The Optimist's Good Morning
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Title: The Optimist's Good Morning
Compiler: Florence Hobart Perin
Release date: March 13, 2012 [eBook #39129]
Language: English
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Credits: E-text prepared by Larry B. Harrison, Julia Neufeld, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by the Google Books Library Project (http://books.google.com)
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THE OPTIMIST'S GOOD MORNING
Compiled by
FLORENCE HOBART PERIN
Boston
Little, Brown, and Company
1911
Copyright, 1907,
By Little, Brown, and Company.
All rights reserved
Printers
S. J. Parkhill & Co., Boston, U. S. A.
TO
My Mother and father
Acknowledgments
The compiler desires to make her grateful acknowledgments to the
publishers and authors who have so generously given their permission to
use selections from their copyrighted publications. She is especially
indebted to Dodd, Mead & Co., Houghton, Mifflin & Co., The Century Co.,
The Outlook Co., Small, Maynard & Co., McClure, Phillips & Co., for
extracts from "The Simple Life" by Charles Wagner and from "The Angelus"
by Edwin Markham; G. P. Putnam's Sons for selections from "Christus
Victor" by Henry Nehemiah Dodge; to Doubleday, Page & Co. for extracts
from "The Story of My Life" by Helen Keller, copyright 1902, 1903; also
for selections from "Afterwhiles," copyright 1887, "Riley Farm Rhymes,"
copyright 1885, "Riley Songs o' Cheer," copyright 1883, "Pipes o' Pan,"
copyright 1888, used by special permission of the publishers, The
Bobbs-Merrill Co., to Charles Scribner's Sons for selections from
"Fisherman's Luck," "The Lost Word," "Little Rivers," "The Story of the
Psalms," "The Toiling of Felix and Other Poems," by Henry Van Dyke, and
a selection from "El Dorado" by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Preface
Once family devotions were general, now they are rare. There are reasons
for the change. One reason is that the simplicity of the old family life
is gone. It is not easy to get all the members of the family together at
any one time in the day. A part of this is due to less leisure now than
formerly. Men must catch trains in the morning. In the evening they are
distracted by manifold social engagements.
Yet the need of spiritual adjustment is ever the same. Rapid transit,
the telephone, the telegraph, do not take the place of God. Indeed the
more rapid pace involved in these modern pace-makers, renders the more
necessary some pause in the day for prayer, some upward look, when for a
moment the soul may find an open way between itself and God. But how and
when? Why not the breakfast table? Surely one or two minutes may be
spared. Thirty seconds of silence, then the reading of a noble sentiment
from some one who has been thinking for us,--another pause,--and a few
words of prayer, framed by some one with more leisure than we have, but
who puts us in the mood of prayer and so starts us right upon the duties
of the day,--this will bring the needed readjustment.
Such is the plan and purpose of this little book. It is made for busy
men and women, who _need_ to begin the day with God. The quotations for
each day are brief, but they are gleaned from the great Masters of
thought. The prayers are from devout men of all the denominations.
As the title will have suggested, both quotations and prayers are
generally in the spirit of a truly optimistic faith. However life may
look in the middle of the night, it is a good thing to start out to do
the work of the day with hope and courage. I shall be glad if I can feel
that this little book has helped some busy people to begin the day in
this spirit. I shall be particularly glad if I can feel that it has
helped a little to keep the candles lighted on the family altar.
FLORENCE HOBART PERIN.
List of Authors of Selections
Abbott, Lyman, 234, 296.
Albee, John, 348.
Alden, Marion, 263.
Ambrosius, Johanna, 254.
Ames, Charles G., 51, 68.
Amiel, Henri-Frederic, 305, 340, 350.
Anonymous, 16, 33, 52, 91, 93, 129, 181, 198, 213, 268, 354.
Arnold, Edwin, 39.
Arnold, George, 249.
Aughey, 315.
Aurelius, Marcus, 216.
Babcock, Maltbie Davenport, 279.
Baldwin, Mary, 72.
Banks, G. L., 135.
Bashford, H. H., 9.
Beecher, Henry Ward, 120, 141, 144, 192, 317, 333.
Bisbee, Frederick A., 248.
Bolton, Sarah Knowles, 211.
Boyd, A. H. K., 78.
Bridges, Madeline S., 304.
Brooke, Stopford A., 27, 115, 289.
Brooks, Phillips, 17, 24, 36, 75, 137, 212, 235, 240, 264, 271,
288, 362.
Brown, Alice, 218.
Brown, Anna Robertson, 51.
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett, 29, 104, 148, 232, 331.
Browning, Robert, 28, 64, 69, 79, 90, 109, 130, 179, 201, 221, 243.
Bryant, William Cullen, 249, 338.
Bulkeley, Benjamin R., 347.
Burton, Richard, 59.
Carlisle, J. H., 220.
Carlyle, Thomas, 37, 61, 85, 107, 164, 183, 209, 219, 269, 331.
Carman, Bliss, 156.
Carpenter, Edward, 147.
Carruth, William H., 252.
Cary, Alice, 123, 138, 366.
Chadwick, John White, 134.
Child, Lydia Maria, 364.
Clarke, James Freeman, 267.
Cleaves, Charles P., 214.
Coates, Florence E., 189.
Coleridge, Hartley, 245.
Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 217.
Collyer, Robert, 77, 287.
Confucius, 191.
Coolidge, Susan, 150, 157, 207, 339.
Cowper, William, 335.
Cox, Francis Augustus, 276.
Craig, Dinah Mulock, 143.
Crashaw, Richard, 151.
Danforth, Abbie E., 357.
Davis, Ozora Stearns, 82.
DeVere, Aubrey, 71.
Dix, William F., 261.
Dodge, Henry Nehemiah, 49, 300, 371, 372.
Donaldson, Alfred L., 244.
Dowd, Emma C., 169.
Drummond, Henry, 91, 203, 323.
Dunbar, Paul Laurence, 88, 186, 256.
Earle, Mabel, 278.
Eliot, George, 48, 241.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 19, 42, 57, 87, 108, 124, 127, 151, 158, 185,
210, 228, 271, 281, 344.
Epictetus, 56, 284.
Faunce, W. H. P., 153.
Fiske, John, 11.
Ford, Mary Hanaford, 8.
Foss, Sam Walter, 99, 341.
Fox, George, 104.
Franklin, Benjamin, 158.
Gannett, William C., 116, 132, 239, 302.
Garland, Hamlin A., 196.
Gilder, Richard Watson, 168, 367.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins, 4, 146.
Goethe, 360.
Gordon, Anna A., 247.
Gotthold, 23.
Gray, John, 378.
Green, J. R., 199.
Grover, Edwin Osgood, 155.
Hale, Edward Everett, 65, 188, 219, 280, 281.
Harraden, Beatrice, 80.
Hart, Estelle M., 337.
Havergal, Frances Ridley, 282.
Hawkes, Clarence, 97.
Hay, John, 67.
Hoar, George F., 83.
Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 29, 55, 172, 188, 253, 286, 297, 311, 352.
Homer, 341.
Hopkins, Ellice, 265.
Hovey, Richard, 292.
Hughes, Thomas, 194.
Humboldt, Alexander von, 306.
Hunt, Leigh, 143.
Huntington, Bishop, 70.
Huxley, Thomas Henry, 202.
Hyde, William DeWitt, 118.
Ibsen, Henrik, 312.
Ingelow, Jean, 221, 327.
Jackson, J. S., 7.
James, Henry, Sr., 165.
Johnson, Samuel, 66.
Jones, T. Edgar, 224.
Karr, Alphonse, 264.
Keats, John, 295.
Keller, Helen, 93, 128, 145.
King, T. Starr, 275.
Kingsley, Charles, 85.
Kiser, S. E., 318.
Klingle, George, 106.
Larcom, Lucy, 32, 161.
Leonard, Priscilla, 60, 299, 312, 329, 336.
Livermore, Mary A., 119.
Longfellow, Henry W., 30, 52, 162, 308.
Lowell, James Russell, 54, 92, 174, 242, 291.
Luther, Martin, 43.
Mabie, Hamilton W., 173.
MacDonald, George, 159, 177, 179, 200, 272, 326, 374.
Maeterlinck, 170, 193.
Marius, 35.
Markham, Edwin, 14, 257.
Markwell, Mary, 126.
Martin, Theodore, 96.
Mason, Caroline Atwater, 152.
Massey, Gerald, 66.
Meredith, Owen, 89.
Merriam, George S., 112.
Miller, James Russell, 293.
Milton, John, 62, 125, 136, 262, 307.
Montaigne, 69.
Moodie, William, 44, 178, 195, 226, 237.
Moore, Henry Hoyt, 238.
Moore, Thomas, 229, 309.
Moxom, Philip S., 149.
Murray, Ada Foster, 246.
O'Reilly, John Boyle, 314.
Parker, Theodore, 34.
Partridge, William Ordway, 18.
Payne, J. Howard, 361.
Peabody, Francis G., 332, 334.
Perin, George L., 3, 12, 153, 163, 176, 215, 290, 322, 368, 379.
Perry, Carlotta, 231.
Perry, Nora, 101.
Plutarch, 298.
Procter, Adelaide A., 10.
Procter, Bryan Waller, 166.
Pullman, James M., 21, 56, 225.
Rankin, Isaac Ogden, 25.
Ravenscroft, James, 255.
Realf, Richard, 223.
Reimer, Edward F., 227.
Rexford, Eben E., 94.
Richter, 285.
Riley, James Whitcomb, 182, 230, 266, 283, 310.
Robertson, Frederick W., 250.
Rollins, Alice Wellington, 26.
Roosevelt, Theodore, 65, 74, 197.
Rosetti, Christina, 171.
Ruskin, John, 23, 58, 83, 139, 190, 206.
Russell, Bessie L., 259.
Sangster, Margaret, 117, 205.
Savage, Minot J., 47.
Schiller, 363.
Scollard, Clinton, 84.
Scott, Walter, 235.
Shafer, Sara Andrew, 184, 260.
Shakespeare, 38, 107, 113, 258, 345, 351.
Shelley, 100, 111.
Shipman, George W., 277.
Sill, Edward Rowland, 98, 274.
Smiles, Samuel, 236, 320.
Smyth, Julian K., 73.
Spofford, Harriet P., 101.
Spurgeon, 197.
Stanton, Frank L., 160, 343.
St. Bernard, 269.
Stebbins, Horatio, 280.
Stedman, Edmund Clarence, 95.
Stevenson, Robert Louis, 180, 353.
Stoddard, Richard H., 45.
Story, William Wetmore, 6, 321.
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 230.
Swinburne, Algernon Charles, 53, 167.
Swing, David, 46.
Symonds, John Addington, 175, 346.
Taylor, Bayard, 240, 321.
Taylor, Jeremy E., 59.
Tennyson, Alfred, 232, 326.
Thaxter, Celia, 95.
Tholuck, 357.
Thompson, Maurice, 110.
Thoreau, Henry David, 50, 335.
Townsend, Mary Ashley, 81.
Trowbridge, Robertson, 273.
Urmy, Clarence, 268.
Van Dyke, Henry, 142, 154, 294, 313, 324, 328, 355, 365, 377.
Vinci, Leonardo da, 74.
Wagner, Charles, 20, 63, 114, 204, 356.
Waterman, Nixon, 173.
Whitman, Walt, 22, 40, 102, 270, 349, 358.
Whitney, Mrs. A. D. T., 31, 86, 122, 127, 147, 167, 298, 301, 303, 348.
Whittier, John Greenleaf, 15, 41, 103, 140, 289, 359, 376.
Wilcox, Ella Wheeler, 5, 13, 87, 121, 222, 231, 325.
Willard, Frances E., 105.
Wordsworth, William, 76, 131, 251, 319.
Wright, Mary Frances, 233.
List of Authors of Prayers
Adams, J. Coleman, 119.
Albion, James F., 91.
Alcott, A. N., 299.
Allen, James F., 265.
Amee, E. McP., 264.
Ames, Charles Gordon, 6.
Anderson, Thomas D., 132.
Annas, J. W., 253.
Atwood, Isaac M., 34.
Atwood, John Murray, 36.
Ayers, Samuel Gilbert, 121.
Babcock, William G., 10.
Backus, Wilson M., 139.
Badger, George H., 271.
Barker, J. H., 107.
Barney, Edward M., 74.
Bartlett, A. Eugene, 11.
Batchelor, George, 108.
Bates, Lewis P., 226.
Beane, Samuel C., 236.
Benton, Herbert E., 272.
Berle, Adolph A., 319.
Betts, Frederick W., 70, 181, 317.
Billings, Charles T., 316.
Bisbee, Frederick A., 27.
Bissell, Flint M., 79.
Blake, Edwin Alonzo, 228.
Blanchard, Henry, 24.
Bliss, Charles B., 206.
Brandow, Melvin, 287.
Brett, Francis W., 182.
Brigham, L. Ward, 20.
Brodie, James Fairbairn, 320.
Bronson, Dillon, 9.
Brown, Howard N., 354.
Brown, William Channing, 106.
Buckshorn, Louis H., 191.
Burch, Ernest W., 312.
Burleigh, W. H., 118.
Burr, Everett D., 136.
Bush, R. Perry, 82.
Bushnell, Samuel C., 37.
Bygrave, Hilary, 212.
Canfield, Harry L., 39.
Carter, John Wesley, 48.
Cary, Phoebe, 274.
Chapin, Eben H., 323.
Chapman, Edward M., 30.
Charlton, J. E., 341.
Chase, J. Frank, 237.
Cheney, George H., 192.
Church, Augustus B., 99.
Clark, C. C., 144.
Clark, DeWitt S., 257.
Clark, Francis E., 38.
Clark, Hobart, 218.
Clarke, William N., 258.
Clayton, Francis Treadway, 302.
Coddington, Isaac P., 190.
Coleman, Albert J., 353.
Collier, Frank W., 174.
Conklin, Abram, 19.
Conklin, Charles, 361.
Conner, Ralph E., 211.
Coons, Leroy W., 68.
Cooper, Joseph, 84.
Cooper, J. Francis, 310.
Corby, James D., 280.
Couden, Henry N., 26.
Crandall, Lathan A., 202.
Crane, Cephas B., 60.
Crane, Frank, 337.
Crooker, Florence Kollock, 98.
Crooker, Joseph H., 23.
Crooker, Orin Edson, 163.
Cuckson, John, 123.
Curnick, E. T., 93.
Cushman, Henry Irving, 94.
Danforth, Abbie E., 105.
Davis, Charles Edward, 260.
Davidson, John M., 289.
Day, Edward, 62.
Day, John, 78.
Dean, George B., 267.
DeNormandie, James, 125.
Dick, Samuel M., 333.
Dight, Alexander, 290.
Dillingham, Fred A., 41.
Dodge, J. Smith, 340.
Dodson, George R., 197.
Dole, Charles F., 157.
Dole, Walter, 339.
Downey, Edward C., 365.
Earle, A. Gertrude, 104.
East, Charles R., 324.
Eddy, William B., 49.
Eichler, M. M., 195.
Faunce, W. H. P., 307.
Fish, William H., 263.
Fischer, Theodore A., 17.
Fisher, C. E., 67.
Fisk, Richmond, 159.
Fleischer, Charles, 360.
Forbes, John P., 142.
Forbes, Roger S., 161.
Fortier, George F., 77.
Foster, Augustine N., 154.
Fraser, Donald, 284.
Freeman, L. A., 255.
Frick, Philip L., 348.
Frothingham, Paul Revere, 169.
Full, William, 300.
Fulton, J. W., 282.
Galbraith, John, 220.
Gannett, William C, 373.
Gaskin, William E., 251.
Gerrish, George Mayo, 75.
Gibbs, William E, 168.
Gifford, O. P., 209.
Gooding, Alfred, 245.
Gould, William H., 146.
Grant, Elihu, 238.
Grant, Eugene M., 288.
Graves, Herbert H., 242.
Gray, Francis A., 111.
Greene, L. L., 131.
Greene, Ransom A., 355.
Greene, Samuel H., 328.
Grier, Albert C., 269.
Grose, Arthur W., 311.
Gunnison, Almon, 4, 47.
Guth, William W., 216.
Hale, Edward Everett, 55, 92, 120, 304, 345.
Hall, Frank Oliver, 278.
Hammatt, Albert, 232.
Hammond, L. H., 244.
Hamilton, Franklin, 322.
Hatch, William H. P., 318.
Hawkins, J. E., 279.
Haynes, Myron W., 58.
Healy, Walter, 100.
Helms, E. J., 343.
Henry, Carl F., 248.
Hiller, Charles C. P., 336.
Hitchcock, Albert Wellman, 64.
Hodge, Dwight M., 81.
Hodges, George, 356.
Holden, C. W., 29.
Holden, James Harry, 204.
Holmes, C. K., 281.
Holt, Frank M., 71.
Horne, Ralph Edwin, 103.
Horner, Thomas J., 329.
Horton, Edward A., 115.
Howe, George M., 346.
Hoyt, Wayland, 54.
Huntley, George E., 325.
Hyde, William DeWitt, 351.
Illman, Thomas W., 247.
Jennings, B. L., 88.
Johnson, L. P., 335.
Johonnot, Rodney F., 252.
Jones, Effie McCollum, 31.
Kellerman, Robert S., 194.
Kent, George W., 147.
Kidner, Reuben, 43.
Kimball, John, 42.
King, Henry M., 57.
Knickerbocker, Charles A., 5.
Lacount, J. Edwin, 350.
Lee, John Clarence, 175.
Leonard, Charles H., 170.
Levy, Maurice A., 155.
Locke, Calvin S., 277.
Longbrake, George Runyon, 327.
Lord, Augustus Mendon, 40.
Lund, Charles E., 178.
Lutterman, E. W., 308.
MacLennan, A. K., 275.
Main, William H., 14.
Martin, T. C., 160.
Martineau, James, 56, 217, 321, 334.
Marshall, Perry, 189.
Marvin, Reginold K., 114.
Masseck, Frank Lincoln, 112.
McCollester, Lee S., 221.
McCollester, S. H., 18.
McGlaughlin, William H., 332.
McKenzie, Alexander, 12.
McKinney, Luther F., 210.
Mead, I. J., 143.
Meyer, John F., 349.
Milburn, U. S., 113.
Mitchell, Stanford, 179.
Moore, Henrietta G., 110.
Morgan, William S., 25.
Morrison, William H., 117.
Mudge, James, 223.
Myers, Cortland, 344.
Nash, C. Ellwood, 188, 362, 371, 372, 377.
Nash, Charles P., 148.
Nash, Henry S., 21.
Northrop, Cyrus, 296.
Norton, Stephen A., 359.
Opdale, Nellie Mann, 243.
Osgood, Edmund Q. S., 101.
Owen, George W., 28.
Parker, Joseph, 59, 214, 219.
Parker, Theodore, 53, 97, 109, 135, 193, 230, 239, 249.
Parkhurst, Charles, 63.
Patterson, A. J., 364.
Pattison, Harold, 225.
Payne, Thomas B., 133.
Payson, James M., 222.
Peloubet, F. N., 331.
Pember, Elmer F., 134.
Penniman, George Wallace, 129.
Perin, Florence H., 375.
Perin, George L., 3, 22, 35, 46, 80, 90, 96, 102, 116, 124, 153,
153, 172, 185, 196, 215, 234, 250, 270, 286, 297, 306, 330,
342, 352, 366, 368, 376, 378.
Perkins, Frederick W., 229.
Perkins, O. Howard, 66.
Perkins, Warren S., 164.
Perrin, Willard T., 276.
Perry, Edward A., 61.
Petty, Charles E., 85.
Polk, Robert T., 224.
Potter, Wilburn D., 83.
Potter, William F., 150.
Potterton, Thomas Edward, 165.
Powers, LeGrand, 73.
Preble, Edgar W., 72.
Priest, Frederick C., 208.
Puffer, Charles H., 357.
Putnam, Alfred P., 162.
Randall, J. O., 198.
Reardon, John B., 140.
Rexford, E. L., 16, 128, 233.
Rice, Charles F., 256.
Rice, Clarence E., 173.
Rice, Frank S., 87.
Richardson, W. G., 314.
Roblin, Stephen H., 183.
Rose, Henry R., 303.
Rowley, Francis H., 13.
Rugg, Henry W., 126.
Safford, Oscar F., 65.
Sage, Nathaniel S., 32.
Sallaway, James, 293.
Sargent, Frank D., 347.
Scott, Alva Roy, 44, 141.
Scott, O. W., 186.
Scrivener, George S., 268.
Selleck, Willard C., 227.
Shaw, Annette J., 231.
Shaw, Avery A., 45.
Shields, Albert B., 309.
Shinn, Q. H., 149.
Snippen, Rush R., 201.
Simons, Minot O., 138.
Skene, George, 315.
Slicer, Thomas R., 166.
Small, E. E., 203.
Smiley, Edmund L., 266.
Smiley, George M., 295.
Smith, Thomas W., 283.
