opinions be) is my "brother, and sister, and
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 11.
We set out upon two principles:
1. None go to heaven without holiness of heart and life.
2. Whosoever follows after this (whatever his opinions be) is my "brother, and sister, and mother;" and we have not swerveda hair'sbreadth from either one or the other of these to this day.— JOHN WESLEY.
Still hold the stars in thy right hand, And let them in thy luster glow, The lights of a benighted land, The angels of thy Church below.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.—1 Cor. xvi, 13.
CSE MEL GRO
Shear one Sanna June 12.
You are not called to desire suffering.
Innocent nature is averse from pain; only, as soon as his will appears, yours is to sink down before it.--JOHN WESLEY.
Thy every suff'ring servant, Lord, Shall as his perfect Master be:
To all thy inward life restored, And outwardly conformed to thee:
Out of thy grave the saint shall rise, And grasp, through death, the glorious prize.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
If we suffer, we shall also reign with him.— 1 Tim. ii, 12.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 13.
Pray, whether you can or not: when you are cheerful, when you are heavy, pray ; with many or few words, or none at all.
You will surely find an answer of peace.—JOHN WESLEY.
Lean on thy Redeemer's breast :
He thy quiet spirit keeps; Rest in him, securely rest ; Thy Watchman never sleeps.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.—Jer. xxix, 12.
June 14.
It is a great step toward Christian resignation, to be thoroughly convinced of that truth, that there is no such thing as chance in the world ; that fortune is only another name for providence ; only it is covered providence.
An event, the cause of which does not appear, we commonly say, comes by chance.
Ono; itis guided by an unerring hand; it is the result of infinite wisdom and goodness.—JOHN WESLEY.
Lead me in thy righteous ways, Nor suffer me to slide ; Point out the path before my face ; My God, be thou my Guide !
—CHARLES WESLEY.
The very hairs of your head _ are all numbered.— Matt. x, 30.
88 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 15.
A calm, even spirit goes through rough work far better than a furious one.—JOHN WESLEY.
Help me to watch and pray, And on thyself rely, Assured, if I my trust betray, I shall forever die.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
In your patience possess ye your souls.— Luke xxi, 19.
June 16.
I am acquainted with several persons whom I believe to be saved from sin.
But there is great variety in the manner wherein God is pleased to lead them.
Some of them are called to act much for God; some to rejoice much; some to suffer much.
All of these shall receive their crown.
But when the Son of Man shall come in his glory, the brightest crown will be given to the sufferers.-JOHN WESLEY.
O what are all my sufferings here, If, Lord, thou count me meet With that enraptured host to appear, And worship at thy feet!
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.—Phil. i, 29.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 17.
I must do justice, if the sky falls —JOHN WESLEY.
Behold the servant of the Lord!
I wait thy guiding hand to feel ; To hear and keep thy every word, To prove and do thy perfect will ; Joyful from my own works to cease, Glad to fulfill all righteousness.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.—Prov. iv, 18.
June 18.
Undoubtedly, as long as you are in the body, you will come short of what you would be; and you will see more and more of your numberless defects, and the imperfection of your best actions and tempers.
Heaviness you may feel; but you never need come into darkness. Beware of supposing darkness, that is, unbelief, to be better than the light of faith—JOHN WESLEY.
O the infinite cares And temptations and snares Thy hand hath conducted me through !
O the blessings bestowed By a bountiful God, And the mercies eternally new!
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Rejoice evermore.—1 Thess. v, 16.
90 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 19.
Exhort all the believers, strongly and explicitly, to go onto perfection; and to expect every lessing God has promised, not to-morrow, but to-day.— JOHN WESLEY.
Jesus, for this we calmly wait; O let our eyes behold thee near!
Hasten to make our heaven complete ; Appear, our glorious God, appear!
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.
— Heb. vi, 1.
June 20.
I hope you lose no opportunity of speaking a word for God, either to them that know him or them that do not.
Why should you lose any time?
Time is short—JOHN WESLEY.
For this alone I breathe, To spread the gospel sound, Glad tidings of thy death To all the nations round, Who all may feel thy blood applied, Since all are freely justified.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might ; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.—Eccles. ix, 10.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 21.
How delicate a thing it is to reprove!
