Notes

472 IMPROVEMENT ERA.

dence of the operation of the Spirit of God upon him, and a witness to him that God's voice was calling him unto that work; but he was not and could not be authorized by that fact alone to officiate in things pertaining to God until divine authority should be

given unto him, and he "called of God as was Aaron." The work of the Lord at the time these revelations were given was just beginning its existence in the earth. The Church was not yet organized, but the Spirit of the Lord was operating upon the minds of a number of men who afterwards became prominent in establishing the work of the Lord in the earth, and the fact of God's Spirit operating upon their minds, giving them an earnest desire to "thrust in their sickles and reap" God's harvest was considered an evidence that they were called of God, and in time would be authorized by him by receiving divine authority, both to preach the Gospel and administer its ordinances. That this is the proper exegesis of the matter, is to be found in the fact that in each of the cases cited, the men who were inquiring of the Prophet the will of the Lord concerning them, were afterwards ordained to the Holy Priesthood and authorized to assist in building up his kingdom. As the fourth question submitted in this communication requires a rather lengthy explanation, we shall defer answering it until the publication of the next number of the Era.

NOTES.

Sorrow, it should be remembered, is within us, and not in the things about us; so is it with joy.

Every attempt to make others happy, every step forward in the cause of what is good, is a step nearer to true manhood.

Great wealth is either a great blessing or a great curse. It is seldom neutral. Great wealth, like great waters, needs constant motion to prevent stagnation and death.

There is no real elevation of mind in a contempt of little things. It is, on the contrary, from too narrow views that we consider those things of little importance which have, in fact, serious consequences.