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diff --git a/39129-h/39129-h.htm b/39129-h/39129-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..367a7ab --- /dev/null +++ b/39129-h/39129-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,16688 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" /> +<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Optimist's Good Morning, by Florence Hobart Perin</title> + <style type="text/css"> + +body { + margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%; +} + + h1,h2,h3,h4 { + text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ + clear: both; +} + +p { + margin-top: .75em; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; +} + +hr { + margin: 3em auto 3em auto; + height: 0px; + border-width: 1px 0 0 0; + border-style: solid; + border-color: #dcdcdc; + width: 500px; + clear: both; +} + + .pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */ + /* visibility: hidden; */ + position: absolute; + left: 92%; + font-size: smaller; + text-align: right; + color: #999; +} /* page numbers */ + + + .center {text-align: center;} + + .smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} + + .u {text-decoration: underline;} + + .caption {font-weight: bold;} + + .gap { margin-top: 1em; } + +/* Transcriber Notes */ +div.tn { + background-color: #EEE; + border: dashed 1px; + color: #000; + margin-left: 20%; + margin-right: 20%; + margin-top: 5em; + margin-bottom: 5em; + padding: 1em; +} + +/* Poetry */ + .poem { + margin-left:15%; + margin-right:25%; + text-align: left; + font-size: 1.0em;} + + .signature { + text-align: right; + margin-right: 5%; +} + +/* INDEX */ +ul.index { list-style-type: none; + width: 20em; + margin: 2em auto; +} + +ul.index2 { list-style-type: none; } + +li.pad { padding-top: 2.0%; } + + hr.full { width: 100%; + margin-top: 3em; + margin-bottom: 0em; + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; + height: 4px; + border-width: 4px 0 0 0; /* remove all borders except the top one */ + border-style: solid; + border-color: #000000; + clear: both; } + pre {font-size: 85%;} + </style> +</head> +<body> +<h1>The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Optimist's Good Morning, by Florence +Hobart Perin</h1> +<pre> +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at <a href = "http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre> +<p>Title: The Optimist's Good Morning</p> +<p>Author: Florence Hobart Perin</p> +<p>Release Date: March 13, 2012 [eBook #39129]</p> +<p>Language: English</p> +<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p> +<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE OPTIMIST'S GOOD MORNING***</p> +<p> </p> +<h4>E-text prepared by Larry B. Harrison, Julia Neufeld,<br /> + and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br /> + (<a href="http://www.pgdp.net">http://www.pgdp.net</a>)<br /> + from page images generously made available by the<br /> + Google Books Library Project<br /> + (<a href="http://books.google.com">http://books.google.com</a>)</h4> +<p> </p> +<table border="0" style="background-color: #ccccff;margin: 0 auto;" cellpadding="10"> + <tr> + <td valign="top"> + Note: + </td> + <td> + Images of the original pages are available through + Internet Archive. See + <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=VsgVAAAAYAAJ&oe=UTF-8"> + http://books.google.com/books?id=VsgVAAAAYAAJ&oe=UTF-8</a> + </td> + </tr> +</table> +<p> </p> +<hr class="full" /> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> + +<h1> +The Optimist's<br /> +Good Morning</h1> + +<p class="center"><i>Compiled by</i></p> +<h2>Florence Hobart Perin</h2> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> + +<div class="center">Boston<br /> +Little, Brown, and Company<br /> +1911<br /><br /> + +<i>Copyright</i>, 1907,<br /> +<span class="smcap">By Little, Brown, and Company</span>.<br /><br /> + +<i>All rights reserved</i><br /><br /><br /> + +Printers<br /> +<span class="smcap">S. J. Parkhill & Co., Boston, U. S. A.</span> + +</div> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> + +<p class="center"> +TO<br /> +My Mother and father +</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<h2>Acknowledgments</h2> + + +<p>The compiler desires to make her grateful acknowledgments +to the publishers and authors who have so +generously given their permission to use selections +from their copyrighted publications. She is especially +indebted to Dodd, Mead & Co., Houghton, Mifflin +& Co., The Century Co., The Outlook Co., Small, +Maynard & Co., McClure, Phillips & Co., for extracts +from "The Simple Life" by Charles Wagner and +from "The Angelus" by Edwin Markham; G. P. +Putnam's Sons for selections from "Christus Victor" +by Henry Nehemiah Dodge; to Doubleday, Page & +Co. for extracts from "The Story of My Life" by +Helen Keller, copyright 1902, 1903; also for selections +from "Afterwhiles," copyright 1887, "Riley +Farm Rhymes," copyright 1885, "Riley Songs o' +Cheer," copyright 1883, "Pipes o' Pan," copyright +1888, used by special permission of the publishers, +The Bobbs-Merrill Co., to Charles Scribner's Sons +for selections from "Fisherman's Luck," "The Lost +Word," "Little Rivers," "The Story of the Psalms," +"The Toiling of Felix and Other Poems," by Henry +Van Dyke, and a selection from "El Dorado" by +Robert Louis Stevenson.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<h2>Preface</h2> + + +<p>Once family devotions were general, now they +are rare. There are reasons for the change. One +reason is that the simplicity of the old family life +is gone. It is not easy to get all the members of the +family together at any one time in the day. A part +of this is due to less leisure now than formerly. +Men must catch trains in the morning. In the +evening they are distracted by manifold social engagements.</p> + +<p>Yet the need of spiritual adjustment is ever the +same. Rapid transit, the telephone, the telegraph, +do not take the place of God. Indeed the more +rapid pace involved in these modern pace-makers, +renders the more necessary some pause in the day +for prayer, some upward look, when for a moment +the soul may find an open way between itself and +God. But how and when? Why not the breakfast +table? Surely one or two minutes may be spared. +Thirty seconds of silence, then the reading of a +noble sentiment from some one who has been thinking +for us,—another pause,—and a few words of +prayer, framed by some one with more leisure than +we have, but who puts us in the mood of prayer +and so starts us right upon the duties of the day,—this +will bring the needed readjustment.</p> + +<p>Such is the plan and purpose of this little book. +It is made for busy men and women, who <i>need</i> to +begin the day with God. The quotations for each +day are brief, but they are gleaned from the great +Masters of thought. The prayers are from devout +men of all the denominations.</p> + +<p>As the title will have suggested, both quotations +and prayers are generally in the spirit of a truly +optimistic faith. However life may look in the +middle of the night, it is a good thing to start out +to do the work of the day with hope and courage. +I shall be glad if I can feel that this little book has +helped some busy people to begin the day in this +spirit. I shall be particularly glad if I can feel that +it has helped a little to keep the candles lighted on +the family altar.</p> + +<div class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Florence Hobart Perin.</span> +</div> + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xi" id="page_xi">[xi]</a></span></p> + +<h3>List of Authors of Selections</h3> + + + + + +<div> +Abbott, Lyman, <a href="#page_234">234</a>, <a href="#page_296">296</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Albee, John, <a href="#page_348">348</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Alden, Marion, <a href="#page_263">263</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ambrosius, Johanna, <a href="#page_254">254</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ames, Charles G., <a href="#page_51">51</a>, <a href="#page_68">68</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Amiel, Henri-Frédéric, <a href="#page_305">305</a>, <a href="#page_340">340</a>, <a href="#page_350">350</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Anonymous, <a href="#page_16">16</a>, <a href="#page_33">33</a>, <a href="#page_52">52</a>, <a href="#page_91">91</a>, <a href="#page_93">93</a>, <a href="#page_129">129</a>, <a href="#page_181">181</a>, <a href="#page_198">198</a>, <a href="#page_213">213</a>, <a href="#page_268">268</a>, <a href="#page_354">354</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Arnold, Edwin, <a href="#page_39">39</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Arnold, George, <a href="#page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Aughey, <a href="#page_315">315</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Aurelius, Marcus, <a href="#page_216">216</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Babcock, Maltbie Davenport, <a href="#page_279">279</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Baldwin, Mary, <a href="#page_72">72</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Banks, G. L., <a href="#page_135">135</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bashford, H. H., <a href="#page_9">9</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Beecher, Henry Ward, <a href="#page_120">120</a>, <a href="#page_141">141</a>, <a href="#page_144">144</a>, <a href="#page_192">192</a>, <a href="#page_317">317</a>, <a href="#page_333">333</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bisbee, Frederick A., <a href="#page_248">248</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bolton, Sarah Knowles, <a href="#page_211">211</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Boyd, A. H. K., <a href="#page_78">78</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bridges, Madeline S., <a href="#page_304">304</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brooke, Stopford A., <a href="#page_27">27</a>, <a href="#page_115">115</a>, <a href="#page_289">289</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brooks, Phillips, <a href="#page_17">17</a>, <a href="#page_24">24</a>, <a href="#page_36">36</a>, <a href="#page_75">75</a>, <a href="#page_137">137</a>, <a href="#page_212">212</a>, <a href="#page_235">235</a>, <a href="#page_240">240</a>, <a href="#page_264">264</a>, <a href="#page_271">271</a>, <a href="#page_288">288</a>, <a href="#page_362">362</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brown, Alice, <a href="#page_218">218</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brown, Anna Robertson, <a href="#page_51">51</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xii" id="page_xii">[xii]</a></span>Browning, Elizabeth Barrett, <a href="#page_29">29</a>, <a href="#page_104">104</a>, <a href="#page_148">148</a>, <a href="#page_232">232</a>, <a href="#page_331">331</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Browning, Robert, <a href="#page_28">28</a>, <a href="#page_64">64</a>, <a href="#page_69">69</a>, <a href="#page_79">79</a>, <a href="#page_90">90</a>, <a href="#page_109">109</a>, <a href="#page_130">130</a>, <a href="#page_179">179</a>, <a href="#page_201">201</a>, <a href="#page_221">221</a>, <a href="#page_243">243</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bryant, William Cullen, <a href="#page_249">249</a>, <a href="#page_338">338</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bulkeley, Benjamin R., <a href="#page_347">347</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burton, Richard, <a href="#page_59">59</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Carlisle, J. H., <a href="#page_220">220</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carlyle, Thomas, <a href="#page_37">37</a>, <a href="#page_61">61</a>, <a href="#page_85">85</a>, <a href="#page_107">107</a>, <a href="#page_164">164</a>, <a href="#page_183">183</a>, <a href="#page_209">209</a>, <a href="#page_219">219</a>, <a href="#page_269">269</a>, <a href="#page_331">331</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carman, Bliss, <a href="#page_156">156</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carpenter, Edward, <a href="#page_147">147</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carruth, William H., <a href="#page_252">252</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cary, Alice, <a href="#page_123">123</a>, <a href="#page_138">138</a>, <a href="#page_366">366</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chadwick, John White, <a href="#page_134">134</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Child, Lydia Maria, <a href="#page_364">364</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clarke, James Freeman, <a href="#page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cleaves, Charles P., <a href="#page_214">214</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coates, Florence E., <a href="#page_189">189</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coleridge, Hartley, <a href="#page_245">245</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, <a href="#page_217">217</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Collyer, Robert, <a href="#page_77">77</a>, <a href="#page_287">287</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Confucius, <a href="#page_191">191</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coolidge, Susan, <a href="#page_150">150</a>, <a href="#page_157">157</a>, <a href="#page_207">207</a>, <a href="#page_339">339</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cowper, William, <a href="#page_335">335</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cox, Francis Augustus, <a href="#page_276">276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Craig, Dinah Mulock, <a href="#page_143">143</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crashaw, Richard, <a href="#page_151">151</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Danforth, Abbie E., <a href="#page_357">357</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Davis, Ozora Stearns, <a href="#page_82">82</a>.<br /> +<br /> +DeVere, Aubrey, <a href="#page_71">71</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dix, William F., <a href="#page_261">261</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dodge, Henry Nehemiah, <a href="#page_49">49</a>, <a href="#page_300">300</a>, <a href="#page_371">371</a>, <a href="#page_372">372</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Donaldson, Alfred L., <a href="#page_244">244</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dowd, Emma C., <a href="#page_169">169</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Drummond, Henry, <a href="#page_91">91</a>, <a href="#page_203">203</a>, <a href="#page_323">323</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dunbar, Paul Laurence, <a href="#page_88">88</a>, <a href="#page_186">186</a>, <a href="#page_256">256</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Earle, Mabel, <a href="#page_278">278</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xiii" id="page_xiii">[xiii]</a></span>Eliot, George, <a href="#page_48">48</a>, <a href="#page_241">241</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Emerson, Ralph Waldo, <a href="#page_19">19</a>, <a href="#page_42">42</a>, <a href="#page_57">57</a>, <a href="#page_87">87</a>, <a href="#page_108">108</a>, <a href="#page_124">124</a>, <a href="#page_127">127</a>, <a href="#page_151">151</a>, <a href="#page_158">158</a>, <a href="#page_185">185</a>, <a href="#page_210">210</a>, <a href="#page_228">228</a>, <a href="#page_271">271</a>, <a href="#page_281">281</a>, <a href="#page_344">344</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Epictetus, <a href="#page_56">56</a>, <a href="#page_284">284</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Faunce, W. H. P., <a href="#page_153">153</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fiske, John, <a href="#page_11">11</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ford, Mary Hanaford, <a href="#page_8">8</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Foss, Sam Walter, <a href="#page_99">99</a>, <a href="#page_341">341</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fox, George, <a href="#page_104">104</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Franklin, Benjamin, <a href="#page_158">158</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Gannett, William C., <a href="#page_116">116</a>, <a href="#page_132">132</a>, <a href="#page_239">239</a>, <a href="#page_302">302</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Garland, Hamlin A., <a href="#page_196">196</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gilder, Richard Watson, <a href="#page_168">168</a>, <a href="#page_367">367</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gilman, Charlotte Perkins, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_146">146</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Goethe, <a href="#page_360">360</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gordon, Anna A., <a href="#page_247">247</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gotthold, <a href="#page_23">23</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gray, John, <a href="#page_378">378</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Green, J. R., <a href="#page_199">199</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grover, Edwin Osgood, <a href="#page_155">155</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Hale, Edward Everett, <a href="#page_65">65</a>, <a href="#page_188">188</a>, <a href="#page_219">219</a>, <a href="#page_280">280</a>, <a href="#page_281">281</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Harraden, Beatrice, <a href="#page_80">80</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hart, Estelle M., <a href="#page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Havergal, Frances Ridley, <a href="#page_282">282</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hawkes, Clarence, <a href="#page_97">97</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hay, John, <a href="#page_67">67</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hoar, George F., <a href="#page_83">83</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Holmes, Oliver Wendell, <a href="#page_29">29</a>, <a href="#page_55">55</a>, <a href="#page_172">172</a>, <a href="#page_188">188</a>, <a href="#page_253">253</a>, <a href="#page_286">286</a>, <a href="#page_297">297</a>, <a href="#page_311">311</a>, <a href="#page_352">352</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Homer, <a href="#page_341">341</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hopkins, Ellice, <a href="#page_265">265</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hovey, Richard, <a href="#page_292">292</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hughes, Thomas, <a href="#page_194">194</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Humboldt, Alexander von, <a href="#page_306">306</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hunt, Leigh, <a href="#page_143">143</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Huntington, Bishop, <a href="#page_70">70</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Huxley, Thomas Henry, <a href="#page_202">202</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xiv" id="page_xiv">[xiv]</a></span>Hyde, William DeWitt, <a href="#page_118">118</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Ibsen, Henrik, <a href="#page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ingelow, Jean, <a href="#page_221">221</a>, <a href="#page_327">327</a>.<br /> + +<br /> +<br /> +Jackson, J. S., <a href="#page_7">7</a>.<br /> +<br /> +James, Henry, Sr., <a href="#page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Johnson, Samuel, <a href="#page_66">66</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Jones, T. Edgar, <a href="#page_224">224</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Karr, Alphonse, <a href="#page_264">264</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Keats, John, <a href="#page_295">295</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Keller, Helen, <a href="#page_93">93</a>, <a href="#page_128">128</a>, <a href="#page_145">145</a>.<br /> +<br /> +King, T. Starr, <a href="#page_275">275</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Kingsley, Charles, <a href="#page_85">85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Kiser, S. E., <a href="#page_318">318</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Klingle, George, <a href="#page_106">106</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Larcom, Lucy, <a href="#page_32">32</a>, <a href="#page_161">161</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Leonard, Priscilla, <a href="#page_60">60</a>, <a href="#page_299">299</a>, <a href="#page_312">312</a>, <a href="#page_329">329</a>, <a href="#page_336">336</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Livermore, Mary A., <a href="#page_119">119</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Longfellow, Henry W., <a href="#page_30">30</a>, <a href="#page_52">52</a>, <a href="#page_162">162</a>, <a href="#page_308">308</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lowell, James Russell, <a href="#page_54">54</a>, <a href="#page_92">92</a>, <a href="#page_174">174</a>, <a href="#page_242">242</a>, <a href="#page_291">291</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Luther, Martin, <a href="#page_43">43</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Mabie, Hamilton W., <a href="#page_173">173</a>.<br /> +<br /> +MacDonald, George, <a href="#page_159">159</a>, <a href="#page_177">177</a>, <a href="#page_179">179</a>, <a href="#page_200">200</a>, <a href="#page_272">272</a>, <a href="#page_326">326</a>, <a href="#page_374">374</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Maeterlinck, <a href="#page_170">170</a>, <a href="#page_193">193</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Marius, <a href="#page_35">35</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Markham, Edwin, <a href="#page_14">14</a>, <a href="#page_257">257</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Markwell, Mary, <a href="#page_126">126</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Martin, Theodore, <a href="#page_96">96</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mason, Caroline Atwater, <a href="#page_152">152</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Massey, Gerald, <a href="#page_66">66</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Meredith, Owen, <a href="#page_89">89</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Merriam, George S., <a href="#page_112">112</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Miller, James Russell, <a href="#page_293">293</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Milton, John, <a href="#page_62">62</a>, <a href="#page_125">125</a>, <a href="#page_136">136</a>, <a href="#page_262">262</a>, <a href="#page_307">307</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Montaigne, <a href="#page_69">69</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moodie, William, <a href="#page_44">44</a>, <a href="#page_178">178</a>, <a href="#page_195">195</a>, <a href="#page_226">226</a>, <a href="#page_237">237</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moore, Henry Hoyt, <a href="#page_238">238</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moore, Thomas, <a href="#page_229">229</a>, <a href="#page_309">309</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moxom, Philip S., <a href="#page_149">149</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xv" id="page_xv">[xv]</a></span>Murray, Ada Foster, <a href="#page_246">246</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +O'Reilly, John Boyle, <a href="#page_314">314</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Parker, Theodore, <a href="#page_34">34</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Partridge, William Ordway, <a href="#page_18">18</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Payne, J. Howard, <a href="#page_361">361</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Peabody, Francis G., <a href="#page_332">332</a>, <a href="#page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perin, George L., <a href="#page_3">3</a>, <a href="#page_12">12</a>, <a href="#page_153">153</a>, <a href="#page_163">163</a>, <a href="#page_176">176</a>, <a href="#page_215">215</a>, <a href="#page_290">290</a>, <a href="#page_322">322</a>, <a href="#page_368">368</a>, <a href="#page_379">379</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perry, Carlotta, <a href="#page_231">231</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perry, Nora, <a href="#page_101">101</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Plutarch, <a href="#page_298">298</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Procter, Adelaide A., <a href="#page_10">10</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Procter, Bryan Waller, <a href="#page_166">166</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pullman, James M., <a href="#page_21">21</a>, <a href="#page_56">56</a>, <a href="#page_225">225</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Rankin, Isaac Ogden, <a href="#page_25">25</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ravenscroft, James, <a href="#page_255">255</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Realf, Richard, <a href="#page_223">223</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Reimer, Edward F., <a href="#page_227">227</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rexford, Eben E., <a href="#page_94">94</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Richter, <a href="#page_285">285</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Riley, James Whitcomb, <a href="#page_182">182</a>, <a href="#page_230">230</a>, <a href="#page_266">266</a>, <a href="#page_283">283</a>, <a href="#page_310">310</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Robertson, Frederick W., <a href="#page_250">250</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rollins, Alice Wellington, <a href="#page_26">26</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Roosevelt, Theodore, <a href="#page_65">65</a>, <a href="#page_74">74</a>, <a href="#page_197">197</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rosetti, Christina, <a href="#page_171">171</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ruskin, John, <a href="#page_23">23</a>, <a href="#page_58">58</a>, <a href="#page_83">83</a>, <a href="#page_139">139</a>, <a href="#page_190">190</a>, <a href="#page_206">206</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Russell, Bessie L., <a href="#page_259">259</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Sangster, Margaret, <a href="#page_117">117</a>, <a href="#page_205">205</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Savage, Minot J., <a href="#page_47">47</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Schiller, <a href="#page_363">363</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scollard, Clinton, <a href="#page_84">84</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scott, Walter, <a href="#page_235">235</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shafer, Sara Andrew, <a href="#page_184">184</a>, <a href="#page_260">260</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shakespeare, <a href="#page_38">38</a>, <a href="#page_107">107</a>, <a href="#page_113">113</a>, <a href="#page_258">258</a>, <a href="#page_345">345</a>, <a href="#page_351">351</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shelley, <a href="#page_100">100</a>, <a href="#page_111">111</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shipman, George W., <a href="#page_277">277</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sill, Edward Rowland, <a href="#page_98">98</a>, <a href="#page_274">274</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smiles, Samuel, <a href="#page_236">236</a>, <a href="#page_320">320</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xvi" id="page_xvi">[xvi]</a></span>Smyth, Julian K., <a href="#page_73">73</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Spofford, Harriet P., <a href="#page_101">101</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Spurgeon, <a href="#page_197">197</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stanton, Frank L., <a href="#page_160">160</a>, <a href="#page_343">343</a>.<br /> +<br /> +St. Bernard, <a href="#page_269">269</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stebbins, Horatio, <a href="#page_280">280</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stedman, Edmund Clarence, <a href="#page_95">95</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stevenson, Robert Louis, <a href="#page_180">180</a>, <a href="#page_353">353</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stoddard, Richard H., <a href="#page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Story, William Wetmore, <a href="#page_6">6</a>, <a href="#page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stowe, Harriet Beecher, <a href="#page_230">230</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Swinburne, Algernon Charles, <a href="#page_53">53</a>, <a href="#page_167">167</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Swing, David, <a href="#page_46">46</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Symonds, John Addington, <a href="#page_175">175</a>, <a href="#page_346">346</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Taylor, Bayard, <a href="#page_240">240</a>, <a href="#page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Taylor, Jeremy E., <a href="#page_59">59</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tennyson, Alfred, <a href="#page_232">232</a>, <a href="#page_326">326</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thaxter, Celia, <a href="#page_95">95</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tholuck, <a href="#page_357">357</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thompson, Maurice, <a href="#page_110">110</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thoreau, Henry David, <a href="#page_50">50</a>, <a href="#page_335">335</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Townsend, Mary Ashley, <a href="#page_81">81</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Trowbridge, Robertson, <a href="#page_273">273</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Urmy, Clarence, <a href="#page_268">268</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Van Dyke, Henry, <a href="#page_142">142</a>, <a href="#page_154">154</a>, <a href="#page_294">294</a>, <a href="#page_313">313</a>, <a href="#page_324">324</a>, <a href="#page_328">328</a>, <a href="#page_355">355</a>, <a href="#page_365">365</a>, <a href="#page_377">377</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Vinci, Leonardo da, <a href="#page_74">74</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Wagner, Charles, <a href="#page_20">20</a>, <a href="#page_63">63</a>, <a href="#page_114">114</a>, <a href="#page_204">204</a>, <a href="#page_356">356</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Waterman, Nixon, <a href="#page_173">173</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitman, Walt, <a href="#page_22">22</a>, <a href="#page_40">40</a>, <a href="#page_102">102</a>, <a href="#page_270">270</a>, <a href="#page_349">349</a>, <a href="#page_358">358</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitney, Mrs. A. D. T., <a href="#page_31">31</a>, <a href="#page_86">86</a>, <a href="#page_122">122</a>, <a href="#page_127">127</a>, <a href="#page_147">147</a>, <a href="#page_167">167</a>, <a href="#page_298">298</a>, <a href="#page_301">301</a>, <a href="#page_303">303</a>, <a href="#page_348">348</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whittier, John Greenleaf, <a href="#page_15">15</a>, <a href="#page_41">41</a>, <a href="#page_103">103</a>, <a href="#page_140">140</a>, <a href="#page_289">289</a>, <a href="#page_359">359</a>, <a href="#page_376">376</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wilcox, Ella Wheeler, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_13">13</a>, <a href="#page_87">87</a>, <a href="#page_121">121</a>, <a href="#page_222">222</a>, <a href="#page_231">231</a>, <a href="#page_325">325</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Willard, Frances E., <a href="#page_105">105</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wordsworth, William, <a href="#page_76">76</a>, <a href="#page_131">131</a>, <a href="#page_251">251</a>, <a href="#page_319">319</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wright, Mary Frances, <a href="#page_233">233</a>.<br /> + +</div> + + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xvii" id="page_xvii">[xvii]</a></span></p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<h3>List of Authors of Prayers</h3> + + + + + +<div> +Adams, J. Coleman, <a href="#page_119">119</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Albion, James F., <a href="#page_91">91</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Alcott, A. N., <a href="#page_299">299</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Allen, James F., <a href="#page_265">265</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Amee, E. McP., <a href="#page_264">264</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ames, Charles Gordon, <a href="#page_6">6</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Anderson, Thomas D., <a href="#page_132">132</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Annas, J. W., <a href="#page_253">253</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Atwood, Isaac M., <a href="#page_34">34</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Atwood, John Murray, <a href="#page_36">36</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ayers, Samuel Gilbert, <a href="#page_121">121</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Babcock, William G., <a href="#page_10">10</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Backus, Wilson M., <a href="#page_139">139</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Badger, George H., <a href="#page_271">271</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Barker, J. H., <a href="#page_107">107</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Barney, Edward M., <a href="#page_74">74</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bartlett, A. Eugene, <a href="#page_11">11</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Batchelor, George, <a href="#page_108">108</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bates, Lewis P., <a href="#page_226">226</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Beane, Samuel C., <a href="#page_236">236</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Benton, Herbert E., <a href="#page_272">272</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Berle, Adolph A., <a href="#page_319">319</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Betts, Frederick W., <a href="#page_70">70</a>, <a href="#page_181">181</a>, <a href="#page_317">317</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Billings, Charles T., <a href="#page_316">316</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bisbee, Frederick A., <a href="#page_27">27</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bissell, Flint M., <a href="#page_79">79</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Blake, Edwin Alonzo, <a href="#page_228">228</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xviii" id="page_xviii">[xviii]</a></span>Blanchard, Henry, <a href="#page_24">24</a>.<br /> + +<br /> +Bliss, Charles B., <a href="#page_206">206</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brandow, Melvin, <a href="#page_287">287</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brett, Francis W., <a href="#page_182">182</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brigham, L. Ward, <a href="#page_20">20</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brodie, James Fairbairn, <a href="#page_320">320</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bronson, Dillon, <a href="#page_9">9</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brown, Howard N., <a href="#page_354">354</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brown, William Channing, <a href="#page_106">106</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Buckshorn, Louis H., <a href="#page_191">191</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burch, Ernest W., <a href="#page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burleigh, W. H., <a href="#page_118">118</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burr, Everett D., <a href="#page_136">136</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bush, R. Perry, <a href="#page_82">82</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bushnell, Samuel C., <a href="#page_37">37</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bygrave, Hilary, <a href="#page_212">212</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Canfield, Harry L., <a href="#page_39">39</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carter, John Wesley, <a href="#page_48">48</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cary, Phœbe, <a href="#page_274">274</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chapin, Eben H., <a href="#page_323">323</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chapman, Edward M., <a href="#page_30">30</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Charlton, J. E., <a href="#page_341">341</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chase, J. Frank, <a href="#page_237">237</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cheney, George H., <a href="#page_192">192</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Church, Augustus B., <a href="#page_99">99</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clark, C. C., <a href="#page_144">144</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clark, DeWitt S., <a href="#page_257">257</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clark, Francis E., <a href="#page_38">38</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clark, Hobart, <a href="#page_218">218</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clarke, William N., <a href="#page_258">258</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clayton, Francis Treadway, <a href="#page_302">302</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coddington, Isaac P., <a href="#page_190">190</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coleman, Albert J., <a href="#page_353">353</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Collier, Frank W., <a href="#page_174">174</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Conklin, Abram, <a href="#page_19">19</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Conklin, Charles, <a href="#page_361">361</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Conner, Ralph E., <a href="#page_211">211</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coons, Leroy W., <a href="#page_68">68</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cooper, Joseph, <a href="#page_84">84</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cooper, J. Francis, <a href="#page_310">310</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xix" id="page_xix">[xix]</a></span>Corby, James D., <a href="#page_280">280</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Couden, Henry N., <a href="#page_26">26</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crandall, Lathan A., <a href="#page_202">202</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crane, Cephas B., <a href="#page_60">60</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crane, Frank, <a href="#page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crooker, Florence Kollock, <a href="#page_98">98</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crooker, Joseph H., <a href="#page_23">23</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crooker, Orin Edson, <a href="#page_163">163</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cuckson, John, <a href="#page_123">123</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Curnick, E. T., <a href="#page_93">93</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cushman, Henry Irving, <a href="#page_94">94</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Danforth, Abbie E., <a href="#page_105">105</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Davis, Charles Edward, <a href="#page_260">260</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Davidson, John M., <a href="#page_289">289</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Day, Edward, <a href="#page_62">62</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Day, John, <a href="#page_78">78</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dean, George B., <a href="#page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +DeNormandie, James, <a href="#page_125">125</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dick, Samuel M., <a href="#page_333">333</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dight, Alexander, <a href="#page_290">290</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dillingham, Fred A., <a href="#page_41">41</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dodge, J. Smith, <a href="#page_340">340</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dodson, George R., <a href="#page_197">197</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dole, Charles F., <a href="#page_157">157</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dole, Walter, <a href="#page_339">339</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Downey, Edward C., <a href="#page_365">365</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Earle, A. Gertrude, <a href="#page_104">104</a>.<br /> +<br /> +East, Charles R., <a href="#page_324">324</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Eddy, William B., <a href="#page_49">49</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Eichler, M. M., <a href="#page_195">195</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Faunce, W. H. P., <a href="#page_307">307</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fish, William H., <a href="#page_263">263</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fischer, Theodore A., <a href="#page_17">17</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fisher, C. E., <a href="#page_67">67</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fisk, Richmond, <a href="#page_159">159</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fleischer, Charles, <a href="#page_360">360</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Forbes, John P., <a href="#page_142">142</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Forbes, Roger S., <a href="#page_161">161</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xx" id="page_xx">[xx]</a></span>Fortier, George F., <a href="#page_77">77</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Foster, Augustine N., <a href="#page_154">154</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fraser, Donald, <a href="#page_284">284</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Freeman, L. A., <a href="#page_255">255</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Frick, Philip L., <a href="#page_348">348</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Frothingham, Paul Revere, <a href="#page_169">169</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Full, William, <a href="#page_300">300</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fulton, J. W., <a href="#page_282">282</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Galbraith, John, <a href="#page_220">220</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gannett, William C, <a href="#page_373">373</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gaskin, William E., <a href="#page_251">251</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gerrish, George Mayo, <a href="#page_75">75</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gibbs, William E, <a href="#page_168">168</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gifford, O. P., <a href="#page_209">209</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gooding, Alfred, <a href="#page_245">245</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gould, William H., <a href="#page_146">146</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grant, Elihu, <a href="#page_238">238</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grant, Eugene M., <a href="#page_288">288</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Graves, Herbert H., <a href="#page_242">242</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gray, Francis A., <a href="#page_111">111</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Greene, L. L., <a href="#page_131">131</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Greene, Ransom A., <a href="#page_355">355</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Greene, Samuel H., <a href="#page_328">328</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grier, Albert C., <a href="#page_269">269</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grose, Arthur W., <a href="#page_311">311</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gunnison, Almon, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_47">47</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Guth, William W., <a href="#page_216">216</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Hale, Edward Everett, <a href="#page_55">55</a>, <a href="#page_92">92</a>, <a href="#page_120">120</a>, <a href="#page_304">304</a>, <a href="#page_345">345</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hall, Frank Oliver, <a href="#page_278">278</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hammatt, Albert, <a href="#page_232">232</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hammond, L. H., <a href="#page_244">244</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hamilton, Franklin, <a href="#page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hatch, William H. P., <a href="#page_318">318</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hawkins, J. E., <a href="#page_279">279</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Haynes, Myron W., <a href="#page_58">58</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Healy, Walter, <a href="#page_100">100</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Helms, E. J., <a href="#page_343">343</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Henry, Carl F., <a href="#page_248">248</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hiller, Charles C. P., <a href="#page_336">336</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xxi" id="page_xxi">[xxi]</a></span>Hitchcock, Albert Wellman, <a href="#page_64">64</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hodge, Dwight M., <a href="#page_81">81</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hodges, George, <a href="#page_356">356</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Holden, C. W., <a href="#page_29">29</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Holden, James Harry, <a href="#page_204">204</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Holmes, C. K., <a href="#page_281">281</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Holt, Frank M., <a href="#page_71">71</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Horne, Ralph Edwin, <a href="#page_103">103</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Horner, Thomas J., <a href="#page_329">329</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Horton, Edward A., <a href="#page_115">115</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Howe, George M., <a href="#page_346">346</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hoyt, Wayland, <a href="#page_54">54</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Huntley, George E., <a href="#page_325">325</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hyde, William DeWitt, <a href="#page_351">351</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Illman, Thomas W., <a href="#page_247">247</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Jennings, B. L., <a href="#page_88">88</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Johnson, L. P., <a href="#page_335">335</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Johonnot, Rodney F., <a href="#page_252">252</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Jones, Effie McCollum, <a href="#page_31">31</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Kellerman, Robert S., <a href="#page_194">194</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Kent, George W., <a href="#page_147">147</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Kidner, Reuben, <a href="#page_43">43</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Kimball, John, <a href="#page_42">42</a>.<br /> +<br /> +King, Henry M., <a href="#page_57">57</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Knickerbocker, Charles A., <a href="#page_5">5</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Lacount, J. Edwin, <a href="#page_350">350</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lee, John Clarence, <a href="#page_175">175</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Leonard, Charles H., <a href="#page_170">170</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Levy, Maurice A., <a href="#page_155">155</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Locke, Calvin S., <a href="#page_277">277</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Longbrake, George Runyon, <a href="#page_327">327</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lord, Augustus Mendon, <a href="#page_40">40</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lund, Charles E., <a href="#page_178">178</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lutterman, E. W., <a href="#page_308">308</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +MacLennan, A. K., <a href="#page_275">275</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Main, William H., <a href="#page_14">14</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xxii" id="page_xxii">[xxii]</a></span>Martin, T. C., <a href="#page_160">160</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Martineau, James, <a href="#page_56">56</a>, <a href="#page_217">217</a>, <a href="#page_321">321</a>, <a href="#page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Marshall, Perry, <a href="#page_189">189</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Marvin, Reginold K., <a href="#page_114">114</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Masseck, Frank Lincoln, <a href="#page_112">112</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McCollester, Lee S., <a href="#page_221">221</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McCollester, S. H., <a href="#page_18">18</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McGlaughlin, William H., <a href="#page_332">332</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McKenzie, Alexander, <a href="#page_12">12</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McKinney, Luther F., <a href="#page_210">210</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mead, I. J., <a href="#page_143">143</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Meyer, John F., <a href="#page_349">349</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Milburn, U. S., <a href="#page_113">113</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mitchell, Stanford, <a href="#page_179">179</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moore, Henrietta G., <a href="#page_110">110</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Morgan, William S., <a href="#page_25">25</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Morrison, William H., <a href="#page_117">117</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mudge, James, <a href="#page_223">223</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Myers, Cortland, <a href="#page_344">344</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Nash, C. Ellwood, <a href="#page_188">188</a>, <a href="#page_362">362</a>, <a href="#page_371">371</a>, <a href="#page_372">372</a>, <a href="#page_377">377</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Nash, Charles P., <a href="#page_148">148</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Nash, Henry S., <a href="#page_21">21</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Northrop, Cyrus, <a href="#page_296">296</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Norton, Stephen A., <a href="#page_359">359</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Opdale, Nellie Mann, <a href="#page_243">243</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Osgood, Edmund Q. S., <a href="#page_101">101</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Owen, George W., <a href="#page_28">28</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Parker, Joseph, <a href="#page_59">59</a>, <a href="#page_214">214</a>, <a href="#page_219">219</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Parker, Theodore, <a href="#page_53">53</a>, <a href="#page_97">97</a>, <a href="#page_109">109</a>, <a href="#page_135">135</a>, <a href="#page_193">193</a>, <a href="#page_230">230</a>, <a href="#page_239">239</a>, <a href="#page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Parkhurst, Charles, <a href="#page_63">63</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Patterson, A. J., <a href="#page_364">364</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pattison, Harold, <a href="#page_225">225</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Payne, Thomas B., <a href="#page_133">133</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Payson, James M., <a href="#page_222">222</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Peloubet, F. N., <a href="#page_331">331</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pember, Elmer F., <a href="#page_134">134</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Penniman, George Wallace, <a href="#page_129">129</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perin, Florence H., <a href="#page_375">375</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xxiii" id="page_xxiii">[xxiii]</a></span>Perin, George L., <a href="#page_3">3</a>, <a href="#page_22">22</a>, <a href="#page_35">35</a>, <a href="#page_46">46</a>, <a href="#page_80">80</a>, <a href="#page_90">90</a>, <a href="#page_96">96</a>, <a href="#page_102">102</a>, <a href="#page_116">116</a>, <a href="#page_124">124</a>, <a href="#page_153">153</a>, <a href="#page_153">153</a>, <a href="#page_172">172</a>, <a href="#page_185">185</a>, <a href="#page_196">196</a>, <a href="#page_215">215</a>, <a href="#page_234">234</a>, <a href="#page_250">250</a>, <a href="#page_270">270</a>, <a href="#page_286">286</a>, <a href="#page_297">297</a>, <a href="#page_306">306</a>, <a href="#page_330">330</a>, <a href="#page_342">342</a>, <a href="#page_352">352</a>, <a href="#page_366">366</a>, <a href="#page_368">368</a>, <a href="#page_376">376</a>, <a href="#page_378">378</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perkins, Frederick W., <a href="#page_229">229</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perkins, O. Howard, <a href="#page_66">66</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perkins, Warren S., <a href="#page_164">164</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perrin, Willard T., <a href="#page_276">276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Perry, Edward A., <a href="#page_61">61</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Petty, Charles E., <a href="#page_85">85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Polk, Robert T., <a href="#page_224">224</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Potter, Wilburn D., <a href="#page_83">83</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Potter, William F., <a href="#page_150">150</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Potterton, Thomas Edward, <a href="#page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Powers, LeGrand, <a href="#page_73">73</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Preble, Edgar W., <a href="#page_72">72</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Priest, Frederick C., <a href="#page_208">208</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Puffer, Charles H., <a href="#page_357">357</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Putnam, Alfred P., <a href="#page_162">162</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Randall, J. O., <a href="#page_198">198</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Reardon, John B., <a href="#page_140">140</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rexford, E. L., <a href="#page_16">16</a>, <a href="#page_128">128</a>, <a href="#page_233">233</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rice, Charles F., <a href="#page_256">256</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rice, Clarence E., <a href="#page_173">173</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rice, Frank S., <a href="#page_87">87</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Richardson, W. G., <a href="#page_314">314</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Roblin, Stephen H., <a href="#page_183">183</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rose, Henry R., <a href="#page_303">303</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rowley, Francis H., <a href="#page_13">13</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rugg, Henry W., <a href="#page_126">126</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Safford, Oscar F., <a href="#page_65">65</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sage, Nathaniel S., <a href="#page_32">32</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sallaway, James, <a href="#page_293">293</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sargent, Frank D., <a href="#page_347">347</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scott, Alva Roy, <a href="#page_44">44</a>, <a href="#page_141">141</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scott, O. W., <a href="#page_186">186</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scrivener, George S., <a href="#page_268">268</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Selleck, Willard C., <a href="#page_227">227</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shaw, Annette J., <a href="#page_231">231</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shaw, Avery A., <a href="#page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xxiv" id="page_xxiv">[xxiv]</a></span>Shields, Albert B., <a href="#page_309">309</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shinn, Q. H., <a href="#page_149">149</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Snippen, Rush R., <a href="#page_201">201</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Simons, Minot O., <a href="#page_138">138</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Skene, George, <a href="#page_315">315</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Slicer, Thomas R., <a href="#page_166">166</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Small, E. E., <a href="#page_203">203</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smiley, Edmund L., <a href="#page_266">266</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smiley, George M., <a href="#page_295">295</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smith, Thomas W., <a href="#page_283">283</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stephan, J. W., <a href="#page_76">76</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Straub, Jacob, <a href="#page_177">177</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Studley, Elliott F., <a href="#page_261">261</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sweetser, Edwin C., <a href="#page_151">151</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Taylor, Frederick A., <a href="#page_254">254</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Taylor, Henry B., <a href="#page_69">69</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tenney, Charles R., <a href="#page_294">294</a>, <a href="#page_313">313</a>, <a href="#page_326">326</a>, <a href="#page_363">363</a>, <a href="#page_367">367</a>, <a href="#page_379">379</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thayer, George A., <a href="#page_199">199</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thompson, J. Frank, <a href="#page_51">51</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tillinghast, Alan R., <a href="#page_86">86</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tillinghast, James D., <a href="#page_358">358</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tomlinson, Charles W., <a href="#page_33">33</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tomlinson, Vincent E., <a href="#page_205">205</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Towne, Edward C., <a href="#page_291">291</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tupper, Kerr Boyce, <a href="#page_95">95</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tuttle, Walter A., <a href="#page_213">213</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Vail, Charles H., <a href="#page_246">246</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Varney, Charles E., <a href="#page_292">292</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Vossema, Hendrick, <a href="#page_235">235</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Wallace, O. C. S., <a href="#page_50">50</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ward, Merrill C., <a href="#page_262">262</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ward, W. I., <a href="#page_127">127</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Warner, E. M., <a href="#page_187">187</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Weatherly, Arthur L., <a href="#page_200">200</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Weil, Fred Alban, <a href="#page_338">338</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wendte, Charles W., <a href="#page_156">156</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wentworth, Margaret, <a href="#page_259">259</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_xxv" id="page_xxv">[xxv]</a></span>West, Julius P., <a href="#page_145">145</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Weston, Costello, <a href="#page_207">207</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wheeler, C. H., <a href="#page_8">8</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wheeler, F. H., <a href="#page_89">89</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whippen, Frank W., <a href="#page_7">7</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitaker, George, <a href="#page_15">15</a>.<br /> +<br /> +White, Albert C., <a href="#page_167">167</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitney, Elbert W., <a href="#page_301">301</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Williams, Leon O., <a href="#page_298">298</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Willson, Andrew, <a href="#page_122">122</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wilson, John M., <a href="#page_171">171</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wilson, Lewis G., <a href="#page_180">180</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wood, W. A., <a href="#page_130">130</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wright, Arthur, <a href="#page_184">184</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wright, James Edward, <a href="#page_176">176</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wright, M. Emory, <a href="#page_273">273</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Yantis, Arnold S., <a href="#page_52">52</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Young, George H., <a href="#page_240">240</a>, <a href="#page_285">285</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Young, Joshua, <a href="#page_158">158</a>, <a href="#page_241">241</a>, <a href="#page_305">305</a>.<br /> +</div> + + + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_1" id="page_1">[1]</a></span></p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_2" id="page_2">[2]</a></span></p> +<h2>The Optimist's Good Morning</h2> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_3" id="page_3">[3]</a></span></p> +<p>January 1</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Throughout the year, why not keep sweet? No +frown ever made a heart glad; no complaint ever +made a dark day bright; no bitter word ever lightened +a burden or made a rough road smooth; no grumbling +ever introduced sunshine into a home. What the +world needs is the resolute step, the look of cheer, the +smiling countenance, and the kindly word. Keep +sweet!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span></p> + + +<p>God of the years, our Heavenly Father, whatever +the message of the old year may have been, whether +of darkness or light, joy or sorrow,—we stand this +morning waiting expectantly and confidently for +some message with glad tidings. May we therefore +enter upon the New Year in the mood of hope and +good cheer,—brushing from our faces every sign +of care, let us go forth into the New Year with the +spirit of a child who puts his hand into the hand of +a Father to be led into a field where the flowers +blossom and the birds sing. Not for to-day only +do we pray for sweetness and light, but let us be +glad and happy every day. Thou art with us today,—Thou +wilt be with us through all the journey of +the year. May our own daily gladness be born of +the conviction that Thou art always near. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_4" id="page_4">[4]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 2</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p><i>To keep my health!<br /> +To do my work!<br /> +To live!<br /> +To see to it I grow and gain and give!<br /> +Never to look behind me for an hour!<br /> +To wait in weakness and to walk in power<br /> +But always fronting forward to the light,<br /> +Always, and always facing toward the right.<br /> +Robbed, starved, defeated, fallen, wide astray—<br /> +On, with what strength I have!<br /> +Back to the way!</i></p> + + +<p class="signature"><span class="smcap">Charlotte Perkins Gilman.</span> +</p> +</div> + + +<p>With this new day, O God, let some new strength +be mine, to walk in patience, the way appointed +for me. Let me be strong to battle with the ills that +shall beset me, to toil with faith and honest heart, +to keep myself untainted and make my life helpful +to my fellowmen. Help me to be forgetful of myself, +but thoughtful to do no evil to any man. Thy hand +is strong and mine is weak. I need Thy guidance, +let Thy strength be mine, that though I stumble I +may not fall nor fail. And when the day is done, +may happy memories be mine. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Almon Gunnison.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_5" id="page_5">[5]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 3</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Build on resolve, and not upon regret,<br /> +The structure of Thy future. Do not grope<br /> +Among the shadows of old sins, but let<br /> +Thine own soul's light shine on the path of hope<br /> +And dissipate the darkness. Waste no tears<br /> +Upon the blotted record of lost years,<br /> +But turn the leaf, and smile, oh, smile, to see<br /> +The fair white pages that remain to thee.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"><span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou All-persuasive God, who dost speak +within the souls of men in language which the heart +interprets as its own! enlarge our trust in that better +self which beckons us, that we may be led out of the +lingering darkness of regret, out of the shadow of +embittered memory into the brightness of a new +resolve where we may see Thy face. Smile upon +us in the smiling day; in the joy of strength renewed, +and opportunity reborn; in the beauty of the promise +each hour whispers to us as it passes by. So fill us +with Thyself that each new day shall mean new +life led by the glory of those hopes which do not +fade at evening. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles A. Knickerbocker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_6" id="page_6">[6]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 4</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>We of our age are part, and every thrill that wakes<br /> +The tremulous air of Life its motion in us makes.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>The imitative mass mere empty echo gives<br /> +As walls and rocks return the sound that they receive.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>But as the bell, that high in some cathedral swings,<br /> +Stirred by whatever thrill, with its own music rings,</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>So finer souls give forth, to each vibrating tone<br /> +Impinging on their life, a music of their own.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">W. W. Story.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O living and loving One, brighter than the morning +and fairer than the day, from Thee we come, +to Thee we turn, who art more than Father and +Mother to us all. Our times are in Thy hand. Thou, +who hast set the sun and stars in the sky, hast appointed +our place and part in this human world. +May Thy light lead and Thy love win us into the +harmonies of law and grace, that we may become +responsive to every touch of nature, every whisper +of truth, every appeal of humanity. So prepare +us to serve our generation in the spirit of Him who +has taught us to do Thy will on earth as it is done +in heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles G. Ames.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_7" id="page_7">[7]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 5</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p><i>All such as worked for love, not wages—some<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Who, painting for a perfect tint did drain</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Their hearts, or some to save their country slain,</span><br /> +Or many who for truth braved martyrdom,<br /> +Or more who, in what common days may come,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Have toiled in hope, beyond the hope of gain,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of doing something well,—all such would fain</span><br /> +Speak thus: These gifts more free than flowers from<br /> +The earth are given. Good world, if to our need<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Ye offer bread and shelt'ring roof unsought,</span><br /> +As guests our thanks we give, but not for greed,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">As if our gifts were bartered for and bought;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And if, perchance, good world, ye offer nought,</span><br /> +Ah, well, that were of life the lesser meed.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">J. S. Jackson.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father in Heaven, we thank Thee, as we enter +upon another day, for strength with which to work. +We thank Thee for our tasks; for our opportunities +to work for Thee and for those we love, we thank +Thee. May we know the joy, when night shall come, +of having accomplished something worthy. Help +us to see in that satisfaction a part of our pay. Make +each of us faithful in his place; and help the humblest +worker to understand that consecration and not +rank is the all-important thing. Above all, may we +not forget that living is giving, and may our desire +either for rest or gain keep us from no helpful act. +May we follow Him who came to minister, and live +as sons and daughters of God. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank W. Whippen.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_8" id="page_8">[8]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 6</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The sculptor moulds his clay with reverent hand,<br /> +That clay thro' which his fancy flashes free—<br /> +Quick with an answer to his soul's demand,<br /> +And pliant to his fingers' minstrelsy!<br /> +Could ever bronze or marble so respond<br /> +In wordless echo of the being's will?<br /> +Naught but the clay, as to a rapture fond<br /> +Could he with fire of genius thus infill!<br /> +And so the common people are the clay,<br /> +Swift moulded by Divine Deific hand,<br /> +Until transfigured, in the glorious day,<br /> +The statue of humanity shall stand!<br /> +It knows no tinsel crown, this masterpiece.<br /> +But all the sovereignty of God's release!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mary Hanaford Ford.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, we are of Thy plain common +people: we feel ourselves of very little worth. For +what can we do of ourselves? But, if Thou wilt +graciously use us, shaping us to Thine ends as the +potter his clay, it may be that we shall serve some +worthy purpose. We therefore yield ourselves to +Thee, and beg Thee to use us this day. Make us +pliant to Thy purposes, make us a help to someone +who needs us today. So take us into partnership +with Thyself, and so may this day be a day of delight, +and our plain common lives be made rich with the +Glory of service. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. H. Wheeler.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_9" id="page_9">[9]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>And I, too, sing the song of all creation,<br /> +A brave sky and a glad wind blowing by,<br /> +A clear trail and an hour for meditation,<br /> +A long day and the joy to make it fly,<br /> +A hard task and the muscle to achieve it,<br /> +A fierce noon and a well-contented gloom,<br /> +A good strife and no great regret to leave it,<br /> +A still night—and the far red lights of home.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">H. H. Bashford.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Almighty God, we thank Thee that Thou art our +Father, and that Thou lovest us as though Thou +hadst no other children; we adore Thee for the +beautiful world in which Thou hast placed us; for +trees and birds and flowers and sky, for friends and +music and books and all the ten thousand mercies +which crown our lives. We thank Thee too, for +hard tasks and severe disciplines, for everything +that is intended to make us strong and brave and +true. Thou art the Lord of the day and of the night +also. Give us grace to trust Thee and to believe in +Thy motherly solicitude at all times. May Thy +goodness lead us to repentance and to joyous unselfish +living and may we so improve our opportunities +for service that we shall make others think of Him +who went about doing good and trusted in His +Father with a perfect trust. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Dillon Bronson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_10" id="page_10">[10]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Have we not all, amid life's petty strife,<br /> +Some pure ideal of a noble life<br /> +That once seemed possible? Did we not hear<br /> +The flutter of its wings and feel it near,<br /> +And just within our reach? It was. And yet<br /> +We lost it in this daily jar and fret.<br /> +But still our place is kept and it will wait,<br /> +Ready for us to fill it, soon or late.<br /> +No star is ever lost we once have seen:<br /> +We always may be what we might have been.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Adelaide A. Procter.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, whose goodness is new to us every morning +and fresh every evening, we bless Thee for Thy +patient and unforgetting care of all of us. Though +we transgress Thy beneficent laws and frequently +lose sight of our cherished ideals, our hunger and +thirst for righteousness never dies, for we partake +of Thy Divine Nature. O that we might always +be animated with Thy spirit of disinterested Love. +We thank Thee this day for the inspiration of light +and joy of our gifted poets and pray that we may +meet the daily trials of life with a sweet and courageous +spirit, remembering that "no star we have +ever seen will cease to shine." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William G. Babcock.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_11" id="page_11">[11]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 9</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The future is lighted for us with the radiant colors +of hope. Strife and sorrow shall disappear. Peace +and love shall reign supreme. The dream of poets, +the lesson of priest and prophet, the inspiration of +the great musician, is confirmed in the light of modern +knowledge; and, as we gird ourselves for the work +of life, we may look forward to the time when in the +truest sense the kingdoms of this world shall become +the kingdom of Christ, and He shall reign forever +and ever, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Fiske.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>All-wise and all-loving Father, we invoke Thy aid +at the opening of a glad, new day. For the past +we thank Thee, remembering that each day yielded +its blessings. We rejoice that the victories of yesterday +are the promise of larger successes today. +Whenever during the day, we shall be conscious of +our littleness, give us at that moment the vision of +our possible largeness. Teach us, however tumultuous +be the outward conditions, to maintain the inward +calm. Today may Thy love work its miracle upon +our pain and pleasure. So through faithful, hopeful +work may we find Thy kingdom nearer at this +day's close. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">A. Eugene Bartlett.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_12" id="page_12">[12]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Blessings on the man who smiles! I do not mean +the man who smiles for effect, nor the one who smiles +when the world smiles. I mean the man whose smile +is born of an inner radiance, the man who smiles +when the clouds lower, when fortune frowns, when +the tides are adverse. Such a man not only makes a +new world for himself, but he multiplies himself an +hundred fold in the strength and courage of other men.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our Father in heaven +and on the earth! Give to us of Thy blessedness +that all this day we may rejoice in Thee. Incline +our hearts to see Thy goodness and wisdom. Make +the gladness of our hearts constant that it may +illumine our presence, so that those who walk with +us may walk in Thy light and give Thee thanks. +Make Thy joy our strength, whether expressed in +storm or sunshine, that we may consent to Thy will +cheerfully. We ask these and all gifts in the name +of Him who would have His joy abide in us, that our +joy may be fulfilled. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Alexander McKenzie.</span></p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_13" id="page_13">[13]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 11</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Talk happiness! The world is sad enough,<br /> +Without your woes. No path is wholly rough;<br /> +Look for the places that are smooth and clear<br /> +And speak of those who rest the weary ear<br /> +Of earth, so hurt by one continuous strain<br /> +Of human discontent and grief and pain.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Talk health! The dreary, never changing tale<br /> +Of mortal maladies is worn and stale.<br /> +You cannot charm or interest or please,<br /> +By harping on that minor chord, disease.<br /> +Say you are well, or all is well with you,<br /> +And God shall hear your words and make them true.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Heavenly Father, by whose mercy we are permitted +to greet another day, we offer Thee this morning +our grateful praise for all the blessings of this +life. We take from Thee with thankful heart the +gift of health, conscious that we shall never know +how rich the gift until we lose it. Now, while it is +ours, may we use it with abounding joy for the good +of those we may meet this day. To be able to bring +light where there is darkness, hope where there is +despair, comfort where there is sorrow, and so to +be the children of our Father which is in Heaven, +for this we pray, with the pardon of our sins, in +Jesus' name. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Francis H. Rowley.</span></p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_14" id="page_14">[14]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 12</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The crest and crowning of all good,<br /> +Life's final star, is Brotherhood;<br /> +For it will bring again to Earth<br /> +Her long-lost Poesy and Mirth;<br /> +Will send new light on every face,<br /> +A kingly power upon the race,<br /> +And till it comes, we men are slaves,<br /> +And travel downward to the dust of graves.<br /> +Come clear the way, then, clear the way;<br /> +Blind creeds and kings have had their day,<br /> +Our hope is in the aftermath—<br /> +Our hope is in heroic men,<br /> +Star-led to build the world again.<br /> +To this event the ages ran;<br /> +Make way for Brotherhood—make way for Man.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edwin Markham.