The prophet sought the precious tree Whene'er affliction o'er thee sheds Then, sufferer, be the prophet's prayer And prayer and resignation shall G. W. DOANE. VIII. THE LITTLE TEACHER. "AND why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."-Matt. vi. 28, 29. WITH dark foreboding thoughts opprest, I wandered forth one summer day, Deep in a lone and green retreat I laid me down with many a sigh, Methought with sympathetic smile "Sad mortal, cease these anxious sighs; "Although a mean unheeded flower, TAKE NO THOUGHT FOR TO-MORROW. "The light and dew, the sun and rain, Ashamed I rose, rebuked my care, 265 S. W. PARTRIDGE. IX. "TAKE NO THOUGHT FOR TO-MORROW." "DOES not God provide for all the birds and beasts and fishes? Do not the sparrows fly from their bush, and every morning find meat where they laid it not? Do not the young ravens call to God, and he feeds them? And were it reasonable that the sons of the family should fear the father would give meat to the chickens and the servants, his sheep, and his dogs, but give none to them? He were a very ill father that should do so; or he were a very foolish son that should think so of a good father."-Jeremy Taylor. Lo, the lilies of the field, How their leaves instruction yield! Mortal, fly from doubt and sorrow; Mortal, fly from doubt and sorrow; ONE there lives whose guardian eye HEBER. X. HEAVEN. "THERE is nothing in nature whose state and mode of being is not liable to change. Everything is the sport of frailty and inconstancy, and nothing is so durable as to continue always like itself. The most solid bodies are not so impenetrable, nor their parts so closely connected, as to be exempt from dissolution and destruction. Every particle of matter changes its form insensibly. * ** Reflections of this nature might well distress us, or even drive us to despair, if we could not derive support and consolation from religion. But this leads us to the only, invariable, and eternal Being, whose very nature is unchangeable. This immutable Being must be to eternity just what he is. Therefore his mercy endures for ever, and his righteousness from generation to generation.”—Sturm. THIS world is all a fleeting show, For man's illusion given: There's nothing true but heaven! And false the light on glory's plume, And love, and hope, and beauty's bloom, Poor wanderers of a stormy day, From wave to wave we're driven; MOORE. XI. A HEBREW MELODY. "THEN sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song, and is become my salvation; my father's God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name. Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea, his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea," &c. Exodus xv. 1-19. THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB. SOUND the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea!' 267 His chariots and horsemen, all splendid and brave, Praise to the Conqueror, praise to the Lord, Of those she sent forth in the hour of her pride? MOORE. XII. THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB. "AND the Lord sent an angel, which cut off all the mighty men of valour, and the leaders and captains in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he was come into the house of his god, they that came forth of his own bowels slew him there with the sword. "Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all other, and guided them on every side."-2 Chron. xxxii. 21, 22. THE Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold, For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast, And there lay the rider distorted and pale, With the dew on his brow, and the rust on his mail; BYRON. XIII. CHILD'S EVENING PRAYER. "WHEN you pray, study always to have your heart going along with the words that you utter; for, without the heart your words are vain and useless. It is also proper that you pray not only for yourselves, but also for others. You should pray that God would bless your parents, your brothers and sisters; all your friends, all your neighbours, all your brethren of mankind. And this you will not fail to do, if you truly love others as God commands you, and wish to see them holy and happy."- Thomson's Lessons. |