Flexslider
Hall of Truth Daily Devotion
Shaped Stones
I will lay thy stones with fair colors – Isa 54:11
The stones from the wall said, "We come from the mountains far away, from the sides of the craggy hills. Fire and water have worked on us for ages, but made us only crags. Human hands have made us into a dwelling where the children of your immortal race are born, and suffer, and rejoice, and find rest and shelter, and learn the lessons set them by our Maker and yours. But we have passed through much to fit us for this. Gunpowder has rent our very heart; pickaxes have cleaved and broken us, it seemed to us often with out design or meaning, as we lay misshapen stones in the quarry; but gradually we were cut into blocks, and some of us were chiseled with finer instruments to a sharper edge. But we are complete now, and are in our places, and are of service.
You are in the quarry still, and not complete, and therefore to you, as once to us, much is inexplicable. But you are destined for a higher building, and one day you will be placed in it by hands not human, a living stone in a heavenly temple.
“In the still air the music lies unheard;
In the rough marble beauty hides unseen;
To make the music and the beauty needs
The master’s touch, the sculptor’s chisel keen.
“Great Master, touch us with Thy skillful hands;
Let not the music that is in us die!
Great Sculptor, hew and polish us; nor let,
Hidden and lost, thy form within us lie!”
© Streams in the Desert
Shaped Stones
I will lay thy stones with fair colors – Isa 54:11
The stones from the wall said, "We come from the mountains far away, from the sides of the craggy hills. Fire and water have worked on us for ages, but made us only crags. Human hands have made us into a dwelling where the children of your immortal race are born, and suffer, and rejoice, and find rest and shelter, and learn the lessons set them by our Maker and yours. But we have passed through much to fit us for this. Gunpowder has rent our very heart; pickaxes have cleaved and broken us, it seemed to us often with out design or meaning, as we lay misshapen stones in the quarry; but gradually we were cut into blocks, and some of us were chiseled with finer instruments to a sharper edge. But we are complete now, and are in our places, and are of service.
You are in the quarry still, and not complete, and therefore to you, as once to us, much is inexplicable. But you are destined for a higher building, and one day you will be placed in it by hands not human, a living stone in a heavenly temple.
“In the still air the music lies unheard;
In the rough marble beauty hides unseen;
To make the music and the beauty needs
The master’s touch, the sculptor’s chisel keen.
“Great Master, touch us with Thy skillful hands;
Let not the music that is in us die!
Great Sculptor, hew and polish us; nor let,
Hidden and lost, thy form within us lie!”
© Streams in the Desert
Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed – John 20:29
How strong is the snare of the things that are seen, and how necessary for God to keep us in the things that are unseen! If Peter is to walk on the water he must walk; if he is going to swim, he must swim, but he cannot do both. If the bird is going to fly it must keep away from fences and the trees, and trust to its buoyant wings. But if it tries to keep within easy reach of the ground, it will make poor work of flying.
God had to bring Abraham to the end of his own strength, and to let him see that in his own body he could do nothing. He had to consider his own body as good as dead, and then take God for the whole work; and when he looked away from himself, and trusted God alone, then he became fully persuaded that what He had promised, He was able to perform. That is what God is teaching us, and He has to keep away encouraging results until we learn to trust without them, and then He loves to make His Word real in fact as well as faith.—A. B. Simpson
I do not ask that He must prove
His Word is true to me,
And that before I can believe
He first must let me see.
It is enough for me to know
’Tis true because He says ’tis so;
On His unchanging Word I’ll stand
And trust till I can understand.
—E. M. Winter
© Streams in the Desert
Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed – John 20:29
How strong is the snare of the things that are seen, and how necessary for God to keep us in the things that are unseen! If Peter is to walk on the water he must walk; if he is going to swim, he must swim, but he cannot do both. If the bird is going to fly it must keep away from fences and the trees, and trust to its buoyant wings. But if it tries to keep within easy reach of the ground, it will make poor work of flying.
