Streams in the Desert: 21st Century Edition

By L. B. Cowman

Streams in the Desert is a daily devotional that was originally published by Lettie Burd Cowman in 1925. She was co-founder of the Oriental Missionary Society (later known as OMS International, and eventually the One Mission Society), and served as a Christian missionary in China and Japan, from 1901 until 1918, until her

• Language: English
• Publisher: xbowus
• Release date: Aug 17, 2018
• ISBN: 9780692145517

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— A Personal Word —

In the pathway of faith, we come to learn that the Lord’s thoughts are not our thoughts, nor His ways our ways. Both in the physical and spiritual realm, great pressure means great power! Although circumstances may bring us into the place of death, that need not spell disaster — for if we trust in the Lord and wait patiently, that simply provides the occasion for the display of His Almighty power. Remember the wonders He’s performed, His miracles, and all the rulings He’s pronounced (Ps 105:5).

~ Mrs. Charles E Cowman

"Water shall break forth in the wilderness,

filling the streams of the desert"

– Isaiah 35:6

— January 1 —

Upper Boundary Waters

the land you’re about to cross through and inhabit is full of hills and broad plains that drink water from the rains of heaven; the LORD your God careth for this land; the eyes of the LORD are ever upon it, from the beginning even unto the very end of the year – Deuteronomy 11:11-12

TODAY, DEAR FRIENDS, we stand upon the verge of the unknown. Before us lies a new year and we’re going forth to possess it. Who can tell what we shall find? What new experiences or changes will come our way? What unseen demands shall arise? Despite our justifiable uncertainties, we have this comforting and heart-warming message from our heavenly Father, the LORD your God careth for this new horizon … and the LORD’s eyes are continually watching over it through all seasons of the year.

At its core, this passage reassures us that all our supply is to come from the Lord. Here are the springs that shall never run dry and the fountains and streams that shall never be cut off. Here, anxious one, is the gracious pledge of your heavenly Father: if I’m the Source of all your mercies, they can never fail us; no heat nor drought can scorch the river whose tributary streams bring joy to the city of God (Ps 46:4).

The landscape’s full of hills and valleys. It’s not all smooth and uniform nor all downhill. If the entirety of life were uncharacteristically dead level, its dreadful sameness would oppress us; we need the challenging plateaus and canyonlands. The uplands collect refreshing rain and channel it to a hundred fruitful valleys. Ah, and so it is with us! It’s the hill difficulty that drives us to the throne of grace and brings down the renewal of blessing. It’s the precipitous, seemingly barren hills of life—we marvel toward and often grumble at—that fill our canteens, dedicate our sluiceways and penstocks, and graciously replenish our irrigation canals and wildlife habitat. How many have perished in the desert wilderness, buried under its golden sands, who would have otherwise thrived in the hill country? How many would have been done in by frost, blighted by unremitting gusts, and swept desolate of tree and fruit, if not for the hillside’s wind-break—stern, hard, rugged, and irrefutably steep to climb? God’s hills are a gracious protection for His people against their foes!

We can never be certain about what loss, sorrow, and trials are actually accomplishing in our lives. We only need to trust. The Father comes near to take our hand and leads us on our way today. It’ll be a good and blessed new year!

He leads us on by paths we did not know;

upward He leads us, though our steps be slow,

though oft we faint and falter on the way,

though storms and darkness oft obscure the day;

yet, when the clouds are gone,

we know He leads us on.

He leads us on through all the unquiet years;

past all our dreamland hopes, and doubts and fears,

He guides our steps, through all the tangled maze

of losses, sorrows, and o’er clouded days;

we know His will is done;

and still He leads us on.

Nicholaus Ludwig Zinzendorf

— January 2 —

Wait Upon a Star

the side chambers were larger with each successive level, since the house was built in stages, ever winding upward, with thinner walls as ye move from the ground floor to the highest by way of the midst – Ezekiel 41:7

Still upward be thine onward course:

for this I pray today;

still upward as the years go by,

and seasons pass away.

Still upward in this coming year,

thy path is all untried;

still upward may’st thou journey on,

close by thy Savior’s side.

Still upward although sorrow come,

and trials crush thine heart;

still upward may they draw thy soul,

with Christ to walk apart.

Still upward till the day shall break,

and shadows all have flown;

still upward till in Heaven you wake,

and stand before the throne.

