October 1931
476
B u s i n e s s
T h e
K i n g ’ s
Do not think that temptations prove that you are deteriorating in the divine life. On the contrary, the fierce tempta tion of the wilderness succeeds imme diately the opened heaven and the voice of God. Have you been declared to be the beloved son of God? Then the Spirit will drive you into the wilderness to be tempt ed of the devil, as though by suffering the blessed revelation shall be wrought more deeply into the fabric of the soul. The more ripe fruit there is in the orchard of your heart, the more violent will be the attempt to steal it. The closer you are identified with your Captain in the thick est of the fight, the more will be your ex posure to the heaviest fire of the foe. —F. B. M eyer . OCTOBER 20 “Surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God” (Eccl. 8:12). Observe here the character of those that are spoken o f: “They fear God.” Ob serve their condition, present and pros pective: “It shall be well with them.” No tice the certainty of this: “Surely I know.” God is love. This word embraces all His perfections. But let none suppose that He is therefore bound down to a single line of manifestation. The stern est acts of providence unfold, in their own particular way, the love of God. “It shall be well with them.” A quiet, mod est word, but full of significance! The fear of God took Abraham to Mount Moriah; but it was well with, him there. It was not the fear of God that took Lot to Sodom; it went not well with him there. The fear of God took Daniel into the lions’ den, and the three Hebrews in to the seven-times heated furnace; they feared Him who had power to cast both soul and body into hell; and it was well with them. The spirit of glory and of God resteth as a dove upon them that fear God—invisible to the world, telling of the New Jerusalem that cometh down from God out of heaven! Who shall esti mate the measure of this word “well” ? Ask Lazarus to tell thee from the bosom of Abraham, what it means; ask Paul; ask the primeval angels; ask God! If God be God, then whatever else be certain or uncertain, this one thing is imperatively true: it must be well with him that fear- eth God.— G eorge B owen . OCTOBER 21 “Arise ye, and depart; for this is not your rest” (Micah 2:10). Are there times when the world threat ens to become too much to us, the near hillocks of time to hide from us the more distant mountains of eternity, earth’s tinsel to outshine heaven’s gold ? It is in God, in the light of His presence, as we press into that presence, that all things assume their due proportions and are seen in their true significance—the tinsel for tinsel, the gold for gold; that the hillocks subside, and the mountain tops reappear; that the shadows flee away, and the eternal sub stances remain. —R ichard C henevix T rench . Father 1 forgive the heart that clings, Thus trembling, to the things of time; And bid the soul on angel wings Ascend into a purer clime. There shall no doubts disturb its trust, No sorrows dim celestial love;
CDaily CDevoiionalc^^ea d ings A M E S S A G E F O R E V E R Y DAY O F T H E M O N T H
ing, or meditating, or employed in some useful labor for the common good. In deed, we ought at all times so to prepare our spirits, and so regulate our actions, as if we were shortly to be admitted into“the joy of our Lord.” If that blessed event is still deferred, let us humbly acknowledge that we are not yet sufficiently prepared for that great “glory ,that shall be reveal ed in us.”— T homas A’K empis . OCTOBER 18 “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). The soul has caught a new idea of God’s love when it has not only been fed but rescued by Him. The sheep has a new conception of his shepherd’s care when he has not merely been made “to lie down in green pastures,” but also has heard the voice of Him who had left the ninety and nine in the wilderness and gone after that which had wandered astray. The weak ness of our own nature and the strength of that on which we rely, danger, and its correlative, duty, watchfulness, and its great privilege, trust, all come in together, and are tjie new life of the soul, the ac tive power in its restored peace. —P hillips B rooks . Upon the hills the wind is sharp and cold, The sweet young grasses wither on the wold, And we, O Lord, have wandered from Thy fold; But evening brings us home. The darkness gathers. Through the gloom no star Rises to guide us. We have wandered far. Without Thy lamp we know not where we are; At evening, bring us home. —S elected . OCTOBER 19 “God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able” (1 Cor. 10:13). The Little Things B y I sabel N eill Lord, give us strength to bear the little things, The fancied slurs, the slights that mar the day, The dancing shadows down the sunlit way; Lord, give us strength to bear the little things! Lord, give us strength to bear the little things; . Teach us to rise above each petty wrong, To give our foes a smile, and life a song, To bear with grace and cheer the little things! —W atchman -E xaminer .
OCTOBER IS "God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty” (1 Cor. 1 :27). Master, to do great work for Thee, my hand Is far too weak! Thou givest what may suit, Some little chips to cut with care minute, Or tint, or grave, or polish. Others stand Before their quarried marble, fair and grand, And make a life-work of the grand de sign Which Thou hast traced; or, many-skil led, combine To build vast temples, gloriously planned. Yet take the tiny stones which I have wrought Just one by one, as they were given by Thee, Not knowing what came next in Thy wise thought; Let each stone by Thy master-hand of grace Form the mosaic as Thou wilt for me, And in Thy temple-pavement give it place. —F rances R idley H avergal . OCTOBER 16 ‘‘According to your faith be it unto you" (Matt. 9:29). Reckon on God. If you desire spiritual gifts, not for your own gratification, but for the glory of Christ; if, so far as you know, your heart is rid of evil and your life of sinful habit; if you perceive that the promise is for you, because you are not only a son but an heir of God and a joint heir with Christ; if you feel an eager desire that God has instilled to lead you to this very point—then open your mouth wide and believe that God fills it; unshutter every window and believe that the light enters; throw wide every aper ture and believe that you have received what you needed and sought. According to your faith it shall be unto you. What you have been able to take by faith, that you count upon. You may not have the emotion, you expected, nor the sense of blessing you looked for, but you will have God, God’s gift, God’s answer to your faith. And you may go your way and reckon that you have what you sought. Then in some moment of need, or when you least, expect it, or when en gaged in wonted toils, some glad con sciousness of joy or peace, or nearness to Christ, or power over others will be the evidence that you did receive.— S elected . OCTOBER 17 “Blessed is that servant, zvhom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Ver ily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods” (Matt. 24: 46, 47). Never suffer the invaluable moments of thy life to steal by unimproved, and leave thee in idleness and vacancy; but be al ways either reading, or writing, or pray
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