Gems from December 1- 10, 2016

November 30

“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.”

(1 Peter 1:7-8)

JOB - Above this book you may write:

“Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust Him for His grace:

Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.” (Cowper)

Its keywords are found in two New Testament texts: 

“Patient in tribulation” (Romans 12:12). 

“Thy will be done” (Matthew 6:10).

The noble book of Job, that gave to the ancient world the first hint of the solution of

the mystery of pain, by detaching from it the hitherto inescapable association  

of a curse; which teaches man to believe that the divine author of all 

we suffer and all we enjoy is our ever blessed Lord.

For there is no strength without trial, no wisdom without experience of God and evil;

no refinement without pain; no progress without self-dissatisfaction;

nothing permanent that costs us nothing.

(The Wonderful Word - George Henderson)

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December 1

“Thou art my hiding place; Thou shalt preserve me from trouble;

Thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.”

(Psalm 32:7)

Storms often hit the northern coast of England bringing distress to the many small fishing vessels that ply the coastal waters.  It is reported that “A Shelter in the Time of Storm” has long been a favourite song of many of the fishermen in this area, and they are often heard singing it as they approach their harbours during a storm.

The vivid wording of this hymn assures us that we too are safer during life’s storms with Christ in control than in the calm times without Him.  We as Christians must rest assured that “no fears alarm, no foes affright” in the shelter of His safe retreat.

Just as a young bird would never fly if not pushed out of its nest, we would never develop spiritual strength if we did not learn to handle—with absolute confidence in God—the storms He allows to come our way.

The Lord’s our Rock, in Him we hide-a shelter in the time of storm;

secure whatever ill betide-a shelter in the time of storm.

A shade by day, defence by night-a shelter in the time of storm;

no fears alarm, no foes affright-a shelter in the time of storm.

The raging storms may round us beat-a shelter in the time of storm; 

We’ll never leave our safe retreat-a shelter in the time of storm.

O Rock divine, O Refuge dear-a shelter in the time of storm;

Be thou our helper ever near-a shelter in the time of storm.

Chorus:  

O Jesus is a Rock in a weary land, a weary land, a weary land;

O Jesus is a Rock in a weary land-a shelter in the time of storm.

(VernonJ.  Charlesworth)

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December 2

“Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”

(Jonah 3:4)

As we read the story of Jonah, bearing in mind the greatness and magnificence of which

these old stone relics tell us, it needs no great stretch of the imagination to 

see the prophet Jonah standing on those palace steps,

or beside the great winged bull preaching

his short sermon:

“Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 

How striking is the difference between Jonah’s message and ours!

Jonah’s message was altogether one of judgement without a word of mercy.

Yet both preacher and hearers read in this message, and read correctly, an offer of mercy.

Otherwise, why send the warning of judgment?

It is well for us to remember that in every message of judgment,

there is hidden an offer of mercy, if the guilty ones will but 

take warning and repent.   

(G. C. Willis)

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December 3

“That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.”

(Ephesians 4:14-15)

A childlike Christian does not lose the wonder.

There ought to be in every child of God a sense of surprise, a glad expectancy.

This is his Father’s world and anything can happen.

We live on a miracle level and faith is not believing that God can, but that He will do wonderful things. But we do not look for miracles, and we do not see many. We pray for rain, 

and do not carry our umbrellas.

We ought never to start for a meeting without saying, “This may be the great night!”

We get used to being Christians; we take it for granted and we lose the wonder.

We work at it harder than ever, but we are shorn Samsons in treadmills. 

“Christian activity” becomes a battle of wits and a bustle of works.

Nothing else under the sun can be as dry, flat, tedious, and exhausting as religious work without the wonder.We may dread going to “church".  We are bored by the message.  The Sunday school lesson puts us to sleep.

We are weary in well-doing.

Once we stood amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene; now we want to sit amused.  

Once we were edified; now we must be entertained.

It is all work and no wonder.

(Vance Havner)

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December 4

“As thy days, so shall thy strength be.”

 (Deuteronomy 33:25) 

“Sometimes,” says John Newton, 

”I compare the troubles we have to undergo in the course of a year

to a great bundle of sticks far too large for us to lift.

But God does not require us to carry to the whole at once. 