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Lord, make us like Thee. There can be no +greater ambition, no loftier desire, no holier purpose, +for Thou holdest the secret of Brotherhood. Like +Thee, the only begotten of the Father, the essence +of love, the joy of angels, the hope of the world,—make +us like Thee, O Christ. Let Thy light be our +light; thy service our joy; Thy peace our inheritance. +Touch our lips that we may say no unkind word; +touch our hearts that we may feel no wrong desires. +May our living be for the world's good, our acts +precious helps to Thy kingdom, our all consecrated +to Thy blessed service. May we be satisfied when +we awake with Thy likeness. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">William H. Main.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_15" id="page_15">[15]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 13</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>If there be some weaker one,<br /> +Give me strength to help him on;<br /> +If a blinder soul there be,<br /> +Let me guide him nearer Thee.<br /> +Make my mortal dreams come true<br /> +With the work I fain would do;<br /> +Clothe with life the weak intent,<br /> +Let me be the thing I meant;<br /> +Let me find in Thine employ<br /> +Peace that dearer is than joy!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father! We humbly beseech Thee to +breathe upon us Thy Holy Spirit, that we may be +Thy true disciples, that we may be quick to see our +brother's need, and quicker to relieve it. If he has +lost his way, may we be aided to show it to him clearly. +May we see our brother in the Master's "prodigal," +and find in every needy soul our sphere of service. +Forgive our weak excuses, and make the flickering +embers burn to fervent heat, that the ideal Thou hast +given in Thy Word may command every power of +our lives. For Jesus' sake, Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">George Whitaker.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_16" id="page_16">[16]</a></span></p> + +<p>January 14</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A German allegory tells of two little girls. They +had been playing together in a strange garden, and +soon one ran in to her mother full of disappointment. +"The garden's a sad place, mother." "Why, my +child?" "I've been all around, and every rose-tree +has cruel, long thorns upon it!" Then the second +child came in breathless. "O Mother, the garden's +a beautiful place!" "How so, my child?" "Why, +I've been all around, and every thorn-bush has lovely +roses growing on it!" And the mother wondered at +the difference in the two children.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Divine Spirit and Soul of this day! We rejoice +in its accomplished and its prophetic beauty and +wealth which even our undisciplined hearts and +minds may readily perceive, but may we increase +the joy of its activities and its whole divine meaning +by a deeper appreciation of its ministry to the disciplined +life we bear. If there shall be fortunes +in its passing which we would not choose, if there +shall be encountered any experiences we would shun, +may we remember that our reverses only emphasize +our successes, that our sorrows intensify our joys, +that even the humiliation and shame of the "far +country" add divine meaning to the Father's House +where wait the sandals and robes and rings for +the comfort and beauty that are yet to be. May we +learn that the thorn protects the rose, that the flaming +sword turning in all directions protects the Tree +of Life in every Eden of the world. May we remember +that every great and good fortune of life is +guarded by a seeming hostility which bears in its +soul the secret of a lasting benevolence appointed +for our own good. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">E. L. Rexford.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_17" id="page_17">[17]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 15</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We are haunted by an ideal life, and it is because +we have within us the beginning and the possibility +of it. God is our continual incitement because we +are His children. So the ideal life is in our blood +and never will be still. We feel the thing we ought +to be beating beneath the thing we are. Every time +we see a man who has attained our ideal a little more +fully than we have it wakens our languid blood and +fills us with new longings.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God, we thank Thee each morning for ideals +which appeal to us with such persistence that we have +no peace unless we pursue them. Even in our seeming +indifference we are ill at ease, because Thy +voice calling to us disturbs our fancied content. +We are not satisfied with ourselves nor with our +attainments. "We shall be satisfied only when we +wake in Thy likeness." Weary though we often are +in our service yet we thank Thee that Thou relentlessly +pursuest us with even greater and higher +demands. Help us in our onward and upward +plodding. Revive our failing spirits. Lead us ever +on. Help us to realize that "in our patience we +shall win our souls." We pray as followers of Jesus +Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Theodore A. Fischer.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_18" id="page_18">[18]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O Singer of today, this glorious hour<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is all for you and me—what shall it give</span><br /> +To us, and ask of fate—what splendid power<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In brain and hand, what glorious right to live</span><br /> +Among our fellows and to war with sin?<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">What quickening of the pulse as we aspire</span><br /> +To claim our right, and risk earth's joys to win,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To conquer self, and force it through the fire!</span><br /> +Give us this force, dear God, and evermore<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Give us a deepening love of all our fellowmen;</span><br /> +Give us new insight—courage to explore<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With all the tenderness of human ken</span><br /> +The lowliest heart that beats in human kind,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Its glory and its soul to seek and find!</span></i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Ordway Partridge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Soul of all souls! Baptize us afresh this morning +into the lustral waters that we may devoutly thank +Thee that Thou art and that Thou dost clearly reveal +Thyself to Christian souls through Thy Son, as +the Father of the great brotherhood of mankind. +So wait upon us that we shall go forth to this day's +duties resolved upon so living as to render the morning +glad, the noon redolent with merciful activity, +and the evening full of praise. Thus quickened and +enlarged the night will afford rest and recuperation +fitting us to welcome the morrow, still hoping, loving, +progressing, obedient to the sainted call, "Up +higher," being incessantly recompensed with the +coveted refrain, "Well done." Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">S. H. McCollester.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_19" id="page_19">[19]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 17</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There is one topic peremptorily forbidden to all +well-bred, to all rational mortals, namely, their distempers. +If you have not slept or if you have slept, +or if you have headache, or sciatica, or leprosy or +thunder stroke, I beseech you, by all angels, to hold +your peace, and not pollute the morning, to which +all the housemates bring serene and pleasant thoughts, +by corruption and groans.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, when we remember the multitude of +Thy mercies our hearts are filled with peace and +praise and we are ashamed to murmur and complain. +Turn our thoughts toward the love and joy that +this day holds for us; its opportunities, its privileges +and victories. Let the morning light dispel the +shadows on our faces and the fears in our hearts. +Thou hast glorified us and will glorify us again. +Help us to be grateful for the rose that smiles amidst +the thorns and the light that ever shines behind the +clouds. Grant that the spirit of trust may prevail +in us and send us on our way with power to conquer. +Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Abram Conklin.</span></p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_20" id="page_20">[20]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Simplicity is a state of mind. It dwells in the +main intention of our lives. A man is simple when +his chief care is the wish to be what he ought to be, +that is, honestly and naturally human. And this is +neither so easy nor so impossible as one might think. +At bottom it consists in putting our acts and aspirations +in accordance with the law of our being, and +consequently with the Eternal Intention which willed +that we should be at all. Let a flower be a flower, a +swallow a swallow, a rock a rock, and let a man be +a man, and not a fox, a hare, a hog, or a bird of prey; +this is the sum of the whole matter.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles Wagner.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Dear Heavenly Father, we rejoice in the awakening +of body and soul to new activities. We thank +Thee for the gift of divinity in the soul and for opportunity +to give it expression. We would be true +to ourselves, knowing we can thus alone be true to +Thee. O God, hush the voice of evil passion. +Quicken every noble aspiration. Grant the vision +of Thy holy love that Thy image within us may +remain clear in the turmoil of our life. We pray +Thee stir the heart and mind that both may grow +up to the full stature of man as it was in Jesus, our +Saviour. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">L. Ward Brigham.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_21" id="page_21">[21]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>God has put the keys to His kingdom into your +own hands. Your intelligence is a key, your affection +is a key, your conscience is a key. With these keys +you are to unlock the great doors of life, and gain access +to its heavenly treasures.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James M. Pullman.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Master of life, as Thou hast opened our eyes to +see the sun, open the eyes of our hearts to see the +splendor of Thy law. And even as Thou dost +bring to birth, through the marriage of our eye +and the sun, all the beauty of this visible world, +so through the union between our hearts and Thy +holy will, create a world rejoicing in the beauty of +truth and justice and peace. Lead us this day +deeper into the mystery of Thy life and our life and +make us interpreters of life to our fellows, through +Him who by His death opened for us the book of +life, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Henry S. Nash.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_22" id="page_22">[22]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A noiseless, patient spider,<br /> +I mark'd how on a little promontory it stood isolated,<br /> +Mark'd how to explore the vacant, vast surrounding,<br /> +It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,<br /> +Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>And you, O my soul, where you stand,<br /> +Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,<br /> +Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,<br /> +Till the bridge you will need be form'd, till the ductile anchor hold,<br /> +Till the gossamer threads you fling catch somewhere O my soul.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walt Whitman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Thou Infinite Spirit, we are glad of all human +relationships. We are thankful for all companionship +with nature. We rejoice in the fellowship with +books, yet like the child who grows tired with every +plaything and every childish task and lonely for a +mother's love, we look to Thee with an infinite longing. +In our effort to solve the problems of life, we +throw our web of life hither and thither, but it will +not hold. Only when at last we have thrown the +thread of faith to Thee, shall the ductile anchor +hold. Our Heavenly Father, as we go forth into +this day, may we not leave Thee for any dream or +phantom, but may we walk with Thee all day long, +and find in Thee the answer to every longing and +the solution of every problem. Though we may not +see, we may trust and wait. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_23" id="page_23">[23]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Do not think of your faults, still less of others' +faults; in every person who comes near you, look +for what is good and strong; honor that; rejoice in +it; and as you can, try to imitate it; and your +faults will drop off like dead leaves when their +time comes.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ruskin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>With a clear sky, a bright sun, and a gentle +breeze, you will have friends in plenty; but let fortune +frown, and the firmament be overcast, and then +your friends will prove like the strings of the lute, +of which you will tighten ten before you find one +that will bear the stretch and keep the pitch.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Gotthold.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Dear Father, may the new day bring some fresh +and inspiring thought of Thyself. May it give some +tender communion with the universe, kindling into +beauty as Thy smile shines through. May we make +and keep a few dear friends. May some good book +enrich the passing hours. May love flow through +all acts, and the star of hope shine in all shadows. +And trusting Thee supremely, may we humbly do +our best that good may abound on earth. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Joseph H. Crooker.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_24" id="page_24">[24]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 22</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The power of mere activity is often overrated. It +is not what the best men do, but what they are, that +constitutes their truest benefaction to their fellowmen. +The things that men do get their value, after all, from +the way in which they are able to show the existence +of character which can comfort and help mankind.... +It is the lives, like the stars, which simply pour down +on us the calm light of their bright and faithful being, +up to which we look and out of which we gather the +deepest calm and courage.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span> +</p> + +<p>Thou knowest, dear Father, how often we wish +to do many things which are beyond our power. +Help us to believe that Thou dost accept the wish +when we cannot do the deed. But we thank Thee +that we can do some things, though they are not +large nor many. We know that as we grow in faith, +in patience, in courage, in love, we radiate light +and peace and power to those who are around us. +As we begin a new day, we are uplifted by the thought +that we have been called into being because Thou +desirest the love of children, and because we are to +co-work with Thee by loving and serving all whom +we can reach. Always, we believe, art Thou ready +to help us. Always art Thou brooding over us to +draw us nearer to Thee, and to give us light and +strength to be fellow-workers with Thee. In this +new day, may we speak some word and do some +work which shall please Thee and give us joy as we +shall lie down to sleep. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Henry Blanchard.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_25" id="page_25">[25]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 23</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>We pride ourselves, in weighing worth and merit,<br /> +Too much in virtues that we but inherit.<br /> +Some punctual grandsire makes us hate delay<br /> +And we are proud to keep our oath and day.<br /> +But our ancestral follies and abuses<br /> +We still indulge in, and make for them excuses.<br /> +Let him be proud, dared man be proud at all,<br /> +Who stands where all his fathers used to fall,<br /> +Holding their virtues fast and passing on<br /> +Still higher good through his own victories won.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Isaac Ogden Rankin.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>This morning, the sun shines by his own inherent +worth. The clouds often intercept his influence but +he shines back of them and finds a way through the +slightest cleft to tip them with glory. He always +reveals himself—his inner self—and makes all +purer and more beautiful. May we so shine! The +world needs the divinity there is in us. We are a +part of Thee. Thou art our deeper self. The Nazarean +prophet relied entirely upon his inner life and +found ancient good uncouth. Whatever clouds +intercept our influence, teach us to reveal what +conscience dictates, what intuition illumines, what +reason shows, to purify our time, and all unrighteousness, +wrong thinking and useless and hurtful +custom. To this end, give us purity, courage, and +nobility. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William S. Morgan.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_26" id="page_26">[26]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>My faith begins where your religion ends,—<br /> +In service to mankind. This single thread<br /> +Is given to guide us through the maze of life.<br /> +You start at one end, I the other; you,<br /> +With eyes fixed only upon God, begin<br /> +With lofty faith, and, seeking but to know<br /> +And do His will who guides the universe,<br /> +You find the slender and mysterious thread<br /> +Leads down to earth, with God's divine command<br /> +To help your fellowmen; but this to me<br /> +Is something strangely vague. I see alone<br /> +The fellowmen, the suffering fellowmen.<br /> +Yet, with a cup of water in my hand<br /> +For all who thirst, who knows but I one day,<br /> +Following faithfully the slender thread,<br /> +May reach its other end, and kneel at last<br /> +With you in heaven at the feet of God?</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alice Wellington Rollins.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Father in heaven, author of life and light, +justice and mercy, liberty and love, we hail with +joy and gratitude this new born day, token of Thy +presence, good will and continued care. Help us +with high ideals, pure thoughts and noble endeavors +to hallow Thy name, trusting where we cannot prove, +proving where we cannot trust, by a willing service +to our fellowmen, ever advancing by faith, by +works, with a strong heart, a firm step, a generous +hand, a sunny smile, and a cheering voice, until we +all come into the measure of the stature of the fulness +of Christ; and Thy will be done on earth as it is +in heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henry N. Couden.</span><br /></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_27" id="page_27">[27]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If you would have sunlight in your home, see that +you have work in it: that you work yourself and set +others to work. Nothing makes moroseness and +heavy-heartedness in a house so fast as idleness. +The very children gloom and sulk if they are left with +nothing to do. Every day there is the light of something +conquered in the eyes of those who work. In +such a house, if there be also the good temper of love, +sunshine never ceases. For in it the great law of +humanity is obeyed, a law which is also God's law. +For what said Christ, "My Father worketh hitherto +and I work." Sunlight comes with work.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Stopford A. Brooke.</span> +</p> + +<p>O Thou, who art the source of light and life, we +pause in Thy presence at the opening of the day, +that in the light of thy countenance we may see +ourselves as we are and as we ought to be, and receive +the inspiration to consecrated effort and worthy +achievement. We thank Thee that Thou hast done +so much for us and yet left so much for us to do. +May we think how important are these lives we +are going to live today; that no matter how small +we are, this universe in all its majesty can never +be complete without our effort, and Thou, Almighty +God, art waiting with infinite patience for us to do +our part. Thus shall our work, however humble, +be glorified by a Godlike temper and a Christlike +faith. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick A. Bisbee.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_28" id="page_28">[28]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 26</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">All that is, at all,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Lasts ever, past recall:</span><br /> +Earth changes, but thy soul and God stand sure;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">What entered into thee,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">That was, is and shall be.</span></i><br /> +</p> +<p> * * * * * <br /></p> + +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">He fixed thee 'mid this dance</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Of plastic circumstance,</span><br /> +This Present, thou, forsooth, wouldst fain arrest;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Machinery just meant</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">To give thy soul its bent,</span><br /> +Try thee, and turn thee forth, sufficiently impressed.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + + + +<p>We thank Thee, O Father, for the yet unwrought +possibilities of this day. Show us Thy purpose; +or, if it please Thee, withhold the entire plan, yet +may our faith claim a divine sanction for each hour's +work as a part of the fulfilment of Thy purpose. +We pray for strength and patience to have our souls +rightly impressed by the cares, the joys, and disappointments +of life. Make the things of the body +only incidental to us. Save us from all but the best +things. Give us the happiness of harmony with +Thee. Wilt Thou grant these things through the +power of Thy spirit, and in the name of Thy perfect +Son, the vision of whom transforms our lives. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George W. Owen.</span> +</p> +<p> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_29" id="page_29">[29]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Beloved, let us love so well,</span><br /> +Our work shall still be better for our love<br /> +And still our love be sweeter for our work.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Elizabeth Barrett Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>If your name is to live at all, it is so much more +to have it live in people's hearts than only in their +brains! I don't know that one's eyes fill with tears +when he thinks of the famous inventor of logarithms, +but a song of Burns or a hymn of Charles Wesley +goes straight to your heart and you can't help loving +both of them, the sinner as well as the saint.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, who art in heaven, help us to hold +Thee in our hearts this day, that we may live for +Thee, from the love of Thee. Forgive us that we +have not always a thankful spirit. Strengthen our +wills to do good work, as in Thy sight, with clean +hands and heart. Help us now as we pray, and +flood the morning with the sunshine of Thy face, +that we may be glad all the day long, and bring other +lives into the brightness of Thy light. Save us from +a partial mind, that we may love all Thy little ones +with the same love of Him who said "Of such is +the Kingdom of Heaven." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. W. Holden.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_30" id="page_30">[30]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>All thoughts of ill; all evil deeds.<br /> +That have their root in thoughts of ill;<br /> +Whatever hinders or impedes<br /> +The noble action of the will;—<br /> +All these must first be trampled down<br /> +Beneath our feet if we would gain<br /> +In the bright fields of fair renown<br /> +The right of eminent domain.<br /> +We have not wings, we cannot soar;<br /> +But we have feet to scale and climb<br /> +By slow degrees, by more and more,<br /> +The cloudy summits of our time.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry W. Longfellow.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + + +<p>We bless Thee, Lord, for the new day and for the +new chance which it offers to our wayward lives. +Forgive the evil in them, and make the good efficient. +Let the tides of Thy spirit bring to us cleansing, +refreshment and power. In the day's business +may we be brave, cheerful and considerate. Grant +us a clear vision of the path of honor and the will +to choose it at whatever cost. We wait upon Thee +for renewal of our strength; for uplift as on eagle's +wings; for unwearied running upon Thy larger +errands, if Thou shalt ordain us to such high employ; +but most of all, for grace to walk life's common +ways without fainting. So at evening wilt Thou +send Thy peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward M. Chapman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_31" id="page_31">[31]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Don't you touch the edge of the great gladness that +is in the world, now and then, in spite of your own +little single worries? Well, that's what God means; +and the worry is the interruption. He never means +that.... If you are glad for one minute in the +day, that is His minute; the minute He means, and +works for.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Dear Father, Thou hast made us fit for joy. Help +us today to grasp our birthright of gladness. For +those things which must be borne in sorrow give us +submission. Let us taste the salt tonic of our tears +and feel the strength born of struggle and the peace +wrested from trial. Make us glad that friendly hands +meet our own; that kindness is always sweet and +sympathy divine. Teach us to lay hold on the +radiance of each hour, that the morning bow of +promise may become our evening glory and prophesy +another glad new day. As children find content +and joy by looking into their father's face so we +turn to Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Effie McCollum Jones.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_32" id="page_32">[32]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Still must I climb if I would rest;<br /> +The bird soars upward to his nest;<br /> +The young leaf on the tree-top high<br /> +Cradles itself within the sky.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>I cannot in the valley stay:<br /> +The great horizons stretch away;<br /> +The very cliffs that wall me round<br /> +Are ladders unto higher ground.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>I am not glad till I have known<br /> +Life that can lift me from mine own;<br /> +A loftier level must be won.<br /> +A mightier strength to lean upon.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Lucy Larcom.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, as the bird that soars first looks +upward, we turn our souls to Thee, seeking inspiration +that in the duties of today we may live to the +full height of the faculties Thou hast given. Help +us to know what is right and to follow it day by day +continually. Grant that our toils this day may be +acts of service as sacramental as our prayer. In our +weakness, grant us of Thy strength that we may +pass from glory to glory till we are transformed at +last into the perfect image of Thy spirit. And when +our work on earth is ended, when the clods of the +valley are sweet to our weary frame, take us home +to Thyself. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Nathaniel S. Sage.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_33" id="page_33">[33]</a></span></p> + + +<p>January 31</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Only a frown! Yet it pressed a sting<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Into the day which had been so glad;</span><br /> +The red rose turned to a scentless thing:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The bird-song ceased with discordant ring;</span><br /> +And a heart was heavy and sad.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Only a smile! yet it cast a spell<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Over the sky which had been so gray;</span><br /> +The rain made music wherever it fell;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The wind sang the song of the marriage-bell;</span><br /> +And a heart was light and gay.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>With our tribute of praise, O Father, we would +begin this day; this day, which, with all its bounties, +is Thy gift. Prepare us, we beseech Thee, for the +experiences of the hours as they open before us. +Gratefully remembering that we are Thy children, +may our duties weigh with such sacredness upon +our hearts that we may shun the evil way as unworthy +those so richly endowed and blest. Write, we pray +Thee, Thy law within us; and may our love of Thee +make it so easy and so joyous to obey that we shall +continually grow into the likeness of Him whose +mission it is to fill the world with blessedness and +peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles W. Tomlinson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_34" id="page_34">[34]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Father, I will not ask for wealth or fame,<br /> +Though once they would have joyed my carnal sense.<br /> +I shudder not to bear a hated name,<br /> +Wanting all wealth, myself my sole defence.<br /> +But give me, Lord, eyes to behold the truth;<br /> +A seeing sense that knows the eternal right;<br /> +A heart with pity filled, and gentlest ruth;<br /> +A manly faith that makes all darkness light;<br /> +Give me the power to labor for mankind;<br /> +Make me the mouth of such as cannot speak;<br /> +Eyes let me be to groping man and blind;<br /> +A conscience to the base; and to the weak<br /> +Let me be hands and feet; and to the foolish, mind;<br /> +And lead still farther on such as Thy Kingdom seek.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, we speak to Thee this morning +out of a sense of rest and trust. We would begin +the day with Thee and keep in Thy company to its +close. Whether we work or pray, wilt Thou rule +our spirits? Conscious in this moment of freedom, +that we shall soon be pressed and absorbed by our +own cares, we pray, Father, that we may keep in +mind the privilege and joy of bearing each other's +burdens and so fulfilling the law of Christ. Nor +ever permit us to fall away from perfect faith in Thy +purpose. Work in us and through us to usher in +the morning when Truth shall spring out of the +earth and Righteousness shall come down from +heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Isaac M. Atwood.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_35" id="page_35">[35]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 2</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>As when good news is come to one in grief, straightway +he forgetteth his former grief, and no longer +attendeth to anything except the good news which +he hath heard, so do ye, also! having received a +renewal of your soul through the beholding of these +good things. Put on therefore gladness that hath +always favor before God, and is acceptable unto Him, +and delight thyself in it; for every man that is glad +doeth the things that are good, and thinketh good +thoughts, despising grief.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Marius the Epicurean.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, we know there are a thousand reasons +why we should be glad. We cannot always forget +our sorrows and our failures; there are manifold +sources of temporary vexation and annoyance and +harassing care, but in the face of Thine overmastering +Providence and Love we cannot long be vexed +nor sad. If tears have dimmed our eyes let us brush +away the tears. If troubles and cares have burdened +our hearts let us rise triumphant over them all and +for this day be glad; and in our gladness let us find +our strength. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_36" id="page_36">[36]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 3</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Do not dare to be so absorbed in your own life, so +wrapped up in listening to the sound of your own +hurrying wheels, that all this vast pathetic music, +made up of the mingled joy and sorrow of your fellowmen, +shall not find out your heart and claim it and +make you rejoice to give yourself for them.... +Be sure that ambition and charity will both grow mean +unless they are both inspired and exalted by religion. +Energy, love, and faith,—these make the perfect +man.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou who art not far from any one of us, but +art the Source and Sustainer of our life, gratefully +do we acknowledge the Mercy that has given us +this new day with its certain opportunity for living +the glad, true life. Directed by Thee, may this be +for us a day of progress. May its duties be performed +with alacrity and cheerfulness, its lessons +learned with humility, its temptations met with +resolute will, its crosses with patient hope. We +thank Thee for the life of the Master who has shown +us that if we would live Thy divine life, ours must +be one of continual service and constant progression. +If, tried by the seeming drudgery of duties +daily repeated, we long for the end of our labors or +dream of an idle heaven, O forgive our weakness, +and help us trustingly to obey Thy voice as it whispers, +"Up and on, this is not thy rest." Thus let the day +close on hours well spent, and Thy joy and peace +fill our hearts. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Murray Atwood.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_37" id="page_37">[37]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Who art thou that complainest of thy life of toil? +Complain not. Look up, my wearied brother; see +thy fellow-workmen there, in God's eternity; surviving +there, they alone surviving; sacred band of +the Immortals, celestial body-guard of the empire of +mankind. To thee, Heaven, though severe, is as +that Spartan mother, saying while she gave her son +his shield, "With it, my son, or upon it." Thou +too shalt return home in honor; to thy far distant +Home, in honor; doubt it not,—if in the battle thou +keep thy shield! Thou, in the Eternities, and deepest +death-kingdoms, art not an alien; thou everywhere +art a denizen. Complain not.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou God of goodness and grace, who dost +turn Thy smiling countenance upon the upturned +faces of Thy children, help us to find in the light of +another day the continued proof of Thy fatherly +care and tender mercy. Since Thou art so well +disposed towards us, give us courage to attempt +anything which the duties of this day require, remembering +that Thou canst not ask anything beyond +our strength, or withhold from us the blessing of +Thy Divine approval. Living under Thy smile help +us to be strong and calm and confident, delighting +Thy heart by our faith in Thee and our love for our +fellowmen. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Samuel C. Bushnell.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_38" id="page_38">[38]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 5</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>This goodly frame, the earth, seems to me a sterile +promontory; this most excellent canopy, the air, +look you, this brave o'er-hanging firmament, this majestical +roof fretted with golden fire, why, it appears +no other thing to me than a foul and pestilent congregation +of vapors. What a piece of work is a +man! how noble in reason! how infinite in faculty! +in form and moving how express and admirable! +in action how like an angel! in apprehension how +like a god!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shakespeare.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father in Heaven, we pray Thee that this +may be a bright and happy day in each of our lives. +May there be sunshine in our hearts because they +are attuned to Thine. Going about our daily tasks, +Thy spirit within us, may we make our little portion +of the earth not a sterile promontory but a rich +garden abounding in the fruits of the spirit, and +may we, by Thy grace, be enabled to dispel some of +the pestilent vapors of wordliness and doubt. In +all things, may we remember our divine parentage +and conform our lives more and more to the pattern +shown us by Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ, in whose +name we pray. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Francis E. Clark.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_39" id="page_39">[39]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There was a merchant once, who on the way<br /> +Meeting one fatherless and lamed, did stay<br /> +To draw the thorn which pricked his foot, and passed;<br /> +And 'twas forgot; and the man died at last.<br /> +But in a dream the Prince of Khojand spies<br /> +That man again, walking in Paradise.<br /> +Walking and talking in that blessed land,<br /> +And what he said the prince could understand;<br /> +For he said this, plucking the heavenly posies;<br /> +"Wonderful! One thorn made me many roses!"</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edwin Arnold.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Dear Father in Heaven, with our life refreshed +and renewed by sleep, we would face the duties of +the day with strong hope and a ready courage. +Forbid that these shall in any degree be diminished +by any difficulty or perplexity that may arise. We +pray for wisdom and love. Grant us that interest +in others that shall impel us to help those who are +in need. And may our desire to minister move us +not only to dress the wounds of those whom the +thorns have injured, but to clear the paths, along +which men must pass, of those conditions and influences +which inevitably maim and blight. May +we serve Thee faithfully and with gladness this +day! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Harry L. Canfield.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_40" id="page_40">[40]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Quicksand years that whirl me I know not whither,<br /> +Your schemes, politics fail, lines give way, substances mock and elude me,<br /> +Only the theme I sing, the great and strong-possess'd soul, eludes not,<br /> +One's self must never give way—that is the final substance—that out of all is sure,<br /> +Out of politics, triumphs, battles, life, what at last finally remains?<br /> +When shows break up what but One's self is sure?</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walt Whitman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, who beholdest all the souls of men, in +our vision of another new day, help us to see as Thou +seest; to be conscious not of our own need and desert +alone, but also of the deserts and needs of all those +with whom we have to do; shaping our prayer and +directing the effort that follows after all true prayer +in accordance with this wider outlook. O Thou, +who fashionest the hearts of all, who observest all +their works, we would strengthen and purify our +hearts that they may be fitted to be fashioned by +Thee to noble ends, and set to some good service; +and we would do our daily work as in the sight of +one who knows and loves all honest, thorough workers, +great or humble, wise or simple. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Augustus Mendon Lord.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_41" id="page_41">[41]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 8</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Truth should be the first lesson of the child and +the last aspiration of Manhood; for it has been well +said that the inquiry of truth, which is the love-making +of it, the knowledge of truth, which is the presence +of it, and the belief of truth, which is the enjoying +of it, is the sovereign good of human nature.</i></p></blockquote> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>We search the world for truth; we cull<br /> +The good, the pure, the beautiful,<br /> +From graven stone and written scroll,<br /> +From all old flower-fields of the soul.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we acknowledge Thee as +the Author and Giver of all truth. We bless Thee +that Thou hast attuned our souls to its music, and +that when with conscious life we touch its strings +covering the universe we feel harmony with the +Divine. We thank Thee for the truths of our sonship +in Thee and for the assurances of Thy Fatherhood. +We bless Thee for Jesus who was the truth +made life, and who is our daily guide to its blessings. +We thank Thee for the truth of immortality, with +its encouragement to eager life today and its assurances +of endless joyful tomorrows. Make us seekers +of truth, lovers of truth and examples of truth as +it is in Jesus our Savior. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Fred A. Dillingham.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_42" id="page_42">[42]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 9</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>All things are engaged in writing their history. +The planet, the pebble, goes attended by its shadow. +The rolling rock leaves its scratches on the mountain; +the river, its channel in the soil; the animal, its +bones in the stratum; the fern and leaf, their modest +epitaph in the coal. The falling drop makes its +sculpture in the sand or the stone. Not a foot steps +into the snow or along the ground, but prints, in +characters more or less lasting, a map of its march. +Every act of the man inscribes itself in the memory +of his fellows, and in his own manners and face. The +air is full of sounds, the sky of tokens, the ground is +all memoranda and signatures, and every object covered +over with hints which speak to the intelligent.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<i>Ralph Waldo Emerson.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, who art in Heaven and in every +manifestation of living nature, we turn our thoughts +to Thee with the rising of each new sun. We hear +Thy voice in the singing of every summer bird. +We realize Thy presence in the shifting shadows +of the clouds. In the arching blue above us we +realize something of the depth and breadth of the +love that arches over the horizon of our life and +stretches like the radiant bow of promise from the +green hills of childhood to the sombre mountains +of old age. We beseech Thee to give us thoughts +so beautiful and ennobling that even amid the sods +and clods of life's daily drudgery we can always +face the morning light of some new hope which comes +like the old song sung in the new land. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Kimball.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_43" id="page_43">[43]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>First, when I feel that I am become cold and indisposed +to prayer, by reason of other business and +thoughts, I take my psalter and run into my chamber, +or, if day and season serve, into the church to the +multitude, and begin to repeat to myself—just as +children used—the ten commandments, the creed, and, +according as I have time, some sayings of Christ +or of Paul, or some Psalms. Therefore it is well to +let prayer be the first employment in the early morning, +and the last in the evening. Avoid diligently those +false and deceptive thoughts which say, Wait a little, +I will pray an hour hence; I must first perform +this or that. For with such thoughts a man quits +prayer for business that lays hold of and entangles +him, so that he comes not to pray the whole day long.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Martin Luther.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, our Heavenly Father, who keepest covenant +and loving kindness with Thy servants, who walk +humbly with Thee, and who hast been attentive to +the prayers of our fathers when they lifted up their +hearts and their hands to Thee, teach us to pray, +and to love to pray. Visit us in the night season +and before the morning watch. Touch our spirits +with the flame of Thy Spirit, before the day's business +lays hold upon us and entangles us, through +Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Reuben Kidner.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_44" id="page_44">[44]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 11</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>In one of Dean Stanley's sermons to children, +preached at Westminster Abbey, he told the following +story: "There was a little girl living with her grandfather. +She was a good child, but he was not a very +good man; and one day, when the little child came +back from school, he had put in writing over the bed, +'God is nowhere,' for he did not believe in the good +God, and he tried to make the little child believe the +same. What did the little girl do? She had no eyes +to see, no ears to hear, what her grandfather tried +to teach her. She was very small. She could only +read words of one syllable at a time; she rose above +the bad meaning which he tried to put in her mind; +she rose, as we all ought to rise, above the temptation +of our time; she rose into a higher and better world; +she rose because her little mind could not do otherwise, +and she read the words, not 'God is nowhere,' +but 'God is now here.' That is what we all should +strive to do. Out of words which have no sense or +which have bad sense, our eyes, our minds, ought to +be able to read a better sense."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Moodie.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou, Invisible Presence, there can be no place +where Thou art not. Thou, our Father, art in +heaven and on earth and everywhere. Thou art in +the order of the rock, the beauty of the flower, the +light of the sun and stars, and goodness in the human +soul. Teach us to be conscious of Thy nearness to +us, and so may we never be afraid. In the light of +Thy countenance, may we see duty and truth, and +recognize more easily the good in one another. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Alva Roy Scott.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_45" id="page_45">[45]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 12</p> + +<p class="center"><span class="smcap">Abraham Lincoln Born 1809</span></p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +Chosen for large designs, he had the art<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of winning with his humour, and he went</span><br /> +Straight to his mark, which was the human heart;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Wise, too, for what he could not break he bent.</span><br /> +<br /> +Upon his back a more than Atlas-load—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The burden of the Commonwealth was laid;</span><br /> +He stooped, and rose up to it, though the road<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Shot suddenly downwards, not a whit dismayed.</span><br /> +<br /> +Hold, warriors, counsellors, kings! all now give place<br /> +To this dear benefactor of the race.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard H. Stoddard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Almighty Father, we thank Thee today for the +gracious memory of Thy servant who lived and +died for the sake of a free and united nation. We +thank Thee more that we have his life inwrought +into the very fabric of the life of the nation. We +had in him "a hiding place from the wind and a +covert from the tempest, a river of water in a dry +place and the shadow of a great rock in a weary +land." We gratefully join in praise with the thousands +who found help and cheer in the shadow of his +strength. And now we humbly beseech Thee, help +us in some small way this day to be a helper to +the helpless, a friend to the needy, sunshine to those +whose day will be gray and gloomy, the shadow of +a great rock to those who are buffeted by the world's +storms. Thus shall we prove our gratitude to Thee +for the gift of Thy servant whom we honor today, +and thus shall we honor Thee. We ask and offer +all in the name of Thy Son Jesus Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Avery A. Shaw.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_46" id="page_46">[46]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let us learn to be content with what we have. Let +us get rid of our false estimates, set up all the higher +ideals—a quiet home; vines of our own planting; +a few books full of the inspiration of a genius; a +few friends worthy of being loved, and able to love +us in return; a hundred innocent pleasures that +bring no pain or remorse; a devotion to the right +that will never swerve; a simple religion empty of +all bigotry, full of trust and hope and love—and to +such a philosophy this world will give up all the +empty joy it has.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">David Swing.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Thou gracious Spirit of Life, our Father, at the +beginning of this new day we wait for a moment +before Thee with uncovered heads and with reverent +spirits; Thou knowest us through and through, +whatever man may think of us Thou knowest just +what we are. In Thy sight we need not pretend; +we need not make believe, we need only be simple +and genuine and brave and earnest. We need be +glad in the possession of what we have. Help us +this day to rightly value that which is good and +honest. Let us for this day at least, put away all +vanity and give ourselves unreservedly to Thy +service and the love of our fellow men. To this +high end, may we have the sweet companionship +of Jesus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_47" id="page_47">[47]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 14</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We go through life as some tourists go through +Europe,—so anxious to see the next sight, the next +cathedral, the next picture, the next mountain peak, +that we never stop to fill our sense with the beauty of +the present one. Along all our pathways sweet flowers +are blossoming, if we will only stop to pluck them and +smell their fragrance. In every meadow, birds are +warbling, calling to their mates, and soaring into +the blue, if we will only stop our grumbling long +enough to hear them.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Minot J. Savage.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Give us, O God, the vision to see the way where +duty lies and strength to walk in it, to ever keep +the forward look and never to lose heart today +because of the stumblings and fallings in the yesterdays +that are forever gone. Let us remember that +we are in Thy hands and we are faithless to Thee +and to ourselves if knowingly we fail to do Thy +work. Though we cannot see Thee, we now see +our fellow men and we shall best serve Thee if, +in love and patience, we help our fellows. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Almon Gunnison.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_48" id="page_48">[48]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 6em;">May I reach</span><br /> +That purest Heaven—be to other souls<br /> +The cup of strength in some great agony,<br /> +Enkindle generous ardor, feed pure love,<br /> +Beget the smiles that have no cruelty,<br /> +Be that sweet presence of a good diffused,<br /> +And in diffusion ever more intense!<br /> +So shall I join the choir invisible,<br /> +Whose music is the gladness of the world.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George Eliot.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + + +<p>Our heavenly Father, we bless Thee for the gift +of another day with all its opportunities for service. +And we pray that our hearts may respond in sympathy +with the heartbeats of those who love and +toil and suffer around us today. May we learn +to make their joys and sorrows our own. Do not +let our unfeeling hands strike the heart-strings of +others harshly, nor allow our feet to go crushing +roses of love, without thought. Help us, we pray +Thee, to walk tenderly and reverently among our +fellow men. May their hopes and noble endeavors +ring within us the prayer bells of the soul. +Make us thus to grow large and tender and noble +through our helpful ministries. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Wesley Carter.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_49" id="page_49">[49]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Ah, love and love alone at last will solve<br /> +All the vast, threatening questions that distract<br /> +Mankind; that fellow-men in strife array,<br /> +And the whole world with fierce contentions rend.<br /> +Still keep your idle millions under arms—<br /> +Fed on the hard-earned substance of the poor—<br /> +Still watch each other with keen jealousy,<br /> +Still slaughter thousands on the field of war,<br /> +Or strive with statesman's craft to arbitrate;<br /> +Thread the sly mazes of diplomacy,<br /> +Try communistic cures for every ill,<br /> +And when all fails at last, for lack of love,<br /> +Try love—the mightiest of them all—and win!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Nehemiah Dodge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>God of the light,—within, without, who hast +lifted the curtain of night from our abodes, perfect +now Thy blessing unto us, and take the veil from +all our hearts, and make clear to us Thy holy presence. +Filled with the everlasting light, may we look on +each other, and on our work here below, and on +the strifes and conditions of humanity, with a love +and hope that are not of this world. May Faith, +Hope and Love abide with us—and may we realize +that the greatest of these is Love. Hasten Thou +the time when by love alone Thy kingdom shall +come, and Thy will be done on earth as it is in +heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William B. Eddy.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_50" id="page_50">[50]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 17</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If the day and night are such that you greet them +with joy, and life emits a fragrance like flowers and +sweet-scented herbs, is more starry, more immortal,—that +is your success. All nature is your congratulation +and you have cause momentarily to bless yourself.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry David Thoreau.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father, I have found Thy gift of life, a sweet +and beautiful thing. It has known cloud and rain, +but these have nourished it, and the darkness has +sheltered it. It has felt driving storms, but these +have strengthened it. It has known sunshine too. +And now every day is a transfiguration and every +night a benediction. Let thanksgiving be my prayer. +What I need Thou wilt give. My hands Thou wilt +touch with the soft petals of Thy flowers; and the +arms of Thy strong care shall be about me. By +the voices of brooks and rivers and winds and birds +and little children Thou wilt speak to me, and +in the deeper silences I shall hear Thy still small +voice. Father, I thank Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">O. C. S. Wallace.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_51" id="page_51">[51]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let us not care too much for what happens: Let +us not leave our peace of mind at the mercy of events.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles G. Ames.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let us lay hold of the happiness of today. Do we +not go through life blindly, thinking that some fair +tomorrow will bring us the gift we miss today?... +Know thou, my heart, if thou art not happy today, +thou shalt never be happy.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anna Robertson Brown.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>We thank Thee, our Father, that the Satisfaction +of righteousness is present as well as future. Help +us, we beseech Thee, to live this day so that earth +shall seem like heaven. In the proof of our adequacy +to the demands of duty may we find a delight that +shall more than compensate us for any pleasure or +profit surrendered for its sake. May the sense of +Thine approval sanctify our joys and comfort our +sorrows. May we win love by deserving it, and +find happiness in bestowing it. Through obedience +to Thy will may we add strength and spiritual +beauty to our own character and carry into the +evening shadows the sweet assurance that other +lives have been enriched by our kind words and +helpful deeds. We ask it as Thy children. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. Frank Thompson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_52" id="page_52">[52]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 19</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>'Tis always morning somewhere, and above<br /> +The awakening continents from shore to shore.<br /> +Somewhere the birds are singing evermore.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry W. Longfellow.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>The inconveniences and the petty annoyances, the +pains and the sorrows, do we ever forget them? Indeed, +no; we grumble and groan continually. The +blue sky and the sunshine, the everyday mercies and +the wonderful blessings that we accept as a matter +of course, do we remember to rejoice because of them? +Only too seldom. On this one day, do let us be sincerely +and expressedly thankful.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, we rejoice to believe that Thy love +is the eternal sun which knows no eclipse and that +in its pure shining, we Thy children can go forward +with brave hearts and radiant hopes, assured that +Thy wisdom hath left nothing unfinished and that +"Thy goodness faileth never." We greet this new +day with newness of joy in Thy Fatherhood as +our personal right, and with ascending ideals of a +service whose gracious light shall kindle other souls +into a larger hopefulness and a deeper tenderness. +We would fill this day with all sunny thoughts, with +all cheering words and with all generous deeds, +and thus the more effectually bring the divine light +into the human and make clearer the outlines of a +heaven on earth. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Arnold S. Yantis.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_53" id="page_53">[53]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>No blast of air or fire of sun<br /> +Puts out the light whereby we run<br /> +With girdled loins our lamplit race,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And each from each takes heart of grace</span><br /> +And spirit till his turn be done,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And light of face from each man's face</span><br /> +In whom the light of trust is one;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Since only souls that keep their place</span><br /> +By their own light, and watch things roll,<br /> +And stand, have light for any soul.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Algernon Charles Swinburne.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou, Who coverest Thyself with light as with +a garment, even the true light which lighteth every +man coming into the world, shine Thou in us, putting +to flight all the powers of darkness, and guilt of +sin, and selfishness. Shine also through us to any +that live in the shadow; and so fill us with Thy radiant +Spirit, that we may be a lamp unto a neighbor's +feet and a light unto his path. And when this day +is done may every face we have met be the brighter +for our meeting, and every heart braver with new +joy and cheer and grace and strength. For in Thee +O Lord, is life, and Thy life is the light of men. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_54" id="page_54">[54]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 21</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The longer on this earth we live<br /> +And weigh the various qualities of men<br /> +The more we feel the high, stern-featured beauty<br /> +Of plain devotedness to duty,<br /> +Steadfast and still, nor paid with mortal praise,<br /> +But finding amplest recompense<br /> +For life's ungarlanded expense<br /> +In work done squarely and unwasted days.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Russell Lowell.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our dear Heavenly Father, we would greet Thee +as this morning greets us. We thank Thee for the +daily duty; that, amid this wondrous world, Thou +hast set somewhat for our doing. May we appreciate +the honor. May we not grudge our best, even in +the humblest tasks, since Thou appointest them. +Strengthen us, we beseech Thee, if sometimes the +heart fails, and the tired hands get laggard. Show +us how the lowliest service becomes loftiest if done +with the glorifying motive of pleasing Thee. Make +us this day blithe in duty. When our heads find +pillow may Thy peace enfold us; forgive our failures; +and, for Jesus' sake, may we never cease endeavor. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Wayland Hoyt.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_55" id="page_55">[55]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 22</p> + + +<div class="poem"> +<p><span class="smcap">George Washington. Born 1732.</span></p> +<p> +<i>Welcome to the day returning,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Dearer still as ages flow,</span><br /> +While the torch of faith is burning,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Long as Freedom's altars glow!</span><br /> +See the hero whom it gave us<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Slumbering on a mother's breast;</span><br /> +For the arm he stretched to save us,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Be its morn forever blest.</span><br /></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father of life, we thank Thee that Thou hast +been with the Fathers; that Thou hast been with +him whose birth this day we celebrate. Thou wert +willing to speak to them, and they were willing to +hear Thee and answer Thee, "Lo, here am I; send +me." We thank Thee that the memory of this great +man has come down to us; of him who was first +in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his +countrymen; and we ask Thee that Thou wilt be +with our countrymen today; that Thou wilt teach +us Thy law, that we may walk in Thy ways; that +this may be that happy nation whose God is the +Lord. In all time of our trial, if we have sought +Thee we have found Thee,—in all time of our +success Thou hast won for us our victories,—Thou +hast been with our counsellors. Father, today, +tomorrow, and in days to come, in our memories +and in our hopes be with us still, Our Father, Who +art in Heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_56" id="page_56">[56]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 23</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If you always remember that in all you do in soul +or body God stands by as a witness, in all your prayers +and your actions you will not err; and you shall +have God dwelling with you.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Epictetus.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Faith acts on our souls as a moral tonic; it takes +the fret and fever out of our lives; it gives the appetite +and desire for noble living; it removes despondency; +it gives energy, courage, hope, patience, and persistence; +and in its highest manifestations it makes +our lives a blending of power, sweetness, and peace.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James M. Pullman.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of spirits! We yield ourselves to Thee. +We will be afraid of neither sorrow nor death in a +world where many saintly souls have sanctified them +by a divine patience, and amid a Providence wherein +no evil thing can dwell. Clinging unto Thee, we +shall not perish with the fashion of this world that +passeth away. As sparks falling on the river, so +shall the glories of our strength go out. But the +graces of the holy soul shall be as the brightness of +the firmament, and as the stars forever and ever. +In Thee, O Lord, is our undying trust. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Martineau.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_57" id="page_57">[57]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 24</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Be of good cheer, brave spirit; steadfastly serve +that low whisper thou hast served; for know, God +hath a select family of sons now scattered wide thro' +earth, and each alone, who are thy spiritual kindred, +and each one by constant service to that inward law, +is weaving the sublime proportions of a true monarch's +soul. Beauty and strength, the riches of a spotless +memory, the eloquence of truth, the wisdom got by +searching of a clear and loving eye that seeth as God +seeth. These are their gifts, and time, who keeps +God's word, brings on the day to seal the marriage +of these minds with thine, thy everlasting lovers.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou, who makest the outgoings of the morning +and evening to rejoice, help us to welcome this +new day as Thy gift, to take up its duties with courage, +and to follow the light which Thou shalt give. Conscious +of the meaning and purpose of life, undismayed +by the failures of past days, and ever remembering +that Thy strength is made perfect in human weakness, +may we consecrate ourselves anew to the +glad service of life, knowing that in so doing we +enter into fellowship with all who have been workers +together with Thee, and into increasing likeness of +soul to Thy holy Son. May the beauty of the +Lord our God be upon us, and may life become +stronger and sweeter and richer, until at last we receive +through grace the "well done!" of the Master. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henry M. King.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_58" id="page_58">[58]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There is no music in a rest, but there is the making +of music in it. In our whole life melody, the music +is broken off here and there by "rests," and we foolishly +think we have come to the end of time. God sends a +time of forced leisure—sickness, disappointed plans, +frustrated efforts—and makes a sudden pause in +the choral hymn of our lives, and we lament that our +voices must be silent, and our part missing in the +music which ever goes up to the ear of the Creator. +How does the musician read the rest? See him beat +time with unvarying count and catch up the next +note true and steady, as if no breaking place had come +in between. Not without design does God write the +music of our lives. But be it ours to learn the time, +and not be dismayed at the "rests." They are not +to be slurred over, nor to be omitted, nor to destroy +the melody, nor to change the key-note. If we look +up, God Himself will beat the time for us. With the +eye on Him we shall strike the next note full and clear.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Ruskin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God, help us to trust where we cannot see, +and to feel that life is not necessarily a failure because +we are shut out from its activities. Grant us in +sickness such visions and such communion with +Thee that disease of the body shall be transformed +into a healer of the soul; and, as the crushed rose +the sweeter fragrance emits, so may our sorrows +chasten and refine us.</p> + +<p>O Heavenly Father, grant that all our sickness +and pain and disappointment may so sweeten our +dispositions, purify our character and strengthen +our souls that we shall bring heaven's sunlight into +the lives of all whom we meet. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Myron W. Haynes.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_59" id="page_59">[59]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Love is the greatest thing that God can give us, +for Himself is love; and it is the greatest thing we +can give to God, for it will also give ourselves, and +carry with it all that is ours.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Jeremy Taylor.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>High thoughts and noble in all lands<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Help me, my soul is fed by such;</span><br /> +But ah, the touch of lips and hands,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The human touch!</span><br /> +Warm, vital, close, life's symbols dear,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">These need I most and now and here.</span><br /></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard Burton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father in Heaven, we bless Thee this morning +for all Thy care and love; Thou hast made our +houses homes, sweet, quiet dwelling-places. We +thank Thee for sleep, for communion with one +another in all holy and tender speech. We thank +Thee for all our hopes; the worlds are nearer than +we thought, heaven's fragrance attempers the winds +of earth, we almost hear the upper song: may we +listen for it, may our souls delight in sweet anticipations +of immortal fellowship, and may we come +out of these high reveries determined to work more, +suffer more patiently, to accept every discipline +more willingly, and to do all our little day's work +as men whose citizenship is in heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joseph Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_60" id="page_60">[60]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Flame of the spirit, and dust of the earth,—<br /> +This is the making of man,<br /> +This is his problem of birth;<br /> +Born to all holiness, born to all crime,<br /> +Heir of both worlds, on the long slope of time<br /> +Climbing the path of God's plan;<br /> +Dust of the earth in his error and fear,<br /> +Weakness and malice and lust;<br /> +Yet, quivering up from the dust,<br /> +Flame of the spirit, unleaping and clear,<br /> +Yearning to God, since from God is its birth—<br /> +This is man's portion, to shape as he can,<br /> +Flame of the spirit, and dust of the earth—<br /> +This is the making of man.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Priscilla Leonard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, Thou art the Father of our spirits, but +our spirits have come to us through ways of flesh. +We are both spiritual and carnal. Our spirits seek +Thee evermore, but our flesh turns away from Thee +and strives to drag us down. Between our best +and our worst is bitter conflict. Help us to the discovery +that all that lives is in like conflict, and that +there can be no virtue and no glory except in overcoming. +Make us see that the spirit is stronger +than the flesh because it is of God, and that in the +obedience and inspiration of Jesus, Thy Son and +our Brother, we may at last be enthroned with +Him. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Cephas B. Crane.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_61" id="page_61">[61]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 28</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Neither let mistakes nor wrong directions, of which +every man, in his studies and elsewhere, falls into +many, discourage you. There is precious instruction +to be got by finding we were wrong. Let a man try +faithfully, manfully, to be right; he will grow daily +more and more right. It is at bottom the condition +on which all men have to cultivate themselves.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, our heavenly Father,—in Thine +own loving way Thou dost bless us when we do the +right; when we fall into mistakes so teach us by Thy +judgments that we become wise unto salvation. +Help Thy children to recognize their proneness +to blunder, that they learn to walk circumspectly. +When we fall into the wrong, grant that we lie prone +not long but arise undismayed to greater effort. +Bring to bear upon us the influences of the Holy +Spirit, that we strive earnestly and devoutly to +be right at the centre of our being; that rightness +be the fabric of our life. To Thee be all glory evermore. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward A. Perry.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_62" id="page_62">[62]</a></span></p> + + +<p>February 29</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Henceforth I learn that to obey is best,<br /> +And love with fear the only God, to walk<br /> +As in His presence, ever to observe<br /> +His providence, and on Him sole depend,<br /> +Merciful over all His works, with good<br /> +Still overcoming evil, and by small<br /> +Accomplishing great things—by things deemed weak<br /> +Subverting worldly strong, and worldly wise<br /> +By simply meek, that suffering for Truth's sake<br /> +Is fortitude to highest victory,<br /> +And to the faithful death the gate of life—<br /> +Taught this by His example whom I now<br /> +Acknowledge my Redeemer ever blest.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Milton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou Eternal One before whom from day to +day we walk and on whom we ever depend, help +us to-day to love whatever is good and beautiful +and to follow obediently the behests of Thy Spirit. +May we overcome evil with good; and may we +accomplish whatever tasks the hours as they pass +demand of us, whether small or great, with such +strength as may be vouchsafed us and with a wisdom +begotten of meekness. If we must suffer for truth's +sake may we manifest such humility and fortitude +as shall be conducive to the highest success. Open +for us hourly the gates of life, as those who endeavor +to be faithful to their high calling. These favors +we ask in the name of Him who redeems our lives +from all evil and crowns us daily with His loving +kindness. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward Day.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_63" id="page_63">[63]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 1</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>All the strength of the world and all its beauty, +all true joy, everything that consoles, that feeds hope, +or throws a ray of light along our dark paths, everything +that makes us see across our poor lives a splendid +goal and a boundless future, comes to us from +people of simplicity, those who have made another +object of their desires than the passing satisfaction of +selfishness and vanity, and have understood that the +art of living is to know how to give one's life.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles Wagner.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Heavenly Father, help us to be like Thyself, as +manifested in the person of Jesus Christ, Thy Son! +It was His will to do the will of His Father by living +and dying for others. Teach us so to live. Help +us to learn by positive personal experience that +supremest joy comes only "in ministering unto +others." Teach us what Jesus meant when He +said: "I am among you as he that serveth." Plant +deeply within us His passion for a life of service. +May our morning hours be gladdened and inspired +by this divine purpose. Let Thy holy will be done +in us this day. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles Parkhurst.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_64" id="page_64">[64]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The year's at the spring<br /> +And day's at the morn;<br /> +Morning's at seven;<br /> +The hill-side's dew-pearled;<br /> +The lark's on the wing;<br /> +The snail's on the thorn;<br /> +God's in His heaven—<br /> +All's right with the world!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Father in Heaven, refreshed and heartened by +the night, we begin again with Thee the high adventure +of our life. Add to the beauty of the world +about us a finer spiritual beauty in our souls. Save +us from our own undoing. If our thoughts are dark, +shine in upon them with Thy glory; if they be +bright, make them to light the pathway of another. +Have us wholesomely to forget ourselves, in the +joy of Thy good world, the promise of our imperfection +and the trust in God that maketh not afraid. +And when the duties of the day are done, dismiss +us, Thy well-meaning children, with a quiet mind +to rest. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Albert Wellman Hitchcock.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_65" id="page_65">[65]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 3</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We will do something worth doing—that is the +resolution for you and me.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We admire the man who embodies victorious efforts, +the man who never wrongs his neighbor, who is prompt +to help a friend, but who has those virile qualities +necessary to win in the stern strife of actual life.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Roosevelt.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of Lights in whom is no darkness at all, +and in whose light we see light, help us to clearly +see and never forget that only right deeds are worthy +of a child of Thine. May we in no moment forget +that to yield to the wrong is to bring upon us Thy +just condemnation and sow for us a sure reaping of +sorrowful repentance. By doing the things we +know to be right and worth doing, the things worthy +of our true selves and of our Father and of our Master +whose we are, may this day, through us, yield +some benefit to other children of Thine, and bring +to us the sweet reward of Thine approval. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Oscar F. Safford.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_66" id="page_66">[66]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is worth a thousand pounds a year to have the +habit of looking on the bright side of things.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Samuel Johnson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Not by appointment do we meet delight and joy;<br /> +They wait not our expectancy;<br /> +But round some corner in the street of life,<br /> +They, on a sudden, greet us with a smile.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Gerald Massey.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, at the beginning of a new day, refreshed +by the night's rest, we turn to Thee for +strength for the day's task. We know not what the +hours hold for us, but this we do know, that come +what may, Thou wilt go with us to bless, to cheer; +we shall not walk or work alone. As we faithfully +and cheerfully perform our work, conscious of Thy +presence, there will come joys and smiles unexpected +and unsought. This is Thy way of teaching us +faithfulness and endurance. May we soon learn, +that if we would make the day happy and worth +while, we must not seek our own pleasure and good, +but that of our brethren. May we so live that when +the night shadows are again upon us, there shall +be no cause for shame or regret. In the Master's +spirit! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">O. Howard Perkins.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_67" id="page_67">[67]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Not in dumb resignation we lift our hands on high;<br /> +Not like the nerveless fatalist, content to do and die.<br /> +Our faith springs, like the eagle's, who soars to meet the sun,<br /> +And cries exulting unto Thee, "Oh, Lord, Thy will be done."</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Thy will! It bids the weak be strong; it bids the strong be just;<br /> +No lips to fawn, no hand to beg, no brow to seek the dust,<br /> +Wherever man oppresses men beneath the liberal sun,<br /> +O Lord, be there, Thine arm made bare, Thy righteous will be done.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Hay.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>It is with the beautiful assurance of Thy love and +kindness, our Father, that we draw nigh unto Thee. +It is Faith that seems to give us wings by which we +rise above the darkness, into Thy Presence of light +and love. We feel our divine relationship to Thee, +so that we lift up our hands to Thee, as the child +to the parent. We are content to do Thy will, because +we know then just what it is to love Thee. +Our Master taught us this great lesson by His own +faith in Thee. To do Thy will means strength to +the weak, hope to the hopeless. To the sorrowing +there can be seen, beyond the tear, the rainbow of +Thy promise. Thus, as we realize our sonship will +we work to make all men feel their own power, +and all become one in Thy great love. May +Thy Kingdom come and Thy will be done, in Christ +our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. E. Fisher.