God’s Will  

“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” — Matt 6:10 

     

Many people shrink from God’s will. They think that it always means pain, or sorrow, or bereavement. They always feel melancholy when you speak of doing the Will of God. Alas! how the devil has libeled God. The will of God is the will of a Father. It is the Fatherhood of God going out in action. “It is not the will of your Father that one of these little ones should perish.” “This is the will of God, even your sanctification.”

If only the will of God were done on earth, as it is done in heaven, there would be peace between the nations, and love and happiness in all our homes. Love would cement the union of all men in a city of blessedness. The fact of the world’s present condition is no argument against the beneficence and blessedness of the will of God. It is because men will not do the will of God that things are as they are!

In our own life we shall never be really right or happy until we have got to the point of saying: “I delight to do Thy will, O my God.” We may not begin there. The first step is to choose it, then we shall come to accept it lovingly and thankfully; but, finally, we shall rejoice and delight in it. If you cannot say “Thy Will be done,” say: “I am willing to be made willing that Thy Will should be done.” If your will is like a bit of rough and rugged iron, tell God that you are willing for it to be plunged into the furnace of His love, so that all which is unyielding and obdurate may pass away before the ardent heat of the Divine Fire. Depend on it that He will not fail, nor be discouraged with the long process that may be required; and that He will not be rough or violent. He will stay His east wind. He will keep His hand on the pulse, that He may be aware of the least symptom that the ordeal is too strong.

At first there may be a twinge of pain, as when a dislocated limb is pressed back into its proper position, but afterwards there is the blessed restoration of healthy vigour. You will only lose what you would gladly give up if you know as much as God does of what promotes soul-health. “Whosoever,” said our Lord, “will do the Will of my Father, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.” “In His Will is our peace.”

 Most Gracious God, to know and love whose will is righteousness, enlighten our souls with the brightness of Thy presence, that we may both know Thy Will and be enabled to perform it. Amen. – F. B. Meyer

TRUST AND OBEY

“Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.”– Psalm 37:3

   If ever there were a single verse of Scripture that summarized the general responsibility of the Christian life, this could be it.  We are to “Trust in the LORD, and do good.”  We are to live by faith and do that which we know to do.  We are always to rely upon God, trusting in Him entirely, yet never ceasing to obey His commands and principles.  

   Daniel B. Towner was present in a testimony service in 1886 when a man, reportedly knowing little of the great doctrines of the Bible, stood to speak. He finished his testimony by saying, “I’m not quite sure-but I’m going to trust and I’m going to obey.”  Mr. Towner wrote down the man’s words and shared them with John Sammis.  The result was one of the most beloved hymns of all time, “Trust and Obey.”  This is great advice for the youngest child of God and also for the most mature saint.  

   There are two duties in this text, each with equal importance, both faith and obedience.  As with many such verses, there is also a clear progression.  Although obedience is critical, everything begins with faith.  In the matter of salvation, one can never work his way to Heaven.  We are born again when we “Trust in the LORD.”  That regenerating work will manifest itself in the desire and ability to “do good.”  There is also a clear balance for godly living in this profound and inspired statement.  It presents the absolute necessity of both faith and obedience.  Of course, faith is not passive; but living faith will result in obedience to Christ.  At the same time, the effort to “do good” is not in conflict with faith, or a replacement for it.  

   In the Christian life, faith and works complement each other.  We have all witnessed the imbalance of those who claim to be relying on God, and yet they are unwilling to obey the commands of the Word of God.  We have also known those who were zealously committed to doing what they perceived to be right, but without the essential presence of faith and dependence upon God.  You have probably heard the familiar saying which embodies this principle, “Pray as if everything depends on God, and work as though everything depends on you.”  The remainder of this text promises great blessing for those who will “Trust in the LORD, and do good.”- Thomas Smith

Faithful in the Small Things

“He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.” Luke 16:10

Have you ever thought that the vast ocean is really made up of single drops of water, built from tiny molecules, which are made of microscopic atoms? Even in our lives, it is the small things that really do make the difference. All big things are made of little things. Big things are made of little choices, little acts, little words, and little thoughts. This is so important for us to realize, because every day we impact others by the little things we say or do. But if we are faithful in the little things, it follows that we will be faithful in that which is much. In other words, if we get the little things right, the big issues will take care of themselves.

“Little drops of water, little grains of sand…” goes the children’s rhyme. Be on guard for those little things that may slip in unnoticed but undermine God’s greater purpose in your life.–Adrian Rogers

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

Full of Song 

“…..the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” (Isaiah 55:12) 

When sin is pardoned, our greatest sorrow is ended, and our truest pleasure begins. Such is the joy which the Lord bestows upon His reconciled ones, that it overflows and fills all nature with delight. The material world has latent music in it, and a renewed heart knows how to bring it out and make it vocal. Creation is the organ, and a gracious man finds out its keys, lays his hand thereon, and wakes the whole system of the universe to the harmony of praise. Mountains and hills, and other great objects, are, as it were, the bass of the chorus; while the trees of the wood, and all things that have life, take up the air of the melodious song.

When God’s Word is made to prosper among us and souls are saved, then everything seems full of song. When we hear the confessions of young believers and the testimonies of well-instructed saints, we are made so happy that we must praise the Lord, and then it seems as if rocks and hills and woods and fields echo our joy-notes and turn the world into an orchestra. Lord, on this happy May Day, lead me out into thy tuneful world as rich in praise as a lark in full song.- (Faith’s Checkbook)

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