THERE is a very great and important work for our conferences in America to do. We are to carry the work in America in such a way that we shall be a strength and help to those who are proclaiming the message in distant countries. Every nation, tongue, and people is to be aroused and brought to a knowledge of the truth. Something is being done, but there is much yet to be done, much to be learned right here at this Conference, in order that the work may go forward in a way that will honor and glorify God.
My soul has been so burdened that I have not been able to rest. What line can we dwell upon that will make the deepest impression upon the human mind? There are our schools. They are to be conducted in such a way that they will develop missionaries who will go out to the highways and hedges to sow the seeds of truth. This was the commission of Christ to his followers. They were to go to the highways and the byways bearing the message of truth to souls that would be brought to the faith of the gospel. I felt deeply in earnest as I saw how much needs to be done in the places I have recently visited. We must stand in the strength of God if we are to accomplish this work.
In his labors each worker is to look to God. We are to labor as men and women who have a living connection with God. We are to learn how to meet the people where they are. Let not such conditions exist as we found in some places when we returned to America, in which individual church-members, instead of realizing their responsibility, looked to men for guidance, and men to whom had been committed sacred and holy trusts in the carrying forward of the work, failed of understanding the value of personal responsibility and took upon themselves the work of ordering and dictating what their brethren should do or should not do. These are things that God will not allow in his work. He will put his burdens upon his burden-bearers. Every individual soul has a responsibility before God, and is not to be arbitrarily instructed by men as to what he shall do, what he shall say, and where he shall go. We are not to put confidence in the counsel of men and assent to all they shall say unless we have evidence that they are under the influence of the Spirit of God.
Study the first and second chapters of Acts. Light has been given me that our work must be carried forward in a higher and broader way than it has ever yet been carried. The light of heaven is to be appreciated and cherished. This light is for the laborers. It is for those who feel that God has given them a message, and that they have a sacred responsibility to bear in its proclamation.
The message of present truth is to prepare a people for the coming of the Lord. Let us understand this, and let those placed in responsible positions come into such unity that the work shall go forward solidly. Do not allow any man to come in as an arbitrary ruler, and say, You must go here, and you must not go there; you must do this, and you must not do that. We have a great and important work to do, and God would have us take hold of that work intelligently. The placing of men in positions of responsibility in the various conferences, does not make them gods. No one has sufficient wisdom to act without counsel. Men need to consult with their brethren, to counsel together, to pray together, and to plan together for the advancement of the work. Let laborers kneel down together and pray to God, asking him to direct their course. There has been a great lack with us on this point. We have trusted too much to men's devisings. We can not afford to do this. Perilous times are upon us, and we must come to the place where we know that the Lord lives and rules, and that he dwells in the hearts of the children of men. We must have confidence in God.
Wherever you may be sent, cherish in your hearts and minds the fear and love of God. Go daily to the Lord for instruction and guidance; depend upon God7for light and knowledge. Pray for this instruction and this light until you get it. It will not avail for you to ask, and then forget the thing for which you prayed. Keep your mind upon your prayer. You can do this while working with your hands. You can say, Lord, I believe; with all my heart I believe. Let the Holy Spirit's power come upon me.
If there were more praying among us, more exercise of a living faith, and less dependence upon some one else to have an experience for us, we would be far in advance of where we are to-day in spiritual intelligence. What we need is a deep, individual heart and soul experience. Then we shall be able to tell what God is doing and how he is working. We need to have a living experience in the things of God; and we are not safe unless we have this. There are some who have a good experience, and they tell you about it; but when you come to weigh it up, you see that it is not a correct experience, for it is not in accordance with a plain Thus saith the Lord. If ever there was a time in our history when we needed to humble our individual souls before God, it is to-day. We need to come to God with faith in all that is promised in the Word, and then walk in all the light and power that God gives.
I felt very deeply when our brethren who have come from foreign fields told me a little of their experiences and of what the Lord is doing in bringing souls to the truth. This is what we want at this time. God does not want us to go on in ignorance. He wants us to understand our individual responsibilities to him. He will reveal himself to every soul who will come to him in all humility and seek him with the whole heart.
There are schools to be established in foreign countries and in our own country. We must learn from God how to manage these schools. They are not to be conducted as many of them have been conducted. Our institutions are to be regarded as God's instrumentalities for the furtherance of his work in the earth. We must look to God for guidance and wisdom; we must plead with him to teach us how to carry the work solidly. Let us recognize the Lord as our teacher and guide, and then we shall carry the work in correct lines. We need to stand as a united company who shall see eye to eye. Then we shall see the salvation of God revealed on the right hand and on the left. If we work in harmony, we give God a chance to work for us.
In all our school work we need to have a correct understanding of what the essential education is. Men talk much of higher education, but who can define what the higher education is? The highest education is found in the Word of the living God. That education which teaches us to submit our souls to God in all humility, and which enables us to take the Word of God and believe just what it says, is the education that is most needed. With this education we shall see of the salvation of God. With the Spirit of God upon us, we are to carry the light of truth into the highways and the byways, that the salvation of God may be revealed in a remarkable manner.
Will we carry forward the work in the Lord's way? Are we willing to be taught of God? Will we wrestle with God in prayer? Will we receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit? This is what we need and may have at this time. Then we shall go forth with a message from the Lord, and the light of truth will shine forth as a lamp that burneth, reaching to all parts of the world. If we will walk humbly with God, God will walk with us. Let us humble our souls before him, and we shall see of his salvation.
Catholic Federation
THE American Federation of Catholic Societies was planned for a definite object. That object was to bring the united power of American Catholics to bear upon American politicians for the shaping of American legislation in harmony with the purposes of the Catholic Church. The federation is growing in numbers continually, and its purposes are being taken out of the mist of uncertainty and indecision, and focused upon definite objects. It is an organization that is to play a very important part in the history of this nation from now on.
Says the editor of America (a Roman Catholic journal), in speaking of the desirability of eliminating unimportant resolutions from the proceedings of the society:—
It is desirable to agree upon a few very definite and practical points, and to turn the whole machinery of the organization upon their accomplishment. Other points might be mentioned and recommended in proportion to their importance, for such local branches of the federation as may deem them most necessary and feasible. We should then expect to find in the annual report submitted to the subsequent convention an account of the results effected in accordance with the resolutions.
We as Protestant Christians understand very well that one of the “definite and practical points” toward which this organization will work is the securing and enforcing of laws regarding the observance of Sunday. The organization has definitely committed itself to a policy of opposition to what it terms “Sabbath desecration,” and the Catholic Church has signified its willingness to unite with the Protestant churches for the enforcement of Sunday laws. In view of this prospect, Sabbath-keeping Christians can not look with unconcern upon the declared purpose of this strong Catholic organization.
The Birth of the Turkish Empire
By Percy T. Magan
PERCY T. MAGAN
In a previous article in the Review I endeavored to make it plain that the drying up of the waters of the river Euphrates, or, in other words, the destruction of the Turkish empire, is the signal for the long-looked-for universal war.
Now since the “waters” of the Turkish empire are to be “dried up,” it will stand us in hand to go back to the days of the rise of the Ottoman empire, to the time when the “waters” of that nation were “moved as the rivers,” and rose “up as a flood;” for no one can really understand the hidden springs of life and action in the Turkish question of to-day who does not, to some degree at least, familiarize himself with things from the Mohammedan standpoint.
During the last century, by the men of Western nations the Turks have been regarded as the offscouring of the earth. The rejuvenation of their empire has been dubbed “a bootless speculation;” and Carlyle drastically characterized the Turk as “unspeakable.”
But it was not always thus. For many generations the Turk was powerful, “and it seemed for a while rather a question whether he would not send the Europeans out of their own grounds. He was for centuries the great terror, the nightmare of Western Europe.”—“History of Our Own Times,” by Justin McCarthy, Vol. I, chap. 25, par. 4.
The rise of the Turks was romantic and phenomenal. “When it is recalled that at the beginning of the thirteenth century the Osmanli Turks were pastoral tribes living in tents and movable huts in Central Asia, slightly fixed to the soil, holding the camp rather than the land as native country, and recognizing allegiance only to powerful chiefs; that at the beginning of the fourteenth century they had migrated into Asia Minor, and had become somewhat fixed to a small tract of land in Anatolia; at the beginning of the fifteenth century they had acquired vast possessions in Anatolia and Rumelia, Bulgaria, Ragusa, Servia, and Wallachia in Europe; at the beginning of the sixteenth century they had added Trebizond, Karaman, and Armenia in Asia, and Greece (including Constantinople), Bosnia, Herzegovina, Albania, and the Crimea in Europe; and by the middle of that century Tunis, Egypt, Algiers, and Tripoli in Africa, Kurdistan, Arabia, Syria, and Bagdad in Asia, and Moldavia, Hungary, and Transylvania in Europe,—when significant facts like these are recalled, it is obvious” that the rise of the Ottoman Turks was no common or unimportant event in the history of mankind. See, “Turkey and the Turks,” by Munroe, page 13.
