TO-DAY Dr. C-has sent me some directions for which I have been begging him a long time. After alluding to my complaint that I still "saw men as trees walking," he says:

"Yet he who first uttered this complaint had his eyes opened by the Son of God, and so have you, and He will gradually lead you into clear and open vision, if you will allow Him to do it. I say gradually, because I believe this to be His usual method, while I do not deny that there are cases where light suddenly bursts in like a flood.

"To return to the blind man. As his cure was not complete, the Lord put His hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up; and he was restored, and saw every man clearly. Now this must be done for you; and in order to have it done you must go to Christ Himself. Tell Him how obscure everything still looks to you, and beg Him to give you a clearer view of your need and of His grace.

"You may be sure that He never works in an arbitrary way. He has a reason for everything He does. You may not understand why He leads you now in this way and now in that, but you may, nay, you must believe that perfection is stamped on His every act.

"Having been pardoned by your God and Saviour, the next thing you have to do is to show your gratitude for this infinite favor by yielding yourself entirely to Him, body, soul, and spirit. This is the least you can do. He has bought you with a price, and you are no longer your own. 'But,' you may reply, 'this is contrary to my nature. I love my own way. I desire ease and pleasure; I desire to go to heaven, but I want to be carried thither on a bed of flowers. Can I not give myself so far to God as to feel a sweet sense of peace with Him, and be sure of final salvation, and yet, to a certain extent, indulge and gratify myself? If I give myself entirely away to Him, and lose all ownership in myself, He may deny me many things I greatly desire. He may make my life hard and wearisome, depriving me of all that now makes it agreeable.' But, I reply, this is no matter of parley and discussion; it is not optional with God's children whether they will pay Him a part of what they owe Him, and keep back the rest. He asks, and He has a right to ask, for all you have and all you are. And if you shrink from such a surrender, you should fly to Him at once and never rest till He has conquered this secret disinclination to give to Him as freely and as fully as He has given to you.

"It is true that such an act on your part may involve no little future discipline and correction. The Lord becomes at once your Physician as well as your dearest and best Friend, but He will use no painful remedy that can be avoided. And now if you ask how you may know that you have truly yielded yourself to Him, I reply, Observe every indication of His will concerning you, no matter how trivial, and see whether you at once close in with that will. Lay down this principle as a law-God does nothing arbitrarily. If He takes away your health, for instance, it is because He has some reason for doing so; and this is true of everything you value; and if you have real faith in Him you will not insist on knowing this reason. If you find, in the course of daily events, that your will revolts still at His will-do not be discouraged, but fly to your Saviour and stay in His presence till you can truly say, 'Not my will but Thine be done.' Every time you do this it will be easier to do it; every such consent to suffer will bring you nearer and nearer to Him; and in this nearness to Him you will find such peace, such blessed, sweet peace, as will make your life infinitely happy, no matter what may be its mere outside conditions.

"In reading the Bible I advise you to choose detached passages, or even one verse a day, rather than whole chapters. Study every word, ponder and pray over it.

"As to the other devotional reading, it is better to settle on a few favorite authors, and read their works over and over until you have digested their thoughts and made them your own.

"You can choose for your associates those who are most devout and holy.

"You can read books that will stimulate you in your Christian life, rather than those that merely amuse.

"You can spend much time in prayer, without regard to your frame at the moment.

"You can choose to study the life of Christ. This will lead to such self-denying work as visiting the poor, nursing the sick, giving of your time and money to the needy, and the like."

"If the thought of such self-denial is repugnant to you, remember that it is enough for the disciple to be as his Lord. And let me assure you that as you penetrate the labyrinth of life in pursuit of Christian duty, you will often be surprised and charmed by meeting your Master Himself amid its windings and turnings, and receive His soul-inspiring smile. Or, I should rather say, you will always meet Him, wherever you go."