“GOD hath chosen the foolish things of the world, to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the World, to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are; that no flesh should glory in his presence." (1 Cor. 1:27-2927But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 29That no flesh should glory in his presence. (1 Corinthians 1:27‑29).)
Though 'tis but a handful, and thousands be there;
Yet all who have need find enough and to spare;
For Jesus the Lord, who dispenses the feast,
While filling the greatest, forgets not the least.
JOHN 6:1-151After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias. 2And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. 3And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. 4And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. 5When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? 6And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do. 7Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little. 8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him, 9There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? 10And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. 12When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. 13Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. 14Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. 15When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone. (John 6:1‑15)
JOH 6:1-151After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias. 2And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. 3And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. 4And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. 5When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? 6And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do. 7Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little. 8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him, 9There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? 10And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. 12When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. 13Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. 14Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. 15When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone. (John 6:1‑15)IN the north-eastern part of Palestine is "the sea of Galilee which is the sea of Tiberias," it is about twelve miles long, and six broad; this sea of Tiberias or Galilee is almost what we should call a lake, for it is surrounded by lofty hills. Its waters are beautifully clear, so clear that the fish which live in them can be seen when they are far below the surface; the lake is also full of those things which are most fitted to make the land which it waters fertile. I do not mean things in the water which can be seen apart from it like the fish, but parts of which the water is composed; for water is a mixture of different things. There is lime or chalk in some water, then it is very bright and sparkling; there is iron in some water, then it is dull, and sometimes tinged with yellow; some waters are of a beautiful blue color, and in these there is iodine. From the snow, which always covers the higher mountains at some distance from the lake, abundant streams run into the Jordan, and this is thought to be one reason why the waters of Galilee make the country so fruitful; for the river Jordan runs through the lake of Galilee; we read that "there was much grass in the place," and, besides grass, beautiful trees and flowers, the graceful willow, the flowery oleander, and others may be seen on the very borders of the lake; further away, on the most distant side of the lake, are wild, dark caves, those " tombs " spoken of in the gospels, from which the two men came out who were "exceeding fierce," but whom Jesus tamed so that one was seen "sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind;" no longer fierce or hiding himself, loving those wild dark caves, but asking Jesus "that he might be with him."
Beyond the caves are the grassy hills, and from their tops can be seen the snowy ridges of the great mount Hermon. Perhaps it was this fertilizing snow which was in the mind of David, when in Psa. 133 he spoke of “the dew of Hermon which descended upon the mountains of Zion."
On this day of John 6 the grassy hills must have been crowded with people; they had not come out to see the clear waters of the lake, nor the flowers that grew beside it; no, nor even great snowy Hermon. One, greater than Hermon, was on the hill that day; One, greater than David, greater than Solomon, or than Solomon's glorious Temple; Jesus Himself was there; Jesus, who had been "moved with compassion," and had touched the poor leper, and healed him, had cured that terrible disease about which I told you in the story of the "Little Maid," with one touch of His loving hand, and those words of divine power, "I will; be thou clean." Jesus was on one of the green hills beside the lake; the people from the country round had seen His miracles. From Cana they came, for they had seen how He had made the water wine. From Capernaum they came, for they had seen the nobleman's son, who had been sick of a fever, but who had begun to amend “at the same hour in the which Jesus said," to the father, “thy son liveth;" they had seen, too, that child of twelve, that only daughter who had lain dead. A “fear not” had been heard from the lips of Jesus; "all wept and bewailed her, but he said, Weep not, she is not dead but sleepeth." Then the hand of Jesus had touched the little girl, as it had touched the leper, and His voice had spoken to her, “Maid, arise,... and she arose straightway." The widow of Nain might be there, no longer childless, but perhaps followed by the son whom once she had followed, as he lay a lifeless corpse, upon the hopeless bier.
“Christ could not be hid—for the blind and the lame
His love and His power would together proclaim:
The dumb would speak out, and the deaf would recal
The name of that Jesus who healed them all.
