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Mind, Character, and Personality Volume 1
palace, or when the poor man gathers his children about the scanty
board, each is tenderly watched by the heavenly Father. No tears are
shed that God does not notice. There is no smile that He does not
mark.
If we would but fully believe this, all undue anxieties would be
dismissed. Our lives would not be so filled with disappointment as
now; for everything, whether great or small, would be left in the
hands of God, who is not perplexed by the multiplicity of cares or
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overwhelmed by their weight. We should then enjoy a rest of soul to
which many have long been strangers.—
Steps to Christ, 86
(1892).
Training the Soul by Discipline—Christians, is Christ revealed
in us? We must labor to have sound bodies and strong minds that are
not easily enfeebled, minds that look beyond self to the cause and
result of every movement made. Then we are in a fair way to endure
hardness as good soldiers. We need minds that can see difficulties
and go through with them with the wisdom that comes from God,
that can wrestle with hard problems and conquer them. The hardest
problem is to crucify self, to endure hardness in spiritual experiences,
training the soul by severe discipline. This will not, perhaps, bring the
very best satisfaction at the first, but the aftereffect will be peace and
happiness.—
Letter 43, 1899
Christ Has Power to Invigorate and Restore—And while Christ
opens heaven to man, the life which He imparts opens the heart of man
to heaven. Sin not only shuts us away from God but destroys in the
human soul both the desire and the capacity for knowing Him. All this
work of evil it is Christ’s mission to undo. The faculties of the soul,
paralyzed by sin, the darkened mind, the perverted will, He has power
to invigorate and to restore. He opens to us the riches of the universe,
and by Him the power to discern and to appropriate these treasures is
imparted.—
Education, 28, 29
(1903).
Either God or Satan Controls—Satan takes control of every
mind that is not decidedly under the control of the Spirit of God.—
Letter 57, 1895
(
Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 79
).
Every Sin Cherished Weakens the Character—And let none
flatter themselves that sins cherished for a time can easily be given up
by and by. This is not so. Every sin cherished weakens the character
and strengthens habit; and physical, mental, and moral depravity is the
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result. You may repent of the wrong you have done, and set your feet