process of reparation. The cementing of the broken parts is mysteriously inaugurated. But, of course, much depends on a man's previous life. If he has been a wise man, nature works rapidly; if a fool, more slowly; but nature always seeks to work in the direction of restoration. (Text.)
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RESTORING GOD'S IMAGE
Not long ago, a lady living in Hartford,
Conn., bought at an auction in New York
a painting begrimed with smoke and dirt.
Her friends laughed at her for buying such
a "worthless daub," but she took the picture
to a restorer of old paintings, who, after
hours of patient labor in removing the dirt,
brought to view a beautiful sixteenth century
painting, representing a mother with
her children. The painting is of almost
priceless value. The penny they brought the
Master was coined from base metal, but the
image on it gave it value.
We are made in the image of God,
and that makes us precious in His sight.
The skin may be black or yellow, or
brown or white—it matters not. Sin
may have obscured the image, but we
are Christ's coins; He paid a great
price for us, and seeks in every possible
way to restore in us the image of
Himself. (Text.)
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RESTRAINT
A traveler among the Alpine heights says:
We were at the foot of Mt. Blanc, in the
village of Chamouni. A sad thing had happened
the day before we reached the village.
A young physician, of Boston, had determined
to reach the heights of Mt. Blanc. He
accomplished the feat, and the little village
was illuminated in his honor; the flag was
flying from the little hut on the mountain
side—that all who have visited Chamouni
well remember—that told of his victory. But
after he had ascended and descended in
safety, as far as the hut, he wanted then to
be relieved from his guide; he wanted to
be free from the rope, and he insisted that
he could go alone. The guide remonstrated
with him, told him it was not safe, but he
was tired of the rope and declared he would
be free of it. The guide had to yield. The
young man had only gone a short distance
when his foot slipt on the ice and he could
not stop himself from sliding down the
inclined icy steeps. The rope was gone so
the guide could not hold him or pull him
back. And out on a shelving piece of ice
lay the dead body of the young physician, as
it was pointed out to me. The bells had
been rung, the village illuminated in honor
of his success, but, alas, in a fatal moment
he refused to be guided; he was tired of the
rope.
The restraints of life are usually
salutary. Those of the gospel always
so. (Text.)
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Wild forces may be sublime and majestic, but it is when force submits to authority that it becomes power for usefulness, for service, for benefit.
Venice lies in a lovely and gentle series of
lagoons. The sea, which is terrible in storms
when it is uncircumscribed, has here built
barriers of sand in which it becomes self-restrained.
In the lagoons the Adriatic is
tamed to rest, and even in furious weather it
remains tranquil. It has lost its recklessness
and terror but has gained in beauty,
reflecting everything in pictures of incomparable
loveliness. The sea at Venice by
sacrifice enters into service and ministers
both utility and charm to humanity. Over
the quiet lagoons are built scores of bridges,
and along their borders stand lines of stately
edifices, and here stands in its matchless
beauty a city unique in the world. (Text.)
(2752)
See Prohibition.
RESULTS AS EVIDENCE
I get into what were once the Black Lands,
of Arizona, known as the great American
desert, and I find it blossoming with fertility,
and I say, "How is this?" The reply is that
irrigation has been established. How can
you prove it? Look about you. It is interesting
to know what engineers built the
reservoirs on the mountain tops and how
much they cost, but the evidence that they
have been built are the rills of water running
through the land and the crops growing
there. Now I look upon the world that nineteen
centuries ago was desert and I see
flowers of hope and fruits of love and visions
of faith springing up. That is the evidence.—Lyman
Abbott.
(2753)