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_68" id="page_68">[68]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 6</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If you are my friend you cannot be indifferent to +my faults of character, any more than you can be +indifferent to my sickness or suffering. But, if you +care to help me cure these faults, please let them alone! +Please make much of my good qualities if you can +discover any. And especially bless me with the encouraging +sight of a better man than myself, and cheer +me with a high example. I know that there are +times when a sharp or gentle rebuke is in order, and +that "faithful are the wounds of a friend." But +the wiser doctors have lost their faith in blood-letting; +and they know that clumsy surgery kills more than +it cures.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles G. Ames.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>In our prayer, our Heavenly Father, we desire +to be consciously grateful for the opportunities this +new day affords us of being helpful to each other. +The inspiration so to act comes from Thee. Thou +art the constant and never-failing Helper of Thy +children. May we be mindful of the fact that our +noblest service to another may not be an alms, but +a look of encouragement, a word of cheer. Enable +us to be not too sensible of others' faults and failings. +Assist us to see and magnify the good in other lives. +To this end may we be to others such examples in +conduct and character as we would have them be +to us. We offer and ask all in the spirit of Jesus. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Leroy W. Coons.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_69" id="page_69">[69]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 7</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The mariner of old said to Neptune in a great +tempest, "O God! Thou mayest save me if Thou +wilt, and if Thou wilt Thou mayest destroy me, +but whether or no, I will steer my rudder true."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Montaigne.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 5em;">I go to prove my soul</span><br /> +I see my way as birds their trackless way.<br /> +I shall arrive! what time, what circuit first,<br /> +I ask not; but unless God send His hail<br /> +Or blinding fire-balls, sleet or stifling snow,<br /> +In some time, His good time, I shall arrive;<br /> +He guides me and the bird. In His good time!<br /></i> +</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Once more we face the day that can be dreadful +only to our poor sight and trembling faith. For +Thou hast made flame and pain, the hurricane and +quaking earth to be Thy ministers of grace. Shall +trust depart when shadows fall? Thou art "in the +shadow keeping watch above Thine own." As +truly in severity as in gentleness, Thou art the All-Loving +and All-Wise. Shall we fear to go anywhere? +Lord, Thou art everywhere! Defend us only from +the blindness and fear of ignorance and sin. Draw +us nearer to Thee, this day, by any means in Thy +good pleasure, so that at last, truly knowing Thy +way, we shall rise above the worst that circumstances +may do into joy unspeakable and peace unbroken. +In the name of Him made perfect through suffering. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henry B. Taylor.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_70" id="page_70">[70]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 8</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We complain of the slow, dull life we are forced to +lead, of our humble sphere of action, of our low position +in the scale of society, of our having no room to +make ourselves known, of our wasted energies, of +our years of patience. So do we say that we have no +Father who is directing our life, so do we say that +God has forgotten us, so do we boldly judge what +life is best for us, and so by our complaining do we +lose the use and profit of the quiet years.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Bishop Huntington.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Infinite and Holy One, by the tender mercies of +Thy great love show us this day the true life that is +hid in Thee. Feed us with Thy spirit that we hunger +not. Make us strong and merciful in Thee. Help +us to be simple, brave, and true. Give us to speak +and live the truth. Make us content with life while +ever dreaming of the more perfect day. Fix our +lives in a great and brave integrity. Humble us +in our pride, lift us from our despondency. Keep +our hearts pure and our lips from speaking guile. +Send us forth in perfect faith that here and now +our lives may be patterned after that of Jesus without +loss of influence over men. Make us not ashamed +to be good and forgiving and gentle in all our ways. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick W. Bette.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_71" id="page_71">[71]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 9</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Count each affliction, whether light or grave,<br /> +God's messenger sent down to thee; do thou<br /> +With courtesy receive him; rise and bow;<br /> +And, ere his shadow pass thy threshold, crave<br /> +Permission first his heavenly foot to lave.<br /> +<br /> + * * * * * <br /> + +<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 8em;">Grief should be</span><br /> +Like joy, majestic, equable, sedate,<br /> +Confirming, cleansing, raising, making free.<br /> +Strong to consume small troubles; to commend<br /> +Great thoughts, grave thoughts, thoughts lasting to the end.<br /></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Aubrey DeVere.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, we would learn to trust Thy love, +to live so that Thy grace shall have in us its perfect +work. Not the easy thing is what we ask, but strength +for duty. Give us the confidence that Thou art by +our side. Let Thy strong touch be felt, Thy blessed +presence seen. In all the turmoil that rages within, +without, grant us Thy peace. In childish helplessness, +grant us the Father's help. To grow like Jesus +is our heart's desire. All things that Thy great +heart permits or sends, we would receive with gratitude, +that so our wills and lives may be in harmony +with Thine. And so day by day may something of +the Saviour's glory shine through us and bless and +brighten other lives in need. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank M. Holt.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_72" id="page_72">[72]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 10</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Dawn and its silence draw a silver sigh<br /> +Far in the east where early shadows lie<br /> +All flocked and folded like soft peaceful sheep.<br /> +The spirit of the spring stirs in its sleep,<br /> +Breathes into life a misty floating sheen;<br /> +The willows dreamy drip of constant green;<br /> +Exultant beats a bird-heart o'er a nest,<br /> +Where dim, vague stirrings 'neath the tiny breast<br /> +Spell fresh the miracle of motherhood.<br /> +Ah, how the world is young! ah, how 'tis good!<br /> +To feel the new life flutter mystic wing;<br /> +Like to a lark to feel one's soul upspring,<br /> +Transpierce the very limit of the sky,<br /> +And toss its challenge to Eternity!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mary Baldwin.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, our heavenly Father, make our hearts +exultant, as the earth in the spring morning, with +the radiance of Thy Presence. Fill them with the +joy and hopefulness of eternal youth, and cause them +to be uplifted in gratitude and thankfulness to +Thee. We have seen earthly faces so beaming with +the light of love that we never shall forget them. +We have spoken names that are so endeared to us +that they will linger in our memory as long as we +live. So, O Father, may it be with Thy face and +Thy name. May Thy face beaming upon us as +the sun of righteousness win our love to holiness +and virtue, making us fruitful of good works, and +Thy name be so woven in our affections that we +shall cherish and hallow it forever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edgar W. Preble.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_73" id="page_73">[73]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 11</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>You must be serving something, some one, that +needs your help in order to really appreciate the Divine +care. It may be the parents' care of their children; +the teacher and her scholars; the charity-worker +and the poor, the friendless, the benighted; it may +be friend helping friend—in some way the life of +loving service must be there as something out of which +God can help us think of and value the care which +infinite love bestows upon us.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Julian K. Smyth.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Heavenly Father, with the opening of a new day +we thank Thee for father love and mother love, +for love of patriot and philanthropist, and for the +love which that has called into being in our own hearts. +Through this love and the service of mutual helpfulness +to which we have been led thereby, Thou +openest our eyes to behold the world pervaded and +overruled by a spirit of infinite goodness, society +resting upon mutual services, and through that +service mankind rising to a nobler and diviner +civilization. Help us to be mindful of this heavenly +vision, and so make our feet swift to run and our +hands eager to work in the service of righteousness +and mutual helpfulness. We ask in His name, +who loving us, has taught us the divinity of service. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">LeGrand Powers.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_74" id="page_74">[74]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 12</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious +triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to +rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor +suffer much because they live in the gray twilight +that knows neither victory nor defeat.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Roosevelt.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>But only he whose judgment never strays<br /> +Beyond the threshold of the right, learns this—<br /> +Not always is it good to have one's wish;<br /> +What seemeth sweet full oft to bitter turns;<br /> +Fulfilled desire hath made mine eyes to weep.<br /> +Therefore, O reader of these lines, if thou<br /> +Would'st virtuous be, and held by others dear<br /> +Will ever for the power to do aright.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Leonardo da Vinci.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>God of the morning light, with the dawn of another +day we come to Thee with prayer for help in +the steadfastness of our manifold duties. The cares +that oppress us, the burdens we carry, the obligations +that fall upon us, are too much for our little +strength without Thy help. That help we crave +from Thee, the only source of all-availing strength. +Let us not be dismayed by the powers of this world +or busy ourselves in vain ambitions seeking the +praise of men, but may we seek that Divine approval +which is of more worth than all the favors of earth. +Make us brave and strong to follow in the way of +Thine appointment, and grant that we may so sincerely +feel and act in the busy times of this day +that when the evening comes no wasted hours may +be laid to our charge. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward M. Barney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_75" id="page_75">[75]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>You are in God's world; you are God's child. +Those things you cannot change; the only peace +and rest and happiness for you is to accept them and +rejoice in them. When God speaks to you, you must +not believe that it is the wind blowing or the torrent +falling from the hill. You must know that it is God. +You must gather up the whole power of meeting +Him. You must be thankful that life is great and +not little. You must listen as if listening were your +life. And then, then only can come peace. All other +sounds will be caught up into the prevailing richness +of that voice of God. The lost proportions will be +perfectly restored. Discord will cease; harmony will +be complete.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God! We thank Thee for the peace +and comfort of the night; for the new day and all +the hope and peace and promise that it brings to us. +Help us that with glad faces and joyous hearts we +may take up its every privilege and duty, doing, in +the spirit of the Master every good and helpful thing +our hands find to do. And when the evening shall +have come may we look back on a day of plenty, +service, and peace, retiring to our rest with songs +in our hearts and thanksgiving on our lips because +Thy blessings have been on this, as on all other days +new every morning and fresh every evening. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George Mayo Gerrish.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_76" id="page_76">[76]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>It is the first mild day of March:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Each minute sweeter than before,</span><br /> +The red-breast sings from the tall larch<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">That stands beside our door.</span><br /> +<br /> +There is a blessing in the air,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Which seems a sense of joy to yield,</span><br /> +To the bare trees and mountain bare,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And grass in the green field.</span><br /></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Wordsworth.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, we wake each morning refreshed and +thankful for the joy of living; for the air we breathe, +the things we see, the sounds of nature's sweetest +harmonies and all the beauty which surrounds +our earthly life. May the wonders of the earth +speak to us in witness of Thy love. Let springing-grass +and opening flower remind us of the new +life which is ours through the resurrection of our +Lord. His blessing like the light of the sun runs +everywhere, carrying with it morning and hope, +springtime and gladness. The joy is in the song of +the birds, the murmur of the waters, the children's +laughter and the song of happy hearts. Attune our +hearts to notes of praise and make us glad upon the +earth until Thou bringest us to perfect and unshadowed +joys where we shall see Thee as Thou +art and be like Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. W. Stephan.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_77" id="page_77">[77]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 15</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>As to equality and inequality, all the beauty and +glory of life come from inequalities. If we were all +Beethovens or Shakespeares or marvelous in any +one direction, life would be unbearable. Who shall +tell me if an Easter lily is the equal of a rose, or if +either is equal to an oak or a pine? The question of +equality is out of the court. The one thing we need +to do is to cultivate the finest and sweetest things in +us; and then, whether we are one of the California +big trees or the violet in a valley, we shall help on the +beauty and glory of the earth.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Collyer.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the +manifold beauties of Thy universe, the revelations +of Thyself to Thy children. For those large wonders +which stir men's minds and rouse their souls to awe, +we thank Thee, but not less for the little things of +life, filling their places well, and showing daily to +the seeing eye that without them Thy universe +could not be complete. Help us to grasp the lesson +that they teach. If Thou hast given to us the great +place, we thank Thee, but we thank Thee not less +for the homely task, the humble duty, for it is all +necessary to Thy plan. Help us, day by day, with +stronger purpose, larger consecration, to fill our place, +to do Thy will, in His name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George F. Fortier.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_78" id="page_78">[78]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 16</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There must be a way of taking worry rightly, so +that it shall do us good and not harm. Worry, rightly +taken, should train to quietness, humility, patience, +gentleness, sympathy. It ought not to eventuate +(though it naturally does) in making others suffer +because we are uncomfortable; in making us a source +of painful worry to others because we are worried +ourselves.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">A. H. K. Boyd.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of Love, Thy blessing it is which gives us +another day. Help us to put before its cares the +spirit that will banish care, to find in its beginning +the power that will make labors happy and its ending +sweet, and so to open our hearts to Thy light +that no gloom of night shall linger round our way. +If heaviness there be in ours or others' lives may +every wholesome cheer make it less sore. If remembered +faults and follies quench a better hope, +send Thy patience and Thy will to be our courage +and fresh resolve. Through all the noisy world +may the secret music of Thy law swell in our breasts +and every step keep time with its glorious +march. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Day.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_79" id="page_79">[79]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Therefore to whom turn I but to Thee, the ineffable Name?<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Builder and maker, Thou, of houses not made with hands!</span><br /> +What, have fear of change from Thee who art ever the same!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Doubt that Thy power can fill the heart that Thy power expands!</span><br /> +There shall never be one lost good! What was, shall live as before;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The evil is null, is nought, is silence implying sound;</span><br /> +What was good, shall be good, with, for evil, so much good more;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">On the earth the broken arcs; in the heaven, a perfect round.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>We thank Thee, O God, that each morning brings +us fresh assurance of Thy wisdom and goodness—that +the days have taught us to believe in Thee and +to trust Thee as our perfect Friend. We are glad +that we can face the day in the faith that Thou art +sufficient to the needs of the day—to all the needs +of all Thy children. In this trust, we beseech Thee, +make us more and more to rejoice in life and its +high privileges. Help us to go on our way with +gladness and peace in our hearts—to worship Thee +hourly by honest work, by faithful service, by kind +words, by helpful deeds, and so, to find life good +by doing something to make it good. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Flint M. Bissell.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_80" id="page_80">[80]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>"If I were you," she said, "I should not worry. +Just make up your mind to do better when you get +another chance. One can't do more than that. That +is what I shall think of: that God will give each of +us another chance, and that each one of us will take +it and do better—I and you and everyone. So there +is no need to fret over failure, when one hopes one +may be allowed to redeem that failure later on. Besides +which life is very hard. Why, we ourselves recognize +that. If there be a God, some intelligence greater +than human intelligence, He will understand better +than ourselves that life is very hard and difficult, +and He will be astonished not because we are not better, +but because we are not worse. At least, that would +be my notion of a God. I should not worry if I were +you. Just make up your mind to do better if you +get the chance and be content with that."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Beatrice Harraden.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, how often we have failed—how weak +and frail we are—we have groped and stumbled +along the pathway of life and have been defeated +over and over again. Yet in the light of Thy providence +and Thy love in spite of all defeats, we take +heart and face the day with hope. In Thine economy +no failure is ever final—we rejoice that Thou +openest before us another opportunity. Let us be +brave and earnest to seize the opportunities of these +passing hours. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_81" id="page_81">[81]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 19</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>To every life there comes a time supreme:<br /> +One day, one night, one morning, or one noon,<br /> +One freighted hour—one moment opportune,<br /> +One rift through which sublime fulfilments gleam;<br /> +One time when fate goes tiding with the stream,<br /> +One Once in balance 'twixt Too Late, Too Soon—<br /> +And ready for the passing instant's boon<br /> +That shall in favor tip the wavering beam.<br /> +Ah! happy he who, knowing how to wait,<br /> +Knows also how to watch and how to stand<br /> +On life's broad deck alert, and at the prow,<br /> +To seize the happy moment big with fate<br /> +From Opportunity's extended hand<br /> +When the great clock of Destiny strikes Now!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mary Ashley Townsend.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our heavenly Father! Thou art the Author of +all our days, and all our times and seasons are hid +in the unfolding mystery of Thy Thought and Purpose. +It is not given to us to know what a day or +an hour may bring forth, but the opportune moments +come, ways are opened before us to larger +life and usefulness and privilege and duty. May +we, by faithfulness, and watchfulness, and the +readiness of those on duty, be prepared for each +divinely offered opportunity. Surrounded by blessings, +may we live to bless. Ministered unto, may we +minister. Grateful to Thee, may we show our +gratitude by service. In Thy name, Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Dwight M. Hodge.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_82" id="page_82">[82]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 20</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Put out of your thought the past whatever it may +be; let go even the future with its golden dream and +its high ideal; and concentrate your soul in this +burning, present moment. For the man who is true +to the present is true to his best; and the soul that +wins the ground immediately before it, makes life a +triumph.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ozora Stearns Davis.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty Giver of every good, we come to Thee +amid the joys of a new morning, with its new blessings +and opportunities. We would dedicate this +day to Thy service. We would forget the past and +waste not our time in idle dreaming of to-morrow, +but with consecrated zeal we would apply ourselves +to the tasks Thou hast appointed us for this present +hour. Thy hand is ever opened to let down the +tokens of Thy love. May all that is best within us +rise up in answer, and may we be dedicated anew +to our upbuilding in righteousness and the fulfilment +of our duties to one another. May we this day +follow the footsteps of the Christ and prove ourselves +His faithful disciples! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">R. Perry Bush.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_83" id="page_83">[83]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I believe that today is better than yesterday, and +that tomorrow will be better than today.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George F. Hoar.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Make yourselves nests of pleasant thoughts, bright +fancies, faithful sayings; treasure-houses of precious +and restful thoughts, which care cannot disturb nor +poverty take away from you,—houses built without +hands for your souls to live in.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Ruskin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Dear Father in heaven, around Thy name cluster +the most sacred and holy affections. Thy name, +indeed, is above every name infinite in love, and +awakening in each heart a sense of filial gratitude. +At this morning hour, therefore, we are mindful of +the tie that binds us to Thee, that provides a nesting-place +for pleasant and restful thoughts, that makes +duty less irksome, home-love more tender, sacrifice +more willing, and character more noble. In this +spirit we pray Thee, O Father, send us forth to the +labor which awaits us, only to realize, under Thy +Providence, that this is the best day of our life, +and full of assurance and rejoicing for a still better +tomorrow. In the light of faith, hope and love do +we ask and offer all. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Wilburn D. Potter.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_84" id="page_84">[84]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 22</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Scarce tangible may be the first glad sign,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Yet how it shakes us with a vernal thrill!</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The voice of the south wind behind the hill;</span><br /> +Or an elusive bird-note faint and fine;<br /> +A flush at dawn along the wan sky-line;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A lyrical exuberance in the rill;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A something working its mysterious will</span><br /> +Both in majestic hole and tenuous vine!</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>It is the vernal spirit. In the earth<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">It throbs and pulses; quickens in the air;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">And permeates all nature thro' and thro'.</span><br /> +In the expectant poignancy of birth<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">What raptures, what rare ecstasies we share—</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Old,—ah, how old!—and yet forever new!</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Clinton Scollard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, how good Thou art! All Thy works +praise Thee. The world is filled with Thy glory. +This dawning Springtime brings Thee very near +every responsive heart. Thou art the fountain of +life. We see Thee in bursting bud and incipient +bloom. We hear Thee in the rapture of birds and +in the new-found gladness of sun-kissed rivulets. +May we, the children of Thy love, be new born +into a deeper spirituality,—a richer life! May +the beauty of the Spirit breathing through our hearts +call forth the latent goodness that slumbers there! +Speak through us the music of Thy love. Perfume +us with the odors of Thy heavenly grace, and may +we walk this day in tune with Thee! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joseph Cooper.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_85" id="page_85">[85]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 23</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Work is the grand cure of all the maladies and +miseries that ever beset mankind—honest work, +which you intend getting done.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Thank God every morning when you get up that +you have something to do which must be done whether +you like it or not. Being forced to work and forced +to do your best will breed in you temperance, self-control, +diligence, strength of will, content and a +hundred virtues which the idle will never know.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles Kingsley.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Kind Father and Friend, Thy presence has watched +over us all our days and has been a comfort in all +our labors. We thank Thee for Thy unwearied +watching over us. May we at the dawn of this +new day, come to our tasks with thanks in our hearts +and a song on our lips. May all life's stern duties +and its perplexities get grace and beauty from our +hallowed thoughts and sanctified resolves. We +would ask that Thy free spirit be with us this day +to give us hope and joy in our several tasks. May +the sweet peace of mind of those who learn to +labor and to wait crown all our efforts. Dear Father, +forgive our failures and keep us ever Thine. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles E. Petty.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_86" id="page_86">[86]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 24</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Ah, the mis-takings and the mis-leavings; and +all the ignorant beginning, when we can only lay up +things for late wisdom to repent of!</i></p> + +<p><i>Nothing really bad can ever happen.... I've +meant right,—and I mean right now. I'll do the +best I can, and the Lord will take care of everybody.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Lord, Thou comest to us with light and life, forgive +us for coming to Thee as aliens and beggars; +daily Thou art our refuge and strength, and this +should subtract our fear and multiply our confidence, +comfort and consecration. Our needs are Thy opportunity; +we have more sunshine than we can +use, more love than we can repay and more revelation +than we can translate. O may this satisfy us +early and strengthen us through all our days. Alone +we are very weak, but we are never alone; all of +life is a company affair, for Thou art with us; help +us to be as truly Thy children as Thou art our Father +and Mother. Through our thinking, working and +waiting may men see Thee and glorify Thee. O +teach us to abide ever in Thy love, and help us to +work some helpful miracle by the gates of need, +and to see the rainbow of prophecy through earth's +tears and over its years. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Alan R. Tillinghast.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_87" id="page_87">[87]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>'Tis the fine souls who serve us, and not what is +called fine society.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We find what we look for in the world. I have +always been looking for the nobler qualities in human +beings, and I have always found them. There are +great souls all along the highway of life, and there +are great qualities even in the people who seem common +and weak to us ordinarily.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Gracious Father, we thank Thee for the power +Thou hast given us to labor for our own and others' +advancement and happiness. As we begin this new +day we trust in Thy bounty and would draw on Thy +strength to sustain us in our toil. We thank Thee +for the brave souls in every walk of life who have +set us an example worthy to be followed. Many +have been or are notable in the world for their fortitude, +honor and achievements; many others have +been known to us but have been unheralded by men, +and from all these we have ourselves been made +more capable and faithful. By Thy grace may we +be aided in emulating the good we see in others, and +be able to make the world a little brighter because +of Thy gift to us of this day. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank S. Rice.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_88" id="page_88">[88]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 26</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>An old, worn Harp that had been played<br /> +Till all its strings were loose and frayed,<br /> +Joy, Hate, and Fear, each one, assayed<br /> +To play. But each in turn had found<br /> +No sweet responsiveness of sound.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Then Love the Master-player came<br /> +With heaving breast and eyes aflame;<br /> +The Harp he took all undismayed,<br /> +Smote on its strings, still strange to song,<br /> +And brought forth music sweet and strong.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Paul Laurence Dunbar.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, I pray Thee that Thou wilt +help me to love to-day. Thou art Love and if Thou +shalt fill my life there will be no room for hate and +no room for fear, for "Perfect Love casteth out fear." +As the Master stilled the waves in Galilee, so speak +Thou peace to my soul, and bid all discord cease, +that my whole life may be in tune with heaven, +and may be one happy song. Love alone can bring +harmony out of discord, love out of hate, trust out +of fear, and music out of a worn-out, or a long unused +or misused life. So let Love control the whole +of my life for Jesus' sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">B. L. Jennings.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_89" id="page_89">[89]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">No stream from its source</span><br /> +Flows seaward, how lonely soever its course,<br /> +But some land is gladdened. No star ever rose<br /> +Or set without influence somewhere. Who knows<br /> +What earth needs from earth's lowliest creature? No life<br /> +Can be pure in its purpose and strong in its strife,<br /> +And all life not be purer and stronger thereby.<br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Owen Meredith.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>If I am this day to touch other lives helpfully so +that they may be gladdened and strengthened for +truer and nobler living, I shall need, my Father, +not only a clear perception of myself in relation to that +to which Thou dost call me, but also a clear vision +of the Christ who would be felt through me, not +only the impulse of a strong purpose but also the +endowment of power by Thy spirit of power. That +this may be, do Thou test my purpose by that of +Thy son and fashion my life by His teaching, keeping +my heart open always toward Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">F. H. Wheeler.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_90" id="page_90">[90]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I but open my eyes,—and perfection, no more and no less,<br /> +In the kind I imagined, full-fronts me, and God is seen God,<br /> +In the star, in the stone, in the flesh, in the soul and the clod.<br /> +And thus looking within and around me, I ever renew<br /> +(With that stoop of the soul which in bending upraises it too)<br /> +The submission of man's nothing-perfect to God's all-complete,<br /> +And by each new obeisance in spirit, I climb to His feet.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Thou Infinite Spirit, we cannot understand Thee, +yet we feel Thy presence within us and about us. +We cannot unravel the mystery of Thy life, not even +of our own lives, yet we feel ourselves linked as by +chains of steel to Thyself. We are poor and ignorant +and little and finite; Thou art great and strong +and infinite, yet we cling to the thought that we +are Thy children. Even in Thine infinity Thou +stoopest to listen to us. Thou carest for us, lovest +us. O Thou Father of our Souls, may we cling to +Thee to-day and every day. We do not ask Thee +to explain Thyself, but we do ask that in storm +and sunshine, in adversity and in prosperity, and +in every emergency we may keep our anchorage to +Thee unbroken, and feel Thy presence with us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_91" id="page_91">[91]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I wonder why it is that we are not all kinder to +each other than we are. How much the world needs +it! How easily it is done!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Drummond.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let us awaken to the divine privilege of sharing +the heartaches of our friends; of the meaning of +good fellowship; of that independence of spirit that +does not imitate; of courage and pride that can endure +adversity with dignity, and without fear.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, help us through this new +day to allow the impulses of our hearts to have fullest +play. Help us to help each other, Lord, and of +whatever grace or influence we have to bless and +uplift our fellowmen to give generously and gladly. +Help us scatter sunshine along our pathway, to +speak the cheering word to discouraged hearts and +to lend the helping hand to feeble or halting ones +along the way. May we find our greatest happiness +following in the footsteps of our Master, humbly +serving our neighbor's needs, and doing good even +at every wayside opportunity. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James F. Albion.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_92" id="page_92">[92]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide,<br /> +In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side;<br /> +Some great cause, God's new Messiah, offering each the bloom or blight,<br /> +Parts the goats upon the left hand, and the sheep upon the right,<br /> +And the choice goes by forever 'twixt that darkness and that light.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Russell Lowell.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Almighty Father, we are before Thee, asking +for strength this day, that for today's duty we may +have the help of Thy Infinite wisdom, as we know +we have Thy love, Our Father with His Children. +Father, help us to look to Thee for strength and +wisdom in every moment of doubt. We are not +afraid, because we can come to Thee for counsel, +and companionship. We can come to Thee for +everything, and we find everything if we seek for it +with all our heart and soul and strength. So today, +Father, be with us to show each one of us here, the +youngest or the oldest, the weakest or the strongest, +what is the duty next his hand today, that we may +enter into that work and go about our Father's +business. Go with us and be with us as with Thine +own children. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_93" id="page_93">[93]</a></span></p> + + +<p>March 31</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it +is my duty and joy to accomplish humble tasks as +though they were great and noble.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Helen Keller.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is a fine notion of life to liken it to the loom. +God puts on the warp in those circumstances in which +we find ourselves, and which we cannot change. The +woof is wrought by the shuttle of everyday life. It +is made of very homely threads sometimes, common +duties, unpromising and unwelcome tasks. But +whoever tries to do each day's work in the spirit +of patient loyalty to God is weaving the texture whose +other side is fairer than the one he sees.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father in heaven, grant that we may be +"faithful in that which is least," leaving to Thy +will whether we have the opportunity of being "faithful +in much." May we understand that the value +of our service is not so much in what we do as the +spirit in which we do it. Help us to remember that +no service is common in Thy sight, if it is done for +Thy glory and the betterment of humanity; that +in blessing others, we ourselves are blessed; that life +is mostly made up of little things, but a character +which is perfected by Thy grace and humble service +is not a little thing, but a jewel to shine in Thy +crown forever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. T. Curnick.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_94" id="page_94">[94]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">April is here!</span><br /> +There's a song in the maple, thrilling and new;<br /> +There's a flash of wings of heaven's own hue;<br /> +There's a veil of green on the nearer hills;<br /> +There's a burst of rapture in woodland rills;<br /> +There are stars in the meadow dropped here and there;<br /> +There's a breath of arbutus in the air;<br /> +There's a dash of rain, as if flung in jest;<br /> +There's an arch of color spanning the west;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">April is here!</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Eben E. Rexford.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, ever-living and ever-acting, all Thy works +praise Thee, and Thy saints bless Thee! We rejoice +that Thou art bringing in this new springtime, and +art preparing to pour out Thy summer glory and +bounty in garden and field and wood, that Thy +children may be richly blessed. As Thou art working +mightily in nature today so wilt Thou work in +us, Thy children, that the blessed fruits of the Spirit +may appear in all that we think and do and are? +And may the spontaneous spring song of the woods +find its counterpart in the perpetual gladness of our +souls sunk deep in the love of Christ! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henry Irving Cushman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_95" id="page_95">[95]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The sweetest sound our whole year round<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">'Tis the first robin of the spring!</span><br /> +The song of the full orchard choir,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is not so fine a thing.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edmund Clarence Stedman.</span><br /> +</p> + + +<p> +<i>The grass comes, the flower laughs where lately lay the snow,<br /> +O'er the breezy hill top hoarsely calls the crow,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">By the flowing river the alder catkins swing</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the sweet song sparrow cries, "Spring, it is Spring!"x</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Celia Thaxter.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Accept from a heart of gratitude, O God, thanksgiving +and praises for the glad anticipation of the +coming days of spring. May the awakening of +nature, this living garment in which Thou hast +robed Thy mysterious loveliness, be to each of Thy +children symbol of the new life which comes to those +who put their trust in the risen Christ and of the higher +life beyond where shadows are no more and light +and gladness bless an eternity of joy. O, Thou +Father of lights, make every hour of this opening +day rich and radiant with Thy effulgent presence +through Jesus Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Kerr Boyce Tupper.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_96" id="page_96">[96]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Within my earthly temple there's a crowd;<br /> +There's one of us that's humble, one that's proud,<br /> +There's one that's broken-hearted for his sins,<br /> +There's one that unrepentant sits and grins;<br /> +There's one that loves his neighbor as himself,<br /> +And one that cares for naught but fame and pelf.<br /> +From much corroding care I should be free<br /> +If I could once determine which is me.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Martin.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for our +multiform life. Thou hast made us a little lower +than the angels and hast crowned us with glory and +honor, yet how little we know ourselves! We go +astray; we fall from our high estate; like the moth +we flutter around the blaze that burns us. When +we would do good, evil is present with us. Yet +through all complexity of thought and feeling, of +passion and appetite, through all our wanderings +and all our sins we thank Thee that there shines +clearly the light of our own Divinity. We are Thy +children. Help us, we pray Thee, to know ourselves +at our best. May we not be betrayed in +this day's journey by any siren voice. Let us go +forth to the tasks of the day with the consciousness +that until the evening shadows fall Thou wilt be +with us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_97" id="page_97">[97]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 4</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>If we but knew the secret of that power<br /> +That opes the bud in early days of spring,<br /> +If we but knew what makes the robin sing<br /> +His wondrous song just at the matin hour,<br /> +If we but knew the priceless boon and dower<br /> +Of human life when man is truly king.<br /> +If we but understood the little thing<br /> +That vexes us just at the present hour,<br /> +If we but knew—ah, well, 'tis vain to sigh<br /> +And speculate on things beyond our ken!<br /> +We know that earth is fair and life is sweet,<br /> +And something tells us that we cannot die.<br /> +And if we live and love the good, ah! then<br /> +We face to face with truth some day must meet.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Clarence Hawkes.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Lord, we thank Thee for a day so sweet and +fair as this, when the trees lift up their hands in a +psalm of gratitude to Thee, and every little flower +that opens its cup and every wandering bird seem +filled by Thy spirit, and grateful to Thee. We +thank Thee for all thine handwritings of revelation +on the walls of the world, on the heavens above us +and the ground beneath, and all the testimonies +recorded there of Thy presence, Thy power, Thy +justice, and Thy love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_98" id="page_98">[98]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Yet we must give the children leave to use<br /> +Our garden tools, though they spoil tool and plant<br /> +In learning. So the Master may not scorn<br /> +Our awkwardness, as with these bungling hands<br /> +We try to unroot the ill, and plant with good<br /> +Life's barren soil: the child is learning use.<br /> +Perhaps the angels even are forbid<br /> +To laugh at us, or may not care to laugh,<br /> +With kind eyes pitying our little hurts.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Rowland Sill.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father: Thou knowest how unskilled are +these hands and hearts of ours. Thou knowest +how much that we do, think, and speak often tends +to retard the progress of that which we would promote. +Give us, then, this day that wisdom which +is from above, that no touch of our hand may mar +the beauty of one of Thy creations: no thought nor +word wrong one of Thy creatures. Help us to know +that we are workers with God, and in this knowledge +may we strive for that excellence of service that +shall hasten the coming of that kingdom of peace, +joy and righteousness which is life eternal. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Florence Kollock Crooker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_99" id="page_99">[99]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Plant flowers in the soul's front yard,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Set out new shade and blossom trees,</span><br /> +An' let the soul once froze an' hard,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Sprout crocuses of new idees.</span><br /> +<br /> +Yes, clean yer house, an' clean yer shed,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">An' clean yer barn in ev'ry part;</span><br /> +But brush the cobwebs from yer head,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">An' sweep the snow banks from yer heart.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Sam Walter Foss.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Gracious Father, help us gratefully to begin this +day with Thee. We expect the day to bring its +accustomed routine of cares and duties, and its +round of petty irritations, but we confidently believe +that Thou wilt help us in all our experiences. Let +this morning's freshness, hope and vigor be ours +through the whole day. Help us to put faith in +the place of fear that all our efforts may be crowned +with the success of helpfulness. May we go blithely +about our business with kind words and cheerful +faces that our day's work may be our day's +worship. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Augustus B. Church.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_100" id="page_100">[100]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Ye seek for happiness—alas the day!<br /> +Ye find it not in luxury nor in gold,<br /> +Not in the fame nor in the envied sway,<br /> +For which O willing slaves to custom old,<br /> +Severe taskmistress, ye your hearts have sold.<br /> +Ye seek for peace, and, when ye die, to dream<br /> +No evil dreams; all mortal things are cold<br /> +And senseless then; if aught survive, I deem<br /> +It must be love and joy, for they immortal seem.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shelley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou Eternal God who hast given us life, help +us to love Thy will and to walk in Thy way this +day. If flowers chance to grow beside our path we +would pluck them, but most of all would we rejoice +in Thee alone, knowing that in Thy will is perfect +peace. Fill our souls with Thy joy and strengthen +us in the spirit of self-forgetfulness to spill it out +into the lives of others. Give us hearts "roomy, +radiant, and full of laughter," learned of "Jesus +Christ, whom not having seen we love; on whom +though now we see Him not, yet believing, we rejoice +greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory, +receiving the end of our faith, even the salvation +of our souls." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Walter Healy.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_101" id="page_101">[101]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A gush of bird song, a patter of dew,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A cloud and a rainbow's warning,</span><br /> +Suddenly sunshine and perfect blue—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">An April day in the morning.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Harriet P. Spofford.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>There is something in the air<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">That's new and sweet and rare—</span><br /> +There's something too that's new,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In the color of the blue</span><br /> +That's in the morning sky,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Before the sun is high.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Nora Perry.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Infinite and Holy One, be with us in the beauty +of this new day. May the dewy sweetness of the +dawn Thou hast given to us be regarded as a token +of Thy love for Thy children. As an atmosphere of +joy and peace may be the thought of Thy consolation +and Thy care. The delicate tints of Thy sky arching +over us may we compare to the blue of a constancy +that is divine, and which is freely shown to even +the humblest and more erring of Thy flock. Bless +us and guide us on our pilgrim way, and inspire our +hearts and our hands to perform well their daily +task. In His name do we ask it. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edmund Q. S. Osgood.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_102" id="page_102">[102]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 9</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>As I have walked in Alabama my morning walk,<br /> +I have seen where the she-bird—the mocking-bird sat on her nest in the briers hatching her brood,<br /> +I have seen the he-bird also,<br /> +I have paused to hear him near at hand inflating his throat and joyfully singing,<br /> +And while I paused it came to me that what he really sang for was not there only,<br /> +Nor for his mate nor for himself only, nor<br /> +All sent back by the echoes,<br /> +But subtle, clandestine, away beyond,<br /> +A charge transmitted and gift occult for those being born.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walt Whitman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Thou great Spirit of Life, Our Father, in heaven, +and in the earth, with what myriad voices dost +Thou speak to us, sometimes with the voice of +thunder and sometimes with the voice of bird. Even +the rocks and hills have their language. With every +manifold voice Thou tellest us that we do not live +nor work for a day only. The song and the word +and the work of today have larger relations. They +pass over into other days. We pray this morning +that the thoughts we think, the words we speak, and +the work we do may be so true that they may be +fit for another day. So may we begin <i>now</i> to realize +the meaning of Eternal Life. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_103" id="page_103">[103]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If the stream had no quiet eddying place, could we +so admire its cascade over the rocks? Were there +no clouds, could we so hail the sky shining through +them in its still calm purity?</i></p></blockquote> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The night is mother of the Day<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The Winter of the Spring,</span><br /> +And ever upon old Decay<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The greenest mosses cling.</span><br /> +Behind the cloud the starlight lurks,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Through showers the sunbeams fall:</span><br /> +For God, who loveth all His works,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Has left His Hope with all!</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Father, with childhood's glowing morning +face we would turn to Thee and be conscious that +the brightness of life comes only to those upon whom +the sun of righteousness shines with clear light. +Full of trust, full of joy, we turn our faces towards +the light and take up the labors of life with entire +confidence in the Divine care and guidance that +blesses the open vision, the faithful hand and the +loving heart. We would follow our Master, feeling +that we could choose no better way, and content if +we be not called to suffer more than He in His life +of service and sacrifice, while our hearts praise +the giver of spiritual things with unceasing happy +songs. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Edwin Horne.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_104" id="page_104">[104]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 11</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Oh, the little birds sang east, and the little birds sang west,<br /> +And I smiled to think God's greatness flowed around our incompleteness,—<br /> +Round our restlessness, his nest.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Elizabeth Barrett Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>And I saw that there was an Ocean of Darkness +and Death; but an infinite Ocean of Light and Love +flowed over the Ocean of Darkness; and in that I +saw the infinite Love of God.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George Fox.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of Light, in whom is no darkness at all, +to Thee we lift our longing eyes again. Shine away +the darkness of our minds by the light of Thy presence. +Complete our incompleteness. Bring us out of our +restlessness into Thy rest. We thank Thee for our +daily gifts,—bread to feed the body, strength to +sustain the soul, light to guide the feet. Help us +to put away the mistakes of the past, remembering +them only with the penitence that shall cause Thee +to remember them no more. Help us all through +this day to know ourselves surrounded by Thine +Infinite Love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">A. Gertrude Earle.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_105" id="page_105">[105]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 12</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Just as you now play a piece without the music +and do not think what notes you strike, though once +you picked them out by slow and patient toil, so, if +you begin of set purpose, you will learn the law of +kindness in utterance so perfectly that it will be second +nature to you and make more music in your heart +than all the songs the sweetest voice has ever sung.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Francis E. Willard.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father, we rejoice and will be glad all the day +that Thou hast made it possible for us and all Thy +children to learn the sweet song of true life and that +Thou dost give us so many opportunities for its +practice. O Lord, give us patience and kindness +toward our fellowmen and trust in Thee, so that +whether the lessons be easy or hard we may take +them cheerfully, believing that Thou dost give us +only that which is best. Grant that we may be +earnest and faithful until our souls can sing the +highest, purest and sweetest notes, until we are +in harmony with All Good. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Abbie E. Danforth.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_106" id="page_106">[106]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 13</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>So many little faults we find:<br /> +We see them, for not blind<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is love—we see them; but if you and I</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Remember them, perhaps, some by and by</span><br /> +They will not be<br /> +Faults then, grave faults to you and me,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">But just odd ways, mistakes, or even less—</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Remembrances to bless.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George Klingle.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our dear Father in Heaven: for this day help +us to be good. All through the long night Thou +hast watched over us. Under Thy wing have we +been sheltered as the chickens under the wing of +the mother. Now that light has come we will help +Thee to keep this world sweet and bright and clean. +Help us to be true to this our promise; we resolve +to be patient, steadfast, cheerful, kindly, sturdy, +and good. Our Father, we need Thee. We want +to walk in Thy way. Help us, for we are Thy +children. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William Channing Brown.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_107" id="page_107">[107]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 14</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The man without a purpose is like a ship without +a rudder; a waif, a nothing, no man. Have a purpose +in life, if it is only to kill and divide and sell +oxen well, but have a purpose; and having it, throw +such strength of mind and muscle into your work +as God has given you.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Neither a borrower nor a lender be;<br /> +For loan oft loses both itself and friend,<br /> +And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.<br /> +This above all: to thine own self be true<br /> +And it must follow, as the night the day,<br /> +Thou canst not then be false to any man.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shakespeare.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Almighty God, at the commencement of this +day's work may we look on high, and measure +everything we are about to do by the scale of eternity. +Keep us from all littleness; may we not be turned +aside by things that are insignificant and unworthy. +Help us, we beseech Thee, to make the glory of +our life commensurate with the splendors of our +privileges. May we live life in a great spirit, realizing +that there is no duty so simple, no position so humble, +but that we may show forth the grandeur of trust, +and obedience toward Thee. May the great and +holy purpose we cherish find its expression as we +cooperate with the divine purpose. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. H. Barker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_108" id="page_108">[108]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>'Twas one of those charmed days<br /> +When the genius of God doth flow,<br /> +The wind may alter twenty ways,<br /> +A tempest cannot blow;<br /> +It may blow north, it still is warm;<br /> +Or south, it still is clear;<br /> +Or east, it smells like a clover farm;<br /> +Or west, no thunder fear.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Father of Lights, from whom cometh every good +and perfect gift, we thank Thee for the morning +and for the sunshine. We rejoice in the light, but +when it is hidden from us, we are thankful that in +the upper air above our clouded morning it still +fills Thy heavens. Thou gavest us good things +while we slept, and now, refreshed by Thy Spirit, +may we go forth to our appointed tasks with cheerful +obedience and joyful expectation. If trial and +trouble await us, or if, in the heat of the day the +burden seems too great, may we still be comforted, +because we put our trust in Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George Batchelor.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_109" id="page_109">[109]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>But spring-wind, like a dancing psaltress, passes<br /> +Over its breast, to waken it, rare verdure<br /> +Buds tenderly upon rough banks between<br /> +The withered tree-roots and the cracks of frost,<br /> +Like a smile striving with a wrinkled face;<br /> +The grass grows bright, the boughs are swol'n with blooms<br /> +Like chrysalids impatient for the air,<br /> +The shining dors are busy, beetles run<br /> +Along the furrows; ants make their ado;<br /> +Above, birds fly in merry flocks, the lark<br /> +Soars up and up, shivering for very joy;<br /> +Afar the ocean sleeps; white fishing gulls<br /> +Flit where the sand is purple with its tribe<br /> +Of nested limpits; savage creatures seek<br /> +Their loves in wood and plain—and God renews<br /> +His ancient rapture.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Lord, who givest to mankind liberally, and +upbraidest not, we thank Thee for the blessings +Thou bestowest from day to day. We thank Thee +for this material world, now clad in its garment of +Northern beauty, for the great sun which all day +pours down his light upon the waiting and the grateful +world, and for the earth underneath our feet. We +bless Thee for the grass, bread for the cattle, its +harvest of use spread everywhere, and for the various +beauty which here and there spangles all useful +things which Thine eye looks down upon. May +we use this world of matter to build up the being +that we are to a nobler stature of strength and of +beauty. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_110" id="page_110">[110]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O brothers all! come near<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">And hear</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">A bird's</span><br /> +Melodious dreaming set to words, and flung<br /> +The spring's new leaves and tender buds among,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">For very joy of life, and hope, and love</span><br /> +In a world made broad enough<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">For all God's creatures to be merry in,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">With joyous clash and din,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">And yet too small</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">For any greed at all!</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Lo! deep and sure</span><br /> +Is cut this truth in heaven's book of gold:<br /> +Out of one mother in the garden old<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Were born the rich and poor.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Maurice Thompson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, may we begin this day with a song +in our hearts,—a song as rich and full and free +as the bird sings at the earliest dawning of the +sun's light,—a song so attuned with infinite life +and hope and love that it must be sung. Thou +giver of abundance unto the rich and poor alike, +help our souls to mount unto the highest reaches of +living thoughts and generous deeds, that we may +give unto others as Thou givest. Unfettered by +unholy passions and freed from the spirit of greed, +may we feel the unity of the bonds of a universal +brotherhood, and be just and true, honest, and +helpful in all our dealings with all men this +day. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henrietta G. Moore.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_111" id="page_111">[111]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 18</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O spring, of hope and love and youth and gladness<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Wing-winged emblem! Brightest, best and fairest!</span><br /> +Whence comest thou when with dark Winter's sadness<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The tears that fade in sunny smiles thou sharest?</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Sister of Joy! thou art the child who wearest</span><br /> +Thy mother's dying smile, tender and sweet:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Thy mother Autumn, for whose grave thou bearest</span><br /> +Fresh flowers, and beams like flowers,<br /> +Disturbing not the leaves which are her winding-sheet.<br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shelley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>God unchanging, and still the creator of the seasons, +we look up to Thee, as the springtide works +out the miracle of the resurrection from the sleeping +forms of the past season, in confidence and in trust +that ever Thou wilt bless us with a nobler, holier, +sweeter, more wholesome life, as the seasons come +and go. The resources of trusting hearts are always +reinforced and reinvigorated by contact with Thy +life, Thy power, Thy goodness and Thy love. Out +of the winter of our discontent, we enter the springtime +of love, that leads us forward in confidence +through the glad summer of growth to the soul's +fruition and the place of rest and peace in our Father's +Home beneath Thine everlasting Love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Francis A. Gray.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_112" id="page_112">[112]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>One sound always comes to the ear that is open; +it is the steady drum-beat of Duty. No music in it, +perhaps,—only a dry rub-a-dub. Ah, but that +steady beat marks the time for the whole orchestra +of earth and heaven! It says to you: "Do your +work,—do the duty nearest you!" Keep step to +that drum-beat, and the dullest march is taking you +home.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George S. Merriam.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou great impelling Spirit, whom we see manifest +in all the world, as we open our eyes to the +light of another morning, may we be as responsive +to Thy influence as the sun and the flowers which +brighten our way. May we be very sensitive to Thy +promptings as we go about our day's work. May +we be very quick to do the things Thou wouldst +have us do. May we give ourselves to Thy service +without reserve. When again the night shades draw +about us, may our hearts be filled with deepest +gratitude for all the experiences of the day, and, +deep within, may our spirits be conscious of Thy +approving benediction, "Well done, good and +faithful servant; enter Thou into the joy of Thy +Lord." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank Lincoln Masseck.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_113" id="page_113">[113]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Thyself and thy belongings</span><br /> +Are not thine own so proper as to waste<br /> +Thyself upon thy virtues, they on thee.<br /> +Heaven doth with us as we with torches do<br /> +Not light them for themselves; for if our virtues<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Did not go forth of us, 'twere all alike</span><br /> +As if we had them not. Spirits are not finely touched<br /> +But to fine issues, nor Nature never lends<br /> +The smallest scruple of her excellence<br /> +But like a thrifty goddess, she determines<br /> +Herself the glory of a creditor,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Both thanks and use.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shakespeare.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Father, with faith and confidence in Thee we +begin the day's duties, with a blithe song upon our +lips, expressing the melody of our souls, thanking +Thee for opportunities for work, and thought and +love. We ask not for more blessings but to be more +worthy of those we have, using and not abusing +them. May our minds be open to Thy truth, and +hearts to Thy love, and when received may we be +almoners of both to the waiting world. May we keep +by giving Thy love abundantly, and grow through +the glory of self-sacrifice. Give us the heart, O +God, to sanctify our work and to lift it above drudgery +into the divinest service, and give us strength to +perform it. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">U. S. Milburn.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_114" id="page_114">[114]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A man is simple where his chief care is the wish +to be what he ought to be; that is honestly and naturally +human. We may compare existence to raw material. +What it is matters less than what it is made of; as +the value of a work of art lies in the flowering of a +workman's skill. True life is possible in social conditions +the most diverse and with natural gifts the +most unequal. It is not fortune or personal advantage, +but our training them to account, that constitutes the +value of life. Fame adds no more than does length +of days; quality is the thing.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles Wagner.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Heavenly Father, our eyes are ever toward Thee. +We do not pray for the things of the world. Teach +us to walk in Thy truth. Though our days be few, +may our lives be hopeful and cheerful. Though +our bodies be frail, may we be invincible in spirit. +All Thy children are immortal, but it is for us to +attain the eternal life. May we know Thee through +Jesus. Then days and hours and minutes will +disappear in the liberty and glory and peace of the +life eternal. Then poverty of worldly goods will be +forgotten in the riches of the Spirit. Then the cares +of the world that now is will be lost in the joy of +the life that is to be. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Reignold K. Marvin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_115" id="page_115">[115]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 22</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A little sun, a little rain,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A soft wind blowing from the west—</span><br /> +And woods and fields are sweet again<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And warmth within the mountain's breast.</span><br /> +<br /> +So simple is the earth we tread,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">So quick with love and life her frame,</span><br /> +Ten thousand years have dawned and fled.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And still her magic is the same.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Stopford A. Brooke.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Gracious God, we thank Thee for the gift of +sight whereby we behold the marvels of the outer +world. But greater is our gratitude for the inner +sight, the power to see things as they ought to be. +If we but look deep enough, we find Thy central +laws ever at the heart of all life. With such insight, +apparent confusion shall not bewilder us, life's +cares shall not harden us, the world's show cannot +dazzle us. Give us, we pray Thee, unceasing ability +to wonder and admire, which brings perpetual +youth; to hope, to believe, to trust; to rest content +in working with Thee, the Eternal One, Lord of the +seasons, this is our heart's desire. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward A. Horton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_116" id="page_116">[116]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 23</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>"What is the secret of your life?" asked Mrs. +Browning of Charles Kingsley; "tell me, that I +may make mine beautiful too." He replied, "I had +a friend." Somewhere in her "Middlemarch," +George Eliot puts it well: "There are natures in +which, if they love us, we are conscious of having a +sort of baptism and consecration; they bind us over +to rectitude and purity by their pure belief about us; +and our sins become the worst kind of sacrilege, which +tears down the invisible altar of trust."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William C. Gannett.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for all the +sweet and sacred influences of life. Music comes +with its invisible fingers to weave a magic charm +around our souls;—the home with its love is ours,—but +we thank Thee to-day for the sweet and saving +influence of friendship,—for the counsel and fellowship +of those who are wise and good and faithful to +us. We would not walk alone—we would find +strength in the strength of others, and faith in other's +faith. Let us cherish such fellowships and give +back to those, who love us, love again. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_117" id="page_117">[117]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Live in the sunshine, don't live in the gloom,<br /> +Carry some gladness the world to illume.<br /> +Live in the brightness, and take this to heart;<br /> +The world will seem gayer if you'll do your part.<br /> +Live on the housetop, not down in the cell;<br /> +Open air Christians live nobly and well.<br /> +Live where the joys are, and, scorning defeat,<br /> +Have a good-morrow for all whom you meet.<br /> +Live as a victor, and triumphing go<br /> +Through this queer world, beating down every foe.<br /> +Live in the sunshine, God meant it for you!<br /> +Live as the robins, and sing the day through.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Margaret Sangster.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, our heavenly Father, Thou who givest us the +sunshine of this new day, Thou who art the God of +life and light, we ask Thy help and Thy strength +as we again go out to our separate duties and cares. +Help us to fill this day with good deeds, to give cheer +and comfort to all we meet. May our lips be clean. +May our hearts be pure. And when the even time +comes, may it find us conscious that we have put +no cloud upon the day, that we have walked through +its hours true disciples of the Master who went +about doing good. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William H. Morrison.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_118" id="page_118">[118]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>To weigh the material in the scales of the personal, +and measure life by the standard of love; to prize +health as contagious happiness, wealth as potential +service, reputation as latent influence, learning for +the light it can shed, power for the help it can give, +station for the good it can do—to choose in each +case what is best on the whole, and accept cheerfully +incidental evils involved; to put my whole self into +all that I do, and indulge no single desire at the expense +of myself as a whole; to crowd out fear by +devotion to duty, and see present and future as one; +to treat others as I would be treated, and myself as I +would my best friend; and to recognize God's coming +kingdom in every institution and person that helps +men to love one another.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William DeWitt Hyde.</span><br /> +</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p>For the dear love that kept us through the night,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And gave our senses to sleep's gentle sway,</span><br /> +For the new miracle of dawning light,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Flushing the east with prophecies of day,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">We thank Thee, O, our God!</span><br /> +<br /> +For the fresh life that through our being flows,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With its full tide to strengthen and to bless,</span><br /> +For calm, sweet thoughts, upspringing from repose,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To bear to Thee their song of thankfulness,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">We praise Thee, O, our God!</span><br /> +<br /> +Thou knowest our needs, Thy fulness will supply<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Our blindness—let Thy hand still lead us on,</span><br /> +Till, visited by the dayspring from on high,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Our prayer, one only, "Let Thy will be done,"</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">We breathe to Thee, O, God!</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 15em;">Amen.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">W. H. Burleigh.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_119" id="page_119">[119]</a></span></p> +</div> + +<p>April 26</p> + +<blockquote><p>Is it not possible, then, that the hindrances which +arrest our progress, and the obstacles that lie broadly +in our path, are the divinest agents of help which +our Creator could give us? The painful struggles +to overcome and remove them develop in us strength, +courage, self-reliance, and heroism. They are the +hammer and chisel that release the statue from the +imprisoning marble,—the plow and the harrow that +break up the soil, and mellow it for the reception of +the seed that shall yield an abundant harvest. Perfection +lies that way.</p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mary A. Livermore.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>We seek Thy face anew this day, O our Father, +and ask Thee that Thou wilt help us to live our +lives in constant communion with Thee. Let us +see Thee at every turn in the way. Let us find +Thy hand in all our duties, all our meditations, all +our intercourse with men, all our doings and all +our deeds. Help us to make Thee our counsellor +every hour. Help us to undertake nought without +Thy blessings, to finish nought without Thy benediction. +Morning and evening may we turn in prayer +to Thy throne. At every meal may we seek Thy +grace and give Thee thanks. So may we find the +blessing of them that abide in Thy house. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. Coleman Adams.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_120" id="page_120">[120]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 27</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I think the sweetest thought, the very central idea, +of the revelation of the character of God to me, is this: +that He does everything out of His supreme will. +There is no one thing that I can say with more heartiness, +or that has in it more echoes of joy, than "Thy +will be done." If anything works righteousness in +me or in you, it is God. The nature of God is fruitful +in generosity. He is so good that He loves to do +good, and loves to make men good, and loves to make +them happy by making them good. He loves to be +patient with them, and to wait for them, and to pour +benevolence upon them, because that is His nature.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Ward Beecher.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father, we thank Thee for the blessing. We +know what are our privileges, we know what are +our duties, and we are before Thee again to consecrate +this day in all its glory and beauty to Thee, +the Father of perfect Love. Thou wilt be with us +as we strive to be with Thee. Thou wilt make us +strong when we are weak. Thou wilt make us see +where we are in darkness. Thou wilt send us forth +on Thine infinite mission to the world. Boys or +girls, men or women, here we are, the living children +of the living God, sent forward by Thee to proclaim +it that all may be one as Christ Jesus with Thee +and Thou with Him, that this world may be perfected +into one, that men may know that Thou art +Father and what the Father has given us to do, +that each one of us may lift up what has fallen down, +that each one may open the eyes that are blind and +the ears that are deaf, that each one of us may proclaim +the gospel of Thy perfect love. This is our +prayer and our hope, in Christ Jesus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_121" id="page_121">[121]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>With every rising of the sun,<br /> +Think of your life as just begun.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>The past has shrived and buried deep,<br /> +All yesterdays; there let them sleep.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Nor seek to summon back one ghost<br /> +Of that innumerable host.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Concern yourself with but today.<br /> +Woo it, and teach it to obey</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Your will and wish. Since time began<br /> +Today has been the friend of man;</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>But in his blindness and his sorrow,<br /> +He looks to yesterday and tomorrow.