Christ could not be hid,—for the widow of Nain
Would point to the son now restored her again;
Would say 'twas His love, His compassion and grace,
Gave back that lost son to a mother's embrace."
Christ could not be hid; He had gone over the Sea of Galilee to the lonely hills on the further side, but even there a great multitude followed him; a very great multitude it was, thousands of people; they had all come out to see and to hear Jesus.
Perhaps you think you would like to have been one among those thousands; children were there; they saw Jesus, the One apart from all those thousands, though in grace among them. I can tell you a little about what the lake was like, and the hills round it, but I cannot tell you anything about the appearance of Jesus; among all the things told us of Him we are nowhere told what His face was like; we may read what David looked like, or Absalom, or Esau, or Elijah; but of the appearance of that one wonderful Person, whom all those thousands had come out to see, we are told nothing, Through all the four gospels, which are the story of our Lord's life upon earth, we never read anything about the face of Jesus. When John looked upon Jesus he said nothing about His appearance, but he said, "Behold the Lamb of God." We do not need to know His appearance, but we do need to know His heart. His heart is made known; His precious words scattered through those gospels tell the heart, the holy, gracious heart of Jesus the Savior; His " I will " to the leper; His "Fear not " to the nobleman; His "What wilt thou?" to the blind beggar; His "Come and see" to the disciples who followed Him; His "Come unto me" to all who need Him; His "Suffer the little children;" His "Father forgive them," when by wicked hands He was crucified and slain; His "It is finished." All these, and many, many more precious words, tell us the heart of Jesus. "All bare him witness and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth," for “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh," and "never man spake like this man."
Jesus is also made known to us by His deeds. Those who “wondered at the gracious words" also bore witness to the deeds, and said, “He hath done all things well." One deed above all shows us the heart of Jesus; our poor little hearts can never know all that is in that heart; but that one deed, when upon the cross, “He loved me, and gave himself for me," shows out all the heart of Jesus; and those who learn His heart down here shall see His face in heaven. Then, “face to face." Then, “like him." “We know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."
Jesus, who will be the Center of the heavenly glory by-and-by, was the Center, that is, the One with whom all were occupied that day on the hill; Jesus, too, in His love, was occupied with them. He had compassion on all these poor people who had come so far to see Him, because they were such poor, wandering people, like sheep without a shepherd.
You know what poor, silly, helpless creatures sheep are, and how much they need a shepherd: sheep cannot find food for themselves; sheep cannot guide themselves to green pastures; sheep cannot guard themselves, or take care of themselves one bit; if a sheep even falls into a ditch it cannot get itself out; it will lie there until it dies, unless the shepherd comes and finds it and picks it up.
What would become of sheep if there were no shepherds? but with the shepherd how safe they are! How safe are the children whom Jesus, the Good Shepherd, gathers with His arms, and carries in His bosom! When we know His heart, how glad we are to be carried in His bosom!
“The flocks of men are bought with gold,
And grass is all their food;
The sheep and lambs of Jesus' fold
Are purchased with His blood."
Jesus taught the people many things on the hill beside the lake, and so the day passed and the evening was coming on; then Jesus knew that the people wanted food; He knows everything; He knows whether your soul wants a little word to tell you something precious about Himself, or whether you are hungry and want something to eat; He remembers your body as well as your soul. When He had said to the dead child, “Maid, arise," He remembered that she would be hungry; and He told her parents to give her something to eat.
Out on that hill there was nothing to eat; there was nothing, there but grass; that would have done very well for real sheep, but it would not do for the poor people who were like sheep. The hill where Jesus stood was on the far side of the lake, away from all the towns, and it would have needed more food than any little town could produce to feed all those thousands of people; for we are told that "the number of men was about five thousand beside women and children," and the children wanted some food as well as the big people.
What could be done?
Jesus knew what to do. He called Philip, one of the twelve who followed Him always, and said to him, "Whence shall we buy bread that these may eat?" Jesus did not ask Philip this question that He might get Philip's advice. Jesus was the Lord of heaven and earth, the One who could do whatsoever He pleased in heaven and in earth, in the sea and in all places. Jesus asked this question to “prove” Philip, that is, to make known what was in Philip's heart. "This he said to prove him, but he himself knew what he would do."
