The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1895-10-24
THOU Shalt NOT WORRY.

Christ WAS, above ali things. prac
tical. That was His marked char
acteristic, The one which especially
endears Him TO mankind, for it
establishes h-twetn Us and Him the
personal relations of teacher and
pupil. ! like to think of Him as n
friend VINO has all the resources of
wisdom at command, who ia for
some reason interested in my welfare,
who has furnished me with certain
truths which could hardly discover
for myself, and in which | can place
as much confidence as the mariner
on tempestuous seas does in the
compass that guides hin through
storm and darkness.
Some of the advice He has given is
| difficult to understand and more
difficult to follow. The text is an
illustration of this. If He tells us
that the angels of God are never
beyond hearing distance when we are
| in need of help, or if He declares that
there is another life for which these
few years ire simply preparation,
and that we must SO act today that
/ we shall have no regrets in the great
tomorrow, We can catch glimpse of
His meaning, for there is a mysteri-
| GUS something in our souls which
| corroborates His words. But when
he assur9s US that in our daily lives
| we ought to face the present moment
and do the present duty, not allow
ing ourselves to be over anxious
| about what may happen during the
day to come, it is necessary to think
the matter over very carefully before
we can see the principle which under
| lies His words.
surely, He was well aware of the
trials, troubles, sorrows and uncer-
tainties through which we pass, for
| they filled His ON short career to
the very brim. No man has ever
suffered more than He did, and none
has been pricked 10y as many thorns.
And yet He calmly tells us topossess
our souls in peace, not to anticipate
the future; neither to worry about
what may happen tomorrow, but to
bear "a best We may whatever
| burden is on our shoulders and let
the morrow take care OF itself. He
does not speak of this as the better
| policy to pursue, but as an impera-
| tive duty imposed by the laws OF the
4
them. What does He mean by this
strange utterance? Perhaps by
| searching We may find out
| Worry. to begin With. is useless
1t produces 10 good result. On the
contrary, it is utterly destructive in
it's nature. So far from preparing
you to overcome disaster, it renders
you unfit to meet it, 1t debilitates
ohe soul and robs you of the very
strength which you pray for because
you St it will be needed. To worry
is to endure an agony before it's
time, and SO proiong your misery.
God says. You must suffer pain
tomorrow" aud you reply, "Then l
will suffer it today also
Do not think 1 am forgetful.
know that coming events cast their
shadows bt fore; that one cannot
laugh up to the moment when the
clock strikes and the blow falls. The
| imagination is winged and it flies
into the future. Love thinks of the
.our OF separation which cannot
long be postponed, and tears tremble
on the eyelid5, not because of what
is, but of " hat is to be. We should
he. not more. but less, than human
if this were 80.
SUPPOSE, however, that our faith
was perfect Ii our souls were in
accord with the providence of God
if we really felt that Hand controls
events, and that behind the Hand is
the Heart of a Father; that what we
must bear He will give us strength
to bear; that if we are not masters
of the situation He is-would not
such a faith quiet our restlessness
and should We not resemble the Sea
OF Galiiee after Christ said, peace
Be still?' The element of worry
would be well nigh eliminat ted, and
with the feeling that whatever is is
right we should borrow nothing
from the future, hut simply bear the
pre- sent sorrow.
L. is true religion that we need
and more of it. In our protested
belief We have a God enthroned, but
in our daily life we have a Goo
dethroned In our heart of hearts
we do not have confidence in Him
but act as though there were no Goo
at all, If we could climb to that
high spiritual level, SO far above oul
heads and well nigh out Of sight, Oh
which Christ lived. we should bt
healthier in body, more vigorous in
soul to meet the inevitable, more
cheerful, happier, less restless an,
immeasurabiy .nobler
1t is profitable for you to so fal
anticipate the effect of a given cause
that y u prepare to meet it, but
when y GU have done all that can b.
done it is exceedingly unprofitabl,
to SO weaken yourself by worry thai
the coming sorrow is doubled il
weight. AS much as lies in youl
power-and it is a quality of char
acter which admits OF great develop
ment-live in today. Cultivate {
quiet and peaceful frame of mind
He did it, and was nniist urbed b.,
threatening circumstance. and 70,
may follow affair off What you a.
doing now calls for all your strength
and if there is more to follow, thel
the additional strength will be given
Gods providence is both wide Ant
tender, and the more you trust mi
the sweeter will be your life, tn
brighter will be your hope, the faire
will be your general outlook, ant
the nearer will heaven seem to you
Sufficient unto the day is the evi
thereof.
GLoRGE FL. HEPwoRTH.
Florida Oranges.