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IN EITHER CASE
back, it is only to leave ground which is no longer advantageous to Him and shift the conflict to terrain fixed beforehand for the victory. Often He forces His adversaries to drive Him from ground conquered and occupied inorder that they may exhaust their strength on a position never meant to be permanently held and by their very triumph prepare a more decisive overthrow.
Minute minds fix themselves on details and say "Here we have failed, there we have prevailed;" and if the record of defeats seems to be long and ill-balanced by doubtful successes, they grow dicouraged and apprehend the ruin of their cause. So men deceive themselves as to the trend of events by not keeping their eyes open to the great stream of inevitable tendency which prevails over all backwashes and petty currents. And where defeat is predestined for a season, their want of faith leads to the very calamity which they apprehended. The eye of faith is not one with
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