December 17

“Suppose a friend should commit something to our keeping, receiving from us every assurance that we would keep it safe, and then go away and worry over it as we worry over the things we commit to God....Would we not finally be inclined to hand the thing back to our friend and say,  ‘Since it is very plain that you do not trust me, had you not better take care of your things yourself?’” Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 12/4

How many times did we have to stand by and let our toddlers handle things themselves because they insisted even though we knew they would not succeed?  Often times this is the only way they could learn, but we were never far away, ready to lend a hand or rescue them from their little adventure.  But Hannah is talking about the things only God can handle by Himself--things we have no control over.  We have no choice but to trust Him, yet we continue to worry about them.  This worry then always gets in the way.  It will either cause us to interfere, or at the very least distract us from being useful to God.  I believe those times that we feel the most lost and abandoned may very well be those times God has said, “Since it is very plain that you do not trust me, had you not better take care of your things yourself?”  Perhaps this is a wake-up call for us to examine our own actions.  Has our worry led us into the pit we’ve found ourselves?  Has our attempt to wrestle control out of God’s Hand put us in this fix?  Let us then, be very careful in prayer so that we leave the matter with God.

“Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!  Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.  For the wicked shall be cut off; but those who wait for the LORD shall possess the land.”  Psalm 37:8, 9

December 4

“Christ has undertaken His duties, knowing perfectly well what the responsibilities are.  He knows that He is dealing with very silly sheep who have no strength to protect themselves, no wisdom to guide themselves, and nothing to recommend them but their utter helplessness and weakness...There is only one thing that can hinder the Good Shepherd:  refusal of the sheep to trust Him and let Him care for them”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 11/11

Up until now I've only been aware of the tip of the iceberg.  Now God is showing me what is under the water--this in itself has been overwhelming.  Earlier this morning my phone call to a friend was an opportunity to "let love happen" and in doing so I was brought back above the surface.  This may be the only way we are able to deal with that hidden mountain of ego below the surface--it can't be chipped away by going under with an ax.  When we attempt to deal with ego that way we are trying to fight the enemy with the same means it is using to gain victory. This leaves us vulnerable to falling back into our old ways of the flesh. Instead we need to deal with it by remaining on the surface and expressing genuine love.  The surrounding water is warmed by this love and the hidden part of the iceberg begins to melt away.  This is the power of genuine love, which can only come from God through Christ. 

“The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want; he makes me lie down in green pastures.  He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.  He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff; they comfort me.  Psalm 23:1-4  

November 24

“But if we refuse to listen to the voice of our Comforter and insist instead on listening to the voice of discouragement or despair no comfort can reach us.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 11/1

I think I’m finally “getting it”.  Negative thoughts kill positive thoughts.  Discouragement always begins with a negative thought.  In the past I’ve claimed that because the negative thought was the truth there wasn’t anything I could do about it.  But I see that I can.  But first, I have to believe that just because a negative thought might be true, doesn’t mean I’m allowed to entertain that thought.  I must immediately replace it with a positive thought.  I used think this was a form of denial and did not want to play that game.  Now I realize that there are positive thoughts that are creative rather than destructive.  The “truth is” can always have a positive spin to it if I see things as God sees things.  Because He is able to bring good out of the bad I can always count on anything negative to have a positive side to it.  It isn’t up to me to judge it as bad.  I can acknowledge that I don’t like the way this feels to me, but I will no longer dwell on that aspect of it.  I will instead dwell on wanting what God wants and trust that He will show me what that is so I will be obedient to His will.

