Nature 


NATURE'S LESSONS.



THE "time of the singing of birds has come," and beautiful spring again invites us forth to view the wonders she has wrought. Now the children will eagerly turn away from the bright fireside and the books that were such pleasant companions during the long winter evenings, to ramble in the woods and over the breezy hills. Yet even now you may be learning. 

The lessons of wisdom are not contained alone in printed books, or taught only within the walls of human dwellings. There is hardly an object in nature that has not been used by the Divine Teacher to illustrate some sacred truth. The glorious sun, whose warm rays have so gladdened and beautified the face of nature, reminds us of Him who is the Sun of Righteousness. As we look up on a clear night and behold the heavens glittering with unnumbered hosts of stars, we remember the promise, "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars forever and ever."

The budding trees, which tell us that summer is near, remind us also that the promised signs have been fulfilled, and our Saviour's coming is at hand. The wild flowers, and the little birds in their glad songs, so happy, so free from care, teach us a lesson of our Heavenly Father's love, that He who clothes with beauty the flowers of the field, and feeds the birds of the air, will care much more for us.

The rose and the lily, the graceful vine, the sheltering rock, the apple-tree, with its spring time wealth of fragrant bloom, and its autumn treasures of ruddy fruit, the shepherd watching over his flock with tender care, the spotless lamb, perishing under the slayer's knife, all these and many other objects are used as symbols of our Redeemer. 

As you see the farmer tilling the soil with care, and scattering the seed, remember that One is sowing good seed in the garden of your heart. The seed sown may be the holy impression made by a prayer, by a Sabbath-school lesson, by the word of God itself, by that "still, small voice" which speaks to our hearts, or by some other means. Let it be cherished; remove the weeds, the wrong habits and feelings that would choke it, let it not be caught away by sinful or thoughtless companions, and in the time of harvest you will reap a rich reward.

Sunlight and shadow, snow and rain, cold and heat, thorns and thistles, precious gems and worthless stubble, wheat and chaff, mountain and valley, the dust of the earth, the flying cloud, the falling leaf, the fleeting vapor, all teach us lessons of heavenly truth. Learn from the word of God what these lessons are, young friends, and then, as you enjoy the beauties of nature so freely spread out before you, let your thoughts go up to nature's God, and your hearts be warmed and gladdened by his love. 





M. A. D.