To do it well, requires more than human wisdom. —
JOHN WESLEY.
Happy the man who finds the grace, The blessing of God's chosen race, The wisdom coming from above, The faith that sweetly works by love.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.—Gal. vi, 1.
June 22.
See that you speak freely to each other.
Speak of your sorrows, and weaknesses, and temptations; this is well-pleasing to God, and will be a means of knitting you together by a bond that shall never be broken.--JOHN WEsLEY.
Still may we to our center tend, To spread thy praise our common end, To help each other on; Companions through the wilderness :
To share a moment's pain, and seize An everlasting crown.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another.—James v, 16.
92 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 23.
The body dies when it is separated from the soul, the soul when it is separated from God.
But this separation from God Adam sustained in the day, the hour, he ate of the forbidden fruit.—JOHN WESLEY.
How soon the fruits of sin appear!
Trouble, anxiety, and fear, That to the covert flies ; Sad guilt, and shameful nakedness, The forfeiture of life and peace, With loss of paradise !
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Iam come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.— John x, 10.
June 24.
We have reason to believe, from the earliest records, that St. Paul suffered a thousand times more than St. John.
And yet one can hardly doubt but St. John was as holy as he, or any of the apostles.
Therefore, stand ready for whatsoever our Lord shall send; but do not require him to send you affliction JOHN WESLEY.
So I may thy Spirit know, Let him as he listeth blow:
Let the manner be unknown, So I may with thee be one.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.—Phil. ii, 13.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 25.
What a comfort it is that we know the Lord reigneth, and that he disposes all things in heaven and earth in the very manner which he sees will be most for his own glory and for the good of those that love him !—JOHN WESLEY.
Heavenly Father, Lord of all, Hear, and show thou hearest my call:
Let my cries thy throne assail, Entering now within the veil:
Give the benefits I claim:
Lord, I ask in Jesus' name.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice.— Psa. xcvii, 1.
June 26.
It is easy to see the difference between those two things, sinfulness and helplessness.
The former you need feel no more; the latter you will feel as long as you live.
And, indeed, the nearer you draw to God, the more sensible of it you will be.— JOHN WESLEY.
We cannot speak one useful word, One holy thought conceive, Unless, in answer to our Lord, Thyself the blessing give,
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.—Phil. i, 6.
94 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 27.
Sanctified crosses are blessings indeed: and when it is best, our Lord will remove them,—
JOHN WESLEY.
Who suffer with our Master here, We shall before his face appear And by his side sit down; To patient faith the prize is sure, And all that to the end endure The cross, shall wear the crown.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.—1 Cor. x, 13.
June 28.
You may have more or less of joy.
This depends upon a thousand circumstances: but you never need lose one degree of love-—JOHN
WESLEY.
Thou, O Love, my portion art:
Lord, thou know'st my simple heart.
Nothing else can I require ; Love fills up my whole desire; All thy other gifts remove, Still thou giv'st me all in love!
—CHARLES WESLEY.
The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, which is given unto us.—
Rom. v, 5.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
June 29.
How many blessings may you receive..., provided you seek them in the good old way wherein you received the Lord Jesus Christ !
So walk in him still.
Beware of striking into new paths! of being wise above. that is. written !
Perhaps we may find sweetness in the beginning, but it would be bitterness in the latter end.—
JOHN WESLEY.
From Thee that I no more may part, No more Thy goodness grieve, The filial awe, the fleshly heart, The tender conscience give.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.—1 Cor. xv, 58.
June 30.
You have only to go.on calmly and steadily, and God. will arise and maintain his.own cause.
Only let us labor to. have a conscience. void. of offense toward God and toward man.—JOHN WESLEY.
I want a true regard, A single, steady aim,— Unmoved by threatening or reward, To thee and thy great name ;
—CHARLES WESLEY.
They that trust in the Lord shall..be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth forever.—Psa. cxxv, 1.
96 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 1.
The cheerfulness of faith you should aim at in and above all things JOHN WESLEY.
Beyond the bounds of time and space Look forward to that heavenly place, The saints' secure abode; On faith's strong eagle pinions rise, And force your passage to the skies, And scale the mount of God.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.—Psa. c, 2.
July 2.
