Patience in the Routine

"Be thou there till I bring thee word" (Matt. 2:13).

"I'll stay where You've put me;
I will, dear Lord, Though I wanted so badly to go;
I was eager to march with the 'rank and file,'
Yes, I wanted to lead them, You know.
I planned to keep step to the music loud,
To cheer when the banner unfurled,
To stand in the midst of the fight straight and proud,
But I'll stay where You've put me.

"I'll stay where You've put me; I'll work, dear Lord,
Though the field be narrow and small,
And the ground be fallow, and the stones lie thick,
And there seems to be no life at all.
The field is Thine own, only give me the seed,
I'll sow it with never a fear;
I'll till the dry soil while I wait for the rain,
And rejoice when the green blades appear;
I'll work where You've put me.

"I'll stay where You've put me; I will, dear Lord;
I'll bear the day's burden and heat,
Always trusting Thee fully; when even has come
I'll lay heavy sheaves at Thy feet.
And then, when my earth work is ended and done,
In the light of eternity's glow,
Life's record all closed, I surely shall find
It was better to stay than to go;
I'll stay where You've put me."

"Oh restless heart, that beat against your prison bars of circumstances, yearning for a wider sphere of usefulness, leave God to order all your days. Patience and trust, in the dullness of the routine of life, will be the best preparation for a courageous bearing of the tug and strain of the larger opportunity which God may some time send you."

Compiled by Mrs. Charles Cowman, taken from "Streams in the Desert"

Work and Labor of Love

"If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another." I John 1:7

"God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love, which ye have showed toward His name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister." Hebrews 6:10

Wherever in the world I am,
In whatsoe'er estate,
I have a fellowship with hearts,
To keep and cultivate,
And a work of lowly love to do
For the Lord on whom I wait.

A. L. WARING

We do not always perceive that even the writing of a note of congratulation, the fabrication of something intended as an offering of affection, our necessary intercourse with characters which have no congeniality with our own, or hours apparently trifled away in the domestic circle, may be made by us the performance of a most sacred and blessed work; even the carrying out, after our feeble measure, of the design of God for-the increase of happiness.

SARAH W. STEPHEN

Definite work is not always that which is cut and squared for us, but that which comes as a claim upon the conscience, whether it's nursing in a hospital, or hemming a handkerchief.

ELIZABETH M. SEWELL

Compiled by Mary W. Tileston, taken from "Daily Strength for Daily Needs"

Yesterday's Failures

"See if there is any bad thing in me. Lead me on the road to everlasting life." Psalm 139:24

Father in heaven, help us as we grapple and cope with yesterday's failures. They dog at our heels like irritations. They follow us around. They cling to our ankles like fifteen-pound ball weights. Help us to release those regrets in the right way, and keep us close.

By Max Lucado, taken from "Walking with the Savior"

Remember

""Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O Lord, you preserve both man and beast. How priceless is your unfailing love! both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings." Psalm 36:5-7

A warm letter from a friend. A compliment from my boss. An unexpected refund. A comforting Scripture. These arrive as God's good gifts to me. But they usually get overlooked while I'm focusing on what feels like - at least to me - insurmountable trouble. Always, it's trouble that God hasn't solved yet. Often, I complain about His delayed response. But really, my myopic vision isn't fair to him. If I lift my eyes off the problem, I can spot God's gifts all around me. they may not be the answer I'm searching for at the moment, but they're good and continuous gifts that say, "I still love you, my child." They remind me that God doesn't stop caring for me, even though I live with unfulfilled expectations. Now during the hard times, I remind myself to hunt for God's small surprises while I'm waiting for his big solution. It takes my mind off the problem. It helps me to trust him . . . It encourages me to know that god still cares.

By Judith Couchman, taken from "Women's Daily Devotional Bible 2"

The Love of God

"Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21

We would not meagre gifts down-call
When Thou dost yearn to yield us all;
But for this life, this little hour,
Ask all Thy love and care and power.