We should never be content to rest in the concealing mists of the valley when the summit of Mount Tabor becks and awaits. How pure is the dew of the upper meadows, how fresh the mountain air, how rich is the food and fare of the dwellers aloft, whose windows look into the New Jerusalem! Many saints today seem content to live like men in salt mines who never see the sun. Smudged tears sadden the looks on their faces, when they might anoint them with celestial, moisturizing oil. I’m convinced that many believers pine their lives away, in proverbial dungeons, when they could stroll the palace rooftop and view the goodly countryside and Lebanon. Wake up from your lowly condition, O believer! Cast off thy sluggishness, thy weariness, thy coldness, or whatever interferes with your pure and vibrant love to Christ. Make Him the source, center, and circumference of all your soul’s range of delight. Rest no longer satisfied by your meager human accomplishments. Aspire to a higher, a nobler, a fuller life. Upward to heaven! Nearer to God! – CH Spurgeon

I want to scale the utmost height,

and catch a gleam of glory bright;

but still I’ll pray, till heaven I’ve found,

Lord, lead me on to higher ground!

Not many of us are living at our best. We linger in the lowlands because we’re afraid to brave the mountains. The steepness and ruggedness intimidate us, and so we stay in the bleary, valley mist and default on learning the mysteries of the hills. We can’t know what’s lost in our self-indulgence, what glory awaits if only we had courage for that challenge, or what blessings we’d find if only we’d move to the uplands of God. – JRM

Too low they build who build beneath the stars.

— January 3 —

Through Your Paces

I’ll lead on, careful, according to the pace of the cowherds and children who go before us – Genesis 33:14

HERE WE FIND a beautiful illustration of Jacob’s thoughtfulness for the cattle and children! He wouldn’t allow ‘em to be overdriven for even a day. He didn’t lead hard or push them to keep up with Esau—who was strong with fresh expectation—but urged them to move only as they were able to endure. He knew exactly how far they could travel between stops and made that His principal consideration in arranging their marches. He’d walked the same wilderness journey, years before, and was well-acquainted with its roughness, its exposure to the elements, its distance and disparate water sites, all by personal experience. Therefore, he reassured everyone, we’ll move along gently … since you’ve not passed this way before (Josh 3:4).

We’ve not passed this way before, either, but the Lord Jesus has. It’s all untrodden and uncharted territory for us, but He knows it by personal experience. He knows the steep climbs that leave us breathless, how our toes and arches ache through its rocky sections, those shadeless spans where the searing heat zaps our strength, and all the swollen rivers we have to cross — Jesus has gone through it all before us. He, too, has wearied this journey (John 4:6).

Our compassionate Guide was inundated by every possible torrent, yet all the floodwaters together weren’t able to quench His love. He was made a perfect leader by the trials He suffered, for "He knows our framework, and remembers that we’re dust" (Ps 103:14). Reflect on that whenever you’re tempted to question the gentleness of His leading. He’s remembering all the time; and He’ll not force you to plant one stride beyond what your foot’s able to endure. Never mind, if you doubt its ability for what appears to be the next step; He’ll either strengthen it to make it possible, or He’ll call a sudden halt and you won’t have to take it at all. – Frances Ridley Havergal

In pastures green? Not always; sometimes He

who knowest best, in kindness leadeth me

in weary ways, where heavy shadows be.

So, whether on the hill-tops high and fair

I dwell, or in the sunless valleys, where

the shadows lie, what matter? He is there.

Barry

— January 4 —

Don’t Stop Believing

then Jesus said, ‘carry on thy way, your son lives’; and the man trusted his words, so he started off – John 4:50

for everything you ask in prayer, believe – Mark 11:24

WHEN YOU ENCOUNTER a matter that necessitates definite prayer, pray till you believe God — that is, until you can thank Him for the answer with wholehearted sincerity and unfeigned lips. If the answer tarries outward, though, don’t continue praying in a way that’s evident you’re not believing for God’s help. Such a prayer, instead of fostering inspiration, will be a hindrance; and when you’re finished praying, that way, you’ll find your faith’s weakened or entirely gone. The urgency you felt to offer that sort of prayer is clearly from the false-self and Satan. It may not be wrong to mention the matter in question to the Lord again, if He keeps you waiting, yet be sure to address it in a way that implies and cultivates faith. Don’t pray yourself out of faith.

You may tell Him you’re waiting, still trusting His sovereignty, and therefore praising your Maker for the answer. Ask the Spirit to strengthen your patient anticipation. There’s nothing that clinches onto faith so fully, in fact, as your ability to thank God for the answer before seeing tangible proof of it. Prayers that diminish our faith, on the contrary, deny the promise in His Word as well as His whisper, Yes, that He gave us in our hearts. Such prayers are but the expression of unrest in our spirit, and unrest implies unbelief in reference to the answer to prayer. For we which have believed are entering that peaceful rest (Heb 4:3).