The Osmanli, or Ottoman Turks, have ever been regarded by the Western nations as interlopers in Europe. While the great powers of Europe are of Teutonic and Slavic extraction, the Osmanli Turks are of Mongolian stock. They originated in the plains of Sungaria near the desert of Gobi. “These were one of two great races which alternately filled the rôle of the scourges of God.”
“The thirteenth century had half run its course when Kaykubad, the Seljuk sultan of Iconium, was one day hard beset near Angora by a Mongol army. The enemy was rapidly gaining the mastery, when suddenly the fortune of the day was reversed. A small body of unknown horsemen charged upon the foe, and victory declared for the Seljuk. The cavaliers who had thus opportunely come to the rescue knew not whom they had assisted, nor did the Seljuks recognize their allies. The meeting was one of those remarkable accidents which sometimes shape the future of nations. Ertoghrul, son of Suleyman,—a member of the Oghuz family of Turks, which the Mongol avalanche had dislodged from its old camping grounds in Khorasan, and had pressed in a westerly direction,—was journeying from the Euphrates banks, where he had halted awhile, to the more peaceful seclusion of Anatolia, when he unexpectedly came upon the battle-field of Angora. With the nomad’s love of scrimmage, and the warrior’s sympathy for the weaker side, he led his four hundred riders pell-mell into the fray, and won the day. He little thought that by his impulsive and chivalrous act he had taken the first step toward founding an empire that was destined to endure in undiminished glory for three centuries, and which even now, when more than six hundred years have elapsed, and many a fair province has been wrested or inveigled out of its grasp, still stands lord over wide lands, and holds the allegiance of many peoples, of divers races and tongues. From Ertoghrul to the reigning sultan of Turkey, thirty-five [now thirty-six] princes in the male line have ruled the Ottoman empire without a break in the succession. There is no such example of continuous authority of a single family in the history of Europe.”—“Turkey,” Lane-Poole, pages 8, 9. Such was the romantic and humble birth of the Turkish power of to-day.
At Sugut in 1258 there was born Othman, the son of Ertoghrul. He was the first ruler of the line who ventured to assert his absolute independence. His descendants took the name of Othmanlis, or, as we call them, Ottomans. This man was destined not only to give his8name to the Ottomans, but he became the great conquering hero of the race. A dream which he had in his youthful days is said to have had a powerful influence on his after-life, and the story is romantic and interesting:—
“At the little village of Ithburuni, near Eskisehir, dwelt a learned doctor of the law, Edebali, with whom Othman loved to converse, not the less because the good man had a daughter fair to see, whom some called Mal Khatun, ‘Lady Treasure,’ and others Kamariya, ‘Moon-bright,’ from her surpassing beauty. But the family of Othman was as yet new to the country, and its authority was not recognized by the surrounding chieftains of the Anatolian aristocracy. Other young men of higher rank might bring their court to the damsel, and her father discouraged the suit of the son of Ertoghrul. At last he was convinced by an argument which has ever been potent among the superstitious people of the East. A dream dispelled his doubts. One night Othman, as he slumbered, thought he saw himself and the old man, his host, stretched upon the ground, and from Edebali’s breast there seemed to rise a moon, which, waxing to the full, approached the prostrate form of Othman, and finally sank to rest in his bosom. Thereat from out his loins sprang forth a tree, which grew taller and taller, and raised its head, and spread out its branches, till the bows overshadowed the earth and the seas. Under the canopy of leaves towered four mighty mountains, Caucasus and Atlas, Taurus and Hæmus, which held up the leafy vault like four great tent poles, and from their sides flowed royal rivers, Nile and Danube, Tigris and Euphrates. Ships sailed upon the waters, harvests waved upon the fields, the rose and the cyprus, flower and fruit, delighted the eye, and on the boughs birds sang their glad music. Cities raised domes and minarets toward the blue canopy; temples and obelisks, towers and fortresses, lifted their high heads, and on their pinnacles shone the golden crescent. And behold, as he looked, a great wind arose and dashed the crescent against the crown of Constantine, that imperial city which stood at the meeting of two seas and two continents, like a diamond between sapphires and emeralds, the center jewel of the ring of empire.”—Von Hammer, “History of the Ottoman Turks,” Vol. I, pages 66, 67. Quoted by Lane-Poole.