J. INGELOW

God so loveth us that He would make all things channels to us and messengers of His love. Do for His sake deeds of love, and He will give thee His love. Still thyself, thy own cares, thy own thoughts for Him, and He will speak to thy heart. Ask for Himself, and He will give thee Himself. Truly, a secret hidden thing is the love of God, known only to them who seek it, and to them also secret, for what man can have of it here is how slight a foretaste of that endless ocean of His love!

E. B. PUSEY

Compiled by Mary W. Tileston, taken from "Daily Strength for Daily Needs"

Through Christ Jesus

"Through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit that brings life made me free from the law that brings sin and death." Romans 8:2

Does the Word of God say, "There is limited condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus"? No. Does it say, "There is some condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Think of it - regardless of our sin, we are not guilty!

By Max Lucado, taken from "Walking with the Savior"

Listening to the Lord

"Then answered he me, and said, This is the condition of the battle which man that is born upon the earth shall fight; that, if he be overcome, he shall suffer as thou hast said: but if he get the victory, he shall receive the thing that I say." Ephesians 6:12

One holy Church, one army strong,
One steadfast high intent,
One working band, one harvest-song,
One King omnipotent.

S. JOHNSON

We listened to a man whom we felt to be, with all his heart and soul and strength, striving against whatever was mean and unmanly and unrighteous in our little world. It was not the cold clear voice of one giving advice and warning from serene heights to those who were struggling and sinning below, but the warm living voice of one who was fighting for us and by our sides, and calling on us to help him and ourselves and one another. And so, wearily and little by little, but surely and steadily on the whole, was brought home to the young boy, for the first time, the meaning of his life; that it was no fool's or sluggard's paradise into which he had wandered by chance, but a battle-field ordained from of old, where there are no spectators, but the youngest must take his side, and the stakes are life and death.

THOMAS HUGHES

Compiled by Mary W. Tileston, taken from "Daily Strength for Daily Needs"

Hearing my cry

"Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity." Isaiah 58:9

Thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke . . . ." What does this mean? Isn't God willing to hear our cry, even when we are disobedient? Yes. I couldn't follow a God who only favored me according to my attention to Him. This would make God very much like the conception many people seem to hold of Him, but I believe it to be entirely wrong. In Jesus Christ, and all through the New Testament, I see God as a God who will never leave us. Who not only hears our cries, but is right there with us in our troubles. A God who actually falls to the ground with a little brown sparrow would not turn His back on me because I failed Him.

No, I merely believe this means we do not hear His response to our cry except on the conditions He gives us in this "blue stone" verse. The "yoke" has our attention. And here the yoke seems to constitute criticism and pride or shallowness of heart in us. " . . . the putting forth of the finger" may be arrogance toward the very sacredness of life itself. It may be self-righteousness. Wrong attitudes of heart. And the "speaking vanity" may be our own voices saying, "Well, I'm just like this and that's all there is to it!" Or is may be the self-righteous, calloused heart turned away from the Cross, boasting: "At least I'd never have done a thing like that!"

We will hear Him say "Here I am" when we cry, if we are completely open to His voice. One way to remain open is to let other people "off the hook of your critical disposition."

Be still, and know that I am God . . . .

By Eugenia Price, taken from "Share My Pleasant Stones"

Dancing Leaves

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and will give thanks to him in song."

Another gray, dreary day. Wind, rain, sleet, snow. Ah, the variety of ways the weather can dampen my spirits. The overcast skies rob the color from my world and I feel alone. Gray days feel like Mondays - days full of too much to do and too little time. Days with responsibilities crowding in and joy crowded out. Grey days.

Yet in the road are dancing leaves. Leaves swirling in circular patterns across the street. Dancing leaves, you dance in circles, going nowhere in particular. Don't you know today is bitter and cold? Don't you realize the wind is making your world an unfriendly place? Under gray skies and nasty weather, today is a day of overcoats pulled tight and hats pulled low.

