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on. As a result, we suffer serious damage. When we set to work to examine ourselves, we soon discover that love and faith and hope all stand sorely in need of re pair. We recognize that we are worrying instead of trusting, grumbling instead of rejoicing, repining instead of resting. Under these circumstances, we shall do well to make for our harbor, for in God alone can we find our strength renewed, our faith quickened, our hopes restored, and our peace reestablished. In the light of this typical but poetical description of God as “the place of repair” or “the harbor of his people,” it is not surprising that the translators of the Authorized Version should have adopted the phrasing, “the Lord will be the hope of his people,” for that summarizes the whole position admirably. Whether we think of' Him as a haven to which we can go for shelter from storm and tempest, or as a harbor where we can unload our burdens and be filled with all spiritual blessings, or as the place where our spiritual life may be repaired—He is still our one and only real hope. Happy is the man who turns to Him in every time of weakness and of need, for He will never fail those who put their trust in Him.
Lord the loads that have sometimes been almost too much for us to bear—even as ships that, entering a harbor with heavy cargoes, deposit their freight and sail away again. A P lace of S upply While some vessels come into the harbor to unload, others make for port in order to take fresh cargoes on board. In this respect also, the Lord is “a harbor for -his people.” Our God has a rich cargo waiting for each of us. What is it that we are specially needing in our Christian life? Do we lack the gift of po.wer? It is to be found in Him, and it is waiting for us if we are willing to receive it. “Yé shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you” (Acts 1 :8). This is the promise of our Lord. It is as applicable to each of us as it was to the apostles of olden time. “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength” (Isa. 40:29). Even when we are most conscious of helplessness, we may really be most strong, for He says to us as He did td St. Paul of old: “My strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12: 9 ) ; so that we may respond even as the apostle did: “When I am weak, then am I strong” (v. 10). If, therefore, we have learned the secret of dwelling in Him who is Himself omnipotent, and of being filled with the Spirit who is the source of power, we shall have but little reason to lament the absence of strength, even though we realize that it is not our own that we possess, but His. It may be that it is the gift of joy of which we feel > the need. Perhaps we are naturally of a disposition that does not readily lend itself to a manifestation of joy. Or we may be so compassed by worries and anxieties, by weakness or weariness, that we have but little heart to rejoice. Yet we know that it is the rejoicing Christian that brings the most glory to the name of the Lord. Can we have joy notwithstanding life’s sorrows and perplexi ties? Is it possible to have our hearts filled with praise when our circumstances are peculiarly difficult and try ing? Surely it is. If “days are dark and friends are few,” there is always the certainty of the unchangeable love of God. One of the Lord’s servants met another whose, face betrayed anxiety and unrest. He set the unhappy one thinking by suddenly asking the question, “Have you enjoyed God today?” Ah! there is the se cret of Christian joy—-the finding of it in God Himself, in all'that He is to His children, and in His faithfulness, His tenderness, and His love. If our lives are sad, let us remember that God is “a harbor for his people” where we may be filled with true, abiding joy. Let us seek the har bor where our emptiness may be filled with all the ful ness of God.” A P lace of R epa ir We glance next at the alternative marginal reading: “The Lord will be a place of repair for his people.” The words, “place of repair,” here may mean either “a resort” or “a place where restoration takes place.” Adopt ing the latter meaning, we find in the text the utmost en couragement. On our voyage homeward, we encounter many strange and stormy experiences. Either through the fault of others, or because of our own mistakes and weaknesses, our hearts are often bruised and our hopes blighted. Through lack of knowledge of the seas of life, we fail to understand the dangers by which we are sur rounded, or to prepáre for the sudden storms that over take us. Instead of seeking safe anchorage, we go right
The Soul’s Harbor The Lord will be d harbor,
When clouds o’erspread the sky, Where we may’cast our anchor, When waves are tossing high; There we can dwell securely Within that haven blest; The storms may roar around us, But we have perfect rest. • A harbor, yes! a harbor The Lord will be indeed, , Amid life’s wild commotion; ’Tis what our spirits need; To that well-sheltered haven A t all times we can fly For safety and for comfort, A refuge ever nigh. Until we reach the harbor On yon eternal shore, Where all earth’s storms are over, And we go out no more, There shall we cast our anchor In love’s unfathomed peace, Where sin can never enter, And earthly sorrows Cease.
—Life of Faith.
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