Lo I Am With You Always

Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

The Lord Jesus is in the midst of His church; He walketh among the golden candlesticks...

His promise is, "Lo, I am with you alway." 

He is as surely with us now as He was with the disciples at the lake, when they saw coals of fire, and fish laid thereon and bread. 

Not carnally, but still in real truth, Jesus is with us. 

And a blessed truth it is, for where Jesus is, love becomes inflamed. 

Of all the things in the world that can set the heart burning, there is nothing like the presence of Jesus!

A glimpse of Him so overcomes us, that we are ready to say, "Turn away Thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me."

Even the smell of the aloes, and the myrrh, and the cassia, which drop from His perfumed garments, causes the sick and the faint to grow strong. 

Let there be but a moment's leaning of the head upon that gracious bosom...

And a reception of His divine love into our poor cold hearts...

And we are cold no longer, but glow like seraphs, equal to every labour, and capable of every suffering. 

If we know that Jesus is with us, every power will be developed, and every grace will be strengthened,...

And we shall cast ourselves into the Lord's service with heart, and soul, and strength...

Therefore is the presence of Christ to be desired above all things. 

His presence will be most realized by those who are most like Him.

If you desire to see Christ, you must grow in conformity to Him. 

Bring yourself, by the power of the Spirit, into union with Christ's desires, and motives, and plans of action, and you are likely to be favoured with His company. 

Remember His presence may be had. 

His promise is as true as ever. 

He delights to be with us.

If He doth not come, it is because we hinder Him by our indifference. 

He will reveal Himself to our earnest prayers...

And graciously suffer Himself to be detained by our entreaties, and by our tears,...

For these are the golden chains which bind Jesus to His people.

~Charles Spurgeon~

Contentment

Contentment is the product of a heart resting in God.

It is the soul's enjoyment of that peace that passes all understanding. 

It is the outcome of my will being brought into subjection to the Divine will. 

It is the blessed assurance that God does all things well...

And is, even now, making all things work together for my ultimate good.

~Arthur Pink~

No Matter The Difficulty Wholly Follow The LORD

Deu 1:36  Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD.
 
Every difficult task that comes across your path...every one that you would rather not do, that will take the most effort, cause the most pain, and be the greatest struggle...brings a blessing with it. 

And refusing to do it regardless of the personal cost is to miss the blessing.
 
Every difficult stretch of road on which you see the Master’s footprints and along which He calls you to follow Him leads unquestionably to blessings. 

And they are blessings you will never receive unless you travel the steep and thorny path.
 
Every battlefield you encounter, where you are required to draw your sword and fight the enemy, has the possibility of victory that will prove to be a rich blessing to your life.

And every heavy burden you are called upon to lift hides within itself a miraculous secret of strength. 
~J. R. Miller~
 
I cannot do it alone; The waves surge fast and high, And the fogs close all around,
 
The light goes out in the sky; But I know that we two Will win in the end, Jesus and I.
 
Cowardly, wayward, and weak, I change with the changing sky; 

Today so eager and bright, Tomorrow too weak to try;
 
But He never gives in, So we two will win, Jesus and I.
 
I could not guide it myself, My boat on life’s wild sea;
 
There’s One who sits by my side, Who pulls and steers with me.
 
And I know that we two Will safe enter port, Jesus and I.

High Places Of Defense

Isa 33:16  He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. 

The man to whom God has given grace to be of blameless life dwells in perfect security.

He dwells on high, above the world, Out of gunshot of the enemy, and near to heaven.

He has high aims and motives, and he finds high comforts and company.

He rejoices in the mountains of eternal love, wherein he has his abode.

He is defended by munitions of stupendous rock.

The firmest things in the universe are the promises and purposes of the unchanging God, and these are the safeguard of the obedient believer.

He is provided for by this great promise: "Bread shall be given him."

As the enemy cannot climb the fort, nor break down the rampart, so the fortress cannot be captured by siege and famine. 

The LORD, who rained manna in the wilderness, will keep His people in good store even when they are surrounded by those who would starve them. 

But what if water should fail? 

That cannot be. "His waters shall be sure."

There is a never-failing well within the impregnable fortress. 

The LORD sees that nothing is wanting. 

None can touch the citizen of the true Zion. 

However fierce the enemy, the LORD will preserve His chosen.

