Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1896-10-15
from the New York Herald
Resting Quietly.

longs for, but under present conditions
it can have very little of either, IT.
ritation and worriment produce abb
normal states of mind, and are to be
avoided for the sake of physical as
well as of spiritual health. A perfect
poise, that altitude of faith from which
the ideal man looks down on the per-
plexities of life in calm survey, and
looks up to God who from that point
of vantage seems close at hand, may
be difficult of attainment, but it IS
worth all the struggles it will cost.
A soul which is always at rest, not
because the experiences of life are rest
full, but because the experiences of
life cannot seriously disturb it-that
soul is already in heaven, though the
threshold of death has not been crossed.
We talk too much about going to bea-
ven, whereas it would be more prof.
table to discover how heaven can come
to us. Daily life is truly hardship
at times, but we ought not to open our
doors in welcome to the thought of
hardship, On the other hand, let us
bolt the door to that thought, dwell
on it as little as possible, and give our
warmest welcome to the thought that
when we and God are working togeth-
er all burdens are lightened. There is
always peace in the heart that is con-
scious of Gods presence. 1t is because
we do not know that He is with us,
and more than half doubt that He is
anywhere, that We become nervous, ir-
ritable, uneasy and unhappy.
I cannot conceive of the Christ as
ever feeling that God was not in per-
feet command of the world. Had He
doubted it for moment He could not
have walked so quietly through the
Via Dolorosa toward the Mount Of
Crucifxion. While not Indifferent to
the torture that awaited Him, His soul
was in a region far above bodily pain,
and He was more concerned about the
spiritual Ignorance which converted
the multitude into a mob of criminals
than about the physical pangs He was
soon to undergo. You cannot drive a
spike through mans thoughts, and
if his thoughts are sufficiently elevated
the spike that is driven through hands
and feet loses much of its power to in
duce suffering. In other words, it is
certainly possible for the soul to be so
absorbed in eternal verities that death
at the stake even may seem an iDcon-
siderable incident.
This altitude has not been reached
by many in the history of mankind,
but the fact that it has been reached
in a single instance is proof Of what
may be attained in greater or less de-
gree by us all. We may not climb to
the mountains summit, but we may
climb high enough up the mountain s
side to find freedom from the petty
cares and daily worries which produce
mental restlessness and bodily disease
1t is a mistake to suppose that you
must continually be on the watch for
sin as though it were a robber in am
bush. At least that is not the best
way to make man strong and cour-
ageous. 1t is thousand times better
to tell him to search for the immanent
God until he finds Him to try to know
Him as one knows a personal friend I;
to trust Him as one trusts the captain
Oh an ocean steamer, for then he will
not need to be on the lookout for sin;
because sin and he will have nothing
in common
Do you feel it necessary to keep
careful watch over yourself lest you
may be tempted to invite to your Ia
bic and your family circle the crimi-
nails who infest the city? Need You
be constantly warned not to do that
sort of thing? You have something
so much better than what they can
offer that they have no attraction what
ever for you.
In like manner, you need not be on
the lookout for sin, provided your
trust IN God Is perfect. What you
need is not sharper eyes, but deeper
faith. 1t is the faith that protects
you, and not your watchfulness. Sin
cannot soil goodness, for the two repel
each other and will never come in con-
tact.
You can live in such rare and health
giving air that disease cannot touch
you, and you can live amid such ele-
waiting ideas that your soul will be in
continual peace, and the small worries
and petty perplexities of life will have
no power to disturb5your serenity.
Do not try to adjust yourself to your
environment, but fill yourself with
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