Whether the dream was an invention, or whether the vision of empire really came to Othman as he lay slumbering, no mortal knows. But certain it is that the Turkish crescent and scimitar did dash against Constantinople, the glorious city of the imperial Constantine the Great. And there at the meeting of two seas and two continents they have remained to this day. They have remained in spite of the fact that no less than twenty times in the last two hundred years has the might of Russia been engaged in fierce effort to dislodge them.
But the end is soon to come. And with it there will come, not only the end of the Ottoman empire of the Turks, but also the end of all the empires of earth. When that power which dwells where two seas and two continents meet, shall go down in ruin, all that is magnificent and mighty on earth will follow in its wake. And then two seas will meet,—the sea of earth’s long night of sorrow and the sea of eternal time. And the one will ebb away forever, while the heaving bosom of the other will bless mankind through all the ages of the ages.
Madison, Tenn.
Patience
By U. Preston Long
U. PRESTON LONG
THE grace of patience, endurance, or steadfastness, is essential to God's remnant people. We must have the patience of the saints in order to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. Rev. 14:12.
“Ye have heard of the patience of Job.” James 5:11. The name of Job has become synonymous with patience. But patience, like the book of Job, must be well known and understood in order to be rightly appreciated.
Patience is ever modest and quiet, never showy. So it will never be a popular grace. It costs too much, and makes too little show for that. The world likes virtues that glitter more, and that go off with a louder report. But the grace that “suffereth long, and is kind,” “is not easily provoked,” which “beareth all things,” and “endureth all things,” is ever the greatest of all graces, the grace that never fails, the crowning grace of Christian character, the sweetest and fairest fruit of the Spirit. Truly has the poet Lowell said,—
“Endurance is the crowning quality,
And patience all the passion of great hearts.”
The tendency of our religious life to-day is strongly toward the active and utilitarian extreme. We are prone to estimate all things by the force they show, by the active energy they manifest. We say the blacksmith shapes the iron with his hammer, while the anvil, which outwears a score of hammers, is not even mentioned.
We need industry, hospitality, and other active virtues, but just as truly do we need the passive ones, such as meekness, gentleness, and patience.
These trying times call for patience. It is he who endures “unto the end” the afflictions, persecutions, betrayals, deceptions, that shall be saved. Matt. 24:9-13. We have need of patience that “after we have done the will of God, we might receive the promise.” Heb. 10:36. If we let patience have her perfect work, we shall be “perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” James 1:4. With greed, injustice, and inequality prevailing, as now when “the coming of the Lord draweth nigh,” we need to be patient and established. James 5:7, 8.
In cultivating this grace we are exhorted to imitate the prophets, especially Job. James 5:10, 11.
Ft. Morgan, Colo.
Disappointed Hopes
By R. M. KILGORE
R. M. KILGORE
LIKE the magnetic needle, the people of the world, for many years have been attracted to the north pole. Daring explorers have gone forth in search of that great prize. Life has been sacrificed, untold suffering endured, and fabulous sums of money squandered to gain the coveted goal. For years the nations have vied with one another, striving to obtain the right of discovery, which, in their minds, would be an immense acquisition to their landed estate, and add another golden crown of glory to their brow.
Dr. Frederick A. Cook has recently surprised the nations by publishing the declaration that he had discovered the north pole. In less than a week another unexpected message is sent abroad by Commander Peary that he had made the discovery, and claimed the reward of9honor, disputing the claim of the former. An altercation is now on as to who is the man first to step in sight of the depressed center. The controversy waxes warm, and the contention for the rights involved is likely to be greater than the value of the cold inheritance discovered.
Dr. Cook, in reporting his conquest of the pole, gives the following graphic description of his feelings and impressions on the last day of his long and perilous journey:—
“I slept very little; my goal was reached, the ambition of my life had been fulfilled; how could I sleep away such overwhelming moments of elation?