I think it would have been nice to have heard Philip say, “Lord, I do not know, but Thou knowest." Instead of this, Philip began, as people say, to use his senses, and his senses could only show him the difficulty. “Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little." Our senses never show Jesus; faith always shows Jesus.
Then Andrew spoke; he said, "There is a lad here which hath five barley loaves and two small fishes; but what are they among so many?" Why, they would seem like nothing; they would not have been enough even for the twelve disciples, for the loaves of Palestine were not like our great half-quartern loaves, but more like round flat cakes, about the size of two muffins, or two penny rolls.
All this time Jesus knew what He Himself would do. In every difficulty and every need Jesus knows what He would do if He were asked and trusted. Jesus knew all the time that the lad was there, and that he had the five loaves and two fishes. Of course you are not surprised to hear this, for you know that Jesus was God, though in the form of man, and could see every one among those thousands, even the lad who was one of the “children," He could see what was in the lad's hand, or in the lad's basket, or in the lad's heart. I wonder what the lad felt when he found himself called; he had never guessed, when he set out with the crowd to see Jesus, that he would be so seen and so used of Him. We are not told whether he was brought to Jesus to give the loaves to Him, or whether the disciples took the five loaves and two fishes; but I think there must have been some little spark of faith in the lad's heart, to make him willing to give up all the food he had in that lonely place.
Whatever may have been in his heart before the wonderful feast, I am sure great gladness was there afterward. Whenever we find that the Lord has used us, even in a small way, as He used this little lad, it puts great wonder and gladness into our hearts. We may have to give up something for a moment, at first, just as the lad had to give up his loaves and his fishes, but we shall have much more gladness in our hearts afterward than any loaves and fishes could put there.
When Jesus had heard what Andrew had to say, He said, “Make the men sit down."
There was much grass in the place, and that was a very good thing, for so many people must have covered a very large space when they were sitting. The disciples obeyed, and made the people sit down; the people obeyed, and sat down. If there had been one there who would not obey, who said, “I see no use in sitting down; those five little loaves, those two little fishes, will never be enough for me to have any"—how foolish he would have been! or if there had been one there who did not like to sit down with the rest and eat of the lad's simple food, how foolish he would have been; he must have gone empty away, for "He filleth the hungry with good things, but the rich he hath sent empty away." None who obeyed, none who trusted the word of Jesus, were sent empty away.
It is very difficult to think all at once of five thousand men besides women and children; the people sat down in rows of fifty (perhaps you have seen fifty people all at once, what a long row fifty in a class would be! and to make the five thousand men there must have been a hundred long rows of fifty); then there were the women and children, who of course were ready to sit down and have some of the food. Would not you have been, if you had been hours on the hill top, in the clear fresh air, with nothing to eat?
Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed to the disciples.
Ah; if ever you are about to make such a sad mistake as to run to the table and begin to eat your food without giving thanks, remember these words, "when he had given thanks." Jesus gave thanks to His Father in the name of all those thousands; I wonder how many other thanks went up with the thanks of Jesus.
When Jesus had given thanks, He began to give the bread and fish to the disciples to carry to the people. You know one disciple could have carried all, as it was, for the lad had carried it all, before it was given to Jesus, but in the hand of Jesus these five little loaves and two small fish became, by His divine power, so much, that every one of the disciples went away with his hands filled; soon, however, his hands were empty, for it would not take even one of the rows of fifty hungry people to eat up all that one disciple could carry, so the disciple would go back to Jesus and get his hands filled again with as much as he could carry. Again and again the disciples came back. Again and again the hungry people received bread and fish; Jesus was always ready to give more and more; His love and His power kept on giving and giving as much as they wished for. At last they had all had enough. All those thousands of people were quite satisfied. For just as God cures quite, God satisfies quite. God does everything quite; not half.
