Morning By Morning #244

The islands will look to me and wait in hope for my arm.

Isaiah 51:5

From the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

In times of severe trials, a Christian has nothing on earth in which to trust and is therefore compelled to cast himself on his God alone. When his boat is about to break in two and sink, and no human deliverance is possible, he must simply and entirely trust himself to the sovereignty and care of God. What a blessed storm that dashes a man on a rock such as this! Oh, blessed hurricane that drives a soul to God and God alone!

Sometimes it is difficult to reach out to God because of having so many friends around us. But when a man is poor, friendless, and so helpless he has nowhere else to turn, he runs into his Father’s arms—and is blessed in His embrace! When someone is burdened with troubles so stressful and out of the ordinary he cannot share them with anyone but his God, he can be thankful for them, for he will learn more about his Lord at that time than any other.

Oh, dear storm-tossed believer, troubles that drive you to your Father are a blessing! Now that you have only your God to trust, see to it that you put your full confidence in Him. Do not dishonor your Lord and Master with unworthy doubts and fears, but be strong in faith, giving glory to God. Show the world your God is worth ten thousand worlds to you. Show the materially rich just how rich you are in your poverty when the Lord God is your helper. Show strong men just how strong you are in your weakness when “underneath [you] are the everlasting arms” (Deut. 33:27).

Now is the time for great feats of faith and courageous exploits. “Be strong and very courageous” (Josh. 1:7) and the Lord your God will certainly—as surely as He “created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1)—glorify Himself in your weakness and magnify His might in the midst of your distress. The grandeur of the canopy of heaven would be spoiled if there were even one visible column supporting the sky. In the same way, your faith will lose its glory if it rests on anything discernible by the physical eyes of man.

On the last morning of this month, may the Holy Spirit grant you faith that rests in Jesus alone.

From the pen of Jim Reimann:

Instead of trusting in the Lord alone, our world is overly impressed with wealth and the ability of some to produce great wealth. They should know, however, “It is [the LORD] who gives you the ability to produce wealth” (Deut. 8:18). And the following is the biblical fallacy of trusting in wealth and ourselves:

Why should I fear when evil days come, when wicked deceivers surround me—those who trust in their wealth and boast of their great riches?…For all can see that wise men die; the foolish and the senseless alike perish and leave their wealth to others…This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings…Do not be overawed when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases; for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him…A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

Psalm 49:5 – 6, 10, 13, 16 – 17, 20

“But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God’” (Ps. 31:14).