~Charles Spurgeon~

Trust His Will To Wait

Num 9:19  And when the cloud tarried long upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the charge of the LORD, and journeyed not
 
This was the ultimate test of obedience. 

It was relatively easy to fold up their tents when the fleecy cloud slowly gathered over the tabernacle and began to majestically float ahead of the multitude of the Israelite's.

Change normally seems pleasant, and the people were excited and interested in the route, the scenery, and the habitat of the next stopping place.
 
Yet having to wait was another story altogether.

When the cloud remained, however uninviting and sweltering the location, however trying to flesh and blood, however boring and wearisome to those who were impatient, however perilously close their exposure to danger...there was no option but to remain encamped.
 
The psalmist said, “I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry” (Ps. 40:1). 

And what God did for the Old Testament saints, He will do for believers down through the ages, yet He will often keep us waiting. 

Must we wait when we are face to face with a threatening enemy, surrounded by danger and fear, or below an unstable rock? 

Would this not be the time to fold our tents and leave?

Have we not already suffered to the point of total collapse?

Can we not exchange the sweltering heat for “green pastures...[and] quiet waters” (Ps. 23:2)?

When God sends no answer and “the cloud remain[s],” we must wait.

Yet we can do so with the full assurance of God’s provision of manna, water from the rock, shelter, and protection from our enemies.

He never keeps us at our post without assuring us of His presence or sending us daily supplies.
 
Young person, wait...do not be in such a hurry to make a change! 

Minister, stay at your post! You must wait where you are until the cloud clearly begins to move.

Wait for the Lord to give you His good pleasure! He will not be late! 

~Daily Devotional Commentary~
 
An hour of waiting!
 
Yet there seems such need To reach that spot sublime!
 
I long to reach them...but I long far more To trust HIS time!

Sit still, My children...
 
Yet the heathen die, They perish while I stay!
 
I long to reach them...but I long far more To trust HIS way!
 
It’s good to get, It’s good indeed to give!
 
Yet it is better still...O’er breadth, through length, down depth, up height, To trust HIS will!
 
~F. M. N.~

Necessary Knowledge

To be the LORD's own people is a choice blessing, but to know that we are such is a comfortable blessing.

It is one thing to hope that God is with us and another thing to know that He is so. 

Faith saves us, but assurance satisfies us. 

We take God to be our God when we believe in Him...

But we get the joy of Him when we know that He is ours and that we are His. 

No believer should be content with hoping and trusting...

He should ask the LORD to lead him on to full assurance, so that matters of hope may become matters of certainty.

It is when we enjoy covenant blessings and see our LORD Jesus raised up for us as a plant of renown that we come to a clear knowledge of the favor of God toward us. 

Not by law, but by grace do we learn that we are the LORD's people. 

Let us always turn our eyes in the direction of free grace. 

Assurance of faith can never come by the works of the law.

It is an evangelical virtue and can only reach us in a gospel way. 

Let us not look within. 

Let us look to the LORD alone. 

As we see Jesus we shall see our salvation.

LORD, send us such a flood-tide of Thy love that we shall be washed beyond the mire of doubt and fear.

~Charles Spurgeon~

What Is Painful Will End

Our heavenly Father seeks our instruction, not our destruction. 

His contention with us has a kind intention toward us. 

He will not be always in arms against us. 

We think the LORD is long in His chastisements, but that is because we are short in our patience. 

His compassion endureth forever, but not His contention. 

The night may drag its weary length along, but it must in the end give place to cheerful day.

As contention is only for a season, so the wrath which leads to it is only for a small moment. 

The LORD loves His chosen too well to be always angry with them.

If He were to deal with us always as He does sometimes, we should faint outright and go down hopelessly to the gates of death. 

Courage, dear heart! 

The LORD will soon end His chiding. 

Bear up, for the LORD will bear you up and bear you through. 

He who made you knows how frail you are and how little you can bear. 

He will handle tenderly that which He has fashioned so delicately. 

Therefore, be not afraid because of the painful present, for it hastens to a happy future. 

He that smote you will heal you; His little wrath shall be followed by great mercies.

~Charles Spurgeon~

Heavenly Wealth

 Many pleasing things the LORD may withhold but "no good thing." 

He is the best judge of what is good for us. 

Some things are assuredly good, and these we may have for the asking through Jesus Christ our LORD.

Holiness is a good thing, and this He will work in us freely. 

