Part 17

My Lord, forgive me if I have allowed bitterness and misery to darken my life, for my soul yearns continually for the light. In thy compassion lead me to the "sunny side of the road where the beautiful flowers grow," that my path may be made bright and cheerful all the rest of the way. Amen.

DECEMBER FIFTH

Martin Van Buren, New York, eighth President United States, born 1782.

Christina G. Rossetti born 1830.

Alice Brown born 1857.

A cold wind stirs the blackthorn To burgeon and to blow, Besprinkling half-green hedges With flakes and sprays of snow.

Through coldness and through keenness, Dear hearts take comfort so: Somewhere or other doubtless These make the blackthorn blow.

--Christina G. Rossetti.

There are some men and women in whose company we are always at our best. All the best stops in our nature are drawn out by their intercourse, and we find a music in our souls never there before.

--Henry Drummond.

And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and good works.

--Hebrews 10. 24.

My Father, I thank thee for life. Make me sensitive to the unseen influences that bring thy messages. May I be led where great riches may be found through small kindnesses, and where I may learn from the meek the beauty of earth. Amen.

DECEMBER SIXTH

General George Monk born 1608.

Warren Hastings born 1732.

Dr. Richard Barham born 1786.

That low man seeks a little thing to do, Sees it and does it: This high man, with a great thing to pursue, Dies ere he knows it. That low man goes on adding one to one, His hundred's soon hit: This high man, aiming at a million, Misses an unit. That, has the world here--should he need the next, Let the world mind him! This, throws himself on God, and unperplexed Seeking shall find him.

--Robert Browning.

Hitch your wagon to a star.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Jehovah, will I seek.

--Psalm 27. 8.

Almighty God, show me what thou hast given for me to do, that I may not leave undone that which is mine. Forgive me for useless planning and blind asking for the things which cannot be mine. I pray that my work may be honest work, well done, and acceptable for thy service. Amen.

DECEMBER SEVENTH

Cicero assassinated B.C. 43.

John Dalton born 1766.

Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, born 1542.

It is virtue--yes, let me repeat it again--it is virtue alone that can give birth, strength, and permanency to friendship. For virtue is a uniform and steady principle ever acting consistently with itself.

--Cicero.

A common friendship--who talks of a common friendship? There is no such thing in the world. On earth no word is more sublime.

--Henry Drummond.

But thou shalt surely open thy hand unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need.

--Deuteronomy 15. 8.

Lord God, wilt thou reveal to me my weakness if I may be insincere; and give me the strength that I lack to keep me true. May I not take advantage of the ignorant, or thoughtlessly lead the innocent into temptation. Grant that I may be a trustful and kind friend. Amen.

DECEMBER EIGHTH

John Pym died 1643.

Richard Baxter died 1691.

Thomas De Quincey died 1859.

Elihu Burritt born 1810.

Robert Collyer born 1823.

Into the dusk of the East, Gray with the coming of night, This may we know at least-- After the night comes light! Over the mariners' graves, Grim in the depths below, Buoyantly breasting the waves, Into the East we go.

On to a distant strand, Wonderful, far, unseen, On to a stranger land, Skimming the seas between; On through the days and nights, Hope in each sailor's breast, On till the harbor lights Flash on the shores of rest!

J.H. Jowett.

So he bringeth them unto their desired haven.

--Psalm 107. 30.

Lord God, I pray that thou wilt provide me with thy indwelling peace. May it keep me reconciled to the decline of years, and enable me to bear the earthly separation from those whom I love. May I always have hope and trust in thee. Amen.

DECEMBER NINTH

John Milton born 1608.

Sir Anthony Van Dyck died 1641.

Joel Chandler Harris born 1848.

Doth God exact day labor, light denied? I fondly ask: but Patience, to prevent That murmur, soon replies, "God doth not need Either man's work, or his own gifts; who best Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best; his state Is kingly; thousands at his bidding speed, And post o'er land and ocean without rest; They also serve who only stand and wait."

--John Milton.

"'Tain't on'y chilluns w'at got de consate er doin' eve'ything dey see yuther folks do. Hit's grown folks w'at oughter know better," said Uncle Remus.

--Joel Chandler Harris.

Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may offer service well-pleasing to God with reverence and awe.

--Hebrews 12. 28.

My Father, teach me to select my work from that which is noble and true. May I not mold my life in affectation or feel that I must imitate the lives of others, but grant that I may perfect my life through experiences which are worthy of increasing endeavors. Amen.

DECEMBER TENTH

Thomas Holcroft born 1745.

Dr. Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet born 1787.

Eugene Sue born 1804.

Be of good cheer. Do not think of to-day's failures, but of success that may come to-morrow. You have set yourselves a difficult task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you will have a joy in overcoming obstacles--a delight in climbing rugged paths which you would perhaps never know if you did not sometimes slip backward, if the road were always smooth and pleasant. Remember, no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost.

