THE EFFECT OF A WORD

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Feb 25, 1889

THE EFFECT OF A WORD.

WHO can estimate the value of a chance word, in the sense in which there is such a thing as chance? Upon the silence occasioned by the sudden stopping of a street-car, there fell these words: “So long as you can contribute to the pleasure, happiness, or comfort of any human being, you are of importance in the world—and no longer.” Whatever may have been the object of these words, the thought reached the hearts of a dozen or more passengers, and it was interesting to note the changed expression on some listless faces.

In utter unconsciousness of any effect of her words, the lady from whose lips they fell passed out into the street. Perhaps, in the great day, it may be her happiness to know that the Lord then used her tongue for a blessing to some heart which had as yet failed to comprehend the meaning of its life struggle; for the truth she emphasized was a truth which all of us need to realize. Not our personal enjoyment, nor yet our seeming success in life, but our part in God’s plan for others, is the measure of our importance in the world. —S. S. Times.