unless we have learnt to trust in the perpetual presence of Him who can make and keep a "great calm" within the soul. Only let nothing come to you which you shall not instantly hand over to Him—all petty worries, all crushing difficulties, all inability to believe.—F. B. Meyer.

July 5th.

Isaac dwelt by the well Lahai-roi. Gen. xxv. 11.

Isaac dwelt there, and made the well of the living and all-seeing God his constant source of supply. The usual tenor of a man's life, thedwellingof his soul, is the true test of his state. Let us learn to live in the presence of the living God. Let us pray the Holy Spirit that this day, and every other day, we may feel, "Thou God seest me." May the Lord Jehovah be as a well to us, delightful, comforting, unfailing, springing up unto eternal life. The bottle of the creature cracks and dries up, but the well of the Creator never fails. Happy is he who dwells at the well, and so has abundant and constant supplies near at hand! Glorious Lord, constrain us that we may never leave Thee, but dwell by the well of the living God!—Spurgeon.

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