“But by your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. For he will render to every man according to his works:  to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are factious and do not obey the truth, but obey wickedness, there will be wrath and fury.”  Romans 2:5-8

November 23

“[God] did create us.  He is still longing to bring us to perfection.  Hand Him your heart.  The pressure of His dear fingers on the hard places may bring pain at first.  But if we are not willing to bear this pain at the touch of His hand, we are wasting the Calvary-pain in His heart for us.”  Eugenia Price, S.P.S., 11/1

I have a muscle that runs over the top of my left shoulder that is so taunt that it hurts just to touch it.  Yet I asked my husband to massage it for me.  The pain was excruciating as he kneaded the muscle with his strong hands.  By the time he was done, though, it no longer hurt.  This is what Eugenia is talking about.  We must be willing to endure the pain of having our hard places worked on by God if we ever expect to be freed of them.  It’s not a masochistic willingness, but a trusting willingness.  Because I believed my husband’s hands would unknot that hurting muscle I allowed him to cause more pain than I would have experienced if he’d not touched it.  When God works on our hard places we experience emotional pain often times because we’re so use to being in control.  God takes that control out of our hands, and if we aren’t willing, we will fight His strong Hands.  How much better it would be if we would relax and trust that when He is done things will be better.

“Woe to those who hide deep from the LORD their counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, ‘Who sees us? Who knows us?’  You turn things upside down!  Shall the potter be regarded as the clay; that the thing made should say of its maker, ‘He did not make me’; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding’?”  Isaiah 29:15, 16

October 21

“David was certainly an optimist!  Regardless of his circumstances, David could always see God’s activity!  A pessimist focuses on the problems, concentrating on the reasons why something cannot be done.  The optimist sees those same problems, but he sees them from the perspective of God’s presence.”  H. Blackaby, Experiencing God Day-by-Day, 10/4

I’ve always considered myself neither an optimist nor a pessimist, but a realist.  I see now that has been my problem.  (Maybe I am a pessimist!)  A realist looks at the facts of the situation and declares it either good or bad.  And because so much is bad in the world, I’d usually come down on the pessimist side without having to declare myself a pessimist.  I see now, however, that I’ve been leaving God out of the equation.  If I truly believe that God is in all things--that He is the ruler of the universe--then I must also be an optimist--one who “optimizes” all that God provides.  God has a plan that He is fulfilling, which in my book means there’s always more to be done.  Yes, I must accept setbacks, delays, consequences, etc., but I mustn’t ever give up hope that good will eventually come of each and every thing.  My faith in God’s goodness will carry me onward through whatever I may be asked to walk across or ride through.  I mustn’t become discouraged for that is the sign that I’ve stopped trusting God and instead am trusting people.  

“Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no help.  When his breath departs he returns to his earth; on that very day his plans perish.”  Psalm 145:3, 4

October 17

“We must give up all care of our own by an absolute surrender to His keeping and by an implicit trust of our needs day by day.  If this is done and steadfastly persisted in, the peace of God will keep as in a garrison our hearts and minds.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 10/1

Hannah likens it to a child holding his mother’s hand.  It’s not his holding her hand, but her holding his hand that keeps him safe.  She used this illustration to help us see what kind of religion we have.  We are very good at “devising” our own gods for our purposes.  This keeps us in charge and therefore feels as though it’s up to us to hold God’s Hand.  Initially, we do need to put our hand in God’s Hand, but we’re not doing the “holding”.  God is.  In fact, once we put our hand in God’s, He is the One who keeps it there.  Even in those times that we feel as though we’ve taken our hand out of God’s Hand, He is still holding on to us.  This is how we fool ourselves into thinking we are back in control.  We may not feel as though our hand is in God’s, but that’s because it’s become numb.  If we would just look, we would see it’s still there.  I had a spinal block for the cesarean birth of my third child.  It was very strange not to be able to feel my body below my arms.  It was there--I could see it--but it did not feel as though it belonged to me--even when I was able to see my abdomen cut open in the reflection in the overhead light.  I even saw my child lifted out, but it did not feel as though he’d come from my body.  Our feelings cannot be trusted to always tell us the truth.

“Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you without blemish before the presence of his glory with rejoicing.”  Jude 24

October 15

“I....poured out my troubles.  I expected her to take a deep interest in me and to take great pains to do all she could to help me.  She listened patiently enough and did not interrupt me.  But when I had finished my story and paused, expecting sympathy and consideration, she simply said, ‘Yes, all you say may be very true, but then, in spite of it all, there is God.’”  Hannah Whitall Smith, Daily Secrets, 9/24

Hannah made several more visits to this deeply spiritual Christian and attempted to convince her that her problems were much more serious than the woman realized.  Each time the woman merely restated her original advice, “There is God.” While I’ve not had such a person to go to, I have gone to God with my problems with this same attitude.  I’ll reiterate my difficulty to God and when He doesn’t give me an immediate solution or at least a pat on the head, I claim He just doesn’t understand.  I don’t come right out and say it that way of course, but every time I leave my time with God feeling dejected, this is what I’m saying with my actions. Hannah eventually believed this woman and came under conviction herself.  We must believe, too.  Otherwise, we will take credit when things go well and blame others or even God when things don’t go well and thereby never experience God’s presence in our difficulties.  If we truly are ever to trust God we must believe that “there is God” for all our troubles.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult.”  Psalm 46:1-3

October 7

“Discomfort and unrest in the spiritual life arise from strenuous but useless efforts to get up some satisfactory basis of confidence within ourselves.  The self looks for the ‘right kind of feelings,’ or the right amount of fervor or earnestness, or at least a sufficient degree of interest in spiritual matters.  Because none of these things are ever satisfactory (and never will be) it is impossible for the spiritual life to be anything but uncomfortable.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, Daily Secrets, 9/23

Hannah then went on to point out that our salvation, from beginning to end, depends on Jesus Christ and that should be sufficient enough for peace to “reign supreme”.  If that’s the case, then it does seem we children of God really make “much ado about nothing”.  Why is it, then, I never feel like I quite measure up?  Was this Eve’s problem?  Is this why she felt she was missing out on something by not eating of the fruit of the forbidden tree?  And that by doing so she would be wiser?  This lack of contentment for who God made us to be is perhaps at the root of our unrest.  We think we are striving to be better--more of what God intended.  But God keeps leading me back to the fact that He created me and gives me all I need.  I need not strive for anything. Everything I need has already been placed within me. I need only tend to the business at hand, living each day as it comes, trusting Him with confidence.  This is the only confidence I need--in Him.

“Through him you have confidence in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”  1 Peter 1:21

September 18

“Christians often feel at liberty to murmur against other people when they would not dare to murmur against God.  Seeing God in all things, therefore, will make it impossible even to murmur.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 9/14

This message keeps showing up in my life.  I guess because I haven’t received it into my heart yet.  It’s like a special delivery package that can’t be left on the doorstep--I have to sign for it.  Well, Lord, I’m home this time.  I’ll open the door and sign for it because I really want this package.  I want to stop murmuring and I want to start rejoicing.  Because I can’t murmur and rejoice at the same time, I have to decide which I want.  Perhaps it’s taken me this long to realize I can’t control my world.  I can’t change it, but I can change how I view it.  But this is going to require that I stop listening to other people.  Very few people want to believe that God is in control.  There are scads of books written on the subject of why bad things happen to good people.  Hannah, on the other hand, is telling us that only good things happen to God’s loved ones.  What the rest of the world is missing is the fact that just because something looks bad and feels bad by it’s economy doesn’t make it bad in God’s economy.  The whole point of trusting God is to receive His gifts.  Some of his gifts come wrapped in rough paper--like the one that keeps coming to my door that I’ve kept refusing to receive.  I must look past the paper--even to the point of not seeing it--and see the gift.  This is the only way I’m going to open that door.

“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.”  Genesis 50:20

September 16

“Before, I might be able to say at any given moment, ‘I am the Lord’s now, altogether and unreservedly.’  But my will always took comfort in the thought of a future, when perhaps I would not be entirely His; secretly and almost unconsciously, I made a future provision for the flesh, to fulfill the desires thereof.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 9/13

Hannah wrote the above in her diary in 1868 when she was 36 years old, ten years after giving her life to Christ. I think many of us are still waiting for this revelation of how our wills secretly take comfort in knowing it can take control back.  This is why we give it up so freely at times.  But if we look carefully I’m sure that those times were only when it was convenient or to our advantage in some way.  The cleverer we are the more adept we are at giving up our wills in a way that looks “godly”.  God warns us that our hearts are capable of even deceiving ourselves!  Hannah finally dealt with this sin in her life by seeing the future as belonging to God.  She does not go on to explain, but I can because I know what she’s talking about because I, too, continually make future provisions for the flesh.  I understand now that when I worry I am making this future provision for the flesh.  When I worry I am not seeing my future as belonging to God.  Lord, when I am tempted to “make provisions for my future” I will take comfort instead in the fact that my future belongs to You just as much as right now does.

