A Prosperous Soul

"I have heard of a good man whose soul prospered alike in temporal prosperity and adversity. He had an intimate friend, who used to make free with him, and, observing his prosperity, one day thus addressed him: 'Do not you find the smiles of the world, my friend, to be a snare to you?' He paused and said, 'I am not conscious that I do; for, though I enjoy much of this world, I think I enjoy God in all things.'

"By-and-by Providence turned another way; he lost all his prosperity, and sunk into indigence; he had scarcely a competency left to support him. His old friend thus addressed him: 'Well, my friend, how is it with you now? Do not you find your heart dejected in these circumstances?' 'I am not conscious,' said he, 'that I do. As before I enjoyed God in all things, now I enjoy all things in God; I find God to supply all my wants— and a little, with His blessing, is enough.'

"This, my friend, is a prosperous soul. A soul of this description might well bear prosperity, and his friend might well follow the example of John with respect to Gaius, and say, 'Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper, and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.'" --Andrew Fuller