Thoughts By the Way.

Evening Star, Issue 7247, 25 June 1887, Page 1 (Supplement)

Thoughts By the Way.

Part First. The years arc passing swift away, and life is but a span, Bach flying moment wafts along the destiny of man; life is no mere chaotic mass—a loying God presides— Nations in turn may fall or rise, yet the Almighty guides. No unperceived events transpire to stagger or amaze, But universal Nature pours forth univeisal praise; For God is God, and man is man, a creature of a day, That flits across the stage of time, then vanishes away. Each breath he draws, he draws upon the bounty of his God, Yet uroudly acts as if the world depended on his nod; From his small sphere he looks abroad on Nature’s wide expanse, Seems qu'te elated, loudly talks of his own great advance. And yet ’tis but the waves of truth that wash the shores of time, Beyond the boundless ocean rolls in majesty sublime; A babel of confusion reigns among the learned and the wise, The moral atmosphere resounds with multifarious cries. Man’s wisdom at the best is but a feeble flick’ring light, That fails in life’s extremities, and ends in moral night; 'Tis by the light that emanates from that bright orb of day. We see it rise hj; beauty, and in glory fade away. So by the light that comes from God, the soul sees and admires The glory of His majesty, and holiness desires ; Unless man weary rest beneath the shadow of the Cross, His wisdom is mere foolishness, his gain eternal loss. ’Tis there the flame of holy l ive is kindled in the heart, There man receives the moral - power to act the God-like part; Trust not thiue own morality, it cannot give the rest — Judged by tbe perfect law of God it will not stand the test. ’’ Morality apart from God is a mere empty sound; Search for it in the light of truth, ’tis nowhere to be found, A fair deportment may not be the index of tiie heart, Lacking simplicity of truth men stoop to cunning art. Thus moral vision becomes dim, so that a lie's believed; Deceiving others, they themselves are by themselves deceived, ■ ■ ■■ Whether in lands where Nature’s voice is beard and heard alone, _ Or lands where long the Gospel light in brilliancy bath shone. Wherever moral beauty sheds its influence abroad, In every case its origin is traceable to God; God is the author of all good, and He is good to all, The faintest breathing of the soul unheeded shall not fail. According to the light man has, so shall God’s judgment be, The efficacy of the Cross is boundless as ns free. Go, rather, take thy line, and with it compass boundless space, Than try by any line of thought to measure sovereign grace. Hugh Thompson. Rothesay, February 16,1887.