going to see my son," "I have set my heart on
doing so-and-so," but this does not mean that in order to accomplish
it we must wander homeless and lonely until the day of achievement.
No; but we set our heart and mind upon eventually accomplishing
this wish, we shape all our plans towards it, we give it the first place.
This is what God asks us to do; to give Him the first place. We need
not go to Him in rags: David and Solomon were immensely wealthy,
Job was a rich man; but we must eventually think more of Him than
we do of our dress, more of Him than we do of our business, more
of Him than we do of lover, friend, or child. Many well-minded
people are under the impression that such love for an Invisible Being
is a total impossibility. Yet the great commandment stands written
all across the face of the heavens--"Thou shalt love Me with all thy
heart and mind and soul and strength." Are we then to suppose that
God asks the impossible of His own creatures, that He mocks us?
No; for when we desire He sends the capacity, and day by day sends
us the power to reach this love through Jesus Christ. There is
included in the words "Give us this day our daily bread," the bread
of the soul, which is Love.

Divine Love commences in us in a very small way, as a very feeble
flicker, for we are very feeble and small creatures. But God takes the
will for the deed, and the day comes when suddenly we are filled
with true love, as a gift. This is indeed the second baptism, the
baptism of fire, the baptism of the Holy Ghost; then at last the great
wall which has hitherto divided our consciousness from God goes
down in its entirety, never again to rise up and divide us. This is the
mighty work of Jesus Christ.

Though this is not our work, still we have had the earnest will, the
longing desire; we have made continually, perseveringly, our tiny,
often futile, efforts to please and place Him first, and though perhaps
almost all were failures, He has counted every one to us for
righteousness.

We may at all times be asking ourselves, "But how shall I know the
will of God, how shall I please Him, how shall I know what Christ
would wish me to do or to think?" There is one test more sure than
any other, which is to ask oneself, "Would Jesus have done
just this?" and the answer will come from the inward of us
instantaneously. But before we can use this test we must have made
a careful study of Scripture and also have begun the habit of inward