"If I have faltered more or less In my great task of happiness ... If beams from happy human eyes Have moved me not; if morning skies, Books, and my food, and summer rain, Knocked at my sullen heart in vain:-- Lord, Thy most pointed pleasure take, And stab my spirit broad awake." Something of what he means is, I suppose, humorous. What he means is that something must pierce below the surface, something must get home; anything is better than faltering in our great task of happiness, being dead to the blessings of life that GOD gives us. Sometimes we have to stand up and say: "Thou art the man." "It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife." We have got to say this whenever there is occasion for it. We have got to speak out for the sake of the man's soul. It is not easy, but we must be prepared to do our part as celestial surgeons. There is many a man who has lived to bless his parish priest for telling him the truth about himself. He has been very angry at first, and full of bluster, but thankful afterwards. We must never be afraid to be celestial surgeons in the sense of doing the best for our patients. (6) Well, then, directly you have done that, be ready to pour in the oil like the Good Samaritan. There he is, delightful man, putting off his business to look after the poor man, and we are to remember to our shame that the priest and the Levite had passed by him. Pour in the oil of sympathy. It seemed a very little thing to repeat that commonplace bit of comfort to the mourners; often you may hesitate to write that letter to the tenth man or woman who has lost his or her boy in the war. That letter, written in love, is like the oil; it comes as a healing balm. You have poured in loving sympathy. You cannot have too much of it to give away. The good physician is full of pity even while he uses the drastic medicine, and the best surgeon is wonderfully patient. "When I lost my boy, when he hung between life and death, then I found out what my parish priest was like," people should be able to say. If we have not got sympathy, and cannot pour in the oil, where are we? The world expects us to be kindly, loving, sympathising, sacrificing physicians in times of trouble and sorrow. (7) And then, once again, do not forget the after-care. We have "after-care committees" for our children when they leave school, but we _are_ an after-care committee for all our people's souls. Our LORD understood all about after-care. When He healed the little girl, He commanded that something should be given her to eat. He at once thought of her needs. He wanted to strengthen her after the strain that she had gone through.