Still you dance. Crusty brown leaves, winkled and lifeless, you dance. Yet this dance is not your own. Left to your own volition, you'd be sitting in the nearest compost pile. No, this dance of yours comes from a source completely other than your ring of swirling leaves. This dance of yours is a defiant one, a dance with laughs at the melancholy gray.

Dancing leaves, your defiance is contagious.

Spirit of the living God,
Surround my dreary world today
And set my feet to dancing.
The silent song of days gone gray,
A heart that's heavy laden,
Won't have the last, the final say.
I know a song of dancing leaves,
They swril and twirl despite the gray.
Spirit of the living God,
Set my feet to dancing.

By Debra Klingsporn, taken from "Women's Daily Devotional 2"

Repentance

"On the day I called you, you answered me. You made me strong and brave." Psalm 138:3

No one is happier than the one who has sincerely repented of wrong. Repentance is the decision to turn from selfish desires and seek God. It is a genuine, sincere regret that creates sorrow and moves us to admit wrong and desire to do better.

By Max Lucado, taken from "Walking with the Savior"

Our Dependency on Christ

"We are troubled on every side" (2 Cor. 7:5).

Why should God have to lead us thus, and allow the pressure to be so hard and constant? Well, in the first place, it shows His all-sufficient strength and grace much better than if we were exempt from pressure and trial. "The treasure is in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."

It makes us more conscious of our dependence upon Him. God is constantly trying to teach us our dependence, and to hold us absolutely in His hand and hanging upon His care.

This was the place where Jesus Himself stood and where He wants us to stand, not with self-constituted strength, but with a hand ever leaning upon His, and a trust that dare not take one step alone. It teaches us trust.

There is no way of learning faith except by trial. It is God's school of faith, and it is far better for us to learn to trust God than to enjoy life.

The lesson of faith once learned, is an everlasting acquisition and an eternal fortune made; and without trust even riches will leave us poor. --Days of Heaven upon Earth

"Why must I weep when others sing?
'To test the deeps of suffering.'
Why must I work while others rest?
'To spend my strength at God's request.'
Why must I lose while others gain?
'To understand defeat's sharp pain.'
Why must this lot of life be mine
When that which fairer seems is thine?
'Because God knows what plans for me
Shall blossom in eternity.'"

Compiled by Mrs. Charles Cowman, taken from "Streams in the Desert"

Worthy Walk

"I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called." Ephesians 4:1

I remember when both my sons took their first steps. We so desperately wanted to see our kids take them. We were so excited. Then once they started walking, we wished we never would have taught them how to do it. We had to constantly keep an eye on them.

My youngest son Jonathan fell so many times when he was taking his first steps that he had a permanent bruise on his forehead. He would fall. The bruise would start to heal. He would fall again. We didn’t recognize him without that bruise in the middle of his forehead.

Walking spiritually can be like that, especially when you take your first steps as a new believer. You stumble and fall. You get up again. You stumble and fall. It is all part of growing spiritually.

In Ephesians 4, we are encouraged to walk forward spiritually. Walking speaks of effort, of having direction with a destination in mind. And the first thing we are told is “to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called” (verse 1).

The word “worthy” used in verse 1 could be translated, “balance the scales.” This means that what is on one side of the scale should be equal in weight to what is on the other side. This word could be applied to anything that was expected to correspond to something else. Paul was saying there needs to be a balance between our belief and our practice. In other words, our doctrine and belief should affect us in the way we live.

We need the balance of having both these areas working together in our lives. That is what it means to walk worthy of the Lord.

By Greg Laurie

Hold on Until the End

"We are made partaker of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end" (Heb. 3:14).

It is the last step that wins; and there is no place in the pilgrim's progress where so many dangers lurk as the region that lies hard by the portals of the Celestial City. It was there that Doubting Castle stood. It was there that the enchanted ground lured the tired traveler to fatal slumber. It is when Heaven's heights are full in view that hell's gate is most persistent and full of deadly peril. "Let us not be weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." "So run, that ye may obtain."

In the bitter waves of woe
Beaten and tossed about
By the sullen winds that blow
From the desolate shores of doubt,
Where the anchors that faith has cast
Are dragging in the gale,
I am quietly holding fast
To the things that cannot fail.

