Christ said to his disciples, “Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.”
Satan’s efforts against the advocates of the truth will wax more bitter and determined to the very close of time. As in Christ’s day the chief priests and rulers stirred up the people against him, so to-day the religious leaders will excite bitterness and prejudice against the truth for this time. The people will be led to acts of violence and opposition which they would never have thought of had they not been imbued with the animosity of professed Christians against the truth.
And what course shall the advocates of truth pursue? They have the unchangeable, eternal Word of God, and they should reveal the fact that they have the truth as it is in Jesus. Their words must not be rugged and sharp. In their presentation of truth they must manifest the love and meekness and gentleness of Christ. Let the truth do the cutting; the Word of God is as a sharp, two-edged sword, and will cut its way to the heart. Those who know that they have the truth should not, by the use of harsh and severe expressions, give Satan one chance to misinterpret their spirit. As a people we must stand as did the world’s Redeemer. When in controversy with Satan in regard to the body of Moses, Christ durst not bring against him a railing accusation. He had every provocation to do this, and Satan was disappointed because he could not arouse in Christ a spirit of retaliation. Satan was ready to misrepresent everything that was done by Jesus; and the Saviour would give him no occasion, not the semblance of an excuse. He would not turn from his straightforward course of truth in order to follow the wanderings, and twistings, and turnings, and prevarications of Satan.
We read in the prophecy of Zechariah that when Satan with all his synagogue stood up to resist the prayers of Joshua the high priest, and to resist Christ, who was about to show decided favor to Joshua, “The Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?”
The course of Christ in dealing even with the adversary of souls, should be an example to us in all our intercourse with others, never to bring a railing accusation against any; much less should we employ harshness or severity toward those who may be as anxious to know the right way as we are ourselves.
The Truth as It Is in Jesus
Those who have been educated in the truth by precept and example should make great allowance for others who have had no knowledge of the Scriptures except through the interpretations given by ministers and church members, and who have received traditions and fables as Bible truth. They are surprised by the presentation of truth; it is as a new revelation to them, and they cannot bear to have all the truth, in its most striking character, presented to them at the outset. All is new and strange, and wholly unlike that which they have heard from their ministers, and they are inclined to believe what the ministers have told them, that Seventh-day Adventists are infidels, and do not believe the Bible. Let the truth be presented as it is in Jesus, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, and there a little. Speak of the love of God in words easy to be understood. Bible truth, presented in the meekness and love of Jesus, will have a telling influence upon many minds.
Many souls are hungering for the bread of life. Their cry is, Give me bread; do not give me a stone. It is bread that I want. Feed these perishing, starving souls. Let our ministers bear in mind that the strongest meat is not to be given to babes who know not the first principles of the truth as we believe it. In every age the Lord has had a special message for the people of that time; so we have a message for the people in this age. But while we have many things to say, we may be compelled to withhold some of them for a time, because the people are not prepared to receive them now.
When a discourse is given, the people may listen with interest, but it is all strange and new to them, and Satan is ready to suggest to their minds many things that are not true. He will seek to pervert and misrepresent the speaker’s words. What shall we do? The discourses presenting the reasons of our faith should be published in little leaflets, and circulated as widely as possible. Thus the falsehoods and misrepresentations which the enemy of truth constantly tries to keep in circulation would be revealed in their true character, and the people would have an opportunity of knowing just what the minister said.
Those who introduce the leaven of truth amid the mass of false theories and doctrines may expect opposition. Satan’s batteries will be opened upon those who advocate the truth, and the standard bearers must expect to meet many sneers, and much reviling that is hard to bear.
The message of warning is to be given in all the highways and byways. The cities are to be worked, not merely preached to; there must be house-to-house labor. After the warning has been given, after the truth has been presented from the Scriptures, many souls will be convicted. Then great carefulness is needed. The human agent cannot do the work of the Holy Spirit, we are only the channels through which the Lord works. Too often a spirit of self-sufficiency comes in, if a measure of success attends the efforts of the worker. But there must be no exaltation of self, nothing should be attributed to self; the work is the Lord’s, and his precious name is to receive all the glory. Let self be hid in Jesus.