God had to bring Abraham to the end of his own strength, and to let him see that in his own body he could do nothing. He had to consider his own body as good as dead, and then take God for the whole work; and when he looked away from himself, and trusted God alone, then he became fully persuaded that what He had promised, He was able to perform. That is what God is teaching us, and He has to keep away encouraging results until we learn to trust without them, and then He loves to make His Word real in fact as well as faith.—A. B. Simpson
I do not ask that He must prove
His Word is true to me,
And that before I can believe
He first must let me see.
It is enough for me to know
’Tis true because He says ’tis so;
On His unchanging Word I’ll stand
And trust till I can understand.
—E. M. Winter
© Streams in the Desert
When Dr. Carey was suffering from a dangerous illness, the enquiry was made, “If this sickness should prove fatal, what passage would you select as the text for your funeral sermon?” He replied, “Oh, I feel that such a poor sinful creature is unworthy to have anything said about him; but if a funeral sermon must be preached, let it be from the words, ‘Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness; according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.’” In the same spirit of humility he directed in his will that the following inscription and nothing more should be cut on his gravestone:—
William Carey, Born August 17th, 1761: Died- -
“A wretched, poor, and helpless worm
On thy kind arms I fall.”
“A wretched, poor, and helpless worm
On thy kind arms I fall.”
Only on the footing of free grace can the most experienced and most honoured of the saints approach their God. The best of men are conscious above all others that they are men at the best. Empty boats float high, but heavily laden vessels are low in the water; mere professors can boast, but true children of God cry for mercy upon their unprofitableness.
We have need that the Lord should have mercy upon our good works, our prayers, our preachings, our alms-givings, and our holiest things. The blood was not only sprinkled upon the doorposts of Israel’s dwelling houses, but upon the sanctuary, the mercy-seat, and the altar, because as sin intrudes into our holiest things, the blood of Jesus is needed to purify them from defilement. If mercy be needed to be exercised towards our duties, what shall be said of our sins? How sweet the remembrance that inexhaustible mercy is waiting to be gracious to us, to restore our backslidings, and make our broken bones rejoice!
We have need that the Lord should have mercy upon our good works, our prayers, our preachings, our alms-givings, and our holiest things. The blood was not only sprinkled upon the doorposts of Israel’s dwelling houses, but upon the sanctuary, the mercy-seat, and the altar, because as sin intrudes into our holiest things, the blood of Jesus is needed to purify them from defilement. If mercy be needed to be exercised towards our duties, what shall be said of our sins? How sweet the remembrance that inexhaustible mercy is waiting to be gracious to us, to restore our backslidings, and make our broken bones rejoice!
When Dr. Carey was suffering from a dangerous illness, the enquiry was made, “If this sickness should prove fatal, what passage would you select as the text for your funeral sermon?” He replied, “Oh, I feel that such a poor sinful creature is unworthy to have anything said about him; but if a funeral sermon must be preached, let it be from the words, ‘Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness; according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.’” In the same spirit of humility he directed in his will that the following inscription and nothing more should be cut on his gravestone:—
William Carey, Born August 17th, 1761: Died- -
“A wretched, poor, and helpless worm
On thy kind arms I fall.”
“A wretched, poor, and helpless worm
On thy kind arms I fall.”
Only on the footing of free grace can the most experienced and most honoured of the saints approach their God. The best of men are conscious above all others that they are men at the best. Empty boats float high, but heavily laden vessels are low in the water; mere professors can boast, but true children of God cry for mercy upon their unprofitableness.
We have need that the Lord should have mercy upon our good works, our prayers, our preachings, our alms-givings, and our holiest things. The blood was not only sprinkled upon the doorposts of Israel’s dwelling houses, but upon the sanctuary, the mercy-seat, and the altar, because as sin intrudes into our holiest things, the blood of Jesus is needed to purify them from defilement. If mercy be needed to be exercised towards our duties, what shall be said of our sins? How sweet the remembrance that inexhaustible mercy is waiting to be gracious to us, to restore our backslidings, and make our broken bones rejoice!
