The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1888-10-17
GRAINS.

GRAINS.
Work and pray.
Holiness is an unselfing of ourselves.
The highest form of Christian life is
self-denial for the good Of others.
Life's evening will take it's character
from the day which has preceded it.
The best way to keep good acts in
memory is to refresh them with new
ones.
There is nothing that so refines the
face and mind as the presence of great
thoughts.
To obtain perfection it is not neces-
sary to do singular things, but to do
things singularly well.
Power is so enthusiastically calm
that calmness in itself has the aspect of
power, and forbearance implies
strength.
It is not until we have passed
through the furnace, that we are made
| to know how much dross there is in
our composition.
Many indeed think of being happy
with God in heaven; but the being
happy in God on earth never enters
into their thought.
Frivolity, under whatever form it
appears, takes from attention its
strength. from thought it's originality,
from feeling Its earnestness.
GAS Oft, with worn and weary feet,
We tread earth's rugged valley Ger,
The thought-how comforting and sweet!
Christ trod this very path before"
You will find that the mere resolve
not to be useless, and the honest desire
to help other people, will, in the quick
est and delicatest ways, improve your
self.
The true Christian is like the sun,
which pursues its noiseless track and
every where leaves the effect of his
beams in blessing upon the world
around him.
This is true: sit is said that one
tenth of the Christians in the world
do nine-tenths of the Christian work.
SO long as this is so we can not Won
der that it goes halting as it does"
There is never q moment, nor any
experience, in the life of a true Chris
tian, from which a message may not
Instantly be sent up to God, and back
to which help may not instantly come.
We think of parting; let us think of
meeting. We think of going away,
let us think of arriving. And as the
voice of death whispers, "You must 60
from earth," let us hear the voice of
Christ saying, "You are but coming to
me-"
We never know through what d.
vine mysteries of compensation the
great Father of the universe may be
carrying out his sublime plan but the
words, "God is love-" ought to contain
to every doubling soul the solution of
all things.
He who is brought to serious rehec-
ton by the salutary ah1iction of sick
bed, will look back with astonishment
on his former false estimate of worldly
things. Riches! beauty! pleasure
genius! fame what are they in the
eyes of the sick and dying?
The moral fault of man is unbelief.
The legal disobedience. The former is
the antecedent, the latter the conse-
|quent. This relation is fixed by i'm
mutable law. To secure obedience, be-
lief must be in exercise hence, the
burden of the gospel is "believe."
Ay, strip thee of thy dainty garb,
Thy tinsel robe OF PRIDE,
Lay glistening helm and Haunting plume,
And specious names aside
And what remains Of that gay thing
That dazzled us before?
monster hideous to behold,
An idol smeared with gore!
Life is a composition of multitude
of little things. Men design not to be
harsh and hard-would not he unfair.
But not enough attention is being paid
10 the amenities of life. A kind word,
q word of cheer, of exculpation, extern
uation; little gift, a flower, picture,
book, courtesy, polite bow, a cor
dial smile-how such little things con-
vert the wilderness of life into an
Eden!