Have you ever noticed what happens when from one cause or
another the water-mains in any street have become choked or
polluted by the intrusion of some foreign body? You will see
some one come along with an iron instrument and turn on the
stopcock at some point in the roadway. Immediately there comes
an up-rush, a mighty volume of water--swirling, heaving,
rolling, hurtling out of the pipes beneath. And you will
observe, too, that for a time it seems to be charged with
filth; whatever it is that has been blocking the flow of the
life-giving element is being stirred up and flung out with
immense force. But after a time the jet clears, the evil is
gone, the water becomes sweet and pure, and the flow full and
steady. Then the covering is replaced; the cleansing process
is at an end. And so it is with you and me. God has to get rid
of our selfishness somehow that the life eternal may possess
us through and through. The cleansing may seem to be a stern
matter, but it is best to let Him have his way to the uttermost.
We must be crucified with Christ in order to live with Him, but
no man would ever repine at what it costs if he could foresee
what is to be gained.--R. J. CAMPBELL, _The Christian
Commonwealth_.
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