O NE OP THE IMPORTANT ASPECTS of witnessing for the Lord Jesus Christ is that it will show up our weakness and our need t o r es t wholly upon the Saviour. Isn’t it true, to our shame, that many times the reason we don’t witness for the Lord is that we bask in our own imaginary security. Perhaps one of the greatest areas in which our weakness shows itself is envy. Have you ever been envious of people ? I have heard some folks say, “I have never been as poor as when I came to know the Lord as my Saviour. Before I knew the Lord, I had a lot of friends and some money.” They only reveal how miser able and frustrated they really are. Read the 73rd Psalm and see how this has been the complaint of God’s children down through the centuries. There are many things that cause people to be envious or covetous. No one likes to be poor. Having money is very convenient. There are many things I would like to have but I haven’t been able to afford them. If I became envious of the people who possessed them, my testimony would be entirely ruined. This is because our lives reflect what we think. One can never hide what he is. We read in Psalm 37:1 and 2, “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of in iquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.” The wicked man may have material wealth, but that is the end of it.
Some time ago, I had an interesting experience when I visited Sing Sing prison on the banks of the Hudson River. Seeing “death row,” our guide told us that when a prisoner is to be WHEN I COMMIT A LITTLE SIN When I commit a little sin, And recognize how bad I've been, I oft' excuse myself and hide By saying, "W ell, at least I tried. God knows I meant to do it right, My flesh was weakened by the fight." My conscience will excuse me then, But how about the eyes of men? But sometimes when, my brother slips, What accusations cross my lips! "He knew the right from wrong," I say, " I always thought he'd do that way." Do I excuse his weakness too, And say, "That's just the way I do?" No, I accuse relentlessly The very faults he'd find in me. What makes the difference in my thought? Is it lack of love . . . or not? I think perhaps we don't accuse The ones we love, but rather, choose To overlook their little sin, And gently help them try again. Lord, give me love, so I'll excuse My neighbor's faults . . . and not accuse. executed, one of the things he is per mitted to do is to request and receive the best meals money can buy, any thing of his choice. The condemned 2 7
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