and comfortable, that he says "there's no place like home." Tom often gets a few pence by errands, or any other little jobs that he can do ; and he does these things so carefully and well, that the people have a pleasure in employing him. The father and mother never miss church now, and they give great attention to what they hear there; and they are now brought to see how wrong they were in ever neglecting those things which every good Christian sees to be right. Tom now knows his duty, and he is anxious to perform it, and he delights in reading of all the great blessings which the Bible contains. When so much good is learned, we cannot wonder to see that the character is so changed. Every boy and every girl that have those great advantages in their power, should try to imitate the diligence of Thomas Shepherd, and they will very soon see that it will be for their real benefit, and that it is the best way to make them happy, and to lead them to what is really for their good. HYMN. Praise for Birth and Education in a Christian Land. I. GREAT GOD, to thee my voice I raise, II. "Tis to thy sov'reign grace I owe III. I would not change my native land Than East or Western Indics hold. IV. How do I pity those that dwell Where ignorance or darkness reigns; They know no Heav'n, they fear no Hell, Those endless joys, those endless pains. V. Thy glorious promises, O Lord, VI. Thy praise shall still employ my breath, Since thou hast mark'd my way to heav'n; Nor will I run the road to death, And waste the blessings thou hast giv❜n. Q. What should you resolve to do in the earlier years of your life? A. To praise God. Q. What do you praise him for in this hymn ? A. Birth and education in a Christian land. Q. To what are you indebted for the mercy of being born on British ground, i. e. in a Christian land? A. The sovereign grace of God. Q. What do you mean here by God's grace? me. A. His favour and goodness towards Q. You say that "streams of heavenly mercy flow" in this land, what do you mean by this? A. The free circulation of the Bible. Q. And what do you mean when you say, that here the "words of sweet salvation sound?" A. The preaching of the Gospel by the ministers of God. Q. Why would you not exchange your native land for those countries which abound in gold and silver? A. Because a nobler prize is here given to me. Q. What is that? A. The Bible. Q. How did David value the Word of God? A. Psalm cxix. 72. " The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold or silver.” Q. How do you feel towards the poor heathen, who dwell in a land of darkness and ignorance? A. I pity them. Q. What is it which they know nothing of? A. The endless joys of heaven. Q. Prove from Scripture that the joys of heaven are endless? A. Psalm xvi. 11. "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy, and at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." 3 Q. How does our Lord in the 9th chapter of St. Mark repeatedly describe the endless torments of hell? A. " Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." Q. What is here meant by the worm which dieth not? A. The reflections and reproaches of a sinner's own conscience, which will cling to his soul as worms do to a dead body. Q. Where do you find any thing to inspire you with a hope of reaching heaven, and to make you desire to dwell there? A. In the glorious promises contained in the Bible. Q. And what do the preachers of God's word warn you to do? A. To escape eternal fire. Q. Then what road is it which are not to run? A. The road to death. you Q. How is this road described in Scripture ? A. Matt. vii.part of ver. 13. "Wide is the gate, and broad is the way that adeth to destruction, and many there which go in thereat." |