"'At Christmastide the open hand
Scatters its bounties o'er sea and land;
And none are left to grieve alone,
For Love is Heaven and claims its own.'
"Truly, the Christmas spirit is upon us today. But stop—! Will it vanish tomorrow? Will we forget to be kind to those about us next week, next month, next summer? Will we forget that these same little worn, patched stockings are there in the same needy homes, and that the boys and girls may need our friendship and help more when it is summer than they do now when so many willing hands are extended to help them?
"I hope we shall not forget. Let us remember that the best gifts, ofttimes, are not those which we can see and touch. The truest gifts are those of love and companionship and service—the same fellowship which Jesus gave to the poor when he was among men. It seems as if His heart always went out to those in need, and He helped them, not with gifts which fade and wear out and are soon cast aside, but with words and deeds which told them that He would be a true friend even to the end of the world. 'Christianity,' says Henry Drummond, 'wants nothing so much as sunny people, and the old are hungering more for love than for bread. The Oil of Joy is very cheap, and if you can help the poor with the Garment of Praise, it will be better than blankets." Dr. Henry D. Chapin expresses the same thought when he says, 'The cry of the ages is more for fraternity than for charity. If one exists, the other will follow, or, better still, will not be needed.'
"Says J. R. Miller, 'Wanting to have a friend is altogether different from wanting to be a friend. The former is mere natural human craving. The latter is the life of Christ in the soul.'
"At no better time than today can we choose to plant again the seed of true friendship in our hearts. Let us cultivate it and nurture it until it blooms forth into friendship for everyone who may be helped by the love of Christ through us."
THE KEY TO FAILURE
—Temperance Day
—Appetite
Strong Drink Opens the Gate to Destruction and Bars the Way to Success.