modesty, shamefacedness, sobriety

"In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with braided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array. But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works." {I Timothy 2:9-10}

"Modesty: the inner self-governed, rooted in proper understanding of one's self before God, which outwardly displays itself in humility and purity from a genuine love for God, rather than in self-glorification and self-advertisement. Modesty will then not publicly expose itself in sinful nakedness.
Shamefacedness: a moral distaste from all that is unseemly, a rejection of even the appearance of overstepping of the limits of womanly reserve.
Sobriety: inner judgment produced in the believer by the Scripture and the Spirit of God--restraints on appetites."

priceless possession

"Let those who have found the Truth, value their priceless possession. They have received the greatest of riches. Let them not treat the Truth casually, lest they unknowingly let it slip from their grasp and find themselves bereft in the Day of Judgment."

do all to the glory of God

"If you can't do great things, do small things in a great way."

"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." {I Corinthians 10:31}

ALL our time

"I do not believe there is sufficient realization among us of the magnitude of the divine call--of how deeply it should reach into and transform every aspect of our lives--of the great changes it must bring about in our characters and the direction of all our activities--of how we spend ALL our time and efforts and money."

if the Lord will

"Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain. Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow, For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that." {James 4:13-14}

though for the time being

"If after we choose the cause of Christ, we fail to deny ourselves for the sake of His service, and fail to make a first-class effort to grow in the knowledge of God and render better service, then our live work will end in tradegy; though for the time being we may seem to be making a happy success in both serving God and also enjoying the attractions and present benefits peculiar to the broad way."

God knows best

"We must continue to pray, in faith that God knows best, and in His love and mercy towards us, He is shaping our destiny according to His will."

let him deny himself

"Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." {Mark 8:34}

be patient

"The irony of impatience is that only by learning to wait, and by willingness to accept the bad with the good, do we usually attain those things that are truly worthwhile."

a prepared people

"It is designed by God for everyone adopted into His family that they shall be tried. His people are to be prepared people--like polished stones--like gold tried in fire. As years advance, cares, responsibilities, and troubles advance."

joy, peace, and love come from God

"The mind of Christ--the Godly mind--recognizes mortal weakness and uncleanness, and seeks for divine strength and holiness--recognizes the sorrow and vanity and death related to present things, and seeks for joy and peace and love in God."

God is our source of strength

"God is our source of strength, and our confidence must be entirely in Him, because that is the only confidence that cannot be shaken."

a clean heart

"If we fail to keep our hearts clean, the rest of our lives will stagnate and become dirty."

I am my brother's keeper

"The day is drawing nearer
and our Master will return.
Until the hour we cannot sleep,
We must our lanterns burn.
For grievous wolves will enter in
and scatter the sheep.

I am my brother's keeper,
I must my brother keep.

The precious gospel message
must not dim or fade away,
by every doctrine tossed,
we cannot let it decay.
Although the world of human thought
would have us fall to sleep.

I am my brother's keeper,
I must my brother keep.

For godly love denies the self,
esteems the other more
and godly love desires the Truth,
desires not a reward.
For sacrificial love demands
a love that's broad and deep.

I am my brother's keeper,
I must my brother keep.

A love that seeks our brothers' needs,
our Father doth require,
to keep them on the narrow path
and pull them from the fire,
too late to sit at judgment,
and too many tears we'll weep.

I am my brother's keeper,
I must my brother keep.

Now is the time to serve our God
and serve each other too,
to earnestly contend for what is holy and is true
for many are the blessings which if chosen we will reap.

I am my brother's keeper,
I must my brother keep."

glad to be His

"For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence." {I Corinthians 1:26-29}

"How thankful we should be that we, too, have been called to partake of the goodness and the grace of God. And how we should strive to learn this lesson of humility, glad to be considered babes, if God's will may but be revealed to us; glad to be considered foolish, and weak, and base, and glad to be despised so that we may but be counted among God's 'hidden ones', and Christ's sheep. Glorying not in the flesh, but giving all glory for all things, position, wealth, talents, health--everything--to Him to whom it rightly belongs; recognizing that, in very truth, we are but poor weak instruments in many ways to be used in the Master's service, but still rejoicing that He condescends to use us; and so--striving to do His work perfectly, to the best of our ability, using our one, or five, or ten talents as best we can, and endeavoring to walk worthy of our high calling of God--we may be prepared for that day that will dawn upon the earth when the once crucified Christ will come again with healing in his wings..."

do for the ecclesia

"A word now to those who are young--not necessarily in years, but in association with the brethren. Towards the upbuilding of the ecclesia you can do much. You can exercise a powerful influence for good by living the truth--by showing to your brethren and sisters and onlookers generally that you really believe and love it. You can present and exhibit earnestness at meetings. You can scatter words of kindness and encouragement both in the hall and away from it. You can refuse to listen to scandal and evil speaking. You can pour oil on troubled waters. You can smile, as Christ would, on well-doing and frown when asked to join in any act which the Scriptures forbid. You can add to these things prayer, diligent study of the Word, willingness to accept work at the bidding of the ecclesia, and a conscientious determination to carry through satisfactorily the work with which you may be entrusted. If you observe these things, great, indeed, will be the help which you will render to the ecclesia."

always doing

"It is amazing how much may be done when one is always doing."

a diligent heart

"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove they foot from evil." {Proverbs 4:23-27}

you must so walk

"If you desire to be a partaker of the glory that shall be hereafter revealed, you must so walk, while in the flesh, as you have Christ for an example, that when he shall appear you may be accepted of him, who will then change this 'vile body that it shall be fashioned like unto His glorious body,' and thus you may become a manifested son of God."

Godly friendship

"Friendship should have God's glory as its goal. We should discuss and share with others what God is teaching us and doing in us. Not only should we pray for our friends, but encourage their walk and delight in honoring them. When we have the opportunity, we should serve alongside our friends. We should be brethren treating each other with honor--being zealous in service--side by side for God's glory."

channel your strength

"We may pray to God that we may conquer some weakness, but if we do not channel our strength of will into that which Yahweh requires of us, we will fail."

more prepared

"What has been the state of the community for time past? Has not a film been creeping over the spiritual eyesight? Has not mere socialibilty been taking the place of earnest fellowship? Has not a secularizing tendency been slowly asserting itself and getting the upper hand of the new man in ecclesias? Have not some begun to tire of Bible readings? Has there not been a going back to the false tastes and false standards of the merely intellectual world from which we have been emancipated? God would have His people ready to receive His son. When the cloud and the trouble have passed, every true son and daughter will find themselves more prepared as the result of it, hearts more humble; love more strong; minds more clear; purpose more earnest; spirit more holy; determination more resolute; to count all things as nothing, that we may win Christby a more devoted service to his name, forgetting the things that are behind and pressing forward to those things that lie ahead."

what others think of us

"We probably wouldn't worry about what people think about us if we could know how seldom they do."

object to life

"There is nothing so likely to help us to hold on in an earnest, loving manner, to the work of the Truth, as the realizing in our minds of an object in life. For what object do you live? Have you an object? Too many, it is to be feared, have no definite object in life beyond the whiling away of the passing hour; they are satisfied if they have succeeded by passing the day or the hour by not being truly miserable, and such will tell you they do so and so to 'pass the time away'. If such would only busy themselves in any useful direction with an earnest mind, they would find the time go too quickly with the greatest ease. What result have those accomplished whose chief business in life is to while away the time? None! When the time is gone everything is gone and there is nothing laid in store against the day of reckoning."