July 18

"Surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be."—2 Samuel 15:21.

ITTAI'S vow of allegiance ought to be mine too.

My Lord the King comes to Bethlehem, down from the throne of His glory. Let me be found with Him there, laying aside my righteousness and pride and wealth—counterfeit riches while His were real: all those vain things which charm me most. My Lord travels to Nazareth, and waits in quietness for many a year. Let me tarry God's leisure, and sit submissive and still at God's feet till He is pleased to bid me run His errands. My Lord goes up and down Judea and Galilee, doing good. Let me copy His zeal for the Father and His love for the children, paying no heed to the suggestions of a wearied body and a disappointed spirit. By and by the shadows of Gethsemane and Calvary gather round my dear Lord; "into the woods my Master came, forspent with love and shame." Let me face tribulation and distress and persecution and peril in His service and for His sake. To-day my Lord is an interceding Priest in the heavenly place. Let me always be a citizen of that better country, and yet a pleading and untiring priest, carrying the burdens of the poor and needy continually on my heart.

Yes, in what place my Lord the King shall be, there also will His servant be. On Mirabeau's funeral day, a lady complained of the municipality for neglecting to water the boulevard. "Madame," a poor woman replied, "they reckoned on our tears." Jesus reckons on my tears, my prayers, my service, myself. Hail, Thou Best of Cæsars, Imperator over my heart and history, I who am about to live salute Thee!