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AUGUST.

AUGUST 1.

THE BEST WAY OF GETTING OUT OF SELF.

The best way to free ourselves from harassing thoughts, is to pray for our friends. We understand but little how St. Paul could find time for this holy occupation; but when we read in his epistle, that he prayed by day and by night, for the churches and for his private friends, we may be sure that this assertion was strictly true, and no mere figure of speech. Let us not wait till a leisure hour to be at our disposal, before we follow his example. Indeed, the best moments we can select for presenting our friends before the throne of grace, are precisely those when our minds are most engrossed by our own personal interests; these may of a sudden become very frequent, and very perplexing; we may not even know where to begin our prayers, and how to end

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August 3.

THE DOVE ON THE MAST.

A sailing-vessel was driving before the hurricane, a white bird suddenly descended on the mast: the hearts of the crew were cheered,hope dawned! . . . . . Such consolation may be always mine! One bright, holy, faithful thought is my dove upon the mast. However sadly I toss over the waves of this troublesome, weary world, that gentle Bird of Paradise revives and strengthens me. It tells me that the storm will soon be over and gone, and the green land with the singing of the birds is come.

August 4.

(Wilmott.)

"HE KNEW WHAT WAS IN MAN."

Lord Bacon remarks, that our Saviour, knowing the minds of men, often replies to the thoughts His hearers, rather than to their actual quens.

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them; instead of praying for oneself, one meditates dreamily on oneself, and this is by no means the same thing! Instead of this, let us lay aside the cares and troubles of a weary world, and let us busy ourselves with some soul that is dear to us; let us go from one beloved friend to another, and so on to a third; and when we shall thus have made a spiritual round of prayer, we shall find that we have received more for ourselves, than if we had pleaded our own cause. The peace we implore for others, comes back to our own bosom. But to think about others is not enough; peace cometh not by thinking, but by praying. (Lobstein.)

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August 2.

FEELING.

There is always some danger when we allow feeling to become the test of our religion. Christianity cannot exist without feeling, but feeling may be very strong without much religion.

(Unknown.)

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