We have need that the Lord should have mercy upon our good works, our prayers, our preachings, our alms-givings, and our holiest things. The blood was not only sprinkled upon the doorposts of Israel’s dwelling houses, but upon the sanctuary, the mercy-seat, and the altar, because as sin intrudes into our holiest things, the blood of Jesus is needed to purify them from defilement. If mercy be needed to be exercised towards our duties, what shall be said of our sins? How sweet the remembrance that inexhaustible mercy is waiting to be gracious to us, to restore our backslidings, and make our broken bones rejoice!
SOLITUDE
And he took him aside from the multitude – Mark 7:33
Paul not only stood the tests in Christian activity, but in the solitude of captivity. You may stand the strain of the most intense labor, coupled with severe suffering, and yet break down utterly when laid aside from all religious activities; when forced into close confinement in some prison house.
That noble bird, soaring the highest above the clouds and enduring the longest flights, sinks into despair when in a cage where it is forced to beat its helpless wings against its prison bars. You have seen the great eagle languish in its narrow cell with bowed head and drooping wings. What a picture of the sorrow of inactivity.
Paul in prison. That was another side of life. Do you want to see how he takes it? I see him looking out over the top of his prison wall and over the heads of his enemies. I see him write a document and sign his name—not the prisoner of Festus, nor of Caesar; not the victim of the Sanhedrin; but the—“prisoner of the Lord.” He saw only the hand of God in it all. To him the prison becomes a palace. Its corridors ring with shouts of triumphant praise and joy.
Restrained from the missionary work he loved so well, he now built a new pulpit—a new witness stand—and from that place of bondage come some of the sweetest and most helpful ministries of Christian liberty. What precious messages of light come from those dark shadows of captivity.
Think of the long train of imprisoned saints who have followed in Paul’s wake. For twelve long years Bunyan’s lips were silenced in Bedford jail. It was there that he did the greatest and best work of his life. There he wrote the book that has been read next to the Bible. He says, “I was at home in prison and I sat me down and wrote, and wrote, for joy did make me write.”
The wonderful dream of that long night has lighted the pathway of millions of weary pilgrims. That sweet-spirited French lady, Madam Guyon, lay long between prison walls. Like some caged birds that sing the sweeter for their confinement, the music of her soul has gone out far beyond the dungeon walls and scattered the desolation of many drooping hearts.
Oh, the heavenly consolation that has poured forth from places of solitude!—S. G. Rees
© Streams in the Desert
SOLITUDE
And he took him aside from the multitude – Mark 7:33
Paul not only stood the tests in Christian activity, but in the solitude of captivity. You may stand the strain of the most intense labor, coupled with severe suffering, and yet break down utterly when laid aside from all religious activities; when forced into close confinement in some prison house.
That noble bird, soaring the highest above the clouds and enduring the longest flights, sinks into despair when in a cage where it is forced to beat its helpless wings against its prison bars. You have seen the great eagle languish in its narrow cell with bowed head and drooping wings. What a picture of the sorrow of inactivity.
Paul in prison. That was another side of life. Do you want to see how he takes it? I see him looking out over the top of his prison wall and over the heads of his enemies. I see him write a document and sign his name—not the prisoner of Festus, nor of Caesar; not the victim of the Sanhedrin; but the—“prisoner of the Lord.” He saw only the hand of God in it all. To him the prison becomes a palace. Its corridors ring with shouts of triumphant praise and joy.
Restrained from the missionary work he loved so well, he now built a new pulpit—a new witness stand—and from that place of bondage come some of the sweetest and most helpful ministries of Christian liberty. What precious messages of light come from those dark shadows of captivity.
Think of the long train of imprisoned saints who have followed in Paul’s wake. For twelve long years Bunyan’s lips were silenced in Bedford jail. It was there that he did the greatest and best work of his life. There he wrote the book that has been read next to the Bible. He says, “I was at home in prison and I sat me down and wrote, and wrote, for joy did make me write.”
The wonderful dream of that long night has lighted the pathway of millions of weary pilgrims. That sweet-spirited French lady, Madam Guyon, lay long between prison walls. Like some caged birds that sing the sweeter for their confinement, the music of her soul has gone out far beyond the dungeon walls and scattered the desolation of many drooping hearts.