There is danger of indulging a controversial spirit. But those who really love the truth, who have received it into the heart as a living principle, will have the greatest desire to reveal in words and actions the sanctifying power of truth upon the life. They will be representatives of the truth, showing its transforming power upon their own character. When opposed, they will not retaliate. Children and youth cannot, unless they are under the direct influence of the Spirit of God, correctly represent the sanctifying power of truth upon mind and character. And there are many grown-up persons who need to enter the school of Christ and learn his meekness and lowliness of heart, else they will venture to do that which Michael the Archangel dared not do. The railing accusations will be at their tongues’ end. There are many fathers and mothers who would to-day engage in the work of God if encouraged, but who, in their own home life, prove themselves unfit to handle sacred responsibilities. They are only grown-up children. There are very few parents who represent the character of Jesus in the home.
The Believer Is Complete in Christ
Christ represented his Father; he knew how the Father would do under any and every circumstance, and he did just as the Father would do. He made manifest in his work the ways of God. The living God was working through his Son. Jesus, when he was found in fashion as a man, had a realizing sense of the world’s needs, and he employed his human, God-given powers for the benefit of men, while in every act of mercy and healing he drew upon the divine power, even the power that made the worlds. The Lord Jesus is all ready to impart the very same aid to all who will consecrate their powers to his service, who feel the need of the impartation of his grace. To all who desire to be recipients of his Spirit, the virtue flows out from Christ. And it is in this way that the character of God, the perfection of Christ and the Father, is brought before the world. The8human agent is complete in Christ. Learning in the school of Christ, daily studying his life, we become one with him, and reflect the virtues of his character.
He who is daily a learner in the school of Christ can say, “As the Father gave me commandment, even so I do.” Thus did the Son of God in his human life, leaving us an example of perfect obedience, prefacing every deed with such words as these: “That which the Son seeth the Father do, he doeth also.” “This commandment have I received of my Father.” The history of Christ’s human life in our world is the record of his purpose toward us for the manifestation of his divine perfection. He was the light shining in darkness; and what is the record? “And the darkness comprehended it not.” The standard is high, for Christ is our standard, and he could justly claim perfection in all his works. But how few, in their practice, will follow the Lamb of God whithersoever he goeth. Following Jesus, imbued with his Spirit moment by moment, the human agent would represent Christ, as Christ represented the Father.
(To be concluded)
An Appeal to Our Missionary Societies
By George F. Enoch
GEORGE F. ENOCH
To-day there seems to be a lack of concentration, of working with a definite aim in view. We are wont to deal in glittering generalities. We read our books and our papers, the reports of our missionaries and their various calls, and in a general way are interested in all of them, and think we have a great missionary burden. The genuineness of this burden is shown by our self-sacrifice to help the needy fields.
To test your missionary society, does it take some earnest plea from the overflowing heart of a burdened missionary whom you have sent to the front of the battle? Does the plea receive a ready response by the sending of re-enforcements? or does it arouse your sympathies for a passing moment, after which you pursue the even tenor of your way, leaving him who looks to you for help to bear the brunt of the battle made heavier by your neglect, and perhaps to fall beneath the load?
Those who are out in the front ranks do not look back to the peace and pleasure of home, and long to be there. Once they have tasted the sweets of self-sacrifice and toil for Jesus, their hearts are in the front ranks. They do not desire to be elsewhere; but it is encouraging to them to know that re-enforcements are behind, supporting them, and ready to step in should they fall in the battle.
So let us appeal to Seventh-day Adventist missionary societies everywhere to go to the Lord with the various calls coming from all parts of the world, and ask him to place upon them a burden to do something definite in response.
The situation in Port of Spain should appeal to us to do a definite work. This beautiful city of sixty-five thousand inhabitants is a most interesting mission field, as English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and East Indians are found here in large numbers. We have done much for the work here; two of our veteran missionaries lie buried in the public cemetery, and others have been called back on account of failing health. We have a company of more than one hundred believers, and yet we have no suitable place of worship.
