“I am the vine, ye are the branches; He that abideth in Me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without Me ye can do nothing.”--John 15:5

James Montgomery Boice wrote about a dinner he had with a fellow pastor. During the meal, the pastor relayed to Boice the story of a man who had challenged him deeply in his walk with Christ. Bishop James Ussher, an old man who was once a notable Bible chronologist, suffered from many diseases, and was crippled by an inflammation in his joints. His condition forced him to stay home, unable to participate in normal activities.

A visitor hoped to encourage Dr. Ussher, and didn’t know that he was the one who would be most encouraged. The experience that day gave him a life-changing perspective.

It seems that every day Dr. Ussher asked his nurse to seat him by the east window in the morning, where he could enjoy the warmth of the rising sun. At noon, his nurse moved him to a window with southern exposure, where the warm rays of the midday sun cheered and soothed him. As the afternoon wore on, he was moved again to a window facing westward, and he sat watching the sun slip below the horizon. As the pastor recalled to Boice during their meal, “Dr. Ussher spent his day literally abiding in the sun.”

Commenting on this story, Stephen Davey writes:”What an incredible reminder to us! How closely do we follow theSon? Are you abiding in Him as He commanded? If you focus your energy on abiding in Christ, He will reproduce His character in you, over time. That is His promise to us. All those who choose to abide in Him, to literally walk with a constant acknowledgment of His presence, will eventually bear the same qualities that distinguish Him.”

Then he adds, “Resemblance is the result of relationship.That’s why we must focus our eyes on Christ and give daily attention to our relationship with Him. He will teach us to talk like Him, walk like Him, view life like Him, and love like Him.

When you begin to abide in Christ, people will not see you only, but Christ in you. It will be His life, through you, responding to the daily environment and conditions that affect you.

Like Dr. Ussher, we are all crippled and in need of Sonlight. We need His warmth and soothing touch. So pull up your chair beside the window of God’s Word, gaze upon the glory of the Son, and reflect the warmth of His light . . .  the true Sonlight.— Ask the Lord to give your heart contentment in His presence; ask Him to cause you to long for His presence in your daily activities; take time to talk to Him throughout the most mundane activities you perform today.”

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.”–James 1:5-6

Henry Ford invented the automobile and built a giant auto company named after himself, Ford Motor Company. Ford was a pioneer in the automobile, beginning in 1908 with the Model T. He also is credited with inventing the assembly line method of production, a method that lowered costs drastically in not only the automotive industry, but several other companies. Ford is said to have been a tightfisted man, despite being worth over $188 billion. One time, a part broke in the electrical generators of his factory. Ford called Charlie Steinmetz, who built the mighty generators, to come fix the problem. Steinmetz came out to the factory, toyed with the generators for a couple hours, then had them up and running again. Ford was very pleased until he received Steinmetz’s bill-$10,000. Shocked, Ford inquired of Steinmetz why his bill was so high for only a couple hours of tinkering. Steinmetz replied: “For tinkering with the generator: $10. For knowing where to tinker: $9,990.” Ford paid Stenimetz the entire $10,000.

Commenting on this story, Dr. Paul Chappell wrote: “Who doesn’t lack wisdom? There isn’t a person on this earth who couldn’t use some divine wisdom from God. From the President of the United States to a teenager in high school, everyone needs wisdom. We might differ in our levels of wisdom or in the situations in which we need wisdom, but one thing is certain-we need God’s wisdom.

The good news is God promises to give us wisdom, but He gives us two conditions for receiving it. First, we must ask Him. How many times have we needed God’s direction or guidance but failed to ask? Oftentimes our self-sufficient attitude dictates that we try our own options and seek our own guidance before seeking God’s wisdom.

God’s second condition for receiving wisdom is that we have faith that He will give it to us. Asking God for wisdom as part of a “three-part plan” for guidance doesn’t work. God must be our one and only resource for wisdom. Only He can give us what we need and we must trust Him fully.

God promises us wisdom as we ask it from Him and trust that He will give it to us. God has promised it to us, just as He has promised us eternal salvation if we trust in His Son’s sacrifice. Yet many times it is easier for us to trust Him for eternal life than for wisdom, because we don’t have another alternative for eternal life. But Christian, we don’t have another alternative for wisdom either. God is the only source of true wisdom and guidance.