Oh, the heavenly consolation that has poured forth from places of solitude!—S. G. Rees
© Streams in the Desert
Meant to be Used
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises – 2 Pet 1:4
When a shipwright builds a vessel, does he build it to keep it upon the stocks? Nay, he builds it for the sea and the storm. When he was making it, he thought of tempests and hurricanes; if he did not, he was a poor shipbuilder.
When God made thee a believer, He meant to try thee; and when He gave thee promises, and bade thee trust them, He gave such promises as are suitable for times of tempest and tossing. Dost thou think that God makes shams like some that have made belts for swimming, which were good to exhibit in a shop, but of no use in the sea?
We have all heard of swords which were useless in war; and even of shoes which were made to sell, but were never meant to walk in. God’s shoes are of iron and brass, and you can walk to Heaven in them without their ever wearing out; and His life-belts, you may swim a thousand Atlantics upon them, and there will be no fear of your sinking. His Word of promise is meant to be tried and proved.
There is nothing Christ dislikes more than for His people to make a show-thing of Him, and not to use Him. He loves to be employed by us. Covenant blessings are not meant to be looked at only, but to be appropriated. Even our Lord Jesus is given to us for our present use. Thou dost not make use of Christ as thou oughtest to do.
O man, I beseech you do not treat God’s promises as if they were curiosities for a museum; but use them as every day sources of comfort. Trust the Lord whenever your time of need comes on.—C. H. Spurgeon
“Go to the deeps of God’s promise,
And claim whatsoever ye will;
The blessing of God will not fail thee,
His Word He will surely fulfill.”
And claim whatsoever ye will;
The blessing of God will not fail thee,
His Word He will surely fulfill.”
Now can God say no to something He has promised?
©Streams in the Desert
Meant to be Used
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises – 2 Pet 1:4
When a shipwright builds a vessel, does he build it to keep it upon the stocks? Nay, he builds it for the sea and the storm. When he was making it, he thought of tempests and hurricanes; if he did not, he was a poor shipbuilder.
When God made thee a believer, He meant to try thee; and when He gave thee promises, and bade thee trust them, He gave such promises as are suitable for times of tempest and tossing. Dost thou think that God makes shams like some that have made belts for swimming, which were good to exhibit in a shop, but of no use in the sea?
We have all heard of swords which were useless in war; and even of shoes which were made to sell, but were never meant to walk in. God’s shoes are of iron and brass, and you can walk to Heaven in them without their ever wearing out; and His life-belts, you may swim a thousand Atlantics upon them, and there will be no fear of your sinking. His Word of promise is meant to be tried and proved.
There is nothing Christ dislikes more than for His people to make a show-thing of Him, and not to use Him. He loves to be employed by us. Covenant blessings are not meant to be looked at only, but to be appropriated. Even our Lord Jesus is given to us for our present use. Thou dost not make use of Christ as thou oughtest to do.
O man, I beseech you do not treat God’s promises as if they were curiosities for a museum; but use them as every day sources of comfort. Trust the Lord whenever your time of need comes on.—C. H. Spurgeon
“Go to the deeps of God’s promise,
And claim whatsoever ye will;
The blessing of God will not fail thee,
His Word He will surely fulfill.”
And claim whatsoever ye will;
The blessing of God will not fail thee,
His Word He will surely fulfill.”
Now can God say no to something He has promised?
©Streams in the Desert
Through Life and Time
There are men who walk this world alone without divine guidance and direction. The wave of life and time propels them onward and when the tempest rages and the storms roar, they are easily beaten by this hostile world into compromise leaving them only in shattered unfixable pieces. Except a man follows divine counsel, every door looks like the road, every path seems to lead into destiny. For how long then will a man stray into darkness following his fragile heart before he realises that there is a God above who walks exceedingly in the affairs of man.
