r of
the house to stand near and observe Him, or say, 'Ye highly-placed
guests, come and see'. He left the head people, as we should say, and
took the common servants. 'Fill up the jars; draw it out; carry it to
the governor; pass it round', was His simple command. And the water was
turned into wine. Some one has poetically said, 'The modest water saw
its Lord, and blushed'; but it was more than that, for His was the best
wine of the feast.

Christ, you see, sanctified commonplace things and persons to display
His benevolence and power. Make some practical use of them in regard to
your own lives.

It is hardly needful for me to point out that life is very largely made
up of commonplaces--commonplace engagements, commonplace relationships,
and commonplace duties. There are some who are a little better off than
others, but even such people have common things to do before they get
through the routine of life. With some of us it is altogether
so--commonplace in the home, commonplace in the situation, commonplace
in the workshop, commonplace in the office, commonplace in what we do
for our living, and commonplace in the persons with whom we are
associated. Nothing great or dignified about it. It is indeed a case of
'the trivial round, the common task'.

But, whether you are a business man or a road-sweeper, you can live the
sanctified life.

Some of you may be heads of houses or domestic servants, horse-drivers
or laundry-workers, factory hands or the owners of factories; but
whatever you are, as followers of Jesus Christ, God wants you to put
this label upon each and every section of your life--'Holiness unto the
Lord'. He wants you also to conduct yourselves in every way consistent
with that thought. The pots and the pans, and the bridles of the
horses, and whatever we may have to do, must be labelled with that.

'Commissioner, can a man have a clean heart and drive a cab?' a man
recently asked me. 'Of course, he can,' I replied, 'and if you come
with me I will show you how to do it'.

Why, the way in which we use these things is to be a part of our
consecrated service to God. It does not sound very lofty, but that is
just where the highest exhibition of Holiness can be given to the
world. It is not what you do--that may seem very important or may be
very trivial; but it is the manner of doing it and the motive behind it
which is the main thing.

You have all heard the story of the servant-girl who had got the
bl