A few words of explanation might help us to understand the matter. The members of our church are from the humbler walks of life, and most of them have suffered pecuniary loss through accepting the truth, yet it is more precious to them than the pleasures of this life or the riches of Egypt. We are not sitting with folded hands, but are trying to erect a monument for God in this city. By little acts of self-denial and sacrifice we have raised here, since the first of January, one hundred dollars in sixpences and shillings. We are not weary, for we have found this work a pleasure; but while we are so slowly accumulating this money, time, precious time, is passing, and souls that might be reached if we had a suitable place of worship are passing into eternity.
As an illustration of what is being done, I might refer to the work of our missionary society. We have been doing work on the envelope plan, carrying our readers through a systematic course of readings on the truths for this time. Over one hundred envelopes have been used each fortnight, and already we have evidence that good is being accomplished.
When the volcano, within our very hearing, wrought such destruction, we felt that with pen and voice we ought to carry its meaning to the people. We had ten thousand tracts printed, and our brethren in all parts of the island carried them to the people, selling them for one cent each. Not only was enough realized to cover their cost, but already fifteen dollars' profit has gone into the building fund. Then the coronation of Edward VII gave us an opportunity to speak of the glory of the kingdom of God, and talk of the power of the King of kings and Lord of lords. We accordingly had a ten-thousand edition of a coronation tract printed, and so enthusiastic was the response, that almost the whole edition was sold within two weeks.
The word comes to us that a wave of speculation is sweeping over America, and that Satan is succeeding in tying up large amounts of money by holding out the hope of large returns in a few years. We only wish that every one could see such things as we see them.
The storm of God's wrath will soon break upon the world, and destroy us with our idols. When one dollar invested in God's cause now will accomplish more than ten dollars in the near future, why do we tie up our money in worldly enterprises? Let us draw our money out of all things worldly, and deposit it in the bank of heaven, by investing it in God's cause.
We are thankful for the donations already received for a church building in Port of Spain. From New York, Dakota, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Oregon the donations have come, but there is not yet half enough. Which societies will make Port of Spain their definite burden until sufficient money is realized to erect in this city a fitting monument to the Lord?
Let us all lift together just a little longer, then the battle will be fought, and the victory won, and we shall all unite our voices in the mighty chorus of praise at the harvest home.
A Confidential Word With a Penitent Soul
By Ellet Joseph Waggoner
E. J. WAGGONER
You say that you cannot overcome your besetting sin; that you have tried, and failed; that the temptation comes so unexpectedly and so strong that you cannot resist it. Let me tell you what that sort of talk really means, and perhaps you will change your tone. You are virtually saying that Satan is more powerful than Christ; “for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” The controversy is between Christ and Satan over your soul. You belong to the Lord; but Satan claims you, and you have been serving him, and he has no mind to give you up. Christ will not arbitrarily claim even his own; he has all power in heaven and in earth, but he will not control you without your consent. All he asks of you, and that which he earnestly longs for, is that you unreservedly give yourself into his hands, acknowledging him as your sole Master and Lord. When you do that, and as long as you continue it, he holds himself responsible for your salvation.
Now, you say that you long for freedom from sin, and that you accept the Lord as your Saviour. If that is really so, can you not see that when you say you cannot overcome, you are really saying that the devil has more power than Christ? But that is not so. Christ has “all power.” It is, however, a fact, if we are overcome by sin, that Satan has more power in us than Christ has, for Satan is the one that works in the children of disobedience. “He that committeth sin is of the devil;” but the Son of God was manifested for the sole purpose “that he might destroy the works of the devil;” and thanks be to God, he is abundantly able to do it. God gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ, and it is the victory that he has already won. We wrestle “with principalities and powers,” but Christ has “spoiled” them, disarmed them. Col. 2:15. Therefore, “this is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith.” 1 John 5:4, R. V. Now to whom do you intend henceforth to give the credit for having supreme power—to Christ or to Satan? That is the question for you to answer. Decide definitely and finally who is the most mighty monarch, and then serve that one. Which shall it be?
Be Strong in the Lord
“Be strong in the Lord.”
Sound Speech
By Charles Cave
CHARLES CAVE
The faculty of speech is one of the most sacred endowments bestowed upon man. By it he is elevated above the lower order of creation, and placed in a position a little lower than that of the angels. It was for a noble purpose that the Lord gave him this wonderful talent. The tongue is one of those members which should be yielded as instruments of righteousness. With it “bless we God, even the Father.” It is therefore incumbent on every one so to use this gift as to meet the design of the Giver.
