"It is more Blessed." 'IVE! as the morning that flows out of heaven; Give! as the waves when their channel is riven; Give! as the free air and sunshine are given; Lavishly, utterly, joyfully give: Not the waste drops of thy cup overflowing, Give, as He gave thee, who gave thee to live. Pour out thy love, like the rush of a river, Through the burnt sands that reward not the giver; Scatter thy life, as the summer showers pouring! Look to the life that was lavished for thee! So the wild wind strews its perfumed caresses, Never it ceaseth to whisper and sing. Fairest the vines that on ruin will cling. Almost the day of thy giving is over; Ere from the grass dies the bee-haunted clover, Thou shalt know God, and the gift that he gave. ANONYMOUS. THE TEACHER TAUGHT. 409 Ο The Teacher Taught. 'ER wayward children wouldst thou hold firm rule, Love, Hope, and Patience,-these must be the graces. But Love is subtle; and will proof derive, And the soft murmurs of the mother dove, Woos back the fleeting spirit, and half supplies. Thus Love repays to Hope what Hope first gave to Love! Yet haply there will come a weary day, When, overtasked, at length, Both Love and Hope beneath the load give way, SAMUEL T. COLERIDGE. "My Times are in Thy Hand." Psalm xxxi. 15. ATHER, I know that all my life FA Is portioned out for me: And the changes that are sure to come But I ask thee for a present mind I ask thee for a thankful love, I would not have the restless will Seeking for some great thing to do, Wherever in the world I am, I have a fellowship with hearts, And a lowly work of love to do, For the Lord on whom I wait. So I ask thee for the daily strength, And a mind to blend with outward things While keeping at thy side; Content to fill a little space, If thou be glorified. 4 STRIP OF BLUE. And if some things I do not ask, In my cup of blessing be, I would have my spirit filled the more More careful than to serve thee much, There are briers besetting every path, There is a crook in every lot, And an earnest need for prayer; But a lowly heart that leans on thee, Is happy everywhere. In a service that thy love appoints For my secret heart has learned the truth And a life of self-renouncing love 411 MISS A. L. WARING. I A Strip of Blue. Do not own an inch of land, But all I see is mine- The orchard and the mowing-fields, The lawns and gardens fine. Richer am I than he who owns Great fleets and argosies; I freight them with my untold dreams, My ships that sail into the East Across that outlet blue. Sometimes they seem like living shapes→ The people of the sky Guests in white raiment coming down From Heaven, which is close by: I call them by familiar names, From violet mists they bloom! All souls find sailing-room. The ocean grows a weariness God's sweeping garment-fold, In that bright shred of glimmering sea, I reach out for, and hold. |