"Wouldst thou from sorrow find a sweet relief,
Or is thy heart oppress'd with woes untold?
Balm wouldst thou gather for corroding grief,
Pour blessings round thee like a shower of gold!"
Carlos Wilcox.
Mildred's charity, beginning at home, did not end there: very earnestly
and persistently she strove to scatter blessings as "a shower of gold"
wherever she went; to make every life that came in contact with hers,
at ever so small a point, the better and brighter for that contact,
though it were by but a cheery word or smile.
Do you say these are small matters, scarcely worthy of attention? Ah!
to each of us comes the divine command, "Be pitiful, be courteous;" and
the Master said of the tithing of mint, anise, and cummin, while the
weightier matters of the law were neglected, "These ought ye to have
done, and not to leave the other undone." "He that is faithful in that
which is least, is faithful also in much."
It was so with Mildred; never considering herself off duty as a
Christian soldier, she was as ready to feed the hungry, clothe the
naked, teach the ignorant, and nurse the sick, as to bestow the kind
word and pleasant smile that cost her nothing. Nothing? Ah! there were
times of weariness and depression when even these trifles cost a heroic
effort--a determined setting aside of selfish inclination to moodiness
or irritability, or indulgence in a pleasing melancholy, because one
great earthly blessing was denied her.
In this her bright, cheerful mother, always ready with a word of
counsel and encouragement, was a wonderful help. Indeed, by frequent
precept and constant example Mrs. Keith succeeded in making all her
children, to a greater or less degree, sunny tempered and benevolent,
kind and courteous.
The Dorcas society connected with their church had no more active,
efficient, or liberal members than this good lady and her eldest
daughter; in proportion to their ability, they gave freely of time,
labor, and money. They were, indeed, always found ready to every good
work, though they trusted not in their works for acceptance in the
sight of God, but only in the atoning blood and imputed righteousness
of Christ. "Followers of God as dear children," theirs was a service of
love and joy, rendered not that they might be saved, but because they
were saved.
Questions of doctrine and duty were freely discussed in the family
circle, the children bringing them in all confidence to their parents
for decision, the parents always appealing to the Scriptures as the one
infallible rule of faith and practice--as they are in very truth.
"To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this
word, it is because there is no light in them." "For the commandment is
a lamp, and the law is light."
One Sabbath a returned missionary preached in the morning to Mr. Lord's
congregation, in the afternoon addressed the assembled Sunday-schools
of the town.
The Keiths came home from the latter service very full of what they had
heard of the sad condition of the heathen world, the need of money to
carry on the work of evangelizing them, and the self-denying efforts
some of God's children, both old and young, were making to earn and
save that they might be able to give to this good cause.
Cyril had been especially interested in the story of a little boy who
had raised a pig, sold it, and given to missions the whole of what he
received for it.
"I mean to have a missionary pig," Cyril said to Don as they walked
home together. "I'll take good care of it and feed it well, so it will
be very fat, so that I can get ten dollars for it; and every cent of it
shall go to the missionaries. And I'll make more besides for them out
of my garden and my chickens."
"So will I," said Don; "but I shan't let 'em have all the money."
"How much, then?"
"I don't know yet."
"I'm afraid it won't do for all of us to have pigs," said Ada,
overhearing the talk of her little brothers.
"No," laughed Zillah; "we'd overstock the market and bring down the
price."
"I don't see what I can do then, except give some of my pocket-money;
unless mother will pay me for doing without butter and tea and sugar,
as some of the children do that the missionary told about."
"That's too hard a way," said Cyril; "you won't catch me trying that:
I'll work for the heathen, but I won't starve for 'em."
"It would be hard; but we ought to deny ourselves," Ada returned half
regretfully.
"Yes, in some things," Zillah said: "I don't feel sure about this.
We'll ask father and mother."
They did so immediately on entering the house.
"Your mother and I have just been discussing that question," Mr. Keith
said, "and we think that as good, nourishing food is necessary to your
health and growth, it is not a duty for you to deny yourselves such
common comforts as butter and sugar. There are other and better ways in
which to practise self-denial."
"How, father?" asked Ada.
"It might be by denying our love of ease--working and earning for the
good of others, when we would rather be at play; the Bible speaks of
laboring, working with our hands that we may have to give to him that
needeth."
"And who more needy than the poor, benighted heathen!" sighed Mrs.
Keith.
"It won't hurt us to deny ourselves in the matter of finery," remarked
Mildred.
"Or eating more than enough to satisfy our appetites, just because it
tastes good," added Rupert.
"No, that is sinful in itself, because injurious to health," said his
father.