Victory over evil tendencies, strong tempers, and evil habits He will gladly grant, and we ought not to remain without it.

Full assurance He will bestow, and near communion with Himself, and access into all truth, and boldness with prevalence at the mercy seat. 

If we have not these, it is from want of faith to receive and not from any unwillingness of God to give. 

A calm, a heavenly frame, great patience, and fervent love-all these will He give to holy diligence.

But note well that we must "walk uprightly." 

There must be no cross purposes and crooked dealings; no hypocrisy nor deceit.

If we walk foully God cannot give us favors, for that would be a premium upon sin. 

The way of uprightness is the way of heavenly wealth-wealth so large as to include every good thing.

What a promise to plead in prayer! 

Let us get to our knees.

~Charles Spurgeon~                                                                                

Thorough Cleansing

Eze 36:25  Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

What an exceeding joy is this! 

He who has purified us with the blood of Jesus will also cleanse us by the water of the Holy Spirit. 

God hath said it, and so it must be, "Ye shall be clean."

LORD, we feel and mourn our uncleanness, and it is cheering to be assured by Thine own mouth that we shall be clean. 

Oh, that Thou wouldst make a speedy work of it! 

He will deliver us from our worst sins...

The uprisings of unbelief and the deceitful lusts which war against the soul, the vile thoughts of pride, and the suggestions of Satan to blaspheme the sacred name-all these shall be so purged away as never to return. 

He will also cleanse us from all our idols, whether of gold or of clay...

Our impure loves and our excessive love of that which in itself is pure. 

That which we have idolized shall either be broken from us or we shall be broken off from it. 

It is God who speaks of what He Himself will do. 

Therefore is this word established and sure, and we may boldly look for that which it guarantees to us. 

Cleansing is a covenant blessing, and the covenant is ordered in all things and sure.~Charles 

~Charles Spurgeon~

Seated And Still

Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
 
Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
 
Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
 
This is our rightful place...“seated with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,” yet seated and still. 

But how few of us actually experience this! 

In fact, most of us believe it is impossible to sit still “in the heavenly realms” while living our
everyday life in a world so full of turmoil.
 
Oh, we believe it may be possible to visit these “heavenly realms”on Sundays or now and then during times of great spiritual emphasis and praise,but to actually be “seated” there all day, every day, is a completely different matter.

Yet it is clear from the Scriptures that it is meant not only for Sundays but for weekdays as well.
 
A quiet spirit is of priceless value when performing outward activities. 

Nothing so greatly hinders the work of God’s unseen spiritual forces, upon which our success in everything truly depends, as the spirit of unrest and anxiety.
 
There is tremendous power in stillness.

A great believer once said,“All things come to him who knows how to trust and to be silent.” 

This fact is rich with meaning, and a true understanding of it would greatly change our ways of working. 

Instead of continuing our restless striving,we would “sit down”inwardly before the Lord, allowing the divine forces of His Spirit to silently work out the means to accomplish our goals and aspirations.
 
You may not see or feel the inner workings of His silent power, but rest assured it is always mightily at work. 

And it will work for you, if you will only quiet your spirit enough to be carried along by the current of its power. 

~Hannah Whitall Smith~

There is a point of rest At the great center of the cyclone’s force, A silence at its secret source;
 
A little child might slumber undisturbed, Without the ruffle of one fair curl, In that strange, central calm, amid the mighty whirl.
 
Make it your business to learn to be peaceful and safe in God through every situation.

Harvest Of Light, Gladness

                                                     
Righteousness is often costly to the man who keeps to it at all hazards, but in the end it will bear its own expenses and return an infinite profit. 

A holy life is like sowing seed: much is going out, and apparently it is buried in the soil, never to be gathered up again. 

We are mistaken when we look for an immediate harvest; but the error is very natural, for it seems impossible to bury light. 

Yet light is "sown," says the text. 

It lies latent: none can see it; it is sown. 

We are quite sure that it must one day manifest itself. 

Full sure are we that the LORD has set a harvest for the sower of light, and they shall reap it, each man for himself. 

Then shall come their gladness. 

Sheaves of joy for seeds of light. 

Their heart was upright before the LORD, though men gave them no credit for it, but even censured them...

They were righteous, though those about them denounced them as censorious. 

They had to wait, as husbandmen wait for the precious fruits of the earth:...