“At last we had reached the boreal center. The dream of nations had been realized. The race of centuries was ours. The flag was pinned to the coveted pole. The year was 1908, the day April 21. . . .
“Though overjoyed with the success of the conquest, our spirits began to change on the next day after all the observations had been taken, and the local conditions were studied. A sense of intense loneliness came with a careful scrutiny of the horizon. What a cheerless spot to have aroused the ambition of man for so many ages! Endless fields of purple snows. No life, no land, no spot to relieve the monotony of frost. We were the only pulsating creatures in a dead world of ice.”
No such disappointment awaits God’s people at the end of their journey. God’s promises are sure. Their expectations will be more than realized. “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” “The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” O, that will be “joy unspeakable and full of glory”!
Dickson, Tenn.
Opportunities
By M. E. Emmerson
M. E. EMMERSON
OPPORTUNITIES come to all people. All have had opportunities, all have opportunities. Present time is the opportune time; that is, it is the right time to do the right thing. Every opportunity should be improved. Some are worth more than others, but all are worth so much that we can not afford to allow any to go by unimproved. An opportunity passed by unimproved never comes again.
The road of opportunities is that which every one traces from the earliest years of accountability to the grave. Every moment of life is freighted with some golden opportunity. Moment by moment they pass. Moment by moment life's work is done, and it is done never to be done over. Sometimes we say, “I must do this again.” So we do things over and over, and never do what we might have done had no time gone by unimproved.
In the school in which all mankind have been placed, it has been so ordered that no time should go to waste; and if we do allow any to waste in our hands, it is at our own expense. In the books of heaven it is charged against us. Let none say, “I have no time.” All passing time is ours. And the wise man says, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.”
There is always work to be done for God; and when the work is finished, the reward is ready. The reward is the most precious to be found in all the grand universe of God. It is life, precious life, never-ending. No treasure so precious has ever been found but that it would be given up willingly could life be lengthened a few short years.
Take up the work given by the Master. Tell the world that Jesus our King is coming in this generation. Talk it, live it. Be faithful to the end, and this never-fading reward will be yours.
Kolo, Basutoland, Africa.
The Greatest Impeachment and Its Refutation
By W. E. Haskell
God’s Character Impeached
W. E. HASKELL
The Word of God declares that Satan is a liar, and that he works with all deceivableness of unrighteousness. John 8:44; 2 Thess. 2:9, 10. Sin is deceitful and leads the sinner to justify himself and to think that all his ways are right (Heb. 3:13; Luke 16:15; Prov. 16:2); but in so doing God is necessarily condemned. Job 40:8.
God condemns sin. Sin would condemn God. So there is a double trial. Sin is on trial before the universe; so also is God. In the indictment which sin brings against God, God’s character is impeached. The truth of God is changed into a lie. Rom. 1:25. God is accused of being selfish; of doing nothing freely from love. This greatest slander was begun in heaven and renewed in Eden. Gen. 3:1-5. There it was represented that God was not seeking our good, but his own; that he wants to keep us down and exalt himself; to keep the best for himself and exclude us from it; that he requires sacrifice and self-denial from us, but will make none himself.
We are led to think that God’s good-will changes toward us when we sin against him. Ps. 30:21. This insidious deceptive feeling creeps into the human heart, urging us to do something to attract the attention of God to ourselves, provide some sacrifice, make some propitiation, devise some means to win his favor and reconcile God to us. This is all the outgrowth of that greatest falsehood. But by an act which speaks louder than any words God refuted the slander and revealed the truth. “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us.” 1 John 3:16. The cross reveals a God “with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning,” and a Saviour who is “the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever.” James 1:17; Heb. 13:8. It is a revelation of their unchanging purpose. But what is that purpose? Jesus said that he “came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Matt. 20:28. But he said also that “the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do; for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” John 5:19. The cross demonstrates that it is the eternal purpose of the Father and Son to give themselves in all their fulness to minister unto others in every way possible for their highest good. In all the eternity of the past, in all the eternity of the future, this ever has been and ever will be their all-controlling purpose, with “no variableness, neither shadow of turning;” “the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever.” This is their life, their joy, their glory.
When sin entered this world, and there was no other way in which they could give themselves to minister unto sinful man, then the Father gave his Son, who gave himself, unto the death of the cross. But it was only their unchanging eternal purpose adapting itself to the need and changed conditions of this fallen world.