"But haven't we a right to eat what we please, and just as much as we
choose, if we would rather be sick than do without the good things,
father?" asked Cyril.
"No, my son; health is one of God's good gifts, which we have no right
to throw away. We can't serve him with a sick and suffering body so
well as with a strong, healthy one. And we are told in Proverbs, 'The
drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty.'"
"Father, does God want us to give all our money away to other folks?"
asked Don.
"No, son, not all; our heavenly Father intends us to use some of it to
supply our own needs."
"What proportion ought we to give, father?" asked Rupert.
"I think that depends upon how large our means are."
"Is not a tenth the Bible rule?" asked Mrs. Keith.
"Yes; God claims a tenth as his. It seems plain that every one should
give that, or more properly pay it to the Lord; and those who are able
to do more, add offerings in proportion to their ability. So I gather
from this text in Malachi, third chapter and eighth verse;" and opening
a Bible, Mr. Keith read aloud: "'Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed
me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.'"
"I thought that was the rule under the Levitical law, and that the New
Testament rule was, 'Give as God has prospered you,'" said Rupert.
"Yes, we are to give as God has prospered us--one dollar out of every
ten, one hundred out of every thousand, and so on. The beginning of
tithe-paying was not in the time of Moses, but hundreds of years
before; for we read that Abraham paid tithes, and that Jacob promised
to the Lord the tenth of all that he should give him. We nowhere read
that Jesus abrogated this law; indeed he said, 'Think not that I am
come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but
to fulfil;' of the tithing of 'mint and rue and all manner of herbs,'
that it ought not to be left undone. And God promises blessings, both
temporal and spiritual, to those who faithfully obey this law of the
tithes. 'Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may
be meat in mine house; and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of
hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out
a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I
will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the
fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before
the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.'
"'Honor the Lord with thy substance and with the first-fruits of all
thine increase: so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy
presses shall burst out with new wine.'
"'Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and
verily thou shalt be fed.'
"'There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that
withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.'
"'He that hath pity upon the poor, lendeth unto the Lord; and that
which he hath given will he pay him again.'
"These are not all the texts bearing on the subject, but will suffice
for the present."
"Father," said Don, "God doesn't need our money, does he? Why does he
tell us to give it to him?"
"For our own good, my son. Don't you remember Jesus said, 'It is more
blessed to give than to receive'? He cannot be happy who indulges a
mean, sordid disposition; the less selfish we are, the more ready to
help others and share our good things with them, the happier and the
more like our heavenly Father we shall be. Try it, my boy, and you will
find it is so. And the more constantly we practise giving, the more we
shall be in love with it."
"And then shall our gifts be pleasing to God," added the mother.
"'Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him live;
not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And
God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having
all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.'"
"Well, it seems, if we obey the Bible rule, we will give a tenth of our
pocket-money, and of all we can make beside," remarked Rupert.
"And I am very glad I can earn something by teaching music," said
Mildred.
"I think you can each find some way of earning something for this good
purpose," the mother said, glancing smilingly around the little group.
Cyril told eagerly of his plan. Don adding that he meant to have a
missionary pig too, but not to give all that he made on it.
"You must decide for yourself whether to give more than a tenth of its
price," his father said; "but I think 'missionary pig' will hardly be
an appropriate name unless it is entirely devoted to the cause."
"Mother," said Fan, "wouldn't it be nice for me to call one of my hens
a missionary hen, and give all the money I get for her and her eggs to
the heathen?"
"Yes, dear, I think it would be very nice," Mrs. Keith answered, with a
loving glance into the earnest little face.
"Then I'll do it, and I hope she'll lay an egg every day."
"And I'll have a missionary hen!" cried little Annis, clapping her
hands with delight at the idea of contributing her mite to the good
cause.
"Ada and I haven't matured our plans yet," said Zillah, "but we'll be
sure to find some way to make money, as well as the rest of you."
"Mother will help us to contrive it; won't you, mother?" Ada said, with
a look of confiding affection.
The answer was a prompt, emphatic "Yes, indeed, my dear."
But Mr. Keith seemed to have something further to say, and all turned
to listen.
"We want to give the missionary some money to-day or to-morrow to carry
away with him. Who has any ready now?"
Cyril's countenance fell. He was a great spendthrift, and money slipped
through his fingers almost as soon as it came into his possession.
"My pocket-money's all gone," he sighed, half aloud, half to himself;
then nudging his younger brother, "Don, you always have some: won't you
lend me a little?"
