Our spring of labor must be in the Lord, not in effects. He has to say, "Then have I labored in vain and spent my strength for naught and in vain: yet is my judgment with the Lord and my work with my God." We are often encouraged, as He never was; but we must depend on Him for energy to work. Perhaps I am wrong to say " never," for the woman at the well of Samaria evidently was sent to His soul, when driven by jealousy out of Judæa, and one anxious soul showed Him the fields white for harvest, and gave Him meat to eat man knew not of. But we must be in the secret of the Lord to have this kind of encouragement. 410