Stephan, J. W., 76.
Straub, Jacob, 177.
Studley, Elliott F., 261.
Sweetser, Edwin C., 151.
Taylor, Frederick A., 254.
Taylor, Henry B., 69.
Tenney, Charles R., 294, 313, 326, 363, 367, 379.
Thayer, George A., 199.
Thompson, J. Frank, 51.
Tillinghast, Alan R., 86.
Tillinghast, James D., 358.
Tomlinson, Charles W., 33.
Tomlinson, Vincent E., 205.
Towne, Edward C., 291.
Tupper, Kerr Boyce, 95.
Tuttle, Walter A., 213.
Vail, Charles H., 246.
Varney, Charles E., 292.
Vossema, Hendrick, 235.
Wallace, O. C. S., 50.
Ward, Merrill C., 262.
Ward, W. I., 127.
Warner, E. M., 187.
Weatherly, Arthur L., 200.
Weil, Fred Alban, 338.
Wendte, Charles W., 156.
Wentworth, Margaret, 259.
West, Julius P., 145.
Weston, Costello, 207.
Wheeler, C. H., 8.
Wheeler, F. H., 89.
Whippen, Frank W., 7.
Whitaker, George, 15.
White, Albert C., 167.
Whitney, Elbert W., 301.
Williams, Leon O., 298.
Willson, Andrew, 122.
Wilson, John M., 171.
Wilson, Lewis G., 180.
Wood, W. A., 130.
Wright, Arthur, 184.
Wright, James Edward, 176.
Wright, M. Emory, 273.
Yantis, Arnold S., 52.
Young, George H., 240, 285.
Young, Joshua, 158, 241, 305.
The Optimist's Good Morning
January 1
_Throughout the year, why not keep sweet? No frown ever made a
heart glad; no complaint ever made a dark day bright; no bitter
word ever lightened a burden or made a rough road smooth; no
grumbling ever introduced sunshine into a home. What the world
needs is the resolute step, the look of cheer, the smiling
countenance, and the kindly word. Keep sweet!_
GEORGE L. PERIN.
God of the years, our Heavenly Father, whatever the message of the old
year may have been, whether of darkness or light, joy or sorrow,--we
stand this morning waiting expectantly and confidently for some message
with glad tidings. May we therefore enter upon the New Year in the mood
of hope and good cheer,--brushing from our faces every sign of care, let
us go forth into the New Year with the spirit of a child who puts his
hand into the hand of a Father to be led into a field where the flowers
blossom and the birds sing. Not for to-day only do we pray for sweetness
and light, but let us be glad and happy every day. Thou art with us
today,--Thou wilt be with us through all the journey of the year. May
our own daily gladness be born of the conviction that Thou art always
near. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
January 2
_To keep my health!
To do my work!
To live!
To see to it I grow and gain and give!
Never to look behind me for an hour!
To wait in weakness and to walk in power
But always fronting forward to the light,
Always, and always facing toward the right.
Robbed, starved, defeated, fallen, wide astray--
On, with what strength I have!
Back to the way!_
CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN.
With this new day, O God, let some new strength be mine, to walk in
patience, the way appointed for me. Let me be strong to battle with the
ills that shall beset me, to toil with faith and honest heart, to keep
myself untainted and make my life helpful to my fellowmen. Help me to be
forgetful of myself, but thoughtful to do no evil to any man. Thy hand
is strong and mine is weak. I need Thy guidance, let Thy strength be
mine, that though I stumble I may not fall nor fail. And when the day is
done, may happy memories be mine. Amen.
ALMON GUNNISON.
January 3
_Build on resolve, and not upon regret,
The structure of Thy future. Do not grope
Among the shadows of old sins, but let
Thine own soul's light shine on the path of hope
And dissipate the darkness. Waste no tears
Upon the blotted record of lost years,
But turn the leaf, and smile, oh, smile, to see
The fair white pages that remain to thee._
ELLA WHEELER WILCOX.
O Thou All-persuasive God, who dost speak within the souls of men in
language which the heart interprets as its own! enlarge our trust in
that better self which beckons us, that we may be led out of the
lingering darkness of regret, out of the shadow of embittered memory
into the brightness of a new resolve where we may see Thy face. Smile
upon us in the smiling day; in the joy of strength renewed, and
opportunity reborn; in the beauty of the promise each hour whispers to
us as it passes by. So fill us with Thyself that each new day shall mean
new life led by the glory of those hopes which do not fade at evening.
Amen.
CHARLES A. KNICKERBOCKER.
January 4
_We of our age are part, and every thrill that wakes
The tremulous air of Life its motion in us makes._
_The imitative mass mere empty echo gives
As walls and rocks return the sound that they receive._
_But as the bell, that high in some cathedral swings,
Stirred by whatever thrill, with its own music rings,_
_So finer souls give forth, to each vibrating tone
Impinging on their life, a music of their own._
W. W. STORY.
O living and loving One, brighter than the morning and fairer than the
day, from Thee we come, to Thee we turn, who art more than Father and
Mother to us all. Our times are in Thy hand. Thou, who hast set the sun
and stars in the sky, hast appointed our place and part in this human
world. May Thy light lead and Thy love win us into the harmonies of law
and grace, that we may become responsive to every touch of nature, every
whisper of truth, every appeal of humanity. So prepare us to serve our
generation in the spirit of Him who has taught us to do Thy will on
earth as it is done in heaven. Amen.
CHARLES G. AMES.
January 5
_All such as worked for love, not wages--some
Who, painting for a perfect tint did drain
Their hearts, or some to save their country slain,
Or many who for truth braved martyrdom,
Or more who, in what common days may come,
Have toiled in hope, beyond the hope of gain,
Of doing something well,--all such would fain
Speak thus: These gifts more free than flowers from
The earth are given. Good world, if to our need
Ye offer bread and shelt'ring roof unsought,
As guests our thanks we give, but not for greed,
As if our gifts were bartered for and bought;
And if, perchance, good world, ye offer nought,
Ah, well, that were of life the lesser meed._
J. S. JACKSON.
Father in Heaven, we thank Thee, as we enter upon another day, for
strength with which to work. We thank Thee for our tasks; for our
opportunities to work for Thee and for those we love, we thank Thee. May
we know the joy, when night shall come, of having accomplished something
worthy. Help us to see in that satisfaction a part of our pay. Make each
of us faithful in his place; and help the humblest worker to understand
that consecration and not rank is the all-important thing. Above all,
may we not forget that living is giving, and may our desire either for
rest or gain keep us from no helpful act. May we follow Him who came to
minister, and live as sons and daughters of God. Amen.
FRANK W. WHIPPEN.
January 6
_The sculptor moulds his clay with reverent hand,
That clay thro' which his fancy flashes free--
Quick with an answer to his soul's demand,
And pliant to his fingers' minstrelsy!
Could ever bronze or marble so respond
In wordless echo of the being's will?
Naught but the clay, as to a rapture fond
Could he with fire of genius thus infill!
And so the common people are the clay,
Swift moulded by Divine Deific hand,
Until transfigured, in the glorious day,
The statue of humanity shall stand!
It knows no tinsel crown, this masterpiece.
But all the sovereignty of God's release!_
MARY HANAFORD FORD.
Heavenly Father, we are of Thy plain common people: we feel ourselves of
very little worth. For what can we do of ourselves? But, if Thou wilt
graciously use us, shaping us to Thine ends as the potter his clay, it
may be that we shall serve some worthy purpose. We therefore yield
ourselves to Thee, and beg Thee to use us this day. Make us pliant to
Thy purposes, make us a help to someone who needs us today. So take us
into partnership with Thyself, and so may this day be a day of delight,
and our plain common lives be made rich with the Glory of service. Amen.
C. H. WHEELER.
January 7
_And I, too, sing the song of all creation,
A brave sky and a glad wind blowing by,
A clear trail and an hour for meditation,
A long day and the joy to make it fly,
A hard task and the muscle to achieve it,
A fierce noon and a well-contented gloom,
A good strife and no great regret to leave it,
A still night--and the far red lights of home._
H. H. BASHFORD.
Almighty God, we thank Thee that Thou art our Father, and that Thou
lovest us as though Thou hadst no other children; we adore Thee for the
beautiful world in which Thou hast placed us; for trees and birds and
flowers and sky, for friends and music and books and all the ten
thousand mercies which crown our lives. We thank Thee too, for hard
tasks and severe disciplines, for everything that is intended to make us
strong and brave and true. Thou art the Lord of the day and of the night
also. Give us grace to trust Thee and to believe in Thy motherly
solicitude at all times. May Thy goodness lead us to repentance and to
joyous unselfish living and may we so improve our opportunities for
service that we shall make others think of Him who went about doing good
and trusted in His Father with a perfect trust. Amen.
DILLON BRONSON.
January 8
_Have we not all, amid life's petty strife,
Some pure ideal of a noble life
That once seemed possible? Did we not hear
The flutter of its wings and feel it near,
And just within our reach? It was. And yet
We lost it in this daily jar and fret.
But still our place is kept and it will wait,
Ready for us to fill it, soon or late.
No star is ever lost we once have seen:
We always may be what we might have been._
ADELAIDE A. PROCTER.
O Thou, whose goodness is new to us every morning and fresh every
evening, we bless Thee for Thy patient and unforgetting care of all of
us. Though we transgress Thy beneficent laws and frequently lose sight
of our cherished ideals, our hunger and thirst for righteousness never
dies, for we partake of Thy Divine Nature. O that we might always be
animated with Thy spirit of disinterested Love. We thank Thee this day
for the inspiration of light and joy of our gifted poets and pray that
we may meet the daily trials of life with a sweet and courageous spirit,
remembering that "no star we have ever seen will cease to shine." Amen.
WILLIAM G. BABCOCK.
January 9
_The future is lighted for us with the radiant colors of hope.
Strife and sorrow shall disappear. Peace and love shall reign
supreme. The dream of poets, the lesson of priest and prophet, the
inspiration of the great musician, is confirmed in the light of
modern knowledge; and, as we gird ourselves for the work of life,
we may look forward to the time when in the truest sense the
kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom of Christ, and He
shall reign forever and ever, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords._
JOHN FISKE.
All-wise and all-loving Father, we invoke Thy aid at the opening of a
glad, new day. For the past we thank Thee, remembering that each day
yielded its blessings. We rejoice that the victories of yesterday are
the promise of larger successes today. Whenever during the day, we shall
be conscious of our littleness, give us at that moment the vision of our
possible largeness. Teach us, however tumultuous be the outward
conditions, to maintain the inward calm. Today may Thy love work its
miracle upon our pain and pleasure. So through faithful, hopeful work
may we find Thy kingdom nearer at this day's close. Amen.
A. EUGENE BARTLETT.
January 10
_Blessings on the man who smiles! I do not mean the man who smiles
for effect, nor the one who smiles when the world smiles. I mean
the man whose smile is born of an inner radiance, the man who
smiles when the clouds lower, when fortune frowns, when the tides
are adverse. Such a man not only makes a new world for himself, but
he multiplies himself an hundred fold in the strength and courage
of other men._
GEORGE L. PERIN.
Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our Father in heaven and on the earth! Give to
us of Thy blessedness that all this day we may rejoice in Thee. Incline
our hearts to see Thy goodness and wisdom. Make the gladness of our
hearts constant that it may illumine our presence, so that those who
walk with us may walk in Thy light and give Thee thanks. Make Thy joy
our strength, whether expressed in storm or sunshine, that we may
consent to Thy will cheerfully. We ask these and all gifts in the name
of Him who would have His joy abide in us, that our joy may be
fulfilled. Amen.
ALEXANDER MCKENZIE.
January 11
_Talk happiness! The world is sad enough,
Without your woes. No path is wholly rough;
Look for the places that are smooth and clear
And speak of those who rest the weary ear
Of earth, so hurt by one continuous strain
Of human discontent and grief and pain._
_Talk health! The dreary, never changing tale
Of mortal maladies is worn and stale.
You cannot charm or interest or please,
By harping on that minor chord, disease.
Say you are well, or all is well with you,
And God shall hear your words and make them true._
ELLA WHEELER WILCOX.
Heavenly Father, by whose mercy we are permitted to greet another day,
we offer Thee this morning our grateful praise for all the blessings of
this life. We take from Thee with thankful heart the gift of health,
conscious that we shall never know how rich the gift until we lose it.
Now, while it is ours, may we use it with abounding joy for the good of
those we may meet this day. To be able to bring light where there is
darkness, hope where there is despair, comfort where there is sorrow,
and so to be the children of our Father which is in Heaven, for this we
pray, with the pardon of our sins, in Jesus' name. Amen.
FRANCIS H. ROWLEY.
January 12
_The crest and crowning of all good,
Life's final star, is Brotherhood;
For it will bring again to Earth
Her long-lost Poesy and Mirth;
Will send new light on every face,
A kingly power upon the race,
And till it comes, we men are slaves,
And travel downward to the dust of graves.
Come clear the way, then, clear the way;
Blind creeds and kings have had their day,
Our hope is in the aftermath--
Our hope is in heroic men,
Star-led to build the world again.
To this event the ages ran;
Make way for Brotherhood--make way for Man._
EDWIN MARKHAM.
O Lord, make us like Thee. There can be no greater ambition, no loftier
desire, no holier purpose, for Thou holdest the secret of Brotherhood.
Like Thee, the only begotten of the Father, the essence of love, the joy
of angels, the hope of the world,--make us like Thee, O Christ. Let Thy
light be our light; thy service our joy; Thy peace our inheritance.
Touch our lips that we may say no unkind word; touch our hearts that we
may feel no wrong desires. May our living be for the world's good, our
acts precious helps to Thy kingdom, our all consecrated to Thy blessed
service. May we be satisfied when we awake with Thy likeness. Amen.
WILLIAM H. MAIN.
January 13
_If there be some weaker one,
Give me strength to help him on;
If a blinder soul there be,
Let me guide him nearer Thee.
Make my mortal dreams come true
With the work I fain would do;
Clothe with life the weak intent,
Let me be the thing I meant;
Let me find in Thine employ
Peace that dearer is than joy!_
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER.
Heavenly Father! We humbly beseech Thee to breathe upon us Thy Holy
Spirit, that we may be Thy true disciples, that we may be quick to see
our brother's need, and quicker to relieve it. If he has lost his way,
may we be aided to show it to him clearly. May we see our brother in the
Master's "prodigal," and find in every needy soul our sphere of service.
Forgive our weak excuses, and make the flickering embers burn to fervent
heat, that the ideal Thou hast given in Thy Word may command every power
of our lives. For Jesus' sake, Amen.
GEORGE WHITAKER.
January 14
_A German allegory tells of two little girls. They had been playing
together in a strange garden, and soon one ran in to her mother
full of disappointment. "The garden's a sad place, mother." "Why,
my child?" "I've been all around, and every rose-tree has cruel,
long thorns upon it!" Then the second child came in breathless. "O
Mother, the garden's a beautiful place!" "How so, my child?" "Why,
I've been all around, and every thorn-bush has lovely roses growing
on it!" And the mother wondered at the difference in the two
children._
ANONYMOUS.
Divine Spirit and Soul of this day! We rejoice in its accomplished and
its prophetic beauty and wealth which even our undisciplined hearts and
minds may readily perceive, but may we increase the joy of its
activities and its whole divine meaning by a deeper appreciation of its
ministry to the disciplined life we bear. If there shall be fortunes in
its passing which we would not choose, if there shall be encountered any
experiences we would shun, may we remember that our reverses only
emphasize our successes, that our sorrows intensify our joys, that even
the humiliation and shame of the "far country" add divine meaning to the
Father's House where wait the sandals and robes and rings for the
comfort and beauty that are yet to be. May we learn that the thorn
protects the rose, that the flaming sword turning in all directions
protects the Tree of Life in every Eden of the world. May we remember
that every great and good fortune of life is guarded by a seeming
hostility which bears in its soul the secret of a lasting benevolence
appointed for our own good. Amen.
E. L. REXFORD.
January 15
_We are haunted by an ideal life, and it is because we have within
us the beginning and the possibility of it. God is our continual
incitement because we are His children. So the ideal life is in our
blood and never will be still. We feel the thing we ought to be
beating beneath the thing we are. Every time we see a man who has
attained our ideal a little more fully than we have it wakens our
languid blood and fills us with new longings._
PHILLIPS BROOKS.
O God, we thank Thee each morning for ideals which appeal to us with
such persistence that we have no peace unless we pursue them. Even in
our seeming indifference we are ill at ease, because Thy voice calling
to us disturbs our fancied content. We are not satisfied with ourselves
nor with our attainments. "We shall be satisfied only when we wake in
Thy likeness." Weary though we often are in our service yet we thank
Thee that Thou relentlessly pursuest us with even greater and higher
demands. Help us in our onward and upward plodding. Revive our failing
spirits. Lead us ever on. Help us to realize that "in our patience we
shall win our souls." We pray as followers of Jesus Christ. Amen.
THEODORE A. FISCHER.
January 16
_O Singer of today, this glorious hour
Is all for you and me--what shall it give
To us, and ask of fate--what splendid power
In brain and hand, what glorious right to live
Among our fellows and to war with sin?
What quickening of the pulse as we aspire
To claim our right, and risk earth's joys to win,
To conquer self, and force it through the fire!
Give us this force, dear God, and evermore
Give us a deepening love of all our fellowmen;
Give us new insight--courage to explore
With all the tenderness of human ken
The lowliest heart that beats in human kind,
Its glory and its soul to seek and find!_
WILLIAM ORDWAY PARTRIDGE.
O Soul of all souls! Baptize us afresh this morning into the lustral
waters that we may devoutly thank Thee that Thou art and that Thou dost
clearly reveal Thyself to Christian souls through Thy Son, as the Father
of the great brotherhood of mankind. So wait upon us that we shall go
forth to this day's duties resolved upon so living as to render the
morning glad, the noon redolent with merciful activity, and the evening
full of praise. Thus quickened and enlarged the night will afford rest
and recuperation fitting us to welcome the morrow, still hoping, loving,
progressing, obedient to the sainted call, "Up higher," being
incessantly recompensed with the coveted refrain, "Well done." Amen.
S. H. MCCOLLESTER.
January 17
_There is one topic peremptorily forbidden to all well-bred, to all
rational mortals, namely, their distempers. If you have not slept
or if you have slept, or if you have headache, or sciatica, or
leprosy or thunder stroke, I beseech you, by all angels, to hold
your peace, and not pollute the morning, to which all the
housemates bring serene and pleasant thoughts, by corruption and
groans._
RALPH WALDO EMERSON.
Our Father, when we remember the multitude of Thy mercies our hearts are
filled with peace and praise and we are ashamed to murmur and complain.
Turn our thoughts toward the love and joy that this day holds for us;
its opportunities, its privileges and victories. Let the morning light
dispel the shadows on our faces and the fears in our hearts. Thou hast
glorified us and will glorify us again. Help us to be grateful for the
rose that smiles amidst the thorns and the light that ever shines behind
the clouds. Grant that the spirit of trust may prevail in us and send us
on our way with power to conquer. Amen.
ABRAM CONKLIN.
January 18
_Simplicity is a state of mind. It dwells in the main intention of
our lives. A man is simple when his chief care is the wish to be
what he ought to be, that is, honestly and naturally human. And
this is neither so easy nor so impossible as one might think. At
bottom it consists in putting our acts and aspirations in
accordance with the law of our being, and consequently with the
Eternal Intention which willed that we should be at all. Let a
flower be a flower, a swallow a swallow, a rock a rock, and let a
man be a man, and not a fox, a hare, a hog, or a bird of prey; this
is the sum of the whole matter._
CHARLES WAGNER.
Dear Heavenly Father, we rejoice in the awakening of body and soul to
new activities. We thank Thee for the gift of divinity in the soul and
for opportunity to give it expression. We would be true to ourselves,
knowing we can thus alone be true to Thee. O God, hush the voice of evil
passion. Quicken every noble aspiration. Grant the vision of Thy holy
love that Thy image within us may remain clear in the turmoil of our
life. We pray Thee stir the heart and mind that both may grow up to the
full stature of man as it was in Jesus, our Saviour. Amen.
L. WARD BRIGHAM.
January 19
_God has put the keys to His kingdom into your own hands. Your
intelligence is a key, your affection is a key, your conscience is
a key. With these keys you are to unlock the great doors of life,
and gain access to its heavenly treasures._
JAMES M. PULLMAN.
Master of life, as Thou hast opened our eyes to see the sun, open the
eyes of our hearts to see the splendor of Thy law. And even as Thou dost
bring to birth, through the marriage of our eye and the sun, all the
beauty of this visible world, so through the union between our hearts
and Thy holy will, create a world rejoicing in the beauty of truth and
justice and peace. Lead us this day deeper into the mystery of Thy life
and our life and make us interpreters of life to our fellows, through
Him who by His death opened for us the book of life, Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
HENRY S. NASH.