But the light was sown for them, and gladness was being prepared on their behalf by the LORD of the harvest. 

Courage, brothers! 

We need not be in a hurry. 

Let us in patience possess our souls, for soon shall our souls possess light and gladness.

~Charles Spurgeon~

'TROUBLE' INEVITABLE WITH SPIRITUAL SIGHT

When, therefore, there is the purest testimony, the fullest expression of what is of God, the heavenly over against the earthly, the spiritual over against the carnal or the natural, the enemy gives a turn to things, a twist to things, and lays the responsibility at the door of a spiritual and a heavenly ministry.

He says: 'You are the cause of all the trouble - you are the troubler!'

But no. The trouble lies deeper than that, and in another realm. 

The truth is, there is something here that, in its very nature, MUST create trouble, MUST be a source of trouble, so long as God's known will, His revealed mind, is being violated; while the full expression of God's purpose is being withstood.

To bring in something that stands for that, there is going to be trouble.

It is a costly thing to have seen God's full purpose and thought concerning His people.

It is always a costly thing.

The Lord Jesus set a very vivid example and object lesson of this truth right in the foreground, in the incident of the man born blind (John 9).

There is no doubt that the Lord intended that man to represent Israel and Israel's condition at the time.

He gave that man sight - and what happened to the man?

They cast him out, that is all; they cast him out, they excommunicated him (v. 34).

That is an object lesson, an instance of this very thing.

If eyes have been opened; if, in any sense - not officially - you have become a 'seer' - one who sees: it is going to cost you a lot, it will involve you in a lot of trouble.

This matter of 'seeing' does that.

It was Elijah the SEER, over against the BLINDNESS of Israel.

It is a costly thing to be a spiritual man or a spiritual woman in this universe.

It is a costly thing, yes, very costly, to hold to a heavenly and spiritual position.

It is a costly thing to hold for Christ's full place; it involves you in trouble. 

It is a costly thing to have light - if it is true light, God-given light.

It is a costly thing to have life.

But remember, it is here, in this, that the power is resident.

It is with this that God is found ultimately to be committed.

You know the story again.

God will have no compromise with the thing that lies behind.

Take the prophets of Baal! They were all slain. 

There is no compromise with that spiritual thing. 

But God is shown as to where He stands, to what He is committed, and where the power is.

For I suppose that, if Elijah represents one thing more than another, he does represent spiritual power.

When we think of spiritual power we always refer to Elijah - 'in the power of Elijah'.

It is proverbial. Why?

Not because of anything that he was in himself; no, not because of the man. 

He was a man in touch with the Throne; he was a man who had seen; a man who was committed, of whom it was true that he was "very jealous for the Lord".

God was with Elijah.

John came 'in the power of Elijah' (Luke 1:17); he was the Elijah of his time.

The Lord Jesus said of him: "If ye are willing to receive it, this is Elijah" (Matt. 11:14), though John himself denied this (John 1:21).

Elijah is a sort of phantom in a certain realm. 

Poor Herod was scared of his life - he began to see things, to get strange ideas - when he heard about Jesus: some suggested to him that this was Elijah returned to life, but he thought it was John the Baptist risen from the dead (Matt. 14:2; Mark 6:14-16).

The fellow just lost his mental grasp of things. 

This Elijah man counts for something.

Power is with him; the verdict is with him.

And - let there be no mistake about it - in the end it will be found that God IS committed to that which is utterly committed to Him for His full purposes. 

It is costly; it causes much trouble; BUT - the issue is with Him, and He will look after His own interests. 

~T. Austin Sparks~

Not One Grain Too Much!

Heb 12:7  If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

Affliction comes to us all...

Not to make us sad-but sober;

Not to make us sorry-but to make us wise;

Not to impoverish us-but to enrich us!

We are always in the forge-or on the anvil.
 
By trials, God is shaping us for nobler things.

No physician ever weighed out medicine to his patients with half so much care and exactness, as God weighs out every trial to us.

Not one grain too much, does He ever permit to be put in the scale!

The troubles and worries of life may be as stumbling blocks in our way-or we may make them stepping-stones to a nobler character and to Heaven.

Troubles are often the tools by which God fashions us for better things! 

Heb 12:10  For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.

Heb 12:11  Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

 ~Henry Ward Beecher, 1813-1887~

A Beloved Child-Watched Over, Cared For, Supplied And Defended!

