August 16
Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.--GAL. vi. 7.
The life above, when this is past,
Is the ripe fruit of life below.
Sow love, and taste its fruitage pure;
Sow peace, and reap its harvest bright;
Sow sunbeams on the rock and moor,
And find a harvest-home of light.
H. BONAR.
The dispositions, affections, inclinations of soul, which shall issue
hereafter in perfection, must be trained and nurtured in us throughout the
whole course of this earthly life. When shall we bear in mind this plain
truth, that the future perfection of the saints is not a translation from
one state or disposition of soul into another, diverse from the former; but
the carrying out, and, as it were, the blossom and the fruitage of one and
the same principle of spiritual life, which, through their whole career on
earth, has been growing with an even strength, putting itself forth in
the beginnings and promise of perfection, reaching upward with steadfast
aspirations after perfect holiness?
H. E. MANNING.