--Helen Keller.

We rise by things that are beneath our feet, By what we have mastered by good and gain, By the pride deposed and passion slain, And the vanquished ills that we hourly meet.

--J.G. Holland.

He that overcometh, I will give to him to sit down with, me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne.

--Revelation 3. 21.

My Father, I pray that I may not be given to contradicting and doubting, nor take for granted that which needs to be considered. Grant that I may have the faith and strength of heart to fulfill the longings of my soul. Amen.

DECEMBER ELEVENTH

Sir Roger L'Estrange died 1704.

Dr. William Cullen born 1712.

Colley Cibber died 1757.

Lord, subdue our selfish will; Each to each our tempers suit, By thy modulating skill, Heart to heart, as lute to lute.

--Charles Wesley.

One of the last, slowly murmured sayings of Whittier, was this: "Give--my--love--to--the--world." And this is the world's supreme need to-day; more than our eloquence, or our knowledge, or our wealth, or all else besides, it needs our love. True, even love may sometimes err; but the cure for love's mistakes is just more love; we often blunder because we do not love enough. God help us all that, like Whittier, we may live and die, giving our love to the world.

--George Jackson.

Love never faileth.

--1 Corinthians 13. 8.

Lord God, help me to see the beauty of the world, and through my duty may I find the love in the world. May I not spend my life in discontent, but may I remember that thou hast said, "The meek shall inherit the earth." Fill my heart with compassion, that I may love my fellow man as I love myself. Amen.

DECEMBER TWELFTH

Chief Justice John Jay born 1745.

Gustav Flaubert born 1821.

Robert Browning died 1889.

A people is but the attempt of many To rise to the completer life of one. And those who live for models for the mass Are singly of more value than they all.

--Robert Browning.

Give me the power to labor for mankind; Make me the mouth of such as cannot speak; Eyes let me be to groping men and blind; A conscience to the base; and to the weak Let me be hands and feet, and to the foolish, mind; And lead still further on such as thy kingdom seek.

--Theodore Parker.

I was eyes to the blind, And feet was I to the lame.

--Job 29. 15.

Almighty God, wilt thou guide me in the direction where I may choose a useful life; open wide my heart as well as my eyes, that I may early see my work and be diligent in its prosecution. Reveal to me, when I may have failed, that I may do better to-morrow. Amen.

DECEMBER THIRTEENTH

William Drummond born 1585.

Dr. Samuel Johnson died 1784.

Joseph Noel Paton born 1821.

Phillips Brooks born 1835.

Hamilton Mabie born 1846.

When the clouds of sorrow gather over us, we see nothing beyond them, nor can imagine how they can be dispelled; yet a new day succeeded to the night, and sorrow is never long without a dawn of ease.

--Dr. Samuel Johnson.

The fountains of joy and sorrow are for the most part locked up in ourselves.... There come to great, solitary, and sorely smitten souls moments of clear insight, of assurance of victory, of unspeakable fellowship with truth and life and God, which outweigh years of sorrow and bitterness.

--Hamilton Mabie.

And ye therefore now have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one taketh away from you.

--John 16. 22.

My Father, may I remember that the days of my life that I give over to grief can never be reclaimed. Help me that I may not want to keep sorrow in my life, but with faith may I believe that "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Amen.

DECEMBER FOURTEENTH

Daniel Neal born 1678.

Rev. Charles Wolfe born 1791.

George Washington died 1799.

Frances Ridley Havergal born 1836.

Seldom can the heart be lonely, If it seek a lonelier still; Self-forgetting, seeking only Emptier cups of love to fill.

--Frances R. Havergal.

When to the sessions of sweet silent thought I summon up remembrance of things past, I sigh the lack of many a thing I sought. And with old woes new wail my dear time's waste

* * * * *

But if the while I think on thee, dear friend, All losses are restored, and sorrows end.

--William Shakespeare.

The Lord Jehovah hath given me the tongue of them that are taught, that I may know how to sustain with words him that is weary.

--Isaiah 50. 4.

Gracious Father, keep me cheerful and courageous, that I may not be given to weary murmurings. May my hours of solitude be spent profitably as they pass. Grant that I may be a help to those who are in need of sympathy and encouragement, and through the peace that is given to me help them to a tranquil life. Amen.

DECEMBER FIFTEENTH

Catherine of Aragon born 1485.

George Romney born 1734.

Franklin B. Sanborn born 1831.

Yet frequent visitors shall kiss the shrine, And ever keep its vestal lamp alight; All noble thoughts, all dreams divinely bright, That waken or delight this soul of mine.

--F.B. Sanborn.

One small cloud can hide the sunlight; Loose one string, the pearls are scattered; Think one thought, a soul may perish; Say one word, a heart may break.