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>You, and today! a soul sublime,<br /> +And the great pregnant hour of time,</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>With God himself to bind the twain!<br /> +Go forth, I say, attain, attain!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Infinitely wise and loving Father, our minds and +hearts reach out to Thee in this morning hour thankful +that the rest of the night has prepared us for the +work of the new day, and that the light brings the +call to service. The past cannot be recalled, but +today is ours. I and today, with God and in the +Spirit of Jesus! Priceless privilege! Grant us, O +Father, to use it for Thee, for humanity and "In +His name." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Samuel Gilbert Ayers.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_122" id="page_122">[122]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Life is full of new beginnings. Some change +may come, something is sure to come, to close one +chapter and begin another. Life is planned just +so, ... that there should be a break from former +link and habit, often from imperfection and mistake, +and a clear, clean start for the fulfilment of the best +one has grown to, even in desire, unhampered by the +poorest one has ever happened to be, or to get credit +for.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O, Thou who dwellest in the light, help Thy +children this morning to see the light of Thy truth +and feel the warmth of Thy love. We thank Thee +for the open doors of opportunity for helpful service; +for the exhibition of kindness and for growth in the +kingdom of Heaven. May we clearly see the way +to the Eternal life and have strength to walk therein. +May we so welcome Thy truth that we shall be free +from error and sin. May Thy wisdom so guide +our energies that we shall reach after greater perfection. +May the evening of this day find us more +in harmony with God than we now are. And may +the evening of life find us rich in the treasures of +heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Andrew Willson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_123" id="page_123">[123]</a></span></p> + + +<p>April 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>True worth is in being, not seeming;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In doing each day that goes by,</span><br /> +Some little good—not in the dreaming<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of great things to do by and by,</span><br /> +For whatever men say in blindness,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And spite of the fancies of youth,</span><br /> +There's nothing so kingly as kindness,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And nothing so royal as truth.</span><br /> +<br /> +We get back our mete as we measure:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">We cannot do wrong and feel right;</span><br /> +Nor can we give pain and gain pleasure,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">For justice avenges each slight.</span><br /> +The air for the wing of the sparrow,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The bush for the robin and wren,</span><br /> +But always the path that is narrow<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And straight for the children of men.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alice Cary.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Almighty Father, who with every morning dost +give us a new day and with each day some fresh +duty, mercifully equip us for every task that awaits +us! Give us eyes to see, and hearts to love the +truth and right, and the disposition that makes every +duty a delight, and the doing of good to others a +sacred privilege. Save us this day from angry passions +and low desires. Forgive us when we are selfish; +recall us when we go astray; save us from wronging +ourselves by thinking ill of others, and in all places +and to all people give us the mind which was in +Christ Jesus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Cuckson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_124" id="page_124">[124]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 1</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>To the Woods:—Whoso goeth in your paths readeth +the same cheerful lesson, whether he be a young child +or a hundred years old, comes he in good fortune or in +bad, ye say the same things, and from age to age. Ever +the needles of the pine grow and fall, the acorns on the +oak, the maples redden in autumn and at all times of +the year the ground pine and the pyrola bud and root +under foot. What is called fortune and what is called +time by men, ye know them not. Men have not language +to describe one moment of your life.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Thou God of Nature and of the human heart, +we thank Thee for our human relations, but we +thank Thee also for our kinship with the birds. +We thank Thee for that instinct which makes us +to sympathize with the mating of the bird lovers +and for that music of the heart which makes us to +love the song of the birds. We pray this morning +for a life so simple and natural that we shall be able +to enter into sympathetic relations with everything +that lives—the flowers of the garden, and the field—the +bees that sip the flowers' honey, and the bird +that makes her nest among the trees. If Thou +speakest to men in the glory of the heavens, Thou +speakest also in the manifold voices of all Thy loving +creatures. May our ears be trained to hear Thee +when Thou speakest thus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_125" id="page_125">[125]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Hail bounteous May, that doth inspire<br /> +Mirth and youth, and warm desire;<br /> +Woods and groves are of thy dressing,<br /> +Hill and dale doth boast thy blessing,<br /> +Thus we salute thee with our early song,<br /> +And welcome thee and wish thee long.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Milton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Almighty and All-loving Father, who dost make +all the earth to rejoice in the brightness of returning +springtime, fill our hearts with like joy and renewal. +Graciously awaken in us the life that the cold or +care or trouble or sorrow of the world often has +caused to fade and go out. As our eyes behold all +this outward beauty and glory, give unto us that +spiritual vision by which we behold the beauty and +glory of divine things. Then when the springtime of +our life passes with the summer and the summer ripens +into the autumn, and our work is done, may we bring +unto Thee the harvest of spiritual riches. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James DeNormandie.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_126" id="page_126">[126]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Success! It is won by a patient endeavor,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Energy's fire, and the flame-glow of Will;</span><br /> +By grasping the chance with a "Now, now or never!"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Urging on, on! while the laggard stands still.</span><br /> +<br /> +Success! It is facing life's trials, undaunted;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Fighting the present—forgetting the past:</span><br /> +By trusting to Fate, though for years she has taunted,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And bearing Time's scars; facing front, to the last!</span><br /> +<br /> +Success! Would you win it and wear its bright token?<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Smile and step out to the drummer's light lilt;</span><br /> +Fight on till the last inch of sword-blade is broken.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Then do not say die. Fight on with the hilt!</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mary Markwell.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>We thank Thee, Our Father, that Thou hast +enriched our being with those faculties which prompt +to noble endeavor. We rejoice in our power, guided +by Thy free Spirit, both to overcome evil and to do +good. Help us, dear Father, to recognize the great +incentives of conscience and of duty, assured that +in cheerful conformity thereto we shall find the +sweetest zest of life. Increase our faith in Thee, O +Lord. Enable us more clearly to realize that in +the end truth and right will gain the victory. Thus +may we be inspired to live brave, true and wholesome +lives. May we fight the good fight of faith and win +the crown of life promised to all those who follow +the conquering Christ. In His name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henry W. Rugg.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_127" id="page_127">[127]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 4</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The green grass is bowing;<br /> +The morning wind is in it;<br /> +'Tis a tune worth the knowing,<br /> +Though it change every minute.<br /> +'Tis a tune of the Spring;<br /> +Every year plays it over.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>God does not send strange flowers every year.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">When the spring winds blow o'er the pleasant places</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The same dear things lift up the same fair faces.</span><br /> +The violet is here.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, Father Almighty, who bringest light out +of darkness and at whose word night yields to day, +we offer Thee glad worship and praise. We thank +Thee for Thy gifts which are beautiful and good; +for flowers which renew old friendships and awaken +new affections; for songs in which voices of all +yesterdays sound through today's melodies; for +rich memories of the past; for the joy of living now; +for the hope of better days; for new expressions of +abiding truth and fresh breathings of eternal love; +for courage to do right and for confidence in righteousness. +May we this day, mindful of earthly duty +and of heavenly promise, humbly follow Him "who +went about doing good" and "gave Himself a +ransom for many." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">W. I. Ward.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_128" id="page_128">[128]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 5</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Bishop Brooks taught me no special creed or dogma; +but he impressed upon my mind two great ideas—the +fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, +and made me feel that these truths underlie all creeds +and forms of worship. God is love, God is our Father, +we are His children; therefore the darkest clouds +will break, and though right be worsted, wrong shall +not triumph. He said: "There is one universal +religion, Helen—the religion of love. Love your +Heavenly Father with your whole heart and soul, +love every child of God as much as ever you can, and +remember that the possibilities of good are greater +than the possibilities of evil; and you have the key +to Heaven."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Helen Keller.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Infinite Spirit! We shall not look upon Thee as +a friend looketh upon the face of his friend, but +may we learn to see Thee in every form of life and +beauty and service here in this great world of Nature +and of Man. May we discover Thee in the midst +of common things and then they shall no more be +common, but all things shall be sacred and divine. +May we see Thy face in all human faces, clasp Thy +hand in all human hands, and when we have walked +with a friend, or talked with those we love, may it +be as a walk with Thee and a communion with Thee. +May we not think of Thee as afar off but always +near, making all things holy. May we realize that +it is a diviner thing to serve the lowly who need our +help than to praise the Infinite who needeth not. +May the sense of Thy presence in all things be the inspiration +and interpretation of all days for us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. L. Rexford.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_129" id="page_129">[129]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The brown, brown woods of March<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Are the green, green woods of May,</span><br /> +And they lift their arms with a freer swing<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And shake out their pennons gay.</span><br /> +And the brown, dead world of March,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is the living world of today;</span><br /> +Life throbs and flushes and flashes out<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In the color and fragrance of May.</span><br /> +</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Infinite Spirit of the winter and the summer +and of the night and the morning, Thou hast watched +over and guarded, during its winter sleep and rest, +this earth which Thou hast made, and which Thou +hast made for a purpose—to be beautiful and +fruitful in its season, to be a humble and obedient +servant of Thy will of goodness. And now, as the +woods of May are radiant in the beauty of springtime, +and ready to do Thy will; so as we wake to the +opportunity of this new day, may we rejoice in the +privilege of living to Thee and doing Thy will in +the glad service of lives lived as the Master +lived. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George Wallace Penniman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_130" id="page_130">[130]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>One who never turned his back, but marched breast forward,<br /> +Never doubted clouds would break,<br /> +Never dreamed, though right were worsted,—wrong would triumph,<br /> +Held we fall to rise, are baffled to fight better,<br /> +Sleep to wake.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, in the heaven, we thank Thee for +the birth of a new day. May we be full of gladness +during its golden hours, may our hearts be tranquil +with God's peace. A day is a part of Thy eternity. +Thou hast set us in the battle, Thou art watching +us in the fight; Thou art training us by well-accepted +controversy. May nothing of Thy purpose be lost +because of the blinding details of the conflict. +Strengthen our hearts to do the work of this day. +Help us to be as grateful as we are dependent upon +God. Inspire our whole life; help us quickly to +learn why we are here, what we are to do while here, +and the path that leads home when the work-day +is over. In the name of the Christ! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">W. A. Wood.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_131" id="page_131">[131]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Then sing, ye birds, sing, sing a joyous song!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And let the young lambs bound</span><br /> +As to the tabor's sound!<br /> +We in thought will join your throng,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Ye that pipe and ye that play,</span><br /> +Ye that through your hearts today<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Feel the gladness of the May!</span><br /> +<br /> +</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Wordsworth.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>God of the morning, Father of the Soul, we bless +Thee for the light, for it is pleasant to behold the +world made beautiful by the King of day, and sweet +with the melody of the song of bird, and cheerful +with the promise of hope in the swelling buds of +spring. We join with Thy faithful ones in ascriptions +of praise to Thee for the depth of the riches both of +the wisdom and the knowledge of God. Help us +to look upon our every faculty of soul, and power of +body, as gifts from Thee, to be used for the advancement +of love, truth and beauty, in our own hearts, +and in the world. Give us Thine own help to bear +every burden cheerfully, to stand erect before every +responsibility, and if in our efforts to do much good +for this day we seem to fail, may we look to Jesus +and learn of Him that in a conscience void of offence +there is no such thing as failure. Help us to strive +with the evil of the world and sin not, that at the +close of the day we may look back and say, we have +kept ourselves unspotted from the world. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">L. L. Greene.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_132" id="page_132">[132]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 9</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Fairer grows the earth each morning<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To the eyes that watch aright;</span><br /> +Every dew-drop sparkles warning<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of a miracle in sight;</span><br /> +Of some unexpected glory<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Waiting in the old and plain;</span><br /> +Poet's dream nor traveller's story<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Words such wonders as remain.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William C. Gannett.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, who makest things seen and temporal +quiver and flash with Thine own informing spirit, +so illumine our pathways that the Luz where we +meet our duties may become the Bethel where we +meet our God. As Thou dost clothe the lily with +beauty and inspire the bird with song help us to +grow into the beauty of holiness, and to know the +joy of Thy salvation. Whatever our past, open our +eyes this day to some better thing which Thou hast +always in reserve. Teach us what hinders our +attainment and help us burst through the barrier. +Make us so conscious of Thy indwelling spirit that +we may yield to its gracious impellings toward +righteousness and peace and joy. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas D. Anderson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_133" id="page_133">[133]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 10</p> + + +<div class="poem"> +<blockquote><p><i>Listen to the exhortation of the dawn!</i></p></blockquote> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Look to this day!</span><br /> +For it is life, the very life of life.<br /> +In its brief course lie all the<br /> +Varieties and realities of your existence;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">The bliss of growth,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">The glory of action,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">The splendor of beauty:</span><br /> +For yesterday is but a dream,<br /> +And tomorrow is only a vision,<br /> +But to-day well-lived makes<br /> +Every yesterday a dream of happiness,<br /> +And every tomorrow a vision of hope.<br /> +Look well, therefore to this day!<br /> +</i></p> +<blockquote><p><i>Such is the salutation of the dawn.</i></p></blockquote> + + + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">From the Sanskrit.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Dear God, in Thy loving kindness, Thou hast +brought us to the opening of another day; from +darkness to light, from sleep to wakefulness, from +rest to labor. We thank Thee for its opening glory +and its coming opportunities; but above all, for +the new strength we feel within ourselves to do its +work and live its life. As radiant dawn climbs to +full-orbed day and glides to setting sun, may we +come to this day's close with the consciousness that +we have lived a little closer to the great heart of +the Eternal in every thought, word and deed, that we +have woven into the texture of our lives, and gently +as twilight enfolds the fruitful earth, shall "peace +that passeth understanding" enfold our souls. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas B. Payne.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_134" id="page_134">[134]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 11</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>As the insect from the rock<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Takes the color of its wing;</span><br /> +As the boulder from the shock<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Of the ocean's rhythmic swing</span><br /> +Makes itself a perfect form,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Learns a calmer front to raise;</span><br /> +As the shell, enameled warm<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">With the prism's mystic rays,</span><br /> +Praises wind and wave that make<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">All its chambers fair and strong;</span><br /> +As the mighty poets take<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Grief and pain to build their song;</span><br /> +Even so for every soul,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Whatsoe'er its lot may be—</span><br /> +Building, as the heavens roll,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Something large and strong and free—</span><br /> +Things that hurt and things that mar<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Shape the man for perfect praise;</span><br /> +Shock and strain and ruin are<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Friendlier than the smiling days.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John White Chadwick.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Dear Father, as the light of this morning follows +the darkness of the night, may we devoutly believe +that the light of Thy love shall dispel all darkness +and bring us into the morning of eternal peace. +May we learn each day that our trials and sorrows +are but stepping-stones in Thy divine economy, +to bring us up into the clearer atmosphere of heavenly +thought and life. Help us to live closer to Jesus, +to understand how even He was made glorious +through suffering, and ever learn to conquer in His +name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Elmer F. Pember.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_135" id="page_135">[135]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 12</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I live for those that love me<br /> +For those that know me true,<br /> +For the heaven that smiles above me,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">And waits my coming, too;</span><br /> +For the cause that lacks assistance,<br /> +For the wrongs that need resistance,<br /> +For the future in the distance,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">For the good that I can do.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">G. L. Banks.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Father, we bless Thee for such as love us and +those whom we love in the varying forms of affection, +thanking Thee for the sacramental cup of joy in +which Thou givest the wine of life to all of Thy children, +humble or high. We thank thee for that love +which setteth the solitary in families at the beginning, +and then reaches wide arms all around, and will +not stay its hold till it joins all nations and kindreds +and tongues and people into one great family of +love. We bless Thee for the noble men and women +whose generous heart has lit the altar fire of philanthropy +in many a dark and else benighted place. +We thank Thee for the unbidden faith which springs +up in our hearts, impelling us to trust Thee and +love Thee and keep every commandment of Thine, +and that while we know not what a day shall bring +forth, we are sure of everlasting life. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_136" id="page_136">[136]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 13</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Gladness of morning—</span><br /> +To hear the lark begin his flight,<br /> +And singing, startle the dull Night<br /> +From his watch-tower in the skies,<br /> +Till the dappled Dawn doth rise;<br /> +Then to come in spite of sorrow,<br /> +And at my window bid good-morrow<br /> +Through the sweetbrier, or the vine,<br /> +Or the twisted eglantine.<br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Milton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, in whose light we see light, who hast +lifted the shadows of night from our dwellings, complete +now in our behalf Thy ministry of light, we +beseech Thee, and let the day star arise in our hearts. +Make clear Thy face unto us. Rise with Thy morning +upon our souls. May the light which envelops +us throughout the day be the radiance of Thy presence. +May our eyes behold only what Thou revealest and +our lives be warmed with the glow of Thy love. +O, that we may be new-born like the day and live +a new life in Thy mercies which are new every +morning; that our love may rise fresh as the dawn +and our obedience be as sure as the path of the law. +Let no shadow from the past dim the joy of Thy +presence. Scatter the darkness of sense and self +within us. As the morning reveals, interprets and +fulfils the beauties of a world which was wrapped in +night, may the mystery of our lives unfold, our latent +forces be summoned to service, and our hearts find +fulness of joy because we live in Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Everett D. Burr.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_137" id="page_137">[137]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 14</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It may be truly said that no man does any work +perfectly who does not enjoy his work. Joy in one's +work is the consummate tool without which the work +may be done indeed, but without its finest perfectness. +Men who do their work without enjoying it are like +men carving statues with hatchets. A man who +does his work with thorough enjoyment of it is like +an artist who holds an exquisite tool which is almost +as obedient to him as his own hand, and almost works +intelligently with him.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Heavenly Father, we thank Thee that Thou +hast placed us where we are and hast given us the +work we have to do. We would not seek far and +wide for some better place or more honourable task. +We pray today for the spirit that shall make us +glad in our common toil. We need not to fly away +to find enjoyment; we have only to feel that in the +duties of this day we are in partnership with Thee,—then +shall we be happy that Thou hast called us to +so divine a fellowship. Make us strong and earnest +and brave—that when the evening shadows fall +we shall not look regretfully back because we have +been unfaithful,—but that we may be satisfied and +happy in the memory that we have been serving +with Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_138" id="page_138">[138]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I love the flowers that come about with spring,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And whether they be scarlet, white or blue,</span><br /> +It mattereth to me not anything,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">For when I see them full of sun and dew,</span><br /> +My heart doth get so full with its delight,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I know not blue from red, nor red from white.</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alice Cary.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Father Divine, we remember Thee at the beginning +of another day, and the obedience to Thy laws of +life which Thou dost require. About us is Thy +beautiful world, thrilling with new life. We would that +our lives today may be likewise beautiful, restrained +from sin against body and spirit. As there is now +in the earth, so there is always in human souls a +springtide ready to burst forth into beautiful living. +In our hearts there is always the stirring energy of +a spiritual spring that needs but the warmth of Thy +heavenly sunshine. Let that warmth now stream +into our hearts that our lives today may show forth +Thy praise. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Minot O. Simons.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_139" id="page_139">[139]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 16</p> + +<blockquote><p>Violet: "<i>Well, but surely at least one ought to be +afraid of displeasing God; and one's desire to please +Him should be one's first motive.</i>"</p> + +<p>Lecturer: "<i>He never would be pleased with us, +if it were, my dear. When a father sends his son +out into the world—suppose as an apprentice—fancy +the boy's coming home at night, and saying, +'Father, I could have robbed the till to-day; but I +didn't because I thought you wouldn't like it.' Do +you think the father would be particularly pleased?" +(Violet is silent). "He would answer, would he not, +if he were wise and good, 'My boy, though you had +no father, you must not rob tills.' And nothing is +ever done so as really to please our Great Father, +unless we would also have done it, though we had had +no Father to know of it.</i>"</p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Ruskin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of Life, Thy children raise their thoughts +in prayer to Thee at the dawning of each day. Their +prayer asserts love, trust and conformity to Thy will. +May the spirit of prayer abide with us the day through, +that we may be dutiful and worthy. The moral law +is Thy way of life, may we make it our way by intelligent +obedience. To know Thee aright and to find +our joy in Thy life is to have fullness of being through +purity and strength. O Father, may we be as those +who broaden and deepen and purify life by word +and deed that none may suffer loss through us, but +find aid to reach the perfect life in Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Wilson M. Backus.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_140" id="page_140">[140]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Through the harsh noises of our day<br /> +A low sweet prelude finds its way:<br /> +Through clouds of doubt and creeds of fear<br /> +A light is breaking, calm and clear.<br /> +<br /> +Henceforth my heart shall sigh no more<br /> +For olden time and holier shore:<br /> +God's love and blessing, then and there<br /> +Are now and here and everywhere.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, as we enter upon the duties of this +new day, incline our minds and hearts unto Thee. +May we feel, amid its harsh noises, the assurance of +Thy love and care. If doubt or fear assail us may +we turn unto Thee who art the source of life, love +and light, and find calm and peace. We would forget +the things behind and make the most of the present. +We rejoice that today is better than yesterday and +that tomorrow will be better than today. Thou +art here now, as Thou art everywhere always, to +bless us with Thy love and care. Direct us through +the hours of this day and may its close find us better +children of Thine. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John B. Reardon.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_141" id="page_141">[141]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The sun does not shine for a few trees and flowers, +but for the wide world's joy. The lonely pine of the +mountain top waves its sombre boughs, and cries, +"Thou art my sun!" And the little meadow violet +lifts its cup of blue, and whispers with its perfumed +breath, "Thou art my sun!" And the grain in a +thousand fields rustles in the wind, and makes answer, +"Thou art my sun!" So God sits, effulgent, in +heaven, not for a favored few, but for the universe of +life; and there is no creature so poor or so low that +he may not look up with child-like confidence, and +say, "My Father, Thou art mine!"</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Ward Beecher.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God, the Eternal Source of all life, we rejoice +that there are no bounds to Thy love. We thank +Thee that Thou givest us all things richly to enjoy. +May we learn that Thy bounties are for all human +beings. Make the hearts of men eager that the ignorant, +the lowly, the poor, the wayward, may come +into the full estate of knowing that they are children +of God. Let them in no way be denied the joy of +unfolding the divinity within them. Lead us all +into those fields of labor where we can be our best +selves and develop our lives by what we do to meet +the growing demands of truth and love and goodness. +Wherever the morning breaks and the sunshine +falls upon human faces, may its cheer make homes +happy and true, men and women good, and little +children joyous. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Alva Roy Scott.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_142" id="page_142">[142]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 19</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Hear the Master's risen word!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Delving spades have set it free,</span><br /> +Wake! the world has need of thee,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Rise and let thy voice be heard,</span><br /> +Like a fountain disinterred,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Upward springing, singing, sparkling;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Through the doubtful shadows darkling;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Till the clouds of pain and rage</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Brooding o'er the toiling age,</span><br /> +As with rifts of light are stirred<br /> +By the music of the Word;<br /> +Gospel for the heavy-laden, answer to the labourer's cry;<br /> +"Raise the stone, and thou shalt find Me: cleave the wood, and there am I."<br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>God of light and strength and beauty, for this +day we thank Thee. The morning hours come to +us freighted with messages of gladness. Thou, our +Father, art refreshing our spirits, and home seems +dearer, love more sacred and the way of duty clearer +before our waiting feet. We thank Thee for life +as it is given us, day by day. Help us to fill it with +honest, cheerful, fruitful service. May we realize +and rejoice in the nobility of labor, and may we +learn how it is that a child of Thine, standing in his +own place, giving himself to the tasks of the hour, +imparts strength and courage to his fellow-worker, +and helps the world forward in the path of righteousness +and peace. So may Thy will be done in and +through us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John P. Forbes.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_143" id="page_143">[143]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O the green things growing, the green things growing<br /> +The faint sweet smell of the green things growing!<br /> +I should like to live, whether I smile or grieve,<br /> +Just to watch the happy life of my green things growing.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Dinah Mulock Craig.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Not all these sweets, these sounds, this vernal blaze,<br /> +Is but one joy, express'd a thousand ways;<br /> +And honey from the flowers, and song of birds,<br /> +Are from the poet's pen, his overflowing words.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Leigh Hunt.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou who art the Creator of life in every form +in which it is expressed in the earth, we thank Thee +for the grass and the flowers, the trees and the shrubs, +the music of the streams and the melody of the +birds. As nature is ever vocal with Thy praise, so +may our hearts be attuned to deepest joy that we are +a part of Thy creation and made capable of constant +exultation in the beauty and the beneficence of Thy +purpose therein displayed. In this spirit may we +rejoice and be glad in this new day which Thou +hast made for us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">I. J. Mead.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_144" id="page_144">[144]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>As one familiar with the sonatas and the symphonies +of Beethoven, while passing along the street in summer, +gets, from out of the open window, a snatch of a song +or a piece that is being played, catching a strain here +and another there—and says to himself, "Ah, +that is Beethoven. I recognize that: it is from such +and such a movement of the Pastoral" or whatever +it may be;—so men in life catch strains of God in +the mother's disinterested and self-denying love, in +the lover's glow, in the little child's innocent affections. +Where did this thing come from? No plant +ever brought out such fruit as this?</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Ward Beecher.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of all and giver of every good thing, to Thee +we pray; to Thee we look for light, for truth, for +beauty. In the travail of thought may there come +only the highest and best good. Where there is +division we ask for unity; where there is confusion +we ask for serenity; where there is discord, we ask +for harmony. May divergent paths lead to the +larger way of widening vision, distinctive service, +unstinted love. Hasten the day when Thy purpose +shall be accomplished in us, and when that which +is now imperfect shall become the perfected whole. +Grant to us wisdom to pursue noble ends with intelligent +zeal, and patient effort, and in a charitable +and hopeful spirit. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. C. Clark.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_145" id="page_145">[145]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 22</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is very interesting to watch a plant grow, it is +like taking part in creation. When all outside is +cold and white, when the little children of the woodland +are gone to their nurseries in the warm earth and the +empty nests on the bare trees filled with snow, my +window-garden glows and smiles, making summer +within while it is winter without. It is wonderful +to see flowers bloom in the midst of a snow-storm! I +have felt a bud "shyly doff her green hood and blossom +with a silken burst of sound," while the icy fingers of +the snow beat against the window panes. What secret +power, I wonder, caused this blossoming miracle? +What mysterious force guided the seedling from the +dark earth up to the light, through leaf and stem and +bud, to glorious fulfilment in the perfect flower? Who +could have dreamed that such beauty lurked in the +dark earth, was latent in the tiny seed we planted? +Beautiful flower, you have taught me to see a little +way into the hidden heart of things. Now I understand +that the darkness everywhere may hold possibilities +better than even my hopes.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Helen Keller.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Grant us, O God, this day, vitality of brain and +heart, to lay hold on the ordinary events and experiences +of life, and transmute them into beautiful +and permanent values for ourselves and others. +May we have courage, love and faithfulness, to +conquer adversities and fulfil our duties. And +should the winter of discontent and disappointment +beat without against our souls, even so may Thy +Kingdom come. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Julius P. West.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_146" id="page_146">[146]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 23</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Brother—there is no payment in the world!<br /> +We work and pour our labor at the feet<br /> +Of those who are around us and to come.<br /> +We live and take our living at the hands<br /> +Of those who are around us and have been.<br /> +No one is paid. No person can have more<br /> +Than he can hold. And none can do beyond<br /> +The power that's in him. To each child that's born<br /> +Belongs as much of all our human good<br /> +As he can take and use to make him strong.<br /> +<br /> +And from each man, debtor to all the world,<br /> +Is due the fullest fruit of all his powers,<br /> +His whole life's labor, proudly rendered up,<br /> +Not as return—can moments pay an age?<br /> +But as the simple duty of a man.<br /> +Can he do less—receiving everything?<br /> +<br /></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charlotte Perkins Gilman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O, Thou Most Bountiful Giver! We thank Thee +this morning for all the conveniences and comforts, +the stored knowledge and acquired wisdom, the +inspirations and encouragements of our daily life. +Truly others have lived as Thy children and +labored as Thy servants, by mind and hand +and heart, and we are wondrously permitted to +enter into the fruits of their labours. Grant unto +us this day, O Father, so to strive and so to live +that some other life may be cheered and blessed +by the spirit and by the fruit of our day's service. +May our thoughts and words and deeds somehow +express our gratitude for the blessings which we are +constantly receiving. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William H. Gould.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_147" id="page_147">[147]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 24</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>What a wonderful thing it is to meet a man or +woman whose manners are instantly open and free—opening +up a direct road between him or her and yourself!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Carpenter.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There is a world in us that God keeps to himself, +except when He calls some few souls, with special +errand for us, to receive a glimpse. It is full of life, +and growths, and wonders, that are to be developed +and revealed. We ourselves know not what we shall +be; but He knows that we shall be like Him.... +It is the world of the spiritual microscope.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span> +</p> + +<p> +Our Father and Mother God,—we have cried +for Thee as little children cry for parental love to +wait upon their wants, and, like babes that cry, +we have looked for Thee in nothing else. We would +be now Thy sons and daughters of a larger growth, +who learn to find Thee in a more complete and +blessed fellowship of service and sacrifice with Thee, +of united thought and will with Thine, of such living +as shares in Thy perfect and eternal life. Help us +so to be and so to live that even in ourselves we +may get glimpses of Thine infinite good will and +faithfulness, and show in our human lives, that +God is in His world and all is well. Amen. +</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George W. Kent.</span> +</p> + + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_148" id="page_148">[148]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 25</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>What are we set on earth for? Say to toil:<br /> +Nor to seek to leave the tending of thy vines,<br /> +For all the heat of the day, till it declines,<br /> +And death's mild curfew shall from work assoil.<br /> +God did anoint thee with His odorous oil<br /> +To wrestle, not to reign; and he assigns<br /> +All thy tears over, like pure crystallines,<br /> +For younger fellow-workers of the soil<br /> +To wear for amulets. So others shall<br /> +Take patience, labor, to their heart and hand,<br /> +From thy hand, and thy heart, and thy brave cheer,<br /> +And God's grace fructify through thee to all.<br /> +The least flower with a brimming cup may stand,<br /> +And share its dewdrop with another near.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Elizabeth Barrett Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father In Heaven, we devoutly thank Thee +for that ceaseless and refreshing tide of blessing +that, from the reservoir of Thine exhaustless goodness, +flows into our hearts and lives. And we further +thank Thee that among the choicest of those blessings, +is the one of being, not merely the receptacles +of this inflow, but also co-workers with Thee, and +with Thy Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ, in carrying +forward to successful issue Thy beneficent purposes +of grace and salvation. Grant us, we beseech Thee, +day by day, such an infusion of Thy Holy Spirit as +shall fittingly equip us for the gladsome and effective +discharge of the duties of this divine relation, and +its exalted privileges. All of which grant for Thy +mercy's sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles P. Nash.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_149" id="page_149">[149]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The deepest secret of life is love. Without love +there is no enthusiasm, and without ideals there is +no enthusiasm. We freeze our hearts by selfishness, +and stifle them by sordidness. We fix our eyes upon +the little field circumscribed by our day's activities +and ends. With no wide-reaching affection and no +uplifting ideal, we make of our life a treadmill and +of our duty an unwelcome drudgery. We disclaim +the highest endowment of the soul and deny our sonship +to God. Narrow faiths and narrow hopes put +fetters on the spirit, and small affections keep small +the heart.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Philip S. Moxom.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, every morning is a fresh witness of +Thy loving kindness. When we sleep the vigils of +Thy love are round about us. At the threshold of +this new day, may it please Thee to inspire us with +lofty aims, so that we may rise out of our selfish +selves into conscious kinship with Thee. Help us to +know the mystery of love, how limitless and all-conquering +it is. Animated by its sweet law, may we go +out into this great, needy world with hearts to sympathize +and words to cheer and hands to minister. +Then we shall know the divine sweetness of our +Christian faith, the joy of Christlike living; we shall +know that love is the fulfilling of the law. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Q. H. Shinn.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_150" id="page_150">[150]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Every day is a fresh beginning,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Every morn is the world made new.</span><br /> +You who are weary of sorrow and sinning,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Here is a beautiful hope for you,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A hope for me and a hope for you.</span><br /> +<br /> +Every day is a fresh beginning;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Listen, my soul, to the glad refrain,</span><br /> +And, spite of old sorrow and older sinning,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And puzzles forecasted and possible pain,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Take heart with the day, and begin again.</span> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Susan Coolidge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, who makest all things new, we are glad +each day is not only a new day but one unlike any +before it. Everything breathes freshness and newness +of life; a new heaven is over our heads, a new earth +beneath our feet. We know this day will be full of +new opportunities for work, new scenes for pleasure, +new chances to make better our lives. If yesterday +was not all we could wish, if there were failures in +duty, or loss of faith in ourselves, and Thy great love, +may this be filled with larger faith, greater hope, +complete love. May we so take heart in this quiet +morning hour, that we may be brave and faithful +all the day, so that in spite of old sorrows and older +sins, the memory of which may now and then shadow +our way, we may find ourselves when the evening +shall come, nearer heaven in heart and life, and +more worthy to be called Thy children. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William F. Potter.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_151" id="page_151">[151]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 28</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>O friend, never strike sail to a fear! Come into +port greatly, or sail with God the seas.... He +has not learned the lesson of life who does not every +day surmount a fear.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There is no storm but this<br /> +Of your own cowardice<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">That braves you out;</span><br /> +You are the storm that mocks<br /> +Yourself; you are the rocks<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Of your own doubt;</span><br /> +Besides this fear of danger there's no danger here<br /> +And he that here fears danger does deserve his fear.<br /></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard Crashaw.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Thou knowest, O Lord, the weakness of our human +nature, and how prone we are not only to shrink +from the difficulties and to tremble at the dangers +which lie in our way, but to allow imaginary difficulties +and dangers to hinder us from living as Thy +children should. Help us, we pray Thee, to be free +from all such fear today. Be Thou our refuge from +whatsoever may threaten us, either without or within. +Deliver us from faint-heartedness and enable us to +stand fast in the glorious liberty of those who fear +nothing but to offend against Thee and to wrong +their own immortal souls. We ask it as disciples of +Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Edwin C. Sweetser.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_152" id="page_152">[152]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 29</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Whichever way the wind doth blow,<br /> +Some heart is glad to have it so;<br /> +Then blow it east or blow it west,<br /> +The wind that blows, that wind is best.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>My little craft sails not alone:<br /> +A thousand fleets from every zone<br /> +Are out upon a thousand seas;<br /> +And what for me were favoring breeze<br /> +Might dash another, with the shock<br /> +Of doom, upon some hidden rock.<br /> +And so I do not dare to pray<br /> +For winds to waft me on my way,<br /> +But leave it to a Higher Will<br /> +To stay or speed me; trusting still<br /> +That all is well, and sure that He<br /> +Who launched my bark will sail with me<br /> +Through storm and calm, and will not fail,<br /> +Whatever breezes may prevail,<br /> +To land me, every peril past,<br /> +Within His sheltering heaven at last.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Caroline Atwater Mason.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Lord let us know that we do not sail life's seas +alone. Thou art the God of the storms. Thou goest +with us whithersoever we go. Grant us, our Heavenly +Father, that we may not suffer shipwreck of our +faith. Grant us that the voyage of our lives may be +prosperous, and that at last, whether soon or late we +shall find some harbor of rest and peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_153" id="page_153">[153]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 30</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Our Memorial Day celebrations will be but a +hypocritical play-acting unless they shall remind us +of the cause and the country for which our brave soldiers +gave their lives. It is not enough for us to recall their +names and sing their praises. We must love the country +they loved and in our turn be ready to do the hero's +part.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>But what is it to love one's country? Is it to carry +a banner in a procession? Is it to shout as we see +the flag? Is it to fling bunting from the tops of the +buildings, and send off sky-rockets in the evenings? +Vastly deeper than that is love of country, deeper +than any soldier's uniform, deeper than any pictures +of battleships with which we adorn our walls.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">W. H. P. Faunce.</span> +</p> +<p> +God of the Nations, we thank Thee today for +every heroic deed of every heroic soul. We rejoice +that in every hour of real emergency there have ever +been men who were ready to die for their country. +O Lord, may the memory of their sacrifice ever remain +to us and to the children of coming generations a +sacred heritage. Yet, O Lord, let us not be satisfied +to glorify their deeds with a memory. Let us do +them the higher honor of consecrating our lives to +the service of the country they loved. So shall we, +in the honor we render them find the title to our +honor. Thus in <i>our</i> land and in <i>our</i> time may Thy +Kingdom come and Thy will be done. Amen. +</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_154" id="page_154">[154]</a></span></p> + + +<p>May 31</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>To be glad of life because it gives you the chance +to love and to work and to play and to look up at the +stars; to be satisfied with your possessions, but not +contented with yourself until you have made the best +of them; to despise nothing in the world except falsehood +and meanness, and to fear nothing except cowardice; +to be governed by your admirations rather than +your dislikes; to covet nothing that is your neighbor's +except his kindness of heart and gentleness of manners; +to think seldom of your enemies, often of your friends, +and every day of Christ; and to spend as much time +as you can, with body and with spirit in God's out-of-doors—these +are little guide-posts on the footpath to +peace.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou God of peace and of love. How shall we +come to Thee? How shall we share Thy strength +and know Thy life? Let us commune with Thy +gracious spirit and so learn Thy way. How beautiful +the vision which prayer unfolds to us when we worship +in spirit and truth! We see the virtues which +ennoble and sanctify other lives. Sweet and tender +patience appears and in her light ruffled and distorted +tempers are subdued and clothed in their +right mind. Faith is seen and as irresolution and +doubt take their flight, confident trust and cherished +conviction appear in magnetic power. So, O Lord, +would we read the signs which other lives present. +So would we strengthen our own aspirations and +make real the vision. So, O Father, would we find +Thy peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Augustine N. Foster.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_155" id="page_155">[155]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 1</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A season for simple living with the kindly sun +and the blue sky, days of keen delight in little things, +of joyous questing after beauty, days for the making +of true friends by being a true friend to others, days +when we may enlarge our little lives by excursions +to strange places, by friendly association, by the companionship +of great thoughts, days that may teach +us to live nobly, to work joyously, to play harder, to +do our labor better. So should each June bring us +indeed a golden summer.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edwin Osgood Grover.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Heavenly Father, Thou givest all good things. We +thank Thee for life and hope and cheer. In gratitude +we consecrate this day to blessing Thy children, and +so to serving Thee who hast said, "Inasmuch as +ye have done it unto these, ye have done it unto Me." +Teach us the gladness of a life responsive to Thy +messages through Nature. Grant us the joy of +making friends by being friendly with our fellow +men. Whatsoever we may do, at work or at play, +may it be in the spirit of the Saviour. We begin +this day with Thee. By its ministries may our comrades +be helped and our lives together be made +nobler, stronger, and well-pleasing in Thy sight. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Maurice A. Levy.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_156" id="page_156">[156]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Over the shoulders and slopes of the dune,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I saw the white daisies go down to the sea,</span><br /> +A host in the sunshine, an army in June,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The people God sends us to set our hearts free.</span><br /> +<br /> +The bobolinks rallied them up from the dell,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The orioles whistled them out of the wood,</span><br /> +And all of their singing was "Earth, it is well,"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And all of their dancing was, "Life, Thou art good!"</span><br /> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Bliss Carman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, who art the Father of Light and Love, +from whom cometh down every good and perfect +gift, we thank Thee for this new born day, which +Thou sendest us, for the splendor of Thy presence +in the sunlit sky above us and the blossoming earth +beneath; for spring-time flowers that border our +paths with loveliness and happy bird song, lifting +our hearts to responsive joy and praise. We thank +Thee for life and health, for home and friends, for +opportunities and duties, for temptations and trials, +yea, for the very sorrows and bereavements which +bring us to ourselves in penitence, to others in sympathy, +and to Thee in faith and adoration. Thy will +be done! Thy kingdom come! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles W. Wendte.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_157" id="page_157">[157]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>One small life in God's great plan,<br /> +How futile it seems as the ages roll,<br /> +Do what it may, or strive how it can,<br /> +To alter the sweep of the infinite whole!<br /> +A single stitch in an endless web,<br /> +A drop in the ocean's flow and ebb!<br /> +But the pattern is rent where the stitch is lost,<br /> +Or marred where the tangled threads have crossed;<br /> +And each life that fails of its true intent<br /> +Mars the perfect plan that its Maker meant.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Susan Coolidge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, the heavenly Father, in whom we live +and move, whose life-giving spirit is ever around us +like the air we breathe,—we lift our thoughts to +Thee in reverence and gladness at the coming of the +new day. We are glad for the quiet hours of the +night, while the stars shine over us. May we be +ready now, with willing and obedient hearts, for +the work, the cares, the joys and the friendly converse +of the day. We know how small our lives are; +may we share the thoughts of Thy infinite mind, +may Thy power and beauty, Thy justice and goodness +possess us. May our feeble wills be strong to +carry the current of the one Good Will that sways +the universe. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles F. Dole.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_158" id="page_158">[158]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I have lived, sir, a long time; and the longer I live, +the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that +God governs in the affairs of men.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Benjamin Franklin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for +all I have not seen. Whatever it be which the great +Providence prepares for us, it must be something +large and generous; and in the great style of His +works. The future must be up to the style of our +faculties, of memory, of hope, of imagination, of +reason.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou, who in Thy greatness holds the planets +on their way, and in Thy providence guides the +sparrow's flight, and in Thy tenderness marks the +sparrow's fall, may we not be blind to Thy foot-prints +in the events of every day, but see them guiding +our way and feel more and more Thy love. Father, +we ask not for great things, but we ask Thee to help +us in the little needs and longings that fill our every +day, to be the strength of our every endeavor, that +in our daily walk, we may feel that the earth is warm +with life and joy, that the air is full of strength, +that there comes to us from every side some message, +sweet and tender, if only we can be patient, trustful, +believing that all things work together for good to +them who seek to do Thy will Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joshua Young.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_159" id="page_159">[159]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>And do not fear to hope. Can poet's brain<br /> +More than the Father's heart rich good invent?<br /> +Each time we smell the autumn's dying scent,<br /> +We know the primrose time will come again;<br /> +Not more we hope, nor less would soothe our pain.<br /> +Be bounteous in our faith, for not misspent<br /> +Is confidence unto the Father lent:<br /> +Thy need is sown and rooted for his rain,<br /> +His thoughts are as thine own; nor are his ways<br /> +Other than thine, but by their loftier sense<br /> +Of beauty infinite and love intense.<br /> +Work on! One day, beyond all thought of praise<br /> +A sunny joy will crown thee with its rays;<br /> +Nor other than thy need, thy recompense.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, in the gratitude of loved and loving +children we thank Thee for life and all the faith +and hope and love Thy goodness has awakened in +our souls. For the splendors of the world and the +greater splendor of the mind radiant with Thy love, +we bow in rapture and adoration. Overwhelmed +at times by the mysteries and vicissitudes of life, we +will trust Thy will to lead us out of darkness into +the light of Thine informing spirit of truth and +wisdom. Conscious of our weakness and needs, we +rejoice that strength and supply are assured to us +in the permanence of Thy Fatherhood. Lead us +more and ever more to realize that in Thee we live +and move and have our being. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Richmond Fisk.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_160" id="page_160">[160]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>When a feller goes a-huntin' for a rose<br /> +He shouldn't be a-thinkin' of the thorn;<br /> +He must woo it, he must win it—<br /> +Where his heart beats he must pin it<br /> +An' breathe the breath that's in it<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 6em;">Every morn!</span><br /> +<br /> +When a feller goes a-huntin' for a rose<br /> +He shouldn't see the thorn beneath its breast,<br /> +But for all its thorny foes.<br /> +Red and reckless,—one poor rose<br /> +Is sweet enough, God knows,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 6em;">For the best.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Frank L. Stanton.</span> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Lord, our God, so great is our life we may find +that for which we look,—the good or the bad. +Send us into this day with eyes searching for the +good. Beholding it may we admire it and admiring +it we shall become like it changed into the same +image from character to character by the Spirit. +May we be more concerned to do right than not to +do wrong. Save us from a humility that is weakness +and give us largeness of life without pride. May +we want nothing so much as opportunity,—opportunity +to be, to do, to suffer. May we not strive for +bigness but for fitness and may our reception of the +Christ be our forgiveness and our salvation for His +name's sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">T. C. Martin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_161" id="page_161">[161]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 7</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The beauty of work depends upon the way we meet +it,—whether we arm ourselves each morning to +attack it as an enemy that must be vanquished before +night comes, or whether we open our eyes with the +sunrise to welcome it as an approaching friend who +will keep us delightful company all day, and who will +make us feel at evening, that the day was well worth +its fatigues.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Lucy Larcom.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, Thou givest us light for +the hours of labor and darkness for the hours of +slumber. We toil and then we rest. We sleep and +then we arise, to perform the tasks which await us. +Convince us, O God, that the life which Thou hast +given us to live is more than working that we may +rest, and resting that we may work. Persuade us +that it is for some great and good end. Help us to +understand that even as we live in Thee so Thou +dost fulfil Thine eternal purposes in and through +us. Teach us that our smallest effort is important +to Thee. So may we dread no duty. So may every +moment of every day be precious in our sight. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Roger S. Forbes.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_162" id="page_162">[162]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>And those who heard the Singers three<br /> +Disputed which the best might be;<br /> +For still their music seemed to start<br /> +Discordant echoes in each heart.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>But the great Master said, "I see<br /> +No best in kind, but in degree;<br /> +I gave a various gift to each,<br /> +To charm, to strengthen, and to teach.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>"These are the three great chords of might,<br /> +And he whose ear is tuned aright,<br /> +Will hear no discord in the three,<br /> +But the most perfect harmony."</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry W. Longfellow.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for +all Thy mercies new every morning, and fresh every +evening, but especially we bless Thee that Thou +callest us to Thy service and kingdom by Jesus +Christ, our Lord, and hast vouchsafed to each of +us some gracious gift whereby we may accomplish +Thy holy will concerning us. Grant that we may +so improve and use that pearl of price as to enhance +greatly the welfare of Thy children. Help each to +see the good in all, and all to see the good in each, +that all may strive together in sinless and sweet +accord for the common weal and thus for the glory +of Thy name, and so hasten the happy day when +all souls shall be one, as prayed the Saviour of the +world. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Alfred P. Putnam.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_163" id="page_163">[163]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 9</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Men talk sometimes as if the passage of a ship +through the sea or a bird through the air is a fit symbol +of man's passage through this world. I do not think +so. A better symbol would be the passage of a plough +through the soil leaving a furrow behind. What +does the furrow include? All the memory of every +beautiful picture and landscape you have ever seen. +It includes the memory of every experience, every +sweet association, every tie of love, whether of father, +mother, wife or children. All these, whether living +or dead, speak to you. They have a voice, a language +that you will understand.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>We thank Thee, O God, for the many influences +past and present which have had a share in the +moulding of our lives and characters toward a larger +usefulness and a more perfect realization of the +Christian ideal. We thank Thee for the mother's +love which watched over us through years of helplessness; +for the father's love which made provision +for our wants, for the human sympathy which has +everywhere blessed and strengthened us and made +life brighter; for the friends of youth and age who +have helped us to better things. Grant, O God, +that a memory of these blessings may abide with us +so long as life may last, and that as we have been +helped by others to walk the way of life we may +not forget to extend a helping hand to those who +may need our comfort and our sympathy.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Orin Edson Crooker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_164" id="page_164">[164]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is not to taste sweet things, but to do noble and +true things, and vindicate himself under God's heaven, +as a God-made man, that the poorest son of Adam +dimly longs. This dim longing for what is noble +and true, the still small voice which calls to one imperatively +in moments of temptation, is the safeguard +which, if hearkened to, not only protects one in severe +trials of manliness and womanliness, but also incites +to the formation of a fine character, without which +all acquisitions, all graces and accomplishments, all +talents and all learning, are but as sounding brass +and a tinkling cymbal.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, our heavenly Father, in grateful +recognition of Thy love and watchful care, we thank +Thee for the repose of the night and the promise of +the day. Our desire is to do Thy will, and we ask +for the guidance and inspiration of Thy spirit. +Enable us to perform faithfully all the work that +Thou hast given us to do. Grant us a sufficiency +of Thy grace to treat all our fellowmen as children +of Thine, and when night comes may we have the +blessed assurance that through the experiences of +this day we have become a little more like Thine +own glorious self in love and holiness. We ask it +in the name of Jesus, our example, and Saviour. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Warren S. Perkins.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_165" id="page_165">[165]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 11</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Now it is June, and the secret is told;<br /> +Flashed from the buttercup's glory of gold;<br /> +Hummed in the bumblebee's gladness, and sung<br /> +New from each bough where a bird's nest is swung;<br /> +Breathed from the clover-beds, when the winds pass;<br /> +Chirped in small psalms, through the aisles of the grass.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry James, Sr.</span> +</p> +</div> +<p> +Dear Father, in the morning hour of this new day, +we thank Thee for the glorious revelation of Thyself +in the open Book of Nature. May we love the +beautiful and therein love Thee, with a true and +abiding affection. Grant unto us the understanding +that it is only as we have the spirit of the beautiful +in our lives that we can appreciate the beautiful +without us. So may we value this life, which is +from Thee, as a means of attaining a larger usefulness +and for realizing that goodness which is ever +heavenly. In simply trying to be nobler, more +unselfish, like unto Christ, we pray, that we may +learn how good is life. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Edward Potterton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_166" id="page_166">[166]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 12</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Methinks I love all common things,<br /> +The common air, the common flower,<br /> +The dear, kind, common thought that springs<br /> +From hearts that have no other dower,<br /> +No other wealth, no other power,<br /> +Save love; and will not that repay<br /> +For all else fortune tears away?</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Bryan Waller Procter.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>We thank God for the beauty of the world. We +thank God that it is good to be alive. We thank +God for the joy that joins us to Thy world in gladness, +and makes it seem to be the open book of Thy +graciousness and tenderness and compassion. We +thank Thee also for the ministry of those days that +were not bright, but that were full of comfort, even +in their darkness, into which God came shrouded, +only to reveal Himself more clearly as the light. +We thank Thee for the intervening by the hand of +love and tenderness that is human, so that our best +nature was called out for love's sake, and all the +lower forces of our lives led in the leash of that sweet +attraction. We thank God for everything for which +our life is better, and pray Thee to help us to use +Thy mercies to turn them into strength, not the +strength of praise alone, but the strength of service +also. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas R. Slicer.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_167" id="page_167">[167]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 13</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">A creed is a rod,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">And a crown is of night;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">But this thing is God,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">To be man with thy might,</span><br /> +To grow straight in the strength of thy spirit, and live out thy life as the light.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Algernon Charles Swinburne.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>Life is fuller and sweeter for every fulness and +sweetness that we take knowledge of. And to him that +hath, cannot help being given from everything.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span> +</p> + +<p>Infinite Love and Beauty, who stirrest in the tiniest +seed that breaks its earthly shell to greet the light +and warmth of thy beneficence and round its life +in blade and flower and ripened fruit,—awake in +us, we pray, that we may burst the casements of our +dead selves and live to bear the fruits of completed +lives. Be love alone our creed and service our crown; +and in the sweetness and light of these twin +ministers draw Thou us on, until having taken +full knowledge of the fulness and sweetness of +our Lord the Christ, we shall have measured +in our spiritual stature, His perfect manliness and +strength. Thus shall we have indeed and to us +shall be given from everything. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Albert C. White.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_168" id="page_168">[168]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>He fails who climbs to power and place<br /> +Up the pathway of disgrace.<br /> +He fails not who makes truth his cause,<br /> +Nor bends to win the crowd's applause.<br /> +He fails not, he who stakes his all<br /> +Upon the right and dares to fall.<br /> +What though the living bless or blame,<br /> +For him the long success of fame!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard Watson Gilder.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, help us when we fail to +see and know the truth and its blessed influence for +good. Help us to combat bravely the evil in the +world and to look to Thee for encouragement and +success. Help us, if we fail, to regain our footing +and to reach the higher because of the effort which +Thy love prompts. We gratefully accept the power +which Thy wisdom gives and thank Thee for the +opportunity to use its strength. Be Thou our guide +and we shall fear no failure, nor overestimate the +worth of success. So shall we "rejoice in the Lord +always,"—in failure because of Thy help and in +success because of Thine approval. In the name +of Jesus Christ our Lord and Redeemer. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William E. Gibbs.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_169" id="page_169">[169]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A singer sang a song of tears,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the great world heard and wept</span><br /> +For the song of the sorrows of fleeting years,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the hopes which the dead past kept:</span><br /> +And souls in anguish their burdens bore,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the world was sadder than ever before.</span><br /> +<br /> +A singer sang a song of cheer,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the great world listened and smiled,</span><br /> +For he sang of the love of a Father dear<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the trust of a little child;</span><br /> +And souls that before had forgotten to pray,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Looked up and went singing along the way.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Emma C. Dowd.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Almighty God, our heavenly Father, our trust is +evermore in Thee, and we would keep that trust as +a song within our hearts, which may cheer and bless +and strengthen us. When the night is dark and the +day is dreary may that song be with us, and when +cares oppress and sorrows meet us, may our prayers +still rise to Thee, for Thou art the God of our lives. +Let not the day's discouragements depress us, nor +its failures find us weak or helpless, nor its trials +leave a stain upon our souls. But because we have +Thy song of love within our hearts may we march +to heavenly music, and ever go upon our way rejoicing. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Paul Revere Frothingham.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_170" id="page_170">[170]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 16</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is only the sincerity of human feeling that abides. +As for a thought, we know not, it may be deceptive; +but the love, wherewith we have loved it, will surely +return to our soul; nor can a single drop of its clearness +or strength be abstracted by error. Of that perfect +ideal that each of us strives to build up in himself, +the sum total of all our thoughts will help only to +model the outline; but the elements that go to construct +it, and keep it alive, are the purified passion, unselfishness, +loyalty, wherein these thoughts have had +being.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Maeterlinck.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, help us to take up +the cares of this day with an unselfish heart, and in +loyalty to what is right and good. Keep us in right +relation to those with whom our lot is cast, in sympathy +with the unanxious joy of the world and with the +deeper life which is its source. We desire to enter +into the thought and the love of the most hopeful +souls, that, in all the needful pauses of the day, +we may find cheer, incentive, and the ampler rest: +through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles H. Leonard.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_171" id="page_171">[171]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>"Does the road wind up-hill all the way?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"Yes, to the very end!"</span><br /> +"Will the day's journey take the whole long day?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"From morn to night, my friend!"</span><br /> +<br /> +"But is there for the night a resting-place?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"A roof for all when the dark hours begin."</span><br /> +"May not the darkness hide it from my face?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"You cannot miss that inn."</span><br /> +<br /> +"Shall I meet other wayfarers at night?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"Those who have gone before."</span><br /> +"Then must I knock or call when just in sight?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"They will not keep you standing at that door."</span><br /> +<br /> +"Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"Of labor you shall find the sum."</span><br /> +"Will there be beds for me and all who seek?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"Yea,—beds for all who come!"</span></i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Christina Rossetti.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for this new +day. May it be an open door to faithful service. +Open our eyes that we may see all vexations, +distresses, and toil as angels in disguise sent to +strengthen and fulfil us, to prepare us for larger +blessings at our journey's end. As the blue sky of +Thy loving kindness is broader and more enduring +than the clouds that sometimes hide it, so teach us +to trust Thine unfailing love that overarches and +outlasts all weariness and pain. When life and +strength fail us here, may we find them transformed +and glorious in the city of God hereafter. Be Thou +our shield and our reward now and forever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John M. Wilson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_172" id="page_172">[172]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Those homelier wildflowers, which we call weeds; +yellow japanned buttercups and star-disked dandelions, +lying in the grass, like sparks that have leaped +from the kindling sun of summer; the profuse daisy-like +flower which whitens the fields, to the great disgust +of liberal shepherds, yet seems fair to loving eyes, +with its button-like mound of gold set round with milk-white +rays; the tall-stemmed succory, setting its pale +blue flowers aflame one after another; the red and +white clovers; the broad, flat leaves of the plantain,—"the +white man's foot," as the Indians called it;—those +common growths which fling themselves to be +crushed under our feet and our wheels, making themselves +so cheap in this perpetual martyrdom that we +forget, each of them is a ray of the divine beauty.