Our characters are greatly influenced by our conversation. Every word we speak enters into the moral structure which we are daily building, and conduces either to strengthen or to weaken it. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” The effect of our words is never lost. A current of influence is started which will reach into eternity. The Saviour says that for every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give an account in the day of judgment. “For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” This solemn statement should lead each one to have his words few and well chosen.
Frequent indulgence in joking is condemned by the Word of God; but it is not often considered unholy. Precious moments that should be spent in pure and elevated conversation are thoughtlessly wasted in idleness. The glory of the starry heavens, the beauty of the trees and flowers,—all that tends to ennoble the mind and gladden the heart are left aside for the sake of that which is light and unprofitable. Yet, couched in the most scathing language, the Lord says: “As a mad man who casteth firebrands, arrows, and death, so is the man that deceiveth his neighbor, and saith, Am not I in sport?” What a fearful denunciation of him that delights in frivolity! And with what abhorrence does the Lord view such idleness and folly! Yet how many there are who delight in trying to deceive in so-called sport, and do not realize that the Lord regards this as lying. A lie is a lie whether it is told “in sport” or not. A faithful record of all these delinquencies is kept, and will, unless blotted out through the mediation of Christ, condemn the soul. The Lord desires that his followers should let their “speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt.” Their conversations should be of a salutary character. Every utterance should be the outgrowth of holy thoughts, giving testimony to the sanctifying power of Christ in the soul. When talk of a flippant character is indulged, the Lord is dishonored, and there is a lack of spiritual power.
Through the apostle we are admonished: “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Those who shall stand on Mount Zion will be those who have ordered their conversation aright, and whose thoughts, words, and actions have been kept under the full control of the Spirit of God. Thus it is written of them, “And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.” Without fault!—most desirable plaudit! Be it the constant prayer of those who desire to be in this holy company, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my Redeemer.”
“My People Doth not Consider”
By H. A. St. John
H. A. ST. JOHN
“My people doth not consider.” Isa. 1:3. To consider is to ponder, meditate, reflect, think closely and intently upon, literally, to sit down by. Let us sit down by seven things that the Lord in his Word has told us to consider.
1. “Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.” 1 Sam. 12:24. Never can mortal man fully fathom the great things the Lord has done for him. They cannot be reckoned up for number; they cannot be measured for greatness; they cannot be estimated for value. “O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men.” It is an exhaustless theme to which we should often turn with delight. May we ever remember the “great things the Lord hath done” for us, that we may fear the Lord and ever serve him in truth and with all the heart.
2. “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.” “For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” Heb. 3:1; 12:3. A wonderful theme indeed for our consideration! It is included among the great things the Lord has done for us. Herein is an infallible recipe for all weariness and faintness in the Lord’s service. How pleasant, how delightful, how fascinating the theme of the unsearchable riches of Christ, our Apostle, our High Priest, our Saviour, our all, and all ours. Let us consider Christ.
3. “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” Gal. 6:1. Persons overtaken in a fault, who are departing from the path of rectitude, are subjects of special interest to the enemy of souls. His power will be exerted to the utmost upon the erring one, and upon the person who seeks to reclaim him, in order that the effort may prove abortive. This is the reason why the person who seeks to reclaim the wayward will have a close conflict with Satan, and needs to be spiritual and specially watchful. In such an effort, he needs to consider himself.
4. “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.” Heb. 10:24. Then it is proper to consider one another, and that, too, for the purpose of provoking one another; not to hatred and evil deeds, however, as is too often done, but to love and to good works. There is much consideration often given to the question of how to provoke to impatience, to anger, and hence to wrong acts. Would that the same measure of consideration was given to that kind of provocation that works for the glory of God. A daily exemplification of our own love, ever increasing and abounding, and revealing itself in good works, will be the best way to provoke others to love and good works.
5. “Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.” Ps. 41:1. The poor we have with us always, and hence this important subject of consideration is ever at hand. Too often we find ourselves considering the rich, which tends to envy and unholy ambition. Let us consider the poor with the object of ameliorating their condition, or encouraging them to bear or endure what cannot be helped. The Lord is in such consideration, he blesses it, and stores up blessings for him who thus considers the poor.