He mercifully unties the bundles, and gives us first one stick, 

which we are able to carry today, and then another, which we are able 

to carry tomorrow, and so on.

This we can easily mange, if we could only take the burden appointed for us each day; 

but we choose increase our trouble by carrying yesterday’s stock over again 

today,and adding tomorrow’s burden before we are required to bear it.”

“Apart from the woes, that are past and gone and the shadow of future care,

The heaviest of the present hour is easy enough to bear.”

(Heaven’s Cure for Earth’s Care - George Henderson)

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December 5

“Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven,

all whose works are truth, and His ways judgment:  and those

that walk in pride He is able to abase.”

(Daniel 4:37)

How utterly vain it is for man to harden and exalt himself against God;

for truly, He can grind to powder the hardest heart, and

bring down to the dust the haughtiest spirit.

"Those that walk in pride, He is able to abase.”

(Food for the desert) 

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December 6

“May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, 

and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love

of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might

be filled with all the fulness of God.”

(Ephesians 3:18-19)

We live in a three dimensional world.

Why then does Paul use four dimensions to measure the love of Christ?

Imagine you are in the depths of the ocean.

If you could be in the very centre, there would not only be

a breadth  and length to the mighty waters, but there would be a

depth below you and height above you.

God desires that we comprehend the measureless dimensions 

of His love and realize we are in its very centre.

(Ken Gross)

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast unmeasured, boundless, free;

Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me.

(S. Trevor Francis) 

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December 7

“In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.”

(Romans 8:37)

“Lest I should be exalted above measure . . . there was given to me a thorn in the flesh.”

(2 Corinthians 12:7)

“My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.”  

(2 Corinthians 12:9)

God did not take away Paul’s thorn;

He did better—He mastered that thorn, and made it Paul’s servant.

The ministry of thorns has often been a greater ministry to man than the ministry of thrones.

(Streams in the Desert)

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December 8

“Rejoice in the Lord alway: 

and again I say, REJOICE.”

(Philippians 4:4)

When first we were married, life was full of joy:

‘as well expect the soaring lark to keep silent, as expect the joyous 

saint not to sing God’s praise,’ so there was not a day passed that we did not 

have singing in out little home: but the time came when the cares of this world crowded 

out the songs of Heaven, yet, I grieve to say, we hardly noticed it.

For a wedding present a beloved friend had given us a beautiful canary in a brass cage,

and its songs were a constant delight:  but one day they stopped, and how we missed them:

then our eyes were opened to the fact that our own songs had stopped also: and what was our shame, 

when our neighbours opposite remarked how thy missed the singing they had grown to love. 

(Philippians - G. Christopher Willis)  

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December 9

“But I trusted in Thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my God. My times are in Thy hand: 

deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me. 

Make Thy face to shine upon Thy servant: save me for Thy mercies' sake.”

(Psalm 31:14-16)

It is good to be reminded that our times are in His hand—all 

the things that are packed into what we call our time.

Whether we are old or young, ill or well; whether we are doing the desired or the undesired, 

the expected or the unexpected—our times are in His hand today and every day.

The Lord has delivered us from the hand of our enemies.

We are His sheep, and He has said,

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: and I give unto them eternal life;

and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.

My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able

to pluck them out of My Father’s hand” (John 10:27-29)   

So not only our times, but we ourselves, are safe in His hands today.

(Whispers of His Power - Amy Carmichael  1867-1951)

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December 10

“For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself,

lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”

(Hebrews 12:3)

The Christian cannot be in a difficulty that Christ is not sufficient for, 

nor on a long dark road where he cannot find Him enough.

We may pass through strait and difficult places, but He is not the less faithful;

only let us look to Him, and He is there, even when He seems to forsake us,

in order to put faith to the proof, and to make us known to ourselves.

(Footprints for Pilgrims - J. N. Darby)

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December 11

“Let us lay aside every weight,  and the sin 

which doth so easily beset us.”

(Hebrews 12:1)

Cares are more subtle things, because they enter as necessary duties, 

and there is no sin in doing one’s duty.

But if these duties choke the word and a man loses 

his soul through it, what then?

(Footprints for Pilgrims)

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December 12

"I have called you friends.”

(John 15:15)

The nearer we are to God the more we lose sight of ourselves and the better 

we are able to apprehend and to communicate His mind.

(Edward Dennett)

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December 13