But now, O LORD, Thou art our Father; we are the clay, and Thou our potter; and we all are the work of Thy hand." Isaiah 64:8
The Potter has the power, the knowledge and the skill,
To fashion every vessel, according to His will.
The pattern and the purpose, of every vessel planned,
Its usefulness and beauty are in the potter's hand.
The clay makes no decision, has no will of its own,
But yielded to the potter, His pattern is made known.
And thus the Master Potter, our service has outlined;
He asks us to be yielded unto His Will and Mind.
His purpose to acknowledge, to listen to His voice,
To let Him plan our pathway, according to His choice.
A vessel marred and broken, we may not understand,
But all can be committed unto the Potter's hand.
Our Father's way is perfect, His thought toward us is love;
He's fashioning and molding, for life with Him above.
To trust the Heavenly Potter, and let Him mold the clay,
Brings joy, and peace, and blessing, and happiness alway. Anon
N.J. Hiebert - 20365
July 10
There was given to me (Paul) a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan. 2 Corinthians 12:7
The Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power. Job 1:12. [Satan said] Put forth Thine hand now (v.2:5). And the Lord said unto Satan, behold he is in thine hand. (v.2:6) So Satan . . . smote Job (v.2:7). When He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. (v.23:10)
Father, if Thou be willing . . . nevertheless not My will, but Thine, be done. (Luke 22:42) This is your hour, and the power of darkness. (v.22:53).
As a child I puzzled over the fact that though all Christian people spoke of pain as sent from God, they did all that in them lay to avoid it, or if it came, to get rid of it. Doctors who helped them to do so were prayed for as very special servants of God. And yet they were working against the very thing that God had sent.
It was very puzzling, and I can remember the delight of finding the words, "An enemy hath done this (Matthew 13:28), and feeling that they must apply to all that hurt and wounded either spirit or body. And yet there was a mystery somewhere. And it was not explained.
I think now that it never will be explained until we stand in the light of God; but these words from Paul and Job and our Lord's own prayer help us to understand. All pain, all ill, is a messenger from Satan, and yet the thorn was a gift. The Spirit of God takes care to let us know that it was Satan's hand, not the Father's, that hurt Job. And yet the cruel hand was turned into a crucible, and the fire refined the gold. The power of darkness crucified the Lord of glory. But Love won on Calvary. Whispers of His Power - Amy Carmichael.
N.J. Hiebert - 20366
July 11
Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Jeremiah 18:2
Many times in our lives events and circumstances that seem particularly hard or discouraging are allowed by our wise and loving Father. No doubt each have at times wondered how it is that divine love could order such painful trials and testings--what possible purpose could be served by such difficulties and sorrows? Broken dreams, broken hearts, failure as husbands and wives, as parents, as children, as brethren in Christ--Oh! how despondent thoughts flood in at these times!
Perhaps one has longed to serve the Lord Jesus effectively--desiring that this life would count for something and that there might be the joy of receiving His approval in that coming day of glory. Then the dark, menacing clouds of doubt because of past all too frequent and miserable failures loom on the horizon and once again the storm of discouragement breaks on you. Then come the flood of questions: "How could He ever use me after how badly I have failed Him? He can't trust me to do anything for Him again so why not just give up."
Maybe you're seeking to serve the Lord, feeling very clear that He has led you into a particular ministry, only to find such a host of trials and pressures that it now seems you must surely have missed His mind about entering that service.
At these moments it seems almost impossible to be able to say in that confidence of faith: "I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me" (Philippians 4:13). Beset with the howling winds of discouragement, we can easily fail to hear His tender and comforting words; "I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee" (Isaiah 41:13). If we visit the Potter's House there we will watch Him at work, seeking to learn how it is that a lump of sticky, apparently useless mud is turned into a beautiful, valuable piece of pottery--a vessel, meet for the Master's use (2 Timothy 2:21). In The Potter's Hands - D. Nicolet
N.J. Hiebert - 20367
July 12
The times of the Gentiles. Luke 21:24
Daniel chapter 2 is the story of a crisis in Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar had a dream, but upon waking, he could not remember what the dream had been. He then made completely unreasonable demands on his wise men. He wanted them to tell him what he had dreamed, and also its meaning. He told them that failure would incur death, but that success would bring gifts, rewards and great honour. Not unexpectedly, his wise men said, "There is none other that can show it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh" (Daniel 2:11)
Subsequent to this confession of failure, the king gave the order to execute all of the wise men, and of course this included Daniel and his friends. On the surface of things, this was a crisis of unprecedented proportions. Daniel and his friends were at risk, but what followed shows how we can use times of crisis to advantage, and find opportunities to glorify God. Daniel and his friends took up the challenge of the king since they knew "the God, whose dwelling was not with flesh." They were confident that God could reveal the thing to them, thus saving their lives, and the lives of the wise men of Babylon.
How do we view the crises that arise in our lives? Too often crises propel us into uncontrolled panic. "He that believeth shall not make haste" (panic) (Isiah 28:16). Daniel believed that God was sovereign, and that this crisis was a time of opportunity rather than a disaster, and he did not panic. Daniel believed that God could over-rule the insanity of an unreasonable yet powerful king, bringing deliverance to them, and glory to God.
Similarly, our world today seems to be spinning out of control, and the prediction of Scripture of "men's hearts failing them for fear" (Luke 21:26) is evident all around. How do we rest in the confidence that our God is sovereign, and that these crises could induce a period of unprecedented opportunity to present the gospel as the only answer to man's fundamental need? As men see their whole material world collapsing, may we be like Daniel, bringing words of confidence and assurance that God can be trusted to deliver the one who trusts in Him. Daniel - Willian Burnett
N.J. Hiebert - 20368
July 13
Even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 1 Corinthians 5:7-8
Let us look a little at the circumstances which accompanied the Passover. The blood on the lintel formed the simple basis of the Israelite's security. But there are other points of deep interest into which the spiritual mind can enter with much profit.
First, the lamb was eaten roasted with fire. No other process could have told out the significant principle with the same emphasis. The action of fire upon the body of the lamb gave expression to the intensity of Christ's sufferings when He exposed His blessed person to the full action of Jehovah's wrath against sin.
It was one thing to rest in the security of the shed blood and another thing to eat of the "lamb roast with fire." Hence the apostle says, "That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings." Here was the desire of one who had already rested in the blood.
The fellowship of Christ's sufferings is but little known even by those who are resting in Christ's blood; were it more entered into, there would be far more depth of experience and power of Christian action than there is. We are too ready to rest content with knowing the value of the blood, without feeding on the Lamb, and thus we lose much of our privilege of personal fellowship with Jesus.
It is not merely the work which has been done, but the One who has done it. The former is properly the object for the sinner, the later for the saint; and the more the saint is enabled to enter into what Christ is, the more perfect will be his repose in His work. C. H. Mackintosh
This joy was set before Thee, this armed Thy suffering heart.
That we should share Thy glory, and with Thee have our part. J. G. Deck
N.J. Hiebert - 20369
July 14
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