The cross is the greatest demonstration of this fact, but it only demonstrates what ever has been, and ever will be, the greatest truth that God is love, infinite and unchanging. Then when we sin and feel that God’s good-will has changed toward us, we may know that that very feeling is sin’s slander by which it is seeking to misrepresent our Heavenly Father. No one was ever so misjudged and falsely accused as is he; and because of this the world does not know him as he is; for “he that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.” 1 John 4:8. It is God who is seeking to attract the attention of mankind to himself (Isa. 65:2), who has devised the means, provided the sacrifice, made the propitiation whereby we might be reconciled unto himself. 2 Sam. 14:14; John 1:29; Rom. 3:24, 25; 2 Cor. 5:18, 19. The cross reveals the Father and Son enduring the greatest possible suffering, making the greatest possible sacrifice, thereby making self-evident that there is absolutely nothing for our good that they will not suffer or sacrifice. Rom. 8:32; Ps. 34:10; 84:10.
So on the cross, by this mightiest demonstration of the greatest truth, was made the most convincing, overwhelming refutation of the greatest slander. So complete was this that when all the universe—friend and foe, saved and lost—render their final verdict, there will be a complete vindication of God’s character by a unanimous acquittal from every charge in the indictment. Rev. 15:3, 4; Rom. 3:19; Phil. 2:10, 11. In this great trial we can not be mere spectators. In sin’s impeachment of God’s character, on one side or the other we must be witnesses.
Brayton, Tenn.
Shall It Be a Step Backward?
By E. K. SLADE
E. K. SLADE
ONE year ago approximately thirty thousand dollars was raised through the Thanksgiving Ingathering effort, making it possible to send to the front twenty-five additional missionaries. Considering the advancement attending the message, and the extra demands made upon us at this time, it would be a decided step backward should we fail to gather in an equal amount during the present campaign. The present situation calls for double that amount. Every one who has carefully studied the growth of our work will freely admit that each succeeding year calls for an enlargement of the work and an increase of funds. It is not enough to provide for those who have gone to the front, but recruits are called for and must be sent forth from year to year.
Should the ingathering effort this year result in bringing in only as much as was secured last year, it would seem like a step backward, because that would but little more than provide for those sent out last year. It would seem as if at least as many more should be sent forth to the needy fields this year.
Who can properly estimate in dollars and cents the worth of twenty-five missionaries carrying this message to the dark places of the earth? Who would wish to withdraw the little that his effort contributed to this work a year ago? Who of our people would care to be excused from having a part in a stronger and more universal effort this year?
It is doubtless true that many in our churches failed to have any part in last year’s effort. If the matter of individual responsibility could be so presented to our people that every member of every church would do faithfully his part, we feel certain that at least sixty thousand dollars could be gathered in, making it possible to maintain the workers sent out last year, and open the way for sending as many more this year.
When we consider that this effort is not drawing upon our own resources, but that it calls in funds from the world, and that it also places in the hands of the people reading-matter that is designed to accomplish much good by bringing10prominently before the world this great advance movement, we should be encouraged in our efforts, and it should lead to a most hearty response on the part of every lover of truth. We are not merely to hold our own in this great world-wide work. Anything short of advancement in our missionary operations will have the appearance of stepping backward.
Holly, Mich.
Hour by Hour
By George Klingle
ONE single day
Is not much to look upon. There is some way
Of passing hours of such a limit. We can face
A single day; but place
Too many days before sad eyes,—
Too many days for smothered sighs,—
And we lose heart,
Just at the start.
Years really are not long, nor lives,—
The longest which survives;
And yet to look across
A future we must tread, bowed by a sense of loss,
Bearing some burden weighing down so low
That we can scarcely go
One step ahead,—this is so hard,
So stern a view to face, unstarred,
Untouched by light, so masked with dread;
If we would take a step ahead,
Be brave and keep
The feet quite steady, feel the breath of life
Sweep over on our face again,
We must not look across,—looking in vain,—
But downward to the next close step,
And up. Eyes that have wept
Must look a little way,—not far.
God broke the years to hours and days,
That hour by hour
And day by day
Just going on a little way,
We might be able all along
To keep quite strong.