Who would wish to live for any meaner purpose than to serve God in our generation?
I know my health and strength are continued for this very thing.
And if ever I should listen to that siren song, "Spare thyself,' I believe my Master would spare me no longer, but soon take me,away.—JOHN WESLEY.
Whene'er my careless hands hang down, O let me see thy gathering frown, And feel thy warning eye; And, starting, cry from ruin's brink, '6Save, Jesus, or I yield, I sink ; O save me, or I die."
—CHARLES WESLEY.
For we are laborers together with God.— 1 Cor. iii, 9.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 3.
Those that suffer all will surely conquer all.—_JOHN WESLEY.
Thrice blessed, bliss-inspiring hope !
It lifts our fainting spirits up, It brings to life the dead:
Our conflicts here shall soon be past, And you and I ascend at last, Triumphant with our Head.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye.-—1 Pet. iii, 14.
July 4.
So far as you are able, rejoice to endure hardship, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ ; and deny yourself every pleasure, which you are not divinely conscious prepares you for taking pleasure in God.—_JOHN WESLEY.
Thou seest my heart's desire ; I would thy cross partake ; I long to be baptized with fire, And die for thy dear sake.
I long to rise with thee, And soar to things above, And spend a blest eternity In praise of dying love.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Be strong and of a good courage.—Josh. i, 6.
98 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 5.
We have but one point in view: to be altogether Christians, scriptural, rational Christians.
For which we well know, not only the world, but the almost Christians, will never forgive us.—
—JOHN WESLEY.
To serve Thy blessed will, Thy dying love to praise, Thy counsel to fulfill, And minister Thy grace, Freely what I receive to give, Thy life of heaven on earth I live.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Whatsoever ye do, do it_heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.—Col. ui, 23.
July 6.
Let us not vary in thought or word from the Methodist principle: "Whosoever doeth the will of my Father who isin heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother."—JOHN
WESLEY.
If pure essential love Thou art, Thy nature into every heart, Thy loving self, inspire:
Bid all our simple souls be one, United in a bond unknown, Baptized with heavenly fire.
=—CHARLES WESLEY.
Let brotherly love continue.—Heb. xiii, 1.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 7, I admired a holy man in France, who, considering the state of one who was full' of doubts and fears, forbade him to think of his sins at all, and. ordered him to think only of the love of God 3 in Christ.
The fruit was, all his fears vanished away, and he lived and died in the triumph of faith—JOHN WESLEY.
But if from Him I turn mine eye, And see the raging floods run high, And feel my fears within, My foes so strong, my flesh so frail, Reason and unbelief prevail, And sink me into sin.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Look unto me, and be ye saved,—Isa. xlv, 22.
July 8.
Faith is sight; that is, spiritual sight; and it is ht and not darkness; so that the famous Beat phrase, * 'The darkness of faith," is a contradiction in terms.—JOHN WESLEY.
Lo! to faith's enlightened sight All the mountain flames with light ; Hell is nigh, but God is nigher, Circling us with hosts of fire.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Faith is the substance of things heped for, the evidence of things not seen. —Heb. xi,
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 9.
Sometimes there is painful conviction of sin preparatory to full sanctification; sometimes a conviction that has far more pleasure than pain, being mixed with joyful expectation.
Always there should bea gradual growth in grace ; which need never be intermitted from the time we are justified.
Do not wait, therefore, for pain or any thing else, but simply for all-conquering faith—JOHN WESLEY.
We who in Christ believe That he for us hath died, We all his unknown peace receive, And feel his blood applied,
—CHARLES WESLEY,
For we which have believed do enter into rest.—Heb. iv, 3.
July 10.
You look inward too much, and upward too little—JOHN WESLEY.
Saviour, to thee my soul looks up, My present Saviour thou!
In all the confidence of hope I claim the blessing now.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith_—Heb. xii, 1, 2.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 11.
In praying with the children, you have only to ask for those things which you are sensible they want, and that inthe most plain, artless, and simple language which you can devise.
JOHN WESLEY.
The spirit of interceding grace Give us in faith to claim:
To wrestle till we see thy face, And know thy hidden name.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find: knock, and it shall be opened unto you.— Matt. vii, 7.
July 12.