This is the promise of God
Psalm 32:8-9
I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check
I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check
The best way to go from where you are now is to let Him take the wheal of your life. You can be rest assured He will lead it to safer grounds. Amen
© Olatuja Oloyede
Through Life and Time
There are men who walk this world alone without divine guidance and direction. The wave of life and time propels them onward and when the tempest rages and the storms roar, they are easily beaten by this hostile world into compromise leaving them only in shattered unfixable pieces. Except a man follows divine counsel, every door looks like the road, every path seems to lead into destiny. For how long then will a man stray into darkness following his fragile heart before he realises that there is a God above who walks exceedingly in the affairs of man.
This is the promise of God
Psalm 32:8-9
I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check
I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check
The best way to go from where you are now is to let Him take the wheal of your life. You can be rest assured He will lead it to safer grounds. Amen
© Olatuja Oloyede
TO THE CHRISTIANS
We've got to give this world this world back to God... If you discover the cure of HIV, will you keep it to yourself? No, the world will know you have. How much then the cure to everlasting damnation, the death and resurrection of Christ, the healing He brings to the world through His cross of crucifixion. We are the light and salt of the world and we cannot and must not walk this planet in vain. We are the army of the Lord reserved for such a time as this not to join the world in its compromises and perversity but to bring the reign of God by the power of the Holy Spirit in our own generation.... How much of this are you becoming... Or are you just that quiet, prayerless, powerless believer with an unbothered calm of lukewarmness settling on the inside. Kneel in prayer for strength and rise in the victory that conquers the world dragging nations and pulling men from the ends of the earth to Calvary... This is the dream you should have for your life.... Your life, comrades must not be in vain.
Amen
© Olatuja Oloyede
TO THE CHRISTIANS
We've got to give this world this world back to God... If you discover the cure of HIV, will you keep it to yourself? No, the world will know you have. How much then the cure to everlasting damnation, the death and resurrection of Christ, the healing He brings to the world through His cross of crucifixion. We are the light and salt of the world and we cannot and must not walk this planet in vain. We are the army of the Lord reserved for such a time as this not to join the world in its compromises and perversity but to bring the reign of God by the power of the Holy Spirit in our own generation.... How much of this are you becoming... Or are you just that quiet, prayerless, powerless believer with an unbothered calm of lukewarmness settling on the inside. Kneel in prayer for strength and rise in the victory that conquers the world dragging nations and pulling men from the ends of the earth to Calvary... This is the dream you should have for your life.... Your life, comrades must not be in vain.
Amen
© Olatuja Oloyede
MAN IS NOT NATURALLY PERFECT
Anyone who loves instruction loves knowledge: but he that hates reproof is brutish (an animal, lacking human sensibility)Proverbs 12:1
Man is not naturally created perfect and as long as we are humans, we will always need to get better. That is why God has placed some people and things in our lives at different stages to correct, rebuke and instruct us. Our parents, pastors and godly friends are not the threats we think they are but are the guidance of God leading us on the path of destiny. If the people surrounding you are singing your praises every time, obviously, you are in the wrong company of deceivers and liars. If they don't kill you, they will ruin you.
Some have become so aggressive to instruction. All you need to do to offend them is to say "don't do this, it is wrong and not accepted by God or in favour of humanity". You see them gather their intellectual or maybe theological muscles to defend why correction is unnecessary. Correction is a loving act of God. If He says don't do this or that, it is not because He does not want you to enjoy the pleasures in it, but because He knows the damage the pleasures of sins will do to His purpose in your life.
You will always meet those who will correct you, don't get offended rather appreciate it as a gift sent from the Father of light. But if you live in a world where there is no chastisements and you seems to be left all alone maybe because of your determined resistance against instructions and corrections, you are not just given over to reprobation, you are in a free fall down a rocky hill. The scars of disobedience does not heal quickly. Some injuries sustain in the unguided hours sometimes linger for the rest of our lives. But most mistakes we make in life can be avoided only if we decided to take note of how we spend our lives.
What is it in your life that you are constantly warned of by your parents, friends, conscience, online posts, etc.?