Psalm 149:4  For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation.

How comprehensive is the love of Jesus!

There is no part of His people's interests that He does not consider...

And there is nothing that concerns their welfare, which is not important to Him. 

Not merely does He think of you, believer, as an immortal being-but as a mortal being, also. 

Do not deny it or doubt it: "The very hairs of your head are all numbered." 

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delights in His way. 

Believer, rest assured that the heart of Jesus cares about your common affairs.

The breadth of His tender love is such that you may resort to Him in all matters...

For as a father pities his children, so does He pity you. 

Oh, what a heart is His-which comprehends all the diverse and innumerable concerns of all His redeemed people!

Do you think that you can measure the love of Christ?

Think of what His love has brought you...justification, adoption, sanctification and eternal life! 

The riches of His goodness are unsearchable-you shall never be able to count them out or even conceive of them all. 

Oh, the breadth of the love of Christ! 

You are no desolate wanderer, but a beloved child-watched over, cared for, supplied and defended by your Lord!

Psa 56:8  Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?

~Charles Spurgeon~

“God Is Jealous.”

Nahum 1:2  God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.
 
Your Lord is very jealous of your love, O believer. 

Did he choose you?

He cannot bear that you should choose another. 

Did he buy you with his own blood?

He cannot endure that you should think that you are your own, or that you belong to this world. 

He loved you with such a love that he would not stop in heaven without you; he would sooner die than you should perish...

And he cannot endure that anything should stand between your heart’s love and himself. 

He is very jealous of your trust. 

He will not permit you to trust in an arm of flesh. 

He cannot bear that you should hew out broken cisterns, when the overflowing fountain is always free to you. 

When we lean upon him, he is glad...

But when we transfer our dependence to another...

When we rely upon our own wisdom, or the wisdom of a friend...

Worst of all, when we trust in any works of our own...

He is displeased, and will chasten us that he may bring us to himself. 

He is also very jealous of our company. 

There should be no one with whom we converse so much as with Jesus. 

To abide in him only, this is true love...

But to commune with the world...

To find sufficient solace in our carnal comforts...

To  prefer even the society of our fellow Christians to secret conversing with him...

This is grievous to our jealous Lord. 

He would fain have us abide in him, and enjoy constant fellowship with himself...

And many of the trials which he sends us are for the purpose of weaning our hearts from the creature, and fixing them more closely upon himself. 

Let this jealousy which would keep us near to Christ be also a comfort to us...

For if he loves us so much as to care thus about our love...

We may be sure that he will suffer nothing to harm us...

And will protect us from all our enemies. 

Oh that we may have grace this day to keep our hearts in sacred chastity for our Beloved alone...

With sacred jealousy shutting our eyes to all the fascinations of the world!

~Charles Spurgeon~

Survey The Idols Which You Are Called Upon To Worship!

1Ki 18:21  And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

There are other Baals in this age, in all the various forms under which they are objects of human idolatry.

It is true that you are not called, invited or disposed-to bow the knee to idols of wood, stone or metal. 

These, however, are not the only way in which idolatry may be practiced.  

Everyone has a god, and if man does not love and worship Jehovah, he will make a deity of his own image.  

Survey the idols which you are called upon to worship:

Among them, sustaining a high place, is the vile idol of SENSUALITY. 

This goddess is decked out with all that can pollute the imagination, inflame the passions, or excite the evil propensities of the heart. 

Before this image, multitudes of devotees of both sexes bow the knee and offer the most costly sacrifices of property, health, virtue and reputation!

Near her is the bewitching and smiling image of WORLDLY PLEASURE, with the sound of music, the song and the dance...

Alluring the giddy and thoughtless to its orgies...

And throwing the spell of its fascinations over the imagination of multitudes who go merrily to their eternal ruin!

MAMMON, the despicable deity of wealth, is there-glittering with gold, and offering riches to his eager followers as the reward of their diligent and faithful adherence. 

His liturgy is the cry of "Money! Money! Money!" 

His sacrifices are the time, the bodies, the comfort, and the souls of his worshipers!

Near this is the shrine of HUMAN KNOWLEDGE. 

This idol is only evil, when raised above the place of faith, piety and virtue. 

When thus exalted above Scripture, it is a deceiving, corrupting idol-the false goddess of a Pantheon of Vices.

