NEWS, ARTICLES, DEVOTIONS AND MORE FROM BttB...

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love. JOHN 15:10 THIS did not once so trouble me, That better I could not love Thee; But now I feel and know That only when we love, we find How far our hearts remain behind The love they should bestow. RICHARD CHENEVIX TRENCH OUR Lord gives the answer to a difficulty continually perplexing honest Christians--"How am I to learn to love God? I want to do my duty, but I do not feel as if I loved God." Our Lord gives the answer,

Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, . . . for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. MATTHEW 6:20,21 SINCE I am coming to that holy room Where with the choir of saints forevermore I shall be made Thy music, as I come I tune the instrument here at the door, And, what I must do then, think here before. JOHN DONNE TO lay up treasure in heaven is to do arts which promote, or belong to, the kingdom of God; and what our Lord assures us of is that any act of o

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribu­lation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. 2 CORINTHIANS 1:3,4 THE spirit of gracious and expressed affection. Ah, let no one shrink from expressing it! The heart has strange abysses of gloom, and often yearns for just one word of love to help. And

The mountains shall depart, and the hills be re­moved; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. ISAIAH 54:10 There hath not failed one word of all His good promise. 1 KINGS 8:56 THERE is a persuasion in the soul of man that he is here for cause, that he was put down in this place by the Creator to do the work for which He inspires him, that thus he is an overmatch for all antagonists

I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel. EXODUS 16:12 SAVE our blessings, Master, save From the blight of thankless eye, Teach us for all joys to crave Benediction pure and high, Own them given, endure them gone, Shrink from their hardening touch, yet prize them won, Prize them as rich odors meet For love to lavish at His sacred feet. JOHN KEBLE NOTHING so hinders us in what we are doing as to be longing after something else; in so doing, we leave off tilling ou

According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue. 2 PETER 1:3 WE often try in vain to cut up our errors by the roots, to fight evil hand to hand on its own ground, where it has us at a disadvantage, whereas our most sure way to victory is by developing and fortifying the good that is in us. We have but a certain measure of strength and activity; as much of thi

Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind. 1 PETER 4:1 TAKE thy whole portion with thy Master's mind-- Toil, hindrance, hardness, with His virtue take-- And think how short a time thy heart may find To labor or to suffer for His sake. ANNA L. WARING YOUR portion is to love, to be silent, to suffer, to sacrifice your inclinations, in order to fulfil the will of God, by moulding yourself to that of others. Happy indee

Blessed are all they that wait for Him. ISAIAH 30:19 I WILL trust again His love, His power, Though I cannot feel His hand to-day; To His help anew I will betake me, Though His countenance seems turned away! Though without one smile, one gracious token, Through the flames and floods my path must go, When the fires subside, the waves pass over, My Deliverer I again shall know. JOACHIM LANGE IN the night of distress, feel after somewhat which may quiet and stay thy heart till t

Thou openest Thine hand, and satisfy the desire of every living thing. PSALMS 145:16 THERE'S not a craving in the mind Thou dost not meet and still; There's not a wish the heart can have Which Thou dost not fulfil. FMERICK W. FABER YOU will see the truth about the eternal life soon; I don't think it is possible to live up to the highest point of duty and of happiness without this. I know ,one can go on doing one's duty thoroughly under clouds of doubt, and even in complete un

The God of Israel is He that giveth strength and power unto His people. Blessed be God. PSALMS 68:35 I WILL meet distress and pain, I will greet e'en Death's dark reign, I will lay me in the grave With a heart still glad and brave; Whom the Strongest doth defend, Whom the Highest counts His friend, Cannot perish in the end. PAUL GERHARDT COULD we but live more entirely in the unseen Presence, and trust to the unseen support,--and if lonely, or disappointed, or depressed, turn

Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended; but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark. PHILIPPIANS 3:13,14 TILL, as each moment wafts us higher, By every gush of pure desire, And high-breathed hopes of joys above, By every sacred sigh we heave, Whole years of folly we outlive, In His unerring sight, who measures Life by Love. JOHN KEBLE WHAT we can do is a small thin

It is required in stewards that a man be found faithful. 1 CORINTHIANS 4:2 TOO many people are not faithful in little things. They are not to be absolutely depended upon. They do not always keep their promises. They break en­gagements. They fail to pay their debts promptly. They come behind time to appointments. They are neglectful and careless in little things. In general they are good people, but their life is honeycombed with small failures. One who can be positively depen

Thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice. Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness. PSALMS 65:8,11 He loveth righteousness and justice: the earth is full of the lovingkindness of the Lord. PSALMS 33:5 (R. V.) I SING because Thy works are fair, Thy glory makes me glad, The garments bright of praise I wear, For Thou art brightly clad. Full triumph doth my soul possess, Because Thy ways are right; The glory of Thy righteousness Maketh my dear delight. THO

Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 2 CORINTHIANS 4:10 BUT we as in a glass espy The glory of His countenance, Not in a whirlwind hurrying by The too presumptuous glance, But with mild radiance every hour, From our dear Saviour's face benign Bent on us with transforming power Till we, too, faintly shine. JOHN KEBLE IF we be faithful and humble, God will increase our faith by enabling us

When I cry unto Thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me. PSALMS 56:9 SOUL! wouldst thou from the battle shrink, And flee before the foe? Dost thou beneath the burden sink, And in the dust lie low? Oh! waste not there vain tears and sighs: The trumpet soundeth clear; O'ercome, and to My glory rise! O'ercome, and triumph here! THOMAS H. GILL BE not discouraged because of your soul's enemies. Are ye troubled with thoughts, fears, doubts, imagina­t

The children of Ephraim, being armed and carry­ing bows, turned back in the day of battle. PSALMS 78:9 Be thou strong, and very courageous. JOSHUA 1:7 Go forward, Christian soldier, Beneath His banner true! The Lord Himself, thy Leader, Shall all thy foes subdue. His love foretells thy trials; He knows thine hourly need; He can with bread of heaven Thy fainting spirit feed. LAWRENCE TUTTIETT WHILE there is left in you a trace of ill-temper, or of vanity, of pride, or of selfi

I will delight myself in Thy statutes: I will not forget Thy word. PSALMS 119:16 Which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard His word. LUKE 10:39 Lo! at Thy feet I wait Thy will, Let that alone my being fill, All earthly passions calm and still. C. S. WHATEVER happens let us not be too busy to sit at Jesus' feet. We shall not really lose time by enjoying this; nay, we shall redeem the time; for there is usually much more time and strength forfeited by friction than by toil, and

Our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name. PSALMS 33:21 ON our way rejoicing as we homeward move, Hearken to our praises, O Thou God of love! Is there grief or sadness? Thine it cannot be! Is our sky beclouded? Clouds are not from Thee! On our way rejoicing as we homeward move, Hearken to our praises, O Thou God of love! J. B. S. MONSELL MY position has come to this, Am I living near my Saviour; then I am as happy as the day is long, and as ligh

Thou hast given a banner to them that fear Thee, that it may be displayed because of the truth. PSALMS 60:4 MY cloud of battle‑dust may dim, His veil of splendor curtain Him; And, in the midnight of my fear, I may not feel Him standing near: But, as I lift mine eyes above, His banner over me is love. GERALD MASSEY MY son, thou art never secure in this life, but, as long as thou livest, thou shalt always need spiritual armor. Thou oughtest manfully to go through all, and to us

Make me to go in the path of Thy commandments, for therein do I delight. PSALMS 119:35 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. JOHN 14:27 THEN may Thy glorious, perfect will Be evermore fulfilled in me, And make my life an answering chord Of glad, responsive harmony. JEAN SOPHIA PIGOTT CHRIST is the embodied harmony of God, and he that receives Him settles into harmon

Rejoice the soul of Thy servant; for unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. PSALMS 86:4 AH, dearest Lord! to feel that Thou art near, Brings deepest peace, and hushes every fear; To see Thy smile, to hear Thy gracious voice, Makes soul and body inwardly rejoice With praise and thanks! CHRISTIAN GREGOR PRAYER is a habit; and the more we pray the better we shall pray. Sometimes to go to be alone with God and Christ in the fellowship of the Spirit, just for the joy and blessed

With Thee is the fountain of life; in Thy light shall we see light. PSALMS 36:9 How beautiful our lives may be; how bright In privilege; how fruitful of delight! And lo! all round us His bright servants stand; Events, His duteous ministers and wise, With frowning brows, perhaps, for their disguise, But with such wells of love in their deep eyes, And such strong rescue hidden in their hands! HENRY SEPTIMUS SUTTON WE see always what we are looking for, and if our mind has becom

Who hath delivered us from the power of dark­ness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son. COLOSSIANS 1:13 IT is right that we should have an aim of our own, determined by our individuality and our surround­ings; but this may readily degenerate into exclusive narrowness, unless it has for a background the great thought that there is a Kingdom of God within us, around us, and above us, in which we, with all our powers and aims, are called to be conscious worke

And was transfigured before them: and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light. MATTHEW 17:2 Master, it is good for us to be here. MARK 9:5 MASTER, it is good to be Entranced, enwrapt, alone with Thee; Watching the glistering raiment glow, Whiter than Hermon's whitest snow; The human lineaments that shine Irradiant with a light Divine: Till we too change from grace to grace, Gazing on that transfigured face. A. P. STANLEY THE Transfiguration has l