January 20
_A noiseless, patient spider,
I mark'd how on a little promontory it stood isolated,
Mark'd how to explore the vacant, vast surrounding,
It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,
Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them._
_And you, O my soul, where you stand,
Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,
Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to
connect them,
Till the bridge you will need be form'd, till the ductile anchor hold,
Till the gossamer threads you fling catch somewhere O my soul._
WALT WHITMAN.
Thou Infinite Spirit, we are glad of all human relationships. We are
thankful for all companionship with nature. We rejoice in the fellowship
with books, yet like the child who grows tired with every plaything and
every childish task and lonely for a mother's love, we look to Thee with
an infinite longing. In our effort to solve the problems of life, we
throw our web of life hither and thither, but it will not hold. Only
when at last we have thrown the thread of faith to Thee, shall the
ductile anchor hold. Our Heavenly Father, as we go forth into this day,
may we not leave Thee for any dream or phantom, but may we walk with
Thee all day long, and find in Thee the answer to every longing and the
solution of every problem. Though we may not see, we may trust and wait.
Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
January 21
_Do not think of your faults, still less of others' faults; in
every person who comes near you, look for what is good and strong;
honor that; rejoice in it; and as you can, try to imitate it; and
your faults will drop off like dead leaves when their time comes._
RUSKIN.
_With a clear sky, a bright sun, and a gentle breeze, you will have
friends in plenty; but let fortune frown, and the firmament be
overcast, and then your friends will prove like the strings of the
lute, of which you will tighten ten before you find one that will
bear the stretch and keep the pitch._
GOTTHOLD.
Dear Father, may the new day bring some fresh and inspiring thought of
Thyself. May it give some tender communion with the universe, kindling
into beauty as Thy smile shines through. May we make and keep a few dear
friends. May some good book enrich the passing hours. May love flow
through all acts, and the star of hope shine in all shadows. And
trusting Thee supremely, may we humbly do our best that good may abound
on earth. Amen.
JOSEPH H. CROOKER.
January 22
_The power of mere activity is often overrated. It is not what the
best men do, but what they are, that constitutes their truest
benefaction to their fellowmen. The things that men do get their
value, after all, from the way in which they are able to show the
existence of character which can comfort and help mankind.... It is
the lives, like the stars, which simply pour down on us the calm
light of their bright and faithful being, up to which we look and
out of which we gather the deepest calm and courage._
PHILLIPS BROOKS.
Thou knowest, dear Father, how often we wish to do many things which are
beyond our power. Help us to believe that Thou dost accept the wish when
we cannot do the deed. But we thank Thee that we can do some things,
though they are not large nor many. We know that as we grow in faith, in
patience, in courage, in love, we radiate light and peace and power to
those who are around us. As we begin a new day, we are uplifted by the
thought that we have been called into being because Thou desirest the
love of children, and because we are to co-work with Thee by loving and
serving all whom we can reach. Always, we believe, art Thou ready to
help us. Always art Thou brooding over us to draw us nearer to Thee, and
to give us light and strength to be fellow-workers with Thee. In this
new day, may we speak some word and do some work which shall please Thee
and give us joy as we shall lie down to sleep. Amen.
HENRY BLANCHARD.
January 23
_We pride ourselves, in weighing worth and merit,
Too much in virtues that we but inherit.
Some punctual grandsire makes us hate delay
And we are proud to keep our oath and day.
But our ancestral follies and abuses
We still indulge in, and make for them excuses.
Let him be proud, dared man be proud at all,
Who stands where all his fathers used to fall,
Holding their virtues fast and passing on
Still higher good through his own victories won._
ISAAC OGDEN RANKIN.
This morning, the sun shines by his own inherent worth. The clouds often
intercept his influence but he shines back of them and finds a way
through the slightest cleft to tip them with glory. He always reveals
himself--his inner self--and makes all purer and more beautiful. May we
so shine! The world needs the divinity there is in us. We are a part of
Thee. Thou art our deeper self. The Nazarean prophet relied entirely
upon his inner life and found ancient good uncouth. Whatever clouds
intercept our influence, teach us to reveal what conscience dictates,
what intuition illumines, what reason shows, to purify our time, and all
unrighteousness, wrong thinking and useless and hurtful custom. To this
end, give us purity, courage, and nobility. Amen.
WILLIAM S. MORGAN.
January 24
_My faith begins where your religion ends,--
In service to mankind. This single thread
Is given to guide us through the maze of life.
You start at one end, I the other; you,
With eyes fixed only upon God, begin
With lofty faith, and, seeking but to know
And do His will who guides the universe,
You find the slender and mysterious thread
Leads down to earth, with God's divine command
To help your fellowmen; but this to me
Is something strangely vague. I see alone
The fellowmen, the suffering fellowmen.
Yet, with a cup of water in my hand
For all who thirst, who knows but I one day,
Following faithfully the slender thread,
May reach its other end, and kneel at last
With you in heaven at the feet of God?_
ALICE WELLINGTON ROLLINS.
Our Father in heaven, author of life and light, justice and mercy,
liberty and love, we hail with joy and gratitude this new born day,
token of Thy presence, good will and continued care. Help us with high
ideals, pure thoughts and noble endeavors to hallow Thy name, trusting
where we cannot prove, proving where we cannot trust, by a willing
service to our fellowmen, ever advancing by faith, by works, with a
strong heart, a firm step, a generous hand, a sunny smile, and a
cheering voice, until we all come into the measure of the stature of the
fulness of Christ; and Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Amen.
HENRY N. COUDEN.
January 25
_If you would have sunlight in your home, see that you have work in
it: that you work yourself and set others to work. Nothing makes
moroseness and heavy-heartedness in a house so fast as idleness.
The very children gloom and sulk if they are left with nothing to
do. Every day there is the light of something conquered in the eyes
of those who work. In such a house, if there be also the good
temper of love, sunshine never ceases. For in it the great law of
humanity is obeyed, a law which is also God's law. For what said
Christ, "My Father worketh hitherto and I work." Sunlight comes
with work._
STOPFORD A. BROOKE.
O Thou, who art the source of light and life, we pause in Thy presence
at the opening of the day, that in the light of thy countenance we may
see ourselves as we are and as we ought to be, and receive the
inspiration to consecrated effort and worthy achievement. We thank Thee
that Thou hast done so much for us and yet left so much for us to do.
May we think how important are these lives we are going to live today;
that no matter how small we are, this universe in all its majesty can
never be complete without our effort, and Thou, Almighty God, art
waiting with infinite patience for us to do our part. Thus shall our
work, however humble, be glorified by a Godlike temper and a Christlike
faith. Amen.
FREDERICK A. BISBEE.
January 26
_All that is, at all,
Lasts ever, past recall:
Earth changes, but thy soul and God stand sure;
What entered into thee,
That was, is and shall be._
* * * * *
_He fixed thee 'mid this dance
Of plastic circumstance,
This Present, thou, forsooth, wouldst fain arrest;
Machinery just meant
To give thy soul its bent,
Try thee, and turn thee forth, sufficiently impressed._
ROBERT BROWNING.
We thank Thee, O Father, for the yet unwrought possibilities of this
day. Show us Thy purpose; or, if it please Thee, withhold the entire
plan, yet may our faith claim a divine sanction for each hour's work as
a part of the fulfilment of Thy purpose. We pray for strength and
patience to have our souls rightly impressed by the cares, the joys, and
disappointments of life. Make the things of the body only incidental to
us. Save us from all but the best things. Give us the happiness of
harmony with Thee. Wilt Thou grant these things through the power of Thy
spirit, and in the name of Thy perfect Son, the vision of whom
transforms our lives. Amen.
GEORGE W. OWEN.
January 27
_Beloved, let us love so well,
Our work shall still be better for our love
And still our love be sweeter for our work._
ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING.
_If your name is to live at all, it is so much more to have it live
in people's hearts than only in their brains! I don't know that
one's eyes fill with tears when he thinks of the famous inventor of
logarithms, but a song of Burns or a hymn of Charles Wesley goes
straight to your heart and you can't help loving both of them, the
sinner as well as the saint._
OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES.
Our Father, who art in heaven, help us to hold Thee in our hearts this
day, that we may live for Thee, from the love of Thee. Forgive us that
we have not always a thankful spirit. Strengthen our wills to do good
work, as in Thy sight, with clean hands and heart. Help us now as we
pray, and flood the morning with the sunshine of Thy face, that we may
be glad all the day long, and bring other lives into the brightness of
Thy light. Save us from a partial mind, that we may love all Thy little
ones with the same love of Him who said "Of such is the Kingdom of
Heaven." Amen.
C. W. HOLDEN.
January 28
_All thoughts of ill; all evil deeds.
That have their root in thoughts of ill;
Whatever hinders or impedes
The noble action of the will;--
All these must first be trampled down
Beneath our feet if we would gain
In the bright fields of fair renown
The right of eminent domain.
We have not wings, we cannot soar;
But we have feet to scale and climb
By slow degrees, by more and more,
The cloudy summits of our time._
HENRY W. LONGFELLOW.
We bless Thee, Lord, for the new day and for the new chance which it
offers to our wayward lives. Forgive the evil in them, and make the good
efficient. Let the tides of Thy spirit bring to us cleansing,
refreshment and power. In the day's business may we be brave, cheerful
and considerate. Grant us a clear vision of the path of honor and the
will to choose it at whatever cost. We wait upon Thee for renewal of our
strength; for uplift as on eagle's wings; for unwearied running upon Thy
larger errands, if Thou shalt ordain us to such high employ; but most of
all, for grace to walk life's common ways without fainting. So at
evening wilt Thou send Thy peace. Amen.
EDWARD M. CHAPMAN.
January 29
_Don't you touch the edge of the great gladness that is in the
world, now and then, in spite of your own little single worries?
Well, that's what God means; and the worry is the interruption. He
never means that.... If you are glad for one minute in the day,
that is His minute; the minute He means, and works for._
MRS. A. D. T. WHITNEY.
Dear Father, Thou hast made us fit for joy. Help us today to grasp our
birthright of gladness. For those things which must be borne in sorrow
give us submission. Let us taste the salt tonic of our tears and feel
the strength born of struggle and the peace wrested from trial. Make us
glad that friendly hands meet our own; that kindness is always sweet and
sympathy divine. Teach us to lay hold on the radiance of each hour, that
the morning bow of promise may become our evening glory and prophesy
another glad new day. As children find content and joy by looking into
their father's face so we turn to Thee. Amen.
EFFIE MCCOLLUM JONES.
January 30
_Still must I climb if I would rest;
The bird soars upward to his nest;
The young leaf on the tree-top high
Cradles itself within the sky._
_I cannot in the valley stay:
The great horizons stretch away;
The very cliffs that wall me round
Are ladders unto higher ground._
_I am not glad till I have known
Life that can lift me from mine own;
A loftier level must be won.
A mightier strength to lean upon._
LUCY LARCOM.
Heavenly Father, as the bird that soars first looks upward, we turn our
souls to Thee, seeking inspiration that in the duties of today we may
live to the full height of the faculties Thou hast given. Help us to
know what is right and to follow it day by day continually. Grant that
our toils this day may be acts of service as sacramental as our prayer.
In our weakness, grant us of Thy strength that we may pass from glory to
glory till we are transformed at last into the perfect image of Thy
spirit. And when our work on earth is ended, when the clods of the
valley are sweet to our weary frame, take us home to Thyself. Amen.
NATHANIEL S. SAGE.
January 31
_Only a frown! Yet it pressed a sting
Into the day which had been so glad;
The red rose turned to a scentless thing:
The bird-song ceased with discordant ring;
And a heart was heavy and sad._
_Only a smile! yet it cast a spell
Over the sky which had been so gray;
The rain made music wherever it fell;
The wind sang the song of the marriage-bell;
And a heart was light and gay._
ANONYMOUS.
With our tribute of praise, O Father, we would begin this day; this day,
which, with all its bounties, is Thy gift. Prepare us, we beseech Thee,
for the experiences of the hours as they open before us. Gratefully
remembering that we are Thy children, may our duties weigh with such
sacredness upon our hearts that we may shun the evil way as unworthy
those so richly endowed and blest. Write, we pray Thee, Thy law within
us; and may our love of Thee make it so easy and so joyous to obey that
we shall continually grow into the likeness of Him whose mission it is
to fill the world with blessedness and peace. Amen.
CHARLES W. TOMLINSON.
February 1
_Father, I will not ask for wealth or fame,
Though once they would have joyed my carnal sense.
I shudder not to bear a hated name,
Wanting all wealth, myself my sole defence.
But give me, Lord, eyes to behold the truth;
A seeing sense that knows the eternal right;
A heart with pity filled, and gentlest ruth;
A manly faith that makes all darkness light;
Give me the power to labor for mankind;
Make me the mouth of such as cannot speak;
Eyes let me be to groping man 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 farther on such as Thy Kingdom seek._
THEODORE PARKER.
Heavenly Father, we speak to Thee this morning out of a sense of rest
and trust. We would begin the day with Thee and keep in Thy company to
its close. Whether we work or pray, wilt Thou rule our spirits?
Conscious in this moment of freedom, that we shall soon be pressed and
absorbed by our own cares, we pray, Father, that we may keep in mind the
privilege and joy of bearing each other's burdens and so fulfilling the
law of Christ. Nor ever permit us to fall away from perfect faith in Thy
purpose. Work in us and through us to usher in the morning when Truth
shall spring out of the earth and Righteousness shall come down from
heaven. Amen.
ISAAC M. ATWOOD.
February 2
_As when good news is come to one in grief, straightway he
forgetteth his former grief, and no longer attendeth to anything
except the good news which he hath heard, so do ye, also! having
received a renewal of your soul through the beholding of these good
things. Put on therefore gladness that hath always favor before
God, and is acceptable unto Him, and delight thyself in it; for
every man that is glad doeth the things that are good, and thinketh
good thoughts, despising grief._
MARIUS THE EPICUREAN.
O Lord, we know there are a thousand reasons why we should be glad. We
cannot always forget our sorrows and our failures; there are manifold
sources of temporary vexation and annoyance and harassing care, but in
the face of Thine overmastering Providence and Love we cannot long be
vexed nor sad. If tears have dimmed our eyes let us brush away the
tears. If troubles and cares have burdened our hearts let us rise
triumphant over them all and for this day be glad; and in our gladness
let us find our strength. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
February 3
_Do not dare to be so absorbed in your own life, so wrapped up in
listening to the sound of your own hurrying wheels, that all this
vast pathetic music, made up of the mingled joy and sorrow of your
fellowmen, shall not find out your heart and claim it and make you
rejoice to give yourself for them.... Be sure that ambition and
charity will both grow mean unless they are both inspired and
exalted by religion. Energy, love, and faith,--these make the
perfect man._
PHILLIPS BROOKS.
O Thou who art not far from any one of us, but art the Source and
Sustainer of our life, gratefully do we acknowledge the Mercy that has
given us this new day with its certain opportunity for living the glad,
true life. Directed by Thee, may this be for us a day of progress. May
its duties be performed with alacrity and cheerfulness, its lessons
learned with humility, its temptations met with resolute will, its
crosses with patient hope. We thank Thee for the life of the Master who
has shown us that if we would live Thy divine life, ours must be one of
continual service and constant progression. If, tried by the seeming
drudgery of duties daily repeated, we long for the end of our labors or
dream of an idle heaven, O forgive our weakness, and help us trustingly
to obey Thy voice as it whispers, "Up and on, this is not thy rest."
Thus let the day close on hours well spent, and Thy joy and peace fill
our hearts. Amen.
JOHN MURRAY ATWOOD.
February 4
_Who art thou that complainest of thy life of toil? Complain not.
Look up, my wearied brother; see thy fellow-workmen there, in God's
eternity; surviving there, they alone surviving; sacred band of the
Immortals, celestial body-guard of the empire of mankind. To thee,
Heaven, though severe, is as that Spartan mother, saying while she
gave her son his shield, "With it, my son, or upon it." Thou too
shalt return home in honor; to thy far distant Home, in honor;
doubt it not,--if in the battle thou keep thy shield! Thou, in the
Eternities, and deepest death-kingdoms, art not an alien; thou
everywhere art a denizen. Complain not._
THOMAS CARLYLE.
O Thou God of goodness and grace, who dost turn Thy smiling countenance
upon the upturned faces of Thy children, help us to find in the light of
another day the continued proof of Thy fatherly care and tender mercy.
Since Thou art so well disposed towards us, give us courage to attempt
anything which the duties of this day require, remembering that Thou
canst not ask anything beyond our strength, or withhold from us the
blessing of Thy Divine approval. Living under Thy smile help us to be
strong and calm and confident, delighting Thy heart by our faith in Thee
and our love for our fellowmen. Amen.
SAMUEL C. BUSHNELL.
February 5
_This goodly frame, the earth, seems to me a sterile promontory;
this most excellent canopy, the air, look you, this brave
o'er-hanging firmament, this majestical roof fretted with golden
fire, why, it appears no other thing to me than a foul and
pestilent congregation of vapors. What a piece of work is a man!
how noble in reason! how infinite in faculty! in form and moving
how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in
apprehension how like a god!_
SHAKESPEARE.
Our Father in Heaven, we pray Thee that this may be a bright and happy
day in each of our lives. May there be sunshine in our hearts because
they are attuned to Thine. Going about our daily tasks, Thy spirit
within us, may we make our little portion of the earth not a sterile
promontory but a rich garden abounding in the fruits of the spirit, and
may we, by Thy grace, be enabled to dispel some of the pestilent vapors
of wordliness and doubt. In all things, may we remember our divine
parentage and conform our lives more and more to the pattern shown us by
Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen.
FRANCIS E. CLARK.
February 6
_There was a merchant once, who on the way
Meeting one fatherless and lamed, did stay
To draw the thorn which pricked his foot, and passed;
And 'twas forgot; and the man died at last.
But in a dream the Prince of Khojand spies
That man again, walking in Paradise.
Walking and talking in that blessed land,
And what he said the prince could understand;
For he said this, plucking the heavenly posies;
"Wonderful! One thorn made me many roses!"_
EDWIN ARNOLD.
Dear Father in Heaven, with our life refreshed and renewed by sleep, we
would face the duties of the day with strong hope and a ready courage.
Forbid that these shall in any degree be diminished by any difficulty or
perplexity that may arise. We pray for wisdom and love. Grant us that
interest in others that shall impel us to help those who are in need.
And may our desire to minister move us not only to dress the wounds of
those whom the thorns have injured, but to clear the paths, along which
men must pass, of those conditions and influences which inevitably maim
and blight. May we serve Thee faithfully and with gladness this day!
Amen.
HARRY L. CANFIELD.
February 7
_Quicksand years that whirl me I know not whither,
Your schemes, politics fail, lines give way, substances mock and
elude me,
Only the theme I sing, the great and strong-possess'd soul, eludes not,
One's self must never give way--that is the final substance--that out
of all is sure,
Out of politics, triumphs, battles, life, what at last finally remains?
When shows break up what but One's self is sure?_
WALT WHITMAN.
O Thou, who beholdest all the souls of men, in our vision of another new
day, help us to see as Thou seest; to be conscious not of our own need
and desert alone, but also of the deserts and needs of all those with
whom we have to do; shaping our prayer and directing the effort that
follows after all true prayer in accordance with this wider outlook. O
Thou, who fashionest the hearts of all, who observest all their works,
we would strengthen and purify our hearts that they may be fitted to be
fashioned by Thee to noble ends, and set to some good service; and we
would do our daily work as in the sight of one who knows and loves all
honest, thorough workers, great or humble, wise or simple. Amen.
AUGUSTUS MENDON LORD.
February 8
_Truth should be the first lesson of the child and the last
aspiration of Manhood; for it has been well said that the inquiry
of truth, which is the love-making of it, the knowledge of truth,
which is the presence of it, and the belief of truth, which is the
enjoying of it, is the sovereign good of human nature._
_We search the world for truth; we cull
The good, the pure, the beautiful,
From graven stone and written scroll,
From all old flower-fields of the soul._
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER.
Our Heavenly Father, we acknowledge Thee as the Author and Giver of all
truth. We bless Thee that Thou hast attuned our souls to its music, and
that when with conscious life we touch its strings covering the universe
we feel harmony with the Divine. We thank Thee for the truths of our
sonship in Thee and for the assurances of Thy Fatherhood. We bless Thee
for Jesus who was the truth made life, and who is our daily guide to its
blessings. We thank Thee for the truth of immortality, with its
encouragement to eager life today and its assurances of endless joyful
tomorrows. Make us seekers of truth, lovers of truth and examples of
truth as it is in Jesus our Savior. Amen.
FRED A. DILLINGHAM.