--A.A. Procter.

Self-scrutiny is often the most unpleasant, and always the most difficult, of moral actions. But it is also the most important and salutary; for, as the wisest of the Greeks said, "An unexamined life is not worth living."

--J. Strachan.

Try your own selves, whether ye are in the faith; prove your own selves.

--2 Corinthians 13. 5.

Gracious Father, help me that I may not be thoughtless and unkind. May I be gentle and sympathetic. Forgive me for any unhappiness which I may have made, and may it be mine to know the rejoicing that comes hi lifting a discouraged life in time. Amen.

DECEMBER SIXTEENTH

John Selden born 1584.

François La Rochefoucauld born 1610.

George Whitefield born 1714.

Jane Austen born 1775.

So live that when thy summons comes to join The innumerable caravan that moves To that mysterious realm where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death, Thou go not, like the quarry slave at night, Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him and lies down to pleasant dreams.

--William Cullen Bryant.

As the wind extinguishes a taper but kindles the fire, so absence is the death of an ordinary passion, but lends strength to the greater.

--La Rochefoucauld.

If a man die, shall he live again?

--Job 14. 14.

Heavenly Father, with thy help may I enter into the hope that overcomes the fear of death. May my days be full of aspiration, and through faith may my life move toward the eternal and the sublime. Amen.

DECEMBER SEVENTEENTH

Sir Roger L'Estrange born 1616.

Ludwig van Beethoven born 1770.

Sir Humphry Davy born 1779.

John Greenleaf Whittier born 1807.

The night is mother of the day, The winter of the spring; And ever upon old decay The greenest mosses cling. Behind the cloud the starlight lurks, Through showers the sunbeams fall; For God, who loveth all his works, Has left his hope with all.

--John Greenleaf Whittier.

The sun set; but not his hope: Stars rose; his faith was earlier up.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

What I am I have made myself.

--Sir Humphry Davy.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: My flesh also shall dwell in safety.

--Psalm 16. 9.

My Father, may I never be content to pass by thy beautiful offerings and keep on in wretched despair. Save me if I may 'be inclining toward misery. Give me the spirit of repose, and help me to confide in thee as I daily seek the strength of thy love. Amen.

DECEMBER EIGHTEENTH

Charles Wesley born 1708.

Lyman Abbott born 1835.

Samuel Rogers died 1855.

Sir Joseph John Thomson born 1845.

And let this feeble body fail, And let it faint or die; My soul shall quit this mournful vale, And soar to worlds on high.

--Charles Wesley.

It were better to live an immortal life and be robbed of immortality hereafter by some supernal power, than to live the mortal, fleshly animal life, and live it endlessly. Who would not rather have a right to immortality than to be immortal without a right to be?

--Lyman Abbott.

So when a great man dies, For years beyond our ken, The light he leaves behind him lies Upon the paths of men.

--Henry W. Longfellow.

But he that soweth unto the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap eternal life.

--Galatians 6. 8.

My Father, I pray that I may be spared the deprivations that may come from years spent in selfishness. Help me to realize before it is too late how little self can hold and how much remorse may accumulate. Help me to aspire to ideals that compel me to live an immortal life. Amen.

DECEMBER NINETEENTH

Gustavus Adolphus born 1594.

Horatio Bonar born 1808.

F. Delsarte born 1811.

Mary A. Livermore born 1820.

J.M.W. Turner died 1851.

If a man is to be a pillar in the temple of his God by and by, he must be some kind of a prop in God's house to-day. We are here to support, not to be supported. No one can be a living stone on the foundations of the Spiritual House which is God's habitation without being a foundation to the stones above him.

--Maltbie Babcock.

Since trifles make the sum of human things, And half our misery from our foibles springs; Since life's best joys consist in peace and ease, O let th' ungentle spirit learn from hence, A small unkindness is a great offense.

--Hannah More.

He that overcometh I will make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go out thence no more.

--Revelation 3. 12.

My Father, grant that I may not deceive myself and expect big results from little efforts; nor be willing to receive assistance and refuse my support. May I not only be anxious to give others all that I can, and share their burdens, but may I be glad to help make fewer burdens for others to bear. Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTIETH

Louis the Dauphin died 1765.

John Wilson Croker born 1780.

Cyrus Townsend Brady born 1861.

Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken. It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.

--William Shakespeare.

I will not doubt the love untold Which not my worth nor want hath bought, Which wooed me young and wooes me old, And to this evening hath me brought.

--Henry David Thoreau.

Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

--Jeremiah 81. 3.

Loving Father, teach me the secret of constancy, that none may ever be disappointed in me. May I not reckon what I give on recompense, but have the spirit of giving which has no measure for what it may receive in return. May I not be forgetful of thy love which will hold me to deeper reverence and devotion. Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTY-FIRST

Jean Baptiste Racine born 1639.

