Even the Little Trials

Great sorrows drive every Christian to God; but we are only too prone to try to bear our little trials alone. We fancy such petty affairs beneath His notice. Yet, may it not one day appear that the mountain was after all only a hillock; the great burden but a grain of sand? We must throw ourselves as children upon Him. We must be willing to consult His pleasure in the meanest affair of life; to seek his compassion and sympathy in "every pain we bear." Let Him be the judge of their worth and consequence; and perhaps He who seeth not as man seeth, will detect the mountain in what is called the hillock, and mark that as our intolerable burden, that men regard as the small dust of the balance. ~ from The Flower of the Family

Six Little Feet

Do you miss the hearing little feet pattering round the house? It seems to me that the sound of my six little feet is the very pleasantest sound in the world. Often when I lie in bed racked with pain and exhausted from want of food--for my digestive organs seem paralysed when I have neuralgia--hearing these little darlings about the house compensates for everything, and I am inexpressibly happy in the the mere sense of possession. ~ from a letter written to sister-in-law on Jan. 15, 1864.

[It was good she recognized and appreciated it while they were there. So many of us don't really appreciate it until they have grown and gone away. ~ mr]

I Wonder Why

… These were among his last thoughts before he went to sleep that night, and this accounted, he fancied, for the fact that her image, sweet and fresh, came to him with his first waking ones next day. But why she should go wherever he went, why she should flit in and out of his office was not so obvious. He laughed at himself, said it would pass in a day or two, and entered into his usual pursuits with unusual ardor.

“I have got off the business track,” he thought, “by absence from it; and my brain is confused by the journey yesterday.” But when he was riding up town after his day’s work was over, she came into the stage, too, and when he sat down to dinner, she sat down by his side. Oh, Maggie, how could you? He tried to shake her off in vain, and as he knew Aunt Jane would be expecting him in the evening, he set forth for her house, and our Maggie went with him… ~ From Aunt Jane’s Hero, E. Prentiss

[Horace had just met this young lady Maggie the day before on the train. What on earth was going on? Why would he be thinking about her nonstop like that? I wonder why he couldn’t get her out of his mind? I know why. God had put her there as a part of His plan for these two people. Let’s just say that it was His intention that they end up together, and this was one of the ways He was accomplishing His purposes. ~ mr]

Softly and Tenderly

[Isn't this absolutely beautiful? So are the sentiments to someone named Lois.]

He is Mine

Call me not poor; I nothing lack,
For lo, a voice divine
Has made me feel that I am His
and told me He is mine.

Weep not that on this weary bed,
I long must droop and pine;
Here I have learned the peace of God
And know that He is mine.

Not mourn that He has torn away
My idols from their shrine;
Blest be the Hand that gave, that took,
For Jesus still is mine.

Let heaven's own radiance through the storm
Of every sorrow shine,
I heave no sigh, I shed no tear,
Am His, and He is mine.

~ From Heart-Hymns of the Christian Life

A little cold water

A cup of cold water given in Christ's name, if that is all one can give, is just as acceptable as the richest offering; and so is a teaspoonful, if one has no more to give. Christ loves to be loved, and the smallest testimony of real love is most pleasing to Him, and love shown to one of His suffering disciples, He regards as love to Himself. So a little child carrying a flower to some poor invalid, may thus do Christ honor and become more endeared to Him. E.P. (source unknown)

Be Still

Knowest Thou?

Knowest thou how many stars
There are shining in the sky?
Knowest thou how many clouds
Every day go floating by?
God, the Lord, has counted all;
He would miss one, should it fall.

Knowest thou how many flies
Play about in the warm sun?
Or of fishes in the water?
God has counted every one.
Every one he called by name
When into the world it came.

Knowest thou how many children
Go to little beds at night?
That without a care or trouble
Wake up with the morning light?
God in heaven each name can tell;
Knows thee, too, and loves thee well!

~ German hymn Susy's papa sang to her and to Robbie, Little Susy's Six Birthdays

Where is She? Who is She?

Aunt Jane was not surprised to see Horace march in the very next evening. She knew that she had touched, though she had not changed, his heart.
He began abruptly, with--
"Suppose a man could bring his mind to get married on his poverty, where is he to find a girl willing to share it with him?"
"A good wife is from the Lord," she returned.
"But do you know where mine is?" he persisted. "If I am ever to marry, of course there is somebody in the world waiting for me. Now where is she? Who is she?"
"If I knew I would not tell you. I hate matchmaking. You might as well ask me, where are my clients? Who are they? And I should reply, wait till they come to you and you will see and know."
"All I have to do, then, is to be ready for her when she comes! Really, I begin to feel quite curious."
"Yes, to be ready," said Aunt Jane, emphatically. "For if you are not, an angel might come to you and go away unrecognized."
"But ready, how?"
"In moral worth and purity, Horace." And after a pause, she added: "If I were talking to some men, I should say: Ask God to make you fit for her when she comes, and then to send her."
"But why not to me?" he asked with a comical look.
"Because I know you wouldn't do it. You feel perfectly capable of choosing for yourself, and besides, you are not in the habit of taking counsel of Him in worldly matters."
~ From Aunt Jane's Hero,

[Ah, Horace has much to learn, doesn't he? It's interesting to see how God deals with him as time goes by. More on that later. ~ mr.]

Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross