“The people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits”   (Daniel 11:32).

The LORD is a man of war, Jehovah is his name.” Those who enlist under His banner shall have a Commander who will train them for the conflict and give them both vigor and valor. The times of which Daniel wrote were of the very worst kind, and then it was promised that the people of God would come out in their best colors: they would be strong and stout to confront the powerful adversary.

Oh, that we may know our God: His power, His faithfulness, His immutable love, and so may be ready to risk everything in His behalf. He is One whose character excites our enthusiasm and makes us willing to live and to die for Him. Oh, that we may know our God by familiar fellowship with Him; for then we shall become like Him and shall be prepared to stand up for truth and righteousness. He who comes forth fresh from beholding the face of God will never fear the face of man. If we dwell with Him, we shall catch the heroic spirit, and to us a world of enemies will be but as the drop of a bucket. A countless array of men, or even of devils, will seem as little to us as the nations are to God, and He counts them only as grasshoppers. Oh, to be valiant for truth in this day of falsehood.(By Charles Spurgeon)

Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.–Colossians 4:6   The tongue is a barometer of the soul. What we say reveals a lot about what we are. What comes out of the mouth reveals what is in the heart. With that in mind, beware of the person, and be careful about being the person, who must always have the first word, the last word, the loudest word, the most words, and the harshest words.   Much could be said about each of these–give them some thought! People do this for a reason and it’s not good. Some of the factors are pride, fear, anger, bitterness, etc., all of which the Bible condemns. Think before you speak is still good advice.   Let me add one more thing to the list—beware of the person who always uses the “I” word. This relates to everything I’ve just mentioned. It, in fact, gets to the very heart of the problem. To put it quite simply–we tend to think far too much of ourselves, and it shows up in our speech.   Since we are accountable for every word we speak we had better choose our words carefully. The content, the tone, the manner, the amount, and the timing of our words are all important. Knowing God is judging us should cause us to judge ourselves. If we do, I suspect we’ll all find someting that needs to be confessed and corrected. THINK ABOUT IT!

Yes, from first to last, from our cradle to our grave,
from the earliest pang of sin’s conviction to the last
thrill of sin’s forgiveness, from earth to heaven; this
will be our testimony in all the way the Lord our God has
led us in the wilderness: “He has done all things well.”

In providence and in grace,
in every truth of His Word,
in every lesson of His love,
in every stroke of His rod,
in every sunbeam that has shone,
in every cloud that has shaded,
in every element that has sweetened,
in every ingredient that has embittered,
in all that has been mysterious, inscrutable,
painful, and humiliating;
in all that He gave,
in all that He took away,
this testimony is His just due, and this our grateful
acknowledgment through time and through eternity:
“He has done all things well.”

Has He converted us through grace by a way we
had thought the most improbable? Has He torn
up all our earthly hopes by the roots? Has He
thwarted our schemes, frustrated our plans,
disappointed our expectations? Has He taught
us in schools most trying, by a discipline most
severe, and lessons most humbling to our nature?
Has He withered our strength by sickness, reduced
us to poverty by loss, crushed our heart by
bereavement?

And have we been tempted to exclaim, “All
these things are against me?” Ah! no! faith will
yet obtain the ascendancy, and sweetly sing:
“I know in all things that befell,
My Jesus has done all things well.”

Beloved, it must be so, for Jesus can do nothing
wrong. Study the way of His providence and grace
with the microscopic eye of faith, view them in
every light, examine them in their minutest detail,
as you would the petal of a flower, or the wing of
an insect; and, oh, what wonders, what beauty,
what marvellous adaptation would you observe in all
the varied dealings with you of your glorious Lord!

I’ll sing of Jesus crucified,
The Lamb of God who bled and died,
A healing balm, a crimson tide,
Flowed from His head, His feet, His side!
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

He sought me in the wilderness,
And found me there in deep distress;
He changed and washed this heart of mine,
And filled me with His love Divine!
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

For what the Lord has done for me,
For boundless grace so rich and free,
For all His mercies that are past,
I’ll praise Him while my life shall last!
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

When sorrow’s waves around me roll,
His promises my mind console;
When earth and hell my soul assail,
His grace and mercy never fail.
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

When death shall steal upon my frame,
To damp and quench the vital flame,
I’ll look into my Savior’s breast,
And there recline and sweetly rest.
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

And when we join the ransomed throng,
To chant the sweet immortal song,
With tuneful heart, and voice, and tongue,
We’ll roll the lofty note along!
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

To Him who washed us in His blood,
And made us kings and priests to God;
Hosanna we will ever sing,
And make the heavenly arches ring!
Above the rest this note shall swell,
‘My Jesus has done all things well.’