February 9
_All things are engaged in writing their history. The planet, the
pebble, goes attended by its shadow. The rolling rock leaves its
scratches on the mountain; the river, its channel in the soil; the
animal, its bones in the stratum; the fern and leaf, their modest
epitaph in the coal. The falling drop makes its sculpture in the
sand or the stone. Not a foot steps into the snow or along the
ground, but prints, in characters more or less lasting, a map of
its march. Every act of the man inscribes itself in the memory of
his fellows, and in his own manners and face. The air is full of
sounds, the sky of tokens, the ground is all memoranda and
signatures, and every object covered over with hints which speak to
the intelligent._
_Ralph Waldo Emerson._
Our Father, who art in Heaven and in every manifestation of living
nature, we turn our thoughts to Thee with the rising of each new sun. We
hear Thy voice in the singing of every summer bird. We realize Thy
presence in the shifting shadows of the clouds. In the arching blue
above us we realize something of the depth and breadth of the love that
arches over the horizon of our life and stretches like the radiant bow
of promise from the green hills of childhood to the sombre mountains of
old age. We beseech Thee to give us thoughts so beautiful and ennobling
that even amid the sods and clods of life's daily drudgery we can always
face the morning light of some new hope which comes like the old song
sung in the new land. Amen.
JOHN KIMBALL.
February 10
_First, when I feel that I am become cold and indisposed to prayer,
by reason of other business and thoughts, I take my psalter and run
into my chamber, or, if day and season serve, into the church to
the multitude, and begin to repeat to myself--just as children
used--the ten commandments, the creed, and, according as I have
time, some sayings of Christ or of Paul, or some Psalms. Therefore
it is well to let prayer be the first employment in the early
morning, and the last in the evening. Avoid diligently those false
and deceptive thoughts which say, Wait a little, I will pray an
hour hence; I must first perform this or that. For with such
thoughts a man quits prayer for business that lays hold of and
entangles him, so that he comes not to pray the whole day long._
MARTIN LUTHER.
O Lord, our Heavenly Father, who keepest covenant and loving kindness
with Thy servants, who walk humbly with Thee, and who hast been
attentive to the prayers of our fathers when they lifted up their hearts
and their hands to Thee, teach us to pray, and to love to pray. Visit us
in the night season and before the morning watch. Touch our spirits with
the flame of Thy Spirit, before the day's business lays hold upon us and
entangles us, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
REUBEN KIDNER.
February 11
_In one of Dean Stanley's sermons to children, preached at
Westminster Abbey, he told the following story: "There was a little
girl living with her grandfather. She was a good child, but he was
not a very good man; and one day, when the little child came back
from school, he had put in writing over the bed, 'God is nowhere,'
for he did not believe in the good God, and he tried to make the
little child believe the same. What did the little girl do? She had
no eyes to see, no ears to hear, what her grandfather tried to
teach her. She was very small. She could only read words of one
syllable at a time; she rose above the bad meaning which he tried
to put in her mind; she rose, as we all ought to rise, above the
temptation of our time; she rose into a higher and better world;
she rose because her little mind could not do otherwise, and she
read the words, not 'God is nowhere,' but 'God is now here.' That
is what we all should strive to do. Out of words which have no
sense or which have bad sense, our eyes, our minds, ought to be
able to read a better sense."_
WILLIAM MOODIE.
O Thou, Invisible Presence, there can be no place where Thou art not.
Thou, our Father, art in heaven and on earth and everywhere. Thou art in
the order of the rock, the beauty of the flower, the light of the sun
and stars, and goodness in the human soul. Teach us to be conscious of
Thy nearness to us, and so may we never be afraid. In the light of Thy
countenance, may we see duty and truth, and recognize more easily the
good in one another. Amen.
ALVA ROY SCOTT.
February 12
ABRAHAM LINCOLN BORN 1809
_Chosen for large designs, he had the art
Of winning with his humour, and he went
Straight to his mark, which was the human heart;
Wise, too, for what he could not break he bent._
_Upon his back a more than Atlas-load--
The burden of the Commonwealth was laid;
He stooped, and rose up to it, though the road
Shot suddenly downwards, not a whit dismayed._
_Hold, warriors, counsellors, kings! all now give place
To this dear benefactor of the race._
RICHARD H. STODDARD.
Almighty Father, we thank Thee today for the gracious memory of Thy
servant who lived and died for the sake of a free and united nation. We
thank Thee more that we have his life inwrought into the very fabric of
the life of the nation. We had in him "a hiding place from the wind and
a covert from the tempest, a river of water in a dry place and the
shadow of a great rock in a weary land." We gratefully join in praise
with the thousands who found help and cheer in the shadow of his
strength. And now we humbly beseech Thee, help us in some small way this
day to be a helper to the helpless, a friend to the needy, sunshine to
those whose day will be gray and gloomy, the shadow of a great rock to
those who are buffeted by the world's storms. Thus shall we prove our
gratitude to Thee for the gift of Thy servant whom we honor today, and
thus shall we honor Thee. We ask and offer all in the name of Thy Son
Jesus Christ. Amen.
AVERY A. SHAW.
February 13
_Let us learn to be content with what we have. Let us get rid of
our false estimates, set up all the higher ideals--a quiet home;
vines of our own planting; a few books full of the inspiration of a
genius; a few friends worthy of being loved, and able to love us in
return; a hundred innocent pleasures that bring no pain or remorse;
a devotion to the right that will never swerve; a simple religion
empty of all bigotry, full of trust and hope and love--and to such
a philosophy this world will give up all the empty joy it has._
DAVID SWING.
Thou gracious Spirit of Life, our Father, at the beginning of this new
day we wait for a moment before Thee with uncovered heads and with
reverent spirits; Thou knowest us through and through, whatever man may
think of us Thou knowest just what we are. In Thy sight we need not
pretend; we need not make believe, we need only be simple and genuine
and brave and earnest. We need be glad in the possession of what we
have. Help us this day to rightly value that which is good and honest.
Let us for this day at least, put away all vanity and give ourselves
unreservedly to Thy service and the love of our fellow men. To this high
end, may we have the sweet companionship of Jesus. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
February 14
_We go through life as some tourists go through Europe,--so anxious
to see the next sight, the next cathedral, the next picture, the
next mountain peak, that we never stop to fill our sense with the
beauty of the present one. Along all our pathways sweet flowers are
blossoming, if we will only stop to pluck them and smell their
fragrance. In every meadow, birds are warbling, calling to their
mates, and soaring into the blue, if we will only stop our
grumbling long enough to hear them._
MINOT J. SAVAGE.
Give us, O God, the vision to see the way where duty lies and strength
to walk in it, to ever keep the forward look and never to lose heart
today because of the stumblings and fallings in the yesterdays that are
forever gone. Let us remember that we are in Thy hands and we are
faithless to Thee and to ourselves if knowingly we fail to do Thy work.
Though we cannot see Thee, we now see our fellow men and we shall best
serve Thee if, in love and patience, we help our fellows. Amen.
ALMON GUNNISON.
February 15
_May I reach
That purest Heaven--be to other souls
The cup of strength in some great agony,
Enkindle generous ardor, feed pure love,
Beget the smiles that have no cruelty,
Be that sweet presence of a good diffused,
And in diffusion ever more intense!
So shall I join the choir invisible,
Whose music is the gladness of the world._
GEORGE ELIOT.
Our heavenly Father, we bless Thee for the gift of another day with all
its opportunities for service. And we pray that our hearts may respond
in sympathy with the heartbeats of those who love and toil and suffer
around us today. May we learn to make their joys and sorrows our own. Do
not let our unfeeling hands strike the heart-strings of others harshly,
nor allow our feet to go crushing roses of love, without thought. Help
us, we pray Thee, to walk tenderly and reverently among our fellow men.
May their hopes and noble endeavors ring within us the prayer bells of
the soul. Make us thus to grow large and tender and noble through our
helpful ministries. Amen.
JOHN WESLEY CARTER.
February 16
_Ah, love and love alone at last will solve
All the vast, threatening questions that distract
Mankind; that fellow-men in strife array,
And the whole world with fierce contentions rend.
Still keep your idle millions under arms--
Fed on the hard-earned substance of the poor--
Still watch each other with keen jealousy,
Still slaughter thousands on the field of war,
Or strive with statesman's craft to arbitrate;
Thread the sly mazes of diplomacy,
Try communistic cures for every ill,
And when all fails at last, for lack of love,
Try love--the mightiest of them all--and win!_
HENRY NEHEMIAH DODGE.
God of the light,--within, without, who hast lifted the curtain of night
from our abodes, perfect now Thy blessing unto us, and take the veil
from all our hearts, and make clear to us Thy holy presence. Filled with
the everlasting light, may we look on each other, and on our work here
below, and on the strifes and conditions of humanity, with a love and
hope that are not of this world. May Faith, Hope and Love abide with
us--and may we realize that the greatest of these is Love. Hasten Thou
the time when by love alone Thy kingdom shall come, and Thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
WILLIAM B. EDDY.
February 17
_If the day and night are such that you greet them with joy, and
life emits a fragrance like flowers and sweet-scented herbs, is
more starry, more immortal,--that is your success. All nature is
your congratulation and you have cause momentarily to bless
yourself._
HENRY DAVID THOREAU.
Father, I have found Thy gift of life, a sweet and beautiful thing. It
has known cloud and rain, but these have nourished it, and the darkness
has sheltered it. It has felt driving storms, but these have
strengthened it. It has known sunshine too. And now every day is a
transfiguration and every night a benediction. Let thanksgiving be my
prayer. What I need Thou wilt give. My hands Thou wilt touch with the
soft petals of Thy flowers; and the arms of Thy strong care shall be
about me. By the voices of brooks and rivers and winds and birds and
little children Thou wilt speak to me, and in the deeper silences I
shall hear Thy still small voice. Father, I thank Thee. Amen.
O. C. S. WALLACE.
February 18
_Let us not care too much for what happens: Let us not leave our
peace of mind at the mercy of events._
CHARLES G. AMES.
_Let us lay hold of the happiness of today. Do we not go through
life blindly, thinking that some fair tomorrow will bring us the
gift we miss today?... Know thou, my heart, if thou art not happy
today, thou shalt never be happy._
ANNA ROBERTSON BROWN.
We thank Thee, our Father, that the Satisfaction of righteousness is
present as well as future. Help us, we beseech Thee, to live this day so
that earth shall seem like heaven. In the proof of our adequacy to the
demands of duty may we find a delight that shall more than compensate us
for any pleasure or profit surrendered for its sake. May the sense of
Thine approval sanctify our joys and comfort our sorrows. May we win
love by deserving it, and find happiness in bestowing it. Through
obedience to Thy will may we add strength and spiritual beauty to our
own character and carry into the evening shadows the sweet assurance
that other lives have been enriched by our kind words and helpful deeds.
We ask it as Thy children. Amen.
J. FRANK THOMPSON.
February 19
_'Tis always morning somewhere, and above
The awakening continents from shore to shore.
Somewhere the birds are singing evermore._
HENRY W. LONGFELLOW.
_The inconveniences and the petty annoyances, the pains and the
sorrows, do we ever forget them? Indeed, no; we grumble and groan
continually. The blue sky and the sunshine, the everyday mercies
and the wonderful blessings that we accept as a matter of course,
do we remember to rejoice because of them? Only too seldom. On this
one day, do let us be sincerely and expressedly thankful._
ANONYMOUS.
Our Father, we rejoice to believe that Thy love is the eternal sun which
knows no eclipse and that in its pure shining, we Thy children can go
forward with brave hearts and radiant hopes, assured that Thy wisdom
hath left nothing unfinished and that "Thy goodness faileth never." We
greet this new day with newness of joy in Thy Fatherhood as our personal
right, and with ascending ideals of a service whose gracious light shall
kindle other souls into a larger hopefulness and a deeper tenderness. We
would fill this day with all sunny thoughts, with all cheering words and
with all generous deeds, and thus the more effectually bring the divine
light into the human and make clearer the outlines of a heaven on earth.
Amen.
ARNOLD S. YANTIS.
February 20
_No blast of air or fire of sun
Puts out the light whereby we run
With girdled loins our lamplit race,
And each from each takes heart of grace
And spirit till his turn be done,
And light of face from each man's face
In whom the light of trust is one;
Since only souls that keep their place
By their own light, and watch things roll,
And stand, have light for any soul._
ALGERNON CHARLES SWINBURNE.
O Thou, Who coverest Thyself with light as with a garment, even the true
light which lighteth every man coming into the world, shine Thou in us,
putting to flight all the powers of darkness, and guilt of sin, and
selfishness. Shine also through us to any that live in the shadow; and
so fill us with Thy radiant Spirit, that we may be a lamp unto a
neighbor's feet and a light unto his path. And when this day is done may
every face we have met be the brighter for our meeting, and every heart
braver with new joy and cheer and grace and strength. For in Thee O
Lord, is life, and Thy life is the light of men. Amen.
THEODORE PARKER.
February 21
_The longer on this earth we live
And weigh the various qualities of men
The more we feel the high, stern-featured beauty
Of plain devotedness to duty,
Steadfast and still, nor paid with mortal praise,
But finding amplest recompense
For life's ungarlanded expense
In work done squarely and unwasted days._
JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
Our dear Heavenly Father, we would greet Thee as this morning greets us.
We thank Thee for the daily duty; that, amid this wondrous world, Thou
hast set somewhat for our doing. May we appreciate the honor. May we not
grudge our best, even in the humblest tasks, since Thou appointest them.
Strengthen us, we beseech Thee, if sometimes the heart fails, and the
tired hands get laggard. Show us how the lowliest service becomes
loftiest if done with the glorifying motive of pleasing Thee. Make us
this day blithe in duty. When our heads find pillow may Thy peace enfold
us; forgive our failures; and, for Jesus' sake, may we never cease
endeavor. Amen.
WAYLAND HOYT.
February 22
GEORGE WASHINGTON. BORN 1732.
_Welcome to the day returning,
Dearer still as ages flow,
While the torch of faith is burning,
Long as Freedom's altars glow!
See the hero whom it gave us
Slumbering on a mother's breast;
For the arm he stretched to save us,
Be its morn forever blest._
OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES.
Father of life, we thank Thee that Thou hast been with the Fathers; that
Thou hast been with him whose birth this day we celebrate. Thou wert
willing to speak to them, and they were willing to hear Thee and answer
Thee, "Lo, here am I; send me." We thank Thee that the memory of this
great man has come down to us; of him who was first in war, first in
peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen; and we ask Thee that
Thou wilt be with our countrymen today; that Thou wilt teach us Thy law,
that we may walk in Thy ways; that this may be that happy nation whose
God is the Lord. In all time of our trial, if we have sought Thee we
have found Thee,--in all time of our success Thou hast won for us our
victories,--Thou hast been with our counsellors. Father, today,
tomorrow, and in days to come, in our memories and in our hopes be with
us still, Our Father, Who art in Heaven. Amen.
EDWARD EVERETT HALE.
February 23
_If you always remember that in all you do in soul or body God
stands by as a witness, in all your prayers and your actions you
will not err; and you shall have God dwelling with you._
EPICTETUS.
_Faith acts on our souls as a moral tonic; it takes the fret and
fever out of our lives; it gives the appetite and desire for noble
living; it removes despondency; it gives energy, courage, hope,
patience, and persistence; and in its highest manifestations it
makes our lives a blending of power, sweetness, and peace._
JAMES M. PULLMAN.
Father of spirits! We yield ourselves to Thee. We will be afraid of
neither sorrow nor death in a world where many saintly souls have
sanctified them by a divine patience, and amid a Providence wherein no
evil thing can dwell. Clinging unto Thee, we shall not perish with the
fashion of this world that passeth away. As sparks falling on the river,
so shall the glories of our strength go out. But the graces of the holy
soul shall be as the brightness of the firmament, and as the stars
forever and ever. In Thee, O Lord, is our undying trust. Amen.
JAMES MARTINEAU.
February 24
_Be of good cheer, brave spirit; steadfastly serve that low whisper
thou hast served; for know, God hath a select family of sons now
scattered wide thro' earth, and each alone, who are thy spiritual
kindred, and each one by constant service to that inward law, is
weaving the sublime proportions of a true monarch's soul. Beauty
and strength, the riches of a spotless memory, the eloquence of
truth, the wisdom got by searching of a clear and loving eye that
seeth as God seeth. These are their gifts, and time, who keeps
God's word, brings on the day to seal the marriage of these minds
with thine, thy everlasting lovers._
RALPH WALDO EMERSON.
O Thou, who makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice,
help us to welcome this new day as Thy gift, to take up its duties with
courage, and to follow the light which Thou shalt give. Conscious of the
meaning and purpose of life, undismayed by the failures of past days,
and ever remembering that Thy strength is made perfect in human
weakness, may we consecrate ourselves anew to the glad service of life,
knowing that in so doing we enter into fellowship with all who have been
workers together with Thee, and into increasing likeness of soul to Thy
holy Son. May the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and may life
become stronger and sweeter and richer, until at last we receive through
grace the "well done!" of the Master. Amen.
HENRY M. KING.
February 25
_There is no music in a rest, but there is the making of music in
it. In our whole life melody, the music is broken off here and
there by "rests," and we foolishly think we have come to the end of
time. God sends a time of forced leisure--sickness, disappointed
plans, frustrated efforts--and makes a sudden pause in the choral
hymn of our lives, and we lament that our voices must be silent,
and our part missing in the music which ever goes up to the ear of
the Creator. How does the musician read the rest? See him beat time
with unvarying count and catch up the next note true and steady, as
if no breaking place had come in between. Not without design does
God write the music of our lives. But be it ours to learn the time,
and not be dismayed at the "rests." They are not to be slurred
over, nor to be omitted, nor to destroy the melody, nor to change
the key-note. If we look up, God Himself will beat the time for us.
With the eye on Him we shall strike the next note full and clear._
JOHN RUSKIN.
O God, help us to trust where we cannot see, and to feel that life is
not necessarily a failure because we are shut out from its activities.
Grant us in sickness such visions and such communion with Thee that
disease of the body shall be transformed into a healer of the soul; and,
as the crushed rose the sweeter fragrance emits, so may our sorrows
chasten and refine us.
O Heavenly Father, grant that all our sickness and pain and
disappointment may so sweeten our dispositions, purify our character and
strengthen our souls that we shall bring heaven's sunlight into the
lives of all whom we meet. Amen.
MYRON W. HAYNES.
February 26
_Love is the greatest thing that God can give us, for Himself is
love; and it is the greatest thing we can give to God, for it will
also give ourselves, and carry with it all that is ours._
JEREMY TAYLOR.
_High thoughts and noble in all lands
Help me, my soul is fed by such;
But ah, the touch of lips and hands,
The human touch!
Warm, vital, close, life's symbols dear,
These need I most and now and here._
RICHARD BURTON.
Our Father in Heaven, we bless Thee this morning for all Thy care and
love; Thou hast made our houses homes, sweet, quiet dwelling-places. We
thank Thee for sleep, for communion with one another in all holy and
tender speech. We thank Thee for all our hopes; the worlds are nearer
than we thought, heaven's fragrance attempers the winds of earth, we
almost hear the upper song: may we listen for it, may our souls delight
in sweet anticipations of immortal fellowship, and may we come out of
these high reveries determined to work more, suffer more patiently, to
accept every discipline more willingly, and to do all our little day's
work as men whose citizenship is in heaven. Amen.
JOSEPH PARKER.
February 27
_Flame of the spirit, and dust of the earth,--
This is the making of man,
This is his problem of birth;
Born to all holiness, born to all crime,
Heir of both worlds, on the long slope of time
Climbing the path of God's plan;
Dust of the earth in his error and fear,
Weakness and malice and lust;
Yet, quivering up from the dust,
Flame of the spirit, unleaping and clear,
Yearning to God, since from God is its birth--
This is man's portion, to shape as he can,
Flame of the spirit, and dust of the earth--
This is the making of man._
PRISCILLA LEONARD.
O God, Thou art the Father of our spirits, but our spirits have come to
us through ways of flesh. We are both spiritual and carnal. Our spirits
seek Thee evermore, but our flesh turns away from Thee and strives to
drag us down. Between our best and our worst is bitter conflict. Help us
to the discovery that all that lives is in like conflict, and that there
can be no virtue and no glory except in overcoming. Make us see that the
spirit is stronger than the flesh because it is of God, and that in the
obedience and inspiration of Jesus, Thy Son and our Brother, we may at
last be enthroned with Him. Amen.
CEPHAS B. CRANE.
February 28
_Neither let mistakes nor wrong directions, of which every man, in
his studies and elsewhere, falls into many, discourage you. There
is precious instruction to be got by finding we were wrong. Let a
man try faithfully, manfully, to be right; he will grow daily more
and more right. It is at bottom the condition on which all men have
to cultivate themselves._
THOMAS CARLYLE.
Almighty God, our heavenly Father,--in Thine own loving way Thou dost
bless us when we do the right; when we fall into mistakes so teach us by
Thy judgments that we become wise unto salvation. Help Thy children to
recognize their proneness to blunder, that they learn to walk
circumspectly. When we fall into the wrong, grant that we lie prone not
long but arise undismayed to greater effort. Bring to bear upon us the
influences of the Holy Spirit, that we strive earnestly and devoutly to
be right at the centre of our being; that rightness be the fabric of our
life. To Thee be all glory evermore. Amen.
