​September 9

That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the word of life — Phil. 2:15, 16.
 
It is the duty of every child of God to be very active in the dissemination of the Truth—in letting his light shine, and in keeping it trimmed and burning. "Trimmed and burning!" What does it mean? It means that we must give very close attention to the words of life that we may come to an exact knowledge of the Truth, and that we must carefully and faithfully trim away every vestige of error as fast as it becomes apparent to us—whether it be an error in doctrine or in our daily walk and conversation—so that the pure light of Divine truth may shine out with as little obstruction as possible through the medium of a clear and transparent character—Z '03, 358 (R 3243).
 
As far as lieth in us let us prevent our conduct from becoming blameworthy or harmful. So like our Lord are we to be that we become constantly engaged in well-doing. Then if fault be found with us, it will be due, not to wrongdoing on our part, but to the wrong condition in the hearts or minds of the fault-finders. Like our Lord, even among the evil, are we to shine as lights in the world, seeking to bless and not to injure; and if for our light we receive hatred from the children of darkness, it will be well for us to remember our Lord's similar experiences, that like Him, when rejected by some, we may still seek others whom it may be our privilege to bless with our earthly or heavenly good—P '26, 125.
 
Parallel passages: Eph. 5:1, 2; Matt. 5:45-48; Luke 6:27-36; 1 Pet. 2:12; Deut. 32:5; Matt. 5:14, 16; Eph. 5:8; Psa. 27:1; 36:9; John 1:9; 8:12; 12:46; 2 Cor. 4:6; 1 Thes. 5:5; 1 John 2:10.

Hymns: 275, 315, 29, 32, 72, 155, 230.
Poems of Dawn, 165: A Little Light.
Tower Reading: Z '14, 28 (R 5390).

Questions: What were this week's experiences along the line of this text? What were their results and lessons?

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A LITTLE LIGHT

'TWAS but a little light she bore,
While standing at the open door;
A little light, a feeble spark,
And yet it shone out through the dark
With cheerful ray, and gleamed afar
As brightly as the polar star.

A little light, a gentle hint,
That falls upon the page of print,
May clear the vision, and reveal
The precious treasures doubts conceal,
And guide men to an open door,
Where they new regions may explore.

A little light dispels the gloom
That gathers in the shadowed room,
Where want and sickness find their prey,
And night seems longer than the day,
And hearts with many troubles cope
And feebler glows the spark of hope.

Oh, sore the need that some must know
While journeying through this vale of woe!
Dismayed, disheartened, gone astray,
Caught in the thickets by the way,
For lack of just a little light
To guide their wandering steps aright.

It may be little we can do
To help another, it is true;
But better is a little spark
Of kindness, when the way is dark,
Than one should walk in paths forbidden
For lack of light we might have given.

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