The Kiss

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  “Ryabovitch pulled the bed-clothes over his head, curled himself up in bed, and tried to gather together the floating images in his mind and to combine them into one whole. But nothing came of it. He soon fell asleep, and his last thought was that someone had caressed him and made him happy—that something extraordinary, foolish, but joyful and delightful, had come into his life. The thought did not leave him even in his sleep. When he woke up the sensations of oil on his neck and the chill of peppermint about his lips had gone, but joy flooded his heart just as the day before.” The Kiss By Anton Chekhov (1860–1904)

Content with your profession?

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“Let me pull you by the sleeve, my Brothers and Sisters—you who say, ‘I am a Christian.’ You believe that God is ‘a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.’ Do you seek Him diligently? How much of the Scriptures have you read during the last week? How many hours have you spent in prayer? ‘Hours?’ you ask! ‘Say minutes.’ How much have you lived for God during the past month? What have you done with a distinct view to His Glory? What souls have you tried to win? What Truths of God have you tried to teach? What virtues have you tried to set forth? You say that He is “a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him”—do you despise the reward? Are you content with having made a profession of religion?”

C.H. Spurgeon, “What Is Essential In Coming To God?” A sermon preached August 18, 1901.

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