“He hath done all things well.” Mark 7:37

By Octavius Winslow

“I have begun to give;….begin to possess” (Deut. 2:31).

A great deal is said in the Bible about waiting for God. The lesson cannot be too strongly enforced. We easily grow impatient of God’s delays. Much of our trouble in life comes out of our restless, sometimes reckless, haste. We cannot wait for the fruit to ripen, but insist on plucking it while it is green. We cannot wait for the answers to our prayers, although the things we ask for may require long years in their preparation for us. We are exhorted to walk with God; but ofttimes God walks very slowly. But there is another phase of the lesson. God often waits for us.

We fail many times to receive the blessing He has ready for us, because we do not go forward with Him. While we miss much good through not waiting for God, we also miss much through over-waiting. There are times when our strength is to sit still, but there are also times when we are to go forward with a firm step.

There are many Divine promises which are conditioned upon the beginning of some action on our part. When we begin to obey, God will begin to bless us. Great things were promised to Abraham, but not one of them could have been obtained by waiting in Chaldea. He must leave home, friends, and country, and go out into unknown paths and press on in unfaltering obedience in order to receive the promises. The ten lepers were told to show themselves to the priest, and “as they went they were cleansed.” If they had waited to see the cleansing come in their flesh before they would start, they would never have seen it. God was waiting to cleanse them; and the moment their faith began to work, the blessing came.

When the Israelites were shut in by a pursuing army at the Red Sea, they were commanded to “Go forward.” Their duty was no longer one of waiting, but of rising up from bended knees and going forward in the way of heroic faith. They were commanded to show their faith at another time by beginning their march over the Jordan while the river ran to its widest banks. The key to unlock the gate into the Land of Promise they held in their own hands, and the gate would not turn on its hinges until they had approached it and unlocked it. That key was faith. We are set to fight certain battles. We say we can never be victorious; that we never can conquer these enemies; but, as we enter the conflict, One comes and fights by our side, and through Him we are more than conquerors. If we had waited, trembling and fearing, for our Helper to come before we would join the battle, we should have waited in vain. This would have been the over-waiting of unbelief. God is waiting to pour richest blessings upon you. Press forward with bold confidence and take what is yours. “I have begun to give, begin to possess.” –J. R. Miller

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27

Today, everyone is looking for peace. We want our desires fulfilled and we think that will bring us happiness.  We hear promises of fulfillment on radios, see promises on billboards, become a part of them through television and after hearing these promises enough times, we sing about them and make daily choices because of them.  What is the primary message that these slogans promote?  The answer, “We’ve got what you need.”  Promises, promises!  Promises of a fulfilled life, an improved life, a happier life and a more peaceful life suggest that this life is attainable through the things of this world. Commercials promise that you can “have it your way,” “we do it all for you,” “you asked for it, you got it,” and “you deserve it.” But can these promises really be true? And will these products bring us the peace we are all seeking?

Because of the inability to have these promises truly fulfilled from the world, it then seems hard to believe that all the promises from the Lord will come true. Unlike the promises of the world that are conditioned upon our spending money and time to benefit from their product, Jesus has given us the promises of God, which are free. The Lord does require something from us: our trust, belief and obedience. And in return He promises peace to His people. Our attitudes, goals and desires should not depend on the promises of the world, but on the promises of the Word. It’s that peace that makes us different and gives us something that others want. That peace will affect the way we live in our actions, behaviors and attitudes. Acts 10:36 says, “The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ:(he is Lord of all:).”  Jesus promises us peace, not from this world, but from Him. His promises are not empty slogans but a way of life: for He is the way, the truth and the life.

Do you need to experience His peace today? If so, begin by asking Jesus to fill you with His loving peace. His promises will never fail you.(From Daily Disciples Devotional, revised to KJV)