The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1908-11-07

2. l look upon the lily and ]
learn that it isn't Gods will that I
81 o lid worry and fret and be anxious
about growth in Christian living.
"CoDsider the lilies of the field"
He who said that made the lily.
And He who made the lily made
man And He made them both on
the same broad plan. And the prin-
ciple of growth for the lily is the
same as the principle of growth for
man
The lily can't grow by trying to
grow. 1t never strives by q labored
earnestness to shoot itself up into the
air. And it never tries to grow that
way.
1t thrusts It's root down into the
black soil. Its delicate stem shoots
naturally towards the heavens. It
opens it's snowy petals to the SUM-
shine. 1t spreads itself out to
receive the refreshing rains. 1t
received the dews of the night. And
it grows. Why? Because it is in
the right condition for growth.
And to the man who is fretting
because he doesn't grow in Christian
living. Christ says: 20 man filled
with fretted care, Consider the lilies
of the field, HOW THEY GROW"
What then is the message of the
lily? This: Don't TRY to grow,
but just put yourself in the right
conditions for growth. Thrust the
roots of your life down into the
secular life of the world. that you may
have to do with. and perform it's
duties faithfully; lift your heart and
life up to the Heaven above you; open
your soul to the dews of Gods grace !;
let the vivifying rains of His bless
ings play in upon your life; open
your whole life and soul to the influ-
ences Of Gods spirit that sweep
around all who have eyes to see and
ears to hear and hearts to feel: do
this and you'll grow in grace as
surely and as naturally as the lily
grows in stature. grace and beauty.
3. look upon the lily and it
brings me the message that God loves
the beautiful. How beautiful Is the
lily! It's delicate strength of stem
It's leaf curved into such graceful
beauty! Its petals of snow! What
thing of grace. delicacy. beauty
exquisItel Why. "sven Solomon in
all his glory was not arrayed like
one of these
Certain religious orders of the past.
and some in the present. have insisted
on vesting in certain homely garbs.
! distinctive of their orders. They
have said it is indicative of humility.
and in harmony with the spirit of the
lowly Nazarene. Obi it is all
wrong. Will men never distinguish
between humility of circumstances
and humility of heart?
Look upon the glow of sunset on
the Sound: the bIossomed beauty Of
an orchard in early summer: the
FURNISHED wonders of golden noon
tide on an Autumnal forest: the
sheen of the silver sea sleeping in the
sunlight; the gorgeous plumage Of
the birds; and the delicate beauty
of the lily; and learn the message
that God loves the beautiful.
Much is said in these days about
the extravagances of feminine atti re.
But men may rave as much as they
please about these things. Dressmsk.
ing parlors and millinery estabi lsh-
ments will continue to ply thriving
trade. Whyf Because tasteful and
attractive attire is an expression of
the instinct of the beautiful that the
Creator has implanted in the mind.
II they had no care for these things,
appearing at all times in sombre
and neRliRee attire: always In dis
habile, -what kind of a world would
this be? How much of the beauty
would be taken out OF It'll How sadly
would it be robbed of some of it's
most alluring and fascinating attrac-
tionsl
God loves the beautiful. He who
made the bird to MARBLE with sweet
est music and fill the ravished air
with notes enhancing for their rich
ness and beauty: Oh! do you sup
pose He loves to listen to the tangled
discords of men: the strife of
tongues; the war of words. unkind,
hateful, harsh. that have
poison in them?
He who reared the lily on its
graceful stem; formed its delicately
curved leaf; shaped it's snowy petals !;
made it thing of beauty and loves
it's delicacy: Oh don't you suppose
it grieves Him to look upon faces Of
men with deep lines of hatred in
them; eyes that flash with baleful
fires features distorted with malice