ful
Jesus save us from such a death as that. And that we may find pardon
and peace at the last, let us use the present, and not allow our
account to grow, like that of a reckless debtor, till we are
overwhelmed by the amount. We are all the stewards of Almighty God.
Whatever things we possess are our Master's goods. Let us see how we
have used them hitherto. "Give an account of thy stewardship."

What are some of the goods which our Master, God, has entrusted to our
care? First of all, there is the treasure of _time_. Our years, our
months, and weeks, and days, are all so many precious jewels lent to
us, and we must give a strict account of every one of them. Every day
of our life has its special work for God; have we always tried to do
the day's work with our might? Every day of our life is a teacher in
God's great School, and brings its lesson; have we tried to learn the
lesson aright? If we must give an account for every idle word, so
surely must we for every idle day. And remember that any time spent
entirely on selfish pleasure, or amusement, is wasted. Unless we are
doing some good, we are certainly doing some harm. There is a motto
very commonly engraved upon a sundial, which means that the moments of
time are perishing, and are being recorded in God's Book. Yes, they
are being put down to our account on one side or the other, just as we
have used, or misused, them. Look on two death-beds. A Queen of
England is dying, surrounded by her attendants. What are the last
words they hear her speak, as she passes over the brink of eternity?
"All my possessions for a moment of time!" Now look on another
picture. An English Admiral lies wounded unto death. The decks are
slippery with blood, and the air dark with smoke; but the sound of many
voices is heard, it is the British shout of victory. The dying hero
clasps the hand of his friend, and murmurs, "Now I am satisfied; thank
God, I have done my duty." Brethren, our ending of this life must be
like one of these. Either we must cry helplessly over wasted days,
which cannot return, and beg in vain for time to right some wrong; or
we shall die with the comforting thought that, in spite of many faults
and failures, we have tried to do our duty. Remember that time once
lost cannot be recovered. "Lost wealth may be replaced by industry,
lost knowledge by study, lost health by temperance and medicine, but
lost time is gone for ever."

Again, "give an ac