How sad is the falling off, that is everywhere evident, as to meetings for Bible Reading or Bible Study! Likewise personal, individual, and family Bible reading and teaching are sadly neglected. How can our testimony prosper without such essential occupation with the Word of God? Prayer is of great importance, and service too, but without diligent reading, meditation on, and study of the Word, our prayers will lack freshness, reality, and power; our service will become irksome and fruitless; and thanksgiving and worship will not well up spontaneously from our hearts and lips. The Bible is the support of our faith. Without it we fall from the freshness of ardent love to our Lord, tradition in some form or other asserts itself; we drift off unconsciously into erroneous ways and ideas, little by little. By means of the Bible, the Word dwelling richly in the heart in all wisdom, God and Christ become vivid to our souls; the things of our Lord are made real; the path is made plain; love of the brethren is warm and active; the value of the souls of our fellow-men stirs the compassion of the gospel within us; the world with its passing distractions fades from our vision, and eternal issues loom large before us.

Do not neglect prayer and service, but first of all, do not neglect the Bible, individually and collectively! To do this is a most serious mistake. Neglect in this matter is deadly.

And in this connection, what one feels is very much needed, more than just reading and ordinary study of the Scriptures, is a definite effort for co-operative Bible research, on the part of all who can in any way enter intelligently into such concerted work. "Every place whereon the soles of your feet tread shall be yours." "There remaineth yet very much land to be possessed." The Lord stir all our hearts to more diligent and reverent study of His Word. E. B. Craig

FRAGMENT