EDWARD A. PERRY.
February 29
_Henceforth I learn that to obey is best,
And love with fear the only God, to walk
As in His presence, ever to observe
His providence, and on Him sole depend,
Merciful over all His works, with good
Still overcoming evil, and by small
Accomplishing great things--by things deemed weak
Subverting worldly strong, and worldly wise
By simply meek, that suffering for Truth's sake
Is fortitude to highest victory,
And to the faithful death the gate of life--
Taught this by His example whom I now
Acknowledge my Redeemer ever blest._
JOHN MILTON.
O Thou Eternal One before whom from day to day we walk and on whom we
ever depend, help us to-day to love whatever is good and beautiful and
to follow obediently the behests of Thy Spirit. May we overcome evil
with good; and may we accomplish whatever tasks the hours as they pass
demand of us, whether small or great, with such strength as may be
vouchsafed us and with a wisdom begotten of meekness. If we must suffer
for truth's sake may we manifest such humility and fortitude as shall be
conducive to the highest success. Open for us hourly the gates of life,
as those who endeavor to be faithful to their high calling. These favors
we ask in the name of Him who redeems our lives from all evil and crowns
us daily with His loving kindness. Amen.
EDWARD DAY.
March 1
_All the strength of the world and all its beauty, all true joy,
everything that consoles, that feeds hope, or throws a ray of light
along our dark paths, everything that makes us see across our poor
lives a splendid goal and a boundless future, comes to us from
people of simplicity, those who have made another object of their
desires than the passing satisfaction of selfishness and vanity,
and have understood that the art of living is to know how to give
one's life._
CHARLES WAGNER.
Heavenly Father, help us to be like Thyself, as manifested in the person
of Jesus Christ, Thy Son! It was His will to do the will of His Father
by living and dying for others. Teach us so to live. Help us to learn by
positive personal experience that supremest joy comes only "in
ministering unto others." Teach us what Jesus meant when He said: "I am
among you as he that serveth." Plant deeply within us His passion for a
life of service. May our morning hours be gladdened and inspired by this
divine purpose. Let Thy holy will be done in us this day. Amen.
CHARLES PARKHURST.
March 2
_The year's at the spring
And day's at the morn;
Morning's at seven;
The hill-side's dew-pearled;
The lark's on the wing;
The snail's on the thorn;
God's in His heaven--
All's right with the world!_
ROBERT BROWNING.
Father in Heaven, refreshed and heartened by the night, we begin again
with Thee the high adventure of our life. Add to the beauty of the world
about us a finer spiritual beauty in our souls. Save us from our own
undoing. If our thoughts are dark, shine in upon them with Thy glory; if
they be bright, make them to light the pathway of another. Have us
wholesomely to forget ourselves, in the joy of Thy good world, the
promise of our imperfection and the trust in God that maketh not afraid.
And when the duties of the day are done, dismiss us, Thy well-meaning
children, with a quiet mind to rest. Amen.
ALBERT WELLMAN HITCHCOCK.
March 3
_We will do something worth doing--that is the resolution for you
and me._
EDWARD EVERETT HALE.
_We admire the man who embodies victorious efforts, the man who
never wrongs his neighbor, who is prompt to help a friend, but who
has those virile qualities necessary to win in the stern strife of
actual life._
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
Father of Lights in whom is no darkness at all, and in whose light we
see light, help us to clearly see and never forget that only right deeds
are worthy of a child of Thine. May we in no moment forget that to yield
to the wrong is to bring upon us Thy just condemnation and sow for us a
sure reaping of sorrowful repentance. By doing the things we know to be
right and worth doing, the things worthy of our true selves and of our
Father and of our Master whose we are, may this day, through us, yield
some benefit to other children of Thine, and bring to us the sweet
reward of Thine approval. Amen.
OSCAR F. SAFFORD.
March 4
_It is worth a thousand pounds a year to have the habit of looking
on the bright side of things._
SAMUEL JOHNSON.
_Not by appointment do we meet delight and joy;
They wait not our expectancy;
But round some corner in the street of life,
They, on a sudden, greet us with a smile._
GERALD MASSEY.
Our Father, at the beginning of a new day, refreshed by the night's
rest, we turn to Thee for strength for the day's task. We know not what
the hours hold for us, but this we do know, that come what may, Thou
wilt go with us to bless, to cheer; we shall not walk or work alone. As
we faithfully and cheerfully perform our work, conscious of Thy
presence, there will come joys and smiles unexpected and unsought. This
is Thy way of teaching us faithfulness and endurance. May we soon learn,
that if we would make the day happy and worth while, we must not seek
our own pleasure and good, but that of our brethren. May we so live that
when the night shadows are again upon us, there shall be no cause for
shame or regret. In the Master's spirit! Amen.
O. HOWARD PERKINS.
March 5
_Not in dumb resignation we lift our hands on high;
Not like the nerveless fatalist, content to do and die.
Our faith springs, like the eagle's, who soars to meet the sun,
And cries exulting unto Thee, "Oh, Lord, Thy will be done."_
_Thy will! It bids the weak be strong; it bids the strong be just;
No lips to fawn, no hand to beg, no brow to seek the dust,
Wherever man oppresses men beneath the liberal sun,
O Lord, be there, Thine arm made bare, Thy righteous will be done._
JOHN HAY.
It is with the beautiful assurance of Thy love and kindness, our Father,
that we draw nigh unto Thee. It is Faith that seems to give us wings by
which we rise above the darkness, into Thy Presence of light and love.
We feel our divine relationship to Thee, so that we lift up our hands to
Thee, as the child to the parent. We are content to do Thy will, because
we know then just what it is to love Thee. Our Master taught us this
great lesson by His own faith in Thee. To do Thy will means strength to
the weak, hope to the hopeless. To the sorrowing there can be seen,
beyond the tear, the rainbow of Thy promise. Thus, as we realize our
sonship will we work to make all men feel their own power, and all
become one in Thy great love. May Thy Kingdom come and Thy will be done,
in Christ our Lord. Amen.
C. E. FISHER.
March 6
_If you are my friend you cannot be indifferent to my faults of
character, any more than you can be indifferent to my sickness or
suffering. But, if you care to help me cure these faults, please
let them alone! Please make much of my good qualities if you can
discover any. And especially bless me with the encouraging sight of
a better man than myself, and cheer me with a high example. I know
that there are times when a sharp or gentle rebuke is in order, and
that "faithful are the wounds of a friend." But the wiser doctors
have lost their faith in blood-letting; and they know that clumsy
surgery kills more than it cures._
CHARLES G. AMES.
In our prayer, our Heavenly Father, we desire to be consciously grateful
for the opportunities this new day affords us of being helpful to each
other. The inspiration so to act comes from Thee. Thou art the constant
and never-failing Helper of Thy children. May we be mindful of the fact
that our noblest service to another may not be an alms, but a look of
encouragement, a word of cheer. Enable us to be not too sensible of
others' faults and failings. Assist us to see and magnify the good in
other lives. To this end may we be to others such examples in conduct
and character as we would have them be to us. We offer and ask all in
the spirit of Jesus. Amen.
LEROY W. COONS.
March 7
_The mariner of old said to Neptune in a great tempest, "O God!
Thou mayest save me if Thou wilt, and if Thou wilt Thou mayest
destroy me, but whether or no, I will steer my rudder true."_
MONTAIGNE.
_I go to prove my soul
I see my way as birds their trackless way.
I shall arrive! what time, what circuit first,
I ask not; but unless God send His hail
Or blinding fire-balls, sleet or stifling snow,
In some time, His good time, I shall arrive;
He guides me and the bird. In His good time!_
ROBERT BROWNING.
Once more we face the day that can be dreadful only to our poor sight
and trembling faith. For Thou hast made flame and pain, the hurricane
and quaking earth to be Thy ministers of grace. Shall trust depart when
shadows fall? Thou art "in the shadow keeping watch above Thine own." As
truly in severity as in gentleness, Thou art the All-Loving and
All-Wise. Shall we fear to go anywhere? Lord, Thou art everywhere!
Defend us only from the blindness and fear of ignorance and sin. Draw us
nearer to Thee, this day, by any means in Thy good pleasure, so that at
last, truly knowing Thy way, we shall rise above the worst that
circumstances may do into joy unspeakable and peace unbroken. In the
name of Him made perfect through suffering. Amen.
HENRY B. TAYLOR.
March 8
_We complain of the slow, dull life we are forced to lead, of our
humble sphere of action, of our low position in the scale of
society, of our having no room to make ourselves known, of our
wasted energies, of our years of patience. So do we say that we
have no Father who is directing our life, so do we say that God has
forgotten us, so do we boldly judge what life is best for us, and
so by our complaining do we lose the use and profit of the quiet
years._
BISHOP HUNTINGTON.
Infinite and Holy One, by the tender mercies of Thy great love show us
this day the true life that is hid in Thee. Feed us with Thy spirit that
we hunger not. Make us strong and merciful in Thee. Help us to be
simple, brave, and true. Give us to speak and live the truth. Make us
content with life while ever dreaming of the more perfect day. Fix our
lives in a great and brave integrity. Humble us in our pride, lift us
from our despondency. Keep our hearts pure and our lips from speaking
guile. Send us forth in perfect faith that here and now our lives may be
patterned after that of Jesus without loss of influence over men. Make
us not ashamed to be good and forgiving and gentle in all our ways.
Amen.
FREDERICK W. BETTE.
March 9
_Count each affliction, whether light or grave,
God's messenger sent down to thee; do thou
With courtesy receive him; rise and bow;
And, ere his shadow pass thy threshold, crave
Permission first his heavenly foot to lave._
* * * * *
_Grief should be
Like joy, majestic, equable, sedate,
Confirming, cleansing, raising, making free.
Strong to consume small troubles; to commend
Great thoughts, grave thoughts, thoughts lasting to the end._
AUBREY DEVERE.
Our Father, we would learn to trust Thy love, to live so that Thy grace
shall have in us its perfect work. Not the easy thing is what we ask,
but strength for duty. Give us the confidence that Thou art by our side.
Let Thy strong touch be felt, Thy blessed presence seen. In all the
turmoil that rages within, without, grant us Thy peace. In childish
helplessness, grant us the Father's help. To grow like Jesus is our
heart's desire. All things that Thy great heart permits or sends, we
would receive with gratitude, that so our wills and lives may be in
harmony with Thine. And so day by day may something of the Saviour's
glory shine through us and bless and brighten other lives in need. Amen.
FRANK M. HOLT.
March 10
_Dawn and its silence draw a silver sigh
Far in the east where early shadows lie
All flocked and folded like soft peaceful sheep.
The spirit of the spring stirs in its sleep,
Breathes into life a misty floating sheen;
The willows dreamy drip of constant green;
Exultant beats a bird-heart o'er a nest,
Where dim, vague stirrings 'neath the tiny breast
Spell fresh the miracle of motherhood.
Ah, how the world is young! ah, how 'tis good!
To feel the new life flutter mystic wing;
Like to a lark to feel one's soul upspring,
Transpierce the very limit of the sky,
And toss its challenge to Eternity!_
MARY BALDWIN.
O God, our heavenly Father, make our hearts exultant, as the earth in
the spring morning, with the radiance of Thy Presence. Fill them with
the joy and hopefulness of eternal youth, and cause them to be uplifted
in gratitude and thankfulness to Thee. We have seen earthly faces so
beaming with the light of love that we never shall forget them. We have
spoken names that are so endeared to us that they will linger in our
memory as long as we live. So, O Father, may it be with Thy face and Thy
name. May Thy face beaming upon us as the sun of righteousness win our
love to holiness and virtue, making us fruitful of good works, and Thy
name be so woven in our affections that we shall cherish and hallow it
forever. Amen.
EDGAR W. PREBLE.
March 11
_You must be serving something, some one, that needs your help in
order to really appreciate the Divine care. It may be the parents'
care of their children; the teacher and her scholars; the
charity-worker and the poor, the friendless, the benighted; it may
be friend helping friend--in some way the life of loving service
must be there as something out of which God can help us think of
and value the care which infinite love bestows upon us._
JULIAN K. SMYTH.
Heavenly Father, with the opening of a new day we thank Thee for father
love and mother love, for love of patriot and philanthropist, and for
the love which that has called into being in our own hearts. Through
this love and the service of mutual helpfulness to which we have been
led thereby, Thou openest our eyes to behold the world pervaded and
overruled by a spirit of infinite goodness, society resting upon mutual
services, and through that service mankind rising to a nobler and
diviner civilization. Help us to be mindful of this heavenly vision, and
so make our feet swift to run and our hands eager to work in the service
of righteousness and mutual helpfulness. We ask in His name, who loving
us, has taught us the divinity of service. Amen.
LEGRAND POWERS.
March 12
_Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs
even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor
spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the
gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat._
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
_But only he whose judgment never strays
Beyond the threshold of the right, learns this--
Not always is it good to have one's wish;
What seemeth sweet full oft to bitter turns;
Fulfilled desire hath made mine eyes to weep.
Therefore, O reader of these lines, if thou
Would'st virtuous be, and held by others dear
Will ever for the power to do aright._
LEONARDO DA VINCI.
God of the morning light, with the dawn of another day we come to Thee
with prayer for help in the steadfastness of our manifold duties. The
cares that oppress us, the burdens we carry, the obligations that fall
upon us, are too much for our little strength without Thy help. That
help we crave from Thee, the only source of all-availing strength. Let
us not be dismayed by the powers of this world or busy ourselves in vain
ambitions seeking the praise of men, but may we seek that Divine
approval which is of more worth than all the favors of earth. Make us
brave and strong to follow in the way of Thine appointment, and grant
that we may so sincerely feel and act in the busy times of this day that
when the evening comes no wasted hours may be laid to our charge. Amen.
EDWARD M. BARNEY.
March 13
_You are in God's world; you are God's child. Those things you
cannot change; the only peace and rest and happiness for you is to
accept them and rejoice in them. When God speaks to you, you must
not believe that it is the wind blowing or the torrent falling from
the hill. You must know that it is God. You must gather up the
whole power of meeting Him. You must be thankful that life is great
and not little. You must listen as if listening were your life. And
then, then only can come peace. All other sounds will be caught up
into the prevailing richness of that voice of God. The lost
proportions will be perfectly restored. Discord will cease; harmony
will be complete._
PHILLIPS BROOKS.
Almighty God! We thank Thee for the peace and comfort of the night; for
the new day and all the hope and peace and promise that it brings to us.
Help us that with glad faces and joyous hearts we may take up its every
privilege and duty, doing, in the spirit of the Master every good and
helpful thing our hands find to do. And when the evening shall have come
may we look back on a day of plenty, service, and peace, retiring to our
rest with songs in our hearts and thanksgiving on our lips because Thy
blessings have been on this, as on all other days new every morning and
fresh every evening. Amen.
GEORGE MAYO GERRISH.
March 14
_It is the first mild day of March:
Each minute sweeter than before,
The red-breast sings from the tall larch
That stands beside our door._
_There is a blessing in the air,
Which seems a sense of joy to yield,
To the bare trees and mountain bare,
And grass in the green field._
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH.
Our Father, we wake each morning refreshed and thankful for the joy of
living; for the air we breathe, the things we see, the sounds of
nature's sweetest harmonies and all the beauty which surrounds our
earthly life. May the wonders of the earth speak to us in witness of Thy
love. Let springing-grass and opening flower remind us of the new life
which is ours through the resurrection of our Lord. His blessing like
the light of the sun runs everywhere, carrying with it morning and hope,
springtime and gladness. The joy is in the song of the birds, the murmur
of the waters, the children's laughter and the song of happy hearts.
Attune our hearts to notes of praise and make us glad upon the earth
until Thou bringest us to perfect and unshadowed joys where we shall see
Thee as Thou art and be like Thee. Amen.
J. W. STEPHAN.
March 15
_As to equality and inequality, all the beauty and glory of life
come from inequalities. If we were all Beethovens or Shakespeares
or marvelous in any one direction, life would be unbearable. Who
shall tell me if an Easter lily is the equal of a rose, or if
either is equal to an oak or a pine? The question of equality is
out of the court. The one thing we need to do is to cultivate the
finest and sweetest things in us; and then, whether we are one of
the California big trees or the violet in a valley, we shall help
on the beauty and glory of the earth._
ROBERT COLLYER.
Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the manifold beauties of Thy
universe, the revelations of Thyself to Thy children. For those large
wonders which stir men's minds and rouse their souls to awe, we thank
Thee, but not less for the little things of life, filling their places
well, and showing daily to the seeing eye that without them Thy universe
could not be complete. Help us to grasp the lesson that they teach. If
Thou hast given to us the great place, we thank Thee, but we thank Thee
not less for the homely task, the humble duty, for it is all necessary
to Thy plan. Help us, day by day, with stronger purpose, larger
consecration, to fill our place, to do Thy will, in His name. Amen.
GEORGE F. FORTIER.
March 16
_There must be a way of taking worry rightly, so that it shall do
us good and not harm. Worry, rightly taken, should train to
quietness, humility, patience, gentleness, sympathy. It ought not
to eventuate (though it naturally does) in making others suffer
because we are uncomfortable; in making us a source of painful
worry to others because we are worried ourselves._
A. H. K. BOYD.
Father of Love, Thy blessing it is which gives us another day. Help us
to put before its cares the spirit that will banish care, to find in its
beginning the power that will make labors happy and its ending sweet,
and so to open our hearts to Thy light that no gloom of night shall
linger round our way. If heaviness there be in ours or others' lives may
every wholesome cheer make it less sore. If remembered faults and
follies quench a better hope, send Thy patience and Thy will to be our
courage and fresh resolve. Through all the noisy world may the secret
music of Thy law swell in our breasts and every step keep time with its
glorious march. Amen.
JOHN DAY.
March 17
_Therefore to whom turn I but to Thee, the ineffable Name?
Builder and maker, Thou, of houses not made with hands!
What, have fear of change from Thee who art ever the same!
Doubt that Thy power can fill the heart that Thy power expands!
There shall never be one lost good! What was, shall live as before;
The evil is null, is nought, is silence implying sound;
What was good, shall be good, with, for evil, so much good more;
On the earth the broken arcs; in the heaven, a perfect round._
ROBERT BROWNING.
We thank Thee, O God, that each morning brings us fresh assurance of Thy
wisdom and goodness--that the days have taught us to believe in Thee and
to trust Thee as our perfect Friend. We are glad that we can face the
day in the faith that Thou art sufficient to the needs of the day--to
all the needs of all Thy children. In this trust, we beseech Thee, make
us more and more to rejoice in life and its high privileges. Help us to
go on our way with gladness and peace in our hearts--to worship Thee
hourly by honest work, by faithful service, by kind words, by helpful
deeds, and so, to find life good by doing something to make it good.
Amen.
FLINT M. BISSELL.
March 18
_"If I were you," she said, "I should not worry. Just make up your
mind to do better when you get another chance. One can't do more
than that. That is what I shall think of: that God will give each
of us another chance, and that each one of us will take it and do
better--I and you and everyone. So there is no need to fret over
failure, when one hopes one may be allowed to redeem that failure
later on. Besides which life is very hard. Why, we ourselves
recognize that. If there be a God, some intelligence greater than
human intelligence, He will understand better than ourselves that
life is very hard and difficult, and He will be astonished not
because we are not better, but because we are not worse. At least,
that would be my notion of a God. I should not worry if I were you.
Just make up your mind to do better if you get the chance and be
content with that."_
BEATRICE HARRADEN.
O Lord, how often we have failed--how weak and frail we are--we have
groped and stumbled along the pathway of life and have been defeated
over and over again. Yet in the light of Thy providence and Thy love in
spite of all defeats, we take heart and face the day with hope. In Thine
economy no failure is ever final--we rejoice that Thou openest before us
another opportunity. Let us be brave and earnest to seize the
opportunities of these passing hours. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
March 19
_To every life there comes a time supreme:
One day, one night, one morning, or one noon,
One freighted hour--one moment opportune,
One rift through which sublime fulfilments gleam;
One time when fate goes tiding with the stream,
One Once in balance 'twixt Too Late, Too Soon--
And ready for the passing instant's boon
That shall in favor tip the wavering beam.
Ah! happy he who, knowing how to wait,
Knows also how to watch and how to stand
On life's broad deck alert, and at the prow,
To seize the happy moment big with fate
From Opportunity's extended hand
When the great clock of Destiny strikes Now!_
MARY ASHLEY TOWNSEND.
Our heavenly Father! Thou art the Author of all our days, and all our
times and seasons are hid in the unfolding mystery of Thy Thought and
Purpose. It is not given to us to know what a day or an hour may bring
forth, but the opportune moments come, ways are opened before us to
larger life and usefulness and privilege and duty. May we, by
faithfulness, and watchfulness, and the readiness of those on duty, be
prepared for each divinely offered opportunity. Surrounded by blessings,
may we live to bless. Ministered unto, may we minister. Grateful to
Thee, may we show our gratitude by service. In Thy name, Amen.
