To be near unto God - pagina 459

With God, it

does

mean, what becoming speak of it most fre-

of course, this does not

with

us,

when we speak

accustomed to one.

We

of

quently when we first come in touch with some one who acts strangely, a man of strong peculiarities, who is unpreposessing. Then it is our duty not to be repelled by him, but indulgently to seek common points of interest with him, and to adapt ourselves to his strange manner. We also speak of accustoming ourselves to one, who either by a difference in

by

development

is

far

above

us, or

who

upon

life.

social difference has another outlook

makes a

difference in inclinations and sympathies, in mental activity and choice of vocation in life. He is interested in what does not interest you. And in the great drama of life you play in an altogether different act from his. Thus

For

this

to accustom oneself to another, in all such cases, means, that we restrain ourselves, that we smooth down the sharp edges of our own character, and that constrained by the dictates of love and the necessity of social intercourse, we enter into his life, in order to understand him, to sympathize with him, and gradually to adopt him into the circle of

our affections.

All this of itself is entirely different with respect to the Lord our God. With him we have to do with our God and our Creator, with our Lord and our King, with our Father who is in heaven. Everything in him that appears strange to us is our own fault, our own sin; it is sign and token that we are wrong; that we are corrupt 451

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