And when God has satisfied us, He still has more left in His wonderful Resources; you know now what this word Resources, means. After all the thousands of people had eaten enough, Jesus said, “Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost." Though Jesus, by His will, could make that little bit of bread into enough for thousands, He would not allow any to be lost; He would not waste the bread which it required the power of God to make; and none will waste bread, however plentiful it may seem to them, or however easily come by, if they have rightly thanked God for it, and remember that it was His power and goodness which gave it to them. Who could have thought, when the five barley loaves and the two small fishes were taken to feed the thousands of people, that there would have been anything left? Who could have expected to have “filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which remained over and above unto them that had eaten"?
No one. Not one, even of the disciples, could have thought of such a thing, but God is able to do for us " exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think," and all those thousands of people had eaten at the very hand of God, the Savior Jesus, the One to whom it was said, "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever."
“Christ could not be hid—for the multitude fed
Would tell 'twas His bounty procured for them bread;
No hand could have multiplied thus thousand fold
But His, who provided the manna of old."
The wonderful feast was over now; the people were filled with astonishment, and were delighted to find themselves fed so easily; so they tried to come, and by force, make Jesus their king. But Jesus could not be King over a sinful people; He had come to be the Savior then; He had come to “minister" (and how He had ministered in tender compassion that day to the souls and bodies of those thousands!) and "to give his life a ransom for many." The people needed a Savior, not a king. Jesus knew this, and went away from their midst.
Jesus has died now, He is not going to be a Savior. He is a Savior, the only Savior. Another day He will be seen coming forth out of heaven as “King of kings and Lord of lords." No men will make Him a King, He is a King already by His own right.
“He shall come down like showers
Upon the new-mown grass;
And joy and hope like flowers,
Spring up where He doth pass.
Before Him on the mountains,
Shall peace, the herald, go;
And righteousness in fountains,
From hill to valley flow.
Kings shall fall down before Him,
And gold and incense bring;
All nations shall adore Him,
His praise all people sing;
Outstretch'd His wide dominion,
O'er river, sea, and shore,
Far as the eagle's pinion,
Or dove's light wing can soar."
This story is ended now, and perhaps you would have liked to hear more about the little lad. Perhaps you are surprised that, though the name of this chapter is "The Lad Here," so little is said about the lad. Well, this is the reason: God chooses to use those about whom little can be said. If you look again at the verses which head this chapter, you will see what sort of people and things God uses; God does not look about for useful things, He has everything. A person might be looking about for some one to help him, and he might say, I want a strong person, for I am weak. God uses weak people, for He is strong. Or you might want some one to help you, and you might say, I want a wise person, for I am a poor, ignorant, foolish child. God uses foolish things, for He is wise; Christ Jesus is the wisdom spoken of in Prov. 8 He is also called “the wisdom of God," and God is called the "only wise." God uses things that are despised, for He does not want glory. He is the Lord of glory, yet, in His grace, He accepts the glory brought to His name by His own.
Jesus said of those to whom He gave eternal life, “I am, glorified in them." How may a child bring glory to the great God of heaven and earth? By being like a little stream. A clear little stream reflects the glory of the sun. Its waters shine, not with anything that is in them; if what belongs to the stream rises up, all the shining is spoiled. The glory of the sun is not seen if what is in the stream is seen.
It is wonderful to remember those words of Jesus, “I am glorified in them." This is very little seen as yet; yet every little, the shining of the tiniest stream, is seen by God now, and by-and-by Christ shall "come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe." Every believer will then reflect only Christ, “We shall be like him."
A stream does nothing wonderful, it goes simply on its way; sometimes those who are used of the Lord are used unconsciously, this is the most usual and often the sweetest way for a child. The lad who was used to bring the food for that wonderful feast did not know what was going to happen. Did you ever notice the only one word said about the Lad? It is the word Here, “A Lad Here." What does ‘here' mean?