DWIGHT M. HODGE.
March 20
_Put out of your thought the past whatever it may be; let go even
the future with its golden dream and its high ideal; and
concentrate your soul in this burning, present moment. For the man
who is true to the present is true to his best; and the soul that
wins the ground immediately before it, makes life a triumph._
OZORA STEARNS DAVIS.
Almighty Giver of every good, we come to Thee amid the joys of a new
morning, with its new blessings and opportunities. We would dedicate
this day to Thy service. We would forget the past and waste not our time
in idle dreaming of to-morrow, but with consecrated zeal we would apply
ourselves to the tasks Thou hast appointed us for this present hour. Thy
hand is ever opened to let down the tokens of Thy love. May all that is
best within us rise up in answer, and may we be dedicated anew to our
upbuilding in righteousness and the fulfilment of our duties to one
another. May we this day follow the footsteps of the Christ and prove
ourselves His faithful disciples! Amen.
R. PERRY BUSH.
March 21
_I believe that today is better than yesterday, and that tomorrow
will be better than today._
GEORGE F. HOAR.
_Make yourselves nests of pleasant thoughts, bright fancies,
faithful sayings; treasure-houses of precious and restful thoughts,
which care cannot disturb nor poverty take away from you,--houses
built without hands for your souls to live in._
JOHN RUSKIN.
Dear Father in heaven, around Thy name cluster the most sacred and holy
affections. Thy name, indeed, is above every name infinite in love, and
awakening in each heart a sense of filial gratitude. At this morning
hour, therefore, we are mindful of the tie that binds us to Thee, that
provides a nesting-place for pleasant and restful thoughts, that makes
duty less irksome, home-love more tender, sacrifice more willing, and
character more noble. In this spirit we pray Thee, O Father, send us
forth to the labor which awaits us, only to realize, under Thy
Providence, that this is the best day of our life, and full of assurance
and rejoicing for a still better tomorrow. In the light of faith, hope
and love do we ask and offer all. Amen.
WILBURN D. POTTER.
March 22
_Scarce tangible may be the first glad sign,
Yet how it shakes us with a vernal thrill!
The voice of the south wind behind the hill;
Or an elusive bird-note faint and fine;
A flush at dawn along the wan sky-line;
A lyrical exuberance in the rill;
A something working its mysterious will
Both in majestic hole and tenuous vine!_
_It is the vernal spirit. In the earth
It throbs and pulses; quickens in the air;
And permeates all nature thro' and thro'.
In the expectant poignancy of birth
What raptures, what rare ecstasies we share--
Old,--ah, how old!--and yet forever new!_
CLINTON SCOLLARD.
O God, how good Thou art! All Thy works praise Thee. The world is filled
with Thy glory. This dawning Springtime brings Thee very near every
responsive heart. Thou art the fountain of life. We see Thee in bursting
bud and incipient bloom. We hear Thee in the rapture of birds and in the
new-found gladness of sun-kissed rivulets. May we, the children of Thy
love, be new born into a deeper spirituality,--a richer life! May the
beauty of the Spirit breathing through our hearts call forth the latent
goodness that slumbers there! Speak through us the music of Thy love.
Perfume us with the odors of Thy heavenly grace, and may we walk this
day in tune with Thee! Amen.
JOSEPH COOPER.
March 23
_Work is the grand cure of all the maladies and miseries that ever
beset mankind--honest work, which you intend getting done._
THOMAS CARLYLE.
_Thank God every morning when you get up that you have something to
do which must be done whether you like it or not. Being forced to
work and forced to do your best will breed in you temperance,
self-control, diligence, strength of will, content and a hundred
virtues which the idle will never know._
CHARLES KINGSLEY.
Kind Father and Friend, Thy presence has watched over us all our days
and has been a comfort in all our labors. We thank Thee for Thy
unwearied watching over us. May we at the dawn of this new day, come to
our tasks with thanks in our hearts and a song on our lips. May all
life's stern duties and its perplexities get grace and beauty from our
hallowed thoughts and sanctified resolves. We would ask that Thy free
spirit be with us this day to give us hope and joy in our several tasks.
May the sweet peace of mind of those who learn to labor and to wait
crown all our efforts. Dear Father, forgive our failures and keep us
ever Thine. Amen.
CHARLES E. PETTY.
March 24
_Ah, the mis-takings and the mis-leavings; and all the ignorant
beginning, when we can only lay up things for late wisdom to repent
of!_
_Nothing really bad can ever happen.... I've meant right,--and I
mean right now. I'll do the best I can, and the Lord will take care
of everybody._
MRS. A. D. T. WHITNEY.
Lord, Thou comest to us with light and life, forgive us for coming to
Thee as aliens and beggars; daily Thou art our refuge and strength, and
this should subtract our fear and multiply our confidence, comfort and
consecration. Our needs are Thy opportunity; we have more sunshine than
we can use, more love than we can repay and more revelation than we can
translate. O may this satisfy us early and strengthen us through all our
days. Alone we are very weak, but we are never alone; all of life is a
company affair, for Thou art with us; help us to be as truly Thy
children as Thou art our Father and Mother. Through our thinking,
working and waiting may men see Thee and glorify Thee. O teach us to
abide ever in Thy love, and help us to work some helpful miracle by the
gates of need, and to see the rainbow of prophecy through earth's tears
and over its years. Amen.
ALAN R. TILLINGHAST.
March 25
_'Tis the fine souls who serve us, and not what is called fine
society._
RALPH WALDO EMERSON.
_We find what we look for in the world. I have always been looking
for the nobler qualities in human beings, and I have always found
them. There are great souls all along the highway of life, and
there are great qualities even in the people who seem common and
weak to us ordinarily._
ELLA WHEELER WILCOX.
Gracious Father, we thank Thee for the power Thou hast given us to labor
for our own and others' advancement and happiness. As we begin this new
day we trust in Thy bounty and would draw on Thy strength to sustain us
in our toil. We thank Thee for the brave souls in every walk of life who
have set us an example worthy to be followed. Many have been or are
notable in the world for their fortitude, honor and achievements; many
others have been known to us but have been unheralded by men, and from
all these we have ourselves been made more capable and faithful. By Thy
grace may we be aided in emulating the good we see in others, and be
able to make the world a little brighter because of Thy gift to us of
this day. Amen.
FRANK S. RICE.
March 26
_An old, worn Harp that had been played
Till all its strings were loose and frayed,
Joy, Hate, and Fear, each one, assayed
To play. But each in turn had found
No sweet responsiveness of sound._
_Then Love the Master-player came
With heaving breast and eyes aflame;
The Harp he took all undismayed,
Smote on its strings, still strange to song,
And brought forth music sweet and strong._
PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR.
Heavenly Father, I pray Thee that Thou wilt help me to love to-day. Thou
art Love and if Thou shalt fill my life there will be no room for hate
and no room for fear, for "Perfect Love casteth out fear." As the Master
stilled the waves in Galilee, so speak Thou peace to my soul, and bid
all discord cease, that my whole life may be in tune with heaven, and
may be one happy song. Love alone can bring harmony out of discord, love
out of hate, trust out of fear, and music out of a worn-out, or a long
unused or misused life. So let Love control the whole of my life for
Jesus' sake. Amen.
B. L. JENNINGS.
March 27
_No stream from its source
Flows seaward, how lonely soever its course,
But some land is gladdened. No star ever rose
Or set without influence somewhere. Who knows
What earth needs from earth's lowliest creature? No life
Can be pure in its purpose and strong in its strife,
And all life not be purer and stronger thereby._
OWEN MEREDITH.
If I am this day to touch other lives helpfully so that they may be
gladdened and strengthened for truer and nobler living, I shall need, my
Father, not only a clear perception of myself in relation to that to
which Thou dost call me, but also a clear vision of the Christ who would
be felt through me, not only the impulse of a strong purpose but also
the endowment of power by Thy spirit of power. That this may be, do Thou
test my purpose by that of Thy son and fashion my life by His teaching,
keeping my heart open always toward Thee. Amen.
F. H. WHEELER.
March 28
_I but open my eyes,--and perfection, no more and no less,
In the kind I imagined, full-fronts me, and God is seen God,
In the star, in the stone, in the flesh, in the soul and the clod.
And thus looking within and around me, I ever renew
(With that stoop of the soul which in bending upraises it too)
The submission of man's nothing-perfect to God's all-complete,
And by each new obeisance in spirit, I climb to His feet._
ROBERT BROWNING.
Thou Infinite Spirit, we cannot understand Thee, yet we feel Thy
presence within us and about us. We cannot unravel the mystery of Thy
life, not even of our own lives, yet we feel ourselves linked as by
chains of steel to Thyself. We are poor and ignorant and little and
finite; Thou art great and strong and infinite, yet we cling to the
thought that we are Thy children. Even in Thine infinity Thou stoopest
to listen to us. Thou carest for us, lovest us. O Thou Father of our
Souls, may we cling to Thee to-day and every day. We do not ask Thee to
explain Thyself, but we do ask that in storm and sunshine, in adversity
and in prosperity, and in every emergency we may keep our anchorage to
Thee unbroken, and feel Thy presence with us. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
March 29
_I wonder why it is that we are not all kinder to each other than
we are. How much the world needs it! How easily it is done!_
HENRY DRUMMOND.
_Let us awaken to the divine privilege of sharing the heartaches of
our friends; of the meaning of good fellowship; of that
independence of spirit that does not imitate; of courage and pride
that can endure adversity with dignity, and without fear._
ANONYMOUS.
Our Heavenly Father, help us through this new day to allow the impulses
of our hearts to have fullest play. Help us to help each other, Lord,
and of whatever grace or influence we have to bless and uplift our
fellowmen to give generously and gladly. Help us scatter sunshine along
our pathway, to speak the cheering word to discouraged hearts and to
lend the helping hand to feeble or halting ones along the way. May we
find our greatest happiness following in the footsteps of our Master,
humbly serving our neighbor's needs, and doing good even at every
wayside opportunity. Amen.
JAMES F. ALBION.
March 30
_Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side;
Some great cause, God's new Messiah, offering each the bloom or blight,
Parts the goats upon the left hand, and the sheep upon the right,
And the choice goes by forever 'twixt that darkness and that light._
JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
Almighty Father, we are before Thee, asking for strength this day, that
for today's duty we may have the help of Thy Infinite wisdom, as we know
we have Thy love, Our Father with His Children. Father, help us to look
to Thee for strength and wisdom in every moment of doubt. We are not
afraid, because we can come to Thee for counsel, and companionship. We
can come to Thee for everything, and we find everything if we seek for
it with all our heart and soul and strength. So today, Father, be with
us to show each one of us here, the youngest or the oldest, the weakest
or the strongest, what is the duty next his hand today, that we may
enter into that work and go about our Father's business. Go with us and
be with us as with Thine own children. Amen.
EDWARD EVERETT HALE.
March 31
_I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my duty and
joy to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and
noble._
HELEN KELLER.
_It is a fine notion of life to liken it to the loom. God puts on
the warp in those circumstances in which we find ourselves, and
which we cannot change. The woof is wrought by the shuttle of
everyday life. It is made of very homely threads sometimes, common
duties, unpromising and unwelcome tasks. But whoever tries to do
each day's work in the spirit of patient loyalty to God is weaving
the texture whose other side is fairer than the one he sees._
ANONYMOUS.
Our Father in heaven, grant that we may be "faithful in that which is
least," leaving to Thy will whether we have the opportunity of being
"faithful in much." May we understand that the value of our service is
not so much in what we do as the spirit in which we do it. Help us to
remember that no service is common in Thy sight, if it is done for Thy
glory and the betterment of humanity; that in blessing others, we
ourselves are blessed; that life is mostly made up of little things, but
a character which is perfected by Thy grace and humble service is not a
little thing, but a jewel to shine in Thy crown forever. Amen.
E. T. CURNICK.
April 1
_April is here!
There's a song in the maple, thrilling and new;
There's a flash of wings of heaven's own hue;
There's a veil of green on the nearer hills;
There's a burst of rapture in woodland rills;
There are stars in the meadow dropped here and there;
There's a breath of arbutus in the air;
There's a dash of rain, as if flung in jest;
There's an arch of color spanning the west;
April is here!_
EBEN E. REXFORD.
O God, ever-living and ever-acting, all Thy works praise Thee, and Thy
saints bless Thee! We rejoice that Thou art bringing in this new
springtime, and art preparing to pour out Thy summer glory and bounty in
garden and field and wood, that Thy children may be richly blessed. As
Thou art working mightily in nature today so wilt Thou work in us, Thy
children, that the blessed fruits of the Spirit may appear in all that
we think and do and are? And may the spontaneous spring song of the
woods find its counterpart in the perpetual gladness of our souls sunk
deep in the love of Christ! Amen.
HENRY IRVING CUSHMAN.
April 2
_The sweetest sound our whole year round
'Tis the first robin of the spring!
The song of the full orchard choir,
Is not so fine a thing._
EDMUND CLARENCE STEDMAN.
_The grass comes, the flower laughs where lately lay the snow,
O'er the breezy hill top hoarsely calls the crow,
By the flowing river the alder catkins swing
And the sweet song sparrow cries, "Spring, it is Spring!"_
CELIA THAXTER.
Accept from a heart of gratitude, O God, thanksgiving and praises for
the glad anticipation of the coming days of spring. May the awakening of
nature, this living garment in which Thou hast robed Thy mysterious
loveliness, be to each of Thy children symbol of the new life which
comes to those who put their trust in the risen Christ and of the higher
life beyond where shadows are no more and light and gladness bless an
eternity of joy. O, Thou Father of lights, make every hour of this
opening day rich and radiant with Thy effulgent presence through Jesus
Christ. Amen.
KERR BOYCE TUPPER.
April 3
_Within my earthly temple there's a crowd;
There's one of us that's humble, one that's proud,
There's one that's broken-hearted for his sins,
There's one that unrepentant sits and grins;
There's one that loves his neighbor as himself,
And one that cares for naught but fame and pelf.
From much corroding care I should be free
If I could once determine which is me._
THEODORE MARTIN.
Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for our multiform life. Thou hast
made us a little lower than the angels and hast crowned us with glory
and honor, yet how little we know ourselves! We go astray; we fall from
our high estate; like the moth we flutter around the blaze that burns
us. When we would do good, evil is present with us. Yet through all
complexity of thought and feeling, of passion and appetite, through all
our wanderings and all our sins we thank Thee that there shines clearly
the light of our own Divinity. We are Thy children. Help us, we pray
Thee, to know ourselves at our best. May we not be betrayed in this
day's journey by any siren voice. Let us go forth to the tasks of the
day with the consciousness that until the evening shadows fall Thou wilt
be with us. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
April 4
_If we but knew the secret of that power
That opes the bud in early days of spring,
If we but knew what makes the robin sing
His wondrous song just at the matin hour,
If we but knew the priceless boon and dower
Of human life when man is truly king.
If we but understood the little thing
That vexes us just at the present hour,
If we but knew--ah, well, 'tis vain to sigh
And speculate on things beyond our ken!
We know that earth is fair and life is sweet,
And something tells us that we cannot die.
And if we live and love the good, ah! then
We face to face with truth some day must meet._
CLARENCE HAWKES.
O Lord, we thank Thee for a day so sweet and fair as this, when the
trees lift up their hands in a psalm of gratitude to Thee, and every
little flower that opens its cup and every wandering bird seem filled by
Thy spirit, and grateful to Thee. We thank Thee for all thine
handwritings of revelation on the walls of the world, on the heavens
above us and the ground beneath, and all the testimonies recorded there
of Thy presence, Thy power, Thy justice, and Thy love. Amen.
THEODORE PARKER.
April 5
_Yet we must give the children leave to use
Our garden tools, though they spoil tool and plant
In learning. So the Master may not scorn
Our awkwardness, as with these bungling hands
We try to unroot the ill, and plant with good
Life's barren soil: the child is learning use.
Perhaps the angels even are forbid
To laugh at us, or may not care to laugh,
With kind eyes pitying our little hurts._
EDWARD ROWLAND SILL.
Our Father: Thou knowest how unskilled are these hands and hearts of
ours. Thou knowest how much that we do, think, and speak often tends to
retard the progress of that which we would promote. Give us, then, this
day that wisdom which is from above, that no touch of our hand may mar
the beauty of one of Thy creations: no thought nor word wrong one of Thy
creatures. Help us to know that we are workers with God, and in this
knowledge may we strive for that excellence of service that shall hasten
the coming of that kingdom of peace, joy and righteousness which is life
eternal. Amen.
FLORENCE KOLLOCK CROOKER.
April 6
_Plant flowers in the soul's front yard,
Set out new shade and blossom trees,
An' let the soul once froze an' hard,
Sprout crocuses of new idees._
_Yes, clean yer house, an' clean yer shed,
An' clean yer barn in ev'ry part;
But brush the cobwebs from yer head,
An' sweep the snow banks from yer heart._
SAM WALTER FOSS.
Gracious Father, help us gratefully to begin this day with Thee. We
expect the day to bring its accustomed routine of cares and duties, and
its round of petty irritations, but we confidently believe that Thou
wilt help us in all our experiences. Let this morning's freshness, hope
and vigor be ours through the whole day. Help us to put faith in the
place of fear that all our efforts may be crowned with the success of
helpfulness. May we go blithely about our business with kind words and
cheerful faces that our day's work may be our day's worship. Amen.
AUGUSTUS B. CHURCH.
April 7
_Ye seek for happiness--alas the day!
Ye find it not in luxury nor in gold,
Not in the fame nor in the envied sway,
For which O willing slaves to custom old,
Severe taskmistress, ye your hearts have sold.
Ye seek for peace, and, when ye die, to dream
No evil dreams; all mortal things are cold
And senseless then; if aught survive, I deem
It must be love and joy, for they immortal seem._
SHELLEY.
O Thou Eternal God who hast given us life, help us to love Thy will and
to walk in Thy way this day. If flowers chance to grow beside our path
we would pluck them, but most of all would we rejoice in Thee alone,
knowing that in Thy will is perfect peace. Fill our souls with Thy joy
and strengthen us in the spirit of self-forgetfulness to spill it out
into the lives of others. Give us hearts "roomy, radiant, and full of
laughter," learned of "Jesus Christ, whom not having seen we love; on
whom though now we see Him not, yet believing, we rejoice greatly with
joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving the end of our faith, even
the salvation of our souls." Amen.
WALTER HEALY.
April 8
_A gush of bird song, a patter of dew,
A cloud and a rainbow's warning,
Suddenly sunshine and perfect blue--
An April day in the morning._
HARRIET P. SPOFFORD.
_There is something in the air
That's new and sweet and rare--
There's something too that's new,
In the color of the blue
That's in the morning sky,
Before the sun is high._
NORA PERRY.
Infinite and Holy One, be with us in the beauty of this new day. May the
dewy sweetness of the dawn Thou hast given to us be regarded as a token
of Thy love for Thy children. As an atmosphere of joy and peace may be
the thought of Thy consolation and Thy care. The delicate tints of Thy
sky arching over us may we compare to the blue of a constancy that is
divine, and which is freely shown to even the humblest and more erring
of Thy flock. Bless us and guide us on our pilgrim way, and inspire our
hearts and our hands to perform well their daily task. In His name do we
ask it. Amen.
EDMUND Q. S. OSGOOD.
April 9
_As I have walked in Alabama my morning walk,
I have seen where the she-bird--the mocking-bird sat on her nest
in the briers hatching her brood,
I have seen the he-bird also,
I have paused to hear him near at hand inflating his throat and joyfully
singing,
And while I paused it came to me that what he really sang for was not
there only,
Nor for his mate nor for himself only, nor
All sent back by the echoes,
But subtle, clandestine, away beyond,
A charge transmitted and gift occult for those being born._
WALT WHITMAN.
Thou great Spirit of Life, Our Father, in heaven, and in the earth, with
what myriad voices dost Thou speak to us, sometimes with the voice of
thunder and sometimes with the voice of bird. Even the rocks and hills
have their language. With every manifold voice Thou tellest us that we
do not live nor work for a day only. The song and the word and the work
of today have larger relations. They pass over into other days. We pray
this morning that the thoughts we think, the words we speak, and the
work we do may be so true that they may be fit for another day. So may
we begin _now_ to realize the meaning of Eternal Life. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
April 10
_If the stream had no quiet eddying place, could we so admire its
cascade over the rocks? Were there no clouds, could we so hail the
sky shining through them in its still calm purity?_
_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.
Our Father, with childhood's glowing morning face we would turn to Thee
and be conscious that the brightness of life comes only to those upon
whom the sun of righteousness shines with clear light. Full of trust,
full of joy, we turn our faces towards the light and take up the labors
of life with entire confidence in the Divine care and guidance that
blesses the open vision, the faithful hand and the loving heart. We
would follow our Master, feeling that we could choose no better way, and
content if we be not called to suffer more than He in His life of
service and sacrifice, while our hearts praise the giver of spiritual
things with unceasing happy songs. Amen.
