"After all, Nancy, it is of little consequence where is your home, or what your situation on earth, if you have no prospect of a home in heaven. Here you may wander about from place to place in search of comfort and happiness; but after death, your state will be fixed for eternity. Never, never, can you see another change, after once the Judge of all has assigned your last abode. How important, then, how allimportant the question, Are you prepared to die? and if you were to die now, where would be your portion? in glory, or in misery? with the saved or the lost? I have been writing to you against needless changes. But there is one great change necessary for your soul's welfare. Has that change passed on you? are you turned from darkness to light? By nature you were a slave to Satan and a servant to sin are you still in that miserable_bondage? or have you exchanged it for the easy yoke, the joyous service of the Son of God? Have you yet submitted yourself to Jesus? If not, do so without delay. Come to His throne of grace; take Him for your new Master; yield sincere obedience to His will; and you will find His service to be perfect freedom. "With best wishes, I remain, "C. B." This letter strengthened me much in my new plans. I had my little troubles, but I tried to put up with them. And in this mood, I found they were not so hard to bear as I should otherwise have thought. Hitherto I had been apt to make mountains of molehills. But my roving spirit had now found a check. I had learned by experience that "a rolling stone gathers no moss.' 57 CHAPTER IV. THE REWARD OF UNRIGHTEOUSNESS. Ir was as under-housemaid I went to Mrs. Carmichael's;-the old Mrs. CarmichaelMr. Edward's mother. There were a great many grown-up sons and daughters, but none left in the nursery; master Onslow, who was the youngest, was turned twelve. For a few months all went calmly; and when first a few cross-winds blew, I gave no heed to them. By degrees, however, I began to get chafed at times. I had a capital mistress. She was very particular to have things nice. She had a quick eye to see if a door-ledge or a windowsill was left undusted. But of this I did not complain; for it was just as it should be. Most people say, "Take care of the pence, and the pounds will take care of themselves;" her saying was about as good,- Take care of holes and corners, and the middle will surely do well." It is true she could speak sharply enough, when she found aught that was amiss; but then it was a word or two, and all over. It was far otherwise with Dermott, the upper maid :—she was one who would snarl all day 66 long, and never let you hear the end of her fault-findings. If I did a thing wrong one day, I was sure to be told of it again and again, till I put out the memory of it by some new misdeed. That Dermott was the plague of my life, I thought. I was a little vexed, too, by some of the young ladies, who laughed among themselves when I did anything awkward. No doubt it was very rude of themnot like ladies of their rank. But they had only just returned from school, and had not left off their stupid tricks. Their four elder sisters would not have done so. However, it vexed me none the less. One week when Dermott was more aggravating than usual, I got into a fit of despair, and asked for a holiday. I longed to go and tell mother of all my sorrows. I thought she would surely advise me to leave; but she did not. She said, "You ought to be above minding such things. Please your mistress, and don't heed what the young folks say or think. Do your duty, and never heed the upper maid's grumblings, except to learn the best lesson you can from them." Mother's plain speaking had a manner with it that always found its way to my heart. I went back to Chelsea, and very hard I tried to put up with all that annoyed me. I succeeded too, or else I should not have stopped six years and a half at Mrs. Carmichael's. Nearly two of those years had just gone by, when I had another nice letter from my dear kind teacher. "Sept. 10, 1810. "DEAR NANCY, "When I was in town last week, I found time to see your mother and ask how you were going on. I could not get so far as Chelsea; and even if I could have managed that distance, I should have hesitated about calling, lest your mistress might not like it. But I must write you a few lines before I leave the country. My mother is ordered to the south of France, and we are to start in three days. I shall often think of you when I am far away, and shall pray for you; but do not trust, Nancy, to the prayers of others; they will be of no avail to you, while you neglect to pray for yourself. "I was glad to hear that though your present situation is not in all respects exactly to your mind, you are resolved to keep it. I am glad of this, because it looks as if you were doing your best to please. I trust you will persevere, and not grow discouraged in striving to do well. There is one thing which often checks young people's zeal for what is right. When we first set ourselves to be very attentive to the wishes of others, we find them ready to notice the change, and to be easily pleased. Then, as weeks and months roll on, we find, perhaps, that the more we do, the more we are expected to do. This is likely to dishearten us, and make us feel disposed to relax in our endeavours: for we begin to fancy that no one gives us credit for taking all the pains we really do take. It is possible you may have some such feeling as this; and in case it is so, I just want to show you that we must not always expect people to make allowances for us. If they find us obliging, and obedient, and careful, and diligent, they only see in us what we ought to be. We are doing nothing more than our duty. They know not the hard struggle there may have been in our minds before we could : bring ourselves to act thus. Indeed, if they did know it, they would only blame us for our wrong state of feeling. If our hearts were quite right, it would cost us no effort to follow after that which is good and therefore when we have at any time succeeded in mastering our evil inclinations, instead of feeling proud, and thinking that others ought to give us credit for it, we ought rather to feel humbled that we had any such wrong dispositions to fight against. "There is one thought, however, which may give us comfort. God knows our hearts. He sees every conflict we have; and though He knows such conflicts are the result of our sinfulness, He knows that the more we resist our improper tempers the more likely we are to come off conquerors. When we subdue one single wrong feeling, He notices it; and if it is done for His sake, then He approves it. Now the great question, Nancy, is this: Are you living to please yourself, to please your fellow-creatures, or to please God? By nature, you were disposed to try the first plan; but it did not make you happy, as it never has made any one happy to live for self. Now you have been trying the second plan. You have been pleasing your mistress, and you have been pleasing your mother, and I am sure you have been the happier for it. But have you also been trying to live to God? This would be the thing to make you always happy. Others may misunderstand us, may expect too much from us, may change toward us. But it is not so with God. You need never be discouraged in trying to please Him. He is willing and waiting to forgive all your sins through Christ Jesus, and to give you the help of His own Almighty Spirit in seeking after holiness. "I must add one word more. I do not know what kind of fellow-servants you have. But I hope you are watchful about their influence over you. If they do wrong, take care that they do not lead you into evil. You will need to be much on your guard about this. Do not fancy yourself safe, because your parents |