“And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be of anxious mind.  For all the nations of the world seek these things; and your Father knows that you need them.  Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things shall be yours as well.”   Luke 12:29-31

August 18

“God wants us to trust Him daily with our needs.  This trust does not make us poor planners or careless with our futures, unprepared to face what may come.  Rather, it keeps our relationship with the Lord in its proper perspective as He reminds us daily of our dependence upon Him.”  H. Blackaby, Experiencing God Day-by-Day, 8/18

This is why we’re to pray for our daily bread. Christ is also known as the Bread of Life and the Living Water. This morning I was reading Jeremiah 1:13:  “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that hold no water.”  I have not forsaken the Lord, but I have hewed out my own cisterns in an attempt to “collect” this Living Water.  This scripture in Jeremiah has shown me that just like the Israelites could not collect more than a day’s worth of manna, I cannot store up Living Water.  It is these cisterns that are getting in the way of my needs being met by God--they cannot hold Living Water.  It was at this point God showed me that my cisterns represented my attempts to control His life in me and the only way I’m to ever experience Him as Living Water and Daily Bread is to give up this attempt at control and take the attitude of what will be will be.  But this is not a giving up as in defeat.  This is my Victory!

“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith.”  1 John 5:4 

August 11

“‘Watch and pray.’ But we do not.  We’ve been busy.  And the temptation-bolt strikes and we are set aflame with a quick new desire to take or to become or to possess!”  Eugenia Price, S.P.S., 8/11

These verbs--take, become, possess--are good watchwords.  If I find myself in that frame of mind, I should be watchful for the temptation that is lying in wait for me.  It surely means I’ve taken matters into my own hands!  Many times I have plenty of warning--I will feel impatient and anxious and then move forward anyway just because I want to see what lies ahead.  But too often the result is the same as with opening the oven door while the soufflé is “in process”--my interference spoils the meal!  I say I trust God, but I just need to know.....NOW.  This is asking for God’s grace in advance and not truly trusting Him.  If I feel I have to prepare myself emotionally for disappointments or disasters, I’m saying that God’s grace is not sufficient. An even better translation for “not sufficient” is “not competent” for this is really what I am declaring when I do not rest in God’s grace.  My children will be very glad to know that I’m finally learning this lesson for they have had to bear the brunt of my anxiety the most.  Lord, may my change in attitude and therefore behavior show them that you are indeed trustworthy.

“Not that we are competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our competence is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit; for the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life.”  2 Corinthians 3:5, 6

August 4

“There is no greater suffering than the suffering from fear.”  Eugenia Price, S.P.S., 8/4

Fear is that which grips our minds right down into the core of our hearts and keeps us distracted from our lives.  It will present itself by sleeplessness, anxious thoughts, nervousness, anger, impatience, and a number of other physical and mental symptoms.  Eugenia cannot reconcile fear and faith and therefore concludes that fear is unbelief.  I have to agree with her.  We may try to excuse it by saying we are weak or our circumstances are too overwhelming, but in doing so we are putting limits on God that do not exist.  We are saying we do not believe our God is powerful enough or loving enough to take care of us.  So why do we continue to excuse it?  I don’t want to suffer from fear.  Or do I?  It’s apparent that Self gets some kind of a charge out of being fearful.  For one thing it is wrenching God’s control over our lives out of His Hands.  We are saying to God we want to take care of things now.  It’s only when we fail miserably and come crawling back to Him are we willing to humble ourselves before Him.  And He always takes us back.  Father, I apologize for not trusting You and rejoice in the great love you have for me.  Thank you for forgiving me and welcoming me back Home.