And fierce though the fiends may fight,
And long though the angels hide,
I know that truth and right
Have the universe on their side;
And that somewhere beyond the stars
Is a love that is better than fate.
When the night unlocks her bars
I shall see Him--and I will wait.
--Washington Gladden

The problem of getting great things from God is being able to hold on for the last half hour. --Selected

Compiled by Mrs. Charles Cowman, taken from "Streams in the Desert"

Tempered and Tried

"Followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises" (Heb. 6:12).

They (heroes of faith) are calling to us from the heights that they have won, and telling us that what man once did man can do again. Not only do they remind us of the necessity of faith, but also of that patience by which faith has its perfect work. Let us fear to take ourselves out of the hands of our heavenly Guide or to miss a single lesson of His loving discipline by discouragement or doubt.

"There is only one thing," said a village blacksmith, "that I fear, and that is to be thrown on the scrap heap.

"When I am tempering a piece of steel, I first beat it, hammer it, and then suddenly plunge it into this bucket of cold water. I very soon find whether it will take temper or go to pieces in the process. When I discover after one or two tests that it is not going to allow itself to be tempered, I throw it on the scrap heap and sell it for a cent a pound when the junk man comes around.

"So I find the Lord tests me, too, by fire and water and heavy blows of His heavy hammer, and if I am not willing to stand the test, or am not going to prove a fit subject for His tempering process, I am afraid He may throw me on the scrap heap."

When the fire is hottest, hold still, for there will be a blessed "afterward"; and with Job we may be able to say, "When he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold." --Selected

Sainthood springs out of suffering. It takes eleven tons of pressure on a piano to tune it. God will tune you to harmonize with Heaven's key-note if you can stand the strain.

"Things that hurt and things that mar
Shape the man for perfect praise;
Shock and strain and ruin are
Friendlier than the smiling days."

Compiled by Mrs. Charles Cowman, taken from "Streams in the Dessert"

Condition of the Battle

"Then answered he me, and said, This is the condition of the battle which man that is born upon the earth shall fight; that, if he be overcome, he shall suffer as thou hast said: but if he get the victory, he shall receive the thing that I say." Ephesians 6:12

One holy Church, one army strong,
One steadfast high intent,
One working band, one harvest-song,
One King omnipotent.

S. JOHNSON

We listened to a man whom we felt to be, with all his heart and soul and
strength, striving against whatever was mean and unmanly and unrighteous in
our little world. It was not the cold clear voice of one giving advice and
warning from serene heights to those who were struggling and sinning below,
but the warm living voice of one who was fighting for us and by our sides,
and calling on us to help him and ourselves and one another. And so,
wearily and little by little, but surely and steadily on the whole, was
brought home to the young boy, for the first time, the meaning of his life;
that it was no fool's or sluggard's paradise into which he had wandered
by chance, but a battle-field ordained from of old, where there are no
spectators, but the youngest must take his side, and the stakes are life
and death.

THOMAS HUGHES

Compiled by Mary W. Tileston, taken from "Daily Strength for Daily Needs"

Second Chances

"Lord, you are kind and forgiving and have great love for those who call to you." Psalm 86:5

It's never too late to get a second chance with God. It's ever too late! Think about Paul - he had been a murderer and a blasphemer. He had to look into the faces of people whose fathers he had persecuted, whose children he had killed. He could have spent his life looking at yesterday, but he didn't do that. He started life over again in the confidence of God's forgiveness.

By Max Lucado, taken from "Walking with the Savior"

More than Mere Words

"I wilt give you the sure mercies of David" (Acts 13:34).

Nothing of man is sure; but everything of God is so. Especially are covenant mercies sure mercies, even as David said "an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure."

We are sure that the Loci meant His mercy. He did not speak mere wards: there is substance and truth in every one of His promises. His mercies are mercies indeed. Even if a promise seems as if it must drop through by reason of death, yet it never shall, for the good LORD will make good His word.