RALPH EDWIN HORNE.
April 11
_Oh, the little birds sang east, and the little birds sang west,
And I smiled to think God's greatness flowed around our incompleteness,--
Round our restlessness, his nest._
ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING.
_And I saw that there was an Ocean of Darkness and Death; but an
infinite Ocean of Light and Love flowed over the Ocean of Darkness;
and in that I saw the infinite Love of God._
GEORGE FOX.
Father of Light, in whom is no darkness at all, to Thee we lift our
longing eyes again. Shine away the darkness of our minds by the light of
Thy presence. Complete our incompleteness. Bring us out of our
restlessness into Thy rest. We thank Thee for our daily gifts,--bread to
feed the body, strength to sustain the soul, light to guide the feet.
Help us to put away the mistakes of the past, remembering them only with
the penitence that shall cause Thee to remember them no more. Help us
all through this day to know ourselves surrounded by Thine Infinite
Love. Amen.
A. GERTRUDE EARLE.
April 12
_Just as you now play a piece without the music and do not think
what notes you strike, though once you picked them out by slow and
patient toil, so, if you begin of set purpose, you will learn the
law of kindness in utterance so perfectly that it will be second
nature to you and make more music in your heart than all the songs
the sweetest voice has ever sung._
FRANCIS E. WILLARD.
Father, we rejoice and will be glad all the day that Thou hast made it
possible for us and all Thy children to learn the sweet song of true
life and that Thou dost give us so many opportunities for its practice.
O Lord, give us patience and kindness toward our fellowmen and trust in
Thee, so that whether the lessons be easy or hard we may take them
cheerfully, believing that Thou dost give us only that which is best.
Grant that we may be earnest and faithful until our souls can sing the
highest, purest and sweetest notes, until we are in harmony with All
Good. Amen.
ABBIE E. DANFORTH.
April 13
_So many little faults we find:
We see them, for not blind
Is love--we see them; but if you and I
Remember them, perhaps, some by and by
They will not be
Faults then, grave faults to you and me,
But just odd ways, mistakes, or even less--
Remembrances to bless._
GEORGE KLINGLE.
Our dear Father in Heaven: for this day help us to be good. All through
the long night Thou hast watched over us. Under Thy wing have we been
sheltered as the chickens under the wing of the mother. Now that light
has come we will help Thee to keep this world sweet and bright and
clean. Help us to be true to this our promise; we resolve to be patient,
steadfast, cheerful, kindly, sturdy, and good. Our Father, we need Thee.
We want to walk in Thy way. Help us, for we are Thy children. Amen.
WILLIAM CHANNING BROWN.
April 14
_The man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder; a waif,
a nothing, no man. Have a purpose in life, if it is only to kill
and divide and sell oxen well, but have a purpose; and having it,
throw such strength of mind and muscle into your work as God has
given you._
THOMAS CARLYLE.
_Neither a borrower nor a lender be;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above all: to thine own self be true
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man._
SHAKESPEARE.
Almighty God, at the commencement of this day's work may we look on
high, and measure everything we are about to do by the scale of
eternity. Keep us from all littleness; may we not be turned aside by
things that are insignificant and unworthy. Help us, we beseech Thee, to
make the glory of our life commensurate with the splendors of our
privileges. May we live life in a great spirit, realizing that there is
no duty so simple, no position so humble, but that we may show forth the
grandeur of trust, and obedience toward Thee. May the great and holy
purpose we cherish find its expression as we cooperate with the divine
purpose. Amen.
J. H. BARKER.
April 15
_'Twas one of those charmed days
When the genius of God doth flow,
The wind may alter twenty ways,
A tempest cannot blow;
It may blow north, it still is warm;
Or south, it still is clear;
Or east, it smells like a clover farm;
Or west, no thunder fear._
RALPH WALDO EMERSON.
Father of Lights, from whom cometh every good and perfect gift, we thank
Thee for the morning and for the sunshine. We rejoice in the light, but
when it is hidden from us, we are thankful that in the upper air above
our clouded morning it still fills Thy heavens. Thou gavest us good
things while we slept, and now, refreshed by Thy Spirit, may we go forth
to our appointed tasks with cheerful obedience and joyful expectation.
If trial and trouble await us, or if, in the heat of the day the burden
seems too great, may we still be comforted, because we put our trust in
Thee. Amen.
GEORGE BATCHELOR.
April 16
_But spring-wind, like a dancing psaltress, passes
Over its breast, to waken it, rare verdure
Buds tenderly upon rough banks between
The withered tree-roots and the cracks of frost,
Like a smile striving with a wrinkled face;
The grass grows bright, the boughs are swol'n with blooms
Like chrysalids impatient for the air,
The shining dors are busy, beetles run
Along the furrows; ants make their ado;
Above, birds fly in merry flocks, the lark
Soars up and up, shivering for very joy;
Afar the ocean sleeps; white fishing gulls
Flit where the sand is purple with its tribe
Of nested limpits; savage creatures seek
Their loves in wood and plain--and God renews
His ancient rapture._
ROBERT BROWNING.
O Lord, who givest to mankind liberally, and upbraidest not, we thank
Thee for the blessings Thou bestowest from day to day. We thank Thee for
this material world, now clad in its garment of Northern beauty, for the
great sun which all day pours down his light upon the waiting and the
grateful world, and for the earth underneath our feet. We bless Thee for
the grass, bread for the cattle, its harvest of use spread everywhere,
and for the various beauty which here and there spangles all useful
things which Thine eye looks down upon. May we use this world of matter
to build up the being that we are to a nobler stature of strength and of
beauty. Amen.
THEODORE PARKER.
April 17
_O brothers all! come near
And hear
A bird's
Melodious dreaming set to words, and flung
The spring's new leaves and tender buds among,
For very joy of life, and hope, and love
In a world made broad enough
For all God's creatures to be merry in,
With joyous clash and din,
And yet too small
For any greed at all!
Lo! deep and sure
Is cut this truth in heaven's book of gold:
Out of one mother in the garden old
Were born the rich and poor._
MAURICE THOMPSON.
Our Father, may we begin this day with a song in our hearts,--a song as
rich and full and free as the bird sings at the earliest dawning of the
sun's light,--a song so attuned with infinite life and hope and love
that it must be sung. Thou giver of abundance unto the rich and poor
alike, help our souls to mount unto the highest reaches of living
thoughts and generous deeds, that we may give unto others as Thou
givest. Unfettered by unholy passions and freed from the spirit of
greed, may we feel the unity of the bonds of a universal brotherhood,
and be just and true, honest, and helpful in all our dealings with all
men this day. Amen.
HENRIETTA G. MOORE.
April 18
_O spring, of hope and love and youth and gladness
Wing-winged emblem! Brightest, best and fairest!
Whence comest thou when with dark Winter's sadness
The tears that fade in sunny smiles thou sharest?
Sister of Joy! thou art the child who wearest
Thy mother's dying smile, tender and sweet:
Thy mother Autumn, for whose grave thou bearest
Fresh flowers, and beams like flowers,
Disturbing not the leaves which are her winding-sheet._
SHELLEY.
God unchanging, and still the creator of the seasons, we look up to
Thee, as the springtide works out the miracle of the resurrection from
the sleeping forms of the past season, in confidence and in trust that
ever Thou wilt bless us with a nobler, holier, sweeter, more wholesome
life, as the seasons come and go. The resources of trusting hearts are
always reinforced and reinvigorated by contact with Thy life, Thy power,
Thy goodness and Thy love. Out of the winter of our discontent, we enter
the springtime of love, that leads us forward in confidence through the
glad summer of growth to the soul's fruition and the place of rest and
peace in our Father's Home beneath Thine everlasting Love. Amen.
FRANCIS A. GRAY.
April 19
_One sound always comes to the ear that is open; it is the steady
drum-beat of Duty. No music in it, perhaps,--only a dry rub-a-dub.
Ah, but that steady beat marks the time for the whole orchestra of
earth and heaven! It says to you: "Do your work,--do the duty
nearest you!" Keep step to that drum-beat, and the dullest march is
taking you home._
GEORGE S. MERRIAM.
O Thou great impelling Spirit, whom we see manifest in all the world, as
we open our eyes to the light of another morning, may we be as
responsive to Thy influence as the sun and the flowers which brighten
our way. May we be very sensitive to Thy promptings as we go about our
day's work. May we be very quick to do the things Thou wouldst have us
do. May we give ourselves to Thy service without reserve. When again the
night shades draw about us, may our hearts be filled with deepest
gratitude for all the experiences of the day, and, deep within, may our
spirits be conscious of Thy approving benediction, "Well done, good and
faithful servant; enter Thou into the joy of Thy Lord." Amen.
FRANK LINCOLN MASSECK.
April 20
_Thyself and thy belongings
Are not thine own so proper as to waste
Thyself upon thy virtues, they on thee.
Heaven doth with us as we with torches do
Not light them for themselves; for if our virtues
Did not go forth of us, 'twere all alike
As if we had them not. Spirits are not finely touched
But to fine issues, nor Nature never lends
The smallest scruple of her excellence
But like a thrifty goddess, she determines
Herself the glory of a creditor,
Both thanks and use._
SHAKESPEARE.
Father, with faith and confidence in Thee we begin the day's duties,
with a blithe song upon our lips, expressing the melody of our souls,
thanking Thee for opportunities for work, and thought and love. We ask
not for more blessings but to be more worthy of those we have, using and
not abusing them. May our minds be open to Thy truth, and hearts to Thy
love, and when received may we be almoners of both to the waiting world.
May we keep by giving Thy love abundantly, and grow through the glory of
self-sacrifice. Give us the heart, O God, to sanctify our work and to
lift it above drudgery into the divinest service, and give us strength
to perform it. Amen.
U. S. MILBURN.
April 21
_A man is simple where his chief care is the wish to be what he
ought to be; that is honestly and naturally human. We may compare
existence to raw material. What it is matters less than what it is
made of; as the value of a work of art lies in the flowering of a
workman's skill. True life is possible in social conditions the
most diverse and with natural gifts the most unequal. It is not
fortune or personal advantage, but our training them to account,
that constitutes the value of life. Fame adds no more than does
length of days; quality is the thing._
CHARLES WAGNER.
Heavenly Father, our eyes are ever toward Thee. We do not pray for the
things of the world. Teach us to walk in Thy truth. Though our days be
few, may our lives be hopeful and cheerful. Though our bodies be frail,
may we be invincible in spirit. All Thy children are immortal, but it is
for us to attain the eternal life. May we know Thee through Jesus. Then
days and hours and minutes will disappear in the liberty and glory and
peace of the life eternal. Then poverty of worldly goods will be
forgotten in the riches of the Spirit. Then the cares of the world that
now is will be lost in the joy of the life that is to be. Amen.
REIGNOLD K. MARVIN.
April 22
_A little sun, a little rain,
A soft wind blowing from the west--
And woods and fields are sweet again
And warmth within the mountain's breast._
_So simple is the earth we tread,
So quick with love and life her frame,
Ten thousand years have dawned and fled.
And still her magic is the same._
STOPFORD A. BROOKE.
Gracious God, we thank Thee for the gift of sight whereby we behold the
marvels of the outer world. But greater is our gratitude for the inner
sight, the power to see things as they ought to be. If we but look deep
enough, we find Thy central laws ever at the heart of all life. With
such insight, apparent confusion shall not bewilder us, life's cares
shall not harden us, the world's show cannot dazzle us. Give us, we pray
Thee, unceasing ability to wonder and admire, which brings perpetual
youth; to hope, to believe, to trust; to rest content in working with
Thee, the Eternal One, Lord of the seasons, this is our heart's desire.
Amen.
EDWARD A. HORTON.
April 23
_"What is the secret of your life?" asked Mrs. Browning of Charles
Kingsley; "tell me, that I may make mine beautiful too." He
replied, "I had a friend." Somewhere in her "Middlemarch," George
Eliot puts it well: "There are natures in which, if they love us,
we are conscious of having a sort of baptism and consecration; they
bind us over to rectitude and purity by their pure belief about us;
and our sins become the worst kind of sacrilege, which tears down
the invisible altar of trust."_
WILLIAM C. GANNETT.
Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for all the sweet and sacred
influences of life. Music comes with its invisible fingers to weave a
magic charm around our souls;--the home with its love is ours,--but we
thank Thee to-day for the sweet and saving influence of friendship,--for
the counsel and fellowship of those who are wise and good and faithful
to us. We would not walk alone--we would find strength in the strength
of others, and faith in other's faith. Let us cherish such fellowships
and give back to those, who love us, love again. Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
April 24
_Live in the sunshine, don't live in the gloom,
Carry some gladness the world to illume.
Live in the brightness, and take this to heart;
The world will seem gayer if you'll do your part.
Live on the housetop, not down in the cell;
Open air Christians live nobly and well.
Live where the joys are, and, scorning defeat,
Have a good-morrow for all whom you meet.
Live as a victor, and triumphing go
Through this queer world, beating down every foe.
Live in the sunshine, God meant it for you!
Live as the robins, and sing the day through._
MARGARET SANGSTER.
O God, our heavenly Father, Thou who givest us the sunshine of this new
day, Thou who art the God of life and light, we ask Thy help and Thy
strength as we again go out to our separate duties and cares. Help us to
fill this day with good deeds, to give cheer and comfort to all we meet.
May our lips be clean. May our hearts be pure. And when the even time
comes, may it find us conscious that we have put no cloud upon the day,
that we have walked through its hours true disciples of the Master who
went about doing good. Amen.
WILLIAM H. MORRISON.
April 25
_To weigh the material in the scales of the personal, and measure
life by the standard of love; to prize health as contagious
happiness, wealth as potential service, reputation as latent
influence, learning for the light it can shed, power for the help
it can give, station for the good it can do--to choose in each case
what is best on the whole, and accept cheerfully incidental evils
involved; to put my whole self into all that I do, and indulge no
single desire at the expense of myself as a whole; to crowd out
fear by devotion to duty, and see present and future as one; to
treat others as I would be treated, and myself as I would my best
friend; and to recognize God's coming kingdom in every institution
and person that helps men to love one another._
WILLIAM DEWITT HYDE.
For the dear love that kept us through the night,
And gave our senses to sleep's gentle sway,
For the new miracle of dawning light,
Flushing the east with prophecies of day,
We thank Thee, O, our God!
For the fresh life that through our being flows,
With its full tide to strengthen and to bless,
For calm, sweet thoughts, upspringing from repose,
To bear to Thee their song of thankfulness,
We praise Thee, O, our God!
Thou knowest our needs, Thy fulness will supply
Our blindness--let Thy hand still lead us on,
Till, visited by the dayspring from on high,
Our prayer, one only, "Let Thy will be done,"
We breathe to Thee, O, God!
Amen.
W. H. BURLEIGH.
April 26
Is it not possible, then, that the hindrances which arrest our
progress, and the obstacles that lie broadly in our path, are the
divinest agents of help which our Creator could give us? The
painful struggles to overcome and remove them develop in us
strength, courage, self-reliance, and heroism. They are the hammer
and chisel that release the statue from the imprisoning
marble,--the plow and the harrow that break up the soil, and mellow
it for the reception of the seed that shall yield an abundant
harvest. Perfection lies that way.
MARY A. LIVERMORE.
We seek Thy face anew this day, O our Father, and ask Thee that Thou
wilt help us to live our lives in constant communion with Thee. Let us
see Thee at every turn in the way. Let us find Thy hand in all our
duties, all our meditations, all our intercourse with men, all our
doings and all our deeds. Help us to make Thee our counsellor every
hour. Help us to undertake nought without Thy blessings, to finish
nought without Thy benediction. Morning and evening may we turn in
prayer to Thy throne. At every meal may we seek Thy grace and give Thee
thanks. So may we find the blessing of them that abide in Thy house.
Amen.
J. COLEMAN ADAMS.
April 27
_I think the sweetest thought, the very central idea, of the
revelation of the character of God to me, is this: that He does
everything out of His supreme will. There is no one thing that I
can say with more heartiness, or that has in it more echoes of joy,
than "Thy will be done." If anything works righteousness in me or
in you, it is God. The nature of God is fruitful in generosity. He
is so good that He loves to do good, and loves to make men good,
and loves to make them happy by making them good. He loves to be
patient with them, and to wait for them, and to pour benevolence
upon them, because that is His nature._
HENRY WARD BEECHER.
Father, we thank Thee for the blessing. We know what are our privileges,
we know what are our duties, and we are before Thee again to consecrate
this day in all its glory and beauty to Thee, the Father of perfect
Love. Thou wilt be with us as we strive to be with Thee. Thou wilt make
us strong when we are weak. Thou wilt make us see where we are in
darkness. Thou wilt send us forth on Thine infinite mission to the
world. Boys or girls, men or women, here we are, the living children of
the living God, sent forward by Thee to proclaim it that all may be one
as Christ Jesus with Thee and Thou with Him, that this world may be
perfected into one, that men may know that Thou art Father and what the
Father has given us to do, that each one of us may lift up what has
fallen down, that each one may open the eyes that are blind and the ears
that are deaf, that each one of us may proclaim the gospel of Thy
perfect love. This is our prayer and our hope, in Christ Jesus. Amen.
EDWARD EVERETT HALE.
April 28
_With every rising of the sun,
Think of your life as just begun._
_The past has shrived and buried deep,
All yesterdays; there let them sleep._
_Nor seek to summon back one ghost
Of that innumerable host._
_Concern yourself with but today.
Woo it, and teach it to obey_
_Your will and wish. Since time began
Today has been the friend of man;_
_But in his blindness and his sorrow,
He looks to yesterday and tomorrow._
_You, and today! a soul sublime,
And the great pregnant hour of time,_
_With God himself to bind the twain!
Go forth, I say, attain, attain!_
ELLA WHEELER WILCOX.
Infinitely wise and loving Father, our minds and hearts reach out to
Thee in this morning hour thankful that the rest of the night has
prepared us for the work of the new day, and that the light brings the
call to service. The past cannot be recalled, but today is ours. I and
today, with God and in the Spirit of Jesus! Priceless privilege! Grant
us, O Father, to use it for Thee, for humanity and "In His name." Amen.
SAMUEL GILBERT AYERS.
April 29
_Life is full of new beginnings. Some change may come, something is
sure to come, to close one chapter and begin another. Life is
planned just so, ... that there should be a break from former link
and habit, often from imperfection and mistake, and a clear, clean
start for the fulfilment of the best one has grown to, even in
desire, unhampered by the poorest one has ever happened to be, or
to get credit for._
MRS. A. D. T. WHITNEY.
O, Thou who dwellest in the light, help Thy children this morning to see
the light of Thy truth and feel the warmth of Thy love. We thank Thee
for the open doors of opportunity for helpful service; for the
exhibition of kindness and for growth in the kingdom of Heaven. May we
clearly see the way to the Eternal life and have strength to walk
therein. May we so welcome Thy truth that we shall be free from error
and sin. May Thy wisdom so guide our energies that we shall reach after
greater perfection. May the evening of this day find us more in harmony
with God than we now are. And may the evening of life find us rich in
the treasures of heaven. Amen.
ANDREW WILLSON.
April 30
_True worth is in being, not seeming;
In doing each day that goes by,
Some little good--not in the dreaming
Of great things to do by and by,
For whatever men say in blindness,
And spite of the fancies of youth,
There's nothing so kingly as kindness,
And nothing so royal as truth._
_We get back our mete as we measure:
We cannot do wrong and feel right;
Nor can we give pain and gain pleasure,
For justice avenges each slight.
The air for the wing of the sparrow,
The bush for the robin and wren,
But always the path that is narrow
And straight for the children of men._
ALICE CARY.
Almighty Father, who with every morning dost give us a new day and with
each day some fresh duty, mercifully equip us for every task that awaits
us! Give us eyes to see, and hearts to love the truth and right, and the
disposition that makes every duty a delight, and the doing of good to
others a sacred privilege. Save us this day from angry passions and low
desires. Forgive us when we are selfish; recall us when we go astray;
save us from wronging ourselves by thinking ill of others, and in all
places and to all people give us the mind which was in Christ Jesus.
Amen.
JOHN CUCKSON.
May 1
_To the Woods:--Whoso goeth in your paths readeth the same cheerful
lesson, whether he be a young child or a hundred years old, comes
he in good fortune or in bad, ye say the same things, and from age
to age. Ever the needles of the pine grow and fall, the acorns on
the oak, the maples redden in autumn and at all times of the year
the ground pine and the pyrola bud and root under foot. What is
called fortune and what is called time by men, ye know them not.
Men have not language to describe one moment of your life._
RALPH WALDO EMERSON.