Robert Moffat born 1795.

Laura Bridgman born 1829.

To think and to feel constitute the two grand divisions of men and genius--the men of reasoning and the men of imagination.

--Disraeli.

Grow old along with me! the best is yet to be, The last of life, for which the first was made: Our times are in his hand who saith, a whole I planned, Youth shows but half; trust God: see all, nor be afraid!

--Robert Browning.

But the path of the righteous is as the dawning light, That shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

--Proverbs 4. 18.

Almighty God, I pray that I may have the grace to penetrate the deep things of life and test their truth and greatness. May I have faith in thy power and train for the best which thou hast made possible for me to live. Help me to think and feel aright, that I may be thine to-day, and in the days of to-morrow may I still be thine, ever keeping bright memories of past days. Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTY-SECOND

Franz Abt born 1819.

Thomas W. Higginson born 1823.

George Eliot died 1880.

Love and Pain Make their own measure of all things that be. No clock's slow ticking marks their deathless strain; The life they own is not the life we see; Love's single moment is eternity.

--Thomas W. Higginson.

Life is made stronger Giving, receiving; Love is made longer Hoping, believing.

Life is made sweeter, Truly worth living; Love is completer, Trusting, forgiving.

--M.B.S.

In love of the brethren be tenderly affectioned one to another; in honor preferring one another.

--Romans 12. 10.

Loving Father, I thank thee that every morn breaks in a new day without the sadness of yesterday or the gladness of to-morrow. I pray that I may not lose the love and joy that it brings to-day. Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTY-THIRD

Michael Drayton died 1631.

Robert Barclay born 1648.

James Sargent Storer died 1854.

When heaven endows you with all gifts, you are an incomplete being if you stay still in your corner instead of taking advantage of your real value.

--Marie Bashkirtseff.

Life, which ought to be a thing complete in itself, and ought to be spent partly in gathering materials, and partly in drawing inferences, is apt to be a hurried accumulation lasting to the edge of the tomb. We are put into the world, I cannot help feeling, to be rather than do.

--Arthur C. Benson.

Jehovah is the strength of my life.

--Psalm 27. 1.

Heavenly Father, I pray that thou wilt reverse my standards of life if I may be striving only for selfish gain. May I care for all that I could be, and may I care for where I should be found, but, most of all, may I care for what I really am. Help me to keep my mind on thee that I may find delight in doing thy will. Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTY-FOURTH

George Crabbe born 1754.

Kit Carson born 1809.

Matthew Arnold born 1822.

John Morley born 1838.

William Makepeace Thackeray died 1863.

Ah, friend, let us be true To one another! For the world, which seems To lie before us like a land of dreams, So various, so beautiful, so new, Hath really neither joy, nor love, nor light, Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain, And we are here as on a darkling plain Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight, Where ignorant armies clash by night.

--Matthew Arnold.

We take care of our health, we lay up money, we make our roof tight and our clothing sufficient, but who provides wisely that we shall not be wanting in the best property of all--friends?

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Faithful are the wounds of a friend.

--Proverbs 27. 6.

Gracious Lord, fill my life with the spirit of love and sacrifice. I bless thee for the deep fellowships and tender intimacies; and on the eve of this Christmas ask thy blessing for all, as my heart rings with joy for those whom I love. Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTY-FIFTH

Christmas Day.

Sir Isaac Newton born 1642.

William Collins born 1721.

Father Taylor born 1794.

This is the month, and this is the happy morn, Wherein the Son of heaven's eternal King, Of wedded maid, and virgin mother born, Our great redemption from above did bring.

--John Milton.

Christmas is here; Winds whistle shrill, Icy and chill, Little care we; Little we fear Weather without, Shelter'd about The Mahogany tree.

--William M. Thackeray.

And the angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all the people: for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.

--Luke 2. 10, 11.

Almighty God, I give honor and praise to express my joy for thy great love in the gift of thy Son, Jesus Christ. With a glad heart I wish all mankind "A merry Christmas," and may I ever remember, where the angels sang, "Peace on earth, good will toward men." Amen.

DECEMBER TWENTY-SIXTH

Thomas Gray born 1716.

Mrs. Southworth born 1818.

Stephen Girard died 1831.

Let not ambition mock their useful toil, Their homely joys, and destiny obscure; Nor grandeur hear with a disdainful smile The short and simple annals of the poor.

Nor you, ye proud, impute to those the fault, If memory o'er their tomb no trophies raise, Where, through the long-drawn aisle and fretted vault, The pealing anthem swells the note of praise.

Full many a gem of purest ray serene The dark, unfathomed caves of ocean bear; Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, And waste its sweetness on the desert air.

--Thomas Gray.

Jehovah, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty; Neither do I exercise myself in great matters, Or in things too wonderful for me.

--Psalm 131. 1.