The Words and Mind of Jesus and The Faithful Promiser

The next little book I'd love to introduce you to is another gem from J.R. MacDuff!  

1886

Here's a snippet from pg. 39

He is Faithful that Promised

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth."  John xiv-27

Peace in Believing

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee." "Perfect peace!"- what a blessed attainment!  My soul, is it thine?  Sure I am it is not, if thou art seeking it in a perishable world, or in the perishable creature, or in thy perishable self.  Although thou hast all that the world would call enviable and happy, unless thou hast peace in God, and with God, all else is unworthy of the name;- a spurious thing, which the first breath of adversity will shatter, and the hour of death utterly annihilate.  Perfect peace; what is it?  It is the peace of forgiveness.  It is the peace arising out of a sense of God reconciled through the blood of the everlasting covenant, -resting sweetly on the bosom, and the work of Jesus, - to Him committing thine eternal all. 

Be Perfect!?

Andrew Murray is one of my favorite authors.  I found this little treasure on Ebay.  As I've mentioned, I adore little books.  This one is part of a series of little books entitled, For the Quiet Hour.  I also adore ornamental covers.  Isn't it beautifully designed?

Be Perfect!

by

Rev. Andrew Murray

A Message from the Father in Heaven to His Children on Earth

1893

                       

Snippet from pp. 8-9

Perfection, as the highest aim of what God in His great power would do for us, is something so Divine, Spiritual, and Heavenly, that it is only the soul that yields itself very tenderly to the leading of the Holy Spirit that can hope to know its blessedness.

God hath wrought into every human heart a deep desire after perfection.  That desire is manifested in the admiration which all men have for excellence in the different objects or pursuits to which they attach value.  In the believer who yields himself wholly to God this desire fastens itself upon God's wonderful promises, and inspires a prayer like that of M'Cheyne: "Lord, make me as holy as a pardoned sinner can be made." The more we learn to long for this full conformity to God's will, for the consciousness that we are always pleasing to Him, we shall see that all this must come as a gift direct from heaven, as the full out-birth in us of the life of God, the inbreathing of the Holy Spirit of Jesus in those who are wholly yielded to His indwelling and rule.  Trusting ever less to men's thoughts and teachings, we shall retire much into the secret of God's presence, in the assurance that the more we see God's face, and hear the secret voice that comes direct from Him, "BE PERFECT", the more will the Holy Spirit dwelling within us unfold the heavenly fulness and power of the words, and make them, as God's words, bring and give and work the very thing He speaks.

Wednesday Whimsy- General Rules of Etiquette

The Essential Handbook of Victorian Etiquette is a delightful look at the do's and don'ts of the manners and morals of the Victorian era.  This book draws from Professor Thomas E. Hill's published works- Morals and Manners Illustrated and Manual of Social and Business Forms.  (1878-1890) Enjoy!

Professor Thomas E. Hill

Snippets from pgs. 16, 27, 38, 44 and 51

General Rules of Etiquette

1.     Never point at another person.

2.     Never wantonly frighten others.

3.     Never make yourself the hero of your own story.

4.     Never pick your teeth or clean your nails in company.

5.     Never exhibit anger, impatience, or excitement when an accident happens.

6.     Never send your guest, who is accustomed to a warm room, off into a cold, damp, spare bed to  

        sleep.

7.     Never make a display when removing hair, insects, or other disagreeable things from your food.   

        Place them quietly under the edge of your plate.

8.     Never wear gloves at the table, unless your hands for some special reason are unfit to be seen.

9.     Never, (when eating) permit yourself to use gestures, nor illustrations made with a knife or fork 

        on the tablecloth.

10.   Never allow butter, soup, or other food to remain on your whiskers.

Morning Watches and Night Watches

My all time favorite devotional is this little treasure- Morning Watches and Night Watches authored by the Rev. J.R. Macduff. I discovered it in a Virginia barn- gloriously filled with antique books.  I have always been enamored with personal inscriptions, so was thrilled to opened its cover to find this:

It reads, "This book given to my mother Dorah Wise Clayton by her mother.  Anna Harnsberger Wise when a small girl.  Dorah Wise Clayton born in April 1863...By- Ethelyn Clayton Miller." 

Morning Watches 

and 

Night Watches

by JR. MacDuff

1876

Today's Snippet-

Pg. 9-10

"O Lord, in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee."

For Renewal of Heart

Almighty God, who hast mercifully preserved me during the unconscious hours of slumber, I desire to dedicate my waking moments and thoughts to Thee.  Do Thou pre-occupy my mind with hallowed and heavenly things.  May I be enabled throughout this day, by the help of Thy Holy Spirit, to exclude all that is vain and frivolous and sinful, and to have my affections centered on Thee, as my best portion al chiefest joy.  As Thy Spirit of old did brood over the face of the waters, may that same blessed Spirit descend in all the plenitude of His heavenly graces, that the gloom of a deeper moral chaos may be dispersed, and that mine may be the beauty and happiness and gladness of a soul that has been transformed "from darkness to light, and from the power of sin and Satan unto God." 

Encouragement From Days Gone By

All my life I have loved to learn from voices from the past.  Especially authors who have long since left this world for another, leaving behind a bit of their life message to glean from.  I've collected little antique devotionals, books on etiquette to books about parenting...all bringing a little more clarity to my cluttered mind and peppering my days with a bit of whimsy.  I'm creating this blog for myself and anyone else who may occasionally desire to gaze back in time to bring to the present a bit of wisdom and encouragement left for us to enjoy. 

Today's entry comes from a sweet little book I found at an antique shop entitled, 

Prayers For Boys

By

Herbert C. Alleman

Copyright 1925

For Faith~pg. 31

Heavenly Father, Whose Word bids us walk by faith and not by sight, grant me such power.  In the many things in life which perplex me, help me to believe that Thou dost order all things well.  Help me to trust Thee with all my heart, though I cannot see Thy way.  Show me what is needful for me to know.  May I trust where I cannot see, ever looking to Thee to keep me.  Thou dost make all things work together for good to them that love Thee; help me to be patient when things go ill with me.  Help me to walk in the footsteps of Jesus Whose trust in Thee was perfect.  

By doing Thy will may I learn Thy truth.  

For Thy name's sake. 

Amen.