Holiness Does Not Depend on Circumstances

The hidden life, which God imparts to his accepted people, may flourish in solitudes and deserts; far from the societies of men and the din and disturbance of cities. From the cave of the hermit, from the cell of the solitary recluse, the fervent prayer has often arisen, which has been acceptable in the sight of God. But it would be a strange and fatal misconception, that religion, even in its most pure and triumphant exaltations, can flourish no where else. The home of holiness is in the heart, irrespective of outward situations and alliances; and therefore we may expect to find it, if there are hearts adapted to its reception and growth, in the haunts of business as well as in the silence of retirement; in the palaces of Rome, as well as in the deserts of the Thebais.  It is a fatal mistake to suppose that we cannot be holy except on the condition of a situation and circumstances in life such as shall suit ourselves.  It is one of the first principles of holiness to leave our times and our places, our going out and our coming in, our wasted and our goodly heritage entirely with the Lord. Here, O Lord, hast thou placed us, and we will glorify thee here.

— Religious Maxims (1846) XIII.

Sanctification Diminishes Fanaticism

In proportion as the heart becomes sanctified, there is a diminished tendency to enthusiasm and fanaticism. And this is undoubtedly one of the leading tests of sanctification. One of the marks of an enthusiastic and fanatical state of mind, is a fiery and unrestrained impetuosity of feeling; a rushing on, sometimes very blindly, as if the world were in danger, or as if the great Creator were not at the helm. It is not only feeling without a due degree of judgment, but, what is the corrupting and fatal trait, it is feeling without a due degree of confidence in God. True holiness reflects the image of  God in this respect as well as in others, that it is calm, thoughtful, deliberate, immutable. And how  can it be otherwise, since, rejecting its own wisdom and strength, it incorporates into itself the wisdom and strength of the Almighty.

— Religious Maxims (1846) XII.

When We Are Weak in Ourselves, We Shall Not Fail

Our spiritual strength will be nearly in proportion to the absence of self-dependence and self-confidence. When we are weak in ourselves, we shall not fail, if we apply to the right source for help, to be found strong in the Lord. Madame Guyon, speaking of certain temptations to which she had been exposed, says, "I then comprehended what power a soul has, which is entirely annihilated." This is strong language; but when it is properly understood, it conveys important truth. When we sink in ourselves, we rise in God. When we have no strength in ourselves, we have divine power in Him who can subdue all his adversaries. "The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower."

— Religious Maxims (1846) XI.

An Atmosphere of Calmness

A sanctified state of heart does not require to be sustained by any mere forms of bodily excitation. It gets above the dominion, at least in a very considerable degree, of the nerves and the senses. It seeks an atmosphere of calmness, of thought, and holy meditation.

— Religious Maxims (1846) X.

The Mystery of the Kingdom

The mystery of the kingdom lies
In this, that Christ "hath died for me"
But see, in that great sacrifice,
The other truth, "I die for Thee."

The life, on bleeding Calvary given,
Taught us the way our life to save.
All truth, all good, and God, and heaven,
Are found in giving all we have.

We  give up all, and all resume;
We die the death, and life is born;
Without the shadows of the tomb,
There comes no resurrection morn.

Down to the grave then let us haste,
By toiling, suffering, bleeding, giving;
'Tis only thus our souls can taste
The risen bliss of heavenly living.

— from Christ in the Soul (1872) V.

Sought and Found

Oh Christ, I used to say;
Help me to come to Thee;
But can I say it now,
When Christ hath come to me?

Dear  Presence in my soul,
Where thou dost find Thy rest!
Why seek Thee in the skies,
When dwelling in my breast?

The  mother seeks her child,
When wayward it doth roam;
But seeking hath no place,
When it is safe at home.

His  voice is on my lips;
His  tear bedews mine eye;
His home is in my soul;
He  cannot be more nigh.

Oh no! He is not now,
A Christ that dwells apart;
But, near as life with life
He dwells within my heart.

— Christ in the Soul (1872) IV.

Consecration

'Tis done. The "great transaction's past,"
And I, who call'd myself my own,
Rejecting pride; and self, at last
Belong to God, and God alone.

Dear, Infinite, Eternal Mind!
Father and Motherhood in one,
May Thy great Life, with mine combin'd,
Make me a true, a living son.

May all of heart and life be brought
Within Thine Infinite control;
Be Thou the source of every thought;
Be, Thou the life-spring of the soul.

— Christ in the Soul (1872) III.