6. “Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.” 2 Tim. 2:7. Consider what inspired writers have said. Study, ponder, reflect, meditate upon these things; sit down by them,—an exhaustless treasure-house; a mine of richest and brightest diamonds and jewels; mental and spiritual food and drink; everything to satisfy the inquiring mind, the aspiring intellect, the hungry soul. Consider what is there said.
7. “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?” Ps. 8:3, 4. What can make us see and sense our own littleness, like the study10of astronomy, the study of the wonderful works of God, as revealed to all eyes in the heavens above us? Surely here is a theme and a field worthy of our highest consideration. In all this study we are thinking God’s thoughts after him, and this of itself is refining, elevating, sanctifying. Jesus said, “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow,” etc. So we may consider the wonders and beauties of nature round about us with great pleasure and continual profit. Hence with so vast a field for consideration, may the Lord never have occasion to say of us, “My people doth not consider.”
“How Wonderful”
By Frances Ridley Havergal
He answered all my prayer abundantly,
And crowned the work that to his feet I brought
With blessing more than I have asked or thought—
A blessing undisguised, and full, and free.
I stood amazed, and whispered, “Can it be
That he hath granted all the boon I sought?
How wonderful that he for me hath wrought!
How wonderful that he hath answered me!”
O faithless heart! He said that he would hear
And answer thy poor prayer; and he hath heard
And proved his promise. Wherefore didst thou fear?
Why marvel that thy Lord has kept his word?
More wonderful if he should fail to bless
Expectant faith and prayer with good success.
— Frances Ridley Havergal.
No Sin Without Law
By James Ernest Clapham
“Without the law sin was dead.” It was not seen to be sin. It was as it were hidden in the grave. “For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.” The law gave me knowledge of sin,—sin committed against a holy God,—and I found myself to be liable to death—I died. Not that the man who lived or lives without the knowledge of law is absolutely guiltless; for conscience, though slow to act and curtailed in power, never dies. But “sin is the transgression of the law;” where there is no law, there is no sin; just so far as law is clear, so is sin sinful. Therefore the state of man without the law was a state of life, compared with the darkness and death in which he found himself under the law.
“The commandment came”—the new revelation of law given ages ago in thunder and clouds on Sinai, given to-day in the Word of God through the Holy Ghost—rousing man from the spiritual slumber into which he had fallen. “The commandment came,” awakening the conscience, lighting up with new clearness the dim and faded characters of the law written upon the heart, revealing again the will of God, revealing sin as rebellion against that will, and as being both death and the way to death. The commandment, holy, and just, and good, came face to face with human guilt.
This revelation of law to the soul Paul describes as having a twofold effect, (1) upon that self which loves to be independent of God, with its passions and its evil will, and (2) upon conscience.
As to the first effect: “I had not known sin,” says the writer, “but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet,”—had not known it; not, had not felt it, but had not known it as lust. “But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence.”
The law was ordained to life; one of its ends was that by observing it man might obtain a right to life eternal. Obedience to it was and is still a title deed to heaven; but the obedience must be perfect, or there is a flaw in the deed, a flaw which is irreparable; for the law of God can stoop to no compromise with human disobedience. But man is carnal, sold under sin, as a slave to a master, from which there is no escape. There is a warp in his nature which ever turns him aside from the path of right, and the commandment which was ordained to life he finds to be unto death.
But there is something more than this. “Sin, taking occasion,” having found an occasion of attack on me, through the commandment, “wrought in me all manner of concupiscence.” The revelation of law stirs up man to rebellion. The characteristic of the carnal mind is the spirit of opposition to all that is good. “The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” Man with his weakness, with his petty passions, with his low, earthward nature defiantly independent, takes his daily stand in opposition to the Almighty, but for whose hand sustaining him every moment he would cease to be. Puffed up with pride, impatient of control, resenting any curb upon the lawlessness of passion, he rebels against the law, even because it is the will of God.
Let no one think that this is mere theory. “Stolen waters are sweet” is a maxim of the world. In the perversity of sinful nature, the forbidden thing is invested with peculiar charms. Set bounds to the schoolboy, and they will be passed. Condemn a book, and men will read it. Brand a deed as bad, and it will find doers. “Sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence.”
