Duties may at times seem to conflict, but they do not really do so. A Christian's first duty is his hearty acknowledgment of his Creator and Lord, in all his ways. His second duty, if he be a husband and father, is toward his wife and children; or if she be a wife and mother, it is toward her husband and children. The marriage contract, by Divine arrangement, comes in as a first mortgage upon every husband's time and upon every wife's time—the demands of this mortgage must be reasonably met before anything can be properly done to or for outsiders.
The spirit of the age is restlessness. Almost everyone is seeking some change in life. Contentment should so mark the Christian's character, amid the prevalent discontent, as to move him to be satisfied where he is and with what he has, and therein should he remain until the Lord indicates the necessity of a change. Faith in God will insure this spirit.
1 Cor. 7:20; Luke 3:12-14; Eph. 6:5-8; Gen. 2:15; Prov. 10:4, 5; 12:11, 24; 13:4, 11; 14:23; 20:13; 22:29; 31:27; Eccles. 9:10; 11:6; Rom. 12:11; Eph. 4:28; 1 Thes. 4:11, 12; 2 Thes. 3:10-12.
