ON SABBATH EVE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 12551, 3 January 1903, Page 4

ON SABBATH EVE.

' A COLUMN OF RELIGIOUS' ; BEADING. |! (Conducted by the Rev. F. W. Boheium,) [ NEW TEAR GIFTS. ' '• r My Father, all the gifts I need, are Thine, Not the love-tokens of a host of friends 1 For absence of Thine own could make t amends; - I lift my eyes to where Thy mercies shine. t I know where tho long list should first begin; f For I have sinned against Thee, and this i. wrong r Blots out tho sunshine and prevents the' song. I need Thy pardon: God, forgive my sin! Then, Lord, I need Thy cleansing. Make ma j pure ! From every evil thought, or wish, or way, ! * That I may turn from darkness to tho day, i And, seeing the Invisible, endure. 1 My Father, give me strength, for lam weak, • I cannot live my life, nor meet the task' Unless Thou give the power that I ask;-. Oh, make mo strong to be both brave an?' meek. • , Give me Thy gifts of patience and of grace, j Let me not yield to anger or unrest, \ . Nor be too wilful in an eager quest, ; ;Bui keep serenity of heart and face. Lord, give me courage to bo unafraid Though the storms threaten, me, and fierce). winds beat; . May hope stay with me even in defeat, And at the worst letmenotbe dismayed. I do not ask that pleasures may increase, ' For Thou dost give mo comfort, trust, and, love, ' But ouly lift my heart and thought above, And then environ mo with Thine own peace. Yet all the gifts I need are-only one! Thou art my Father, lam child of Thine, . '■ Oh! till the new lights from tho Homeland shine, Give mo Thyself, and let Thy will be done. Mariakke Fabxixgbajt. NEW YEAR'S MESSAGES.'. THE BEST YEAR. " ■ By the Rev. C. H. Spurgeon. .''' May 'God grant that this year may bt the best year wo over had, so that all the past shall seem to bo as nothing compared. with that which is to come, and we. will give our amen to that doxology—" To Hinl be glory, both now and for ever. Amen." .. . CHRIST EVERY DAY. /By Dr .Coiler. ■ ,' A New Year is upon us with new duties, new conflicts, now trials, and new opportu- • nities. Start on the journey with Jesus-r to walk with 'Him, to work for Him, and;. to win souls to Him. It may bo the last yoar of our lives I A happy year will • it, • be to those who, through every path,of .trial," 1 ' or up every hill of difficulty, or over every sunny height,' march on. in closest fellowship with Jesus, and who determine that; , come what may, they will have Christ overy.. day! . ... CONFIDENCE IN GOD. ' .'. ' By Rov. J. H. JowETT; M.A; . j Let us begin the race of the New Yeav in happy confidence in God. Let us strip , ourselves of all superfluous weights, tot in got rid of the paralysing influence that. hides in doubt. Let ,us begin as those who ; are assured of victory. Come, let us anew our journey pursue, With vigour arise, And press to our home with the Lord in' tho • ' skies. ■ , • THE COURAGE OF FAITH. By Rov. R. J. Campbell, M.A. Lot us determine, at the beginning of the New Year, that we shall possess ourselves of the.courage which comes by faith. Let us bo strong in the desire to do good, fear-' less in our opposition to evil, brave in our.' conquest of sin. If wo are, we. have nothing to fear. All the issues are known to God, and God and one make a majority. " Only be thou strong and very courageous." A HAPPY YEAR. By the Rev. Charles 31. Sheldon, D.D. - The card of New Year's greeting, sent out' to his friends by thn author of "In His Stops" at the beginning of 1902, contained ' tho following lines, written by that well- : known author: — . ' Dear friend of mine, the year is new, ■ \ I wish a Happy Year for you! : Whatever lies within its hand, Easy, or hard to understand, , Whether it bring you smiles or tears,. -...: 1 Filling your heart with hopes or fears, ' ; May He who'marks the sparrow's fall : Protect and guide you through it all! Good cheer to you, 0 friend of mine! . Tho human, walks with the divinel The earthly life may heavenly bo ; • Since Jesus walked by Galilee; The path you tread has once been tro3 , By Him who was the Son of God. , Fear not the future; trust it all • ■ , . To Him who marks tho sparrow's fall. > Dear friend of mine, tho year is new: God grant a Happy. Year to youf , JOTTINGS.' • .■' ;Many Methodists are eagerly inquiring as' '. to who will succeed Mr Hugh Price Hughes at tho West London Mission. There his' loss will bo most acutely felt, as the work ; ; centred Tound hia personality. Ho, was tha ' driving dynamo, and ho was also the money: raiser. Rov. Mark Guy Pearse is thought to be out of tho question on the 'grounds' of age. Dr Lunn has large commercial interests which he.could not be expected to'' uproot; Rev. George Jackson is wedded j to 'ho Edinburgh Mission, or he might be' 1 ' a "likely successor,. Rev. Dinsdale Young's ■ forte is as a ■ travelling missioner. • The namo, of Rov. F. Luke 'Wiseman, of Birmingham, is favourably mentioned as a man of scholarship and individuality who might continue tho mission to the West End on, lines somewhat similar to those laid down by Mr Hughes. But the Rev. Charles En-, for • Walters, who ha= worked successfully' in tho West London Mission, is an 'exceed-, ! ingly probable successor to Mr Huehes. "Mr Walters enjoyed tho fullest confidence of' Mr Hughes, and pojsosses in an equal decree the confidence of Mr Mark Guy Pearse. Ho has worked in every section of the missioni and is regarded, though young, aj eminentlv fitted for the responsible post. Tho Liverpool Daily. Post has taken another ,census' of attendance at churches and- ohanels in that city. On the evening of the "first Sunday in November, there . were found in places of worship .pome 107,000' persons. These may be classified thus :'— Nonconformists ... 50,100 Church of England ... '... 41,400 : , Roman Catholics ... ... • ... 15,700 It is gratifying to find that this'is al increase in every instance on the attendance) of 10 years ago. though, on the other hand, . it is disappointing to learn that the incrcaso lias not kept pace with the growth of tho population. The Bishop of Bath and Wells and the Dean of Hereford have for some time been using motor cars in connection with their duties, and now the Birficp of Rochester has started one*for use on Sundays, in., order to give hi?' coachman the benefit of the Seventh Day's rest. • ■■ A well-known writer, in an appreciation of tho lata Hugh Price Hughes, says: "Amongst the conferences of thoso brilliant early years I rcmomber distinctly the address given by Mr Hughe? on tho Sunday following, tho death of Robert Browning;. He quoted with a certain rapture the closing poem from 'Asolando,' repeating . one or .two of the verses twice over, and. explaining them. Ho dwelt earnestly :on Browning's desire that his friends should think of him as still active, still militant, in tho unseen world: No, at noonday, in the bustle, of man's work"'.-, time, %-.'■; Greet the.'unsoen with;a theer; • • ■.':..•"■'• Bid him forward, breast, and back as cither ...should.bo, ■ , . . ■ . ,-.• Strive'and thrive, cry, fight on, fare ever,?•■, ~ " There as here. ■' " •

0!:.'- [Published by Special' Arrangement.]■.->'.,