Nor must we leave out the idols of FALSE RELIGION, the chief of which is Popery-the anti-Christ of the Apocalypse, "the Man of Sin sitting in the temple of God, exalting itself above all that is called God." 

This idol, taking the name of Christ as its designation...

Assuming the cross as its symbol...

And boasting of an apostle as its first pope...

Enriched by wealth; venerable for antiquity; dignified by learning; decorated by sculpture, architecture, and painting...

And adding the abysmal policies, and most serpentine craft to all these other dangerous qualities-has fascinated countless millions! 

And, notwithstanding the monstrous absurdity of its doctrines...

The blood-stained page of its history...

And its hostility to the liberties of mankind-is now putting forth the most arrogant claims, and making the most audacious attempts for the conquest of our country!

These idolaters have chosen their god, and are the determined and devoted worshipers of their Baals! 

They have hardened their hearts and seared their consciences.

They congratulate themselves upon their having thrown off all the weaknesses and fears of Christianity...

And upon their being now enabled to pursue their Hell-ward course unchecked by the restraint of conscience. 

Duped men, blind, and boasting in their blindness-are benumbed in all their moral faculties, and exulting in their stupidity! 

With every tie cut, which held them to piety and truth, they account it a privilege that they are drifting unobstructed to eternal destruction-determined to be lost, and rejoicing that nothing bars their path to the bottomless pit!
 
Eze 14:3  Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?

Eze 20:16  Because they despised my judgments, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols.

~J. A. James~
 

When The LORD Moves

Mark 16:4  And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.

Mark 16:5  And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.

When the Lord moves for His own Son's sake, and has those interests governing...
 
And when those interests have brought us into such a relationship with Him that we can say there is no stone so big to be removed...

No problem so great for solving...

No difficulty so intense, but the Lord will do what is necessary for His Son's sake...

When we have come to a position like that, the Lord is free to do a lot of things very quietly.

As we say, they just "happen".

Ah, but they have been the objects of the exercise of exceeding great power – "There was a great earthquake" (Matt. 28:2).

But here, in this aspect of the situation, it does not seem to be an earthquake at all.

It has just happened.

We must recognize that there is an aspect of activities in which the secret, quiet working of His immense power dismisses the greatest difficulties as though they had never existed. 

Sometimes He may bring us into the presence of the working of His power that is manifestly terrific, but not often and certainly not always. 

For faith it is more like this:

There is such power at work as to make possible the setting aside of the obstacle very quietly...

So that we afterward wonder – "And they were amazed."

And the angel said, "Be not amazed."

It is good to have amazement...

But let us recognize that a certain amount of our amazement is because we have not sufficient faith.

~T. Austin Sparks~

Before And During The Call

Quick work this! 

The LORD hears us before we call and often answers us in the same speedy manner. 

Foreseeing our needs and our prayers, He so arranges providence that before the need actually arises He has supplied it, before the trial assails us He has armed us against it. 

This is the promptitude of omniscience, and we have often seen it exercised. 

Before we dreamed of the affliction which was coming, the strong consolation which was to sustain us under it had arrived. 

What a prayer-answering God we have! 

The second clause suggests the telephone. 

Though God be in heaven and we upon earth, yet He makes our word, like His own word, to travel very swiftly...

When we pray aright we speak into the ear of God. 

Our gracious Mediator presents our petitions at once, and the great Father hears them and smiles upon them. 

Grand praying this! 

Who would not be much in prayer when he knows that he has the ear of the King of kings? 

This day I will pray in faith, not only believing that I shall be heard, but that I am heard...

Not only that I shall be answered, but that I have the answer already. 

Holy Spirit, help me in this!

~Charles Spurgeon~

I Heard A Hushed Voice

Some twenty years ago a friend gave me a book entitled True Peace.

It had an old medieval message and this one primary thought...

That God was waiting in the depths of my being to speak to me if I would only be still enough to hear His voice.

I assumed this would not be a difficult thing to do, so I tried to be still.

No sooner had I begun to do so than complete pandemonium seemed to break loose.

Suddenly I heard a thousand voices and sounds from without and within, until I could hear nothing except these incredible noises.

Some were my own words, my own questions, and even my own prayers, while others were temptations of the Enemy, and the voices of the world’s turmoil.

In every direction I turned, I was pushed, pulled, and confronted with indescribable unrest and overwhelming noises.

I seemed compelled to listen to some of them and to respond in some way.

