# The Lutheran Pioneer_St. Louis_1890_S1 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) Che Lutheran Pioneer. A MISSIONARY MONTHLY. PosuisHep By THE EVANGELICAL LuTaeRAN SyNnopicaAL CoNFERENCE or Nort AMERICA. R. A. BISCHOFF, Editor. Entered at the Post Office at St. Louis, Mo., as second-class matter. Vol. XII. ; St. Louis, Mo., January, 1890. No. 1. Father, take my Hand. The way is dark, my Father! Cloud on cloud Is gathering thickly o’er my head, and loud The thunders roar above me. See, I stand Like one bewildered! ‘Father, take my hand, And through the gloom Lead up to light Thy child. The day goes fast, my Father, and the night Is drawing darkly down. My faithless sight Sees ghostly visions; fears, a spectral band, Encompass me. Oh, Father! take my hand, And from the night Lead up to light Thy child. The way is long, my Father! and my soul Longs for the rest and quiet of the goal. While yet I journey through this weary land, Keep me from wandering. Father, take my hand; Quickly and straight i Lead to heaven's gate Thy child! The path is rough, my Father! Many a thorn Has pierced me; and my weary feet, all torn And bleeding, mark the way. Yet the command Bids me press forward... Father, take my hand; Then safe and blest Lead up to rest Thy child; The throng is great, my Father! Many a doubt And fear of danger compass me about, And foes oppress me sore. I can not stand Or go alone. Oh, Father, take my hand; And through the throng Lead safe along Thy child! The cross is heavy, Father! I have borne It long, and still do bear it. Let my worn And fainting spirit rise to that blest land And reaching down, Lead to the crown Thy child. Anon. —++ oo > “‘His Name was called Jesus.” This is the message brought to us in the Gospel lesson of New Year'sday. And a sweet and comforting message it is. For why was the Babe of Bethlehem called Jesus? The angel said, ‘‘Thou shalt call His name Jesus; for He shall save His people from their sins.”” Jesus means Saviour, and in the Babe of Bethlehem we have the Saviour from all our sins. Such a Saviour we need as we enter the new year; for in Him only we can have a happy new year. The closing year tells us that death and the account are so much nearer. This is an un- pleasant thought to the unbeliever. But to the believer there is no cause of fear. He be- lieves in Him whose name .was called Jesus. He, therefore, knows that he-has a Saviour. The thought of the future is not dreadful to him. Death has lost its terrors and the judg- ment no longer threatens eternal punishment. The Saviour in whom he believes is present with him every day, providing for all earthly wants and delivering from all earthly woes, but especially supplying the wants of his soul and delivering from the damnation which his sins have deserved. Why, then, should the future, whatever it may bring him yet in this world, be a cause of fear? ‘Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me, Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.’’ Ps. 23, 4. To the believer, therefore, who enters the new year in the name of Jesus and continues his journey in the power of His grace, the new year will be full of blessing and true happiness. Step by step, as hours and days pass by, he will be nearing his Father's house, his own happy and eternal home in heaven. In the name of Him whose name was called Jesus we wish all our readers A Harry New YEAR. _——_— 0-0 Be not Anxious. God’s children need not worry, for God will care for them. Will He? Well, if He will not, then throw away the Bible. But will He give them all they want? That is another question. Will the wise parent give the child all it wants? Will the physician give the patient all he wants? Will the teacher give the pupil all he wants? Never; for that would often ruin, instead of profiting. Ask again, Will God give His child all he needs? We have His word that, if we seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these things shall be added unto us. God is pledged to supply all the real needs of His people in such & manner as is indicated by wisdom and love combined with power. And the trouble arises just here, that men are not willing calmly to trust this divine guidance. Just imagine a family of children who are never restrained, and whose every wish is always gratified. They come and go as they please, they spend according to their own judg- ment, they study and play to suit themselves. No restraint at all is put upon them. What kind of men and women do you suppose they will grow up to be? Will they make a success of life, or will their lives turn out to be miser- able failures? Probably the worst thing that could happen to a family of children would be just such treatment as this. Better for them were they all to die of scarlet-fever before they are five years old. So, were God to give His children ‘all they fancy they need, it would ruin them for time and eternity. Now, while Christ tells us what not to worry about, He tells us what to seek after. ‘‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God.’”’ On this we are to bestow our first energies. It may be well just here to pause and ask ourselves what is the object of our most devoted search. Some are seeking for riches, some for education, some for position, some for power. Everyone has something for whose possession he is most earnest, and for the sake of which he would sacrifice all else. What is your most coveted object in life? Find out, and then lay it in the balance on one side, and put ‘‘the king- dom of God’’ in the other scale. Now say, candidly, which outweighs the other? Which is the more valuable? Which will last the longest? Is it any wonder, then, that the Son of God says, Seek this first? And since He was right in His estimate, will you not follow His command?—S. S. F. oo As I was at my window I saw the stars and the sky, and that vast and magnificent firma- ment in which the Lord had placed them. I could nowhere discover the columns on which the Master had supported this immense vault, and yet the heavens did not fall. Martin Luther.