The question to ask yourself isn’t whether or not you need wisdom, but in what area of life you need it-work, school, family, etc. Where do you need God’s divine wisdom to know what to do? God promises to give it to you! Take time now to first ask God for wisdom, and then to place your faith completely in Him for an answer. Don’t rely on Plan B for guidance; make God your first and only plan today.”

“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”–James 1:2-4

Trials are God’s tools to shape and make us what He would have us to be. Often trials are liken unto a firey  furnace that puts us to the test and purifies us of sin and short-comings. While not a pleasant thought that is an essential factor in our growth and development. Trials are not easy but they are essential to His plan for our lives. Although painful they are profitable.

Our text tells us that patience is produced when we are called upon to wait upon God and to endure the pain until He comes to our rescue. It might be that you are going through tough times right now and it seems that they will never end. Instead of thinking about what you will get out of it, you are focused on “when” you will get out. You wake up every morning hoping that this will be the day when things take a turn for the better–and you wait. God’s desire is that you will continue to faithfully trust Him, submitting yourself fully unto Him. Doing so produces patience. That’s why He allows trials, but the next verse tells us how we should treat our trials—“But let patience have her perfect work–“.

The little word “let” tells us that our will is in play. We are to accept what God allows without resenting it or running from it. Rather than seeing our trials as evidence of God’s unconcern we are to look upon them as proof of His concern. Our pain isn’t always punishment. It is often preventive or preparatory as God works to mold us and make us vessels fit for the Master’s use.

Believe it or not, and someday you will believe it, the end result will be well worth it. The pain will be worth the product. God’s plan is for us to “be perfect and entire, wanting nothing”(vs. 4). That’s why we’re told to “count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations”(vs. 2). Although you cannot always understand God you can trust Him to always do the right thing and the best thing. If you lack the wisdom to see this “ask of God”(vs. 5) and He will give it to you. God’s desire is to help, not hurt. But sometimes being helped hurts–but that’s what it takes for healing.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”–Hebrews 11:1-3 

Sometimes we are too smart, at least in our own estimation, for our own good. We attribute our accomplishments to our abilities and believe, given enough time, money, and effort, that we can pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps—-it’s called “humanism”. Our confidence is in the creature rather than the Creator, in scholars and scientists rather than the Scripture, in our reasoning rather than God’s revelation.

The Bible-believer however turns this up-side- down, actually right-side-up. His belief in the first verse of the Bible–“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth”, gives him the key to unlock all the mysteries of life. His confidence in the Creator and belief in the Bible settles the topic of discussion. By simply believing that God exist and that He has the wisdom and power to create “the heaven and the earth”, it becomes easy to believe everything else He says. And that produces peace that passeth all understanding.

Confidence in the Creator creates contentment in the Christian. Walking by faith we have blessed assurance that the One who created us cares for us. Regardless of our situation, He knows, He cares, and He can help! Confidence in our Creator gives courage in our struggles, comfort in our sorrow, contentment in our situation, calm in our storms, compulsion in our service, and cheerfulness in our suffering. That is a soft pillow upon which we can rest our weary heads and sleep at night. Every Christian has cause for contentment and a reason to rejoice, because his confidence is in the Creator rather than the creature. And there is no one single instance where God has failed. He cannot lie and He cannot lose.You can trust Him.  He who is “Faithful and True” will not fail.

The Lord has heard the voice of my weeping. Psalm 6:8

There’s a song that says,”Tears Are A Language That God Understands”. Here we see the basis for that title. And who hasn’t wept? We cry over all sorts of things. When we can’t explain or express ourselves any other way we weep. When the burden is heavy and the pain is unbearable we weep. When our mind is troubled and our heart is broken we weep. It is good to know that our tears get God’s attention.

 Spurgeon said:”Is there a voice in weeping? Does weeping speak? In what language does it utter its meaning? Why, in that universal tongue which is known and understood in all the earth, and even in Heaven above. When a man weeps, whether he is a Jew or Gentile, Barbarian, Scythian, bond or free–it has the same meaning in it. Weeping is the eloquence of sorrow. It is an eloquent orator, needing no interpreter–but understood by all.

It is sweet to know that our tears are understood, even when words fail. Let us learn to think of tears as liquid prayers, and of weeping as a constant dropping of importunate intercession which will surely wear its way right into the very heart of God’s mercy, despite the stony difficulties which obstruct the way. My God, I will “weep” when I cannot plead, for You hear the voice of my weeping!”