The tender tones almost made the tears come anew; and Faith, contrary to her reticent nature, found herself telling kind-hearted Mrs. Macpherson just what did trouble her.

“Poor dear!” Mrs. Macpherson said, “that is hard; if I can’t help you, I know one who can.  Why don’t you go straight to the dear Lord and tell him all about it?  You see everything is at his disposal.  You know the way to him, don’t you?”

Faith nodded assent, and then said despairingly, “It never seemed to me that God would condescend to think about the small affairs of our everyday life.”

“But, Mrs. Vincent, you surely read in the Word how he numbers the hairs of our heads, and he says himself if he gives thought to such little things as lilies and grass, he’ll surely look after us.  Doesn’t the Good Shepherd care when the sheep are worried?  Indeed he does.  Would you stay up-stairs when you heard your dear baby crying?  Oh! but you’d run fast to her.  He says himself that he is our Father, and we are his children, and is he going to stay away off up in heaven and not care about our everyday troubles.  No, just you tell him, and believe that he’ll help you in some way, and he surely will.  You see I can tell all about this because I’ve proved it.  I know it is so, and it’s not every minister that knows that.  We had a real young minister to preach for us last Sunday; he preached about God’s care for his people, and I just thought to myself, ’If you had ever been in a real tight place, my lad, and the Lord had come and helped you out, you wouldn’t be standing there reading off pretty sounding words to us; you’d just tell it to us, hearty like, as if you meant it.’  But here I am, going on just like a clock; I beg your pardon, Mrs. Vincent.”

“Go on, Mrs. Macpherson,” said Faith, “I love to hear you talk.  Tell me how you came to feel so sure about things.  I need to know.  I am wrongly called ‘Faith,’ for I have scarcely any.”

“Oh, I couldn’t but feel sure.  He hears and helps me so quick when I call to him.  He has been so kind to me.  When I was left alone in the world with no home and not a penny that I could call my own, I didn’t know which way to turn; I had no trade, and I was not strong enough to do housework.  I fretted and worried over it a spell, then it came to me all of a sudden one day that the Lord could help me if he would.  I called to mind all the verses that tell how kind he is, and I just went and told him all about it, feeling as sure that he’d help me in some way as if I’d heard him say it.  Sure enough he did! the very next day a lady advertised for an apprentice to learn the dressmaker’s trade.  I went, and she took me, and I got just in my right place.  I learned fast, and in a year from that time I could fit as well as she could herself.  She offered me good wages to stay and sew with her, but I was tired of shop life and wanted a bit of a home of my own, so I rented these rooms, and I have all I can do and more