My Journey 6/16/2010

God's insight to me:

I love when F. B. Meyer wrote in his devotional "from their own experience could speak to the heart". What I have found in doing the Lord's work, I am most effective for Him because of my own trials that I have gone through. The God's Love Outreach Ministry touches many hearts because Christ touched mine. God's wounded that are reaching out can see I am truly reaching back to them in the name above all names, Jesus.

Gentle leading is a good devotional. All this month in the program Seeds of Youth from the Seeds for Christ series there is a gospel song that I sing, "Lead Me, Guide Me". As I was reading Mrs. Charles Cowman's devotional that song came to mind. When I came to this line by Frances Ridley Havergal "not one step will He make you take beyond what your foot is able to endure", I thought, "Lord, if we can just grasp the meaning of that!" See, Jesus has gone through it all before us. Praise God!

A. B. Simpson's devotional to me should be titled, "All for Jesus". Please understand what is written in this sentence; God takes a peculiar pride in showing His love to the heart that wholly chooses Him. The word that should stand out, well, it did for me is "chooses"! In the book Experiencing God by Henry & Richard Blackaby on page #160 it states, "God is interested in absolute surrender." How do we do that? Choice. Willingness to give all to Him because of what He gave to us. He chose us before we chose or wanted to choose Him. For God so loved us!

Jesus All For Jesus

Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be
Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be

All of my ambitions hopes and plans
I surrender these into Your hands
All of my ambitions hopes and plans
I surrender these into Your hands

For it's only in Your will that I am free
For it's only in Your will that I am free

Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be

All of my ambitions hopes and plans
I surrender these into Your hands

Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be

For it's only in Your will that I am free
For it's only in Your will that I am free

Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be

Form God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott

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Our Daily Homily
by F. B. Meyers
June 16

Thou shall remember that thou wast a bondman. Deu 16:12

This gave the touch of gentle tenderness to Israel's treatment of the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. They knew what loneliness and desperate suffering were; and from their own experience could speak to the heart. Without tenderness and sympathy, what are our gifts to the poor worth? It is as important to give graciously and kindly as to give at all. None are so sensitive as sufferers, whether in mind, body, or circumstance; they are quick to notice the slightest roughness or harshness in our manner of bestowing relief; they would prefer a pittance given with tender sympathy to a larger gift flung at them grudgingly. But what can give this thoughtful sympathetic manner like the memory of our own sufferings, when we were bondmen in Egypt!

It may be that God is passing thee through some fiery ordeal, to teach thee and fit thee to be His almoner, touching and soothing as His outstretched hand of pity. Soon thy present sorrow shall be but a memory; but thou wilt be called to minister to the fatherless, the widow, the stranger. Always say in thine heart, God is passing me through this sorrow, and comforting me, and delivering me, that I may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble with the very accent, caress, and tender word which He hath spoken to me. "Blessed be the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our affliction, that we may be able to comfort them that are in any affliction through the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."

In heaven itself we shall never quite forget that we were bondmen once, but were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. This will give a new meaning to the song of adoring gladness.

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Streams in the Desert
Mrs. Charles Cowman Devotional
June 16

Gentle Leading

"I will lead on softly, according as the cattle that goeth before me and the children be able to endure" (Gen. 33:14).

What a beautiful picture of Jacob's thoughtfulness for the cattle and the children! He would not allow them to be overdriven even for one day. He would not lead on according to what a strong man like Esau could do and expected them to do, but only according to what they were able to endure. He knew exactly how far they could go in a day; and he made that his only consideration in arranging the marches. He had gone the same wilderness journey years before, and knew all about its roughness and heat and length, by personal experience. And so he said, "I will lead on softly." "For ye have not passed this way heretofore" (Josh.3:4.).

We have not passed this way heretofore, but the Lord Jesus has. It is all untrodden and unknown ground to us, but He knows it all by personal experience. The steep bits that take away our breath, the stony bits that make our feet ache so, the hot shadeless stretches that make us feel so exhausted, the rushing rivers that we have to pass through--Jesus has gone through it all before us. "He was wearied with his journey." Not some, but all the many waters went over Him, and yet did not quench His love. He was made a perfect Leader by the things which He suffered. "He knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust." Think of that when you are tempted to question the gentleness of His leading. He is remembering all the time; and not one step will He make you take beyond what your foot is able to endure. Never mind if you think it will not be able for the step that seems to come next; either He will so strengthen it that it shall be able, or He will call a sudden halt, and you shall not have to take it at all. --Frances Ridley Havergal

In "pastures green"? Not always; sometimes He Who knowest best, in kindness leadeth me In weary ways, where heavy shadows be. So, whether on the hill-tops high and fair I dwell, or in the sunless valleys, where The shadows lie, what matter? He is there.
--Barry

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Days of Heaven Upon Earth
A.B. Simpson Devotional
June 16

"Ye cannot serve God and Mammon" (Matt. vi. 24).

He does not say ye cannot very well serve God and mammon, but ye cannot serve two masters at all.

Ye shall be sure to end by serving one. The man who thinks he is serving God a little is deceived; he is not serving God. God will not have his service.

The devil will monopolize him before he gets through. A divided heart loses both worlds. Saul tried it. Balaam tried it. Judas tried it, and they all made a desperate failure. Mary had but one choice.

Paul said: "This one thing I do." "For me to live is Christ." Of such a life God says: "Because he hath set his love upon Me therefore will I deliver him.

I will set him on high because he hath known My name." God takes a peculiar pride in showing His love to the heart that wholly chooses Him. Heaven and earth will fade away before its trust can be disappointed. Have we chosen Him only and given Him all our heart?

Say is it all for Jesus,
As you so often sing?
Is He your Royal Master?
Is He your heart's dear King?