Thou God of Nature and of the human heart, we thank Thee for our human
relations, but we thank Thee also for our kinship with the birds. We
thank Thee for that instinct which makes us to sympathize with the
mating of the bird lovers and for that music of the heart which makes us
to love the song of the birds. We pray this morning for a life so simple
and natural that we shall be able to enter into sympathetic relations
with everything that lives--the flowers of the garden, and the
field--the bees that sip the flowers' honey, and the bird that makes her
nest among the trees. If Thou speakest to men in the glory of the
heavens, Thou speakest also in the manifold voices of all Thy loving
creatures. May our ears be trained to hear Thee when Thou speakest thus.
Amen.
GEORGE L. PERIN.
May 2
_Hail bounteous May, that doth inspire
Mirth and youth, and warm desire;
Woods and groves are of thy dressing,
Hill and dale doth boast thy blessing,
Thus we salute thee with our early song,
And welcome thee and wish thee long._
JOHN MILTON.
Almighty and All-loving Father, who dost make all the earth to rejoice
in the brightness of returning springtime, fill our hearts with like joy
and renewal. Graciously awaken in us the life that the cold or care or
trouble or sorrow of the world often has caused to fade and go out. As
our eyes behold all this outward beauty and glory, give unto us that
spiritual vision by which we behold the beauty and glory of divine
things. Then when the springtime of our life passes with the summer and
the summer ripens into the autumn, and our work is done, may we bring
unto Thee the harvest of spiritual riches. Amen.
JAMES DENORMANDIE.
May 3
_Success! It is won by a patient endeavor,
Energy's fire, and the flame-glow of Will;
By grasping the chance with a "Now, now or never!"
Urging on, on! while the laggard stands still._
_Success! It is facing life's trials, undaunted;
Fighting the present--forgetting the past:
By trusting to Fate, though for years she has taunted,
And bearing Time's scars; facing front, to the last!_
_Success! Would you win it and wear its bright token?
Smile and step out to the drummer's light lilt;
Fight on till the last inch of sword-blade is broken.
Then do not say die. Fight on with the hilt!_
MARY MARKWELL.
We thank Thee, Our Father, that Thou hast enriched our being with those
faculties which prompt to noble endeavor. We rejoice in our power,
guided by Thy free Spirit, both to overcome evil and to do good. Help
us, dear Father, to recognize the great incentives of conscience and of
duty, assured that in cheerful conformity thereto we shall find the
sweetest zest of life. Increase our faith in Thee, O Lord. Enable us
more clearly to realize that in the end truth and right will gain the
victory. Thus may we be inspired to live brave, true and wholesome
lives. May we fight the good fight of faith and win the crown of life
promised to all those who follow the conquering Christ. In His name.
Amen.
HENRY W. RUGG.
May 4
_The green grass is bowing;
The morning wind is in it;
'Tis a tune worth the knowing,
Though it change every minute.
'Tis a tune of the Spring;
Every year plays it over._
RALPH WALDO EMERSON.
_God does not send strange flowers every year.
When the spring winds blow o'er the pleasant places
The same dear things lift up the same fair faces.
The violet is here._
MRS. A. D. T. WHITNEY.
O God, Father Almighty, who bringest light out of darkness and at whose
word night yields to day, we offer Thee glad worship and praise. We
thank Thee for Thy gifts which are beautiful and good; for flowers which
renew old friendships and awaken new affections; for songs in which
voices of all yesterdays sound through today's melodies; for rich
memories of the past; for the joy of living now; for the hope of better
days; for new expressions of abiding truth and fresh breathings of
eternal love; for courage to do right and for confidence in
righteousness. May we this day, mindful of earthly duty and of heavenly
promise, humbly follow Him "who went about doing good" and "gave Himself
a ransom for many." Amen.
W. I. WARD.
May 5
_Bishop Brooks taught me no special creed or dogma; but he
impressed upon my mind two great ideas--the fatherhood of God and
the brotherhood of man, and made me feel that these truths underlie
all creeds and forms of worship. God is love, God is our Father, we
are His children; therefore the darkest clouds will break, and
though right be worsted, wrong shall not triumph. He said: "There
is one universal religion, Helen--the religion of love. Love your
Heavenly Father with your whole heart and soul, love every child of
God as much as ever you can, and remember that the possibilities of
good are greater than the possibilities of evil; and you have the
key to Heaven."_
HELEN KELLER.
Infinite Spirit! We shall not look upon Thee as a friend looketh upon
the face of his friend, but may we learn to see Thee in every form of
life and beauty and service here in this great world of Nature and of
Man. May we discover Thee in the midst of common things and then they
shall no more be common, but all things shall be sacred and divine. May
we see Thy face in all human faces, clasp Thy hand in all human hands,
and when we have walked with a friend, or talked with those we love, may
it be as a walk with Thee and a communion with Thee. May we not think of
Thee as afar off but always near, making all things holy. May we realize
that it is a diviner thing to serve the lowly who need our help than to
praise the Infinite who needeth not. May the sense of Thy presence in
all things be the inspiration and interpretation of all days for us.
Amen.
E. L. REXFORD.
May 6
_The brown, brown woods of March
Are the green, green woods of May,
And they lift their arms with a freer swing
And shake out their pennons gay.
And the brown, dead world of March,
Is the living world of today;
Life throbs and flushes and flashes out
In the color and fragrance of May._
ANONYMOUS.
Infinite Spirit of the winter and the summer and of the night and the
morning, Thou hast watched over and guarded, during its winter sleep and
rest, this earth which Thou hast made, and which Thou hast made for a
purpose--to be beautiful and fruitful in its season, to be a humble and
obedient servant of Thy will of goodness. And now, as the woods of May
are radiant in the beauty of springtime, and ready to do Thy will; so as
we wake to the opportunity of this new day, may we rejoice in the
privilege of living to Thee and doing Thy will in the glad service of
lives lived as the Master lived. Amen.
GEORGE WALLACE PENNIMAN.
May 7
_One who never turned his back, but marched breast forward,
Never doubted clouds would break,
Never dreamed, though right were worsted,--wrong would triumph,
Held we fall to rise, are baffled to fight better,
Sleep to wake._
ROBERT BROWNING.
Our Father, in the heaven, we thank Thee for the birth of a new day. May
we be full of gladness during its golden hours, may our hearts be
tranquil with God's peace. A day is a part of Thy eternity. Thou hast
set us in the battle, Thou art watching us in the fight; Thou art
training us by well-accepted controversy. May nothing of Thy purpose be
lost because of the blinding details of the conflict. Strengthen our
hearts to do the work of this day. Help us to be as grateful as we are
dependent upon God. Inspire our whole life; help us quickly to learn why
we are here, what we are to do while here, and the path that leads home
when the work-day is over. In the name of the Christ! Amen.
W. A. WOOD.
May 8
_Then sing, ye birds, sing, sing a joyous song!
And let the young lambs bound
As to the tabor's sound!
We in thought will join your throng,
Ye that pipe and ye that play,
Ye that through your hearts today
Feel the gladness of the May!_
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH.
God of the morning, Father of the Soul, we bless Thee for the light, for
it is pleasant to behold the world made beautiful by the King of day,
and sweet with the melody of the song of bird, and cheerful with the
promise of hope in the swelling buds of spring. We join with Thy
faithful ones in ascriptions of praise to Thee for the depth of the
riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. Help us to look upon
our every faculty of soul, and power of body, as gifts from Thee, to be
used for the advancement of love, truth and beauty, in our own hearts,
and in the world. Give us Thine own help to bear every burden
cheerfully, to stand erect before every responsibility, and if in our
efforts to do much good for this day we seem to fail, may we look to
Jesus and learn of Him that in a conscience void of offence there is no
such thing as failure. Help us to strive with the evil of the world and
sin not, that at the close of the day we may look back and say, we have
kept ourselves unspotted from the world. Amen.
L. L. GREENE.
May 9
_Fairer grows the earth each morning
To the eyes that watch aright;
Every dew-drop sparkles warning
Of a miracle in sight;
Of some unexpected glory
Waiting in the old and plain;
Poet's dream nor traveller's story
Words such wonders as remain._
WILLIAM C. GANNETT.
O Thou, who makest things seen and temporal quiver and flash with Thine
own informing spirit, so illumine our pathways that the Luz where we
meet our duties may become the Bethel where we meet our God. As Thou
dost clothe the lily with beauty and inspire the bird with song help us
to grow into the beauty of holiness, and to know the joy of Thy
salvation. Whatever our past, open our eyes this day to some better
thing which Thou hast always in reserve. Teach us what hinders our
attainment and help us burst through the barrier. Make us so conscious
of Thy indwelling spirit that we may yield to its gracious impellings
toward righteousness and peace and joy. Amen.
THOMAS D. ANDERSON.
May 10
_Listen to the exhortation of the dawn!_
_Look to this day!
For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course lie all the
Varieties and realities of your existence;
The bliss of growth,
The glory of action,
The splendor of beauty:
For yesterday is but a dream,
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But to-day well-lived makes
Every yesterday a dream of happiness,
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore to this day!_
_Such is the salutation of the dawn._
FROM THE SANSKRIT.
Dear God, in Thy loving kindness, Thou hast brought us to the opening of
another day; from darkness to light, from sleep to wakefulness, from
rest to labor. We thank Thee for its opening glory and its coming
opportunities; but above all, for the new strength we feel within
ourselves to do its work and live its life. As radiant dawn climbs to
full-orbed day and glides to setting sun, may we come to this day's
close with the consciousness that we have lived a little closer to the
great heart of the Eternal in every thought, word and deed, that we have
woven into the texture of our lives, and gently as twilight enfolds the
fruitful earth, shall "peace that passeth understanding" enfold our
souls. Amen.
THOMAS B. PAYNE.
May 11
_As the insect from the rock
Takes the color of its wing;
As the boulder from the shock
Of the ocean's rhythmic swing
Makes itself a perfect form,
Learns a calmer front to raise;
As the shell, enameled warm
With the prism's mystic rays,
Praises wind and wave that make
All its chambers fair and strong;
As the mighty poets take
Grief and pain to build their song;
Even so for every soul,
Whatsoe'er its lot may be--
Building, as the heavens roll,
Something large and strong and free--
Things that hurt and things that mar
Shape the man for perfect praise;
Shock and strain and ruin are
Friendlier than the smiling days._
JOHN WHITE CHADWICK.
Dear Father, as the light of this morning follows the darkness of the
night, may we devoutly believe that the light of Thy love shall dispel
all darkness and bring us into the morning of eternal peace. May we
learn each day that our trials and sorrows are but stepping-stones in
Thy divine economy, to bring us up into the clearer atmosphere of
heavenly thought and life. Help us to live closer to Jesus, to
understand how even He was made glorious through suffering, and ever
learn to conquer in His name. Amen.
ELMER F. PEMBER.
May 12
_I live for those that love me
For those that know me true,
For the heaven that smiles above me,
And waits my coming, too;
For the cause that lacks assistance,
For the wrongs that need resistance,
For the future in the distance,
For the good that I can do._
G. L. BANKS.
Father, we bless Thee for such as love us and those whom we love in the
varying forms of affection, thanking Thee for the sacramental cup of joy
in which Thou givest the wine of life to all of Thy children, humble or
high. We thank thee for that love which setteth the solitary in families
at the beginning, and then reaches wide arms all around, and will not
stay its hold till it joins all nations and kindreds and tongues and
people into one great family of love. We bless Thee for the noble men
and women whose generous heart has lit the altar fire of philanthropy in
many a dark and else benighted place. We thank Thee for the unbidden
faith which springs up in our hearts, impelling us to trust Thee and
love Thee and keep every commandment of Thine, and that while we know
not what a day shall bring forth, we are sure of everlasting life. Amen.
THEODORE PARKER.
May 13
_Gladness of morning--
To hear the lark begin his flight,
And singing, startle the dull Night
From his watch-tower in the skies,
Till the dappled Dawn doth rise;
Then to come in spite of sorrow,
And at my window bid good-morrow
Through the sweetbrier, or the vine,
Or the twisted eglantine._
JOHN MILTON.
O Thou, in whose light we see light, who hast lifted the shadows of
night from our dwellings, complete now in our behalf Thy ministry of
light, we beseech Thee, and let the day star arise in our hearts. Make
clear Thy face unto us. Rise with Thy morning upon our souls. May the
light which envelops us throughout the day be the radiance of Thy
presence. May our eyes behold only what Thou revealest and our lives be
warmed with the glow of Thy love. O, that we may be new-born like the
day and live a new life in Thy mercies which are new every morning; that
our love may rise fresh as the dawn and our obedience be as sure as the
path of the law. Let no shadow from the past dim the joy of Thy
presence. Scatter the darkness of sense and self within us. As the
morning reveals, interprets and fulfils the beauties of a world which
was wrapped in night, may the mystery of our lives unfold, our latent
forces be summoned to service, and our hearts find fulness of joy
because we live in Thee. Amen.
EVERETT D. BURR.
May 14
_It may be truly said that no man does any work perfectly who does
not enjoy his work. Joy in one's work is the consummate tool
without which the work may be done indeed, but without its finest
perfectness. Men who do their work without enjoying it are like men
carving statues with hatchets. A man who does his work with
thorough enjoyment of it is like an artist who holds an exquisite
tool which is almost as obedient to him as his own hand, and almost
works intelligently with him._
PHILLIPS BROOKS.
O Heavenly Father, we thank Thee that Thou hast placed us where we are
and hast given us the work we have to do. We would not seek far and wide
for some better place or more honourable task. We pray today for the
spirit that shall make us glad in our common toil. We need not to fly
away to find enjoyment; we have only to feel that in the duties of this
day we are in partnership with Thee,--then shall we be happy that Thou
hast called us to so divine a fellowship. Make us strong and earnest and
brave--that when the evening shadows fall we shall not look regretfully
back because we have been unfaithful,--but that we may be satisfied and
happy in the memory that we have been serving with Thee. Amen.
ANONYMOUS.
May 15
_I love the flowers that come about with spring,
And whether they be scarlet, white or blue,
It mattereth to me not anything,
For when I see them full of sun and dew,
My heart doth get so full with its delight,
I know not blue from red, nor red from white._
ALICE CARY.
Father Divine, we remember Thee at the beginning of another day, and the
obedience to Thy laws of life which Thou dost require. About us is Thy
beautiful world, thrilling with new life. We would that our lives today
may be likewise beautiful, restrained from sin against body and spirit.
As there is now in the earth, so there is always in human souls a
springtide ready to burst forth into beautiful living. In our hearts
there is always the stirring energy of a spiritual spring that needs but
the warmth of Thy heavenly sunshine. Let that warmth now stream into our
hearts that our lives today may show forth Thy praise. Amen.
MINOT O. SIMONS.
May 16
Violet: "_Well, but surely at least one ought to be afraid of
displeasing God; and one's desire to please Him should be one's
first motive._"
Lecturer: "_He never would be pleased with us, if it were, my dear.
When a father sends his son out into the world--suppose as an
apprentice--fancy the boy's coming home at night, and saying,
'Father, I could have robbed the till to-day; but I didn't because
I thought you wouldn't like it.' Do you think the father would be
particularly pleased?" (Violet is silent). "He would answer, would
he not, if he were wise and good, 'My boy, though you had no
father, you must not rob tills.' And nothing is ever done so as
really to please our Great Father, unless we would also have done
it, though we had had no Father to know of it._"
JOHN RUSKIN.
Father of Life, Thy children raise their thoughts in prayer to Thee at
the dawning of each day. Their prayer asserts love, trust and conformity
to Thy will. May the spirit of prayer abide with us the day through,
that we may be dutiful and worthy. The moral law is Thy way of life, may
we make it our way by intelligent obedience. To know Thee aright and to
find our joy in Thy life is to have fullness of being through purity and
strength. O Father, may we be as those who broaden and deepen and purify
life by word and deed that none may suffer loss through us, but find aid
to reach the perfect life in Thee. Amen.
WILSON M. BACKUS.
May 17
_Through the harsh noises of our day
A low sweet prelude finds its way:
Through clouds of doubt and creeds of fear
A light is breaking, calm and clear._
_Henceforth my heart shall sigh no more
For olden time and holier shore:
God's love and blessing, then and there
Are now and here and everywhere._
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER.
Our Father, as we enter upon the duties of this new day, incline our
minds and hearts unto Thee. May we feel, amid its harsh noises, the
assurance of Thy love and care. If doubt or fear assail us may we turn
unto Thee who art the source of life, love and light, and find calm and
peace. We would forget the things behind and make the most of the
present. We rejoice that today is better than yesterday and that
tomorrow will be better than today. Thou art here now, as Thou art
everywhere always, to bless us with Thy love and care. Direct us through
the hours of this day and may its close find us better children of
Thine. Amen.
JOHN B. REARDON.
May 18
_The sun does not shine for a few trees and flowers, but for the
wide world's joy. The lonely pine of the mountain top waves its
sombre boughs, and cries, "Thou art my sun!" And the little meadow
violet lifts its cup of blue, and whispers with its perfumed
breath, "Thou art my sun!" And the grain in a thousand fields
rustles in the wind, and makes answer, "Thou art my sun!" So God
sits, effulgent, in heaven, not for a favored few, but for the
universe of life; and there is no creature so poor or so low that
he may not look up with child-like confidence, and say, "My Father,
Thou art mine!"_
HENRY WARD BEECHER.
O God, the Eternal Source of all life, we rejoice that there are no
bounds to Thy love. We thank Thee that Thou givest us all things richly
to enjoy. May we learn that Thy bounties are for all human beings. Make
the hearts of men eager that the ignorant, the lowly, the poor, the
wayward, may come into the full estate of knowing that they are children
of God. Let them in no way be denied the joy of unfolding the divinity
within them. Lead us all into those fields of labor where we can be our
best selves and develop our lives by what we do to meet the growing
demands of truth and love and goodness. Wherever the morning breaks and
the sunshine falls upon human faces, may its cheer make homes happy and
true, men and women good, and little children joyous. Amen.
ALVA ROY SCOTT.
May 19
_Hear the Master's risen word!
Delving spades have set it free,
Wake! the world has need of thee,
Rise and let thy voice be heard,
Like a fountain disinterred,
Upward springing, singing, sparkling;
Through the doubtful shadows darkling;
Till the clouds of pain and rage
Brooding o'er the toiling age,
As with rifts of light are stirred
By the music of the Word;
Gospel for the heavy-laden, answer to the labourer's cry;
"Raise the stone, and thou shalt find Me: cleave the wood, and there
am I."_
HENRY VAN DYKE.
God of light and strength and beauty, for this day we thank Thee. The
morning hours come to us freighted with messages of gladness. Thou, our
Father, art refreshing our spirits, and home seems dearer, love more
sacred and the way of duty clearer before our waiting feet. We thank
Thee for life as it is given us, day by day. Help us to fill it with
honest, cheerful, fruitful service. May we realize and rejoice in the
nobility of labor, and may we learn how it is that a child of Thine,
standing in his own place, giving himself to the tasks of the hour,
imparts strength and courage to his fellow-worker, and helps the world
forward in the path of righteousness and peace. So may Thy will be done
in and through us. Amen.
JOHN P. FORBES.
May 20
_O the green things growing, the green things growing
The faint sweet smell of the green things growing!
I should like to live, whether I smile or grieve,
Just to watch the happy life of my green things growing._
DINAH MULOCK CRAIG.
_Not all these sweets, these sounds, this vernal blaze,
Is but one joy, express'd a thousand ways;
And honey from the flowers, and song of birds,
Are from the poet's pen, his overflowing words._
LEIGH HUNT.
O Thou who art the Creator of life in every form in which it is
expressed in the earth, we thank Thee for the grass and the flowers, the
trees and the shrubs, the music of the streams and the melody of the
birds. As nature is ever vocal with Thy praise, so may our hearts be
attuned to deepest joy that we are a part of Thy creation and made
capable of constant exultation in the beauty and the beneficence of Thy
purpose therein displayed. In this spirit may we rejoice and be glad in
this new day which Thou hast made for us. Amen.
I. J. MEAD.
May 21
_As one familiar with the sonatas and the symphonies of Beethoven,
while passing along the street in summer, gets, from out of the
open window, a snatch of a song or a piece that is being played,
catching a strain here and another there--and says to himself, "Ah,
that is Beethoven. I recognize that: it is from such and such a
movement of the Pastoral" or whatever it may be;--so men in life
catch strains of God in the mother's disinterested and self-denying
love, in the lover's glow, in the little child's innocent
affections. Where did this thing come from? No plant ever brought
out such fruit as this?_
HENRY WARD BEECHER.
Father of all and giver of every good thing, to Thee we pray; to Thee we
look for light, for truth, for beauty. In the travail of thought may
there come only the highest and best good. Where there is division we
ask for unity; where there is confusion we ask for serenity; where there
is discord, we ask for harmony. May divergent paths lead to the larger
way of widening vision, distinctive service, unstinted love. Hasten the
day when Thy purpose shall be accomplished in us, and when that which is
now imperfect shall become the perfected whole. Grant to us wisdom to
pursue noble ends with intelligent zeal, and patient effort, and in a
charitable and hopeful spirit. Amen.
C. C. CLARK.
May 22
_It is very interesting to watch a plant grow, it
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