of a mind all the ocean of His power, knowledge, and love.  Let your small and wretched worries go.  Have a little larger faith in the Love of the Infinite One.  Tenderly love and trust those whose welfare you seek, and trust God at the same time, but don’t worry when you see the dear ones walking in a path you have not chosen for them.  Remember your own ignorance, your own frailties, your own errors, your own mistakes, and then frankly and honestly, fearlessly and directly ask yourself the question if you dare to take upon your own ignorant self the responsibility of seeking to control and guide another living soul as to his eternal life.

Brother, Sister, the job is too big for you.  It takes God to do that, and you are not yet even a perfect human being.  Hence, while I long for all spiritual good for my sons and daughters, and for my friends, and I pray for them, it is in a large way, without any interjection of my own decisions and conclusions as to what will be good for them.  I have no fears as I leave them thus in God’s hand, and regard every worry as sinful on my part, and injurious to them.  I have no desire that they should accept my particular brand of faith or belief.  While I believe absolutely in that which I accept for the guidance of my own life, I would not fetter their souls with my belief if I could.  They are in wiser, better, larger, more loving Hands than mine.  And if I would not thus fetter my children and friends, I dare not seek to fetter others.  My business is to live my own religion to the utmost.  If I must worry, I will worry about that, though, as I think my readers are well aware by now, I do not believe in any kind of worry on any subject whatever.

Hence, let me again affirm in concluding this chapter, I regard worry about the religion of others as unwarrantable on account of our own ignorances as to their peculiar needs, as well as of God’s methods of supplying those needs.  It is also a useless expenditure of strength, energy, and affection, for, if God leads, your worry cannot possibly affect the one so led.  It is also generally an irritant to the one worried over.  Even though he may not formulate it into words he feels that it is an interference with his own inner life, a nagging that he resents, and, therefore, it does him far more harm than good; and, finally, it is an altogether indefensible attempt to saddle upon another soul your own faith or belief, which may be altogether unsuitable or inadequate to the needs of that soul.

There is still one other form of worry connected with the subject of religion.  Many a good man and woman worries over the apparent well-being and success of those whom he, she, accounts wicked!  They are seen to flourish as a green bay tree, or as a well-watered garden, and this seems to be unfair, unjust, and unwise on the part of the powers that govern the universe.  If good is desirable, people ought to be encouraged to it by material success—­so reason these officially good wiseacres, who subconsciously wish to dictate to God how He should run His world.