Are there instructions here and there you keep pending waiting for a convenient time to obey? This is the right time to subject yourself to instruction and pray that God guidance will be forever part of your journey over every matter every moment of your life. Amen
© Olatuja Oloyede
MAN IS NOT NATURALLY PERFECT
Anyone who loves instruction loves knowledge: but he that hates reproof is brutish (an animal, lacking human sensibility) Proverbs 12:1
Man is not naturally created perfect and as long as we are humans, we will always need to get better. That is why God has placed some people and things in our lives at different stages to correct, rebuke and instruct us. Our parents, pastors and godly friends are not the threats we think they are but are the guidance of God leading us on the path of destiny. If the people surrounding you are singing your praises every time, obviously, you are in the wrong company of deceivers and liars. If they don't kill you, they will ruin you.
Some have become so aggressive to instruction. All you need to do to offend them is to say "don't do this, it is wrong and not accepted by God or in favour of humanity". You see them gather their intellectual or maybe theological muscles to defend why correction is unnecessary. Correction is a loving act of God. If He says don't do this or that, it is not because He does not want you to enjoy the pleasures in it, but because He knows the damage the pleasures of sins will do to His purpose in your life.
You will always meet those who will correct you, don't get offended rather appreciate it as a gift sent from the Father of light. But if you live in a world where there is no chastisements and you seems to be left all alone maybe because of your determined resistance against instructions and corrections, you are not just given over to reprobation, you are in a free fall down a rocky hill. The scars of disobedience does not heal quickly. Some injuries sustain in the unguided hours sometimes linger for the rest of our lives. But most mistakes we make in life can be avoided only if we decided to take note of how we spend our lives.
What is it in your life that you are constantly warned of by your parents, friends, conscience, online posts, etc.?
Are there instructions here and there you keep pending waiting for a convenient time to obey? This is the right time to subject yourself to instruction and pray that God guidance will be forever part of your journey over every matter every moment of your life. Amen
© Olatuja Oloyede
COMFORT IN THE DEPTH
Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee...who passing through the valley of weeping, make it a well – Ps 84:5-6
Comfort does not come to the light-hearted and merry. We must go down into “depths” if we would experience this most precious of God’s gifts—comfort, and thus be prepared to be co-workers together with Him.
When night—needful night—gathers over the garden of our souls, when the leaves close up, and the flowers no longer hold any sunlight within their folded petals, there shall never be wanting, even in the thickest darkness, drops of heavenly dew—dew which falls only when the sun has gone.
“I have been through the valley of weeping,
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the ’God of all comfort’ was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.
“As the earth needs the clouds and sunshine,
Our souls need both sorrow and joy;
So He places us oft in the furnace,
The dross from the gold to destroy.
“When he leads thro’ some valley of trouble
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us,
Are part of His lessons in grace.
“Oft we shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Husbandman knows
That the deeper the cutting and paring,
The richer the cluster that grows.
“Well He knows that affliction is needed;
He has a wise purpose in view,
And in the dark valley He whispers,
’Hereafter Thou ’lt know what I do.’
“As we travel thro’ life’s shadow’d valley,
Fresh springs of His love ever rise;
And we learn that our sorrows and losses,
Are blessings just sent in disguise.“
So we’ll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or bright;
For we’ve proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the ’God of all comfort’ was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.
“As the earth needs the clouds and sunshine,
Our souls need both sorrow and joy;
So He places us oft in the furnace,
The dross from the gold to destroy.
“When he leads thro’ some valley of trouble
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us,
Are part of His lessons in grace.
“Oft we shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Husbandman knows
That the deeper the cutting and paring,
The richer the cluster that grows.
“Well He knows that affliction is needed;
He has a wise purpose in view,
And in the dark valley He whispers,
’Hereafter Thou ’lt know what I do.’
“As we travel thro’ life’s shadow’d valley,
Fresh springs of His love ever rise;
And we learn that our sorrows and losses,
Are blessings just sent in disguise.“
So we’ll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or bright;
For we’ve proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night
© Streams in the Desert
COMFORT IN THE DEPTH
Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee...who passing through the valley of weeping, make it a well – Ps 84:5-6
Comfort does not come to the light-hearted and merry. We must go down into “depths” if we would experience this most precious of God’s gifts—comfort, and thus be prepared to be co-workers together with Him.
