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Mary Wilder Tileston
Mary Wilder Tileston was born on August 20, 1843, in Salem, Massachusetts, to Caleb Foote, owner and editor of the Salem Gazette, and Mary Wilder White Foote. Raised in a family with strong intellectual and religious ties—her brother Henry Wilder Foote became a Harvard-educated minister, and her brother Arthur Foote a noted composer—she attended private schools in Salem. On September 25, 1865, she married John Boies Tileston, a publisher’s son, and they had seven children: Mary, Margaret, Roger, Amelia, Wilder, Edith, and Eleanor. The family lived in Concord, Massachusetts, on a 200-acre farm from around 1874 to 1882, then moved to Salem and later Brookline, Massachusetts, where she died on July 3, 1934. Tileston’s career was centered on her literary contributions rather than preaching. Her most notable work, Daily Strength for Daily Needs, a collection of prose, verse, and scripture for daily reading, sold over 250,000 copies by 1910 and was highly regarded. She compiled other devotionals, including Prayers Ancient and Modern (1897) and children’s works like The Child’s Harvest of Verse (1910), reflecting her love for spiritual literature. While not a preacher by occupation, her anthologies served a preaching-like function, offering spiritual guidance to readers. Her legacy lies in these writings, which continue to inspire, rather than in a formal ministerial role.
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Mary Wilder Tileston preaches about finding peace and joy in the midst of trouble by relying on the Holy Spirit to calm our troubled thoughts and fill us with His peace. She emphasizes the importance of waiting on God's light to illuminate our hearts and minds, keeping them clear of negative thoughts and beliefs until we can safely receive His truth. Tileston encourages believers to reject darkness, look to the Lord for guidance, and patiently wait for Him to work in their hearts, even when faced with intrusive thoughts or doubts.
Dealing With Those Dark Thoughts
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou wilt revive me; Thou shalt stretch forth Thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and Thy right hand shall save me. PSALMS 138:7 HOLY Spirit, Joy divine, Cheer this saddened heart of mine; Bid my troubled thoughts be still; With Thy peace my spirit fill. ANDREW REED THEREFORE, in the evil hour, lie still, feel thy stay, till His light which "makes manifest" arise in thee, and clear up things to thee. And think not the time of darkness long; but watch, that thy heart be kept empty, and thy mind clear of thoughts and belief of things, till He bring in somewhat which thou mayest safely receive. Therefore, say to thy thoughts and to thy belief of things (according to the representation of the dark power, in the time of thy darkness) "Get thee hence!" And if that will not do, look tip to the Lord to speak to them; and to keep them out if they be not already entered, or to thrust them out if they be already got in. And if He do not so presently, or for a long time, yet do not murmur or think much, but wait till He do. Yea, though they violently thrust themselves upon thee, and seem to have entered thy mind, yet let them be as strangers to thee; receive them not, believe them not, know them not, own them not. ISAAC PENINGTON
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Mary Wilder Tileston was born on August 20, 1843, in Salem, Massachusetts, to Caleb Foote, owner and editor of the Salem Gazette, and Mary Wilder White Foote. Raised in a family with strong intellectual and religious ties—her brother Henry Wilder Foote became a Harvard-educated minister, and her brother Arthur Foote a noted composer—she attended private schools in Salem. On September 25, 1865, she married John Boies Tileston, a publisher’s son, and they had seven children: Mary, Margaret, Roger, Amelia, Wilder, Edith, and Eleanor. The family lived in Concord, Massachusetts, on a 200-acre farm from around 1874 to 1882, then moved to Salem and later Brookline, Massachusetts, where she died on July 3, 1934. Tileston’s career was centered on her literary contributions rather than preaching. Her most notable work, Daily Strength for Daily Needs, a collection of prose, verse, and scripture for daily reading, sold over 250,000 copies by 1910 and was highly regarded. She compiled other devotionals, including Prayers Ancient and Modern (1897) and children’s works like The Child’s Harvest of Verse (1910), reflecting her love for spiritual literature. While not a preacher by occupation, her anthologies served a preaching-like function, offering spiritual guidance to readers. Her legacy lies in these writings, which continue to inspire, rather than in a formal ministerial role.