The revelation of law has a second effect. It rouses the conscience. The conscience and the reason at once declare for God, but their voice is drowned amid the clamor of the passions. The more man knows of the law, the stronger is his conviction of its beauty and its truth; but, alas, the stronger too is his conviction of his own inability to keep it. He listens to the command, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,” and the more clearly he comprehends it, the deeper grows his despair. “That which I do,” he says, “I allow not: for what I would that I do not; but what I hate, that do I.”
This is not the state, this is not the language, of a soul solitary and apart, uttering his lonely complaint, groaning over an inward misery with which others can never sympathize. This is the state, the language, of fallen human nature, struggling with chains it cannot break, sighing for a deliverer whom it cannot see. Listen to the weary confession of men of all ages and nations, and the burden of their cry is, “The good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.” Listen to the voices of the ancients. More than two thousand years ago a heathen wrote these words: “I know the right, and yet I am on the point of doing the wrong; desire is stronger than will.” Another, three hundred years later, bemoans himself, “If I could, I would be wiser, but some unknown force drags me against my will. Desire draws me one way, conviction another. I see the better and approve, I follow the worse.”
And is the case otherwise to-day? Who of us has not often shuddered at this slavery of soul, this worse than Egyptian bondage? Who of us has not resolved against the sin that doth so easily beset, with such intensity of purpose that we have vainly thought the struggle was already over, and the victory won? But a few days, or even hours, sufficed to change the temper of the mind, and though the reasons for resolving seemed as cogent as ever, inclination or passion, with the rush of a torrent, swept them aside, and we were borne headlong into sin. Thank God for those to whom these things are but a memory, for with them “old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”—Rev. James Ernest Clapham.
Christianity Aids Success
By C. M. Cobern
“CAN a man succeed in business if he conducts his business on Christian principles?”—Yes; he can succeed in no other way. The Bible agrees with common experience in teaching that the chances of success in business are not decreased, but largely increased, if a man carries his religion into his business—and his accumulations are apt to stay in the family longer. Integrity has a commercial value. A man who has a reputation of being an honest man and a true Christian has a better chance of getting on his feet again when he falls down. The man who lives according to Bible rules will be temperate, frugal, prompt, energetic, “diligent in business.” He will not speculate with other people’s money, nor use his own in gambling and dissipation. He will be free from the “moral cracks” through which so many fortunes leak away. He will be courteous and considerate of those whom he employs, or will attend to his employer’s interests as if they were his own. The fact is, as somebody has said, “God Almighty has fixed things in this world so that it pays to do right.” Righteousness has the promise of the life that now is, as well as of that which is to come.—Rev. C. M. Cobern, D. D.
Laying Aside Every Weight
WHEN an athlete intends to enter some contest, he trains for it, seeking to get rid of the weight of every superfluous pound of flesh. He is after his “running weight” or his “rowing weight.” And so it is in the Christian race. Sloth is a weight. Ignorance is a weight. Bigotry is a weight. Selfishness is a weight. We must work these off, or we shall never get into condition for our Christian service.
Good Cheer
HAVE you had a kindness shown?
Pass it on.
'Twas not giv'n for you alone,
Pass it on.
Let it travel down the years,
Let it wipe another's tears,
Until in heaven the deed appears,
Pass it on.
Do Something
By Lucy Larcom
If the world seems cool to you,
Kindle fires to warm it!
Let their comfort hide from you
Winters that deform it.
Hearts as frozen as your own
To that radiance gather;
You will soon forget to moan,
“Ah! the cheerless weather!”
If the world’s a “vale of tears,”
Smile till rainbows span it;
Breathe the love that life endears —
Clear from clouds to fan it.
Of your gladness lend a gleam
Unto souls that shiver;
Show them how dark sorrow’s stream
Blends with hope’s bright river.
— Lucy Larcom.
