“He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” – Isa. 40:29-31

“Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”- 1 John 3:16

Hereby perceive we the love of God, because “He laid down His life for us.” And the real test of any love is what it is prepared to “lay down.” How much is it ready to spend? How much will it bleed? There is much spurious love about. It lays nothing down; it only takes things up! It is self-seeking, using the speech and accents of love. It is a “work of the flesh,” which has stolen the label of a “fruit of the Spirit.” Love may always be known by its expenditures, its self-crucifixions, its Calvary’s. Love is always laying down its life for others. Its pathway is always a red road. You may track its goings by the red marks of the Lord Jesus.

And this is the life, the love-life, which the Lord Jesus came to create among the children of men. It is His gracious purpose to form a spiritual fellowship in which every member will be lovingly concerned about his fellows’ good. A real family of God would be one in which all the members bleed for each, and each for all.

How can we gain this disposition of love? “God is love.” “We love him because He first loved us.” At the fountain of eternal love we too may become lovers, becoming “partakers of the divine nature,” and filled with all “the fulness of God.”  (J. H. Jowett) 

My dear friend can you not see how greatly you are loved? God loves you so much, regardless of who you are, that He wrapped Himself in a robe of flesh and allowed sinful men to crucify Him for your sake. His suffering and death was His sacrifice for you. He died that you might have everlasting life. You might be without a lot of things in life, but no one is unloved. God proved that! -HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

In light of this, let’s remember Paul’s admonition in Eph. 6:18 “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.” We are to pray always, in faith, and with fervency as though everything depended on it, because it does. Since success in anything is based on prayer everything should be bathed in prayer. – HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346 

” I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth. ” – Ecc. 10:7

Seeing what appears to be a terrible injustice we blame God and anyone else who comes to mind for being unfair. Although we might not be so bold as to proclaim that God is guilty, that’s the way we feel in our heart. We generally say something like “Life isn’t fair”, etc., but it is actually an accusation against God – resentment toward what he appoints or allows. Although our best Friend, we feel God treats us as an enemy. But the problem is with us, not God. We aren’t wise enough to see the wisdom of God’s plan – how He uses evil for good and pain for profit. Were we as smart as God we would say “Amen” to everything He appoints or allows. We would see that He does all things well.

Indeed the world is upside down, but thanks be unto God He will one day make all things right. Therefore, as the song says, “Hold on my child, joy comes in the morning.” – HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346 

“How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.” Psalm 36:7

The word “excellent” is used to describe God’s “lovingkindness.” It is indeed precious, or valuable. There is no other love with which to compare it. All mortal love falls woefully short. God loves us in spite of what we have done. His love is unfailing, undeserved, and unconditional. His love is everlasting. Even when our Father corrects us, it is an expression of His love. It could never be overestimated, this matter of His love.

It is important that the unsaved hear of God’s great love. His love for sinners is seen in the death of Jesus on the cross. The Father loved us so much that He gave His only Son to be the sacrifice for our sins. The Savior loved us so much that He bled and died on the cross that we might be forgiven and redeemed. The Father still loves us when we stray, and He is like the father of the prodigal son who received his repentant child. He does not love us because we have earned it. He loves us because He loves us. It is the way He is.

There are many reasons it is imperative that we begin to grasp this great reality of God’s love. If people do not know that He loves them, they will not be likely to come to Him for salvation. If we are uncertain of His love, we will be reluctant to return to Him after we fail. If we are not confident in His love, we will be hesitant when we come to Him in prayer. God will never ridicule us or mistreat us. He loves us too much for that.

Our text tells us that BECAUSE HE LOVES US, “the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.” Knowing how much He loves us encourages us to trust Him. How could we not trust a God whose love is so “excellent”? We have seen children who are not at all reluctant to leap into the arms of a waiting parent because the child is so confident in the parent’s love. They are sure that their parents can be trusted to catch them and keep them from falling. God can be trusted even more so. He will not let us down. We know that we can put our complete trust in Him because we know how much He loves us. Like a hen who protects her brood and whose chicks can find shelter and protection underneath her wings, our loving heavenly Father protects us. Our confidence in Him is not based on our worthiness, but on His steadfast love. -Thomas Smith

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346