you, and that God's glory in the world is very greatly effected by your conduct. Any fault in you will be readily seen and noticed by the world. They who pay but little attention to the stars that shine in their orbits, will yet be observant enough of a falling star: and, in like manner, they who overlook the radiance of ten thousand saints, will mark with triumph the fall of a professor, and derive from it an argument against all serious religion. You should, therefore, be on your guard against every thing which may either eclipse your light, or cause it to shine with diminished splendor. Avoid, in your intercourse with mankind, the appearance of evil, and give no offence to either saint or sinner. Maintain that seriousness and gravity in your deportment, that becomes an heir of the grace of life. Put away from among yourselves all foolish talking and jesting, which are not convenient, and let your conversation be as becometh the gospel of Christ. In maintaining this character, you must submit to some labor, and expect to be exposed to some inconvenience and danger from those who cannot bear the light; but neither indifference nor fear ought to prevent you from discharging a duty which the great Father of lights has imposed upon all his children. Has God furnished you with talents, or placed you in circumstances which has enabled you to acquire juster notions of religion than what are possessed by other men; endeavor to communicate your superior knowledge to your brethren, by every fair and honorable method in your power, and at every season when you are likely to be heard. Say not the work belongs to others-I have no call to engage in it-I leave it to those who are better qualified. Providence, which has given you more light, has, at the same time, given you a call to distribute it to all who are in darkness; if you keep it under a bushel, you make an ungrateful return to that Being from whom it was derived; you defeat the purpose for which it was bestowed, and adopt the maxim of that corrupt church, which thinks it for the happiness of mankind to keep the world in ignorance.

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver. Such is the declaration of the wisest of men-a declaration worthy the highest consideration of all who would become useful to their fellow-creatures. There are many states and conditions in the course of human life, which call for instruction and reproof, conso

lation and support. He who would be a useful minister of the gospel, should not only be qualified to meet the moral wants of individuals, in the various conditions of life, but should also be possessed of wisdom to afford assistance when it is needed. Childhood and youth are periods of great and sacred importance-periods which should be eagerly grasped by parents and guardians, instructors and teachers of youth, to store the unfolding mind with the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Instructions which are communicated and received at this age of life, leave a more lasting and abiding impression upon the mind, than at any subsequent period. Children should be taught to govern their passions and chasten their appetites, to subdue their tempers, and resist the temptations of a delusive and fascinating world, to cultivate piety, and cherish religion, and to reverence, adore, and worship the Majesty of Heaven. Much depends upon the moral and religious instruction of the rising generation. Train up a child, says Solomon, in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. All who have the care of youth, should know the time, this important, this critical time of life, and not let it slip unimproved.

There is a time when the attention of the community is alive to the subject of religion, to the welfare of the soul, and to the cause of God; when the vast concerns of eternity, and their future wellbeing, press with tremendous weight upon the anxious and solicitous mind; when, in the deepest compunction of heart, the penitent soul earnestly inquires, what must I do to be saved? This time, this favorable time for religious instruction, should be eagerly sought and diligently improved by every minister of the gospel; for, at such a time as this, his instructions will be heeded, and his counsels, admonitions, and reproofs, will be attended with a salutary effect. It is then that the attention is arrested, the sensibility alive, and the heart prepared to receive an indellible impression.

But, as man stands constantly connected with time, and as every moment of time is big with important events, perhaps we cannot more profitably employ the present hour, than by offering a few suggestions on this important subject, for our present meditation, and future reflection and improvement.

I. In the first place, then, we shall notice: That knowledge of time, which we should be so solicitious to secure.

1. We should know time in its signification. Various are the definitions which have been given of time. It has been defined by one to be "a fragment of eternity broken off at both ends." By another, "finite and successive duration, distinguished by the past, present, and future; and measured by the revolution of the heavenly bodies, which God has appointed for the end." The description of a third is

"From old eternity's mysterious orb,

Was time cut off, and cast beneath the skies."

Time, in its nature, is fleeting-ever on the wing. Like the revolution of the heavenly bodies, it knows no rest, neither does it seek any. It moves onward in majesty and triumph; its course cannot be arrested, nor its power abated. It will march onward in splendor and triumph, till all are conquered by its invincible hand, and levelled with the dust. Uncertain-Its future page is sealed; its tales of wo and joy are all unknown. Who can tell what a day will bring forth? what a night will disclose? Important-As the future page of time is unfolded, it will reveal important eventsevents deeply interesting to us all. "It is pregnant with all eternity can give."

2. We should know time in its use. Time is a blessing, and is bestowed upon man for an important end; not to waste in idleness, or consume in folly. But, alas! what multitudes squander away their precious hours, and waste their golden moments in idle pursuits, or in sinful pleasures; and thus the duties of life are neglected, and no preparation is made for the eternal world, till a voice is heard speaking to the soul, time shall be no longer. Every moment of time has its duties. By performing these duties, we secure important blessings, and by misimproving time we neglect these duties, and by neglecting these duties we lose important and distinguished blessings. The path of duty is the path of safety, and the ways of wisdom are pleasant, and all her paths are paths of peace. Great peace have they that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them. In keeping the commandments of God there is great reward. When time grows heavy, and we invent means to kill and destroy it, we may rest assured that some important duty is neglected, and some distinguished blessing will be lost. Let us make the anxious inquiry, whether our time is properly filled up with activity and usefulness; whether our precious moments are employed in doing or receiving good.