Should all the weights of life
Be laid across our shoulders, and the future, rife
With woe and struggle, meet us face to face
At just one place,
We could not go;
Our feet would stop; and so
God lays a little on us every day;
And never, I believe, on all the way
Will burdens bear so deep,
Or pathways lie so steep,
But we can go, if by God's power
We only bear the burden of the hour.
— George Klingle.
The Faith of a Child
By Alma Dike
ALMA DIKE
When I was a child, I did not have the privilege of being trained by Christian parents, and yet the Lord, our Great Teacher, knew just how a child could be taught to love and trust him.
One day my father sent me up among the hills to collect some money. When I reached the foot of the hill on my way back, it was so dark that I could not see which way to turn. For a moment I could not think of anything but the snakes that I knew were there. I tried to walk, but fell down. I was so frightened that the sweat trickled down my cheeks. Then that dear name “Jesus” came to my mind, and I only cried it out, “Jesus! Jesus!” and lo, he was right there; for as soon as I had cried out the name, I was happy, and felt no fear, but began to sing. After I had walked a little way, I felt a light touch on my shoulder, and heard a small voice say, “Look behind.” I looked, and saw a light shining on the gate that I should have gone through, but had passed. I knew then that I was not alone, and the joy that filled my soul I can not describe. I kept praising God all the way; and whenever I had to turn, the light would shine so that I could see where to go. Had not that angel touched my shoulder, I should have been in the river; for it was only a few minutes’ walk ahead of me, and I did not know it at the time.
From that time, the Saviour was my best friend, and I was so happy in him. I had found some one to go to with my joys and sorrows. He was always ready to hear my childish prayers, and I knew they were answered.
Then came the time when I was obliged to go out into the world to do for myself. I wondered if it would not be all right to keep Sunday as a sabbath, as other good people were keeping it; but then I heard the Saviour say to my heart: “I have done all you have asked me to do, and now when you know that I have said the seventh day is the Sabbath, will you say No?” My answer was, “No, let it cost what it will, I will obey my Saviour.” I was told that if I kept the Sabbath in my mind, it would be all right, for I was obliged to go out to work, and nobody would let me go to church on that day. Finally I was continually among people who did not give me any time in which to read my Bible and talk with my heavenly Friend, and had to work hard and late. The result was that for about two years heaven and Jesus never came into my mind. But though I had forgotten him, he had not forgotten me. When I looked at the dark clouds, they told me of the Judgment day, and I knew that I was not ready. Then I began to read the Bible, but could not find peace with God. I reasoned that it was a story-book, similar to others I had read, and that the story about the Thor god might be just as true.
However, one evening when I was reading the Bible, the tempter whispered, “There is no God,” and I answered, “No, there is no God.” Then he who was my friend saw it was time to do something, and he whispered by his Spirit in my heart: “Don’t you remember how you called on me when you were in trouble in the woods, and how11I helped you?” and now you say there is no God!” Then it all came back to my mind, and I was on my knees in that minute asking God to forgive me and to receive me back. It was not long before I was again trying to live the truth; and as soon as I had obeyed, my peace with God brought me the joy the world has never known.
I have been in many of our people’s homes, both in this country and in the old, but have been in only a few families where it was expected that the children would pray at the family altar. I once met a bright little girl who knew the Sabbath-school lesson well every week. When I asked her if she loved Jesus, she said she did not know. I asked her if she prayed, and she said she did not know how. There were seven dear children in that family, and I found out that none of them knew how to pray. Is it any wonder that such children will not stand firm when brought face to face with the trials of the world—when the tempter comes to tell them that to do as the world does, will be all right? They can not say, “The Saviour always answered my prayers, and I love him too well to do anything he has told me not to do,” for they have never been taught to pray in their own behalf. They know that Jesus was a good man, but do not know him as the truest and best friend; so when the enemy comes with his strong temptations, they fall. If they had only been acquainted with the Saviour’s voice, they would hear him say, “This is the way.”
I am glad that some of our mothers understand that to train up a child in the way he should go is not only to make him familiar with the Bible, but to lead him to know and love the Saviour. The children must learn that although Jesus has gone to heaven, he hears their prayers and is their truest and best Friend.
I once had a little girl staying with me. One day on coming home from school she said, “I am so happy.” She then told me that she had had some trouble about her lesson and had begun to cry. Then she remembered what I had told her, and she said, “He did hear me, and now I am so happy.”
Fathers and mothers, teach your child to pray and to know the Saviour, and when he is old, how can he turn away?