power for all things. Hope to the end for the grace-does not mean, Do nothing, wait till grace come, but, with all possible zeal and striving for salvation, hope and trust, not in thyself and thine own strength, but in the grace which never forsakes thee, with which thou canst do all things, but which, without thee, that is, without thine earnest desire, cannot save thee. As, without it, thou canst do nothing, so, without thee, it can and will do nothing in thee.

JANUARY THE FOURTH,

"He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."-Is. xl. 29-31.

OUTHS, valiant beginners, when they trust to themselves, and think they can no longer backslide; when they take air-leaps, and would fain fly off beyond others, often fall miserably, to their own humiliation. But he that always feels himself weak and small, shall never weary nor be downcast, for the Lord is his strength. He is mighty in the weak, not in the strong; He gives sufficiency to them that feel themselves insufficient. Those who are self-sufficient he lets fall. Ye, therefore, that know your own weakness, mourn not, nor be dispirited; for the Lord informs you by His prophets, that with Him there is prepared

Ō ye

strength sufficient for you. Appropriate it only, through believing continuing prayer. He gives strength to the wearied when they pray. that are weary! come to God's fountain of strength, to Jesus; He will revive you. If any one is going to despond, the Lord is here and will strengthen ; the All-powerful, All-sufficient one calls to thee; why wilt thou not come to Him? Why wilt thou rather continue in thine insufficiency, when the All-sufficient one stretches out his hand to thee? Take hold of it, and thou art strong, and canst do all in Him that makes thee strong. Who dares plead in excuse his weakness, when the Lord, the All-sufficient proffers him sufficient strength? Yes, he that trusts in Him, though he be but a worm in the dust, shall nevertheless mount like an eagle in the strength of the Lord.

JANUARY THE FIFTH.

My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord."-Ps. lxxxiv. 3. "My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land where no water is; to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary."-Ps. lxiii. 1, 2.

E that has been in the Courts of the Lord,

HE

He

tasted of nearness to Him, and drunk of His fullness, feels this thirst incessantly, feels every place out of Him too dry and too barren. that hath seen the sanctuary of the Lord, which He builds for himself in believing souls, and His power and glory which He reveals and communicates to every one that approaches Him, lies ever

before the door thereof, in order that, as soon as it is opened to him, he may go in and behold the power and glory of the Lord in His sanctuary Is all not glorious in this sanctuary? Is all not miserable outside this sanctuary? There, in the courts, in the sanctuary of the Lord, we feel ourselves at home; outside it, as in a desert, as in a foreign land. One seeks it with passionate longing, and feels himself blest as oft as he finds it. Why are so many dry, cold, and empty? Because they seek not the sanctuary of the Lord, because they do not long for His courts, because they do not lie before His door, do not tarry, do not wait for His grace; therefore it is that the door is not opened to them, therefore that they are not admitted, and do not behold His power and glory. O come, and tarry no longer in the land where no water is.

JANUARY THE SIXTH.

"Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth."-ISAIAH xlv. 22. "Thy mercy is great above the heavens; and Thy truth reacheth unto the clouds."-Ps. cviii. 4.

ERE we see how universal the grace of God is;

H1

he invites all-all from one end of the earth to the other; all are to come-all are called-all are accepted. For God would surely not call, and say, Come, all the ends of the earth, if there were one whom he would not receive, one whom He had destined to perdition. No; all the ends of the earth, according to His intention and purpose,

are to be saved.

He that is not saved shuts himself out-is deprived of salvation, only because he himself does not desire it, not because God does not desire it. Yes; He calls thee, only come ! Why are there still so many who do not accept this gracious invitation? There should no longer be one man on the earth who has not long ago betaken himself to the open arms of a pardoning God. Why does not one tell it to another? Oh, that they all knew how blessed He would make them! Surely they would all become Christians. O, He embraces with the arms of His love and compassion, not one people only, but all peoples; not only some men, but all men, from one end of the heaven to the other! How great, how wide are these arms! Soul, dost thou think there is not room in them for thee? Grace, redemption, and salvation are prepared for all in His bosom, which opens so wide, that every man that comes finds a gracious reception, and, if all come, all find room enough -redemption enough. As far as the heavens and the clouds stretch, there stretches a way-a path to the grace of God and Christ. So long as thou yet walkest under the heavens and under the clouds, thou art still under a heaven of grace; so long grace stretches even to thee. If I see the heavens and the clouds, then I still see grace— inviting, calling, saving grace. The heavens and the clouds proclaim to me the grace of their God and mine, wherever I see them. And so mayest thou also testify to every man that dwells under the heavens, and under the clouds, that grace is in readiness for him, and reaches even

to him; that it is not too short for him, for it reaches as far as the heavens reach. Measure the heavens, and thou hast not yet measured grace, for it is greater than the heavens; as He that made the heavens and bestoweth grace is greater than all that He hath made.

JANUARY THE SEVENTH

"Who then can be saved ?"-MATT. xix. 25. "He that endureth to the end shall be saved."-MATT. x. 22.

MANY

ANY wish to be saved, but will not do that which is necessary in order to attain to a saved state and to continue therein, viz., to persevere in godliness; to walk in the grace bestowed unto the end. They would fain be saved through Christ, and yet, at the same time, be gay, or rich, or honoured in the world. Therefore they believe in Christ, and, at the same time, love the world, in order to enjoy some share of pleasure and happiness from both. But they will lose both, and be for ever unblest. Perseverance is a grace which one must every day, on his knees, beg of his Saviour; for He that hath called us to salvation can also alone keep us and lead us forward therein. Assurance, the false knowledge of the doctrine of grace, without a real penetration with the heart into the elements and essence of grace, and a continuance therein, deceives many, so that they do not continue alive in Him that hath called and awakened them; they again fall asleep, and dream that they are alive, while all the time they are con