"No," said Mr. Keith, "you are not to go into debt, even from a good
motive. After this, set aside the Lord's tenth of all your money as
soon as it comes into your hands, and use that portion scrupulously
for him in giving to the church and the poor. And, my son, I want you
to form the habit of laying by a little for your own future needs. You
will be a poor man if you spend all your money as fast as you get it."
"I don't," remarked Don complacently; "I save 'most all I get."
"Ah, yes, my boy, I know that, and often feel troubled about my
youngest son lest he should become a hard, grasping, miserly man,
loving and hoarding money for its own sake. Do you know that that is as
truly idolatry as the bowing down of the heathen to images of wood and
stone?"
"Is it, father?" murmured the little lad, his face crimsoning, and the
tears starting to his eyes.
"It is indeed, Don; and so a worse fault than Cyril's foolish spending,
bad as that is. The Bible bids us mortify 'covetousness, which is
idolatry.'"
"Try, both of you, to save in order 'to have to give to him that
needeth,' and to 'provide things honest in the sight of all men.' We
must first pay to the Lord his tenth, then to our fellow-men what we
honestly owe them; after that give to the needy what we feel able to
spare from our store. Not pull down our barns and build greater, there
to bestow our surplus goods, while we take our ease, eat, drink, and be
merry, and neglect to relieve the distress and suffering of the poor
and needy."
"Like the rich man in the Bible," said Fan. "Father, was he a very bad
man?"
"Probably not what the world calls bad; we are not told that he was
dishonest, drunken, or profane; but he was selfish and covetous--caring
for the good things of this world and neglectful of eternal things; and
selfishness is sin as well as covetousness. They seem to go together
and shut the soul out of heaven. The Bible says, 'Nor thieves, nor
covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit
the kingdom of God."
"I thought coveting was wanting other people's things," remarked Ada.
"That is coveting," replied her father, "and so is that inordinate
love of gain, which leads men to drive hard bargains, and to heap up
riches at the expense of leaving those to suffer whom they are fully
able to relieve. When the Lord gives us large means, it is that, as his
stewards, we may distribute to others. Well, Rupert, what is it?"
"I have the money I had saved toward buying a piano. I will give a
tenth of it now."
"That is well. Who else has anything for the missionary?"
"I have a little of the pocket-money Aunt Wealthy supplies," Mildred
said. "I wish I could give more now. I hope to when the money comes in
from my music scholars; but that will not be for some time, you know."
"I haven't much money," said Fan, "but maybe I can sell my eggs. I have
a whole dozen."
"I'll give some of my money," said Don.
"And I," "And I," said Zillah and Ada.
Mrs. Keith also promised something, and Mr. Keith added that he, too,
would give, and they would collect it all and hand it to the missionary
before his departure, which was to be the next afternoon.
"Father, is it right to pray for earthly prosperity?" asked Rupert.
"That depends very much upon the motive. The apostle James says, 'Ye
have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask
amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.' It is not the asking he
condemns (he seems, indeed, to reprove them for not asking), but the
wrong motive for so doing. Let us compare Scripture with Scripture. The
Psalmist tells us, 'Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain
that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but
in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat
the bread of sorrows; for so he giveth his beloved sleep.'
"In Deuteronomy we are told, 'Thou shalt remember the Lord thy God, for
it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth.' Evidently we cannot
attain to worldly prosperity except by God's help--his blessing on
our efforts. We may work for prosperity, and we may pray for it, from
either a right or a wrong motive, and certainly in either case we are
approved or the contrary according to the motive that actuates us. 'Man
looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.'"
"What would be a right motive, father?" asked Ada in her grave, earnest
way.
"The desire to have the ability to 'provide things honest in the sight
of all men,' to help on the Lord's cause--the work of the church--and
to give to the poor and needy. Many desire wealth for their own ease
and indulgence, for the consequence it gives them in the eyes of their
fellow-men, or as a means of gaining power over them. It cannot be
right to pray for it from such motives--that is the sort of asking the
apostle condemns."
Mrs. Keith was turning over the leaves of the Bible. "Let the Lord be
magnified, who hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servants," she
read aloud. "What the Lord takes pleasure in, and what he promises
upon conditions, it cannot be wrong to ask for, unless from a wrong
motive," she remarked. "And it is clear to my mind that if it be wrong
to pray for prosperity, it is also wrong to work for it; certainly a
Christian should never engage in anything upon which he cannot ask
God's blessing. But we are commanded to be 'diligent in business,' and
told that 'the hand of the diligent maketh rich.'"
"Yes," said her husband, "'Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit,
serving the Lord.' If we are careful not to divorce these two which
God hath joined together, we need not fear to ask his blessing on our
labors."