But God said, “Be still, and know that I am God”

Psa 46:10  Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

Then my mind was filled with worries over my responsibilities and plans for tomorrow, and God said again, “Be still.”

As I listened and slowly learned to obey, I shut my ears to every other sound. 

Soon I discovered that once the other voices ceased, or once I ceased to hear them, “a gentle whisper” (1 Kings 19:12) began to speak in the depths of my being. 

And it spoke to me with an inexpressible tenderness, power, and comfort.

This “gentle whisper” became for me the voice of prayer, wisdom, and service. 

No longer did I need to work so hard to think, pray, or trust, because the Holy Spirit’s “gentle whisper” in my heart was God’s prayer in the secret places of my soul. 

It was His answer to all my questions, and His life and strength for my soul and body. 

His voice became the essence of all knowledge, prayer, and blessings, for it was the living God Himself as my life and my all.

This is precisely how our spirit drinks in the life of our risen Lord. 

And then we are enabled to face life’s conflicts and responsibilities, like a flower that has absorbed the cool and refreshing drops of dew through the darkness of the night. 

Yet just as dew never falls on a stormy night, the dew of His grace never covers a restless soul. 

~A. B. Simpson~

In Line With God's Purpose Whether Active Or Inactive

    

Heb 13:21  Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

So long as we are in line with God’s purpose His work can go on in us. 

What matters is not first of all our activity. 

God is more concerned with what is done in us than what we do for Him. 

He often reaches His end with us much better when we are in a state of inactivity than in times of much work. 

The hand of the Potter was upon Moses when he was in the wilderness where he could not do much. 

During forty years he was just looking after a few sheep. 

That is not very grand. 

No doubt he wondered sometimes to what purpose he was there, whether his life had any value. 

But principalities and powers saw something and wondered at God’s wisdom. 

God knew how to equip this man, how to get His way in that life. 

That is true in the case of many a servant of God. 

God is working for good, He is shaping His vessel. 

There is wisdom in all His dealings with us. 

But we have to see to it that we have no plans or personal ambitions of our own. 

The clay has to be completely in His hands. 

If we are really here for God, we can be assured that He will reach His end, that He may work out His purpose in us. 

And there we shall find strength.

Are you sure you are in the great purpose of God? 

Everybody has some part in it. 

Paul, when speaking of the church, illustrates it thus: “that all the body is fitly framed and knit together through that which every joint supplies.” 

No part of the body is without function. 

Each and every one has to be in God’s purpose. 

Some parts may be very small, they nevertheless are equally important. 

We have to remember that God has called us for a purpose which will be realized as we abandon ourselves to Him. 

Whatever it may be to which He has called us, let us be ready and do it. 

A Holy Spirit possessed life is always marked by purpose. 

Nothing can be lost in such a life; let us not believe in mere generalities. 

That is not good enough. 

There is something far more definite in God’s thoughts for our lives.

Let us abandon all personal desires, and be filled with the Spirit of urgency - “straight away.” 

Those who know that they are called of God, and who definitely recognize the purpose of their life, will be wholly given up to it. 

Such no longer have any interest for the things of this earth. 

They have no time to lose. 

They must buy up their time.

~T. Austin Sparks~

                                                                     

Complete Deliverance

Jer 39:17  But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the LORD: and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid. 

When the LORD's faithful ones are suffering for Him, they shall have sweet messages of love from Himself...

And sometimes they shall have glad tidings for those who sympathize with them and help them. 

Ebed-melech was only a despised Ethiopian, but he was kind to Jeremiah...

And so the LORD sent him this special promise by the mouth of His prophet.

Let us be ever mindful of God's persecuted servants, and He will reward us.

Ebed-melech was to be delivered from the men whose vengeance he feared. 

He was a humble... man, but Jehovah would take care of him. 

Thousands were slain by the Chaldeans, but [he] could not be hurt. 

We, too, may be fearful of some great ones who are bitter against us...

But if we have been faithful to the LORD's cause in the hour of persecution, He will be faithful to us. 

After all, what can a man do without the LORD's permission? 

He puts a bit into the mouth of rage and a bridle upon the head of power. 

Let us fear the LORD, and we shall have no one else to fear. 

No cup of cold water given to a despised prophet of God shall be without its reward...

And if we stand up for Jesus, Jesus will stand up for us. 

~Charles Spurgeon~