American literature -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Sunday schools -- United States -- Periodicals
Prinkie sang with the rest, and only Miss Winthrop noticed the troubled
expression which rested upon the young girl's face. Miss Winthrop was
very much troubled about her class; they were girls from twelve to
fifteen years old. Some of them were church members, but nearly all
seemed given over to frivolity. During the winter just passed there
had been some religious interest in other classes in the school, yet
these girls, absorbed in school, children's parties, and dress, had
frittered the time away, and, so far as their teacher could see, had
made little progress in the divine life. She had come before them this
Easter morning with a heavily burdened heart. She had prayed that they
might awaken to a newness of life, that the Easter lessons might sink
into their hearts, that the shackles of sin and frivolity which held
them might be broken, that they might henceforth abound in the fruits
of righteousness. And now as she listened to their chatter and noticed
their enjoyment of their fluttering ribbons, and heard the light tinkle
of their bangles, she sighed over the apparent failure of her hopes
for them. She turned towards them at the beginning of the lesson-hour,
saying:
"Girls, we ought to be very bright and happy this morning, else we
should be very sad. If we have a part in this rejoicing, if it is
_our_ Saviour of whom we sing 'The Lord is risen indeed' then we have
a right to be glad. If He who is risen is one whom we have rejected,
then we have no call to rejoice; why should we care? Some of us have
professed to be his friends, and the nearer we have been living to him,
the more faithful to our vows we have been, the more precious He is to
our hearts, the more we may rejoice in the truth of the resurrection.
Whether we have hitherto been living for Christ or not, this is a good
time to begin anew. 'Like as Christ was raised up from the dead, even
so we also should walk in newness of life.' Let us put away old things
that have been hindering us and serve in newness of spirit. Let this be
a real true Easter to every one of us." There was more of that earnest
talk and it seemed to sink into the hearts of those who heard it. I can
only tell you how one acted upon the lessons of the day. The hardest
lesson had been the whispered words which she overheard; but the tender
pleading of Miss Winthrop had softened her and she walked homeward
alone, having turned away from the fluttering group. She was thinking:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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