3. We should know time in its value. But, alas! who can estimate the value of time? By what rule shall we measure it? or in what scales shall we weigh it? There are various ways by which men reckon the value of worldly goods. (1.) Sometimes by their scarcity. Of such are gems, pearls, and precious stones; and even the articles of life become more or less valuable, according to their plentifulness or scarcity. If we reckon by this ruie, time must be be exceedingly valuable; for there is but one single moment in the world at once, and another is not given till this is taken away. The clock strikes not to inform us that we have so much time, but that so much of our time is irrecoverably gone; for this reason the poet calls it "The knell of a departed hour," which rings but for the death of another portion of our time. Many of the bounties of nature are poured upon us in such rich abundance, that we may hoard them up; but time is dealt out in particles, or in drops, like some precious invaluable oils, that not one of them might be wasted. (2.) Sometimes we deem a thing to be valuable, in proportion as

we may derive important advantages from its possession. Of this kind is silver and gold. They are rendered valuable, because they are the medium of the exchange of merchandize; by these we may purchase goods, houses, lands, the necessaries of life, and extend our influence in society. If we judge by this rule, time will be exceedingly valuable. Time is given us for the acquisition of knowledge, for the cultivation of the mind, and to secure the common blessings of life; but, above all, to lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven, and secure a crown of life that shall never fade away. (3.) At other times we value a thing by the shortness of the period we are to have it in our possession, and the impossibility of recovering it when lost. If we judge by this rule, time will also appear exceedingly valuable. How short is time: to many individuals it is but a hand's-breadth, a point. And to us, whose life is more extended, it is but as a vapor that appeareth for a little while, and then passeth away. The moments which are gliding by us, how swift, how rapid! How soon will our days be numbered, and our course finished! The moments that are fled, are gone forever; they are numbered with the days beyond the flood, and can never be recalled.

It is said that the celebrated John Wesley, whose long life was filled up with activity and usefulness, cultivated such a sense of the value of time, that on one occasion, when, through the negligence. of a servant, he was detained from prosecuting his journey, he took out his watch, and counted the moments he was detained, when on the return of the servant, he exclaimed, "See here, by your negligence ten minutes are gone, gone forever; lost, entirely lost." But, alas! how many of us have lost, not merely minutes, but hours, and days, and weeks, and months, and years. How important that we should redeem the time which has thus been wasted, that we should double our diligence to occupy every fleeting moment, and not suffer one to be lost-not suffer one to escape unimproved.

The

4. We should know time in its management. God has given to every man sufficient time, if properly managed, to attend to all the duties of life. He makes no unreasonable demands; he lays no requisitions without giving sufficient time for their performance. If time is rightly divided, and our efforts properly directed, we shall never be hurried; we shall have no waste time, no idle moments. Many persons complain that they have no time to attend to this or that duty, in the midst of a multiplicity of cares. fact is, such persons either aim at doing too much, or they devote too much time to one branch of business to the neglect of others; or else a portion of their time has been wasted in idleness. In order rightly to manage our time, it should be divided into periods, and to each period should be assigned its proper duties; for instance, such a portion to sleep, such to labor, such to refreshment. such to religious duties, and such to the cultivation of the mind. By a just proportionment of our time, much more can be accom

pro

plished in the same number of days; because, by this mode of cedure, the different powers of the body and mind are brought into active exercise. All are stimulated, and none exhausted; all are cultivated and improved, and none left dormant. Besides, by this method we cultivate a taste, create an appetite, and form habits, all of which are highly advantageous in the various pursuits of life. One great reason why so much of our time is suffered to run to waste is, because in the early part of life it was improperly managed. We brought little to pass, we suffered the powers of the mind to lay dormant, and never so much as acquired a thirst for for knowledge: hence, the hours unemployed in our regular business, during a long life, are suffered to run to waste, or occupied in improper pursuits. Dr. Priestly, by a judicious management of time, was enabled to accomplish more, during the same number of years, than any other man of his age. It was his method to make a wise and judicious arrangement of his time, and to each period assign the objects he was desirous of accomplishing. Having laid out his work before him, during each day he performed his labor, so that at the completion of every quarter his ends were attained. In this way he spent his life, always diligent, but never hurried; always occupied, but never drove. When a friend called upon him, he was happy to see him, and to devote to him a portion of his time.

5. We shall know time in its termination. Time will end at the final consummation of all things. At the day of judgment, that great day for which all other days were made, the wheel of time will be struck off its axis, and everlasting close up the scene. Then shall we be rewarded or punished, as we have improved or abused time. Then shall we give an account of our stewardship, and answer for the deeds done in the body. Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace. The righteous hath hope in his death, but the wicked shall be driven away in their wickedness, and turned into hell, with all the nations that forget God.

II. We pass, secondly, to describe the effect which this knowledge of time is calculated to produce.

1. Unfeigned gratitude to God. Our time is in his hands; he distributes to us our golden seasons, those precious opportunities of receiving instruction, acquiring knowledge, doing good, and securing the most important blessings with which we have been favored. Thousands have been cut off in the vigor of youth and prime of life, but in the midst of the shafts of death, our lives have been prolonged. Some of the buds of being but just began to unfold the flowers of life, when they were nipped by the frost of death; but we have arrived to manhood, and are permitted to live in a most interesting age, the best of countries, and the happiest of days. Oh! what a debt of gratitude we owe to God! Who that knows the time, and feels the obligations under which this time has laid him, can but call upon his soul, and all that is within him to bless the Lord.