New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1843-02-14

bpt the tenner nne, be watched Many people
are more tried By their tempers than by anything
else So irritable are they that ii once they are
con,radicted thew fy into passion, and are sure
10 fall into sin unless they keep STRICT watch of
their tempers merchant of my acquaintance
was once completely under the control of pas
s;onate temper, and was continually saying things
in a moment of anger which did serious injury 10
the cause Of religion II was cauae to him of
great grief and perpexity, and recolect one eve
ming while / was walking with him by his store,
some sheep bad gathered about some salt barrels
left there, and were licking the salt upon them.
He flew into terrible passion and caught up clubs
and stones which he threw at them, with the cvi-
dent intent to ki them. was shocked and re-
buked him. He was filled with grief, and declared
tina, he despaired Of ever being able to overcome
his temper. asked him TO promise'me ,ha, when
ever he was inclined to be angry again, he would
stop and say over in his mind the Lords Prayer.
He said he would. Some years after he told me
that he had always borne this in mind, and that il,
had acted like charm; whenever he had been as
sailed by temptation he mad thought of this prayer
and the very thought of it had at once disarmed
temptation. By thus throwing himself upon Christ
relinquisLing all hope of overcoming it from his
own strength, the temptation had been foied.
4. Another thing: the tongue must be controlled
For The tongue is an unruIy member it sets
on fire the course of nature, and is set on fire of
hell it utterly defleth the body. The apostle
tells us that if man can only bride his tongue he
is perfect man, and can keep his whole body
There is nothing in which men are more aptto offend
And yet men can never be pure until they learn to
govern their tongues-until they teach it never to
speak any thing that will grieve the Spirit of God.
Nor can this be done by resolutions, but only By
looking to Christ for aid There is nothing from
which professors Of religion suffer more, nothing
from which have suffered more, than this. No
person can govern his tongue arightf he use it too
much. In much talk there wanteh not sin.
5. Again, we must mortify the lusts and appe-
ties and deeds of the body. And there are lwo
ways OF this. One is TO do it through tile spirit,
and this is the only efectual way. If we do i, as
the Pharisees did, by fasting twice week. and thus
mortify the deeds of the body under the law, it
will be of no effect. These two modes are often
confoundcd, and men seem to live if they never
knew of such a distinction. They are very pre-
else and particular in their observances, and
abound in works of notification The Romansts,
for instance perform all sorts of notifications, and
do penance continually; and who does not know
that all this has tendency to make the heart
better, but only to make the individual self
righteous.
6. Again, if we would keep ourselves pure, we
must not forget to pray to be delivered from all
temptation. This is expressly mentioned in the
Lord. prayer, which, as understand it, was Civ.
Ell to us not to be repeated as is often done, but
rather as an epitome so to speak, of the subjects
for which Christians should pray. This is one OF
the great things mentioned by Christ. Lead us
not into temptation, is the prayer he commeads
". L.. H., r.
lition They seer, not to fix their minds on keep
ing out of temptation, but rush into it, and then
look to God for deliverance. Again, we must be
sure not TO tempt ourselves. Suppose man who
has been in the habit ofusng ardent spirits should
resolve to abandon it, and should yet keep his
sideboard loaded with wine and brandy, &C.
Is he not thus plainly tempting himself? Just
30 with man addicted to gluuony. Aad liber
tine who is determined reform; suppose he
should take up his abode in house of ill-lame; is
ne mad expect that he will be delivered from
the temptation into which he rushcs of his own ac-
cord Many persons again tempt Satan to temp,
them; and this they do in various ways; they
throw open the door and invite temptation instead
Of fleeing from it. All occasion for temptation
must be put away, and every thing ike it stunned.
Some two years since young lady, who had be-
come exceedingly vain Of her personal beauty, was
converted. and day or two after was seen by her
grandmother going toward the FIRE with her hands
tall of curls and other tinery She resisted all per-
suasons to the contrary, declaring that she would
not be in the way Of temptation nor would she give
them to others lest they should be tempted bul
she burned them up and thus put away the occa-
sion of her temptation. Another from this city, in
the same way, cast upon the fire her whole library
of novcs--for she dared not have them near her.
These cases mention illustrations of the prin.
| ciple declared by Christ when he says, Z" if thy
| right hand offend thee cut it off" This is his di-
rection, and it is much as to soy that he will
not keep any one who will not, to avoid tempta
ion, sacrifice even his right hand and right eye.
How mistaken then are those Christians who look
for dcliverance and yet rush into the midst al
| temptation No doubt wherever duty calls no OBJ
stace will prevent the Christian from overcoming
it. If he is called to go as Missionary to he'll
| itself, if it be bis duty, grace will be vouchsafed
TO discharge it and 10 keep him from the power OF
| evil. But when there is no such call it is only
tempting COD to keep such thing. around US are
likely to lead us into temptation Much depends,
too, upon the things which are suffered to occupy
the mind: for the mind will always be employed
it not with pure, with impure thoughts. We can.
not keep 1t from thinking. 1t aeiH think and the
only question is, what shall it think about
Z. Again. if we would keep ourselves pure we
must learn to depend upon Christ as we'll in little
thinss as in great things. Many persons arc per,
tacty calm in great caamitie. aud yet are driven
into passion by slight vexations. woman for
instance, will fly into a passion twenty times day
with her children, whom she loves so well and
yet If one OF them be sick or her husband die, see
| then how collected she is When death i, at her
bedside she will be calm as an angel The secret
reason of this is, that in great things men more
readily recognize the hand Of God than in sn,ll
things, and look to him more directly for assistance.
recollect case of woman in Ohio, whose hus-
band was Instantly killed and the first she heard