Household Gymnastics
UNDER this heading the Literary Digest considers the question whether the exercises of housework, as that work is done in most American homes, constitute good gymnastics for the body. Physical exercise is essential to physical health, and it would seem that the work of caring for a house, if properly conducted, ought to furnish healthful exercise for the housewife; but according to the testimony here quoted, this work as performed in the average American home, is not conducive to health, but has quite the contrary effect. A writer in the American Kitchen Magazine says that housework would give good exercise if properly regulated; but that it is not so regulated. This authority says:—
“The writer has watched many women sweep, and he has rarely seen one who did not wield her broom continuously on one side of the body. The ambidextrous sweeper is uncommon. Examine a hundred brooms in daily use, and you will see that ninety-nine of them are worn obliquely across the bottom. The sweeper always holds her broom at the same angle, on the same side of the body. She stoops constantly in the same direction, repeats the same stroke, fatigues the same muscles, and brings pressure to bear upon the same vital organs. The result is lopsidedness. Few habitual sweepers have symmetrical bodies. One shoulder is almost always elevated above the other, besides being more noticeably padded with muscle. The figure gradually acquires a cant toward the side on which the broom is wielded.
“How about the hygiene of the broom? In spite of the utmost precaution,—and the average American woman does not take that precaution,—a broom will stir up a cloud of fine dust, dust that you can smell and taste, dust that defies all nature’s filtering arrangements, and penetrates to the remotest cells of the lungs. Even the patent carpet sweeper raises some dust. . . .
“The sweeper’s ‘weak back’ is simply a protest from the kidneys, too much strain and drag on those sensitive organs. There is a distinct transverse strain in the motion of sweeping, a sort of stretching, tearing pull, especially when the broom is habitually wielded on one side. This strain is bad for the kidneys; and the result is that most women who do a great deal of sweeping have chronically weak and aching backs.
“The heart is less directly affected by broom sweeping than are the lungs or the right kidneys. But most sweepers stoop too much forward, holding the head down; and the resultant compression of the chest walls confines the heart at a time when its action should be most free and unimpeded. And the heart, we know, is also indirectly affected by anything that interferes with the proper functioning of lungs and kidneys.”
Even worse than sweeping, the same writer says, is washing, as commonly practiced. Bending over a steaming tub, habitually compressing the chest, and straining breast and back muscles in an unnatural position, is not healthful exercise. Of this and other kinds of common housework he says further:—
“The ‘life’ of a washerwoman—her expectancy of service, that is—is noticeably brief. Unless she is an exceptionally strong and healthy woman, she will give out in from five to ten years. ‘Broken back’ is the common complaint. That means abused and diseased kidneys and the beginning of a constitutional breakdown. Patent-medicine dealers reap enormous profits from the pitiful endeavors of washerwomen to rid themselves of that terrible ache and weakness in the small of the back. Unquestionably, washing is not good gymnastics.
“Bad, too, are the constrained positions of floor scrubbing; the strainings and stretchings and tiptoeings of house cleaning and window washing; the removing and sifting of ashes; the cleaning of sooty stoves and stovepipes; the feverish toil over ironing boards, while the blood boils in an unnaturally high temperature, and the feet, legs, and back ache with long standing in one position.”
The writer concludes with some suggestions as to how such unfortunate physical effects may be avoided. He says:—
“There are, to be sure, some functions of housework that are physically beneficial, or at least harmless. Bread making, cooking, dish washing, bed making,—comparatively light exercises like these are unobjectionable. But the heavier household work, as generally conducted, is physically detrimental.
“It is not to be denied, on the other hand, that our wiser sisters of leisure choose their gymnastics with wisdom and good sense. The scientific results of every exercise are noted and understood, and physical play is regulated accordingly. Promotion of bodily symmetry and of vital function is the result sought and gained. If housework could be revolutionized or regulated in such a way as to have the same ends in view, it might possess some real gymnastic value. There is a chance for very effective reform in the manner of performing the heavier household tasks. The application of scientific principles of physical culture to these tasks, in order that they may be performed in the most healthful and hygienic manner, would be a reform of immense benefit to American women. It is with this end in view that we should seek enlightenment from the physical culturists, instead of ridiculing their practices. For who can deny that they have availed themselves of the right principles of physical culture? If only these same principles could be applied industrially, so that the two birds, physical development and household economy, might be brought to bag with one stone, what a happy consummation it would be!”