beating the air and striking with out an adversary. But [like a boxer] I buffet my body, handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships — and subdue it, for fear that after pro claiming to others the Gospel and . things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit — not stand the test and be unapproved as a counterfeit.” "When I See Things as God Sees Them" When I stand at the judgment seat of Christ And He shows me His plan for me, The plan of my life as it might have been And He had His way, and I see How I blocked Him here, and I checked Him there, And I would not yield my will— Will there be grief in my Saviour's eyes, Grief, though He loves me still? He would have me rich, and I stand there poor, Stripped of all but His grace, While memory runs like a hunted thing Down the paths I cannot retrace. Then my desolate heart will well-nigh break With the tears that I cannot shed; I shall cover my face with my empty hands, I shall bow my uncrowned head . . . Lord of the years that are left to me, I give them to Thy hand; Take me and break me, mould me to The pattern Thou hast planned! — Martha Snell Nicholson "Your Pastor Needs Your Prayers" Frequently, the s p e c i a l meat course for some Christians on Sun day is roast preacher. Remember that your minister is only human, and yet if we would pray more for him and talk less about him, we would find a greater blessing from the Lord. 33
"Have You Heard This?" Have you ever warned anyone, or had them caution you . . . “If you don’t watch out what you say, you may have to eat your words.” The phrase is attributed to Theo dore Reinking, who, in the year 1646, Was faced with execution. He had offended King Christian IV of Denmark. The Emperor offered him the alternative of eating his words or being killed. The author, think ing quickly, immediately tore his book into shreds; soaked the pages in soup and according to history, started munching away until he had devoured the entire volume. Perhaps it is possible, humanly speaking, to eat one’s words, but as far as eternity is concerned once the sounds have left the mouth, they are part of eternal record. Instead of foolish, jealous or evil words, may our mouths confess Christ. As the Lord has said, “Whosoever there fore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.” "The First Thing in Your Life" We are all familiar with the com mon comments on the carpenter’s house that fell down because of needed repairs, or of the shoe maker’s children who had holes in their soles. But recently we heard of another story, and a true one, of an attorney w h o had prepared countless hundreds of wills f o r clients — but upon his death, a thorough search revealed he had not made out a will for himself. Sometimes in our hurried way of life we fail to realize that just being busy at church does not replace our foremost responsibility — to make sure that our own hearts are right before God. Pauls great concern was this: He wrote . . . “Therefore I do not run uncertainly — without definite aim. I do not box as one
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