We are sure that the LORD will bestow promised mercies on all His covenanted ones. They shall come in due course to all the chosen of the LORD. They are sure to all the seed, from the least of them unto the greatest of them. We are sure that the LORD will continue His mercies to His own people. He does not give and take. What He has granted us is the token of much more. That which we have not yet received is as sure as that which has already come; therefore, let us wait before the LORD and be still. There is no justifiable reason for the least doubt. God's love, and word, and faithfulness are sure. Many things are questionable, but of the LORD we sing --

For his mercies shall endure
Ever faithful, ever sure.

By C.H. Spurgeon, taken from "Faith's Checkbook"

Sitting Down Without Fear

"The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1

As a child, I learned from the Bible to trust in God and not be afraid. I have always felt comforted by reading the Psalms, especially Psalm 23 and 27.

I saw and heard so much as a child growing up with hate and injustice against black people. I learned to put my trust in God and to seek him as my strength. Long ago I set my mind to be a free person and not to give in to fear. I always felt that it was my right to defend myself if I could.

I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear. When I sat down on the bus the day I was arrested, I was thinking of going home. I had made up my mind quickly about what it was that I had to do, what I felt was right to do. I did not think of being physically tired or fearful. After so many years of oppression and being a victim of the mistreatment that my people had suffered, not giving up my seat - and whatever I had to face after not giving it up - was not important. I did not feel any fear at sitting in the seat I was sitting in. All I felt was tired. Tired of being pushed around. Tired of seeing the bad treatment and disrespect of children, women and men just because of the color of their skin. Tired of the Jim Crow laws. Tired of being oppressed. I was just plain tired.

I felt the Lord would give me the strength to endure whatever I had to face. god did away with all my fear. It was time for someone to stand up - or in my case, sit down. I refused to move.

By Rosa Parks, taken from "Women's Devotional Bible 2"

Continue in Prayer

"And there was Anna, a prophetess... which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day" Luke 2:36,37

No doubt by praying we learn to pray, and the more we pray the oftener we can pray, and the better we can pray. He who prays in fits and starts is never likely to attain to that effectual, fervent prayer which availeth much. Great power in prayer is within our reach, but we must go to work to obtain it. Let us never imagine that Abraham could have interceded so successfully for Sodom if he had not been all his lifetime in the practice of communion with God. Jacob's all-night at Peniel was not the first occasion upon which he had met his God. We may even look upon our Lord's most choice and wonderful prayer with his disciples before His Passion as the flower and fruit of His many nights of devotion, and of His often rising up a great while before day to pray.

If a man dreams that he can become mighty in prayer just as he pleases, he labors under a great mistake. The prayer of Elias which shut up heaven and afterwards opened its floodgates, was one of long series of mighty prevailings with God. Oh, that Christian men would remember this! Perseverance in prayer is necessary to prevalence in prayer.

Those great intercessors, who are not so often mentioned as they ought to be in connection with confessors and martyrs, were nevertheless the grandest benefactors of the Church; but it was only by abiding at the mercy-seat that they attained to be such channels of mercy to men. We must pray to pray, and continue in prayer that our prayers may continue. --G. H. Spurgeon

Compiled by Mrs. Charles Cowman, taken from "Streams in the Desert"

Feeling Weak

"In the day when I cried Thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul." Psalm 138:3

It is not that I feel less weak, but Thou
Wilt be my strength; it is not that I see
Less sin; but more of pardoning love with Thee,
And all-sufficient grace. Enough! And now
All fluttering thought is stilled; I only rest,
And feel that Thou art near, and know that I am blest.

F. R. HAVERGAL

Yea, though thou canst not believe, yet be not dismayed thereat; only do
thou sink into, or at least pant after the hidden measure of life, which is
not in that which distresseth, disturbeth, and filleth thee with thoughts,
fears, troubles, anguish, darknesses, terrors, and the like; no, no! but in
that which inclines to the patience, to the stillness, to the hope, to the
waiting, to the silence before the Father.