When night—needful night—gathers over the garden of our souls, when the leaves close up, and the flowers no longer hold any sunlight within their folded petals, there shall never be wanting, even in the thickest darkness, drops of heavenly dew—dew which falls only when the sun has gone.
“I have been through the valley of weeping,
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the ’God of all comfort’ was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.
“As the earth needs the clouds and sunshine,
Our souls need both sorrow and joy;
So He places us oft in the furnace,
The dross from the gold to destroy.
“When he leads thro’ some valley of trouble
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us,
Are part of His lessons in grace.
“Oft we shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Husbandman knows
That the deeper the cutting and paring,
The richer the cluster that grows.
“Well He knows that affliction is needed;
He has a wise purpose in view,
And in the dark valley He whispers,
’Hereafter Thou ’lt know what I do.’
“As we travel thro’ life’s shadow’d valley,
Fresh springs of His love ever rise;
And we learn that our sorrows and losses,
Are blessings just sent in disguise.“
So we’ll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or bright;
For we’ve proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the ’God of all comfort’ was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.
“As the earth needs the clouds and sunshine,
Our souls need both sorrow and joy;
So He places us oft in the furnace,
The dross from the gold to destroy.
“When he leads thro’ some valley of trouble
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us,
Are part of His lessons in grace.
“Oft we shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Husbandman knows
That the deeper the cutting and paring,
The richer the cluster that grows.
“Well He knows that affliction is needed;
He has a wise purpose in view,
And in the dark valley He whispers,
’Hereafter Thou ’lt know what I do.’
“As we travel thro’ life’s shadow’d valley,
Fresh springs of His love ever rise;
And we learn that our sorrows and losses,
Are blessings just sent in disguise.“
So we’ll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or bright;
For we’ve proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night
© Streams in the Desert
Claim Victory
Thou art my king, O God: Command deliverance [victories, margin] for Jacob – Ps 44:4
There is no foe to your growth in grace, no enemy in your Christian work, which was not included in your Savior’s conquests.
You need not be afraid of them. When you touch them, they will flee before you. God has promised to deliver them up before you. Only be strong and very courageous! Fear not, nor be dismayed! The Lord is with you, O mighty men of valor—mighty because one with the Mightiest. Claim victory!
Whenever your enemies close in upon you, claim victory! Whenever heart and flesh fail, look up and claim VICTORY!
Be sure that you have a share in that triumph which Jesus won, not for Himself alone, but for us all; remember that you were in Him when He won it, and claim victory!
Reckon that it is yours, and gather spoil. Neither the Anakim nor fenced cities need daunt or abash you. You are one of the conquering legion. Claim your share in the Savior’s victory.—Joshua, by Meyer
We are children of the King. In which way do we most honor our Divine Sovereign, by failing to claim our rights and even doubting whether they belong to us, or by asserting our privilege as children of the Royal Family and demanding the rights which belong to our heirship?
© Streams in the Desert
Claim Victory
Thou art my king, O God: Command deliverance [victories, margin] for Jacob – Ps 44:4
There is no foe to your growth in grace, no enemy in your Christian work, which was not included in your Savior’s conquests.
You need not be afraid of them. When you touch them, they will flee before you. God has promised to deliver them up before you. Only be strong and very courageous! Fear not, nor be dismayed! The Lord is with you, O mighty men of valor—mighty because one with the Mightiest. Claim victory!
Whenever your enemies close in upon you, claim victory! Whenever heart and flesh fail, look up and claim VICTORY!
Be sure that you have a share in that triumph which Jesus won, not for Himself alone, but for us all; remember that you were in Him when He won it, and claim victory!
Reckon that it is yours, and gather spoil. Neither the Anakim nor fenced cities need daunt or abash you. You are one of the conquering legion. Claim your share in the Savior’s victory.—Joshua, by Meyer
We are children of the King. In which way do we most honor our Divine Sovereign, by failing to claim our rights and even doubting whether they belong to us, or by asserting our privilege as children of the Royal Family and demanding the rights which belong to our heirship?
© Streams in the Desert
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