Those who feel less, certainly suffer less ; but the more we suffer, the more we may improve; the more obedience, the more holiness we may learn by the things we suffer.
So that, upon the whole, I do not know if the insensible ones have the advantage over us.—JOHN WESLEY.
God of my life, how good, how wise, Thy judgments on my soul have been!
They were but mercies in disguise, The painful remedies of sin.
How different now thy ways appear, How merciful when most severe!
~-CHARLES WESLEY.
If we endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons.—Heb. xii, 7.
102 A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 13.
No Christian can afford to waste any part of the substance which God has intrusted' him with.—JOHN WESLEY.
Lo! I come with joy to do The blessed Master's will; Him in outward works pursue, And serve his pleasure still.
Faithful to my Lord's commands, I still would choose the better part, Serve with careful Martha's hands, And loving Mary's heart.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Honour the Lord with thy substance, and, with the first-fruits of all thine increase.— Prov. iii, 9.
July 14.
This is the great work, not only to bring souls to believe in Christ, but to build them up in our most holy faith..
How grievously are they mistaken who imagine, that, as soonas the children are born, they need take no more care of them!
We do not findit so.
The chief care then begins..—_JOHN WESLEY.
Build we each the other up; Pray we for our faith's increase, Solid comfort, settled hope, Constant joy, and lasting peace.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Comfort yourselves together,.and, edify one another, even as also ye do.—1 Thess. v, 11.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS.
103.
July 15.
Herein you have continual need. of patience, for you will frequently see little fruit of all your, labor.
Butleave that with Him.
The success is his.
The work only is yours.
Your point is. this—work your work betimes; and in his time he will give you a full reward. —JOHN WESLEY.
Father, to thee my soul I lift; My soul on thee depends ; Convinced that every perfect gift From thee alone descends.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Let us not be weary in well-doing : for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.—Gal. vi, 9.
July 16.
It is certainly most profitable for us to have avariety of seasons.
We could:not bear either to be constantly in storms, or constantly ina calm; but we are not certain, we cannot judge what proportion of one or the other is best for us. We should make strange work: but we know He that chooses for us orders all things well.JOHN WESLEY.
Never will I remove Out of thy hands my cause ; But rest in thy redeeming love, And hang upon thy cross.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.—Psa. xxxvii, 23.
A CALL FROM THE HEIGHTS
July 17.
It is certain the Scripture by "prayer" almost always means vocal prayer.
It is therefore our wisdom to force ourselves to prayer; to pray whether we can pray or not.
And many times while we are so doing, the fire will fall from heaven, and we shall know our labor was not in vain.—JOHN WESLEY.
To God your spirits dart ; Your souls in words declare ; Or groan to him who reads the heart, Th' unutterable prayer.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer.—Psa. cii, 17.
July 18, The more the love of solitude is indulged, the more it will increase.
In every age and country Satan has whispered to those who began to taste the powers of the world to come, "To the desert!"'
"To the wilderness!"
Most of our little flock at Oxford were tried with this; my brother and [in particular.
Nay, but I say, "To the Bible!"
"To the Bible!"—JOHN WESLEY.
Sweetly may we all agree, Touched with softest sympathy ; Kindly for each other care; Every member feel its share.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
Ye are the salt of the earth—Matt. v, 13.
July 19.
After all the noise that has been made about mysteries, nothing is more certain, than that no child of man is required to believe any mystery at all.
With regard tothe Trinity, for instance, what am I required to believe?
Not the manner, but the plain matter of fact, "These Three are One."
This I believe, and only this.—JOHN WESLEY.
Let me cast myself aside, All that feeds my knowing pride ; Not to man, but God submit, Lay my reasonings at thy feet.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
What is that to thee?
Follow thou me.— John xxi, 22.
July 20.
Faith is given according to our present need.
You have now such faith as is necessary for your living unto God.
As yet you are not called to die.
When you are, you shall have faith for that also.
To-day improve the faith you now have, and trust God with to-morrow
—JOHN WESLEY.
Give me faith to hold me up, Walking over life's rough sea ; Holy, purifying hope Still my soul's sure anchor be.
—CHARLES WESLEY.
As thy days, so shall thy strength be.—Deut. xXxxiil, 25.