I. PENINGTON

We have only to be patient, to pray, and to do His will, according to our
present light and strength, and the growth of the soul will go on. The
plant grows in the mist and under clouds as truly as under sunshine. So
does the heavenly principle within.

Compiled by Mary W. Tileston, taken from "Daily Strength for Daily Needs"

Anger

"He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city." Proverbs 16:32

Purge from our hearts the stains so deep and foul,
Of wrath and pride and care;
Send Thine own holy calm upon the soul,
And bid it settle there!

ANON

Let this truth be present to thee in the excitement of anger,--that to be moved by passion is not manly, but that mildness and gentleness, as they are more agreeable to human nature, so also are they more manly. For in the same degree in which a man's mind is nearer to freedom from all passion, in the same degree also is it nearer to strength.

MARCUS ANTONINUS

It is no great matter to associate with the good and gentle, for this is naturally pleasing to all, and every one willingly enjoyeth peace, and loveth those best that agree with him. But to be able to live peaceably with hard and perverse persons, or with the disorderly, or with such as go contrary to us, is a great grace, and a most commendable and manly thing.

THOMAS À KEMPIS

Compiled by Mary W. Tileston, taken from "Daily Strength for Daily Needs"

Reaching Perfection

"Perfect through suffering" Hebrews 2:10

Steel is iron plus fire. Soil is rock, plus heat, or glacier crushing. Linen is flax plus the bath that cleans, the comb that separates, and the flail that pounds, and the shuttle that weaves. Human character must have a plus attached to it. The world does not forget great characters. But great characters are not made of luxuries, they are made by suffering.

I heard of a mother who brought into her home as a companion to her own son, a crippled boy who was also a hunchback. She had warned her boy to be very careful in his relations to him, and not to touch the sensitive part of his life but go right on playing with him as if he were an ordinary boy. She listened to her son as they were playing; and after a few minutes he said to his companion: "Do you know what you have got on your back?" The little hunchback was embarrassed, and he hesitated a moment. The boy said: "It is the box in which your wings are; and some day God is going to cut it open, and then you will fly away and be an angel."

Some day, God is going to reveal the fact to every Christian, that the very principles they now rebel against, have been the instruments which He used in perfecting their characters and moulding them into perfection, polished stones for His great building yonder. --Cortland Myers

Suffering is a wonderful fertilizer to the roots of character. The great object of this life is character. This is the only thing we can carry with us into eternity... To gain the most of it and the best of it is the object of probation. --Austin Phelps

"By the thorn road and no other is the mount of vision won."

Compiled by Mrs. Charles Cowman, taken from "Streams in the Desert"

A Shield Around Me

"But you are a shield around me, O Lord: you bestow glory on me and lift up my head." Psalm 3:3

"You know I'm not very intuitive,' my friend Dee said, breaking the silent prayer of the women's bible study. "I don't see visions or anything, but just now I saw the Lord standing guard over you. Behind him were shadowy figures of things like anger and depression. His arms were outspread, holding them back and protecting you so nothing could harm you."

It was the week after Richard's funeral and I was on shaky, newborn legs. I was really too raw and unsteady to be out but had always enjoyed the common sense and strength of these women. I knew Dee's words were true. I felt that protection.

I had done what was necessary: contacted a lawyer, begun hundreds of thank-you notes, applied for Social Security. Now there was just pain and all of life ahead. Pain, fierce and cleansing in its intensity, still without anger, built or depression - all that would come later.

The grace I felt didn't blunt the pain, didn't even keep the difficulties at bay. The cars still ran out of oil, fuses still blew, the grass needed mowing and our machine was too cantankerous for the job. These daily irritations were drips in an overflowing cup.

Grace was a sense of presence, of stillness, that was always there just below the surface. Perhaps grace had always been there, but my life had been too hurried, my mind too cluttered, to notice it. perhaps a feeling of unworthiness had blocked the presence of God. All that fell away now. God was my Father, giving me each day the ticket for the journey, and I clung to that grace like a child.

By Kate Convissor, taken from "Women's Devotional Bible 2"