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, however poor and mean +and commonplace our lives may seem to be, in our +better moments we think of ourselves as Thy children. +We may have failed sometimes but we shall +not utterly fail. In Thy sight, nothing is common +or worthless. No life shall be cast as rubbish to the +void. However commonplace our tasks may seem, +let us feel ourselves in partnership with God, and +go forth to the duties of the day with high hope and +sense of dignity. So shalt Thou make even our +little lives of some real service to the world. We +pray to Thee in the spirit of Him, who though the +humblest of all, was yet Master of all. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_173" id="page_173">[173]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There's a real grace of character in forgetting the +things which disturb the harmony of life.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Hamilton W. Mabie.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +Touch your lips with gladness and go singing on your way,<br /> +Smiles will strangely lighten every duty;<br /> +Just a little word of cheer may span a sky of gray<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With hope's own heaven-tinted bow of beauty.</span><br /> +Wear a pleasant face wherein shall shine a joyful heart,<br /> +As shines the sun, the happy fields adorning;<br /> +To every care-beclouded life some ray of light impart,<br /> +And touch your lips with gladness every morning.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Nixon Waterman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou who art from everlasting to everlasting, +Our God and Father, we flee unto Thee as the One +who is able to save us from all foes within and without. +We confess our weakness and our many grievous +faults, and beseech Thee to touch us by Thy Spirit, +that with penitent and lowly hearts we may seek +Thee as our everlasting Friend and Helper. Be +patient yet a while with our shortcomings and frowardness. +Suffer us yet a little that Thine infinite +grace and compassion may arouse us from our +spiritual slumber unto the glorious life of obedience +and love. In this new day we would be made to +feel Thy presence and the light and joy and peace, +which Thou dost promise to all who diligently seek +Thee through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Clarence E. Rice.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_174" id="page_174">[174]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Now is the high tide of the year,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And whatever of life hath ebbed away</span><br /> +Comes flooding back with a ripply cheer,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Into every bare inlet and creek and bay;</span><br /> +Now the heart is so full that a drop overfills it,<br /> +We are happy now because God wills it.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Russell Lowell.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty! early in +the morning we approach unto Thee. The whole +round of creation is burdened with the exuberance +of Thy life, and everywhere is hallowed ground. +We come with unshod feet. The sun, mighty minister +of Thy great goodness, flooding the world with light +and piercing all things with his fiery arrows, calls +back to life the sleeping earth, and assures us that +we are partakers of Thy light and Thy love and Thy +life. O most glorious God! may these Thy mercies, +fresh every morning, be with us through the day to +strengthen us to do Thy will, we ask in the name +of Him who came that we may have life and have it +abundantly. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank W. Collier.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_175" id="page_175">[175]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 21</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Man hath much need of courage; and need to brace<br /> +His spiritual nerve in solitude;<br /> +Self-trusting, self-sustained, and self-imbued;<br /> +Seeking God in his own heart's secret place.<br /> +To perfect self, and in that self embrace<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The triune essence of truth, beauty, and good;</span><br /> +This is fulfilment, this beatitude<br /> +Throned high above base fears and hopes more base.<br /> +What shall it profit us, if, gaining all<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The privilege of priest-made paradise,</span><br /> +We lose therewith our self which is the soul?<br /> +And wherefore should we shrink from even the fall,<br /> +If haply we should fail with steadfast eyes<br /> +Fixed only on so bright, so pure a goal?</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Addington Symonds.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the gift of +a new day, for the tasks which it brings, and for the +strength with which we rise to its requirements. +Help us, through all this day, to remember Thee. +Thou art our strength, our guide, our inspiration. +Fill us with the courage born of faith. Let us feel +that, seeking to do right, we shall be moved and +aided by an unseen Power. In all our experiences +this day, help us to speak the truth, to be loyal to +friendship, to be steadfast in principle, to fight the +good fight and to keep the faith. Bless our endeavors +to give heart and hope to other souls; and grant +them the presence of Thy loving spirit. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Clarence Lee.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_176" id="page_176">[176]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 22</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let a man start out at breakneck speed in the morning, +pushing and driving and hurrying as if it were +a matter of life and death to accomplish a given task +before noon, and he will generally end by working +himself into a fever of anxiety and harassing care +before night, and the man who, under any pretext +whatsoever, whether for the sake of wealth or learning +or pleasure, has pursued this mad, rushing, whirling +method of life for fifteen or twenty years, will find +himself thoroughly disqualified for the normal enjoyment +of life thenceforward to the end of his days.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Most gracious God! Thou who hast sustained us +through the night watches, and who now openest +to us the day, with its promise of good and opportunity +for service, we still depend upon that heavenly +faithfulness which never fails. We look to Thee +for the quickening of our best powers. We would +be laborers together with Thee to-day, not as driven +to irksome tasks, but as honored with a welcome +privilege. Whether we plant or water may we do +it faithfully, and then trust Thee for the desired +increase. May it please Thee to quiet our anxieties, +to lay to rest our unworthy fears, and to assure us +of Thine over-ruling providence; and thus through +all our toiling may we enjoy large measures of the +peace that passeth understanding. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Edward Wright.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_177" id="page_177">[177]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 23</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I do not say you can make yourself merry and happy +when you are in a physical condition which is contrary +to such mental condition, but by practice and +effort you can learn to withdraw from it, refusing to +allow your judgments and actions to be ruled by it. +"What does that matter?" you will learn to say. +"It is enough for me to know that the sun does shine, +and that this is only a weary fog that is round about +me for a moment. I shall come out into the light +beyond presently." This is faith,—faith in God, +who is Light.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, residing in the light incomprehensible +and who art seeing and providing all good for Thine +immortal household, when mid investing clouds we +shall hail Thy presence, transforming weakness into +perfect strength and sighs and groans into joy and +swelling songs, above all the many rightful subjects +of Christian petition, we pray that Thou wilt always +press us near to Thee to feel Thy loving heart-beats +and dwell in the light in which is no darkness at all. +We pray not to be spared any of our full part of the +burdens needful to this day, but to be given the +measure of grace to maintain unfaltering steps. +Behold with compassion the errors that befall us as +we, too, compassionate others. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Jacob Straub.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_178" id="page_178">[178]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 24</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We are all perhaps familiar with the story of the +little housemaid, who, when she was asked why she +thought she had become a Christian, replied, after a +little hesitation, "Because I sweep under the mats." +A very poor reason at first sight, and only significant +from the fact of the master-motive underlying the +fact itself. A child's reasoning—but did not quaint +old Herbert employ the same fine logic when he sang:</i></p></blockquote> + +<div class="poem"> +<p><i>"Who sweeps a room as for Thy laws.<br /> +Makes that and the action fine!"</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Moodie.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Dear Lord of Life and Light, at the dawn of +another day we rise to thank Thee for Thy watchful +care, imparting strength and vitality during the +closed hours of the night. Thy gift of eternal life +is ours by Thy creatorship and love, and we would +pray that in no way during this coming day shall we +dishonor our birthright by evil thought or action. +Help us to aspire to hold fast and develop Thy holy +characteristics, normal to us and made active by +our wills. We thank Thee for the goal revealed to +us as our destiny, the spirit displayed by our Master, +Jesus Christ, and like Him may we lean on Thee +daily for the strengthening of our faith and the +maturing of our plans. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles E. Lund.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_179" id="page_179">[179]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 25</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>They are tired of what is old,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">We will give it voices new;</span><br /> +For the half hath not been told<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of the beautiful and true.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald.</span><br /> +</p> + + +<p> +<i>The common problem, yours, mine, everyone's,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is not to fancy what were fair in life</span><br /> +Provided it could be—but finding first<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">What may be, than find how to make it fair</span><br /> +Up to our means, a very different thing.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Thou Infinite Heart! our hearts go out after +Thee, not for past, not for future, not for what was, +though dear, not for what may be, though in vision +precious,—not these the burden of our prayer. +Our hearts crave peace, comfort with what is. May +we confide in Thee so utterly that the old pain is +eased, the anxious foreboding is dispelled, self-will +merged in divine will, self-direction yielding to +divine leading. Lo! our prayer is answered in the +making and we are helped. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Stanford Mitchell.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_180" id="page_180">[180]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Today is your day and mine, the only day we have, +the day in which we play our part. What our part +may signify in the great whole, we may not understand, +but we are here to play it, and now is our time. +This we know, it is a part of action, not of whining. +It is a part of love, not cynicism. It is for us to express +love in terms of human helpfulness. This we +know, for we have learned from sad experience that any +other course of life leads toward weakness and misery.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">David Starr Jordan.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, Author alike of the morning light +and Guardian through the darkness and shadow of +the night, grant us the right spirit as we go forth to +the unknown experiences of this day. We would not +look eagerly for our own comfort and happiness, +but would find them as Thy free gift while we are +employed in giving comfort and happiness to others. +Illuminate our lives with happy thoughts, cheerful +words and blessed hopes, that we may go forth with +no purpose but to do Thy will, and seeking no reward +more glorious, than Thine approval whispered into +loving and attentive hearts, in Thy name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Lewis G. Wilson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_181" id="page_181">[181]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A Persian fable says: "One day<br /> +A wanderer found a lump of clay,<br /> +So redolent of sweet perfume<br /> +Its odors scented all the room.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">"What art thou?" was his quick demand;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">"Art thou some gem from Samarcand,</span><br /> +Or spikenard in this rude disguise,<br /> +Or other costly merchandise?"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">"Nay, I am but a lump of clay."</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">"Then whence this wondrous perfume—say?"</span><br /> +"Friend, if the secret I disclose,<br /> +I have been dwelling with the rose,"<br /> +Sweet parable! and will not those<br /> +Who love to dwell with Sharon's Rose,<br /> +Distil sweet odors all around,<br /> +Though low and mean themselves are found?<br /> +Dear Lord, abide with us, that we<br /> +May draw our perfume fresh from thee.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, which art in heaven,—we thank Thee +for the memory of those who lived in Thy spirit and +labored in Thy love. The fragrance of their lives +abides with us. We thank Thee for the prophets +of great hopes,—for those who have seen the invisible, +and have searched patiently for the city of +their God. We bless those who by their pure hearts +and unselfish lives have revealed unto us our greater +selves. Help us to learn of them the way of life. +Help us to live in such thoughts and deeds as made +them truly great. Keep our hearts so pure to-day, +our vision of the Master life so clear, that our path, +before and after us, shall be as the light of day. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick W. Betts.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_182" id="page_182">[182]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Tell you what I like the best;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">'Long about knee-deep in June,</span><br /> +'Bout the time the strawberries melts<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">On the vine,—some afternoon</span><br /> +Like to jes' git out and rest,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And not work at nothing else.</span><br /> +<br /> +Orchard's where I'd ruther be—<br /> +Needn't fence it in for me!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Jes' the whole sky overhead,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the whole airth underneath.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Whitcomb Riley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Help us, O Thou who art the Lord of life, that +we may this morning praise Thee for the beauty +of the world and for the joyful privilege of wandering +in the green fields and by the sparkling brooks, and +of resting tired body and weary limb beneath the +sweet orchard shade, gazing with gladdened eyes at +the blue canopy above, all forgetful of the toil and +din of the far off city. O may our hearts this day +be in tune with nature and in harmony with Thyself; +and as we contemplate Thy works this and +every day may our hearts go out in loving and practical +sympathy toward those whose lives are spent +within the narrow confines of sunless courts. Hear +us for the Saviour's sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Francis W. Brett.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_183" id="page_183">[183]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Give us, O give us the man who sings at his work. +Be his occupation what it may, he is equal to any of +those who follow the same pursuit in silent sullenness. +He will do more in the same time—he will do it +better—he will persevere longer. One is scarcely +sensible of fatigue while he marches to music. The +very stars are said to make harmony as they revolve +in their spheres. Wondrous is the strength of cheerfulness, +although past calculation its power of endurance. +Efforts to be permanently useful, must be uniformly +joyous—a spirit all sunshine, graceful from +very gladness, beautiful because bright.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, we turn to Thee in adoration and +praise as we pause upon the threshold of this new +day. Grant, we pray Thee, that a song be in our +hearts as we go about the duties of the passing hours. +Whatever our experiences, whether of joy or sorrow, +may we truly value the truthful spirit. If Thou +callest us to bear burdens or to stand upon the +mountain top of exultant achievement may we not +forget to sing of Thee. Yea, O God, we would be +ever of the company of trusting souls, for such are +near to Thee. And when earthly days are past and +the life of the freed spirit is over, grant that our lives +may blend in full accord with the music of love, in +sunshine of joy, in the beauty of holiness. We praise +Thee now and ever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Stephen H. Roblin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_184" id="page_184">[184]</a></span></p> + + +<p>June 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Full-leafed in pride of deepest green,<br /> +The earth in the sunshine basks serene,<br /> +Where linden blossoms crowded cling,<br /> +A thousand bees are murmuring.<br /> +As showers drift from the freshened land<br /> +With a seven-barred bow is the rain-cloud spanned.<br /> +The wild rose yields her subtlest scents<br /> +Where hay cocks pitch their fragrant tents.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The longest day's too brief for June,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The night too short for such a moon!</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Sara Andrew Shafer.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>We thank Thee, our Father, for the wonderful +world in which we live; for the glory of the heavens; +for the beauty of the earth; for the bright morning +following the star-crowned night; for the song of +birds, the hum of bees, the fragrance of flowers, and +the laughter of children, for the industry of men +and women, for all Thy gifts of love. As again the +lengthening shadows creep across our pathway, +may we redouble our energies that no labor of love +may be left undone. So fill us with Thy presence, +so lead us by Thy Spirit this day, that in our homes +we may be patient, in our occupations sweet, in our +social relations brotherly, in all things Christlike, +for Jesus' sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Arthur Wright.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_185" id="page_185">[185]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Let me go where'er I will<br /> +I hear a sky-born music still:<br /> +It sounds from all things old,<br /> +It sounds from all things young,<br /> +From all that's fair, from all that's foul,<br /> +Peals out a cheerful song.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>It is not only in the rose,<br /> +It is not only in the bird,<br /> +Not only where the rainbow glows,<br /> +Nor in the song of woman heard,<br /> +But in the darkest, meanest things<br /> +There alway, alway something sings.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>'Tis not in the high stars alone,<br /> +Nor in the cups of budding flowers,<br /> +Nor in the redbreast's mellow tone,<br /> +Nor in the bow that smiles in showers,<br /> +But in the mud and scum of things<br /> +There alway, alway something sings.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Dear Father in heaven, we thank Thee for all the +sweet voices of the world, not only for the harmonies +of the great masters of song but for the sweet voice +of the mother as she sings her song of love, for the +bird in the spring time. We thank Thee for the +music in the prattle of children, and the kindly word +spoken everywhere. The world is full of music if +only we have music in our own hearts. We pray, as +we set forth again this morning, for spirits in tune +with all that is sweet and good. Wherever we go +this day, let the world sing to us and make us glad. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_186" id="page_186">[186]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A little bird with plumage brown,<br /> +Beside my window flutters down,<br /> +A moment chirps its little strain,<br /> +Then taps upon my window-pane.<br /> +And chirps again, and hops along,<br /> +To call my notice to its song;<br /> +But I work on, nor heed its lay,<br /> +Till, in neglect, it flies away.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>So birds of peace and hope and love<br /> +Come fluttering earthward from above,<br /> +To settle on life's window-sills,<br /> +And ease our load of earthly ills;<br /> +But we, in traffic's rush and din<br /> +Too deep engaged to let them in,<br /> +With deadened heart and sense plod on,<br /> +Nor know our loss till they are gone.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Paul Laurence Dunbar.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>My voice shalt Thou hear in the morning, O Lord, +in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, +and will look up; and looking up, may we not fail +to realize that, amid the turmoil of this outward +life, Thou art ever present to give peace and rest in +the inner life. Should we fail to recognize that presence +we shall lose the comfort which Thou art ever +ready to bestow, and must ourselves bear burdens +which Thou wouldst gladly bear for us or take from +us. Thou knowest our frame and rememberest that +we are dust. Open our spiritual vision to behold +that Divine resources are subject to our daily prayer. +In the name of Jesus, the Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">O. W. Scott.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_187" id="page_187">[187]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 3</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom +of Heaven.</i></p> + +<p><i>Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see +God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be +called the children of God.</i></p> + +<p><i>Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute +you, and shall say all manner of evil against +you falsely for my sake.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Matthew v. 3, 8, 11.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee +that Thou dost overrule our weakness, failure and +sins to the accomplishment of Thy divine plan for +us. We recall with pleasure our successes in the +past year, and if we have failed, wilt Thou show us +where and when and teach us the way of amendment. +We thank Thee for our Hope and Faith which +have come to us from the Bible. Here, on every +page and in every biography, have we learned of +Christ Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life. +We thank Thee that through Him our sins are forgiven, +and we have learned to know Thee, O blessed +Father, which knowledge is eternal life. May we +walk with Him, moment by moment in a life of +loving service to all mankind, during all the remaining +days of our life. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. M. Warner.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_188" id="page_188">[188]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 4</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>One flag, one land, one heart, one hand,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">One nation, evermore!</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>And for your country, boy, and for that flag, never +dream a dream but of serving her, though the service +carry you through a thousand hells! No matter +what happens to you—no matter who flatters or +abuses you—never look at another flag, never let a +night pass but you pray God to bless that flag.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Thine, O God, is the kingdom. And blessed is +the nation whose God is the Lord. We believe that +Thy hand has been in the founding and the fortunes +of this land. We do homage to it for its ideals, its +principles, its glorious company of apostles of truth, +its noble army of martyrs for liberty and humanity; +we love and cherish it as our home and our shrine; +but we hallow it, we stand in awe of it, as the scene +of Thy special activity, the instrument of Thy holy +purposes. May its vision not pass; may the clouds +that hang over it be dispersed by the clear shining +of the sun of righteousness and peace; may the +dream of freedom with fraternity be realized here, +even here, upon these shores, that Thy saving health +may be known among all nations. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. Ellwood Nash.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_189" id="page_189">[189]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Far up the crag, 'twixt sea and sky,<br /> +Where winds tempestuous, blowing by,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Leave giant boulders swept and bare;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Where forked lightnings fitful flare,</span><br /> +And petrels sound their stormy cry.<br /> +<br /> +A dainty bluebell, sweet and shy,<br /> +Lifted its head complacently,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">As guarded by the tenderest care,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Far up the crag.</span><br /> +<br /> +And now, whenever fear draws nigh,<br /> +In thought I stand 'twixt sea and sky,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">And, as of old in my despair,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">I bless the Power that set it there—</span><br /> +That tiny thing with courage high,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Far up the crag!</span> +</i></p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Florence E. Coates.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Eternal Presence, may we now speak to Thee? or, +consciously within Thy presence, should our lips be +still? Art Thou the Infinite Mercy, and shall we +say, be merciful? Shall we persuade the love +that can not once withhold itself? We would not +ask, were prayer to change established law. But, +we will open here our hearts, and so receive the +blessedness that seeks us and has sought us,—sought +us as the sunlight sought us early,—seeks us as +the raindrops seek us in the storm. Not more +canst Thou withhold the goodness from us. We +wait receptively, unbarring all our rust-hinged doors +to welcome the true favors that now find us. In +sweet trust, asking or unasking, we abide ever in +Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Perry Marshall.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_190" id="page_190">[190]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 6</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>God is a kind Father. He sets us all in the places +where he wishes us to be employed, and that employment +is truly "our Father's business." He chooses +work for every creature which will be delightful to +them, if they do it simply and humbly. He gives us +always strength enough and sense enough for what +He wants us to do; if we either tire ourselves or +puzzle ourselves, it is our own fault. And we may +always be sure, whatever we are doing, that we cannot +be pleasing Him if we are not happy ourselves.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Ruskin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father Divine, Thou art indeed kind. Thine are +the ways of kindness, of wisdom, and of love,—the +ways of pleasantness and the paths of peace. In +simple and humble spirit as becometh Thy children, +may we walk with Thee accomplishing the work to +which Thou dost call us. Our work is Thy work, +our business the Father's business; the business of +justice, mercy and truth. When loyal and true, +we are what we are, and do what we do by Thy +grace. So help us to honor Thee in all the duties of +life,—"Not slothful in business,—fervent in +spirit,"—pleasing Thee and therefore happy ourselves. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Isaac P. Coddington.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_191" id="page_191">[191]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Threefold is the form of Space:</span><br /> +Length, with ever restless motion,<br /> +Seeks eternity's wide ocean;<br /> +Breadth with boundless sway extends;<br /> +Depth to unknown realms descends.<br /> +<br /> +All as types to thee are given;<br /> +Thou must onward strive for heaven,<br /> +Never still or weary be,<br /> +Wouldst thou perfect glory see;<br /> +Far must thy researches go<br /> +Wouldst thou learn the world to know;<br /> +Thou must tempt the dark abyss<br /> +Wouldst thou prove what Being is.<br /> +<br /> +Naught but firmness gains the prize,—<br /> +Naught but fulness makes us wise,—<br /> +Buried deep, truth ever lies!</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Proverbs of Confucius.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, help us this day to make +good our privilege to feel and think of Thee as we +do. Help us this day to make ourselves part of +our brotherhood, and our brotherhood part of +Thee. We know not what the day hath in store for +us, but we pray Thee to help us have in store for it +our better heart, our better hands. Send Thy holy +spirit into our life to calm and to strengthen; that +we may be steadfast and true; that we may give +and be forgiven. Bless all Thy children this day, +and may our labor end as it began, in Thee, with +Thee, for Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Louis H. Buckshorn.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_192" id="page_192">[192]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 8</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>O Impatient Ones! Do the leaves say nothing to +you as they murmur to-day? They are not fashioned +this spring, but months ago; and the summer just +begun will fashion others for another year. At the +bottom of every leaf-stem is a cradle, and in it is an +infant germ; and the winds will rock it, and the +birds will sing to it all summer long, and next season +it will unfold. So God is working for you and carrying +forward to the perfect development all the processes +of our lives.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Ward Beecher.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Eternal Father, giver of all spiritual grace, +we thank Thee for Thy presence in our hearts. May +we realize that Thou hast the best possible plan +for every human life. Help us to be patient and joyful +in the consciousness that Thou art carrying forward +Thy blessed work in us. Thy love, O Lord, is equal +to Thy wisdom, and Thou wilt always do what is +best for us. May Thy holy will be our delight, so +that we may each trust in Thee at all times and +cheerfully say, Thy will, O Lord, not mine, be done. +Thou who dost care for the birds and the lilies art +ever mindful of us, Thy children. Deliver us from +worry and may Thy peace guard our hearts and +minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George H. Cheney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_193" id="page_193">[193]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 9</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let us hope that one day all mankind will be happy +and wise; and though this day never should dawn +to have hoped for it cannot be wrong. And in any +event, it is helpful to speak of happiness to those who +are sad, that thus at least they may learn what it is +that happiness means. They are ever inclined to +regard it as something beyond them, extraordinary, +out of their reach. But if all who may count themselves +happy were to tell, very simply, what it was that +brought happiness to them, the others would see that +between sorrow and joy the difference is but as between +a gladsome, enlightened acceptance of life and a hostile +gloomy submission; between a large and harmonious +conception of life, and one that is stubborn and narrow.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Maeterlinck.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, we thank Thee for the special providence +which is over everything which Thou hast created, +and wherein Thou residest with all Thine infinite +perfections. We thank Thee that Thou carest for +us all, that in our day of joy we know it is Thou who +fillest our cup, by giving us the faculties which make +it run over at the brim. We thank Thee that Thou +art with us in our days of hardship and of calamity, +that when our own heart cries out against us, Thou +art greater than our heart, and, understanding all +things, blessest us in secret ways; and when we are +cast down and go stooping and feeble, with hungering +eyes and a failing heart, that Thou still art with us, +and leadest us from strength to strength and blessest +us continually. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_194" id="page_194">[194]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Were any of us really disappointed or melancholy +in a hayfield? Did we ever lie fairly back on a haycock +and look up into the blue sky, and listen to the +merry sounds, the whetting of scythes and the laughing +prattle of women and children, and think evil thoughts +of the world or our brethren? Not we! Or, if we +have so done we ought to be ashamed of ourselves, +and deserve never again to be out of town during +hay-harvest.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Hughes.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Dear Heavenly Father, we devoutly thank Thee +for the beautiful open face of Nature shining upon +us; for the splendor of the fields where the birds +wing their merry flight; for the breath of the flowers +and the grass beneath the scythe, like the odor of +incense; and most of all, for the merry shouts of +women and children and men in the meadow, in +the heyday of happiness, as they fill their souls with +the freedom of the children of God, and live in the +open where no evil breath can come. Grant that +we may live spiritually forever in the fragrant hayfields +of life, where the birds sing and the children +shout, and where no covering or roof can ever shut +out the sunshine of life's eternal bliss. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Robert S. Kellerman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_195" id="page_195">[195]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 11</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A story is told of a king who went into his garden +one morning and found everything withering and +dying. He asked an oak that stood near the gate +what the trouble was. He found that it was sick of +life and determined to die, because it was not tall and +beautiful like the pine. The pine was out of heart +because it could not bear grapes like the vine; the +vine was going to throw its life away, because it could +not stand erect and have as fine fruit as the pomegranate; +and so on throughout the garden. Coming +to the heart'sease, the king found its bright face +uplifted, as full of cheerfulness as ever. Said the +king, "Well, heart'sease, I am glad to find one +brave little flower in this general discouragement and +dying. You don't seem one bit disheartened." "No, +your majesty. I know I am of small account; but +I concluded you wanted a heart'sease when you +planted me. If you had wanted an oak, or a pine, or +a vine, or a pomegranate, you would have set one +out. So I am bound to be the best heart'sease that +ever I can."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Moodie.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Like the wise King of old, I pray Thee, gracious +Lord, give unto me wisdom. May Thy Pillar of +Light guide my footsteps so that I go not astray in +the wilderness of sin and selfish ambition. Help +me to acquire a pure heart and a contented spirit. +Amidst all the vicissitudes of fortune, let faith induce +me to say, "Whatever God doeth is well." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">M. M. Eichler.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_196" id="page_196">[196]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 12</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>What shall I do to be just?<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">What shall I do for the gain</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Of the world—for its sadness?</span><br /> +Teach me, O seers that I trust!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Chart me the difficult main</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Leading out of my sorrow and madness,</span><br /> +Preach me the purging of pain.<br /> +<br /> +Shall I wrench from my finger the ring<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To cast to the tramp at my door?</span><br /> +Shall I tear off each luminous thing<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To drop in the palm of the poor?</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">What shall I do to be just?</span><br /> +Teach me, O Ye in the light,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Whom the poor and the rich alike trust;</span><br /> +My heart is aflame to be right.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Hamlin A. Garland.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Infinite Spirit, Thou seest us just as we are. In +Thy sight there can be no make-believe; we need +not seek to offer Thee as a penance for our sins some +cheap alms to the poor, for Thy favor cannot be +bought. We pray simply that we may be just,—that +we may be true. If we have wronged anyone, +help us to right the wrong. If we have been false +to ourselves or false to our neighbors, O Lord, make +us true,—we seek no easy admission to a far-off +heaven, we seek Thy presence here and now, today, +by the only pathway open, the pathway of righteousness +and truth. That we may enter this pathway, +grant us we pray Thee the illumination of Thy Holy +Spirit. Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_197" id="page_197">[197]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The law of worthy life is fundamentally the law of +strife. It is only through labor, painful effort, by +grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to +better things.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Roosevelt.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If we would please God we must watch every stroke +and touch upon the canvas of our lives; we may not +think we can lay it on with a trowel and yet succeed. +We ought to live as miniature painters work, for they +watch every line and tint.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"><span class="smcap">Spurgeon.</span></p> + +<p>As we begin this new day, O our Father, may such +energy and vigor, such strength and courage, such +faith and hope be ours that the problems and tasks +awaiting us may be boldly and gladly met as challenges +to our powers. May that abundant life be in +us which shall make our difficulties a tonic, and the +struggle to achieve high aims a joy. May we be +resourceful, equal to life, adequate to every situation, +able to stand this universe,—men who can. May +we count it a privilege to live, to have a vision of life's +possibilities, and to have the fellowship of so many +good men and women by the way. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George R. Dodson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_198" id="page_198">[198]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>With place, with gold, with power—oh, ask me not<br /> +With these my little hour of life to blot.<br /> +A little hour indeed! and I would fain<br /> +Its moments spend in what is worth its pain.<br /> +What traveler would faint through troublous lands<br /> +To gather only what must leave his hands<br /> +The moment that he takes his homeward ship?<br /> +Earth's goods and gauds give every man the slip;<br /> +But wealth of thought and richer wealth of love,<br /> +Must pass for coin in any world above.<br /> +The good to others done while here I strive<br /> +Is all at last that shall my dying shrive;<br /> +And, setting sail, my slight self-conquest's store<br /> +Is all my freight if I shall come to shore.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Father, God! The span of our influence is +both near and far; may it also be direct and strong. +Thou hast planted mighty virtue and unquenchable +love in our hearts. Love knows the secret of imparting +virtue's value to all the wretchedness in life. So, +we beseech Thee, direct our hearts to altitudes of +holiness and set our feet in the highways of helpfulness. +May the charm of gentleness be in every service +to-day, and may the tone of tenderness carry love's +message over all barriers to the hearts that need. +Thus would we keep our confidence with Thee and +bind ourselves more profitably to our fellows. So +shall Thy great name be honored among men. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. O. Randall.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_199" id="page_199">[199]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 15</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>What seems to grow fairer to me as life goes by, is +the love and peace and tenderness of it. Not its wit +and cleverness and grandeur of knowledge, but just +the laughter of little children, and the friendship of +friends, and the cosy talk of the fireside, and the sight +of flowers and the sound of music.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">J. R. Green.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Now that Thou givest us the light of a new day, +grant that it carry with it the brightness of hope and +courage for whatsoever the day may offer. Always +behind the clouds is the shining that never fails; +always beyond the labor which irks us is the joy of +attainment. Open our eyes that we may see the best +which shall be in the day; its love of friends, its sights +of beauty, its music, its wisdom such as no day +before could possess, its voices of the Spirit awaiting +the listening ear, its tears of compassion and sympathy. +Give us our daily bread such as shall feed the heart +and enrich the mind and grant us forgiveness when +we are blind to the common treasures of this Thy +world. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George A. Thayer.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_200" id="page_200">[200]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Methought that in a solemn church I stood.<br /> +Its marble acres, worn with knees and feet,<br /> +Lay spread from door to door, from street to street.<br /> +Midway the form hung high upon the rood<br /> +Of Him who gave His life to be our good;<br /> +Beyond, priests flitted, bowed, and murmured meet<br /> +Among the candles shining still and sweet.<br /> +Men came and went, and worshipped as they could;<br /> +And still their dust a woman with her broom,<br /> +Bowed to her work, kept sweeping to the door.<br /> +Then saw I slow through all the pillared gloom<br /> +Across the church a silent figure come.<br /> +"Daughter," it said, "Thou sweepest well my floor!"<br /> +"It is the Lord!" I cried, and saw no more.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Father, who art ever with us, help us this +day so to reveal Thee through our common tasks, +our relations with one another, in our homes and at +our work, that men may know and love Thee better. +This is Thy most beautiful world. May we not +mar its glory by our selfishness, but by the gentleness +and sweetness of our lives make it more beautiful. +May we this day not add to another's burden of care +or pain. But may we by our words and deeds sweeten +and brighten and strengthen the lives of those whom +we meet. For Thy goodness and mercy to us, for +the opportunity of service, for love and sympathy, we +thank Thee and pray that our devotion to Thy truth +may reveal the thankfulness of our hearts. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Arthur L. Wheatherly.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_201" id="page_201">[201]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>For I, a man, with men am linked,<br /> +And not a brute with brutes; no gain<br /> +That I experience must remain<br /> +Unshared; but should my best endeavor<br /> +To share it, fail—subsisteth ever<br /> +God's care above, and I exult<br /> +That God, by God's own ways occult,<br /> +May—doth, I will believe—bring back<br /> +All wanderers to a single track.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father of all souls in all worlds, our best friend +forever, in Thy good keeping we cannot wander +beyond Thy loving care. We thank Thee for life, +for the fair world we live in, enriched by Thy countless +benefits, for the glad tidings of Thy fatherly love +that never fails, for the brotherhood that binds together +all Thy children, and for the immortal hope +that beckons us up and on. By faithful living may +we make life divine, and by brotherly service show +Thee our gratitude and love. May the gospel of +Jesus prevail in all hearts, speedily bring all wanderers +home, draw our souls heavenward, and prepare +us for higher and larger realms of service, +where we shall forever live to Thy glory. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Rush R. Shippen.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_202" id="page_202">[202]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>That man has a liberal education who has been so +trained in youth that his body is the ready servant of +his will, and does with ease and pleasure the work +that it is capable of; whose intellect is a clear logic +engine, ready to spin the gossamer as well as forge +the anchors of the mind—one full of life and fire but +whose passions are trained to come to heel by a rigorous +will; the servant of a tender conscience; who has +learned to love beauty, to hate vileness and to respect +others as himself; such a one is in harmony with +nature; they will get on together.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Henry Huxley.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, we would face this day in conscious +companionship with Thee. Give us to know Thy +will, to do Thy work. Help us to interpret aright +Thy constant revelation of love in nature and in the +experiences of life. Give us strength so to will and +so to act that we may make this day rich in the joy +that comes from helpful living. May divine impulse +find quick expression in righteous deed. In Thine +unresting effort to make this world Thine own may we +join with glad hearts. Rejoicing in Thy love, strong +in the consciousness of Thy presence, may we go to +our day's work with unwavering purpose to do Thy +will. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Lathan A. Crandall.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_203" id="page_203">[203]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A lily grows mysteriously, pushing up its solid +weight of stem and leaf in the teeth of gravity. Shaped +into beauty by secret and invisible fingers, the flower +develops we know not how. But we do not wonder at it. +Every day the thing is done; it is Nature, it is God. +We are spiritual enough at least to understand that. +But when the soul rises slowly above the world, pushing +up its delicate virtues in the teeth of sin, shaping +itself mysteriously into the image of Christ, we deny +that the power is not of man. A strong will, we say, +a high ideal, the reward of virtue, Christian influence—these +will account for it. Spiritual character is merely +the product of anxious work, self-command, and self-denial. +We allow, that is to say, a miracle to the lily, +but none to the man. The lily may grow; the man +must fret and toil and spin.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Drummond.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>This morning, our God, we need Thee! Give +us Thyself afresh in the holy inspiration of heart +warmth and burning love, that today we may have +power from above while we walk and toil with +things and folks of earth. May we be the vase to +hold the blossoming beauty of Thy unfolding. So +may that beauty which Thou givest unfold in acts +which we are led to perform, and the holiness of +this day set fast character drawn from Thee. Thus +may we all who are Thy children gladden the earth +with unfolding beauty and kindness and shut out +the things that are earthy. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. E. Small.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_204" id="page_204">[204]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 20</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The more simply you live, the more secure is your +future; you are less at the mercy of surprises and +reverses. An illness or a period of idleness does not +suffice to dispossess you; a change of position, even +considerable, does not put you to confusion. Having +simple needs, you find it less painful to accustom yourself +to the hazards of fortune. You remain a man, +though you lose your office or your income, because +the foundation on which your life rests is not your +table, your cellar, your horses, your goods and chattels, +or your money. In adversity you will not act like a +nursling deprived of its bottle and rattle. Stronger, +better armed for the struggle, presenting like those +with shaven heads, less advantage to the hands of +your enemy, you will also be of more profit to your +neighbor.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles Wagner.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou who art ever the same, with the growing +light of a new day, we would again take Thy name +upon our lips; and again invite the dear consciousness +of Thy presence. We do not know what this +day may yield us. It may bring disaster; perhaps +cherished hopes must be surrendered; plans may +miscarry, clouds may gather, and storms may rage, +but we will not be unmanned. We will not surrender +our hold upon Thee. May we thus be enabled to +meet disaster with courage, and unlooked for joy +with the poise of humility. Guard our goings-out +and our comings-in, and lead us into the beauteous +paths of ripe content. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Harry Holden.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_205" id="page_205">[205]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 21</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Love wore a suit of hodden gray<br /> +And toiled within the fields all day.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Love wielded pick and carried pack<br /> +And bent to heavy loads the back.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Though meagre fed and sorely lashed,<br /> +The only wage Love ever asked,</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>A child's wan face to kiss at night,<br /> +A woman's smile by candle light.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Margaret Sangster.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for love. +How rich a gift it has been to us, and how exhaustless. +It has been the source of all other gifts. We thank +Thee for the brightness and gladness with which +love invests the sunny day, and more for the patience +and hope which it inspires when the sky is overcast +and the way grows weary. In joy or sorrow we can +ask nothing better than that it be our constant +guest. We thank Thee for home life which offers +us every hour its opportunity to give and to receive +love. May it be to us the symbol of Thy great household +which Thy love pervades. And as we thus +think of it may our home life grow to us more holy +and divine and Thy love for all Thy children more +personal and tender until Thy kingdom come and +Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Vincent E. Tomlinson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_206" id="page_206">[206]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 22</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The entire object of true education is to make people +not merely do the right things, but enjoy the right +things—not merely industrious, but to love industry—not +merely learned, but to love knowledge—not +merely pure, but to love purity—not merely just, +but to hunger and thirst after justice.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Ruskin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Father, fill us with Thy love today, with love +for Thee, and love for the morning light and all Thy +glory. Fill us with love for the work that Thou dost +give us to do, with love for the truth that Thou +dost reveal to us and with love for the ideals of purity +and righteousness that Thou dost set before us. +May we have love for all Thy children. Make us +realize that they are all our brothers and sisters. +Make us strive to have Thy will done in their lives. +Make us eager to have them know Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles B. Bliss.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_207" id="page_207">[207]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 23</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>If you were toiling up a weary hill,<br /> +Bearing a load beyond your strength to bear.<br /> +Straining each nerve untiringly and still<br /> +Stumbling and losing foothold here and there<br /> +And each one passing by would do so much<br /> +As give one upward lift and go his way,<br /> +Would not the slight reiterated touch<br /> +Of help and kindness lighten all the day?</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>If you were breasting a keen wind which tossed<br /> +And buffeted and chilled you as you strove,<br /> +Till baffled and bewildered quite, you lost<br /> +The power to see the way, and aim and move,<br /> +And one, if only for a moment's space,<br /> +Gave you a shelter from the bitter blast,<br /> +Would you not find it easier to face<br /> +The storm again when the brief rest was past?</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Susan Coolidge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, as we thank Thee for the friendly +service and sympathy that bless and strengthen our +daily lives, we pray that our gratitude may move us +to give a like service and sympathy as freely as we +receive. In the day to whose beginning Thou hast +brought us, let our hearts and hands be ready to +meet the needs of those with whom we come in +touch. So influence our wayward wills that we +shall not walk in selfish ways, nor forget the ties +that bind us to one another, and to Thee. Keep us +conscious of our birthright as Thy children, that +our acts and aims may be filial and fraternal and +loyal to Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Costello Weston.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_208" id="page_208">[208]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>It matters little where I was born,<br /> +Whether my parents were rich or poor,<br /> +Whether they shrank from the cold world's scorn<br /> +Or walked in the pride of wealth secure;<br /> +But whether I live an honest man,<br /> +And hold my integrity firm in my clutch,<br /> +I tell you brother, plain as I am,<br /> +It matters much.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">From the Swedish.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +Dear Father in Heaven, good Giver of all,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">For birth in a land fair and free,</span><br /> +For parents with pluck, if not the best luck,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Who toiled and who suffered for me.</span><br /> +Who never knew fear, though the scorners were near,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Whom circumstance filled not with pride,</span><br /> +I thank Thee! These gifts, more than all on the lists,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Have mattered with me, and abide.</span><br /> +<br /> +While striving and struggling my manhood to build,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To live like Thine own perfect Son,</span><br /> +I find on Earth's face not just one single place<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Where such work so well can be done</span><br /> +As in the fair land which from Thy gracious hand<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Comes to me a home to enjoy,</span><br /> +Where man, who should grow, may all liberty know<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In seeking the soul's high employ.</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 10em;"> Amen.</span> +</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick C. Priest.</span></p> +</div> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_209" id="page_209">[209]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Don't object that your duties are so insignificant; +they are to be reckoned of infinite significance, and +alone important to you. Were it but the more perfect +regulation of your apartments, the sorting away of +your clothes and trinkets, the arranging of your +papers,—"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do +it with all thy might," and all thy worth and constancy. +Much more, if your duties are of evidently higher, +wider scope; if you have brothers, sisters, a father, +a mother, weigh earnestly what claim does lie upon +you on behalf of each, and consider it as the one thing +needful, to pay them more and more honestly and +nobly what you owe. What matter how miserable +one is if one can do that? That is the sure and steady +disconnection and extinction of whatsoever miseries +one has in this world.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Creator of things, Father of Spirits, standing at +the dawn of a new day we seek Thy blessing. We +know not what awaits us, Thou knowest, grant us +guidance! Help us to see all our duties in the light +of Thy countenance. Thou hast made the little +and the large, help us to see our duties in their relation +to Thy plans. Whatsoever we do, help us +to do all to Thy glory. Help us to sweep our floors +as to Thy laws, right our rooms as a part of Thy +universe, care for our clothes as gifts from Thee. +Help us to see Thee in the souls Thou hast sent into +the world, to treat them as thinking-thoughts of +Thine, expressions of Thy life. May we owe no man +anything but to love, may the sun never set on an +unpaid bill. For Thy name's sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">O. P. Gifford.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_210" id="page_210">[210]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Write it on your heart that every day is the best +day in the year. No man has learned anything +rightly until he knows that every day is doomsday. +Today is a king in disguise. Today always looks +mean to the thoughtless, in the face of an uniform +experience that all good and great and happy actions +are made up precisely of these blank todays. Let +us not be so deceived, let us unmask the king as he +passes.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, we thank Thee for this morning that +ushers in the only day of which we have promise. +Whether it proves to be a day of sunshine or of +clouds,—of joy or of sorrow,—may we live it with +thankfulness, with perfect confidence that Thou +wilt always give us that which is for our own good. +Help us to spend this day in doing well what our +hands find to do; may our souls breathe the spirit +of love and helpfulness to all, and may we have +abundantly the influence of Thy divine spirit to +keep us pure. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Luther F. McKinney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_211" id="page_211">[211]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I like the man who faces what he must<br /> +With heart triumphant and a step of cheer;<br /> +Who fights the daily battle without fear;<br /> +Sees his hopes fail, yet keeps unfaltering trust<br /> +That God is God; that somehow, true and just,<br /> +His plans work out for mortals; not a tear<br /> +Is shed when fortune, which the world holds dear,<br /> +Falls from his grasp; better, with love, a crust<br /> +Than living in dishonor; envies not,<br /> +Nor loses faith in man; but does his best,<br /> +Nor even murmurs at his humbler lot;<br /> +But with a smile and words of hope, gives zest<br /> +To every toiler; he alone is great<br /> +Who by a life heroic conquers fate.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Sarah Knowles Bolton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Gracious Father, last night we laid ourselves +down in peace to sleep, but it was Thou who madest +us to dwell in safety, and when we awoke this morning +we found ourselves still with Thee. Thy loving +favor was keeping faithful watch and ward while +we slumbered. We thank Thee for Thy kindly care +of our lives during the darkness and danger of the +night. Confident of Thy continued presence and +armed with Thy unfailing strength, we would go +forth to meet the duties and delights of the new +day. God with us, we will overcome every temptation, +endure every trial, bear every burden, and +improve every opportunity of character-building and +service-rendering, in the trustful and courageous +spirit of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Ralph E. Conner.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_212" id="page_212">[212]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 28</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>How large a part of our Godward life is travelled, +not by clear landmarks seen far off in the promised +land, but as travellers climb a mountain peak, by +putting footstep after footstep, slowly and patiently, +into the prints which someone going before us, with +keener sight, with stronger nerves, tied to us by the +cord of saintly sympathy, has planted deep into the +pathless snow of the bleak distance that stretches up +between humanity and God.... So we ascend by +one another. We live by one another's blessings.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, we thank Thee for the light of a +new day. May a new spirit and new courage come +to our hearts. We thank Thee for all those who by +patient toil and self-forgetting effort have made +life as sweet and precious to us as it is. If we can +no longer hear the voices nor see the faces of those +we love or have reason to revere, may we be able +to see their foot-prints and to take the way they +trod, though that way seem steep and hard. May +we be assured that the upward way leads to the +expanding view and brings us to the splendor of the +setting sun or of the still more glorious dawn. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Hilary Bygrave.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_213" id="page_213">[213]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A prince went into the vineyard to examine it. +He came to a peach tree, and said, "What are you +doing for me?" The tree said, "In the spring I +give my blossoms and fill the air with fragrance, and +on my boughs hangs the fruit which men will gather +and carry into the palace for you." "Well done!" +said the prince. To the chestnut he said, "What +are you doing?" "I am making nests for the birds, +and shelter cattle with my leaves and spreading +branches." And the prince said, "Well done!" +Then he went down to the meadow and asked the grass +what it was doing. "We are giving our lives for others, +for your sheep and cattle that they may be nourished." +And the prince said, "Well done!" Last of all he +asked the tiny daisy what it was doing, and the daisy +said, "Nothing, nothing. I cannot make a nesting-place +for the birds, and I cannot give shelter for the +cattle, and I cannot send fruit into the palace, and I +cannot even give food for the sheep and cows,—they +do not want me in the meadow. All I can do +is to be the best little daisy I can be." And the prince +bent down and kissed the daisy, and said, "There +is none better than thou."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Help us, O Father, not to wait for the great +opportunities which may never come. Help us to +do with faithfulness the duties which lie close at +hand. In our homes this day and wherever we +may be—at school or on the street or at our +work—fill our hearts with the spirit of Christ and +let that spirit speak in every word which passes +our lips and shine from our faces and work with +our hands. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Walter A. Tuttle.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_214" id="page_214">[214]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I will be glad all day for this cool draught<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the clear drops I dash upon my brow;</span><br /> +For the fresh glint of sunlight on the tree<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the bird singing on the bough.</span><br /> +<br /> +I will be glad for that stored strength of life<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Which lasts the day because the spirit wills;</span><br /> +For the live air that wings from far and breathes<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The vigor of the everlasting hills.</span><br /> +<br /> +What scope of toil, what loss or what reward,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I do not know. It is enough that now</span><br /> +I pledge the day's good cheer with this cool draught<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the drops dashed upon my brow.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles P. Cleaves.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, we are nursed in Thine arms, we +are rested in the heart of Jesus, so that we know no +more the emptiness of earth and the poverty of time, +for our citizenship is in heaven, already do we walk +the streets of gold. Out of the highest rapture may +we come to do earth's plainest work, earth's hardest +toil, with patient hearts and willing hands, knowing +that death can be but for a moment, that all things +are meant, in the sovereignty of God to give themselves +up to the rule of life. Thus may Thy children +be loyal citizens, patient workers, honest merchantmen, +wise parents. Be with all men who trust +Thee; melt the mountains before their coming, and +open the gates of difficulty ere they reach them, +and give them to feel that the greatness of Thy +mercy is the proof of its divinity. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joseph Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_215" id="page_215">[215]</a></span></p> + + +<p>July 31</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, +nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things +present, nor things to come.</i></p> + +<p><i>Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall +be able to separate us from the love of God which is +in Christ Jesus our Lord.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Romans</span> viii. 38-39.<br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>These verses seem to me to express completely the +remedial power of God's love. In this rough and +tumble world of ours, of hard conditions, of disasters +many, of untold misery, there are temptations enough +for men to lose faith in God's love. It is well now +and then to have an outburst of faith like this with +the assurance that nothing can ever separate any +child of God from the divine compassion and the divine +care.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, it is good for us to believe +that through all storms and all darkness and all +sickness and all infirmity, even through death itself, +Thy love abides. As we enter upon this day, we +know not whither we shall go, but we thank Thee +for the assurance that we may not go away from Thee. +Thou followest us with Thy care and wrappest us +around with Thy love, as with a garment. In all +that we do today may we know that Thou seest us, +and if our way be steep, may we be sure that Thou +lovest us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_216" id="page_216">[216]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 1</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Begin the morning by saying to thyself, I shall +meet this day with the busybody, the ungrateful, the +arrogant, deceitful, envious, unsocial. All these +things happen to them by reason of their ignorance +of what is good and evil. But I who have seen the +nature of the good that it is beautiful, and of the bad +that it is ugly, can neither be injured by any of them—for +no one can fix on me what is ugly—nor can I +be angry with my neighbor, nor hate him. We are +made for coöperation; to act against one another, +that is contrary to nature; and it is acting against +one another to be vexed and turn away.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Marcus Aurelius.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Eternal Spirit of Love, teach us the power of +love. Help us to learn that love is supreme, and +hence envieth not, nor vaunteth itself, nor seeketh +its own, but suffereth long and is kind. We, who +in Jesus of Nazareth have seen the glory of Thy +likeness and experienced the sweetness of Thy love, +desire like Him to reveal Thee in our lives, to be +loving and gentle, sincere and generous, to cooperate +with friend and stranger in all that is good, +to live so that they can work with us for the advancement +of everything righteous. Fill us, therefore, +with Thy spirit, and send us forth today in Thy +service. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William W. Guth.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_217" id="page_217">[217]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>"God!" let the torrents, like a shout of nations,<br /> +Answer! and let the ice-plain echo, "God!"<br /> +"God!" sing, ye meadow streams, with gladsome voice<br /> +Ye pine groves, with your soft and soul-like sounds!<br /> +And they, too have a voice, yon piles of snow,<br /> +And in their perilous fall shall thunder, "God!"<br /> +<br /> +Ye living flowers that skirt the eternal frost!<br /> +Ye wild goats sporting round the eagle's nest!<br /> +Ye eagles, playmates of the mountain storm!<br /> +Ye lightnings, the dread arrows of the clouds!<br /> +Ye signs and wonders of the elements!<br /> +Utter forth "God!" and fill the hills with praise!</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Samuel Taylor Coleridge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, how long have Thy servants +thirsted after Thee—Thou spring of everlasting +life! In this land of our home the meditations of +ages surround us, and through the treasured thoughts +of the wise in many generations we are lifted into a +light beyond the solitary soul. Countless are Thy +witnesses, Eternal God! the stars without number +are but a little part of them; and the prayers and +aspirings of every heart of man can never cease to +speak Thee. Humbled and blind amid Thy manifold +glories, may we find rest in the simplicity of +Christ, and be among the pure in heart who alone +can see Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Martineau.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_218" id="page_218">[218]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O God, my master God, look down and see<br /> +If I am making what Thou wouldst of me.<br /> +Fain might I lift my hands up in the air<br /> +From the defiant passion of my prayer;<br /> +Yet here they grope on this cold altar stone,<br /> +Graving the words I think I should make known.<br /> +Mine eyes are Thine. Yea, let me not forget,<br /> +Lest with unstaunched tears I leave them wet,<br /> +Dimming their faithful power, till they not see<br /> +Some small, plain task that might be done for Thee.<br /> +My feet, that ache for paths of flowery bloom,<br /> +Halt steadfast in the straitness of this room.<br /> +Though they may never be on errands sent,<br /> +Here shall they stay, and wait Thy full content.<br /> +And my poor heart, that doth so crave for peace,<br /> +Shall beat until Thou bid its beating cease.<br /> +So, Thou dear master God, look down and see<br /> +Whether I do Thy bidding heedfully.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alice Brown.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, from whom cometh +to us again this gift of life, may we be able to use +as Thou wouldst have us the fresh revelation and +energy of each morning hour. May we be helped +to see more clearly that task with all its blessings, +which Thou placest within our reach today. Freshen +our souls anew with the coming sunlight and +quicken our will that we may perceive and fulfil +our present duty gladly, eagerly, successfully, however +humble in the spirit of those who remember +that if done for Thy sake and beneath Thy laws +even servile labors shine. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Hobart Clark.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_219" id="page_219">[219]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We thank Thee for all that Thou hast made, and +that Thou hast called it Good! We thank Thee! We +enter into Thy work, and go about Thy business.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>O, it is great, and there is no other greatness. To +make some work of God's creation a little fruitfuller, +better, more worthy of God; to make some human hearts +a little wiser, manfuller, happier,—more blessed, less +accursed,—it is a work for God.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Heavenly Father, we would begin the day with +noble purpose; may we scorn all meanness, and lift +up our heads unto the Lord as men who have a great +expectation. Our hope is in a living God; Thou wilt +not allow our life to wander into darkness; if for a +small moment we are forsaken, we shall be gathered +with ineffable and everlasting mercies. In the confidence +of Thy presence, in the assurance of Thy +sustaining grace, we look steadfastly to heaven, and +then we look hopefully to earth, and we know that, +having begun the day with prayer and praise and pious +expectancy, its hours shall all be gladdened and its +even-tide shall be a benediction. Guide us with Thine +eyes; sustain us by Thy mighty power; keep us this +day without sin. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joseph Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_220" id="page_220">[220]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 5</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The scenery around your house may be monotonous, +without a mountain or sea or lake or hill; but an upward +look at the clear sky will put you in instant communication +with infinite beauty and majesty. No spot +on earth is common or barren over which the skies bend +in solemn silence. No human life need be barren or +common which is connected by the great network of +moral law with any other being.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">J. H. Carlisle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our God and Father, the author of beauty, the +rewarder of all them that seek Thee, we, Thy children, +come to Thee at the opening of this new day. May +we have hearts so pure that we shall see Thee; minds +so open that we shall talk with Thee; and lives so +true that we shall reveal Thee. Let toil become to us +as a sacrament. Reveal to us the beauty of life as +well as of holiness and help us to live with upturned +faces, so that we may catch the glory of Thy presence, +and reflect it to all around us. May we walk with +Thee, thinking Thy thoughts, having Thy visions of +beauty and of life. When life's evening shall come +gather us in Thine arms of love to be with Thee in +the home which Thou hast prepared for us and hast +beautified with earth's fairest treasures through Jesus +Christ, Our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John Galbraith.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_221" id="page_221">[221]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>How good is man's life, the mere living! How fit to employ<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">All the heart and the soul and the senses forever in joy!</span><br /></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">I am glad to think</span><br /> +I am not bound to make the world go right;<br /> +But only to discover and to do,<br /> +With cheerful heart, the work that God appoints.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">I will trust in Him,</span><br /> +That He can hold His own; and I will take<br /> +His will, above the work He sendeth me,<br /> +to be my chiefest good.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Jean Ingelow.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, all Thy works prove Thy +goodness; the world Thou givest us is good; the +powers with which Thou dost endow us are adapted +to deeds of goodness. We know full well that we do +evil as well as good. Some of our days close in sadness.... +At the beginning of this day we pledge ourselves +to try harder than ever to do something good, +to make somebody happy, to keep our minds filled +with pure thoughts, to set our ambitions on worthy +objects; and we pray that Thou who art "the Power +not ourselves that makes for righteousness" shalt +work with us that through our effort and Thy help +the day shall end in joy and peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Lee S. McCollester.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_222" id="page_222">[222]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Our lives are songs; God writes the words,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And we set them to music at pleasure;</span><br /> +And the song grows glad, or sweet, or sad,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">As we choose to fashion the measure.</span><br /> +We must write the music, whatever the song,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Whatever its rhyme or metre;</span><br /> +And if it is sad, we can make it glad,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Or, if sweet, we can make it sweeter.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>We thank Thee, O God, that Thou hast made us +responsive to all the beauty and gladness about us, +and that we may make our lives one grand, sweet +song. We know there is much that may spoil the song. +But we thank Thee, that if we follow the great Leader, +we can change all discordant notes into harmony. +Help us through Him to tune our lives into accord +with Thine. Especially may we live in peace with +each other. Make us strong to return good for evil, +to meet irritability with patience, unkindness with +gentleness and harsh words with quiet speech. So +may our lives "be filled with music, and the cares that +infest the day, shall fold their tents like the Arabs, +and as silently steal away." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James M. Payson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_223" id="page_223">[223]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Back of the canvas that throbs the painter is hinted and hidden,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Into the statue that breathes the soul of the sculptor is bidden,</span><br /> +Under the joy that is felt lie the infinite issues of feeling;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Crowning the glory revealed is the glory that crowns the revealing.</span><br /> +Great are the symbols of being, but that which is symbolled is greater;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Vast the create and beheld, but vaster the inward creator.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard Realf.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Thou, Lord, who hast created us surely for good +and not evil, for Thou art good and doest good, wilt +go with us through all the day. Help us to keep in +mind Thy presence, that we may walk before Thee +and be perfect, that we may walk with Thee and be +pleasing to Thee, that we may walk after Thee, +humbly, reverently. May we prize the glories that +come with the hours, not suffering them to make us +conceited or self-centered, or unduly independent, +but utilize them as means to make us more fully a +part of Thee. Give us this day complete victory over +each temptation as it arrives, and may we feel when +night falls that we have acquitted ourselves well in +the campaign, and done what we could to make, not +only ourselves, but the world around us, better. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Mudge.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_224" id="page_224">[224]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 9</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Each night is followed by its day,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Each storm by fairer weather,</span><br /> +While all the works of nature sing<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Their songs of joy together.