Year: 1874

present to disturb the business and the
joys of the moment; neither do we
really think it unsafe to trust God
with the issues of life, while we do its
passing duties and enjoy its present
pleasures. And yet the attitude we
often place ourselves in looks as if we
do, and it mars our usefulness and hap
piness as much as if we really dis
trusted God. There is an amount of
anxious care and apprehension for the
future in the life of all of us that is
both very absurd and wrong and very
disastrous to our daily duties and Joys.
In spite of our philosophy, thought
will anXiously wander forward some
times and depict the future in dark
colors, and then we slacken our hands
and consider what we shall do about it,
and when we do so we lessen the en-
joyment of both the present and the
future.


The Lord forbids the thought'cen-
cerning the evil that tomorrow may
bring, which thought begets solicitude
and anxiety, lest we should be undone
by it and be filled with care and pains
to ward it off. All thought that de-
tracts from q present certainty to waste
on future uncertainty, is what is con-
demned and prohibited. That provision
for the future, which we may make
by doing more earnestly and faith
fully the duties OF the present, is not
here forbidden; for that is right and
true, and is the proper order by which
come is to be the result of what we
make each present moment as it
comes; so that tomorrow is best
| thought for in its relations with to-
day. And every thought causing
| anxious care for what it may bring,
only imperils the good that may be
stored up for it by better attention
to to-day. 1t is the most absurd thing
that we can do to attempt to provide
for the good of tomorrow by marring
the good of to-day in order to do ito
think that we can be more successful
tomorrow by being less so to-day.
Who would think of preparing for an
occasion that would require our great
est physical health and strength by
starving and depicting the body and
even neglecting to take exercise,
through dread of the trial to come
Yet this is exactly what we do when
we are troubled about tomorrow. We
grow mentally and spiritually wan
and feeble by it. Trustful, hopeful
thought for tomorrow, such as will
lead us in cheerfulness to make the
best provision for it that the means
which Providence has given us will
permit, will enable us always to make
it good thing; and the Lord permits
| this at all times. And He has placed
| thousand considerations before us to
encourage this. But this is very diff
| ferent from the paralyzing thought of
the evil that may be tomorrow, to
think and provide for the good that
may be stored up for it by the best
use of the day. This distinction will
always save us from confOunding the
two ideas, and running into that evil
of Incidence and improvidence for the
future which has had so much relig-
ious mendacity. That is just as much
violation Of the injunction before us
| as to have anxious care for the future
| There is no such thing as cOnfiding the
future to the Lord unless the present
means-the duties of this moment
are used to secure it.


No one will boast of his trust in
God for food and clothing tomorrow
who neglects food and clothing to-
day; nor that He would preserve him
from sickness tomorrow if the condi-
tions of life and health were not OBJ
| served to-day. 1t is in the faithful
use Of the present means that we have
| security for the future. If this rule
be followed, what need is there for
anxious care for the future. Those
who look forward to the future possi-
| bility of evil to their spiritual life are
paralyzing all the energy and joy of a
| life of piety.


NlNnn 10 nd In, Fn
stimulated by love. But slavish and
miserable is that life that is whipped
TO duty through fear of hell fire.


If we were only content to let the
endeavor of each day, each hour, and
each moment meet it's own response
bilities and rewards, and not burden
ourselves down with the weight of the
future-fearing that we cannot hold
! out under the continual strain of the
resistance of besetting evils, and that
we may some day yield to their power,
how much brighter would the sun
shine on the path of life. The Lord
wishes to inculcate upon our minds
the importance of concentrating all
our energies in the resistance of evil
now-the present moment. "Suffi-
cient unto the day is the evil thereof"


One other thought is presented in
this text. Just imagine the great mass
of wrecked and useless resolutions
and purposes that strew the records of
human hearts, more sad than those
that strew the bottom of the devour-
ing sea. A great majority of these is
the result of attempting to anticipate
the future, to be good and true in the
future instead of now. These resolu-
tions are often very good and correctly
entered into, and useful as kind of
chart for future life. But the endeavor
to lay up a great store of these pur-
poses to last ali the time, by one in
stantaneous spasmodic effort has al
ways proved a failure. This is after
the old style of "getting religion" get
ting it once for all eternity; as if we
We're to get our supply of food for all
time-we cannot keep it. Religion is
like mama, it must be gathered each
day. The whole duties of life is done
in attending to the duties of the mo-
ment.


So far as we have been able to learn
tho storas in tho cifV will he general 1V