If some one says, Where is my book? and you answer, It is here, you mean it is close by; not upstairs in another room, but close by; and the lad was close by, he was near. Can we be near now? Christ is up in heaven; yet we can be near. He says, "Abide in me." How near that is!
“Blest Savior! ever at my side,
How loving Thou must be!
From Thy bright home in heaven to watch
A little child like me.
Thy beautiful and shining face
I see not, though Thou'rt near;
Nor can I Thy soft gentle voice
In earthly accents hear.
Yet all I need Thou knowest it,
And givest good to me;
And when I sleep Thou sleepest not,
But watchest tenderly."
Can you understand this? No, you cannot understand it, and neither can I; you can only believe it. "Be not afraid, only believe." Then you will know this, though you cannot explain it.
I will tell you a story of a little child who was used unconsciously, that is, without guessing at all that he was being used; he was just going on his way. In the same place where this child lived, in a cottage near the sea shore, there lived a young woman. She was one who was content with herself; she lived quietly, she did no one any harm, she just got up day by day, ate her food, attended to her business, and at night she slept. An old horse could do as much as that—eat, sleep, and take care of himself—but as this was a woman and not a horse, she had what the horse had not, that is a conscience, and God saw that this woman's conscience, which seemed so fast asleep, needed a great blow so that light might come in; for besides a conscience she had a never-dying soul, and God, who knows all that is going to happen, knew that this woman had only a few months more to live in that pleasant home by the sea; and then, what would become of her never-dying soul?
And who was to give the needed blow to that woman's conscience? What mighty thing would God use?
Ah! God uses weak things; the little child, all unconsciously, was to touch the conscience of that thoughtless woman. She was walking along, close by the sea, early one fine summer's morning, when she saw, coming towards her, two dear little children with their nurse; they had come out to have a dip in the sea. One was a little boy, he did not notice the woman, but just as she came near he stopped; he was a very little child, and he took hold of his nurse's dress to stop her.
"Oh nurse," he said, "I came out in such a hurry, and I have forgotten to pray!" Immediately then he knelt down on the sand, and spoke a few simple words of prayer to God.
This was the blow that struck this woman's conscience.
“Here is a babe rebuking me," she said within herself. "I'm content to go on, day by day, without prayer, and he cannot go on to take his morning dip when he remembers he has come out without praying!"
The woman watched these little children and their nurse all the time they were bathing; she felt as if she loved the little child who had spoken to her by his simple “fear of the Lord." I think, too, that she saw nothing in his ways with his nurse, or with the other little one, to contradict the happy thoughts she had about him. She went home not content with herself, she sought and found the Savior; and before those few months left of her life had passed away, she was ready "to depart and be with Christ, which is far better."
Sometimes the simple words and loving desire of a little child are used of the Lord.
There was a little girl, I do not know her name, but she lived with her parents in India. A Hindoo servant used to carry her about, and when she grew a little older, used to lead or follow her in her walks. Many of the brown Hindoo servants are very loving to the little white children they take care of. I hope the little white children, who so often have heard of the Savior Jesus, are kind and loving to the poor Hindoos, who perhaps know nothing about Him, for how shall they, or any ignorant person, feel in their hearts a longing to know this Jesus unless they see those who do know Him, like that-
“Gentle Jesus meek and mild"?
This Hindoo servant's name was Sammy, he loved his little mistress much. One day, when Sammy and the little girl were out walking, they came to a funny little house in which was an image. Sammy stopped and made several bows before the door. “Why do you do that?" said the little girl.
“Oh, missy," replied the poor Hindoo, "that my god."
“Your god, Sammy," said the child; "that image your god! why, your god cannot see, cannot hear, cannot move, cannot think, cannot feel; your god is only a stone! My God can see and hear everything."
After this the little girl often spoke to Sammy, in her childish way, about "her God," until the time arrived when she was to leave India, for English children cannot often remain in that hot country after they are six years old; the climate would make them weak, and unable to learn and do all the things that are expected of English children. All the family were going away from India, and poor Sammy would lose his place; he was very sorry, for he loved the little child, though she had often told him how sinful he was, and how useless it was to trust in his gods, the idols.