</span><br /> +Then learn, O heart, their songs of hope!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Cease, soul, thy thankless sorrow;</span><br /> +For though the clouds be dark today,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The sun will shine tomorrow.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">T. Edgar Jones.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father of light! Who causeth light to shine out of +darkness and maketh day to follow the night; we +thank Thee for Thy loving care that has brought us +from the slumber and rest of night to behold the light +of a new day. May we rejoice in it, and cheerfully +enter upon its duties and experiences. May the grace +of Thy presence make our sunshine, that we may +walk in the light of heaven, breathe its atmosphere +and engage in its service; doing Thy will in the service +of one another and in the service of love, truth +and goodness. May the light of faith, hope, and love +shining within us, dispel all darkness and sorrow +from our lives, that light which shines so lustrously +from the life of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Robert T. Polk.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_225" id="page_225">[225]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Never say, "It is nobody's business but my own +what I do with my life." It is not true. Your life is +put into your bands as a trust, for many others besides +yourself. If you use it well, it will make many others +happy; if you abuse it, you will harm many others +besides yourself.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James M. Pullman.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty Father, whom, though we have not seen, +we love, we know not what this day may bring forth +but we know that it shall be for good as our trust is in +Thee. We look up and adore Thee, and we believe +and love and obey. Throughout all the hours of this +day may we be "diligent in business, fervent in spirit, +serving the Lord." We believe in the victory of good +over evil, of light over darkness; help us to bear our +part courageously in the battle. Be merciful to us +and make us merciful to one another. May we be +numbered with those who are pure in heart, and see +God in the humblest service to the humblest people. +We beseech Thee to answer according to Thy love +not only these prayers which we utter with our lips +but also the silent prayers of our heart. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Harold Pattison.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_226" id="page_226">[226]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 11</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Prince Florimel and Prince Carimel were twin +brothers, the sons of a king, and no one could tell which +of the two ought to succeed to the throne, for they were +both exactly the same age. So one day they went to a +wise magician, and asked him which of them ought to +be king after their father's death. "He who is most +worthy," said the magician. "But how shall we find +out who is most worthy?" "He who possesses the +magic flower that grows in the enchanted forest shall +be found most worthy," he answered. So the two +brothers travelled through the enchanted forest until +they found the magic flower; but it grew in such a +dangerous place that Carimel would not attempt to +reach it. Florimel, however, clambered down the rocks +and plucked the flower; and when he had got it, what +do you think he did with it? Why, he gave it to his +brother, for the name of that magic flower was Unselfishness.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Moodie.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, with thankful hearts for all Thy goodness +to us in the past,—we seek Thy Holy Spirit's +guidance for the day before us. Help us to live not +for self alone, but for the good of all with whom we +mingle. May the needy, suffering, and struggling +ones all about us gather strength because of our devotion +to Thee. So inspire us to forget ourselves, that +we may the better remember our Master, and the +privileges and duties of a life's service to Thy children. +Wilt Thou not, Infinite One, thus help us, this day, +and in all the days to come, to live to Thy glory! +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Lewis P. Bates.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_227" id="page_227">[227]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 12</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>To do something for someone else; to love the unlovely; +to give a hand to the unattractive; to speak +to the uncongenial; to make friends with the poor and +folks of lowly degree; to find a niche in the church of +the Lord, and to do something out of sheer love for Him; +to determine in His house to have His mind; to plan +to win at least one for the Master; to aim to redeem +past time that is lost; to will to let one's light shine; +to cut off practices that are sinful and costly; to add the +beauty of holiness—this is to make one's life a thing +of beauty and this is to grow in grace, for growing in +grace is simply copying the beautiful life of the altogether +lovely One.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward F. Reimer.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Infinite Father, we rejoice that it is possible for us +to be workers together with Thee by giving our sympathy, +love and help to Thy needy children. As Thou +hast honored us by appointing us to such a gracious +ministry, may we seek to honor Thee in return by trying +to do Thy blessed will. In all lowly and gentle +ways, may we do what we can to bind up the broken-hearted, +to relieve the distressed, to strengthen the +weak. Let none who suffer look to us in vain for some +manifestation of the Christ-like Spirit. May we so +meet and treat the sad, the lonely, the tempted, that +they shall take knowledge of us that we have been +with Jesus. So may His heavenly teaching bear sweet +fruit in our conduct and characters, and so may the +Kingdom which He came to establish grow apace in +the world. In His name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Willard C. Selleck.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_228" id="page_228">[228]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Let me feel that I am to be a lover. I am to see to it +that the world is better for me, and to find my reward +in the act. Love would put a new face on this weary +old world in which we dwell as pagans and enemies +too long; and it would warm the heart to see how fast +the vain diplomacy of statesmen, the impotence of +armies and navies and lines of defence, would be superseded +by this unarmed child. This great, overgrown, +dead Christendom of ours still keeps alive at least the +name of a lover of mankind. But one day all men will +be lovers: and every calamity will be dissolved in the +universal sunshine.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>What manner of love hast Thou bestowed upon us, +dear Lord, that we should be called Thy children! +As Thou hast loved us, so teach us each to love the +world. This day someone will go forth to business +on land or sea burdened with heavy cares: some +father disheartened and discouraged will take up the +trials of yesterday wondering what the end will be—some +mother dismayed with her lot will cry "How +long?" Help us, O Lord to minister to them +in word or look, in prayer or gift. As the sun shall +this day bring light and life to this old earth causing +it to yield its highest purpose, so grant that Thy love +may give through us a new inspiration to all mankind. +Hasten the time when all shall love Thee as Thou +hast loved the world. Then will each love the other. +Then will the sword and the spear be molten into +the plowshare and the pruning hook, and the desert +shall bud and blossom as the rose. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edwin Alonzo Blake.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_229" id="page_229">[229]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Thou art, O God, the life and light<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of all this wondrous world we see;</span><br /> +Its glow by day, its smile by night,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Are but reflections caught from thee.</span><br /> +Where'er we turn, thy glories shine,<br /> +And all things fair and bright are thine.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Moore.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, who hast +safely brought us to the beginning of this day, defend +us in the same with Thy mighty power. Grant that +this day we fall into no sin. Create in us a clean heart +and renew a right spirit within us. Open our eyes +that this day may be a fresh disclosure of Thyself, +the Unseen Presence; endow us with Thy strength +that, in joy and pain, it may lead us into Thy house +not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. Enable +us so to use the things of the world that while they +abide we may not lose Thy presence, and when they +pass we may not stand alone. So shall the spirit of +Christ inflame us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick W. Perkins.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_230" id="page_230">[230]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>It ain't no use to grumble and complain,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">It's just as cheap and easy to rejoice;</span><br /> +When God sorts out the weather and sends rain,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Why, rain's my choice.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Whitcomb Riley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<blockquote><p><i>When you get into a tight place, and everything goes +against you, till it seems as if you could not hold on a +minute longer, never give up then, for that's just the +place and time that the tide will turn.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Harriet Beecher Stowe.</span> +</p> + + +<p>Father, we pray Thee that in every emergency of +our lives we may be faithful to the duty which the +day demands, and with reverent spirits acquit us like +men, doing what should be done, bearing what must +be borne, and so growing greater from our toil and +our sufferings, till we transfigure ourselves into noble +images of humanity, which are blameless within and +beautiful without, and acceptable to Thy spirit. So +may Thy kingdom come and Thy will be done on +earth as it is in heaven; for Thine is the kingdom +and the power and the glory, the dominion and +honor forever and ever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_231" id="page_231">[231]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>It was only a glad "Good Morning"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">As she passed along the way;</span><br /> +But it spread the morning's glory<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Over the livelong day.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Carlotta Perry.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Smile upon the troubled pilgrims<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Whom you pass and meet;</span><br /> +Frowns are thorns, and smiles are blossoms,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Oft to weary feet.</span><br /> +Do not make the way seem harder<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">By a sullen face;</span><br /> +Smile a little, smile a little,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Brighten up the place.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father, in this morning hour, we would look into +Thy face and feel the sweetness of that transforming +influence which is forever baptizing Thy world with +light and gladness, adding beauty to beauty and glory +to glory. Baptize us anew, with this all-pervading +spirit and send us out into this day's work to meet +its varied experiences with trusting hearts and smiling +faces. May we each send forth a brightening, gladdening +influence to cheer and strengthen and uplift every +weary, troubled pilgrim whom we meet on this day's +journey. So may it be ours to enter into closer and +diviner fellowship with Thee, our Father, whose +greatest joy is to impart joy and blessing to Thy waiting +children. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Annette J. Shaw.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_232" id="page_232">[232]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There are nettles everywhere,<br /> +But smooth green grasses are more common still;<br /> +The blue of heaven is larger than the cloud.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Elizabeth Barrett Browning.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Flower in the crannied wall,<br /> +I pluck you out of the crannies;—<br /> +Hold you here, root and all, in my hand,<br /> +Little flower—but if I could understand<br /> +What you are, root and all, and all in all,<br /> +I should know what God and man is.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alfred Tennyson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Thou, Who hast gemmed the heavens with round, +revolving worlds, the earth with beauty and the +coronet of our minds with royal faculties, we do not +know what "the little flower is, root and all, and all +in all" and yet, dear Lord, through the clear and the +convincing revelation of Thy dear Son; through the +divine image which Thou hast implanted within us; +through the mighty and the persuasive witness from +experience, we do feel and believe that Thou art the +great creator, preserver and benefactor; That Thou +hast called us to do a noble, a specific work; that +we ought not to neglect the gift that is in us; to this +end wilt Thou help us to be pure, brave, faithful and +strong, that we may fight the good fight, and win the +crown of righteousness. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Albert Hammatt.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_233" id="page_233">[233]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 18</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O ye, so far above me on the Height,<br /> +I cannot hear your voices as ye stand<br /> +Facing the vast, invisible to me.<br /> +But I can see your gestures of delight,<br /> +And something guess of that wide, glorious sea,<br /> +The glimmering isles of that enchanted land,<br /> +The winds which from that ocean freshly blow.<br /> +And so your Vision lifts me toward the Height,<br /> +Although ye have forgot me far below.<br /> +<br /> +But you, my brother, you, my near of kin,<br /> +Who some few steps above me on the steep<br /> +Look smiling back to cheer me ever on,<br /> +Who lend a hand as I the chasm leap,<br /> +And stay your haste that I the crag may win,<br /> +Thinking it scorn for Strength to climb alone;<br /> +You with your morning song when sings the lark,<br /> +You, with unflagging purpose at high noon,<br /> +And quiet-hearted trust when comes the dark,—<br /> +To you I owe it that I climb at all.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mary Frances Wright.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Spirit of the Infinite Life! We praise Thee that +our visions of the Divinest rise far beyond the borders +of our known and familiar fields, that the resources +of our unwearied life are in those mysterious regions +that we have not explored. And yet we rejoice that +the shadows of these holy visions fall across our common +ways, reporting thus from the Infinite and the +unknown the possibilities of greater fortunes yet to be. +In this life of Thee may we dwell, seeing Thee in +the life about us and evermore seeking to lead the +life toward those high places that are always waiting +the coming of those who aspire toward Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. L. Rexford.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_234" id="page_234">[234]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The flowers got into a debate one morning as to which +of them was the flower of God: and the rose said: "I +am the flower of God, for I am the fairest and the most +perfect in beauty and variety of form and delicacy of +fragrance of all the flowers." And the crocus said: +"No, you are not the flower of God. Why, I was +blooming long before you bloomed. I am the primitive +flower; I am the first one." And the lily of the valley +said modestly: "I am small, but I am white; perhaps +I am the flower of God." And the trailing arbutus +said: "Before any of you came forth I was blooming +under the leaves and under the snow. Am I not the +flower of God?" And all the flowers cried out: "No, +you are no flower at all; you are a come-outer." And +then God's wind, blowing on the garden, brought this +message to them: "Little flowers, do you not know that +every flower that answers God's spring call, and comes +out of the cold, dark earth, and lifts its head above the +sod and blooms forth, catching the sunlight from God +and flinging it back to men, taking the sweet south +wind from God and giving it back to others in sweet +and blessed fragrance—do you not know they are all +God's flowers?"</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Lyman Abbott.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, in Thy sight, there are no +nations, there is no north and no south, no east and +no west; there is no black and no white; Jew and +Gentile, bond and free,—all are Thine. O, Lord, +give us so much breadth of sympathy that we shall be +able to understand at least dimly the universality of +Thy love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_235" id="page_235">[235]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Sound, sound the clarion, fill the fife!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To all the sensual world proclaim</span><br /> +One crowded hour of glorious life<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is worth an age without a name.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walter Scott.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<blockquote><p><i>Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. +Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for +powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your +work shall be no miracle. But you shall be a miracle. +Every day you shall wonder at yourself, at the richness +of life which has come to you by the grace of God.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the rest +of the night and the joy and beauty of the morning. +This day we accept as a loving tribute of Thy Love to +Thy children. May we not mar it by unhallowed +thoughts, unkind, hasty and regretful speech and +shameful and evil deeds. May ours be the illumination +which comes from moral and spiritual conquest. +May we feel the ties that bind us tenderly to Thee +and to one another; and work for that large human +brotherhood, which holds in its strong embrace even +the most distant and isolated member of the human +family. May we go forth to our work with a deep and +abiding faith in the power of good over evil and willing +to do our share in the building up of Thy kingdom +of love and righteousness, peace and good will here +upon earth. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Hendrik Vossema.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_236" id="page_236">[236]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We learn wisdom from failure much more than from +success, often discover what will do by finding out what +will not do, and probably he who never made a mistake +never made a discovery. Horne Tooke used to +say of his studies in intellectual philosophy that he had +become all the better acquainted with the country through +having had the good luck sometimes to lose his way.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Samuel Smiles.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, in the strength of our nightly rest and +daily bread we go forth to whatever needs us or awaits +us. Nothing from Thee is too difficult for us to attempt; +nothing too grievous for us to bear. Teach +us how priceless is Thy gift of life, how close we are +to the fountain of strength, how sure of success is +every effort to bring good to pass. Reverently and +believingly would we hearken to Thee in our inmost +souls. Let not our failures dishearten us, or the delay +of results cause chill of doubt or fear. May our +presence have strength and peace for others, and our +lives proclaim that Thou livest and art good to all. +In the name of Christ we lift our prayer. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Samuel C. Beane.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_237" id="page_237">[237]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 22</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>At Bannockburn Lord Randolph Murray was being +sorely pressed by a large body of cavalry. Sir James +Douglas got leave from Bruce to go to his aid, but just +as he came up he found the English in disorder, and +many horses galloping away with empty saddles. +"Halt!" he cried to his men; "These brave men +have already repulsed the enemy; let us not diminish +their glory by seeking to share it."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Moodie.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God of Hosts! On many a field of battle wilt +Thy soldiers fight this day. Help them to be brave +and true. Give them a glorious victory. Help us +who watch to give them full credit for their valor. +May we not diminish by seeking to share their glory. +May we not render their deeds commonplace by insisting +that "It is so easy, so natural, for them to be +good," implying that their struggle has not been hard +or that their victories had not been what ours have +proven to be. Help us, O Lord, with valor to fight +our own battles and run our own race and with gratitude +to be glad in others' victories. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. Frank Chase.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_238" id="page_238">[238]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 23</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The bee that sips her sweets from flowers fair,<br /> +Flying on careless wing now here, now there,<br /> +With azure skies above, green sward below,<br /> +And soft south wind to bear her to and fro,<br /> +Might seem the soul of self-devoted ease,<br /> +Her life a draught of nectar without lees.<br /> +Not so! Her prime is full of strenuous deed<br /> +That shames our own in generous meed<br /> +Of work for other's good. Long summer days<br /> +She builds her golden house, with guerdons stays<br /> +Her Queen, uprears her young, and stores her food—<br /> +Then sudden shuns her wealth, her home, her brood,<br /> +And seeks new haven on an unknown sea,<br /> +Leaving her life-work to posterity.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Hoyt Moore.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Gracious Father in heaven, and all about me, Thy +gentleness doth ever tend to make life greater and +richer. Thy providence is so wholesomely good, I +would fain be completely at home in it. Thou art +very gracious. Help me to be as gracious in my way +as Thou art in Thy wonderful way. When I acknowledge +that Thou art good and wise, there comes a +joyous freedom to my spirit that makes life a sweet +pleasure. I desire ever to work in the fulness of this +faith without grudging, without suspecting, an open, +glad and fruitful service. Oh, help me then to love +my fellows more, and Thee sincerely! Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Elihu Grant.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_239" id="page_239">[239]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 24</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Drudgery is the gray angel of success.... Look +at the leaders in the professions, the solid men in business, +the master-workmen who begin as poor boys and +end by building a town to house their factory-hands, +they are drudges of the single aim.... "One thing +I do."... Mr. Maydole, the hammer-maker of +Central New York, was an artist: "Yes," he said, +"I have made hammers for twenty-eight years." +"Well, then you ought to be able to make a pretty good +hammer by this time." "No, sir," was the answer, +"I never made a pretty good hammer—I make the +best hammer made in the United States."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William C. Gannett.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, we remember our daily duties before Thee, +the hard toil which Thou givest us in our manifold +and various avocations, and we pray Thee that there +may be in us such a confidence in our nature, such +earnest obedience to Thee, we reverencing all Thy +qualities and keeping Thy commands, that we shall +serve Thee every day, making our life one great act +of holiness unto Thee. May our continuous industry +be so squared by the golden rule that it shall nicely +fit with the interests of all with whom we have to do, +and so by our handicraft all mankind shall be blessed. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_240" id="page_240">[240]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 25</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>His larger life ye cannot miss<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In gladly, nobly using this.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Bayard Taylor.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>There are saints enough if we only know how to find +them—sainthoods of the fireside and of the market +place. They wear no glory round their heads; they do +their duties in the strength of God; they have their +martyrdoms and win their palms, and though they get +into no calendars, they leave a benediction and a force +behind them on the earth when they go up to heaven.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, in Whose life are our lives, help us to +use all things nobly and so find joy in Thee. We +thank Thee for faithful souls who in humblest station +have reflected Thy life and have worked for blessing. +In Thy strength they have sought to build Thy kingdom, +and though they have had no glory of men they +yet have wrought for Thee and have won place in +Thy heart. Because they have aided the world and +others have entered into their labors their good work +shall remain and its quiet influence shall be a benediction. +Though they have lived obscure lives and +have filled obscure places they have been precious in +Thy sight and are numbered with Thy saints. May +we, like them, eternally serve Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George H. Young.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_241" id="page_241">[241]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We can't choose happiness either for ourselves or for +another; we can't tell where that will lie. We can +only choose whether we will indulge ourselves in the +present moment, or whether we will renounce that for +the sake of obeying the divine voice within us,—for +the sake of being true to all the motives that sanctify +our lives. I know this belief is hard; it has slipped +away from me again and again; but I have felt that +if I let it go forever, I should have no light through +the darkness of this life.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George Eliot.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O God, Thou knowest the hours in which we desire +Thee. Thou knowest that Thou hast made us to love +truth and to walk in the light and when we are unjust, +unkind, unloving, then we are not true to ourselves,—then +we forget that we are living souls and that Thou +art our Father. Let us not draw nigh to Thee with +our lips while our hearts are far from Thee, but, knowing +how dependent and frail we are, may we feel that +it is a good and helpful thing to draw nigh unto Thee +by faith and prayer,—and to take thought of that +Infinite Love which holds us all in its arms of strength +and mercy. Lift up our minds today, warm our +affections, and deepen within us the feeling of reverence, +of gratitude, and guide all the longings of our +hearts aright. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joshua Young.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_242" id="page_242">[242]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Life may be given in many ways,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And loyalty to truth be sealed</span><br /> +As bravely in the closet as the field,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">So bountiful is fate;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">But then to stand beside her,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">When craven churls deride her,</span><br /> +To front a lie in arms and not to yield,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">This shows, methinks, God's plan</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And measure of a stalwart man,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Limbed like the old heroic breeds,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Who stands self-poised on manhood's solid earth,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Not forced to frame excuses for his birth,</span><br /> +Fed from within with all the strength he needs.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Russell Lowell.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Heavenly Father, in this new day may we recognize +a new opportunity for seeking Thy purpose in us; to +become stronger children of Thine, and worthier +followers of Thy Son. Whatever be our trial give us +courage to stand without compromise, for that which +we believe to be true; give us grace to rise superior +to praise or blame, timidity or self-interest; to be +loyal to the best in us, and be ever ready to protest +against wrong and injustice. Help us to know ourselves +as temples of Thine; to know that the essential +principal in us is not dust, but God; to rise to that +dignity of sonship that compels one to choose the +right and say: "Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise." +In His name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Herbert H. Graves.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_243" id="page_243">[243]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>All we have willed or hoped or dreamed of good, shall exist;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Not its semblance, but itself; no beauty, nor good, nor power</span><br /> +Whose voice has gone forth, but each survives for the melodist,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">When eternity affirms the conception of an hour.</span><br /> +The high that proved too high, the heroic for earth too hard,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The passion that left the ground to lose itself in the sky,</span><br /> +Are music sent up to God by the lover and the bard;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Enough that he heard it once: we shall hear it by and by.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Browning.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, our heavenly Father! we come before Thee +at this morning hour, thanking Thee for Thy loving +care, that has protected us through the night, and for +the blessed sleep, that has brought refreshment to +our bodies and minds. We are grateful, O Father, +for this new day, rich in hope and promise and opportunity, +and we pray that, as its hours pass, we may +be kept very near to Thee, that the "Words of our +mouth and the meditations of our heart, may be acceptable +in Thy sight," that when the day is done, and +we come to Thee at its close, we need in no wise to be +ashamed. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Nellie Mann Opdale.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_244" id="page_244">[244]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 29</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>How often does the chopper of some stone,<br /> +While toiling at his task of heave and shock,<br /> +Find in the heart-space of a severed rock<br /> +The impress of some fern that once had grown,<br /> +Full of aspiring life and color-tone,<br /> +Deep in the forest where the shadows flock,<br /> +Till, caught within the adamantine block,<br /> +It lay for ages hidden and unknown!<br /> +So many a beauteous thought blooms in the mind<br /> +But unexpressed, droops down into the soul<br /> +And lies unuttered in the silence there<br /> +Until some opener of the soul shall find<br /> +The fern-like fossilled dream, complete and whole,<br /> +And marvel at its beauty past compare.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alfred L. Donaldson.</span><br /> +</p> + + +<p> +O mighty Potter, to whose steadfast eyes<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A thousand years lie open as one day,</span><br /> +Thy patient hand set firm on life's great wheel<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">This heavy, shapeless clay.</span><br /> +<br /> +Rough and imperfect, yet it owns Thy touch;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Spare not, nor stay, the pressure of Thine hand;</span><br /> +Make known Thy power; and soon, or late, let love<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Perfect what love hath planned!</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 15em;">Amen.</span> +</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">L. H. Hammond.</span></p> +</div> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_245" id="page_245">[245]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The dark green summer, with its massive hues,<br /> +Fades into Autumn's tincture manifold;<br /> +A gorgeous garniture of fire and gold<br /> +The high slope of the ferny hill indues.<br /> +The mists of morn in slumbering layers diffuse<br /> +O'er glimmering rock, smooth lake, and spiked array<br /> +Of hedgerow thorns a unity of gray.<br /> +All things appear their tangible form to lose<br /> +In ghostly vastness. But anon the gloom<br /> +Melts, as the sun puts off his muddy veil.<br /> +And now the birds their twittering songs resume,<br /> +All summer silent in the leafy dale.<br /> +In spring they piped of love on every tree,<br /> +But now they sing the song of memory.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Hartley Coleridge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Ever blessed Father, in Whose pleasant world we +are glad to awake again, looking forward to a happy +and useful day, we beseech Thy loving guidance +through these hours. May we look abroad with gratitude +and love upon this beautiful earth, doubly +beautiful in the waning summer time, when a new +splendor comes across the hills, and Thou dost reveal +Thyself, as of old, in the burning bush. Grant that +we may look through nature up to nature's God. +Grant that the mists of doubt and uncertainty which +often hide Thee from us may be dispersed in the sunlight +of a happy faith, and that the heart, so often sad +and silent, may once more lift its cheerful song to Thee. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Alfred Gooding.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_246" id="page_246">[246]</a></span></p> + + +<p>August 31</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>No rare creative inspirations throng<br /> +My quiet spirit, silent, sad and lone;<br /> +No Sapphic flame hath on its altar shone;<br /> +No music to my nature doth belong.<br /> +Thou art the sunlight, I am Memnon's stone,<br /> +Thou art the zephyr, I give back its song;<br /> +The harp Ćolian can do no wrong<br /> +To the soft airs which wake an answering tone:<br /> +Upon my soul, Oh, then breathe tenderly;<br /> +Subdue the discord, still the jarring strain;<br /> +So may the harp-strings yield but melody.<br /> +If notes discordant give thy keen ear pain,<br /> +Set the fine chords again to harmony;<br /> +Let but sweet echoes of thyself remain.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ada Foster Murray.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou Who art the source of all that is and the +giver of all that makes life blessed, we thank Thee +that Thy providence abides through every change +and that Thou dost cheer the loneliest lot with the +comfort of Thy presence. Thou hast been with us in +times past and now on this last day of the summer +months, we would thank Thee for the blessings of the +closing season and ask for the continuance of Thy unfailing +care and the enrichment of our souls with the +gifts of Thy Spirit. Bring us into harmony with all +that is pure and good, and enable us to walk in the +light of Thy favor and in the paths of Thy commandments. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles H. Vail.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_247" id="page_247">[247]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>'Neath harvest moon the stricken summer lies<br /> +Still smiling bravely in her brightest bloom,<br /> +Her heart yet holds no hint of gloom,<br /> +No trace of sadness in her sunlit eyes.<br /> +We love thee, Summer, child of Paradise—<br /> +A myriad host announce thy coming doom<br /> +Chanting the requiem of thy wintry tomb,<br /> +While lovingly look down the tender skies;<br /> +A holy hush is in the hazy air<br /> +As in thy radiant beauty thou dost sleep!<br /> +Nature, arrayed in rainbow colors fair,<br /> +Is strong of heart her vigil long to keep:<br /> +We know the secret thou dost seek to tell,—<br /> +Thou art immortal, Summer, fare thee well.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anna A. Gordon.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, behind all changes dost Thou +lurk in eternal constancy. Never lingering, each good +of life gives place to the better Thou hast in store, +and in glory and gladness resigns to that which comes +after. From the good that is, may we learn to pass +cheerfully to the better that is to be,—from the cool +morning and sunny noon to the purple gloaming and +the star-lit night, from the tender spring and glowing +summer to the golden autumn and snow-pure winter, +from the sweet life that now is to that fulness of realization +whose sweeter splendors eye hath not seen nor +the heart of man conceived. We place our hands in +Thine and would walk with Thee in holiest trust and +serenest peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas W. Illman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_248" id="page_248">[248]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">"I will be happy all the day</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Let come what may."</span><br /> +'Twas early morning when the word was said,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And like a journey 'cross a weary plain</span><br /> +There stretched the hours, but I was comforted<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">As heart and voice sung o'er the sweet refrain,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">"I will be happy all the day</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Let come what may."</span><br /> +<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">"I will make hope and only hope</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">My horoscope."</span><br /> +The sombre, brooding clouds of discontent<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Oppress one's spirit like a throbbing pain;</span><br /> +One frets and moans in one's environment,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">But with a look ahead I sing again,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">"I will make hope and only hope</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">My horoscope."</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Frederick A. Bisbee.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Yea, Lord, we thank Thee that we may hope and +be happy all the day for Omnipotence is our Father +and our changeless Friend, and we have naught to +fear. We are glad of life and thank Thee for all +that makes it heroic or beautiful or sweet. We +rejoice in our home, in our dear ones, and in the +precious human loves that reflect the love divine. +Pardon our sins, we pray Thee, and work out +Thy purposes in us. May we work and hope on +and be glad in Thee filling this day so full of +useful employ that when the night shall come, we +shall lie down to sleep upon Thy loving children +like tired but happy children, and so find rest and +refreshment for another day with men and Thee. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Carl F. Henry.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_249" id="page_249">[249]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There's a dance of leaves in that aspen bower,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">There's a titter of winds in that beechen tree,</span><br /> +There's a smile on the fruit, and a smile on the flower,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And a laugh from the brook that runs to the sea.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Cullen Bryant.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>O sweet September! thy first breezes bring<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The dry leaf's rustle and the squirrel's laughter,</span><br /> +The cool, fresh air, whence health and vigor spring<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And promise of exceeding joy hereafter.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George Arnold.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Lord, we thank Thee for the spring, which +brought her handsome promise, for the gorgeous +preparation which the summer made in his manly +strength, and we bless Thee for the months of autumn, +whose sober beauty now is cast on every hill and every +tree. We thank Thee for the harvests which the toil +and the thought of man have gathered already from +the surface of the ground, or digged from its bosom. +We bless Thee for the other harvests still growing +beneath the earth, or hanging abundant beauties in +the autumnal sun from many a tree, all over our +blessed Northern land. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Theodore Parker.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_250" id="page_250">[250]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Do right, and God's recompense to you will be the +power to do more right. Give, and God's reward to you +will be the spirit of giving more: blessed spirit, for it +is the Spirit of God Himself, whose Life is the blessedness +of giving. Love, and God will pay you with the +capacity of more love; for love is Heaven, love is God +within you.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Frederick W. Robertson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, we thank Thee for Thy manifold gifts +unto the children of men. Thou givest life and all +the sustenance of life. Thou givest our fair and +beautiful world. Thou givest us the power of hope +and faith and thought. From Thine own giving may +we learn that it is more blessed to give than to receive. +Teach us, O Lord, to give more freely and more gladly, +and may we learn how our own life, and joy and +growth are involved in the spirit in which we give and +serve. In all our giving and all our serving may we +keep before us the vision of the Master who gave +Himself that we might live. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_251" id="page_251">[251]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The soul that rises with us, our life's star,</span><br /> +Hath had elsewhere its setting,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And cometh from afar.</span><br /> +Not in entire forgetfulness,<br /> +And not in utter nakedness,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">But trailing clouds of glory, do we come</span><br /> +From God who is our home:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Heaven lies about us in our infancy,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">At length the man perceives it die away</span><br /> +And fade into the light of common day.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Wordsworth.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Eternal God, Who art without beginning of days +or end of years, from Whom cometh all our life; +pardon, we beseech Thee, the sins of Thy children, +wherein we have darkened Thine own image within +us. Let not our light die away amid the common toil +and daily care, but so glorify our life with Thy spirit, +that we may gladly present both souls and bodies to +Thy service an acceptable sacrifice, and, learning to +love Thee above all things, may be approved in Thy +sight as true disciples of Thy Son Jesus Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William E. Gaskin.</span> +</p> + + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_252" id="page_252">[252]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A haze on the far horizon,<br /> +The infinite tender sky,<br /> +The ripe, rich tint of the corn-fields,<br /> +And the wild geese sailing high,<br /> +And all over upland and lowland<br /> +The charm of the goldenrod—<br /> +Some of us call it Autumn,<br /> +And others call it God.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William H. Carruth.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Once more, O God, Thou partest the curtains of +night to bless us with a new day. In its dawning +Thou revealest Thyself to us anew. Fresh beauties +break upon our vision; new evidences of Thy goodness +appear; new joys rise in our hearts. We thank +Thee for the harvest of corn that feeds our bodies and +the harvest of beauty that feeds our souls; for the blue +of the distant hills and the wide stretch of meadow +and prairie; for golden flower and flying bird; for +the nearness of Thy presence in the brooding haze; +for the thoughts unutterable that rise within us. In +thankfulness may we go forth to our daily tasks and +live in consciousness of Thy eternal presence and +love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Rodney F. Johonnot.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_253" id="page_253">[253]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 7</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I come under your windows, some fine morning, and +play you one of my adagio movements, and some of you +say,—This is good, play us so always. But, dear +friends, if I did not change the stop sometimes, the +machine would wear out in one part and rust in another. +How easily this or that tune flows! you say, there +must be no end of such melodies in him. I will open +the poor machine for you one moment, and you shall +look. Every note marks where a spur of steel has +been driven in. It is easy to grind out the song, but +to plant these bristling points which make it was the +painful task of time.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>We thank Thee, Father, for Thy love which, like +the morning light, fails not to greet us at each opening +day. While its radiant beams light up the pathway +from our hearts to Thine, we come, with eager steps, +for morning worship and for praise. Take Thou, we +pray, the hand outstretched out to Thee and lead us +safely through another day. Grant us the strength +to do our very best and leave results with Thee. We +do not ask for ease, but victory; not for the praise of +men, but for the blessing of our God upon our heaven-appointed +task. Grant us the joy supreme of knowing, +when the sun has set, that we have left undone no +duty to our God or fellowman. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. W. Annas.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_254" id="page_254">[254]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Admit into thy silent breast<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The notes of but one bird</span><br /> +And instantly thy soul will join<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In jubilant accord.</span><br /> +<br /> +The perfume of a single flow'r<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Inhale like breath of God,</span><br /> +And in the garden of thy heart<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A thousand buds will nod.</span><br /> +<br /> +Toward one star in heaven's expanse<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Direct thy spirit's fight,</span><br /> +And thou wilt have in the wide world,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">My child, enough delight.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Johanna Ambrosius.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father In Heaven, as Thou turnest the earth +once more toward the light to give us another day may +we not forget that all things come of Thee. Thou +givest us this beautiful earth, adorned with a thousand +varied beauties, crowded with opportunities and possibilities, +for our home. Day and night, sunshine and +the rain, labor and trial, joy and victory, all are from +Thy hand. Whatever the circumstances of our life, +whatever our labor and place, help us to remember +that life is a school in which to learn, an arena where +we may fight and win. May we gain wisdom and +strength to win the victory which is life eternal, and +in finding that may we find peace and content in Thee. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick A. Taylor.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_255" id="page_255">[255]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 9</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Give me the gospel of the fields and woods—<br /> +The sermons written in the book of books;<br /> +The sweet communion of the things of earth<br /> +Fresh with the warm baptism of the sun.<br /> +Give me the offertory of bud and bloom,<br /> +The perfect caroling of happy birds.<br /> +Give me the creed of one of God's fair days<br /> +Wrought in the beauty of its loveliness;<br /> +And then, the benediction of the stars,<br /> +His eloquent ministers of the night.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Ravenscroft.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, we praise Thee for the breaking +day, the singing birds, the dew in the meadows, the +fragrance of the flowers, ascending like old-time incense +from Jewish altar, the sun gilding the hill-tops, +the veiled stars, the gliding river, mirroring in its +depths, sedge and tree and overhanging sky. Thou +hast ordained that we nestle in the bosom of nature +and feel the touch of God. Pour strength into our +beings from bird and flower, and Thy spirit which +moves in them, that our youth may be renewed like +the eagle's. So shall the memories of earth enrich +our heaven. We praise and supplicate in the name of +Jesus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">L. A. Freeman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_256" id="page_256">[256]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 10</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Just whistle a bit if the day be dark<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the sky be overcast:</span><br /> +If mute be the voice of the piping lark,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Why, pipe your own small blast.</span><br /> +<br /> +And it's wonderful how o'er the gray sky-track,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The truant warbler comes stealing back.</span><br /> +But why need he come? for your soul's at rest,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the song in the heart,—ah, that is best.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Paul Laurence Dunbar.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the assurance +that all things work together for good to them +that love Thee. Help us to live this day in joyous +faith in that promise. May we realize that behind all +clouds the sun still shines, and that the Father's +wisdom never errs, and his love never fails. Give us +courage for this day's conflicts, grace for its trials, and +strength for its duties. Guide our feet in the way of +Thy commandments and fill our souls with the joy +of Thy presence. May our lives no less than our lips +praise Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles F. Rice.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_257" id="page_257">[257]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 11</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>For each true deed is worship; it is prayer,<br /> +And carries its own answer unaware.<br /> +Yes, they whose feet upon good errands run<br /> +Are friends of God, with Michael of the sun;<br /> +Yes, each accomplished service of the day<br /> +Paves for the feet of God a lordlier way.<br /> +The souls that love and labor through all wrong,<br /> +They clasp His hand and make the Circle strong;<br /> +They lay the deep foundation stone by stone,<br /> +And build into Eternity God's throne!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edwin Markham.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we, Thy children, turn to +Thee in gratitude and hope for this new day of opportunity. +May our high calling in Christ Jesus loom +large before our eyes. Deliver us, we humbly beseech +Thee, from making ourselves and our concerns chief +in thought and effort. May we find our lives in saving +those whose sky is dark, whose burdens are heavy, +and whose faith is perishing. With zest, as do the +angels, when we hear Thy Spirit's voice, may we turn +and obey. To let these hours of service prove to us, +not only that Thou art, but that Thou art the rewarder +of them that diligently seek Thee. Through Jesus +Christ, our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">DeWitt S. Clark.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_258" id="page_258">[258]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 12</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Good name, in man or woman, dear my lord,<br /> +Is the immediate jewel of their souls.<br /> +Who steals my purse, steals trash; 'tis something, nothing;<br /> +'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;<br /> +But he that filches from me my good name,<br /> +Robs me of that which not enriches him,<br /> +And makes me poor indeed.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shakespeare.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>God of all righteousness and charity, breathe upon +me the spirit of thine own charity and righteousness, +that I may deal worthily with the good name of every +human being with whom I have to do. Help me, that +I may bring no injury to the fair fame of any. May +the law of kindness be in my lips, and the spirit of +helpful justice in my heart. Inspire me to come, +whenever I ought, to the rescue of the slandered, that +I may deliver them into the liberty of human fellowship. +And not to me alone, O God, but to all men, +teach this divine lesson of fair judgment and sweet +help, that they may live together as children in thy +gracious family. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William N. Clarke.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_259" id="page_259">[259]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 13</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I searched for love in heart of city's hum;<br /> +I searched for love upon the shining sand<br /> +Of ocean beach; and then on towering cliffs I sung<br /> +A pleading song that love unto my heart might come;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 5em;">But love came not.</span><br /> +<br /> +I searched for love no more, but labored sore<br /> +To ease those hearts whom sorrow'd touched before,<br /> +Faint hope that in sweet work I'd surely find<br /> +Some compensation for a fate unkind—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 5em;">When, lo! love came.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Bessie L. Russell.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +For love and life and light and breath and ease,<br /> +For work, success and hope, for power to please,<br /> +For conscience clear, for faith without alloy,<br /> +For common share in common human joy,<br /> +I thank Thee, gracious God!<br /> +<br /> +For loneliness and shadow, sickness, care,<br /> +For failure, doubt, remorse, death, and despair,<br /> +For sleepless nights, for aching heart and brain,<br /> +For common share in common human pain,<br /> +I thank Thee, gracious God! Amen.</p> +<p> +<span class="smcap">Margaret Wentworth.</span></p> +</div> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_260" id="page_260">[260]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>In fallow fields the goldenrod<br /> +And purple asters beck and nod.<br /> +The milkweed launches fairy boats;<br /> +In tangled silver the cobweb floats.<br /> +Pervasive odors of ripening vine,<br /> +Fill the air like a luscious wine.<br /> +The gentian blooms on the browning waste;<br /> +With coral chains is the alder laced.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The blackbirds gather, and wheel and fly,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The swallows twitter a low "Goodbye!"</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Sara Andrew Shafer.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father in Heaven, we love Thee, we cannot help +it. Thy blessings around us on every side tell us of +Thy love. Our love leaps involuntarily from our hearts +responsive to these numberless delights. We thank +Thee for the rich harvests that burden the fields, for +the acres of beauty that reach over hill and through +meadow, for the stars that make cheerful the night. +Help us to bless Thee when the storms come to disappoint +and destroy. May we realize that the tempest +comes from the Good Father, that He has sent it, a +great blessing in disguise. Great Father, help us to +know and feel that everything coming from Thee is +good. So may Thy Kingdom come to Thy children +of earth. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles Edward Davis.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_261" id="page_261">[261]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Once, out of all the anguish and the sorrow of my heart,<br /> +I wrote a song, and put my pent-up passion in its art.<br /> +And the great world never heeded this soulful human groan,<br /> +For it bore a burden infinitely heavy of its own.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Once, out of all the happiness and joy within my breast,<br /> +I made a little song and blithely sent it on its quest.<br /> +And the great world, with its infinitely many joys, divine,<br /> +Still had room and instant welcome for this little song of mine.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William F. Dix.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, I thank Thee that Thou hast numbered me +with the children of the day. O Immanuel, make +Thy Presence to be a sun within me this day. May +I dispel clouds or reveal the rainbows ever half-hidden +in robes of mists. May I melt snows and bring +spring-time freshets of joy. May I shed light that +shall turn groans into songs. May I shine on till I +shall stand before the Great White Throne that is +encompassed with an unbroken rainbow, and take +up the angelic music among that starry host of souls +who have found the true "music of the spheres," +and are:</p> + +<div class="poem"> +<p> +"Forever singing as they shine,<br /> +'The hand that made us is divine.'"<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 10em;">Amen.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Elliott F. Studley.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_262" id="page_262">[262]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>All is best, though we oft doubt<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">What the unsearchable dispose</span><br /> +Of highest wisdom brings about,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And ever best found in the close.</span><br /> +Oft He seems to hide His face,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">But unexpectedly returns,</span><br /> +And to his faithful champion hath in place<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Bore witness gloriously.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Milton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Our Father, we have ever dwelt in Thee, though +sometimes we have forgotten it. While our eyes slept, +it may be that to our spirit's sight a ladder was set +up on the earth and the top of it reached to heaven, +and on it Thy angels were ascending and descending +to help us. Now again, O Father, comes to us from +Thy hand of love the food and the tasks of a new +day. Help us then to put away the error from which +we fled or should have fled yesterday. This morning +let us set up the stone of our Bethel that through the +day we may be reminded in all we do, that Thou art +in this place with us. Whether we see Thee or not, +let us take courage and make this a day nearer Thee. +Fill us with Jesus' own large sympathies for others, +with Jesus' purpose to seek and to serve the right, +and especially grant us Jesus' complete trust in Thy +perfect goodness. In His name, we ask it. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Merrill C. Ward.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_263" id="page_263">[263]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>As far as earth is from the sky,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">So Love is high.</span><br /> +Where Alpine lakes their vigils keep<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is Love more deep.</span><br /> +<br /> +In Nature there no boundaries are<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">That tell how far Love goes;</span><br /> +Love's measure, as each countless star,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">God knows.</span><br /> +<br /> + * * * * * <br /> + +<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">One only thing we know: Love comes to stay;</span><br /> +Though God's to give, it is not even His<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To take away.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Marian Alden.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, we recognize our +dependence upon Thee for the bounties of Thy never-failing +Providence, and as we enter upon this new +day to which Thou has safely brought us, we ask Thy +help that we may receive it as a gift from Thee and +may consecrate ourselves more perfectly in the least +things as well as in the greatest, to Thy service. Help +us to be faithful to all the duties and responsibilities +of our lot. Deliver us from all useless discontent, all +idle doubts and foolish fears. In all our dealings +may we be simple and sincere. Strengthen us to do +at every moment that which we feel to be right and +good in Thy sight, and through loyal obedience to Thy +will may we rise into a clearer vision of the things that +belong to Thy heavenly kingdom. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William H. Fish.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_264" id="page_264">[264]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Some people are always grumbling because roses +have thorns. I am thankful that thorns have roses.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alphonse Karr.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There are those who want to get away from all their +past; who if they could, would fain begin all over again. +Their life seems one long failure. But you must learn, +you must let God teach you, that the only way to get rid +of your past is to get a future out of it.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, the remembrance of Thee +fills life with all that is most beautiful and bright. +Our deepest sorrows, our most bitter experiences +come when we forget Thee. No life can be a failure +which strives to do Thy will. Sorrow may come to +us, but just as an artist may darken a flower, in painting, +before retouching it to make its color all the +brighter, so we know that Thou, who givest color to +the flowers, may for a season permit sorrow to darken +our lives; but Thou art only in the midst of Thy +work. At Thy retouch, life becomes the more beautiful. +Help us to pray, not simply, "Lord, remember +me," for it is not possible for Thee to forget Thy +children; we pray "assist us to be always mindful +of Thee." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. McP. Amee.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_265" id="page_265">[265]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The sooner we read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest +a little Eastern apothegm of Howard Hinton's +the better: Two balls were together in a box, a gold +and a gilt ball. The gilt ball was carefully done up in +tissue paper, and securely wedged into one corner; but +the gold ball was loose, and went rolling about with +every movement of the box. "Oh, please, do take care +of yourself!" said the gilt ball, peeping out apprehensively +from the folds of the tissue paper. "Why, where's +the harm?" answered the gold ball, as it took a fresh +lurch to an opposite corner. "Oh, how can you?" +cried the other; "you'll rub it off." "Rub what off?" +asked the gold ball.... The gold won't rub off.... +Only the gingerbread gilt.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ellice Hopkins.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Heavenly Father, we hear the loving call of this +new day and on the wings of the morning we would +speed to the work and worship of the beautiful hours +Thou hast given us. We thank Thee that Thou hast +made us for the hurry of the market place as well as +for the quiet of the home. May our own lives be +brightened by contact with our fellowmen. May the +pure gold of the Spirit of Christ be ours in purity of +personal thought, in the benediction of words of +strength and sweetness and in the varied service we +may render our neighbors in the name of Jesus our +Lord and Saviour. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James F. Allen.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_266" id="page_266">[266]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>O heart of mine, we shouldn't worry so!<br /> +What we've missed of calm we couldn't have, you know!<br /> +What we've met of stormy pain,<br /> +And of sorrow's driving rain,<br /> +We can better meet again,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 7em;">If it blow!</span><br /> +<br /> +For we know, not every morrow can be sad;<br /> +So, forgetting all the sorrow<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 6em;">We have had,</span><br /> +Let us fold away our fears,<br /> +And put by our childish tears,<br /> +And through all the coming years,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 6em;">Just be glad.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Whitcomb Riley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Heavenly Father, Thy very name fills our hearts +with confidence and peace. For we know that out +of Thy Fatherly goodness all earthly providences are +bestowed and administered for our good. So, for +our unwilling submission, when Thou hast led us +into hard and thorny pathways, we ask Thy generous +forgiveness; and for our ingratitude when pleasure +and prosperity have attended us, we entreat Thy +tender patience. As Thou hast commanded us to rejoice +in Thy salvation, may our hearts be filled with +gladness to-day; and, as Thou hast counselled us +that when we lack wisdom, we may ask of Thee, we +beseech Thee to bestow upon us now and evermore +the wisdom of cheerfulness and joy. In the name of +Jesus, Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edmund L. Smiley.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_267" id="page_267">[267]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We all shrink, like cowards, from new duties, new +responsibilities. We do not venture to go out of the +beaten track of our daily life. Close to us, on each side +of the road, are those whom we might help or save with +one good action, one kind word. But we are afraid. +We say: "I am not prepared; I am not ready; I +have not time; I am not qualified; find some better +person; send some one else." Perhaps we have only +one talent, and, therefore, instead of using it, we hide +it, and when the Master comes we shall meet him with +the old answer: "I was afraid, and went and hid thy +talent in the earth. Lo! there thou hast that is thine."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Freeman Clarke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>From the base sin of selfishness, O Lord, deliver us. +Teach us by Thy life of ministry and sacrifice for +others that the more fully and willingly we lose ourselves +in service for our fellowmen, the more surely +we shall find ourselves in Thee. As we go forth this +day in paths that Thou hast prepared for us, help us +to so forget ourselves in acts of kindness and words +of comfort that each one whom our lives may touch, +may become thereby a happier, purer, stronger soul. +Take Thou the care of these lives of ours, while, with +Thee, in busy streets and crowded shops where greed +is grasping and sin is lurking, we shall try to care for +souls of others, who need the help that we might give. +Then, at the eventide today or on the morrow, it will +be our joy like Thine to find ourselves again in hearts +made happy, in lives inspired, in souls redeemed. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George B. Dean.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_268" id="page_268">[268]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 22</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Before God's footstool to confess<br /> +A poor soul knelt and bowed his head,<br /> +"I failed!" he wailed. The Master said,<br /> +"Thou didst thy best—that is success!"</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Straight from the Mighty Bow, this truth is driven:<br /> +"They fail, and they alone, who have not striven."<br /> +Fly far, O shaft of light, all doubt redeeming,<br /> +Rouse men from dull despair and idle dreaming.<br /> +High Heaven's Evangel be, gospel God-given;<br /> +They fail, and they alone, who have not striven.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Clarence Urmy.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>We thank Thee, O God, for the light that reveals to +us the divine estimate of life, that lifts the veil of mystery +from struggle and sacrifice and enables us to +interpret their meaning as elements of successful +living. We praise Thee for the truth that assures us +that we are in this world to win, to overcome, to be +more than conquerors. We pray that we may be too +busy to dream and too brave to doubt. Strengthen +us for life's conflict, help us to carry our burdens +cheerfully, fight courageously, strive lawfully, that we +may be worthy to be counted among those who shall +receive the crown of righteousness and hear at last +the "Well done" of the Master. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George S. Scrivener.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_269" id="page_269">[269]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 23</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Be diligent and faithful, patient and hopeful, one +and all of you; and may we all know, at all times, that +verily the Eternal rules above us, and that nothing +finally wrong has happened or can happen.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If you entered the workshop of a blacksmith, you +would not dare to find fault with his bellows, anvils +and hammers. If you had not the skill of a workman, +but the consideration of a man, what would you say? +"It is not without cause the bellows are placed there; +the artificer knew, though I do not know, the reason." +You would not dare to find fault with the blacksmith +in his shop, and do you dare to find fault with God in +His world?</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">St. Bernard.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>We thank Thee, O loving Father, that we are not +alone in the universe with longing for the higher life. +There are a thousand revelations of Thee in our +fellowmen. And when we cannot find Thee, for +blindness, in nature or in ourselves, we can see Thee +revealed in the lives heroic that surround us. In the +abstract Thou art hard to find; in the lives of men +Thou art always visible. We thank Thee that there +is a contagion of rightness and that love is a vital seed +that fills the world with its kind. We are fearful of +love sometimes, fearing to waste it on a loveless world. +Help us to see that every atom we give becomes an +ocean to ourselves. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Albert C. Grier.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_270" id="page_270">[270]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>To be at all—what is better than that?<br /> +I think if there were nothing more developed, the clam in its callous shell in the sand were august enough<br /> +I am not in any callous shell;<br /> +I am cased with supple conductors, all over<br /> +They take every object by the hand, and lead it within me;<br /> +They are thousands, each one with his entry to himself;<br /> +They are always watching with their little eyes, from my head to my feet;<br /> +One no more than a point lets in and out of me such bliss and magnitude,<br /> +I think I could lift the girder of the house away if it lay between me and whatever I wanted.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walt Whitman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for all the +delicate beauty as well as for the rugged strength of +these bodies in which Thou hast set us to live. But +more wonderful than the habitation of the soul is the +soul itself. Thou hast made us a little lower than +the angels, Thou hast crowned us with glory and +honor, and we join reverently in the words of the great +poet-prophet who said of man—"In action how like +an angel, in apprehension how like a God!" O +Lord, we thank Thee for this great thought of our own +life. Yet let us not be vain nor proud. We pray +rather that we may be inspired to live so earnestly +and so nobly that we shall prove our title now to all +that we have dreamed as our natural birthright. So +shall we feel ourselves to-day sons and daughters of +God. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_271" id="page_271">[271]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I do believe the common man's task is the hardest. +The hero has the hero's aspiration that lifts him to his +labor. All great duties are easier than the little ones, +though they cost far more blood and agony.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Thus man is made equal to every event. He can +face danger for the right. A poor, tender, painful body, +he can run into flame or bullets or pestilence, with duty +for his guide.... I am not afraid of accident as long +as I am in my place.... Every man's task is his +life-preserver. The conviction that his work is dear to +God and cannot be spared, defends him.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou Who art the giver of every good and perfect +gift, help us better to understand the measure of +Thy giving; that we count not those blessings only +which make life smooth and easy and of tame comfort +but the things that make life resolute and hearty, and +that put to test the vigor of our souls, that give us +chance to prove our high nobility and unfaltering courage; +the things that build for the soul's fine substance +of eternal worth—these are Thy blessings, too, for +which we thank Thee. Give us entrance into Thine +eternal living through strong activity and zest of life; +that manhood have its eager challenge and womanhood +its glowing opportunity to assert themselves as +winning joy through bafflement and Thy strong peace +that passeth not away, through steadfast consecration +to high service. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George H. Badger.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_272" id="page_272">[272]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If I can put one touch of a rosy sunset into the life of +any man, or woman I shall feel that I have worked +with God. He is in no haste; and if I do what I may +in earnest I need not worry if I do no great work. Let +God make His sunsets; I will mottle my little cloud. +To help the growth of a thought that struggles toward +the light, to brush with gentle hand the earth stain from +the white of one snowdrop—such be my ambition.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Help us, our Father, to know that we have here at +hand all that we need to make this day what it ought +to be; that we need not look afar, but in the duty of +this present moment, in the opportunity to learn, to +serve and thus to grow, which the morning offers, is +all that is necessary to make this day sound and +serviceable; in such a day we shall find enduring joy +and from it Thou, the Giver of all days, wilt derive +satisfaction, since it will do its full share in fulfilling +Thy purpose. And may we see that if we make our +todays what they should be Thou wilt take care of the +tomorrows. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Herbert E. Benton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_273" id="page_273">[273]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 27</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>My neighbor hath a little field,<br /> +Small store of wine its presses yield,<br /> +And truly but a slender hoard<br /> +Its harvest brings for barn or board.<br /> +Yet tho' a hundred fields are mine,<br /> +Fertile with olive, corn and wine;<br /> +Tho' Autumn piles my garners high,<br /> +Still for that little field I sigh.<br /> +For ah! methinks no otherwhere<br /> +Is any field so good and fair.<br /> +Small tho' it be, 'tis better far<br /> +Than all my fruitful vineyards are,<br /> +Amid whose plenty sad I pine—<br /> +"Ah, would the little field were mine!"<br /> +Large knowledge void of peace and rest,<br /> +And wealth with pining care possest—<br /> +These by my fertile lands are meant.<br /> +That little field is called Content.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robertson Trowbridge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Heavenly Father, as prayed Thy servant of old, +so we this morning repeat "Give us neither poverty +nor riches." Help us this day, in whatsoever state +we are, therewith to be content. May no complaining +word proceed out of our mouths. Above all +may no murmuring thought lodge within us. So +shall we rest in peace with Thee, and God, even our +God, shall bless us. Yet, O Lord, forbid that we +should remain satisfied with any portion, which our +best effort, with Thine assistance, can improve. +Then shall we grow in grace and more and more +approach the stature of true men and women, in +Christ Jesus. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">M. Emory Wright.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_274" id="page_274">[274]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Forenoon and afternoon and night—Forenoon<br /> +And afternoon and night,—Forenoon, and—what?<br /> +The empty song repeats itself. No more?<br /> +Yea, that is life. Make this forenoon sublime,<br /> +This afternoon a psalm, this night a prayer,<br /> +And time is conquered, and thy crown is won.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Rowland Sill.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +Help me, O Lord, if I shall see<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Times when I walk from hope apart,</span><br /> +Till all my days but seem to be<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The troubled week-days of the heart.</span><br /> +<br /> +Help me to find, in seasons past,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The hours that have been good or fair,</span><br /> +And bid remembrance hold them fast,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To keep me wholly from despair.</span><br /> +<br /> +Help me to look behind, before,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To make my past and future form</span><br /> +A bow of promise, meeting o'er<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The darkness of my day of storm.</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 14em;">Amen.</span><br /> +<br /> +<span class="smcap">Phœbe Cary.</span></p> +</div> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_275" id="page_275">[275]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The iris-pillar suggested the burning bush on Horeb. +In Moses' time, nature, in the regard of science, was a +mere bush, a single shrub. Now it has grown, through +the researches of the intellect, to a tree. The universe +is a mighty tree; and the great truth for us to connect +with the majestic science of these days, and to keep +vivid by a religious imagination, is, that from the roots +of its mystery to the silver-leaved boughs of the firmament, +it is continually filled with God, and yet unconsumed.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">T. Starr King.