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Daily devotions for 05-26-2005:
Devotion: Morning and Evening
Morning Title: Forsake Me Not
Evening Title: The Combined Witness
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Morning: Forsake Me Not
"Forsake me not, O Lord." --Psalm 38:21
Frequently we pray that God would not forsake us in the hour of trial and
temptation, but we too much forget that we have need to use this prayer at all
times. There is no moment of our life, however holy, in which we can do without
His constant upholding. Whether in light or in
darkness, in communion or in temptation, we alike need the prayer, "Forsake me
not, O Lord." "Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe." A little child, while
learning to walk, always needs the nurse's aid. The ship left by the pilot
drifts at once from her course. We cannot do without continued aid from above;
let it then be your prayer to-day, "Forsake me not. Father, forsake not Thy
child, lest he fall by the hand of the enemy.
Shepherd, forsake not Thy lamb, lest he wander from the safety of the fold.
Great Husbandman, forsake not Thy plant, lest it wither and die.
'Forsake me not, O Lord,' now; and forsake me not at any moment of my life.
Forsake me not in my joys, lest they absorb my heart. Forsake me not in my
sorrows, lest I murmur against Thee.
Forsake me not in the day of my repentance, lest I lose the hope of pardon, and
fall into despair; and forsake me not in the day of my strongest faith, lest
faith degenerate into presumption.
Forsake me not, for without Thee I am weak, but with Thee I am strong. Forsake
me not, for my path is dangerous, and full of snares, and I cannot do without
Thy guidance. The hen forsakes not her brood, do Thou then evermore cover me
with Thy feathers, and permit me under Thy wings to find my refuge. 'Be not far
from me, O Lord, for trouble is near, for there is none to help.'
'Leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation!'"
"O ever in our cleansed breast,
Bid Thine Eternal Spirit rest;
And make our secret soul to be
A temple pure and worthy Thee."
Evening: The Combined Witness
"And they rose up the same hour, and returned Jerusalem...and they told what
things were done in the way, and how He was known of them." --Luke 24:33,35
When the two disciples had reached Emmaus, and were refreshing themselves at
the evening meal, the mysterious stranger who had so enchanted them upon the
road, took bread and brake it, made Himself known to them, and then vanished
out of their sight. They had constrained Him to abide with them, because the
day was far spent; but now, although it was much later, their love was a lamp
to their feet, yea, wings also; they forgot the darkness, their weariness was
all gone, and forthwith they journeyed back the threescore furlongs to tell the
gladsome news of a risen Lord, who had appeared to them by the way. They
reached the Christians in Jerusalem, and were received by a burst of joyful
news before they could tell their own tale. These early Christians were all on
fire to speak of Christ's resurrection, and to proclaim what they knew of the
Lord; they made common property of their experiences. This evening let their
example impress us deeply. We too must bear our witness concerning Jesus.
John's account of the sepulchre needed to be supplemented by Peter; and Mary
could speak of something further still; combined, we have a full testimony from
which nothing can be spared.
We have each of us peculiar gifts and special manifestations; but the one
object God has in view is the perfecting of the whole body of Christ. We must,
therefore, bring our spiritual possessions and lay them at the apostle's feet,
and make distribution unto all of what God has given to us. Keep back no part
of the precious truth, but speak what you know, and testify what you have seen.
Let not the toil or darkness, or possible unbelief of your friends, weigh one
moment in the scale. Up, and be marching to the place of duty, and there tell
what great things God has shown to your soul.
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Daily devotions for 05-25-2005:
Devotion: Morning and Evening
Morning Title: Inconsistent Prayer
Evening Title: Conversation of the Gospel
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Morning: Inconsistent Prayer
"Blessed be God, which hath nor turned away my prayer." --Psalm 66:20
In looking back upon the character of our prayers, if we do it honestly, we
shall be filled
with wonder that God has ever answered them.
There may be some who think their prayers worthy of acceptance--as the Pharisee
did; but the true Christian, in a more enlightened retrospect, weeps over his
prayers, and if he could retrace his steps he would desire to pray more
earnestly.
Remember, Christian, how cold thy prayers have been. When in thy closet thou
shouldst have
wrestled as Jacob did; but instead thereof, thy petitions have been faint and
few--far removed from that humble, believing, persevering faith, which cries,
"I will not let Thee go except Thou bless me." Yet, wonderful to say, God has
heard these cold prayers of thine, and not only heard, but answered them.
Reflect also, how infrequent have been thy prayers, unless thou hast been in
trouble, and then thou hast gone often to the mercy-seat: but when deliverance
has come, where has been thy constant supplication? Yet, notwithstanding thou
hast ceased to pray as once thou didst, God has not ceased to bless.
When thou hast neglected the mercy-seat, God has not deserted it, but the
bright light of the
Shekinah has always been visible between the wings of the cherubim. Oh! it is
marvellous that
the Lord should regard those intermittent spasms of importunity which come and
go with our
necessities. What a God is He thus to hear the prayers of those who come to Him
when they have pressing wants, but neglect Him when they have received a mercy;
who approach Him when they are forced to come, but who almost forget to address
Him when mercies are plentiful and sorrows are few. Let His gracious kindness
in hearing such prayers touch our hearts, so that we may henceforth be found
"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit."
Evening: Conversation of the Gospel
"Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ."
--Philippians 1:27
The word "conversation" does not merely mean our talk and converse with one
another, but the whole course of our life and behaviour in the world.
The Greek word signifies the actions and the privileges of citizenship: and
thus we are
commanded to let our actions, as citizens of the New Jerusalem, be such as
becometh the gospel of Christ. What sort of conversation is this? In the first
place, the gospel is very simple. So Christians should be simple and plain in
their habits. There should be about our manner, our speech, our dress, our
whole behaviour, that simplicity which is the very soul of beauty. The gospel
is pre-eminently true, it is gold without dross; and the Christian's life will
be
lustreless and valueless without the jewel of truth. The gospel is a very
fearless gospel, it
boldly proclaims the truth, whether men like it or not: we must be equally
faithful and unflinching. But the gospel is also very gentle.
Mark this spirit in its Founder: "a bruised reed He will not break." Some
professors are sharper than a thorn-hedge; such men are not like Jesus.
Let us seek to win others by the gentleness of our words and acts. The gospel
is very loving. It is the message of the God of love to a lost and fallen race.
Christ's last command to His disciples was, "Love one another." O for more
real, hearty union and love to all the saints;
for more tender compassion towards the souls of the worst and vilest of men! We
must not forget that the gospel of Christ is holy. It never excuses sin: it
pardons it, but only through an
atonement. If our life is to resemble the gospel, we must shun, not merely the
grosser vices, but everything that would hinder our perfect conformity to
Christ. For His sake, for our own sakes, and for the sakes of others, we must
strive day by day to let our conversation be more
in accordance with His gospel.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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