TO BE EXACT by J. Clarke

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Nov 17, 1859

TO BE EXACT

By J. Clarke

And careful in all our words and actions, and to avoid mistakes in both principle and practice, in the pursuits of religion and of business, should be the aim of all who desire success.

Observe the young scholar with disappointment depicted in his countenance. What is the matter? On inquiry you discover that the sole cause of his trouble is the misplacing of a single figure; and often a like mistake may wreck the palace-like ship, richly laden with life and treasure; or such mistakes may ruin the business of the proud merchant. The engineer and accountant must be exact and precise, or lose reputation and business.

So in the commonest movements of the mind, mistakes and errors are injurious, and often may be fatal. Oh, could we see, as God and holy beings see, the terrible effects of mental errors, slips of the tongue, evils of unholy conversation and life, how would the disposal of our time and energies, appear to us? The indulgence of a single evil thought, may end in the loss of eternal life. Witness the confusion following the misplacement of a single figure in an arithmetical calculation; and is it less important in morals, to be exact? Could the vail that Satan has woven be taken from our eyes, what confusion should we see in our moralities!

O let us remember that every act with its motive and consequence is inscribed upon the record, and what a day will that be, when the vail of forgetfulness will be rent away! How astounding when the history of life shall come rushing up from the past! How blotted and blackened the page! How will the heart sicken at the sight! O, to have these pages blotted out now before it is too late! Will he—will Jesus be so forgiving? Will the Father so condescend, and may we have grace to live free from sin and error? O, happy state of holiness, strict and exact! Lord help us.

J. CLARKE.