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, who in all +ages has been revealing Thyself to men as a God of +righteousness and love, we approach Thy throne of +grace this morning confessing our unworthiness and +pleading Thy forgiving love. While humbling ourselves +before Thee because of the consciousness of our +unworthiness, we yet approach Thee, our Father, +with filial trust and confidence, yea, with gladness of +heart and holy boldness in the all-prevailing name of +Jesus Christ our Lord. We bless Thee for Thy watchful +care over us amid all the dangers, temptations and +difficulties of the past. Truly Thou hast been with us, +and although Thy people have often been surrounded +by fire, the bush has not been consumed. In the +future as in the past, be Thou our God and Guide +and finally bring us into Thine everlasting Kingdom, +through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">A. K. MacLennan.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_276" id="page_276">[276]</a></span></p> + + +<p>September 30</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Would you like to hear what sort of questions the +school-boys had to answer eighteen centuries ago? +Very well; you shall. A rabbi, who lived nearly +twenty years before Christ was born, set his pupils +thinking by asking them, "What is the best thing for +a man to possess?" One of them replied, "A kind +nature;" another, "A good companion;" another, +"A good neighbor." But one of them, named Eleazer, +said, "A good heart." "I like your answer best, Eleazer," +said the master, "for it includes all the rest."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Francis Augustus Cox.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father in heaven, we are happy to believe that +Thou dost wish us to have the best. Thou dost teach +us that the best possession we can have is a good heart, +for out of the heart are the issues of life. Thou art +the searcher of hearts,—if our hearts are hard Thou +canst give us hearts of flesh, if they are sinful Thou +canst create clean hearts within us. Even if they are +desperately wicked Thou canst make them new. +Grant us, therefore, Thy Holy Spirit we humbly beseech +Thee, that our hearts may be pure and good. +Thus may we ever possess the best possible treasure, +and thus may we perfectly love Thee and worthily +magnify Thy holy name. Through Jesus Christ our +Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Willard T. Perrin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_277" id="page_277">[277]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Month of fruits and falling leaves,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Under thy opalescent skies</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The vagrant summer idly lies,</span><br /> +While coming Autumn deftly weaves<br /> +Rare tints for tall ungarnered sheaves<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of goldenrod, kissing the eyes</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Of purple asters as she dyes</span><br /> +The vine that swings beneath the eaves.<br /> +<br /> +And all the bending hedgerows seem<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A Joseph's coat of colors. Hues</span><br /> +That shame the rainbow's royal arch<br /> +Set all the harvest fields a-gleam<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With beauty, fresh with fragrant dews</span><br /> +To crown the season's onward march.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George W. Shipman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Author and Giver of every good and perfect gift +whose infinite presence and power underlie all growth +and life and activity, Who revealest Thyself in the +varied forms of beauty which come so rapidly in the +revolving year, in the green grass and blossoming +roses and lilies and refreshing, fast-succeeding fruits, +we thank Thee that Thou art now crowning the year +with Thy goodness and inviting us to gather in from +tree, garden, field, forest, mine, what will feed, clothe, +protect us during the wintry season given us, free from +arduous labors, to find enjoyment in books, music +and social intercourse. These blessings remind us to +present to Thee the fruits of the spirit, love, joy, peace, +long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, +meekness, temperance. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Calvin S. Locke.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_278" id="page_278">[278]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>One answered, on the day when Christ went by,<br /> +"Lord, I am rich; pause not for such as I.<br /> +My work, my home, my strength, my frugal store,<br /> +The sun and rain—what need have I of more?<br /> +Go to the sinful who have need of Thee,<br /> +Go to the poor, but tarry not for me.<br /> +What is there Thou should'st do for such as I?"<br /> +And He went by.<br /> +<br /> +Long years thereafter, by a palace door,<br /> +The footstep of the Master paused once more<br /> +From whence the old voice answered piteously,—<br /> +"Lord, I am poor, my house unfit for Thee;<br /> +Nor peace nor pleasures bless my princely board,<br /> +Nor love nor health; what could I give Thee, Lord?<br /> +Lord, I am poor, unworthy, stained with sin,—"<br /> +Yet He went in.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mabel Earle.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>We who are poor in spirit, turn to Thee who art the +giver of every good and perfect gift, to hold out our +empty hands and pray that Thou wilt make us rich. +During the past days and years we have been out in +Thy world striving for more things and then more +things and yet more things, forgetful of the fact +that a man's life consisteth not in the abundance +of the things which he possesseth. Now, realizing the +poverty of our real lives, we ask Thee to bestow upon +us those eternal riches which pertain to the human +soul and possessing which we shall have treasure in +that heaven within where moth and rust do not corrupt +nor thieves break through and steal. So shall +we be rich indeed. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank Oliver Hall.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_279" id="page_279">[279]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 9em;">Be strong!</span><br /> +We are not here to play, to dream, to drift.<br /> +We have hard work to do, and loads to lift.<br /> +Shun not the struggle; face it. 'Tis God's gift.<br /> +<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 9em;">Be strong!</span><br /> +Say not the days are evil,—who's to blame?<br /> +And fold the hands and acquiesce—O shame!<br /> +Stand up, speak out, and bravely, in God's name.<br /> +<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 9em;">Be strong!</span><br /> +It matters not how deep intrenched the wrong,<br /> +How hard the battle goes, the day how long,<br /> +Faint not, fight on! Tomorrow comes the song.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Maltbie Davenport Babcock.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O our Father, we thank Thee for this new morning. +Truly the light is sweet and a pleasant thing it is for +the eyes to behold the same. Lift Thou upon us the +light of Thy countenance and bid us go in peace. +So shall we begin the day aright. With gentle skill +Thou dost deal with us. Thou art not careless with +us or hasty or impatient. Help us to be strong in +Thee. May we be able to cast out of our lives everything +that would grieve Thee and harm us. With a +loving spirit may we serve Thee this day. May we be +rooted and grounded in love. However hard the +battle may go give us courage and confidence to believe +that through Christ, strengthening us, we can +do all things required of us. Lord, increase our +faith. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. E. Hawkins.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_280" id="page_280">[280]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Nobody proves God's being. But, suddenly, one sees +God is here. One speaks and God answers. Thereafter +all is sure.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There is nothing that so persuades us of the great +realities of moral and spiritual being as the man in +whom God is manifest, the type of our human nature +at its best, and the indorsement of the sublime faith +that God in humanity is the supreme revelation of +Himself!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Horatio Stebbins.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Blessed Father, as the morning light has triumphed +in its struggle to overcome darkness, so Thou dost +gently but irresistibly call us from slumber to the +glories and duties of the new day. May we be strong +in the sweet assurance that the unfolding hours are +full of blessing because Thou art caring for us. Help +us to do Thy will by enabling us to minister to those +around us. May the words of our mouth and the +industry of our hands reveal Thy guiding love. Enable +us to order our ways by the habit of trust that we have +learned through Thy constancy. Wilt Thou disappoint +our fears, steady our hearts, and show us the +way of obedience, peace and service that we may +realize the good through the day and rejoice in it, as +disciples of Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James D. Corby.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_281" id="page_281">[281]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Thou knowest not what argument<br /> +Thy life to thy neighbor's creed hath lent;<br /> +All are needed by each one;<br /> +Nothing is good or fair alone.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<blockquote><p><i>Men will not be content to live every man for himself, +nor to die every man for himself. In work, in art, in +study, in trade—in all life, indeed, the children of God, +called by a Saviour's voice, will wish to live in the common +cause. They will live for the common wealth,—this +is the modern phrase. They will bear each other's +burdens,—this is the phrase of Paul. They will live +in the life of love. And it will prove true as it was +promised, that all things are added to the community +which thus seeks the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Eternal God, who dost still create the light, and +make the morning and the evening of our days, by +Thy light we look to Thee. In Thy light we worship +Thee. Gird us with strength to work with Thee to +bring Thy Kingdom in. May we lose and find ourselves +again in the larger whole of life by ministering +to others' needs; by bearing others' burdens; by +sharing their joys and tears and the common fruits of +toil, thus making our life and faith in Thee become +their own. Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants, +and establish Thou the work of our hands upon us; +yea, the work of our hands establish Thou it; and let +Thy beauty and Thy glory be upon us forever and +ever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. E. Holmes.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_282" id="page_282">[282]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Master, to do great work for Thee, my hand<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is far too weak! Thou givest what may suit,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Some little chips to cut with care minute,</span><br /> +Or tint, or grave, or polish. Others stand<br /> +Before their quarried marble, fair and grand,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And make a life-work of the grand design</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Which Thou hast traced; or, many-skilled, combine</span><br /> +To build vast temples, gloriously planned.<br /> +Yet take the tiny stones which I have wrought<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Just one by one, as they were given by Thee,</span><br /> +Not knowing what came next in Thy wise thought.<br /> +Let each stone by Thy master-hand of grace<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Form the mosaic as Thou wilt for me</span><br /> +And in Thy temple-pavement give it place.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Frances Ridley Havergal.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father, we are shortsighted and weak, and hence +cannot do our best work without Thine aid. We rejoice +in the privileges and opportunities of this day. +Thou hast counted us worthy to work for Thee. Thou +canst use our loaves and fishes, but dost require us +to bring thus our little all for Thy blessing. We are +inspired with hope to make our consecration to Thee. +Make this a day of glorious service. Guide us in our +thoughts and work. Glorify Thyself in our life. And +wherever the close of this day may find us may it be +with the feeling that we have done our best by Thy +blessing and help. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. W. Fulton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_283" id="page_283">[283]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>"Whatever the weather may be," says he—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">"Whatever the weather may be,</span><br /> +It's the songs ye sing, an' the smiles ye wear,<br /> +That's a-making the sun shine everywhere;<br /> +An' the world of gloom is a world of glee,<br /> +Wid the bird in the bush, an' the bud in the tree<br /> +An' the fruit on the stim o' the bough," says he,<br /> +"Whatever the weather may be," says he—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 4em;">"Whatever the weather may be!"</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Whitcomb Riley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O Father of Lights, with whom can be no variation, +neither shadow that is cast by turning, help us today +so to trust Thee that our joy may be unclouded. Thy +love is unchanging in its radiance and warmth. +Therefore let it glow in me and through me light +someone who may be in darkness. O strong Son of +God, who art the same, yesterday, today, yea, and +forever, enable us, we beseech Thee, to be brave and +cheery as though Thyself wast in the darkest hours +as in the brightest. Teach us that the storm and trial +is just our opportunity to shine. Cleanse us of all +disobedience and darkness. Be our constant Comforter. +Let others see that it is Christ within us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas W. Smith.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_284" id="page_284">[284]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 8</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Look up to God, and say, "Make use of me for the +future as Thou wilt. I am of the same mind; I am +equal with Thee. I refuse nothing which seems good +to Thee. Lead me whither Thou wilt. Clothe me in +whatever dress Thou wilt. Is it Thy will that I should +be in a public or private condition; dwell here, or be +banished; be poor or rich? Under all these circumstances +I will make Thy defence to men. I will show +what the nature of everything is."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Epictetus.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Merciful Father, we begin this day, knowing not +what the end may be, with thoughts of Thee and Thy +loving kindness. May this be to us a day of joy, a +day upon which we can look back and say we have +been blessed by Thee. We pray for that spirit that +enabled others to labor in the cause of love and +righteousness, and while we may not be able to accomplish +all the good we have set our hearts upon, +may the thought that our lives and our labors have +not been in vain, inspire us and others with courage +to continue the work of helping and blessing our +fellowmen. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Donald Fraser.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_285" id="page_285">[285]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 9</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Men deny the Divine Existence with as little feeling +as the most assert it. Even in our true systems we go +on collecting mere words, playmarks and medals, as +the misers do coins; and not till late do we transmute +the words into feelings, the coins into enjoyments. A +man may for twenty years believe the immortality of +the soul; in the one-and-twentieth, in some great +moment, he for the first time discovers with amazement +the rich meaning of this belief, and the warmth of this +naphtha-well.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richter.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou Who slumberest not, nor sleepest, in the +dawn of this new day we look trustingly to Thee. +While the night has been enfolding us, Thy loving +care has held us in the everlasting arms. May this +day be for us a fresh consecration. May we be ennobled +in Thee. May we share Thy life in things +small or great. However humble our lives—however +emptied our experience of that which wins the +plaudits of men, may we manifest Thee. By us may +Thy Kingdom come and Thy will be done. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George H. Young.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_286" id="page_286">[286]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 10</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Thou wilt not hold in scorn the child who dares<br /> +Look up to Thee, the Father,—dares to ask<br /> +More than Thy wisdom answers. From Thy hand<br /> +The worlds were cast; yet every leaflet claims<br /> +From that same hand its little shining sphere<br /> +Of star-lit dew; thine image, the great sun,<br /> +Girt with his mantle of tempestuous flame,<br /> +Glares in mid-heaven; but to his noontide blaze<br /> +The slender violet lifts its lidless eye,<br /> +And from his splendor steals its fairest hue,<br /> +Its sweetest perfume from the scorching fire.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Thou great Spirit of life and power, we do not shrink +in terror before Thee, but come to Thee in trust and +love. Though we cannot fathom the mystery of Thy +life nor measure the might of Thy power, yet we have +learned to call Thee Father; and even as the violet +lifts its face to the noonday sun to find the secret of its +life, so we lift our faces to Thee, to find the secret of +our lives. Thou answerest us with tenderness. Thou +speakest to us in love. Fresh from sleep, we put our +hands in Thine to be led forth to the duties of the day. +May we go forth with that confidence and hope, which +are born of trust in Thee, our Father. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_287" id="page_287">[287]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 11</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Now believe me, God hides some ideal in every +human soul. Some time in our life we feel a trembling, +fearful longing to do some good thing. Life finds its +noblest spring of excellence in this hidden impulse to +do our best. There is a time when we are not content +to be such merchants or doctors or lawyers as we see on +the dead level or below it. The woman longs to glorify +her womanhood as sister, wife or mother. Here is God,—God +standing silently at the door all day long,—God +whispering to the soul that to be pure and true is +to succeed in life and that whatever we get short of that +will burn up like stubble, though the whole world try to +save it.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Collyer.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>God of all power and might, come into our lives +with Thy might and Thy power. Awaken us from +that slumber of death-in-life which easily and sweetly +steals through the door, and, like some new Delilah, +binds the strong will within. Come, come as the fresh +morning sun, to drive away the mist of our sloth and +indecision. Come, enter; and bring with Thee the +upstirring power and the wide radiance of the life +divine. Come, enter, and abide! When Thou art +absent, though life be easy, it doth not satisfy us; but +when Thou art present, though life be hard, it doth +also content us. O God of all power and might, come +Thou into our lives with Thy might and Thy power. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Melvin Brandow.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_288" id="page_288">[288]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 12</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>If you really want to help your fellowmen, you must +not merely have in you what would do them good if they +should take it from you, but you must be such a man +that they can take it from you. The snow must melt +upon the mountain and come down in a spring torrent, +before its richness can make the valley rich. And yet +in every age there are cold, hard, unsympathetic wise +men standing up aloof, like snow banks on the hill tops, +conscious of the locked up fertility in them and wondering +that their wisdom does not save the world.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Thou, who hast kept us safely during the unconsciousness +of our slumbering hours and brought us +refreshed to this morning light, prepare us for the +duties of this day by filling us with the assurance that +we are Thine, and that Thou lovest us. Help us to be +more like Thee, to love Thee more and serve Thee +better. May we manifest our love to Thee by our +willingness to be of service to our fellowmen. Make +us warm-hearted and true, helpful and kind, reflecting +Thy love and doing Thy will. We are glad to live in +this beautiful world. And we pray that we may be +faithful co-laborers with Jesus Christ, in bringing light, +love and joy to all lives. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Eugene M. Grant.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_289" id="page_289">[289]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>A few more smiles of silent sympathy, a few more +tender words, a little more restraint in temper, may +make all the difference between happiness and half-happiness +to those I live with.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Stopford A. Brooke.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Others shall sing the song,<br /> +Others shall right the wrong,<br /> +Finish what I begin,<br /> +And all I fail to win,<br /> +What matter, I or they,<br /> +Mine or another's day,<br /> +So the right word be said,<br /> +And life the sweeter made?</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father, so little of the world in which we live is Thy +world, so much our world, the petty, dwarfed world of +our own small vision, that we lose heart and fail to do +our share. Help us to see that, as in the densest +swamps the sweetest flowers grow, so, even in our +darkest hours, we still may be sweet at heart, saying +the word, doing the deed, giving the sympathy, that +will make the world sing and blossom. If there are +times when pain and darkness obscure our vision of +Thee, help us to look on to the sunset of our day, +when the black pall is transfigured at the touch of Thy +glory,—when sorrow and failure transcended by +gentleness are our beauty and salvation. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John M. Davidson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_290" id="page_290">[290]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 14</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>There is not a man in the world who is not saved by +hope every day of his life. Rob one of hope and you +have robbed him of his power. Nothing may so quickly +unnerve a man and render him helpless as to take hope +out of his heart. What is poverty? What is sickness? +What is disaster? What are daily burdens? What +signifies the desertion of friends, what of death itself +so long as a man can hope? The man who hopes will +brush every difficulty out of the way. He will put aside +every suggestion of failure. Take hope out of a man's +heart and you have taken all. Put hope into a man's +heart and you have given all.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>We thank Thee, O God, for the light of another +morning, for the privilege of entering upon another +day. We shall meet with those who do not understand +life nor the world in which we live. It is to them only +a place to bear burdens, to toil, to endure. Give us, +O Father, understanding minds and hearts. Teach +us to know that life is a great opportunity, that Thy +plans for each one are very broad, that the world is +full of open doors; and inspired by this knowledge +may no despondent soul cross our path without being +helped and made to feel that every life through the +love of God and the guidance of God may be made +sublime. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Alexander Dight.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_291" id="page_291">[291]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Ho! for the bending sheaves,<br /> +Ho! for the crimson leaves<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Flaming in splendor!</span><br /> +Season of ripened gold,<br /> +Plenty in crib and fold,<br /> +Skies with a depth untold<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Liquid and tender.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Russell Lowell.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Source Infinite and Eternal of Light and Life; +Creator of being flowing on forever; Minister far and +wide of unspeakable bounty; Through whose power +rise the riches of Nature; From whose abundance +descend all gifts to man; Soul of our souls and safeguard +of the world; To whom all Intelligence looks +through every dawn; And by whose support the heart +of man is stayed; Let there be to our steps paths of +brightness; to our lives laws of justice, kindness, +and trust, that we may abound in doing good and by +grace, mercy, and truth duly shown, may obtain +grateful remembrance evermore. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward C. Towne.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_292" id="page_292">[292]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 16</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There is something in the autumn that is native to my blood<br /> +Touch of manner, hint of mood;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And my heart is like a rhyme,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With the yellow and the purple and the crimson keeping time.</span><br /> +<br /> +The scarlet of the maples can shake me like a cry<br /> +Of bugles going by.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And my lonely spirit thrills</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To see the frosty asters like a smoke upon the hills.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard Hovey.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Father, my heart is lonely till I feel Thy spirit +near, and then the glory of the season brings a message +to my soul. Help me now to see Thy master hand in +the great beauty of the world. May my soul that feels +the glad riot of color know that he who gives such +beauty and bounty has for me far richer blessings in +the great fields of the future. May this day, begun +with Nature's rhythm be set with the music of holy +purpose and noble service. And may the music sound +not alone for me, but for others that we together may +march forward in the spirit of Him who loved the +lilies of the field and the fowls of the air. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles E. Varney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_293" id="page_293">[293]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 17</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Thousands of years ago a leaf fell on the soft clay, +and seemed to be lost. But last summer a geologist in +his ramblings broke off a piece of rock with his hammer, +and there lay the image of the leaf, with every line and +every vein and all the delicate tracery preserved in the +stone through those centuries. So the words we speak +and the things we do today may seem to be lost, but in +the great final revealing the smallest of them will appear.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Russell Miller.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father we thank Thee for the light of this new +day. Tenderly Thou hast withdrawn the curtain of +the night and shown us the beauties and glories of +Nature, reminding us of Thine own blessed verdict +in the dawn of creation, "Behold they are very good." +Good indeed, is it to live in such a world, and we +thank Thee for our being. We ask this morning, dear +Lord, not for the perishing things of earth, but for +continued power and disposition to enjoy Thee and +Thy works, for a faith that never wavers and a hope +that never grows dim, for such a portion of this world's +goods as the wise may enjoy without harm and the +righteous hold without wrong. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Sallaway.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_294" id="page_294">[294]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 18</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Nay, I wrong you, little flower,<br /> +Reading mournful mood of mine<br /> +In your looks, that give no sign<br /> +Of a spirit dark and cheerless:<br /> +You possess the heavenly power<br /> +That rejoices in the hour,<br /> +Glad, contented, free and fearless,—<br /> +Lifts a sunny face to heaven<br /> +When a sunny day is given;<br /> +Makes a summer of its own,<br /> +Blooming late and all alone.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>We thank Thee, O Father, that, to those who obey +the command of Jesus to consider them, the flowers +become prophets of God and preachers of righteousness. +We thank Thee for the worship which They +render Thee, so pure, so brave, so glad, and so acceptable. +They may not hinder Thee and Thou dost +work Thy perfect will in them; O give us the wisdom +and the grace to make Thee welcome to our hearts +until in us also Thou shalt work Thy perfect will. So +may we find our true use and felicity, and render +unto Thee the praise that is Thy due. And this +we ask through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. Tenney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_295" id="page_295">[295]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 19</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Close bosom friend of the maturing sun;</span><br /> +Conspiring with Him how to load and bless<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves run;</span><br /> +To bend with apples the moss'd cottage trees,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;</span><br /> +To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel-shells<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With a sweet kernel; to set to budding more</span><br /> +And still more later flowers for the bees,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Until they think warm days will never cease,</span><br /> +For summer has o'er brimmed their clammy cells.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Keats.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our dear Heavenly Father, Thou hast ever been +wooing us by a thousand influences and voices to Thyself +and our souls are ever restless till they rest in Thy +love. The voices of nature everywhere speak to us +of Thy goodness and Thy power and all verdure and +blossom and fruitage is but the answer of the inanimate +world to Thy call of life. Shall we do less than +these, O God, when upon us Thou hast stamped +Thine own image and made our being the house +beautiful for Thine indwelling! We are Thy disciples +indeed if we bear much fruit and have love one for the +other. Mould us, fashion us, mature us, dear Lord, +till the angels, watching at the gates and on the towers, +say we look like Thee. And this we ask in Jesus' +name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George M. Smiley.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_296" id="page_296">[296]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 20</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I pluck an acorn from the greensward, and hold it to +my ear and this is what it says to me: "By and by the +birds will come and nest in me. By and by I will furnish +shade for the cattle. By and by I will provide warmth +for the home in the pleasant fire. By and by I will be +shelter from the storm to those who have gone under the +roof. By and by I will be the strong ribs of the great +vessel, and the tempest will beat against me in vain, +while I carry men across the Atlantic." "O foolish +little acorn, wilt thou be all this?" I ask. And the +acorn answers, "Yes, God and I."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Lyman Abbott.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, we believe that Thou art present +and controlling in all the operations of Nature. Not +a sparrow falls to the ground without Thy notice. All +life is of Thy giving. Plants, animals, and worlds +alike are governed by Thy laws. We realize in some +measure Thy Omnipotence. We should fear to draw +near to Thee if Thou hadst not revealed Thyself to us +in Jesus Christ as a God of love. Thou, O God, art +love. We believe that Thou wilt give to all Thy +children eternal life. As from the acorn comes the +oak, clothed in royal beauty, seemingly life from death, +so from what seems death shall our immortal spirits +rise to dwell forever with Thee. We adore Thee, O +God. We love Thee for Thy goodness and Thy love +shown to us. Be gracious unto us and bless us for +our Saviour's sake. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Cyrus Northrop.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_297" id="page_297">[297]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I suppose every day of earth, with its hundred +thousand deaths and something more of births,—with +its loves and hates, its triumphs and defeats, its pangs +and blisses, has more of humanity in it than all the books +that were ever written, put together. I believe the flowers +growing at this moment send up more fragrance to +heaven than was ever exhaled from all the essences ever +distilled.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, Thou art in all nature and in +all human history. If we really know our world and +our fellowmen and ourselves, we shall know Thee. +As we enter upon the work of this new day, we pray +that we may feel Thy presence with us. Thou art +never far away from us; we cannot get away from +our world, and we cannot fly from ourselves. Thou +art with Thy world and Thou art with Thy children. +We ask not so much for Thy presence, as for the consciousness +of Thy presence. May we learn to know +Thee in the world about us and in the secret places of +our own hearts. Then shall all life be fragrant and +beautiful and this day somewhat divine. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_298" id="page_298">[298]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 22</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The best thing to take people out of their own worries, +is to go to work and find out how other folk's worries +are getting on.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Socrates thought that if all our misfortunes were laid +in one common heap, whence every one must take an +equal portion, most persons would be content to take +their own and depart.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Plutarch.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father in Heaven, the light of this new day is +the light of Thy countenance, therefore we rejoice. +In Thy sunshine our souls find strength for the burdens +Thou dost give, and even through Thy shadows +we reach the peace which passeth understanding. +Yet Thou art comfort to us that we may comfort the +troubled and the distressed with the comfort wherewith +we ourselves are comforted. Set Thou our +feet in the paths of service. Make us, we pray Thee, +glad ministers of Thy mercy, and in binding up the +wounds of others may we have balm for our own. +By this day, may we grow in patience and power, and +in the knowledge of Thy love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Leon O. Williams.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_299" id="page_299">[299]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 23</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Life has a thousand pages—love and scorn,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Hope and adventure, poverty and sin,</span><br /> +Despair and glory, loneliness forlorn,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Age, sorrow, exile, all are writ therein—;</span><br /> +And on each page, however stern or sad,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Are words which gleam upon the crabbed scroll,</span><br /> +Revealing words, that make our spirits glad,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And well are worth the study of the soul.</span><br /> +We may not lightly shrink from any leaf,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">For on it may be writ the word we need.</span><br /> +God turns the page—whatever joy or grief<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">He opens for us, let us wisely read.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Priscilla Leonard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Fill our souls with Thy light, O God, that we may +ever hope. Give us the poise of endless progress. +Make our souls free and joyous as the bird's wing. +Give us the courage of our convictions in all places, +under all conditions. Make us brave. Take away +all forms of fear, whether of man, of nature, or of Thee, +and make us feel that each is our mighty friend, but +Thou supreme over all, faithful each moment to our +being, in ten thousand sweet, true, tender, life-giving, +life-sustaining ministries. Teach us to look for Thee +everywhere, and to see Thy order, and Thy beauty, +facing all things Heavenward. May our ideals be +perfect holiness, perfect strength, perfect love, perfect +service. Make our faith great in the higher estate, +where our faculties, only dawning here, shall rise in a +glorious morning of the soul. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">A. N. Alcott.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_300" id="page_300">[300]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Suppose a kindly word of mine<br /> +Could lift the clouds and bring sunshine;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Am I my brother's keeper?</span><br /> +<br /> +Suppose the weary worker toils,<br /> +For scanty pittance delves and moils;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Am I my brother's keeper?</span><br /> +<br /> +Suppose in penury and fear<br /> +My neighbor see the wolf draw near;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Am I my brother's keeper?</span><br /> +<br /> + * * * * * <br /> + +<br /> +Perhaps—who knows?—perhaps I'm not!<br /> +Self-centred soul! hast thou forgot<br /> +The marvel of our common lot,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The mystic tie that binds us all</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Who dwell on this terrestrial ball,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Stupendous hope of time and song,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The bourne for which the ages long?</span><br /> +How hard our hearts must seem to Thee,<br /> +Exhaustless Fount of Charity!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Nehemiah Dodge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>We thank Thee, our Father, for the light of a new +day and for its opportunities of service for Thee and +Thy great Cause. We rejoice that Thou dost not +only set duty clearly before us, but also dost grant +power to perform it. May we realize not only that +we are "our brother's keeper," and that our lives are +helpful or harmful every day, but may we be increasingly +grateful that we may every day by Thy +grace be fellow-helpers and workers together with +God. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William Full.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_301" id="page_301">[301]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is of no use to dispute about the Indian Summer. +I never found two people who could agree as to the time +when it ought to be here, or upon a month and day when +it should be decidedly too late to look for it. It keeps +coming. For my part, I think we get it now and then, +little by little, as "the Kingdom" comes. That every +soft, warm, mellow, hazy, golden day, like each fair, +fragrant life, is a part and out-crop of it; though weeks +of gale and frost, or ages of cruel worldliness and +miserable sin may lie between.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Vouchsafe Thy blessing, O Heavenly Father, upon +this morning service of thanksgiving and prayer. We +thank Thee that each year Thou sendest seed-time +and harvest, to us Thy children. For the beauty +and bounty of the Autumn, for all Thy material gifts, +for friends and home, and for our precious Christian +faith, we are deeply grateful to Thee. Give us the +attentive mind, the receptive heart, that we may see +Thy providence and love in every event of life. +Banish fear and doubt from our minds. Guard us +from all temptations. May the Spirit of Christ abide +in our hearts, and enable us to glorify Thee in all our +works and lives. In its power and glory may Thy +Kingdom come, and remain upon the earth forever. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Elbert W. Whitney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_302" id="page_302">[302]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Pleasant smiles, gentle tones, cheery greetings, +tempers sweet under a headache or a business care or +the children's noise; the ready bubbling over of thoughtfulness +for one another, and the habits of smiling, greeting, +forbearing, thinking in these ways; it is these +above all else which makes one's home "a building +of God; a house not made with hands," these that we +hear in the song of "Home, Sweet Home."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William C. Gannett.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty Father, the light of another day breaks in +upon our lives, to reveal to us unfinished tasks and +unsought duties. The sorrows and joys of the coming +day are hidden from our sight, enswathed in the folded +hours of toil. But Thou knowest all our heedless +ways and tempers that chafe from impatience; Thou +seest the measure of our needs and dost consider our +desires. Give unto us the consciousness of Thine +everlasting arms about us. And then when the shadows +lengthen and the twilight hushes the hum of toil, +our spirits shall know no weariness and bear no stain. +Give ear unto this our morning prayer, O Thou +Light of Light. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Francis Treadway Clayton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_303" id="page_303">[303]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 27</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>How can people help loving things, when they are +full of life magnetism, that even a finger touch gets the +thrill of?</i></p> + +<p><i>It is not the sunshine, or any other tangible why, +that accounts for the pleasantness of old house corners. +It is the pureness and the pleasantness that have +clustered there; the very walls have drunk these in.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, wilt Thou keep our home +life bright and sweet? Guard our lips from harsh +words, our lives from shame. If quarrels arise, help +us to be the first to forgive and forget. In the hour of +temptation may we say no, because of a father's +splendid honor, and a mother's pure face! In the +time of trial or seeming defeat may we be brave and +of good cheer! Teach us that home is made dear, +not by its furnishings, but by the memories and inspirations +of the hours we spent under its roof with +those who loved us and were always tender and true! +Bind us together in the bonds of love and peace, and +keep us always united and a happy family. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Henry R. Rose.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_304" id="page_304">[304]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There are loyal hearts, there are spirits brave,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">There are souls that are pure and true;</span><br /> +Then give to the world the best you have,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the best shall come back to you.</span><br /> +<br /> +Give love, and love to your heart will flow,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">A strength in your utmost need;</span><br /> +Have faith, and a score of hearts will show<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Their faith in your word and deed.</span><br /> +<br /> +For life is the mirror of king and slave,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">'Tis just what you are and do;</span><br /> +Then give to the world the best you have,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the best will come back to you.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Madeline S. Bridges.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + + +<p>Almighty Father, we come to Thee for a Father's +blessing, that this day we may go about Thy work and +enter into Thy business, alive in Thy spirit and strong +in Thy strength. We ask this for ourselves, each of +us, that we may be knit to each other as brothers with +brothers, to bear each other's burdens. We ask it +most of all for home, that in home-life there always +may be joy and peace and love, each seeking another's +good, brothers and sisters with sisters and brothers, +fathers and mothers with their children, that home +may be the place of Thy holy spirit and the home of +joy. Today we would come and go as Thy messengers, +in our own lives welcoming the Father, who +is with us seeking Thy strength and asking for Thy +good will. Bless us today with Thy blessing. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_305" id="page_305">[305]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 29</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>We are never more discontented with others than +when we are discontented with ourselves. The consciousness +of wrongdoing makes us irritable, and our +heart in its cunning quarrels with what is outside it, +in order that it may deafen the clamor within.</i></p> + +<p><i>In the conduct of life, habits count for more than +maxims, because habit is a living maxim, become flesh +and instinct. To reform one's maxims is nothing; +it is but to change the title of the book. To learn new +habits is everything, for it is to reach the substance of +life. Life is but a tissue of habits.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henri-Frédéric Amiel.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we pray that our daily life +may take on that dignity and calmness and tranquillity +which are the possession of those who truly +and inwardly trust and confide in the eternal Goodness, +who believe that our days are ordered by a +Higher Power, and that through all there runs a +thread,—a chain of Infinite Love, binding us all to +Thee and to one common universal good and blessedness. +In this faith, keep us, O Holy Father, and, +filled with love to Thee and to our neighbor, may we +pursue our way and do our work, anxious only to have +Thee in all our thoughts. In Thy name, Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Joshua Young.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_306" id="page_306">[306]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 30</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Thus pass away the generations of men!—thus +perish the records of the glory of nations! Yet, when +every emanation of the human mind has faded, when +in the storms of time the monuments of man's creative +art are scattered to the dust, an ever new life springs +from the bosom of the earth. Unceasingly prolific +Nature unfolds her germs, regardless though sinful +man, ever at war with himself, tramples beneath his +foot the ripening fruit!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alexander von Humboldt.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Infinite Spirit, Thou buildest the monuments of +Thy power in the rocks of the mountains, but Thou +buildest the monuments of Thy love in the hearts of +men. When the bodies and the works of men have +perished the rocks will abide and the trees will bear +their fruit. But when the rocks have crumbled the +souls of men will abide. If that which is seen is +temporal, we thank Thee O Lord, that the unseen is +eternal. We are awed by the majesty of the seas and +the mountains. But we are inspired by the immortality +of the soul. Heavenly Father, may we live +today as if made for eternity. So may our lives be +dignified and glorified. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_307" id="page_307">[307]</a></span></p> + + +<p>October 31</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 7em;">God doth not need</span><br /> +Either man's work, or His own gifts, who best<br /> +Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best; His state<br /> +Is kingly; thousands at His bidding speed<br /> +And post o'er land and ocean without rest:—<br /> +They also serve who only stand and wait.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Milton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, who didst give to Thy servant light in his +blindness and music in the heart, grant that I may +this day be swift to run on all errands of mercy and +truth, or patient to wait Thy will, if so Thou commandest. +Make me as unswerving as are the stars +above me, as trustful as the birds who sing at dawn, +and fear not what the day may bring. May I be +strong to resist all evil, and cleave to that which is +good. May I be conscious that in the loneliest hour +Thou art near, and in the most solitary place there is +the communion of saints. May Thy power flow +through human weakness, and may all the trials and +testings of life lead me constantly to the Rock that is +higher than I. So may Thy will be done in my life +as it is in heaven. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">W. H. P. Faunce.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_308" id="page_308">[308]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I saw the long line of the vacant shore<br /> +The sea-weed and the shells upon the sand,<br /> +And the brown rocks left bare on every hand,<br /> +As if the ebbing tide would flow no more,<br /> +Then heard I, more distinctly than before,<br /> +The ocean breathe and its great breast expand,<br /> +And hurrying came on the defenceless land<br /> +The insurgent waters with tumultuous roar.<br /> +All thought and feeling and desire, I said,<br /> +Love, laughter, and the exultant joy of song<br /> +Have ebbed from me forever! Suddenly o'er me<br /> +They swept again from their deep ocean bed<br /> +And in a tumult of delight, and strong<br /> +As youth, and beautiful as youth, upbore me.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry W. Longfellow.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>We give Thee hearty thanks, most Holy Father +that Thou hast not delivered up our souls to the +emptiness and longing of despair. In Thy mercy and +wisdom hast Thou ordained that we may taste ever +afresh the deepest joys of life and ever anew feel the +thrill of its loftiest inspirations. Like the sea is our +life for its largeness; like the sea in its ebbs and flows. +O Father of Life, flood our souls this day with a tide +from the ocean of Thine own love lifting our lives to +highest service and bliss. And Thine shall be all the +honor and praise. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. W. Lutterman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_309" id="page_309">[309]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The bird, let loose in Eastern skies,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">When hastening fondly home,</span><br /> +Ne'er stoops to earth her wing, nor flies<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Where idle warblers roam.</span><br /> +But high she shoots through air and light<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Above all low delay,</span><br /> +Where nothing earthly bounds her flight,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Nor shadow dims her way.</span><br /> +<br /> +So grant me, God, from every care,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And stain of passion free,</span><br /> +Aloft, through Virtue's purer air,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To hold my course to Thee!</span><br /> +No sin to cloud—no lure to stay<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">My soul, as home she springs;—</span><br /> +Thy sunshine on her joyful way,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Thy freedom in her wings!</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Moore.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, who art both life and truth, the Author of +our being and the light which lighteneth all, the source +of our soul's life, and the goal towards which we strive, +as cleaves the lark at dawn the heavenly blue, so may +our souls be freed from sense, whose music siren-like +would seek to draw us from our flight to Thee. As +that same bird rejoices in the morning light, and +sounds its note of praise, so may our souls be tuned to +heavenly symphonies, and may the sunshine of Thy +love, resplendent in secure omnipotence, give glad +assurance to our hearts, nor cease to guide our way, +until we reach that central orb, our soul's true home, +and find eternal rest in Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Albert B. Shields.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_310" id="page_310">[310]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 3</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There is ever a song somewhere, my dear;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">There is ever a something sings alway:</span><br /> +There's the song of the lark when the skies are clear<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the song of the thrush when the skies are gray,</span><br /> +The sunshine showers across the grain,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And the bluebird trills in the orchard tree;</span><br /> +And in and out, when the eaves drip rain,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The swallows art twittering ceaselessly.</span><br /> +<br /> +There is ever a song somewhere, my dear,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Be the skies above or dark or fair,</span><br /> +There is ever a song that our hearts may hear—<br /> +There is ever a song somewhere, my dear—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">There is ever a song somewhere!</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">James Whitcomb Riley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, the Giver of all harmony and joy, before +whom the morning stars sang together, by Whom the +voice of the sparrow is heard, we thank Thee that we +may serve Thee with gladness and come before Thy +presence with singing. Put Thy new song into our +mouths and help us to render the acceptable praises +of the upright and pure in heart. Help us to love all +Thy creatures and to delight in the songs Thou hast +taught them. Especially enable us to bless our brother +men, to hush their sighing and swell their singing, to +strengthen the chorus of joy and praise with which +Thou hast ordained the world shall be filled. We ask +with confidence because we know Thy love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. Francis Cooper.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_311" id="page_311">[311]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 4</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>The snow has capped yon distant hill,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">At morn the running brook was still,</span><br /> +From driven herds the clouds that rise<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Are like the smoke of sacrifice;</span><br /> +Ere long the frozen sod shall mark<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The ploughshare, changed to stubborn rock.</span><br /> +The brawling stream shall soon be done—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Sing, little bird! the frosts have come.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, Thou art the +giver of all good gifts, and all that comes from Thy +hand is good. May we accept Thy providences. In +the dreary days of winter as in the pleasant summer +season, Thy mercies are new every morning and fresh +every evening. Even when our hearts are chilled with +grief and disappointment and failure, we would still +put our trust in the eternal goodness. Help us, O God, +to be truly grateful for everything that comes to us. +In the winter of the soul may we learn the lessons of +patience and resignation. Thus, with faith triumphant +and with hearts full of gladness may we sing our songs +of praise to Thy holy name forever and forever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Arthur W. Grose.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_312" id="page_312">[312]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>It is will alone that matters!<br /> +Will alone that mars or makes,<br /> +Will, that no distraction scatters,<br /> +And that no resistance breaks.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henrik Ibsen.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>No man can choose what coming hours may bring<br /> +To him of need, of joy, of suffering;<br /> +But what his soul shall bring unto each hour<br /> +To meet its challenge—this is in his power.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Priscilla Leonard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Infinite God, Who perceivest the destinies of worlds +and of men; Who bringest to pass all that we enjoy, +and Who permittest all that we suffer; may I this day +be enabled to recognize Thy Fatherly goodness, in +the morning mists, even as in the noonday brightness! +Should sorrow becloud my pathway, should disappointment +make its keen thrusts, should temptation +lay its attractive coils, may my soul be made aware +of Thy consoling presence, enjoy the compensations +of Thy grace, assert the potency of the wisdom from +above! And mayest Thou reveal Thyself! So may be +fanned to a flame the divine spark in my heart, whereby +all are made partakers of the victory with and +through our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Ernest W. Burch.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_313" id="page_313">[313]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 6</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>"Yes," she answered, lifting her eyes to his face; +"I, too, have felt it, Hermas, this burden, this need, +this unsatisfied longing. I think I know what it means. +It is gratitude;—the language of the heart, the music +of happiness. There is no perfect joy without gratitude. +But we have never learned it, and the want of it troubles +us. It is like being dumb with a heart full of love. We +must find the word for it, and say it together. Then we +shall be perfectly joined in perfect joy."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, forbid that we shall ever be satisfied +with the rich gifts of Thy land, or until the gifts have +brought us, appreciative, humble, grateful, to Thee, +the giver of them all. Help us to see that this is their +high office, disregarding which the noblest of them +becomes a stumbling block, accepting which the +humblest of them becomes a means of grace and of +surpassing gladness. Move us, then, to such acceptance +of Thy favors as shall bring us to Thee rejoicing, +that we may need less the experiences which shall +bring us to Thee weeping. And hallow all our human +loves by lifting us to a common sense and acknowledgment +of Thy transcendent love, as shown especially +in Jesus Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. Tenney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_314" id="page_314">[314]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>"What is the real good?"<br /> +I asked, in musing mood.<br /> +"Order," said the court;<br /> +"Knowledge," said the school,<br /> +"Truth," said the wise man,<br /> +"Pleasure," said the fool,<br /> +"Love," said the maiden,<br /> +"Beauty," said the page,<br /> +"Freedom," said the dreamer,<br /> +"Home," said the sage;<br /> +"Fame," said the soldier,<br /> +"Equity," said the seer.<br /> +Spake my heart full sadly—<br /> +"The answer is not here."<br /> +Then within my bosom<br /> +Softly this I heard:<br /> +"Each heart holds the secret;<br /> +Kindness is the word."</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Boyle O'Reilly.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>Oh, Father, we are in a world of wonder and of +bountiful promise. We scarcely know which to choose. +Of all life's quests we would seek the highest and best. +Thou art a Lord gracious and kind. Grace is but +another name for kindness. It is this which is pronounced +as a benediction Sabbath after Sabbath, and +for which we lift up our faces morning after morning, +to receive. Crown us with Thy loving kindness and +tender mercies. But not for ourselves alone! As we +meet the weary and heavy burdened in life, inspire us +to show them the kindness of our God. As freely as +we have received, so freely may we impart. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">W. G. Richardson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_315" id="page_315">[315]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 8</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>What a blessed thing it is that we can forget! Today's +troubles look large, but a week hence they will be forgotten +and buried out of sight. Says one writer, "If +you should keep a book and daily put down the things +that worry you, and see what becomes of them, it would +be a benefit to you." The art of forgetting is a blessed +art, but the art of overlooking is quite as important.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Aughey.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Lord, we know not the path our feet must walk +today; yet we are not anxious. "Thy word will be +a lamp to our feet," and what we need to know Thou +wilt reveal just when we need to know it. Help us +not to forget that we are under our Father's care; +that He knoweth our frame, that He will not unduly +burden us; that He will not "suffer us to be tempted +beyond that which we are able to bear;" that He will +make "all things work together for good to them +that love Him." So may this day be one of peace to +us, and through us may some troubled heart find rest. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George Skene</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_316" id="page_316">[316]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 9</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Learn to laugh. A good laugh is better than medicine. +Learn to tell a story. A well told story is as welcome as +a sunbeam in a sick room. Learn to keep your own +troubles to yourself. The world is too busy to care for +your ills and sorrows. Learn to do something for +others. Even if you are a bedridden invalid there is +always something that you can do to make others happier, +and that is the surest way to attain happiness for +yourself.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">The Beacon.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of all mankind, may the spirit of cheer mark +this new day. May the smile of Thy benediction rest +upon us, and give courage to meet the duty and bear +the burden. Help us each moment to know something +of the highest joy of serving Thee. May that +joy never be absent from our pain. May it consecrate +every pleasure. May it lift us nearer the stature of +the Christ, that the light of our life may shed its beams +on the pathway of other lives,—a light in their darkness, +an assurance of sympathy in affliction, an inspiration +to do and endure. So may all gladly go to +their appointed duty, one with Thee, even as Christ, +whose followers we aim to be. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles T. Billings.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_317" id="page_317">[317]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 10</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Take whatever is good in man, and argue that God +is not only that, but infinitely better than that. In +fashioning your conception of God, make it as resplendent +in justice, as august in truth, as noble and pure in +love, as radiant and wondrous in pity, as enduring as +you please. Never be afraid that you will overdraw +the divine character. God is never better in your thought +or imagination than He is in Himself.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Ward Beecher.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, we thank Thee for the great thoughts +and high hopes which lie deep in human hearts. We +thank Thee for the visions of the perfect life which +lead us ever toward the light. We long to follow +those who lead the way to Thee. By faith and love +may we be bound to them. As voices of Thy spirit +may they be to us. Bless us this day with hunger for +righteousness. Feed us with the bread of life. Endow +us with high hopes and determined wills, that we may +be faithful. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frederick W. Betts.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_318" id="page_318">[318]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 11</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There was a man who smiled<br /> +Because the day was bright;<br /> +Because he slept at night;<br /> +Because God gave him sight<br /> +To gaze upon his child!<br /> +Because his little one<br /> +Could leap and laugh and run;<br /> +Because the distant sun<br /> +Smiled on the earth, he smiled.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>He toiled and still was glad<br /> +Because the air was free;<br /> +Because he loved, and she<br /> +That claimed his love and he<br /> +Shared all the joys they had!<br /> +Because the grasses grew;<br /> +Because the sweet wind blew;<br /> +Because that he could hew<br /> +And hammer he was glad.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">S. E. Kiser.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Lord, who dost bountifully provide for us the +necessities and comforts of life, and makest us glad +in the enjoyment of the same; grant, we beseech +Thee, that we may so use these, Thy gifts, that in +all our blessings we find Thee to be the source and +author of all our happiness—of our health and prosperity, +of our joys and hopes, and of the holy relations +of friends and family; lest, resting content in that +which is less, we fail to attain to that which is greatest—truly +to know Thee and to love Thee, which is +the very end of our being and the consummation of +all bliss; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William H. P. Hatch.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_319" id="page_319">[319]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 12</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 5em;">I have seen</span><br /> +A curious child, who dwelt upon a tract<br /> +Of inland ground, applying to his ear<br /> +The convolutions of a smooth-lipped shell;<br /> +To which, in silence hushed, his very soul<br /> +Listened intensely; and his countenance soon<br /> +Brightened with joy; for from within were heard<br /> +Murmurings, whereby the monitor expressed<br /> +Mysterious union with its native sea:<br /> +Even such a shell the universe itself<br /> +Is to the ear of Faith; and there are times,<br /> +I doubt not, when to you it doth impart<br /> +Authentic tidings of invisible things;<br /> +Of ebb and flow, and ever-during power;<br /> +And central peace, subsisting at the heart<br /> +Of endless agitation.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Wordsworth.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father of Lights, with whom can be no variation or +shadow that is cast by turning, give to me the joy of the +love that endures as seeing Him who is invisible; that +where Thy speaking voice is, there may be my listening +ear; that above the waste and clamor of the tasks that +exhaust me in bodily strength, there may be supplied +a power of will to do the right and a fellowship with +all righteous men everywhere. Help me to remember +that Life consists not in the abundance of the things +I possess. Let my faith see through doubt, endure +through temptation and privation, and cleave +steadfastly to God, remembering that Love believing is +Love triumphing. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Adolph A. Berle.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_320" id="page_320">[320]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>When Jeremy Taylor had lost all—when his house +had been plundered and his family driven out of doors, +and all his worldly estate had been sequestered—he +could still write thus: "I am fallen into the hands of +publicans and sequesterers, and they have taken all +from me. What now? Let me look about me. They +have left me the sun and moon, a loving wife and many +friends to pity me, and some to relieve me; and I can +still discourse, and, unless I list, they have not taken +away my merry countenance and my cheerful spirit +and a good conscience; they have still left me the providence +of God, and all the promises of the Gospel, and +my religion, and my hopes of heaven, and my charity +to them, too; and still I sleep and digest, I eat and drink, +I read and meditate—and he that hath so many causes +of joy and so great, is very much in love with sorrow +and peevishness, who leaves all these pleasures, and +chooses to sit down upon his little handful of thorns."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Samuel Smiles.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of all mercies, Who Thyself art more to us +than the utmost of Thy gifts; we thank Thee for those +blessings of our life which come like the manna fresh +every morning and pass with the passing day. Still +more we thank Thee for the blessings which abide, +like a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night, witness +of Thine own presence ever continuing with us. Give +us grace and wisdom so to receive the ministries of +this new day, that by means of them we may enter +more fully into the Divine friendship and the everlasting +habitations. Whatever may fail us, grant us +such hold upon Thyself as shall be the having of all +things, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Fairbairn Brodie.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_321" id="page_321">[321]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Native goodness is unconscious, asks not to be recognized;<br /> +But its baser affectation is a thing to be despised.<br /> +Only when the man is loyal to himself shall he be prized.<br /> +<br /> + * * * * * <br /> + +<br /> +If I live the life He gave me, God will turn it to His use.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Bayard Taylor.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Live not without a friend! the Alpine rock must own<br /> +Its mossy grace or else be nothing but a stone.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Live not without a God! however low or high,<br /> +In every house should be a window to the sky.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Wetmore Story.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Eternal God, who hast neither dawn nor evening, +yet sendest us alternate mercies of the darkness and +the day; there is no light but Thine, without, within. +As Thou liftest the curtain of night from our abodes, +take also the veil from our hearts. Rise with Thy +morning upon our souls: quicken all our labor and +our prayer: and though all else declines, let the noontide +of Thy grace and peace remain. May we walk, +while it is yet day, in the steps of Him who, with +fewest hours, finished Thy divinest work. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Martineau.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_322" id="page_322">[322]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 15</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I found it difficult the other night to cross a muddy +street because of the deep shadow cast by my own body +which stood between the electric light and the walk over +which I was crossing. Not a little of the time, I fear, +do we stand in our own spiritual light, making our +own pathway black with ugly shadows cast by our own +personality, while the light flashes all around us. If +you would avoid the shadows walk toward the electric +light in the heavens and let its beams fall in your face.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our pathway, Heavenly Father, is dark and lone. +Sad and sinister suggestions born in our own hearts +blind our souls and stay our steps. But with Thee +there is no night. Light is Thy shadow. Unto Thee, +therefore, we would turn in the sweet surrender of +the spirit. In our darkness which leadeth unto death +show us the way. Walking by Thy guidance, intent +upon Thy will, may we rest with unforgetting memory +upon Thy sevenfold promise of life. Give us the gift +of the morning star. With Thee by our side may this +new day bring us a new vision of duty, a larger girding +for life, the nobler hope, the truth that makes men +free. And unto Thee be thanks, praise and glory. Amen.</p> + + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Franklin Hamilton.</span></p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_323" id="page_323">[323]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 16</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The first principle of Christianity is to forget one's +self. When Wilberforce was straining every energy +to get his bill for the emancipation of slaves passed, a +lady once said to him, "Mr. Wilberforce, I'm afraid +you are so busy about those slaves that you are neglecting +your own soul." "True, madam," he said; "I had +quite forgotten that I have one." That remark contains +one of the deepest truths of Christianity.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Drummond.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, give us the mind of the Master! We would +look on our fellow creatures as he looked on them. We +would be free from all taint of envy, jealousy, and sin. +We would have his single eye and his hearing ear. +We know that Thou art in man, for it is Thy spirit +which quickens within him every pure thought and +moves to every unselfish deed. Give us a due sense +of humility and appreciation that we may enter +into the secret thought and understand the sincere +purpose of all the toilers of this present world! Thus +would we abide forever with the saints, the seers, +and the singers, of all climes and ages! Amen.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Eben H. Chapin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_324" id="page_324">[324]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 17</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Do we not know that more than half our trouble is +borrowed? Just suppose that we could get rid of all +unnecessary and previous terror; just suppose that we +could be sure of final victory in every conflict, and final +emergence out of every shadow into brighter day; how +our hearts would be lightened! How much more bravely +we should work and fight and march forward! This +is the courage to which we are entitled and which we +may find in the thought that God is with us everywhere.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Gracious and Infinite Presence, Thou art the +peace that dwells in the shade of night and the brightness +and hope of this new day. We are gratefully +conscious of the loving strength that stands ever ready +to help. The call of the day's work is in our ears and +the courage manfully to labor is in our hearts. +Strengthen us, Father, when weariness of toil dissolves +our noble resolutions; calm us when petty +vexations distract from our holy purposes. May +midday find us refreshed by Thy grace and eventide +solaced by Thy benediction. And now as we go forth +to duty let our hearts know no terror but the fear of +wrong-doing and our minds no anxiety but the earnest +desire to toil fruitfully. Grant that we may see beneath +life's busy activities the great good Thou art +working out among men and to this end learn to labor +and to wait. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. East.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_325" id="page_325">[325]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 18</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There is no thing we cannot overcome.<br /> +Say not thy evil instinct is inherited,<br /> +Or that some trait inborn makes thy whole life forlorn,<br /> +And calls down punishment that is not merited.<br /> +Back of thy parents and grandparents lies<br /> +The Great Eternal Will. That, too, is thine<br /> +Inheritance, strong, beautiful, divine,<br /> +Sure lever of success, for him who tries.<br /> +Pry up thy faults with this great lever, Will,<br /> +However deeply bedded in propensity,<br /> +However firmly set, I tell thee firmer yet<br /> +Is that strange power that comes from truth's immensity!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ella Wheeler Wilcox.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Eternal Goodness, help us now, as another +morning dawns, to readjust ourselves to Thy purpose +of blessing. We believe that the most certain, significant +and permanent fact of the universe is that Thou +art our Father. Thus we are the heirs of Thy sufficient +grace. There is no curse of ancestry for him who +knows Thee as His parent. There is no weakness of +the flesh for him who, through touch with Thee, becomes +strong in the spirit. Help us all through this +day to deny the chain of every earthly folly and sin, to +stand erect and free as becometh children of the +Infinite. So, finding and using the wisdom of our +Master, who, most of all men, gained success, may we +overcome the world. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George E. Huntley.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_326" id="page_326">[326]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 19</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>All things seem rushing straight into the dark—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 7em;">But the dark still is God.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Love is and was my king and lord,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And will be, tho' as yet I keep</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Within the court on earth, and sleep</span><br /> +Encompass'd by his faithful guard,<br /> +<br /> +And here at times a sentinel<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Who moves about from place to place,</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And whispers to the worlds of space,</span><br /> +In the deep night, that all is well.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alfred Tennyson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee +that Thou hast led us into this new day. We thank +Thee also, that, though its experiences are untried and +its issues involved in uncertainty, we are unafraid, +full indeed of glad expectation, because we know Thee +as our King and Lord. Help us in obedience and love +to keep close to Thee, so that, if ever quick darkness +shall come upon us, we may still be undisturbed because +of Thy presence, to whom the darkness and the +light are both alike. This we ask in the name of Him +who loved us and gave Himself for us. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. Tenney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_327" id="page_327">[327]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Let thy day be to thy night<br /> +A letter of good tidings. Let thy praise<br /> +Go up as birds go up, that when they wake<br /> +Shake off the dew and soar; so take joy home<br /> +And make a place in thy heart for her,<br /> +And give her time to grow and cherish her;<br /> +Then will she come and oft will sing to thee<br /> +When thou art working in the furrows; ay,<br /> +Or weeding in the sacred hour of dawn.<br /> +It is a comely fashion to be glad—<br /> +Joy is the grace we say to God.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Jean Ingelow.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Father, we thank Thee for the blessings of +night. In this new morning hour, we pray for stout +hearts and strong to meet the day's work. May we +go forth with a song on our lips and the joy of renewed +youth in our souls. Amid the tumults of the day +enable us to hear Thy becalming voice. Then, though +in dreariest labor, we shall have glad hearts, though +pressed by dullest cares, we shall keep uncrushed +hopes, though distracted by earth's din, we shall hear +heaven's music. Abide with us, Benign Spirit. Inspire +us to do our duty, and to learn that therein, +alone, may true joy be found. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George Runyon Longbrake.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_328" id="page_328">[328]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 21</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The weather-prophet tells us of an approaching +storm. It comes according to the programme. We +admire the accuracy of the prediction, and congratulate +ourselves that we have such a good meteorological +service. But when, perchance, a bright crystalline +piece of weather arrives instead of the foretold tempest, +do we not feel a secret sense of pleasure which goes beyond +our mere comfort in the sunshine? The whole +affair is not as easy as a sum in simple addition, after +all,—at least not with our present knowledge. It is a +good joke on the Weather Bureau. "Aha, Old Probabilities!" +we say, "You don't know it all yet; there +are still some chances to be taken!"