“What shall I do," he said, "when you go away to England? I shall have no home, and no one to love me, for I have no father and mother." “O Sammy," answered the child, "my God will love you, He will be your father and mother." Sammy's heart was melted.
“I want to love Him," he said, with tears in his eyes.
Then the little girl carefully taught the poor Hindoo some of the verses she knew herself, and the Lord used the precious words, so simply taught; in time, Sammy became a true Christian.
Perhaps the little girl never knew it, but her simple words and loving wishes and ways had been used to begin “a good work" in the precious soul of the poor Hindoo.
Another, and a very special thing, was once used in a little girl; it was a feeling, a feeling which we all need to know more of. It was sorrow at the sight of sin.
Fanny was the child of a happy home; there she had learned many sweet lessons, and had been kept from seeing or hearing of those dark clouds of evil which in this sad world often reach even a child, perhaps some child like Abijah, who yet is kept by God, and kept for God amidst the darkness.
Fanny, in her home, had learned the love and the fear of God, she had also learned to be simple concerning evil; that is, she knew little about evil except this one thing, that it grieved the heart of God. When God saw man's sin in the days of Noah, "It grieved him at his heart." Did you ever think of this?
When Fanny was ten years old, she was, for some reason, sent away from her home to school; the lady who kept the school was a kind Christian person. Fanny was happy; but on Sunday morning, while walking through the streets of the new town where she had gone to school, she saw a sight which was quite a surprise to the little home-child; she saw a woman, sitting at the corner of the street, selling apples, and children coming to that corner to buy apples.
What a sad sight, people buying and selling on the Lord's day!
Perhaps many children had passed the apple-woman at the corner; some may have gone on and taken no notice; some may have said, “I am not like those naughty children who buy apples on Sunday;" some may have wished for the apples. None of these thoughts were in Fanny's mind, neither was she indifferent to the sight, the more she thought about it the more sad it made her; she was sad about the woman who sold, and she was sad about the children who came to buy.
The kind lady, who had the care of Fanny, noticed her sad face; she thought that perhaps the little girl was longing for her own home, and her own Mamma on this first Sunday away, as many little girls and little boys have longed; so she called Fanny to her side to have a little talk with her. But she found that Fanny was not then thinking about her home. What was it that made her so sad?
"Oh," said Fanny at last, bursting into tears, "I don't think that poor woman can know how she grieves the Lord by selling her apples on a Sunday." Yes, this was the cause of Fanny's sad face. The lady tried to comfort Fanny, and then she went to see the apple-woman, The story of the child's grief touched the poor woman's conscience, and that sad sight at the corner was never seen again.
How happy to be, even while a child, used of the Lord; how wonderful that He, of whom we read, "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth," should yet condescend to use such weak, such poor, such unwise things as children. We may not know of it down here, but perhaps, among the many bright surprises that will greet the child of God in heaven, will be the discovery of some time when, in weakness and simplicity, he was “used of the Lord."
A feeble thing—held in His mighty hand,
Who call'd the world to Be at His command;
Unlearn'd, unwise, may yet His wisdom show,
And publish that which angels long to know.
Thus babes, unconsciously at times, fulfill
His purposes, who needs not human skill;
And amid lowliest things we oftenest taste
Those heavenly droppings which refresh the waste.
A stream unshadow'd may reflect the sun,
The ocean shows no more-there is but one;
Small grains are crush'd to powder for the bread
By which the hungry multitudes are fed.
The little sparrow on the housetop sings,
E'en by its worthlessness, of heavenly things;
And he who simply fills his daily round,
May yet a heavenly messenger be found.
Th' accepted servant he who answers-here;
The little lad was used when he was near,
For the five loaves, and two small fish suffice
As channels for heaven's infinite supplies.
The One who all things out of nothing made,
Will have, in things despised, His power display'd;
And He who stoop'd a servant's form to take,
Accepts the cup of water given-for His sake.