TO-MORROW, UNCERTAINTY OF
To-morrow? Shall the fleeting years
Abide our questioning? They go
All heedless of our hopes and fears.
To-morrow? 'Tis not ours to know
That we again shall see the flowers.
To-morrow is the gods'—but, oh,
To-day is ours! (Text.)
—Charles Edmund Merrill, Jr., Scribner's Magazine.
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TONGUE, A SWEARING A long, long time ago, in the summer-time, a man was stung in the face by a bee. This made him mad, and he swore and swore and then swore again. The swear was so hot that his kettle of time boiled over and he wasted half an hour swearing at the bee. A friend who was sorry to hear him swear, said: "Jim, I am sorry for you. I think that bee might have stung you in a better place." Again the kettle boiled over. "Where might it have stung me?" asked the swearer. "Why, it would have been better for you if it had stung you on the tip of your tongue." Read the third chapter of James and then think of the need of a bee on the tip of the tongue—J. M. Farrar.
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TONGUE, THE Would not the world be benefited by the surgery suggested in the following anecdote: An old lady of his flock once called upon Dr. John Gill, a London preacher, with a grievance. The doctor's neckbands were too long for her ideas of ministerial humility, and after a long harangue on the sin of pride, she intimated that she had brought a pair of scissors with her, and would be pleased if her dear pastor would permit her to cut them down to her notions of propriety. The doctor not only listened patiently, but handed over the offending white bands to be operated upon. When she had cut them to her satisfaction and returned the bits, it was the doctor's turn. "Now," said he, "you must do me a good turn also." "Yes, that I will, doctor. What can it be?" "Well, you have something about you which is a deal too long and which causes me no end of trouble, and I should like to see it shorter." "Indeed, dear sir, I will not hesitate. What is it? Here are the scissors; use them as you please." "Come then," said the sturdy divine; "good sister, put out your tongue." (Text.)—Tit-Bits.
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Sarcasm, ridicule, and all forms of
bitter speech may be compared to the
weapon described below:
The falarica, an ancient weapon, was a
sort of javelin, consisting of a shaft of
wood, with a long point of iron. This point
was three feet long. Near the end were
wound round the wooden shaft long bands
of tow saturated with pitch and other combustibles,
and this inflammable band was set
on fire just before the javelin was thrown.
As the missile flew the wind fanned the
flames, and striking the shield of the soldier
opposing it, it could not be pulled out and
the shield was destroyed. (Text.)
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The words of James (3:8) about the "deadly poison" of the tongue when "set on fire of hell" are called to mind by the following caution:
You may keep your feet from slipping,
And your hands from evil deeds,
But to guard your tongue from tripping,
What unceasing care it needs!
Be you old or be you young,
Oh, beware,
Take good care,
Of the tittle-tattle, tell-tale tongue!
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TOOLS
Dr. David Gregg says:
Tool-makers are the powers in this world.
The Jewish legend sets this into the light.
When Solomon completed his great temple
he prepared a luxurious feast to which he
invited the artificers who had been employed
in its construction. But in unveiling the
throne, it was discovered that a stalwart
smith, with his sledge-hammer, had usurped
the place of honor at the king's right hand.
Whereupon the people made an outcry, and
the guards rushed in to cut down the intruder.
"Hold, let him speak," commanded
Solomon, "and explain if he can his great
presumption." "O King," answered the
smith, "thou hast invited to the banquet all
the craftsmen but me. Yet how could these
builders have reared the temple without the
tools which I furnished?" "True," exclaimed
the king; "the seat of honor is his
by right, and he shall hold it; for back of
all great and effective work are tools."
What is said of the trades may be said of
the professions. The best professional work