</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, Thou hast covered us with +the darkness and we have slept under the shadow of +Thy care. Thou hast opened for us again the gates +of the morning, and refreshed, we rise to praise Thee. +The memory of mercies past inspires our hope for +today. Reveal Thyself to us by Thy spirit and through +Thy word; make nature to minister to us in the heavens +above and the fields below; let every experience +lead us toward Thyself. Help us to see Thy face in +those about us, and honor Thee in loving, helpful +ministry to them. Bring to us today a fresh and +larger sense of Thy presence, forgiveness, and care, +and so the assurance that all things are working together +for our good. In the name of Jesus Christ +our Saviour. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Samuel H. Greene.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_329" id="page_329">[329]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 22</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +"<i>I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills.</i>"<br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Psalm cxxi. 1.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p> +<i>Peace is the message of the hills,<br /> +A peace that broods<br /> +Upon their mighty heads, and fills<br /> +Their forest solitudes;<br /> +The leaping mountain waterfalls,<br /> +As each unto the other calls,<br /> +Blend in a murmuring noise<br /> +Whose silver rushing music stills<br /> +The pretty play of human moods,<br /> +And bids the calmed soul rejoice<br /> +In the deep secrets of the woods,<br /> +The majesty of Nature's voice.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Priscilla Leonard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Dear God and Father of us all, Who maketh Thy +sun to rise out of the sea and tintest the hills with the +rosy promise of the day, we look up when we awake +and seeing the light upon the mountains know that +the day is coming to fill the world with beauty and +glory. With thankful hearts we praise Thee, and +pray that to us may be granted that loftiness of nature, +that stability of character, that repose of mind and +heart and life that is prefigured to us in the natural +world. Grant that we may each become mediums +of Thy love and hope to all who may chance to look +up to us for guidance along the shores of life's tempestuous +ocean. May the spirit of the Eternal find +such expression in us and through us, this day, that +all who come within the radiance of our joy may come +into the consciousness of the joy of the Eternal. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Thomas J. Horner.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_330" id="page_330">[330]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 23</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, +understand the words that I speak unto thee, and +stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent, and when +he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling. +Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel, for from the +first day that thou didst set thy heart to understand and +to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, +and I am come for thy words.... Then there came +again and touched me one like the appearance of a man +and he strengthened me and said, O man, greatly beloved, +fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Book of Daniel.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee that Thou art +not far from us at any time. We have only to look up +reverently and to our imagination Thou art standing +near. We have only to wait in the darkness of the +night to feel Thy presence with us. We have only to +listen at any time to hear Thy voice. Thou deignest +to stop and speak to us when we are in trouble, to +guide our footsteps when we have lost our way, to +renew our courage when we have become disheartened. +O Lord, speak to us this day, saying to us, as unto +him of old, "Peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be +strong." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap"> +George L. Perin.</span> +</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_331" id="page_331">[331]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Let star-wheels and angel-wings, with their holy winnowings,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Keep beside you all the way:</span><br /> +Lest in passion you should dash, with a blind and heavy crash.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Up against the thick-bossed shield of God's judgment in the field.</span></i><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Elizabeth Barrett Browning.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Be diligent and faithful, patient and hopeful, one +and all of you; and may we all know, at all times, that +verily the Eternal rules above us, and that nothing +finally wrong has happened or can happen.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Thomas Carlyle.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, our Father in heaven, the giver of +every good and perfect gift, teach us, we pray Thee, +how to do Thy will on earth as it is done in heaven, +as the goal of our lives. Send down exceeding, abundantly +above all that we can ask or think, the blessed +influences of Thy Holy Spirit, to transform each heart +and all the world into the kingdom of heaven. Give +us the Morning Star of Hope. Feed us from the Tree +of Life. Teach us Thy redeeming love. Grant that +we may have some part with Thee in the redemption +of the world, and be permitted to join with the whole +glad earth in the chorus, "Blessing and honor and +glory and power be unto Him that sitteth upon the +throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">F. N. Peloubet.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_332" id="page_332">[332]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>What is the crown of the whole of life lived faithfully +here? It is not a crown of gold or gems in another life; +it is simply more life; a broader use of power, a +healthier capacity, a larger usefulness. You are +faithful unto death, through the misapprehensions +and imperfections and absence of appreciation or gratitude +in this preparatory world, and then there is offered +to you inevitably and legitimately the crown of a larger, +more serviceable, more effective life.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Francis G. Peabody.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>To Thee, O Author of our lives, we speak thanksgiving +and gratitude for Thy gifts of love and trust. +Help us to bring them into full exercise this day. By +them may we know the experience of burdens made +light and yokes made easy. With them, let us realize +that we are effective workers with Thee. Because of +them, show us how all our tasks are transformed to +divine endeavors. Through them, set free all other +of our highest impulses. So, O God, shall we know +the fulness of life, we and all our loved ones. So shall +we see doubt change to faith and blindness to vision. +So shall our influence through word and work be the +ministry of hope and of joy to any disconsolate, and +to any who are a weak guide to the source of strength. +For newness of life, for all the fruits of the spirit, +whereby the heart is ever young and in joyous companionship +with the Christ, for all this we pray now +and ever. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William H. McGlauchlin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_333" id="page_333">[333]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 26</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The child frightened in his play runs to seek his +mother. She takes him upon her lap and presses his +head to her bosom; and with tenderest words of love, +she looks down upon him and smooths his hair and +kisses his cheek, and wipes away his tears. Then, in a +low and gentle voice, she sings some sweet descant, some +lullaby of love; and the fear fades out from his face, +and a smile of satisfaction plays over it, and at length +his eyes close, and he sleeps in the deep depths and delights +of peace. God Almighty is the mother and the +soul is the tired child; and He folds it in His arms and +dispels its fears, and lulls it to repose, saying "Sleep, +my darling, sleep! It is I who watch thee."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Ward Beecher.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Blessed Master! we thank Thee that every tired and +weary child may find rest in the bosom of the Father. +Each morning brings with it new cares, new duties, +new privileges, new responsibilities; for all these, we +need Thy protecting care, and pray for Thy divine +guidance. When wearied and burdened with the cares +of daily life, wilt Thou help us to flee to Thee as the +frightened child flees to the loving mother; and wilt +Thou encircle us with Thine arms of love, and whisper +in our ears words of comfort and cheer and of forgiveness. +Teach us to trust Thee in the morning, to +walk with Thee through the day, and to commit our +ways to Thee at all times. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Samuel M. Dick.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_334" id="page_334">[334]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 27</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Certainly there never was a busier life than that of +Jesus,—His whole great mission bounded by three +hurried years. Yet in the morning He says to His +friends: "Let us come apart and rest awhile;" and +again when the evening is come He is in the mountain +apart, alone. That is the place of worship in a world +of work. It is not a refuge from duty, or a shirking of +it; it is the renewal of power to meet one's duty and do +it. The work of life is not to be well done with a hot, +feverish, overwhelmed, and burdened mind; it is to be +well done with a mind calmed and fortified by moments +of withdrawal; and it is to be best done by one who +from time to time pulls himself up in his eager life and +permits God to speak to his soul.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Francis G. Peabody.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Spirit of grace, who withholdest Thy blessing from +none, take from us the tediousness and anxiety of a +selfish mind, the unfruitfulness of cold affections, the +weakness of an inconstant will. With the simplicity +of a great purpose, the quiet of a meek temper, and +the power of a well-ordered soul, may we pass through +the toils and watches of our pilgrimage; grateful for +all that may render the burden of duty light; and even +in strong trouble rejoicing to be deemed worthy of the +severer service of Thy will. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James Martineau.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_335" id="page_335">[335]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 28</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p><i> +<span style="margin-left: 3em;">God gives to every man</span><br /> +The virtue, temper, understanding, taste,<br /> +That lifts him into life, and lets him fall<br /> +Just in the niche he was ordain'd to fill.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Cowper.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<blockquote><p><i>Did you ever hear of a man who had striven all his +life faithfully and singly toward an object, and in no +measure obtained it? If a man constantly aspires, is +he not elevated? Did ever a man try heroism, magnanimity, +truth, sincerity, and find that there was no +advantage in them—that it was a vain endeavor?</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry David Thoreau.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Holy Father, help us to be thankful that no life is +beneath Thy notice. If a sparrow cannot fall without +Thee, how much more is Thine eye fixed upon Thy +child. Teach us, O Lord, that there is a divine purpose +in each life. But may we not try to choose this +without Thee. Show us how to wait upon Thee in +holy silence till Thou dost make it known to us. O +Master, say to us: "As the Father hath sent me into +the world even so have I sent you." When we have +found at the Cross our little mission, O sustain us and +help us to keep it steadily in view—let us share Thy +holy enthusiasm when Thou didst say: "My meat +is to do the will of Him that sent me and to finish His +work." O Father, when we are depressed whisper to +us: "Your labor is not in vain in the Lord." May +our mission transform us into the likeness of Jesus, +and may we say with Him at evening: "I have +glorified Thee on the earth; I have finished the work +Thou gavest me to do." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">L. P. Johnson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_336" id="page_336">[336]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 29</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Though wrong may win, its victory is brief,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The tides of good at first no passage find;</span><br /> +Each surge breaks, shattered, on the sullen reef,—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Yet still the infinite ocean comes behind.</span><br /> +<br /> +The road of Right has neither turn nor bend,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">It stretches straight unto the highest goal;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Hard, long, and lonely?—yes, yet never soul</span><br /> +Can lose its way thereon, nor miss the end.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Priscilla Leonard.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>We thank Thee, Heavenly Father, that awaking, +we are conscious that Thou art near. Walk with us, +through the untried path of this day's duty and service. +We rejoice that Thou art in Thy world. Within its +striving is Thy calm. Around its restlessness is Thy +rest. Thy purpose fashions its achievements; Thy +love shapes its future. Help us to see it with clearer +vision, to hold it fast with firmer faith. When wrong +seems to triumph, may we know that it is already +perishing, and hold hard by truth and love and faith. +Give us grace to spend this day as becometh children +of God in honor, in courtesy, in sympathy, in confident +trust. When the way seems long and lonely, straight +and steep, help us to sing as we march forward, since +Thou art with us, Who hast said, "I will never leave +thee nor forsake thee." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles C. P. Hiller.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_337" id="page_337">[337]</a></span></p> + + +<p>November 30</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>She was a droll little figure of a girl with a quaint old +face, that showed too early the lines of care and work, and +her clothing betokened a poverty-stricken home. Evidently +not much of brightness had touched her life, but +her face always lightened up when she mentioned her +school or her teacher. "Why is it that you love your +teacher so well?" she was asked one day. Her eyes +shone and her lips smiled happily as she replied, +"Because she's glad to me!" What a tribute was +that! What an evidence was that of a happy heart that +radiated its gladness! If we cannot bring other offerings +of much value to the children and the poor among us, +how blessed are we if we can bring gladness!</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Estelle M. Hart.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Almighty God, teach us how to be glad. Put some +gladness into our hearts. Show us where gladness +is hidden in our little world about us, so that we may +find it and use it. Give us the wisdom of Jesus, who, +although a Man of Sorrows, yet spake ever of His joy +and His peace. We feel that the secret of things must +be gladness, that somehow there is a covered joy even +in what we call our sufferings. Let us find that. Keep +our hearts pure of the soiling of evil desire, for we +know that no gladness can come from the muddy +fountains of sin. Let our hands be busy at some good +part of the world's work, for we know that idleness +never went hand in hand with joy. Let our minds +be open to acknowledge, love and obey the truth, for +we feel that truth alone can satisfy our hearts. And +let us feel to-day the duty of gladness we owe to our +fellow-creatures. Let us give to them what we would +receive from Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank Crane.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_338" id="page_338">[338]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 1</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>But winter has yet brighter scenes—he boasts<br /> +Splendors beyond what gorgeous Summer knows;<br /> +Or Autumn with his many fruits, and woods<br /> +All flushed with many hues, come when the rains<br /> +Have glazed the snow and clothed the trees with ice,<br /> +The incrusted surface shall upbear thy steps,<br /> +And the broad arching portals of the grove<br /> +Welcome thy entering.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">William Cullen Bryant.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Father, we know that Thou wilt commune +with us if only we truly seek Thee; Thou art the +Infinite Consciousness and Thou dost include within +Thyself our finite consciousness. We have our life +in Thy life. This morning we would be mindful of +Thy presence. The northern groves with snow-laden, +bended branches bid us enter and worship. Thou +dost send forth the rays of Thy sun and touch them +aglow with the reflected beauty of the snow-flake. +Thou hast also created us. The flake reflects the +sun, and may we reflect Thee, through living righteously. +Help us to do the right and to forego the +wrong. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Fred Alban Weil.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_339" id="page_339">[339]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 2</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>"A commonplace life," we say, and we sigh;<br /> +But why should we sigh as we say?<br /> +The commonplace sun in the commonplace sky<br /> +Makes up the commonplace day.<br /> +The moon and the stars are commonplace things,<br /> +And the flower that blooms and the bird that sings,<br /> +But dark were the world and sad our lot<br /> +If the flowers failed and the sun shone not;<br /> +And God, who studies each separate soul<br /> +Out of commonplace lives makes His beautiful whole.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Susan Coolidge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Infinite Father, we open our hearts to Thee, +for where Thou art heaven is. As the morning sun +gives light and life to Earth, so Thou givest light and +life and joy to us. We say Good-morning to Thee, +and as we listen Thy Good-morning comes to us. +As it comes we glow and expand like the opening +flower. May this glowing spirit of love be in all we +say and do and think this day, and still continue +through all days to come. When we are vexed and +weary with trials and labor, make us to remember +this morning glow of Thy Love that it may renew +rest and peace within us. Help us, O our Father, to +enter the beauty of this day and this life by claiming +our heritage as "children of light" and going forth +to fulfil the common duties of the day as "children +of God." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Walter Dole.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_340" id="page_340">[340]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 3</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>No matter! so long as the world is the work of eternal +goodness, and so long as conscience has not deceived us. +To give happiness and to do good, there is our only +law, our anchor of salvation, our beacon light, our +reason for existing. All religions may crumble away; +so long as this survives we have still an ideal, and life +is worth living. Nothing can lessen the dignity and +value of humanity so long as the religion of love, of +unselfishness and devotion endures; and none can +destroy the altars of this faith for us so long as we feel +ourselves still capable of love.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henri-Frédéric Amiel.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for a night +of peaceful rest, and we are glad to begin a new day +with full assurance of Thy loving care. We hope for +pleasant ways and large success, but Thy wisdom +is better than our wishes and if it is appointed us to +meet difficulties or temptations, we pray for strength +to sustain a manly warfare. We have faith that whatever +our condition Thou wilt still provide a way by +which lofty purpose and resolute endeavor may use +the circumstances of our life for a nearer approach +to Thee and for service to our fellowmen. To this +end be then the light of our way and the strength of our +life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. Smith Dodge.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_341" id="page_341">[341]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 4</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>He was a friend to man, and lived in a house by the +side of the road.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Homer.</span><br /> +</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There are hermit souls that live withdrawn<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In the peace of their self-content;</span><br /> +There are souls, like stars, that dwell apart,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">In a fellow-less firmament;</span><br /> +There are pioneer souls that blaze their paths<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Where highways never ran:—</span><br /> +But let me live by the side of the road<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And be a friend to man.</span><br /> +<br /> +Let me live in a house by the side of the road.<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Where the race of men go by—</span><br /> +The men who are good and the men who are bad,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">As good and as bad as I.</span><br /> +I would not sit in the scorner's seat,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Or hurl the cynic's ban:—</span><br /> +Let me live in a house by the side of the road<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And be a friend to man.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Sam Walter Foss.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Father in Heaven, we come with thanksgiving +for the light of another day and all the blessings which +it brings from Thee. May the precious moments +before us be filled with activity. Forgive us if +we have been remiss in seizing our opportunities and +so lead us this day that if we shall be called to Thee, +the sweet voice of the Master may greet us with, +"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least +of these my brethren, ye have done it unto Me." In +Jesus' name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. E. Charlton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_342" id="page_342">[342]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 5</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>One old lady kept a sighing;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Said she wasn't young,</span><br /> +Didn't look as sweet's she used to,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Times were all unstrung;</span><br /> +Troubles doubled aches, and favors<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Went a flying past,</span><br /> +Wrinkles stung like thorns, and eyesight<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Kept a failing fast.</span><br /> +<br /> +One old lady kept a saying<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Life was like the spring,</span><br /> +Brighter blossoms always coming,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Birds around to sing;</span><br /> +Troubles came—and went; she let 'em,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Didn't count the throng.</span><br /> +Thanked the Lord 'most every morning<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">She'd been young so long!</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Jessie M. Shaw.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, wilt Thou forgive us for +the sighs and tears and frowns and doubts of yesterday? +Especially wilt Thou forgive us for all +that was little and petty and mean? May we begin +again today with larger vision, higher hope and +nobler ambition. May there be no sighs for lost +beauty, no grief over faded youth and no lamentation +over lost fortune. Thankful and glad for what +we have, may we find our joy in using it for some +high end. So may we conserve the youth of the +heart and the light of the soul. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_343" id="page_343">[343]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 6</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There is never a sky of winter<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To the heart that sings alway;</span><br /> +Never a night but hath stars to light,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And dreams of a rosy day.</span><br /> +<br /> +The world is ever a garden<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Red with the bloom of May;</span><br /> +And never a stormy morning<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To the heart that sings alway!</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Frank L. Stanton.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou who art the Love, the Light, and the Life +in whom is no discord, no darkness, no disease nor +death; but who art ever radiating sympathy, vision +and health; we give Thee hearty thanks for the consciousness +of Thy abiding presence when we possess +a humble and contrite spirit. May we ever remember +that nothing but our own selfishness, pride, and forgetfulness +can break this constant communion with +Thee. Open our hearts just now for the inflow of the +divine Love in order that we may pass it on to others +today. Open our eyes today that we may see Thee +everywhere striving against selfishness in the lives +of all men. Fill us with Thy Life today in order that +there may go out to others a heavenly harmony, a song, +a symphony, that will dispel discord, darkness and +disease; that will overcome evil with good. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">E. J. Helms.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_344" id="page_344">[344]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 7</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>As the bird trims her to the gale,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I trim myself to the storm of time,</span><br /> +I man the rudder, reef the sail,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Obey the voice at eve obeyed at prime;</span><br /> +"Lowly faithful, banish fear,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Right onward drive unharmed;</span><br /> +The port, well worth the cruise, is near,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And every wave is charmed."</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Ralph Waldo Emerson.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Heavenly Father, keep our faces in the light and +upward. Make us courageous in the storm. Help +us to consecrate all our powers against the contrary +winds and listen for the loving voice of Him who +walks the rough waves and comes toward our frail +barks. May we never be afraid; may we know peace +and rest and trust. O Saviour, help us to know the +reality of Thy love and friendship, and hear Thee +say in the darkest hour, "All is well." May no storm +be too severe, no burden too heavy, no task too hard. +So let us believe and live. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Cortland Myers.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_345" id="page_345">[345]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 8</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Love thyself last: cherish those hearts that hate thee,<br /> +Corruption wins not more than honesty.<br /> +Still in thy right hand carry gentle peace,<br /> +To silence envious tongues. Be just, and fear not:<br /> +Let all the ends thou aim'st at be thy country's,<br /> +Thy God's, and truth's; then if thou fall'st, O Cromwell,<br /> +Thou fall'st a blessed martyr!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shakespeare.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Father Almighty, we do trust in Thee, and we ask +Thee for everything. Thou art pleased to give us +everything. Thou dost give us the light by which we +see. Thou dost give us this air which we breathe and +with which we speak. Best of all, Thou hast shown +us that we are one family of Thy children, alive in +Thy life and strong in Thy strength. Thou dost give +us the water that we drink and the food that we eat. +Everything is Thine while it is ours. Now, Father, +we are here to consecrate these gifts to Thy service, +to come and go indeed as Thy children; when we +speak, to speak the word that Thou shalt teach; when +we act, to do the thing that Thou wouldst. Moreover, +inspire us with Thine holy spirit, that we may +so come and go in our Father's service, and for the +coming of Thy kingdom in this world, that all men +may be one, and may bear one another's burdens, and +so fulfil the law of Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward Everett Hale.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_346" id="page_346">[346]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 9</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Each soul, alone unto herself, must bear<br /> +The heartache out of which man wins despair<br /> +Or hope according to his faculty.<br /> +Nathless one thing is certain; who hath known<br /> +Truth, beauty, goodness, shining in their sphere,<br /> +Shall not be lost through any lesser lure.<br /> +On black tempestuous waves he may be thrown;<br /> +Yet to the right port shall he surely steer,<br /> +And God Himself shall make his doing pure.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Addington Symonds.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, with the dawn we would lift our grateful +hearts to Thee! We know not what Thou hast in store +for us this new day, but we rejoice that we are in Thy +thought, and that we cannot pass beyond the reach of +Thy love. Helpless and weak, we pray for courage +to be undaunted by the uncertainties of life, and that +we may meet all its duties with a firm and tranquil +mind. Grant that we may be helpful to all with whom +we come in contact and forbid that we should judge +others hastily or uncharitably. May our minds and +hearts be open to the truth, that we may know and do +Thy gracious will. Guided and guarded by Thee, +may the day be full of peace, purity and power. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George M. Howe.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_347" id="page_347">[347]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 10</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>There was never a song that was sung by thee,<br /> +But a sweeter one was meant to be.<br /> +There was never a deed that was grandly done,<br /> +But a greater was meant by some earnest one.<br /> +For the sweetest voice can never impart<br /> +The song that trembles within the heart.<br /> +<br /> +And the brain and the hand can never quite do<br /> +The thing that the soul has fondly in view.<br /> +And hence are the tears and the burdens of pain,<br /> +For the shining goals are never to gain<br /> +But enough that a God can hear and see<br /> +The song and the deed that were meant to be.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Benjamin R. Bulkeley.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, who hast +illumined the morning with the brightness of Thy +life, we rejoice in the potency of the influence that +brings us into communion with Thee. For the blessed +revelation of Thyself, for life and all things that +nourish it, for the earth and the fulness thereof, for +daily comforts and mercies and for the Light that +lighteth every man who cometh into the world, we give +Thee thanks. We thank Thee too for the songs that +we have sung and for the better songs that are in our +hearts. We thank Thee for every noble deed and also +for the dreams of nobler deeds that men have cherished. +O Lord, bless our work and fill us with aspiration +for nobler service. Bless the poor, the sick, and +those that mourn. Hear this our prayer and answer +our petition through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Frank D. Sargent.</span></p> +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_348" id="page_348">[348]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 11</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Love the spot where you are, and the friends God has +given you and be sure to expect everything good of them.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Albee.</span><br /> +</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>When do we lift each other up? Must we gain a +height first or can we reach up our feebleness together +to the Hands that do offer us a mighty help from on +high? Near doing, and near living, and near loving; +these life-particles make the great heaven, as the little +polarized atoms of light, all magnetized one way, make +the great blue in which the stars burn forever.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>No discontent could harass us if we had a deeper +faith in Thee and a broader love for those about us. +We praise Thee, therefore, that we may be rooted and +grounded in Christ. And that our little lives may +glorify Him by bringing forth abundant fruit. Thou +dost give us the holy privilege of being co-laborers +with Thee in the salvation of needy humanity. Around +us are the countless opportunities for ennobling and +gladdening the lives of those whose courage burns low, +or who have never known the transforming companionship +of Christ. We would not forget that we +are debtors to Thee and to that great Host whose love +and service has inspired us. May we be not selfish +takers only, but generous givers. May there be less +gloom, fewer shackles, less guilt in the world because +we are mastered by the spirit of Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Philip L. Frick.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_349" id="page_349">[349]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 12</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Have you learned lessons only of those who admired +you, and were tender with you, and stood aside +for you?</i></p> + +<p><i>Have you not learned great lessons from those who +reject you, and brace themselves against you? +or who treat you with contempt, or dispute the +passage with you?</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walt Whitman.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Help us, O God, always to be hopeful; teach us +what it means to hope in Thee, and may we experience +the truth of the promise which says: "He will +strengthen your heart that hopes in Him;" but help +us not to indulge in too fond hopes nor to be too easily +elated by future dreams. May we see life clearly as +it is and be ready to accept courageously whatsoever +Thou sendest us. Help us to accept all our joys as +Thy blessings; all our duties as Thy commands, and +our sorrows as of Thine appointment, and help us to +believe that Thou wilt turn even that which seems +to harm us, into everlasting good and everlasting joy. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">John F. Meyer.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_350" id="page_350">[350]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 13</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Life should be a giving birth to the soul, the development +of a higher mode of reality. The animal must be +humanized: flesh must be made spirit; physiological +activity must be transmuted into intellect and conscience, +into reason, justice, and generosity, as the torch is transmuted +into light and warmth. The blind, greedy, selfish +nature of man must put on beauty and nobleness. This +heavenly alchemy is what justifies our presence on the +earth; it is our mission and our glory.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henri-Frédéric Amiel.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, this world is Thy world, and this day +is Thy renewed gift of opportunity to learn life's +lesson more perfectly. We need clearer insight into +Thy designs, that we may loathe every form of selfishness, +and love devotion. Give us to know the Christ +more intimately, and in the strength of His apprehended +presence help us to employ this day in practising +the holy principles He taught. Assist us this +morning to have, and throughout this day to keep, +such an attitude of glad co-operation with Him, that +work shall be shot through and through with joy +in anticipation of its glorious result. So may this day +be to us a time of real soul expansion; a wooing and a +winning of that which is highest, even a purer, noble +character. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">J. Edwin Lacount.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_351" id="page_351">[351]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 14</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>'Tis the mind that makes the body rich,<br /> +And as the sun breaks through the darkest clouds,<br /> +So honor peereth in the meanest habit.<br /> +What, is the jay more precious than the lark,<br /> +Because his feathers are more beautiful?<br /> +Or is the adder better than the eel,<br /> +Because his painted skin contents the eye?</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Shakespeare.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>In this world of mingled good and evil, amid the +ceaseless struggle of the better with the worse, grant +unto us our Father, the cheerful assurance that we are +enlisted in the service of the good, bound for the better, +and destined for the best. Reveal to us each day some +task that we can do for Thee, some chance to bear +with Christ the burden of another, some call to take +the side of the right against the wrong. Help us to +conquer hardship by patience, despair by hope, fear +by courage, and hate by love; and may we find the +peace, the power, the glory of Thy perfect will and +Thy great kingdom reflected and reproduced in our +hearts and lives. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William DeWitt Hyde.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_352" id="page_352">[352]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 15</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Call him not old, whose visionary brain<br /> +Holds o'er the past its undivided reign,<br /> +For him in vain the envious seasons roll<br /> +Who bears eternal summer in his soul.<br /> +If yet the minstrel's song, the poet's lay,<br /> +Spring with her birds, or children at their play,<br /> +Or maiden's smile, or heavenly dream of art,<br /> +Stir the few life-drops creeping round his heart,<br /> +Turn to the record where his years are told,—<br /> +Count his gray hairs,—they cannot make him old!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Oliver Wendell Holmes.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Thou infinite Spirit of Life, in Thy sight, there is no +old age. The step may grow feeble, the hair may +whiten, the eye may grow dim, but each human soul +is still Thy child. We gather about the tables of earth, +families of children, some older, some younger, but +all young in Thy sight. We pause for a moment this +morning to pray for the spirit of youth. Let us cherish +the power of hoping and of believing. Let us have +that fine quality of the child life which keeps it facing +the future with glad expectancy. Let us not give over +our toils till we must. Let us not relinquish our +interest in life till the evening shadows fall, and even +at the last, let us lie down like the child who sleeps +with his hand in the hand of his mother. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_353" id="page_353">[353]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 16</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>O toiling bands of mortals! O unwearied feet, +travelling we know not whither! Soon, soon, it seems +to you, you must come forth on some conspicuous hilltop, +and but a little way further, against the setting sun, +descry the spires of El Dorado. Little do ye know your +own blessedness; for to travel hopefully is a better thing +than to arrive, and the true success is to labor.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Robert Louis Stevenson.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, we thank Thee for the work that Thou +givest us to do; for its joy, for its zest, even for its +very task and weariness. We would interpret our +labor by the highest good it brings us; through our +brave and cheerful doing Thy heaven of peace is found. +We thank Thee for our diviner hopes, and for the +Spirit that would complete them. They light our days +with gladness, and set our feet in large places, and +though the higher hill-tops seem far away, yet meeting +our duties faithfully, we do see them, and looking back +we find the places of our departure lying far below. +O blessed tasks! O blessed hopes! That lead us ever +to our Father's love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Albert J. Coleman.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_354" id="page_354">[354]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 17</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>God speaks to hearts of men in many ways:<br /> +Some the red banner of the rising sun,<br /> +Spread o'er the snow-clad hills, has taught his praise.<br /> +Some the sweet silence when the day is done;<br /> +Some, after loveless lives, at length have won<br /> +His word in children's hearts and children's gaze;<br /> +And some have found him where low rafters ring<br /> +To greet the hand that helps, the heart that cheers;<br /> +And some in prayer, and some in perfecting<br /> +Of watchful toil through unrewarding years;<br /> +And some not less are his, who vainly sought<br /> +His voice, and with his silence have been taught,—<br /> +Who bore his chains who bade them to be bound,<br /> +And at the end in finding not have found.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Anonymous.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O God, all voices of the earth are Thine, even when +there is no speech or language, Thy messages have +many ways to reach the listening heart. Give us this +day to hear at least some whisper of Thy grace. If +it may be, open our minds and attune our spirits to +receive more than we could hitherto interpret of the +assurances sent to us by elevated goodness and love. +So let us be defended this day against wrong, and do +our work in joy and peace through the knowledge +that Thou art with us, our friend and helper even unto +the end. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Howard N. Brown.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_355" id="page_355">[355]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 18</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Did you ever see a schoolboy tumble on the ice without +stooping immediately to re-buckle the strap of his +skates? And would not Ignotus have painted a masterpiece +if he could have found good brushes and a proper +canvas? Life's shortcomings would be bitter indeed +if we could not find excuses for them outside of ourselves. +And as for life's successes—well, it is certainly wholesome +to remember how many of them are due to a fortunate +position and the proper tools.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, God, help us to begin this new day +with the right spirit in our hearts,—the spirit of love +toward Thee and our fellowmen. Help us to begin +the day if possible without mistake. If, in our human +weakness we find that we have not succeeded, that +we have erred or gone astray, help us not to despair, +not to be discouraged; help us to know and to seek +and to love the right. Help us never to forget what +we owe to Thee, to our friends, and the beautiful +world Thou hast given us. Daily bread we have, +opportunities open, like books on every hand. Greater +than all life's bitter is its sweet. Ever ready is the +Master to bless; ever ready is the spirit to comfort +Thy children look up and praise the Father eternal. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Ransom A. Greene.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_356" id="page_356">[356]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 19</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>I love Thee, O Son of Man! for Thy strength and +Thy sweetness, for Thy simplicity, Thy courage, +Thine infinite tenderness, for Thy glance which +strengthens and pardons us, quickens us and lifts us +up; for all that Thou hast brought us of consolation, +of peace and of warmth of heart. Abide Thou with us! +Teach us to see the divine spark imprisoned in every +stone of the highway.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Charles Wagner.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>O Lord, our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for +all Thy manifold mercies to us, for all Thy constant +care and watchfulness over us from the beginning of +our lives to this day, for the revelations of Thy presence +in the world about us, in the shining sky, in the earth +beneath our feet, and in the faces of our friends. +Bless us, O Lord, this day, with health and strength +and a good courage, and grant that we may show +our gratitude for all Thy goodness not only with our +lips but in our lives, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George Hodges.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_357" id="page_357">[357]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 20</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>In every "Oh my Father!"<br /> +Slumbers deep a "Here, my child."</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Tholuck.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<blockquote><p><i>This world, with its wonderful creations, its beauties, +and mysteries may lead a child up to the father's throne, +if his heart and mind are open to it. Fill the heart with +goodness and there is no place for badness. Fill the +soul with heaven, and there is no hell. And this delightful +time will come when "God is all and in all."</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Abbie E. Danforth.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, who art in heaven; we know that +Thou hast been good to us. We thank Thee for the +daily witnesses of Thy love. And we would walk +worthily before Thee. But we are weak. Help us, +O Father to see clearly what Thou would'st have +us do! Give us strength. Fill us with Thy spirit, +that all the way we may be pure and patient. Help +us to walk aright. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles H. Puffer.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_358" id="page_358">[358]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 21</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Grand is the seen, the light, to me—grand are the sky and stars,<br /> +Grand is the earth, and grand are lasting time and space,<br /> +And grand their laws, so multiform, puzzling, evolutionary;<br /> +But grander far the unseen soul of me, comprehending, endowing all those,<br /> +Lighting the light, the sky and stars, delving the earth, sailing the sea,<br /> +(What were all those, indeed, without thee, unseen soul? of what amount without Thee?)<br /> +More evolutionary, vast, puzzling, O my soul!<br /> +More multiform far—more lasting Thou than they.</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Walt Whitman.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou, our Heavenly Father, in spirit we reach +out to Thy great spirit. Quicken within us visions +of what things we may do this day, with Thee at hand, +Thy love abounding. Give us vision that we may +rise to the opportunities of our daily task. Let Thy +holy spirit bear witness to the reality of our dreams +and aspirations, that we may look not idly upon our +opportunities, but rather that each new opportunity +shall challenge us to nobler effort. O keep us this +day full of faith in ourselves and Thee, each obedient +to our vision, until full purposed, winning Thine +approval, we shall accomplish the thing for which +Thou sendest us, and Thine be the glory. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">James D. Tillinghast.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_359" id="page_359">[359]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 22</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>I see the wrong that round me lies,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I feel the guilt within,</span><br /> +With groan and travail cries<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I hear the world confess its sin.</span><br /> +<br /> +Within the maddening maze of things,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And tossed by storm and flood,</span><br /> +To one fixed stake my spirit clings:<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">I know that God is good.</span><br /> +<br /> +I know not where his islands lift<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Their fronded palms in air;</span><br /> +I only know I cannot drift<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Beyond His love and care.</span></i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou, without whose care a sparrow does not +fall, who through the pathless sky dost guide the bird +seeking its distant nest, Thy trusting children are +safe in Thy dear love. We know not the way before +us, but Thou dost know; our feet may stumble in +rough paths, but Thou wilt hold us up. Glad in this +confidence, may we begin the day with song and finish +it, whatever may befall us, in the calm assurance that +all things work for good. Give us patience in perplexity, +hope amid our fears, and faith to trust Thy +holy will as best. Thus walking in Thy love may we +reach home at last to see our Saviour's face. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Stephen A. Norton.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_360" id="page_360">[360]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 23</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Wouldst make thy life go fair and square?<br /> +Thou must not for the past feel care;<br /> +Whatever thy loss, thou must not mourn;<br /> +Must ever act as if new-born.<br /> +What each day wants of thee, that ask;<br /> +What each day tells thee, that make thy task;<br /> +With pride thine own performance viewing,<br /> +With heart to admire another's doing;<br /> +Above all, hate no human being,<br /> +And all the future leave to the All-Seeing.</i> +</p> + +<p class="signature"><span class="smcap">Goethe.</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Dear Father, grateful for another new-born day, +myself new-born, I greet Thee! Yesterday and all +other yesterdays are in Thy keeping. <i>This day is +mine!</i> For the failures of the past I care not, nor do +I mourn the losses of the days gone by. <i>Today I am +new-born!</i> Indeed, aspiring to Thy comprehensive +wisdom, I may see my past and my present as one, +and out of that past I may select—even from failures +and losses—such experiences and lessons as will +help me live the present—at least this one day which +is mine!—more nobly, more fully, more usefully, +more beautifully. May I, knowing myself to +be Thy Child, respect myself as a creative spirit able +to look upon its own work and to say: "Behold, it is +good!" And above all, I pray: that, to-day and +always, I may grow in grace and loving-kindness,—hating +no one, but feeling, thinking, speaking, +acting with good will towards all Thy creatures! +<i>This day is mine!</i> The future I leave to Thee, All-Seeing +Father! but feel myself Thy open-eyed and +confident child. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles Fleischer.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_361" id="page_361">[361]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 24</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>'Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam,<br /> +Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home;<br /> +A charm from the skies seems to hallow us there,<br /> +Which sought through the world is ne'er met with elsewhere.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>An exile from home splendor dazzles in vain,<br /> +Oh give me my lowly thatched cottage again;<br /> +The birds singing gaily, that came at my call,<br /> +Give me them, and that peace of mind dearer than all.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">J. Howard Payne.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>O God, our Heavenly Father, we thank thee for the +blessings of home; for the shelter, safety, and hallowed +associations of our domestic habitation; for the +sympathy and helpfulness of family relationship. +Help us we pray thee to make ours an ideal household, +bright with cheerfulness, an exemplification of Christian +faith and hope. May the happiness of all be the +object of each. To that end help us to be patient +toward one another, kind and forgiving. May we +realize by many beatific experiences that it is better +to give than to receive, better to serve than to be +served. May we be disposed, as occasion may arise, +to share, for a season, the comfort and inspiration of +our home with those who are homeless. We thank +Thee for the bright assurance that beyond the fading +scenes and transitory experiences of this life, there is, +awaiting us, an eternal abiding place in "a continuing +city" whose maker and builder is God, where there +shall be no more parting, and where the shadows of +our present life shall forever flee away. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles Conklin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_362" id="page_362">[362]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 25</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>That ever-vivid scene of Bethlehem.... A father, +a mother, and a child are there. No religion which +began like that could ever lose its character. The first +unit of human life, the soul, is there, in the new-born +personality of the childhood. But the second unit of +human life, the family, is just as truly there in the +familiar relation of husband and wife and the sacred, +eternal mystery of motherhood.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Phillips Brooks.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth Peace." +We take up the angel symphony and give it new +breath, this gladsome day of days. Thou who didst +send Thy Son in the likeness of a little child, that by +His life of increase in love and beauty and wisdom +and power He might give us courage to begin as +children the obedience that alone leads at last to the +measure of the stature of His fulness, accept our unutterable +gratitude for all that gift. And oh, may +He be born in us and formed in us, the hope of glory, +that so we may share His peace, His victory, His +exaltation, His union with Thee. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. Ellwood Nash.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_363" id="page_363">[363]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 26</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +Two are the pathways by which mankind can to virtue mount upward;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">If thou shouldst find the one barr'd, open the other will lie.</span><br /> +'Tis by exertion the Happy obtain her, the Suffering by patience,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Blest is the man whose kind fate guides him along upon both!</span><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Schiller.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou who hast kept us safely during the unconsciousness +of our slumbering hours, and brought us +refreshed to this morning light, prepare us for the +duties of this day by filling us with the assurance that +we are Thine, and that Thou lovest us. Help us to +be more like Thee, to love Thee more and serve Thee +better. May we manifest our love to Thee by our +willingness to be of service to our fellowmen. Make +us warm-hearted and true, helpful and kind, reflecting +Thy love and doing Thy will. We are glad to live in +this beautiful world. And we pray that we may be +faithful co-laborers with Jesus Christ, in being light, +love and joy to all lives. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. Tenney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_364" id="page_364">[364]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 27</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Stronger, and more frequently, comes the temptation +to stop singing, and let discord do its own wild work. +But blessed are they that endure to the end,—singing +patiently and sweetly, till all join in with loving acquiescence, +and universal harmony prevails, without forcing +into submission the free discord of a single voice.</i></p> + +<p><i>This is the hardest and the bravest task which a true +soul has to perform amid the clashing elements of time. +But once has it been done perfectly unto the end; and +that voice—so clear in its meekness—is heard above +all the din of a tumultuous world: one after another +chimes in with its patient sweetness; and, through +infinite discords, the listening soul can perceive that +the great tune is slowly coming into harmony.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Lydia Maria Child.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father, who art in heaven! We thank Thee +that we are permitted to see the light, engage in the +duties and enter into the experiences of this new day. +We thank Thee for the order and harmony of this +wonderful universe; that every force and law and +being supports and balances every other force, law +and being; that every life contributes to or may contribute +to the welfare of every other life, and we pray, +that each one of us may come into such relations with +Thee, the great harmonizing soul of things, as to add +our little note to the full anthem of perpetual and +adorable praise. In Christ's dear name, we ask and +offer all. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">A. J. Patterson.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_365" id="page_365">[365]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 28</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>It is said that a friend once asked the great composer, +Haydn, why his church music was always so full of +gladness. He answered, "I cannot make it otherwise; +I write according to the thoughts I feel; when I think +upon my God, my heart is so full of joy that the notes +dance and leap from my pen; and since God has given +me a cheerful heart, it will be pardoned me that I serve +Him with a cheerful spirit."</i></p> + +<p><i>Pardoned? Nay, it will be praised and rewarded. +For God looks with approval and man turns with gratitude +to everyone who shows by a cheerful life that religion +is a blessing for this world and the next.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Father in Heaven, we awake this morning with +a sense of thankfulness for the beauty and glory of +Thy creation. We praise Thee that as Thy children +we can be conscious of the kingdom of heaven always +about us. So we pray for that attitude of mind and +spirit of soul that will unlock for us the divine life. +Help us to be conscious of Thee in all the varied experiences +of this day. If it shall be a day of burdens, +give us strength to play our part uncomplainingly, if +a day of joy to accept it with true gratitude; and +when the shades of night shall call us to our rest, may +our memory of the day bring us peace. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Edward C. Downey.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_366" id="page_366">[366]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 29</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Ah, don't be sorrowful, darling,<br /> +And don't be sorrowful, pray;<br /> +Taking the year together, my dear,<br /> +There isn't more night than day.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>'Tis rainy weather, my darling;<br /> +Time's waves they heavily run;<br /> +But taking the year together, my dear,<br /> +There isn't more cloud than sun.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Alice Cary.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> +<p>We thank Thee, heavenly Father, for the days just +as they come. Nor would we measure the sunshine +against the storm as if to test Thy goodness by some +petty form of bookkeeping. Thou presidest over all +our days, and whatever may be the face of nature we +trust Thy love. Let us go forth today, not in critical +mood nor despondent mood but in the mood of high +Christian faith, anxious, not to test Thy providence, +but ready to do our own part, taking care to hold our +cup of blessing open-side up; so shall it catch the +manna when it falls. Then shall each passing day +be full of blessing. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_367" id="page_367">[367]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 30</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Fades the rose; the year grows old;<br /> +The tale is told;<br /> +Youth doth depart—<br /> +Only stays the heart.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Ah, no! if stays the heart,<br /> +Youth can ne'er depart,<br /> +Nor the sweet tale be told—<br /> +Never the rose fade, nor the year grow old.</i><br /> +</p> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Richard Watson Gilder.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Dear Father, we thank Thee for the year now coming +to its close, and for all that has blessed us in it. +Help us to keep the good wherewith it has done us +good in lasting memory. By the flight of time which +its passing emphasizes move us to earnestness in the +labors committed to our hands. Beyond this help us +that we may be undisturbed, remembering that Thou +art our dwelling place, and that we are the children +of Thy love and the sharers of Thy everlastingness. +So may we keep the vision of youth, the vision to +which endings are but beginnings, the good leading +to the better, and the best forever more. May Thy +blessing be upon all whom we love and should pray +for in this and every day, in Jesus' name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. Tenney.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_368" id="page_368">[368]</a></span></p> + + +<p>December 31</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Be not afraid, dear friend. What of sickness! What +of sorrow! What of failure! What of misfortune! What +of death! Is not this God's world? Are not you God's +child? Go forth into the New Year with brave heart. +When fortune smiles, smile with her. When fortune +frowns, smile the more, and trust in God.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Our Heavenly Father, we stand upon the utmost +verge of the old year. Forgetting the things that are +behind, we stand with our faces looking earnestly into +the future. We do not despise the past, we do not +forget its manifold blessings. We do not forget that +Thou hast been with us in the old year; for all this +we would be grateful. With clear vision and earnestness +of purpose, we would stand looking into the +future expectantly, ready for its duties and its responsibilities; +yet not ostentatiously nor with over-confidence, +for we know our own infirmities, our own +weaknesses. We would enter upon the New Year +with confidence, not because of our own strength, but +because of Thy living presence. Thou art always +with us, Thou art pouring out Thy spirit upon us. +O Lord, let us believe in Thee, and believing, let us +have a heart for any fate. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span></p> +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_369" id="page_369">[369]</a></span></p> + + +<p>Services for Special Days</p> + +<p> +<i>Good Friday</i><br /> +<i>Easter</i><br /> +<i>Thanksgiving Day</i><br /> +<i>Birth of a Baby</i><br /> +<i>Child's Birthday</i><br /> +<i>Father's Birthday</i><br /> +<i>Mother's Birthday</i><br /> +<i>General Birthday</i><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_371" id="page_371">[371]</a></span><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_370" id="page_370">[370]</a></span></p> + + +<p>Good Friday</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Why dost thou glare so fierce<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">O Death, as thou wouldst pierce,</span><br /> +With thine uplifted dart,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">My sinking heart?</span><br /> +<br /> +Yet though men fear thee so<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Wherever thou dost go,</span><br /> +And tremble at thy feet,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Thou art a cheat!</span><br /> +<br /> +Though men thy pity crave,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Though naught from thee can save,</span><br /> +Thy Master rules above,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Thou servest Love.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Nehemiah Dodge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou, who didst not spare Thine own Son, +but didst deliver Him up for us all, we cannot ask +Thee to withhold us from our Gethsemane nor even +from our Calvary. But when Thou callest us to +go down into the gloom or up to the cross, remember, +O God, that we are dust. Might we so dwell with +Thee in Thy secret place, as to abide under Thy +shadow! There, sheltered and unafraid, we should +sustain the rod as eager for its chastening stroke, +praying only for wisdom to learn its lesson and +acquire its discipline. With the picture of the crucified +Savior before us, we only cry this day as He +taught us, Thy will be done. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. Ellwood Nash.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_372" id="page_372">[372]</a></span></p> + + +<p>Easter</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>See, in that rock-hewn garden sepulchre,<br /> +The Holy One of God, despised and slain,<br /> +With nail-torn hands and feet, and spear-pierced side,<br /> +His gentle brow by mocking thorns defaced;<br /> +See where He lies, obedient unto death.<br /> +Into that pallid face the glow of life<br /> +Begins to steal, while silent and in awe<br /> +The heavenly watchers stand. Now they with haste<br /> +Unwind the scented wrappings from His form<br /> +That fill the place with rich aromas rare,<br /> +Perfume of spicery and sweet spikenard's breath<br /> +Lingering since Love her alabastron broke,<br /> +And with her tresses wiped these tear-bathed feet.<br /> +And then, their joyful faces all aglow<br /> +Like flashing sunbeams, quickly by a touch<br /> +They roll away the stone with jarring shock,<br /> +As if an earthquake passed, and sitting there<br /> +Behold their Lord go forth, Death's Conqueror!</i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Nehemiah Dodge.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>O Thou Eternal One, who gatherest our fleeting +moments into Thy permanence, when we draw close +to Thee the terrors of change and vicissitude pass +away, and a sense of the stability and security of +all that is good brings us peace. We rejoice to know +through Thy gospel that "life is ever lord of death." +"Thou didst not suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption," +and we trust that because He lives we +shall live also. O grant that, believing in Him, +we may not see death save as a door to more abounding +life, and so realize our privilege daily to be risen +with Him in the newness and power of an endless +life. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. Ellwood Nash.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_373" id="page_373">[373]</a></span></p> + + +<p>Thanksgiving</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.</i></p> + +<p><i>Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His +presence with singing.</i></p> + +<p><i>Know ye that the Lord He is God; it is He that +hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are His +people, and the sheep of His pasture.</i></p> + +<p><i>Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into +His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and +bless His name.</i></p> + +<p><i>For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; +and His truth endureth to all generations.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Psalm 100.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>For days of health, for nights of quiet sleep; for +seasons of bounty and of beauty, for all earth's +contributions to our need through this past year: +Good Lord, we thank Thee. For our country's +shelter; for our homes; for the joy of faces, and +the joy of hearts that love: for the power of great +examples; for holy ones who lead us in the ways +of life and love: for our powers of growth; for longings +to be better and do more; for Ideals that ever +rise above our real: for opportunities well used; for +opportunities unused, and even those misused: +Good Lord, we humbly thank Thee! For our temptations, +and for any victory over sins that close beset +us; for the gladness that abides with loyalty and +the peace of the return: for the blessedness of service +and the power to fit ourselves to others' needs: +for our necessities to work; for burdens, pain, and +disappointments, means of growth; for sorrow; +for death: for all that brings us nearer to each +other, nearer to ourselves, near to Thee; for Life: +We thank Thee, O our Father!</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">William C. Gannett.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_374" id="page_374">[374]</a></span></p> + + +<p>Birth of a Baby</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Where did you come from, baby dear?<br /> +Out of the everywhere into the here.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Where did you get your eyes so blue?<br /> +Out of the sky as I came through.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>What makes the light in them sparkle and spin?<br /> +Some of the starry spikes left in.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Where did you get that little tear?<br /> +I found it waiting when I got here.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>What makes your forehead so smooth and high?<br /> +A soft hand stroked it as I went by.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>What makes your cheek like a warm white rose?<br /> +Something better than anyone knows.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Whence that three-cornered smile of bliss?<br /> +Three angels gave me at once a kiss.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Where did you get those arms and hands?<br /> +Love made itself into hooks and bands.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>Feet, whence did you come, you darling things?<br /> +From the same box as the cherub's wings.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>How did they all just come to be you?<br /> +God thought about me, and so I grew.</i><br /> +<br /> +<i>But how did you come to us, you dear?<br /> +God thought of You, and so I am here.</i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George MacDonald</span> +</p> +</div> + +<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_375" id="page_375">[375]</a></span></p> + +<p>Fresh from the Gates of Heaven, our Father, +this dear child has come, opening in our hearts +springs of new and deeper affection. We thank Thee +for this life whose coming has filled our lives with +sunshine. Teach us how to live that we may guide +it aright, so that as the years pass more and more +sunlight shall be radiated. Even as Thine angels +kissed the sweet rosebud lips and left a smile thereon, +so may we kiss away the tears of life. Heavenly +Father, we consecrate this child to Thy service. +We pray that the ears may learn to listen for Thy +voice, speaking in truth and purity. May the tiny +hands be ever ready to do a service of love and may +the feet be swift to do Thy bidding. Tenderly +guide this precious child, for it needs Thy guidance, +and safely guard it through all the years, lest it go +astray. This we ask in the name of Him who took +little children in His arms and blessed them, saying—"Suffer +little children to come unto me, and +forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of +Heaven." Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Florence H. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_376" id="page_376">[376]</a></span></p> + + +<p>A Child's Birthday</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>A dreary place would be this earth,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Were there no little people in it:</span><br /> +The song of life would lose its mirth,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Were there no children to begin it:</span><br /> +<br /> +No little forms, like buds to grow,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And make the admiring heart surrender:</span><br /> +No little hands on breast and brow,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">To keep the thrilling love-chords tender.</span><br /> +<br /> +The sterner souls would grow more stern,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Unfeeling nature more inhuman,</span><br /> +And man to stoic coldness turn,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">And woman would be less than woman.</span><br /> +<br /> +Life's song, indeed, would lose its charm,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Were there no babies to begin it;</span><br /> +A doleful place this world would be,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Were there no little people in it.</span></i> +</p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Greenleaf Whittier.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Our dear Heavenly Father, Thou lookest upon +us all as Thy children,—whether our hair be flaxen +or brown or white with age. We thank Thee today +for the children of our own household, for our children, +and all the children, and especially do we +thank Thee for the one whose birthday we celebrate +here to-day. May Thy blessing be upon him (her), +may the skies be bright over his (her) head,—may +the birds sing to him (her). May the flowers +blossom around his (her) pathway. Thro' all +the journey of this life let him (her) have the guidance +of Thy Father hand. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_377" id="page_377">[377]</a></span></p> + + +<p>A Father's Birthday</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>The boy enjoyed this kind of a father at the time, +and later he came to understand, with a grateful +heart, that there is no richer inheritance in all the +treasury of unearned blessings. For, after all, the +love, the patience, the kindly wisdom of a grown man +who can enter into the perplexities and turbulent +impulses of a boy's heart, and give him cheerful +companionship, and lead him on by free and +joyful ways to know and choose the things that are +pure and lovely and of good report, make as fair an +image as we can find of that loving, patient Wisdom +which must be above us all if any good is to come out +of our childish race.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">Henry Van Dyke.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>By Thy very name, our Father, Thou hast ennobled +and sanctified the office of parenthood and +attracted to it our respect and love. Thou hast +commanded us to honor father and mother, that +our days may be lengthened. Assured thus of Thy +approval, O God, we call upon Thee to hallow our +joy and gratitude on this anniversary day. We +thank Thee for him whom we honor as "Father +in the flesh" and pray Thee to grant him yet many +days with health and strength to minister and to +be ministered unto, to grow in grace and in favor +with God and man, and to taste the sweet tributes of +love and the rewards of good deeds finely done. +Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">C. Ellwood Nash.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_378" id="page_378">[378]</a></span></p> + + +<p>A Mother's Birthday</p> +<div class="poem"> +<p> +<i>Blessings on the hand of woman!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Angels guard her strength and grace;</span><br /> +In the cottage, palace, hovel,—<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">O! no matter where the place.</span><br /> +Would that never storms assailed it,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Rainbows ever gently curled;</span><br /> +For the hand that rocks the cradle<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is the hand that rules the world.</span><br /> +<br /> +Blessings on the hand of woman!<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Fathers, sons and daughters cry;</span><br /> +And the sacred song is mingled<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">With the worship in the sky,—</span><br /> +Mingles where no tempest darkens,<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Rainbows evermore are curled;</span><br /> +For the hand that rocks the cradle<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Is the hand that rules the world.</span></i></p> +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">John Gray.</span><br /> +</p> +</div> + +<p>Heavenly Father, Thou plantest anew Thine own +love in the hearts of Thy children and so multipliest +Thyself on the earth. We thank Thee today for the +manifold incarnation of Thyself in the hearts of all +true mothers. We have known the magic charm of +mother love and it relates us anew to Thee. Here +we celebrate the birthday of one who has honored us +and blessed us by a sacred ministry. We thank +Thee, our Father, for all the sweet memories +of the past, for all the joy of the present relation +with her, and for the hope that these sacred associations +may long continue. Wilt Thou bless her +whose birthday we honor here. Crown her with +long life and happy days and the sweet consciousness +of having ministered in love. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_379" id="page_379">[379]</a></span></p> + + +<p>General Birthday</p> + +<blockquote><p><i>Birthdays, what are they? One will say they are +mileposts on the highway of life, marking the distance +already traveled and suggesting what yet remains of +the journey. Another looking into the deeper meaning +of the years will suggest that they are memorial tablets +recording the service of a passing life. But no matter +under what figure you think of them, the coming into +this world of a human life with all the magic powers +of thought and love and faith and service is a thing +of such transcendent moment, as to make it well worth +while to mark the passing of the years.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p class="signature"> +<span class="smcap">George L. Perin.</span><br /> +</p> + +<p>Father of all, it is Thou who hast made us and +given us all things richly to enjoy; we thank Thee, +therefore, for the birthday to which we have come. +We thank Thee for the physical life, and all that +makes it glad; for the power of intellect, and all +the wealth it feeds upon; for love, and all the forms +of love which answer to it; for faith which looks on +Thee and heaven; for service, the exercise and opportunity +of every gift and grace. Help us to be +faithful that our felicity may be secure in Thee, and +that we may ever recall the day of our birth with +rejoicing. This we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.</p> + +<p> +<span class="smcap">Charles R. Tenney.</span><br /> +</p> +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> + +<div class="tn"><h3>Transcriber's Note:</h3> <p>Minor typographical errors and +inconsistencies have been corrected without comment. +Unmatched quotation marks were left as they were in the original.</p> +<p> + +page 76, March 14: "And grass in the green fields" changed to "field".</p> + +</div> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<hr class="full" /> +<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE OPTIMIST'S GOOD MORNING***</p> +<p>******* This file should be named 39129-h.txt or 39129-h.zip *******</p> +<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br /> +<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/3/9/1/2/39129">http://www.gutenberg.org/3/9/1/2/39129</a></p> +<p>Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed.</p> + +<p>Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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