Year: 1875

ENJOY tnem.l er


Yon,will doubtless bear older peo-
pie talk of experiences which you do
not know much about. You may
hear them speak of joys which you
have, never felt There is q very
deep Joy in that sense of God in
which he is uiore real'and more love
Iy to our thoughts than the dearest
earthly friend. But the feeling does
not come to most people until they
have seen a good deal of life, and
been led in ways which most of you,
younger ones, have not known. You
should not be down-hearted if you
do not have many such feelings, of
great joy and peace, or even if you
do not have them at all. But there
is possible to you, from the first, a
kind of companionship with God
which is better than anything besides.
You come into the companionship
of God, and into his near love, when
ever you do anything for the sake of
another person. This was the bles-
sedness of the life of Jesus, that he
lived for other people, that his whole
life was love. When you give up
your own happiness for another per-
son; when, instead of seizing for
yourself the sweet and pleasant
things, you give them to another,
and find your pleasure in seeing his,
you are standing by the side of Jesus.
You are helping in his work. You
are then, whether you know it or
not, in companionship with God.
And as your whole life sets in this
direction, and both in little things
and great you arc always thinking,
not of your own happiness but how
to make other people happier and
better, you are becoming one with
God. How much blessedness lies in
that, how much good not for your
self only, but for all the great family
III which you are a brother-no one
can tell you.


Set Yourself then to this Christ
like life of love. Do not dwell too
much on the happiness you are to
find in it, but think how beautiful
and good thing it is in itself Look
at the most lovable people you know
the kindest and most unsclfish peo-
pie, those whom everybody is glad
to see-and think how good it would
be to be like them. AS you read
the life of Jesus, and see more and
more how wonderful it was, remem-
Der that it is to such a life that he
calls you. Think often thst your
success is to be measured al last by
this, not how much money you have
made, not how much you have been
honored in the sight of men, but
how nearly You have attained to the
perfect manhood of Jesus.


In all your efforts and all your
thoughts, remember that close about
you is always the love ofyour Heav-
emily Father. When you are dis
couraSed, he is full of sympathy and
patience. If you ever despair of
yourself, he does not despair of you.
If you turn yonr back on him, he
waits for you and calls Won until you
turn again. II you sin, his
eye is upon you, but it is with such
a look as Jesus gave TO Peter when
he denied him. In every need your
Father is close at hand. Your
strength will be in resting on him.
Prayer should be not making out
a list of your wants, but taking a
full, deep, sweet sense of your Heav-
enly Fathers presence. Learn to
look at things as he looks at them.



Learn to take swift sense of his
presence-his sympathy, his purity,
his good will to all-;n the midst of
your occupation. Do not lay it on
yourself as a burdensome duty; but
when you are tempted, turn to the
thought of him; when people vex
you, think Of his patience with them;
when yon are happy, think that he is