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all that into the unreturning depths of the sea, He says He remembers
that hour when we first said, 'Take my love.' He remembers it now, at
this minute. He has written it for ever on His infinite memory, where the
past is as the present.

His own love is unchangeable, so it could never be His wish or will that
we should thus drift away from Him. Oh, 'Come and let us return unto the
Lord!' But is there any hope that, thus returning, our flickering love
may be kept from again failing? Hear what He says: 'And I will betroth
thee unto Me for ever' And again: 'Thou _shalt_ abide _for Me_ many days;
so will I also be for thee.' Shall we trust His word or not? Is it worthy
of our acceptation or not? Oh, rest on this word of the King, and let Him
from this day have the keeping of your love, and He will keep it!

The love of Christ is not an absorbing, but a radiating love. The more we
love Him, the more we shall most certainly love others. Some have not
much natural power of loving, but the love of Christ will strengthen it.
Some have had the springs of love dried up by some terrible earthquake.
They will find 'fresh springs' in Jesus, and the gentle flow will be
purer and deeper than the old torrent could ever be. Some have been
satisfied that it should rush in a narrow channel, but He will cause it
to overflow into many another, and widen its course of blessing. Some
have spent it all on their God-given dear ones. Now He is come whose
right it is; and yet in the fullest resumption of that right, He is so
gracious that He puts back an even larger measure of the old love into
our hand, sanctified with His own love, and energized with His blessing,
and strengthened with His new commandment, 'That ye love one another, as
I have loved you.'

In that always very interesting part, called a 'Corner for Difficulties,'
of that always very interesting magazine, _Woman's Work_, the question
has been discussed, 'When does love become idolatry? Is it the experience
of Christians that the coming in of a new object of affection interferes
with entire consecration to God?' I should like to quote the many
excellent answers in full, but must only refer my readers to the number
for March 1879. One replies: 'It seems to me that He who is love would
not give us an object for our love unless He saw that our hearts needed
expansion; and if the love is consecrated, and the friendship takes its
stand in Christ, there is no need for the fear that