Why read poetry? 

  "The great tendency and purpose of poetry is to carry the mind beyond and above the beaten, dusty, weary walks of ordinary life; to lift it into a purer element; and to breathe into it more profound and generous emotion. It reveals to us the loveliness of nature, brings back the freshness of early feeling, revives the relish of simple pleasures, keeps unquenched the enthusiasm which warmed the spring-time of our being, refines youthful love, strengthens our interest in human nature by vivid delineations of its tenderest and loftiest feelings, spreads our sympathies over all classes of society, knits us by new ties with universal being, and through the brightness of its prophetic visions, helps faith to lay hold on a future life." 

William Ellery Channing.   

  Let the church ask itself, which would please its Master best,  

Teaching some ignorant child the way of life, or going to hear a great sermon – visiting and consoling some poor mourner, or going to a prayer meeting – stirring up some weak soul to duty, or seeking for an hour of emotional excitement – going to meeting always, or laboring occasionally for the reclamation of some sad wanderer from the path of virtue?

Timothy Titcomb

 

What is a home? 

"Is it merely a place where fellow-morals meet to eat, drink, and sleep securely beneath a roof? A house is reared to be a HOME: the center where a Family may gather into one; to be a serene retreat, where the tenderest affections may find rest; and within its walls love may have a dwelling place, and the charities of life gain ample scope and happiness; that parents and children may there press one another heart to heart; that sorrows and joys may be freely shared in confidence; that troubled spirits may unburden themselves, and be blessed with pardon and peace; and, in a word, that the great work of training human beings for the duties of the present life and the perfection of another may be begun and carried on." Channing. 

 

"The only power to oppose evil is love. Miserable indeed will your position be if this spirit does not possess you.  

Nothing but Christ's spirit, that which carried Him to His cross, can carry you through your work. This spirit will touch the heart which has hardened itself against all other influences. It will pierce the conscience. It will say to the reckless transgressor, in the only language he can understand, that he is not an outcast from his race; and it will reveal to the desponding sufferer a love higher than your own, and bring back his lost faith in God." William Ellery Channing.

   I hear countless stories about loving Grandparents that reared a Grandchild when the parents were absent because of some tragedy or crisis. They stepped in and took over as mothers, providers, confidants, spiritual leaders, or just to be a shoulder to cry on.   

I see in this photo a devoted Granddaughter whose Grandmother was unable to attend her wedding because of her feeble condition; but this Grandchild broke away at some point on her wedding day to share with her beloved Grandmother.   

 

"And in secret You will make wisdom known to me." Ps. 51:8

  When we quiet our self and set aside a time devoted to God alone, we will most often find He speaks there, and most often through His word. No doubt He will speak through Pastors and the brethren, but like Emerson so eloquently says, they are like --

  "Like a bird which alights nowhere, but hops perpetually from bough to bough, is the Power and Voice of God, which abides in no man and in no woman, but for a moment speaks from this one, and for another moment, from that one."   

 

 

 

  

"They came for condiments, not for corn." Ralph Waldo Emerson.

  I was reading some of Emerson's essays today and this line struck me:  "They came for condiments, not for corn." People, in general, look to the shallows, few want to discover what lies beneath the surface: few care to search the souls of others, but rather, like this quote implies, they prefer to pick through the condiments and disregard the corn; or, to put it another way, they relish the gravy but not the meat. This has so many applications; certainly it's true in the romantic arena; and equally, in the spiritual: where they will listen to you if they hear some clever or novel thought, but as soon as they determine you no longer entertain them, or affirm, or concern them, they leave. 

  "Therefore, this is what the Lord says: “If you return, then I will restore you— You will stand before Me; And if you extract the precious from the worthless, You will become My spokesman."

In this life we will face many great sorrows, some caused by others, and some we cause ourselves. There is no way to avoid all failings and sorrows. And each of us will do things that are "worthless" or have things happen to us. But the promise gives us our answer, "return to Him, and restoration will come", we are to extract the precious from the worthless and make the best use of what remains."

 

All through the Bible we are taught to "flee",  From Potiphar's wife, Sodom, idolatry, sexual sin and on it warns. When we yield and stick our nose where it doesn't belong....... well, the photo needs little interpretation.

 "Seeing the people, Jesus felt compassion for them..." Mt. 9:36

 I like that Jesus "felt" compassion. He "felt love" for the rich young ruler, and He felt compassion and love as he "wept" over Jerusalem. Many times we are told about the emotions of Jesus as we read about His words and actions. Jesus wasn't dispensing truth and healing out of duty being the Savior. He showed us that we are to be personally involved with the needy of the world. We are to pray with them, console their sorrows, share in their griefs, we are to "feel" for them. 

"And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them." Mark 10:16

Any Gospel that lacks emotion is but a husk of Christian truth.