“I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired servants.’” And he arose and came to his father.  But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”  Luke 15:18-20

July 27

“Continually we find the Lord calling upon the people not to profane his name, that is, not to live and act and talk in such a way as to give others a false idea of his character and his works.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, Daily Secrets, 7/27

The third commandment says we are not to take the Lord’s name in vain.  Today we feel we’ve kept that one as long as we don’t use a swear word in conjunction with God’s name.  But the spirit of the law--which Jesus came to fulfill--is much broader.  We are continually breaking that commandment every time we do not live as though we believe God.  Hannah says that “God’s namings always mean character” and this includes Himself.  We are calling God a liar every time we act in a fearful way.  I believe we are even calling Him a liar when we ask Him to be with someone since He has already promised to do so.  Instead we should be expressing our thanks and if we feel any anxiety, I feel our prayer instead should be one of confession!    Do you trust the Lord?!  “Then, why, oh my soul, are you downcast?” is a question we should be asking ourselves.  Thank you, Father, for being Who You say You are.  Forgive me for not believing You.  I confess my unbelief and thank You for the help You’ve promised me to put my trust in You.

“The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy, they are established for ever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.  He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever.  Holy and [awe-inspiring] is his name!”  Psalm 111:7-9

July 23

“Salvation is not an event; it is a process.  Salvation is God’s gift, for there is nothing we can do to save ourselves.  Yet with salvation comes the responsibility to work out our salvation.  Once we have been saved, we must claim all that has become ours.”  H. Blackaby, Experiencing God Day-by-Day, 7/23

Today Eugenia Price gave an example of this when she said we go on complaining about our weaknesses without realizing that it is we who “trodden down strength” by refusing to act as though we really believe Jesus Christ.  I had an example of this last night when my son did not show up when I had expected him to.  I found that if I began thinking about all the unpleasant possibilities I felt more distraught and more helpless.  But when I directed my attention to God’s faithfulness and trusted that He would work things out according to His plan, I rested easily and was able to fall asleep.  How many other times do I trodden down the strength that God makes available to me?  I can safely say that every time I feel anxious, lost, or confused it is I who is not claiming God’s victory.  It is I who is not believing all that God has shown me about Himself.  But what about the times I feel unloved, persecuted, misunderstood, or in any way hurt?  Are these not due, also, to my forgetting or refusing to claim all that God has for me?

“Blessed are the men whose strength is in thee, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.  As they go through the valley of [weeping] they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools.  They go from strength to strength; the God of gods will be seen in Zion.”  Psalm 84:5-7

July 20

“All doubts are a ‘speaking against God’.  A great many of my readers will start at this and exclaim, ‘Oh, no, that is a mistake.  Doubts often arise from humility.....It is not that we doubt Him, but we doubt ourselves.’”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 7/20

I’ve been guilty of declaring this very thing--claiming that I believed God but doubted myself!  In Eugenia Price’s devotional for today she says the door to our self-made prisons have been open all the time--waiting for us to leave on our own accord.  Jesus declares Himself to be the door.  We have no excuse.  However, if we believe ourselves to be the obstacle that prevents us from leaving our prisons and call it humility, we’ll never leave!  Let us give up our doubts, claim our freedom, and believe God.  The way to do this is to let love have it’s way with us.  By that I mean we must accept God’s love for us--both the sweet and the tough, knowing that everything that happens to us is toward that end.  Then we must not hoard it.  We must give it away before it spoils us.  It’s this living stream of God’s love that flows through our hearts that makes us alive to Him and to others, filling us up and spilling out. 

“Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing for joy.  For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;”  Isaiah 35:5, 6

July 15

“What does it mean to set the Lord always before you?  It means that you choose to relate everything you encounter to your trust in God.”  H. Blackaby, Experiencing God Day-by-Day, 7/15

I’ve always known that I need to see things through “God’s eyes”--that is, from His perspective.  I’ve also known I need to keep my focus on Christ--who He is and what He did.  But to “relate everything [I] encounter to [my] trust in God” is new to me.  Blackaby has brought me to the nitty gritty of my relationship with God:  Trust.  Trust is an interesting word.  It means “confidence in a person or thing because of the qualities one perceives.”  Both parties are involved. I must have confidence, but the other person must have the qualities that warrant my confidence.  However, I have an additional responsibility.  I must perceive the other’s trustworthiness in order for the transaction to be completed.  To perceive is to become aware of.  This is why our ability to trust God hinges on our knowledge of Him.  We must be diligent in becoming aware of who He is.  We must seek to know Him fully.  But then we must act on that knowledge.  Everything that happens to us must be seen in light of this information.  Then we need to exercise the faith God has given us by choosing to place our confidence in the God who created us and loves us to no end.

“Through [Christ] you have confidence in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”  1 Peter 1: 21

July 14

“Hope in the Christian’s life is not wishful thinking.  It is confident expectation.”  H. Blackaby, Experiencing God Day-by-Day, 7/11

I was thinking today about the hopelessness I feel sometimes.  There are situations or relationships that I feel will never change.  At my age I’ve just about given up on trying to change the way some things are and am learning to accept them.  I always go through a hopelessness about them, though.  But because God does not give up on anything I often feel I must resurrect my concern over the matter.  This morning, though, I realized a difference between hoping about something and putting my hope in Christ Himself.  To hope that the world situation will get better or that a relationship will improve puts my focus in a realm where I have very little control.  While I may be able to contribute something toward world peace or personal peace, I do not have total control.  But God does.  By placing my hope only in Him will I ever experience hope.  My confident expectation is that God is in control and no matter the outcome, in the end it is what God, the creator of all, has deemed fit.

“I love thee, O LORD, my strength.  The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”  Psalm 18:1, 2

July 13

“When a troubled, frightened child tells his mother of his wrong doings and asks for her sympathy and help, how ready in the mother’s ear to listen and her heart to devise ways to help.  Suppose the trouble has been all the child’s fault; none the less is the mother willing and eager to help him.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 7/12

Hannah often uses mother-child illustrations to give us a picture of God’s love.  It’s made me think about my own adult sons.  When they were little I was able to teach them many things and I found great gratification in that.  But then they entered their teenage years.  Anyone who has raised children knows what I’m referring to--the know-it all years.  Now that they are young adults I am finding they come to me often for my advice.  I am once again a teacher in their lives.  This is a wonderful example of what it like with God.  I never wanted to stop teaching my children.  It was they who did not want to be taught.  God waits, with even more patience, for us to return to Him and draw upon His love and grace and wisdom.  He even allows us to stretch our wings and try independence for a while until we see how much better it is to depend on Him.  While we don’t want our grown children to be dependent on us, we do want them to be able to depend on our love for them.  God wants us to depend on His love, too.

“I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.  Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not keep with you.”  Psalm 32: 8, 9

June 24

“The psalmist David declared that all things are God’s servants (Ps. 119:91).....While the Lord does not inaugurate the evil, when that evil is directed against His children, He makes it His ‘servant’ to carry them a blessing.  All things are yours not to trouble you and do you harm but to bless you and do you good.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 6/24

This is a hard truth.  We all have something we fear and don’t think anything good could possibly come out it.  The big one on the list is losing a child.  And we’ve all heard horror stories on the news of a child being kidnapped.  That is not the time to quote a Bible verse to the parents about the blessing in it for them.  The key is “evil directed against His children.”  If we are a child of God through Jesus Christ, all things become God’s servant.  We may get ourselves into a predicament, or we may be an “innocent bystander,” but in either case God can use it to bring us a blessing.  Many people have had the course of their lives changed by a tragedy.  It’s not that God sent the tragedy, but because we live in a fallen world we can’t escape them.  But they don’t have to defeat us or make our lives not worth living.  God will use it to bring us closer to Him--a far greater blessing than most of us appreciate.

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”  Romans 8:37