The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1903-02-27
Hurtful Habits.

One OF the most difficult habits to
break up, when once we'll establish
ed, g that OF envious fault-inding,
not only with persons and things,
but with the dealings OF Providence.
II things do not 60 just to suit US,
we rail at circumstances, AMI talk
of the injustice Of fate. II some
one more happily endowed, or more
suitably conditioned than ourselves,
is awarded the good for which we
would have str;ven, or il the prize
we coyetsi is dealt out to another,
We are apt to open the door to envy,
and fret because Of our failure.
Once envy has obtained q foot
hold, hate is right at its heels, and
with them a legion Of devils are let
into our souls that make short work
OF our comfort and happiness; once
we are in the hands of our friends,
We lose control OF even the little
sense we may have previously pos
sessed, and our jaundiced eyes see
in every act Of our more fortunate
rival a cover triumphing over our
disc )miiiure. We can sse nothing
good or meritorious in anything
that is done; everything is i'll done
and we could have done so much
better, had the work been entrusted
to our hands.
When our friend comes to US,
sure OF our sympathy with her in
her rejoicing. it is on our tongue to
stab her. and, il we do not wound
her outright, we damn with faint
praise" her achievements, or chill
with coldnsss and averted eyes, her
happy enthusiasm. Before we are
aware Of it, our hsartsome friend il
turned to a scornful foe; the breach
widens, and we 60 through life with
sorrowful sense OF something gone.
We have lost our friend.
The habit grows, and every loss
adds to our discomfort; We blame
everybody and everything, excep.
ourselves, and we become peevish,
fretful, ill-tempered, irritable. un-
Just, unthankful and ungracious.
We treat everybody as an enemy,
and we fall into state OF moral
ard mental dyspepsia. hating our
friends, loathing ourselves, railing
st fate, and arranging even Provi
dence, because of the almost incur
able disteDper into which we have
brough. ourselves.
But the habit can be overcome;
the patient, however, must be her
own physician. One must look
upward and outward, and keep a
firm hold upon their perishing self
respec,. We must look into our
owa hearts and compare ourselves,
in all kindness, with he successful
one, trying to discover the source
oi success in the one case. and of
failure in the other. We cannot
all succeed, and it may be that We
need d lust this discipline to fit US
for the work reserved for ns.
Through these losses, sorrows, a1-
versities, we may be attsining-or
should be--io goodness and bless
ingi we colld not otherwise have
found. These trials OF our faith
and patience and genero-ity may be
the refining fires" to burn away
the dross which hinders us from
fitting into the work God has chosen
for US. We should strive to be glad
that another is worthy; glad that
over another's pathway the sun is
shining. We cannot know how
grea, her ned may have been, or
what this success man mean to her.
Let ia always see the good side,
stunning the evil. Scourge envy
aud hate aud all the foul brood out
Of the temple Of your soul. Re-
member that "close behind the bit
ter fou ..tain Of Msrah grew the tree
that healed the waters; back of
every sorrow awaits the comfort
, needed to alleviate its pangs.
Every loss carries in it's hand gold
, en- compensation, If only We will
accent IL A God's Rift.