_THE RICHES OF SPIRITUALITY_
PROVERBS iv. 1-13.
Let me review some of these riches which are conferred upon the man who
has made his soul the guest-room of spiritual religion.
"_Love her, and she shall keep thee._" Spirituality is to be my true
defence. All other ramparts are vulnerable. They are the happy
hunting-ground of the ravages of time; they fail in the crisis; they are
the sure victims of moth and rust. But spirituality keeps me from
childhood to age, and its shields are invincible, even in the hour of
death. "There shall no evil befall thee."
"_Exalt her, and she shall promote thee._" She will lead me in the paths
of progress. Every day she will lead me to new conquests, and in
constantly enriching character I shall move towards life's appointed goal.
Holiness is the only success worth having. Other successes are like lamps
whose trembling flames are blown out in the first gusty, stormy night.
"But the path of the just is as a shining light that shineth more and more
even unto perfect day."
"_She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace._" Yes, and her
adornments are always beautiful. No beauty ever steals into the human face
comparable with the delicate presence of spirituality. It makes plain
features lovely, and transfigures them with "the glory of the Lord."