The prayer that dampens our faith frequently arises from centering our thoughts on the difficulty rather than on God’s promise. As you recall, Abraham wasn’t troubled by his own body, and his faith never weakened … he never wavered in believing God’s promise, and, in fact, his faith grew stronger, which brought glory to God (Rom 4:19-20). May we watch and pray, so we don’t fall into the temptation (Matt 26:41) of praying ourselves out of faith. – CHP

Faith is not a sense, nor sight, nor reason, but a taking God at His word. – Christmas Evans

The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety. – George Mueller

You’ll never learn faith in comfortable surroundings. God delivers our promises in the quiet hour, seals our covenants with great and gracious words, then steps back, waiting to see how much we believe. Soon thereafter, He lets temptation visit, and the resulting test seems to contradict all He’s foretold. Now’s when faith wins its crown. This is the moment, from within your crew of frightened and trembling seafarers, to peer up through the storm and declare, I have faith in God and believe everything will happen just as it was told me (Acts 27:25).

Believe and trust; through stars and suns,

through life and death, through soul and sense,

His wise, paternal purpose runs;

the darkness of His Providence

is starlit with Divine intents.

— January 5 —

Heaven Help Us

then Asa cried out, ‘O LORD, there’s no one like you to help the powerless against the strong’ – 2 Chronicles 14:11

REMIND GOD AGAIN of His consummate responsibility. There’s none beside thee to help. That’s precisely what Asa did when Zerah the Cushite marched against them with a vast army and three hundred chariots (v.9). It looked impossible for Asa to hold his own against such a determined multitude. Their company was the entire kit and caboodle, though, with no allies waiting to rush in; so their only hope was in God.

Perhaps you’ve experienced something like this — where your difficulties have been allowed to escalate to such an alarming pitch that you’re compelled to renounce all mortal aid, to which you’ve had recourse in lesser trials, and cast yourself back on your almighty Friend. Put God between your fate and the foe.

Asa’s faith, recognizing his comparative material weakness, viewed Jehovah as standing between the might of Zerah and himself; and he wasn’t mistaken in this vantage. We read, further, that the Cushites "were shattered before the Lord and his cantonment (v.13) as though a host of heavenly titans flung themselves against the enemy on Judah’s behalf. God’s forces overwhelmed the belligerent opposition to such a degree that they turned running. The Judean defendants had only to follow up and gather the plunder left behind. Our God Jehovah is the Lord of hosts" (Isa 10:16) who can summon unexpected reinforcement at any moment to help His people. Believe that He’s between you and your difficulty, and whatever’s baffling you will flee before Him like clouds before the gale. – FB Meyer

When nothing whereon to lean remains,

when strongholds crumble to dust;

when nothing is sure but that God still reigns,

that is just the time to trust.

It’s better to walk by faith than sight,

in this path of yours and mine;

and the darkest night, when there’s no outer light

is the time for faith to shine.

Abraham believed God (Rom 4:3) and said to his sight, Stand back! and to the laws of nature, Hold your peace! and to a misgiving heart, Silence, you lying tempter! He simply "believed God." – Joseph Parker

— January 6 —

Crossing the Great Divide

when you pass through deep waters … they won’t sweep you away – Isaiah 43:2

GOD DOESN’T OPEN paths for us before we arrive at them. He doesn’t render help before it’s needed. He doesn’t remove obstacles that block our way until we reach them. Yet, when we’re on the tooth edge of need, God’s hand is ever outstretched.

Many people forget this, and are forever agonizing over difficulties they envision in the distant future. They wish for God to open and clear countless miles of seamless itinerary ahead of them, when He’s already promised to guide us step by step as the need arises. You must be at the water’s edge and into their floods before you can claim the promise. The ultimate example of this is the great many people who dread death and lament that they don’t have dying grace. Of course they won’t have the grace for death when they’re in superb health, amidst the foray of life’s responsibilities. Why should they possess it when death’s a mental abstraction over the distant horizon? What’s needed until then is living grace—for life’s work, calling, sharing wisdom—and then dying grace when they come to die. – JRM

When you pass through the waters

deep the waves may be and cold,

yet Jehovah is our refuge,

and His promise is our hold; 

for the Lord Himself has said it,

He, the faithful God is true:

"When thou comest to the waters

thou shall not go down, BUT THROUGH."

Seas of sorrow, seas of trial,

bitterest anguish, fiercest pain,

rolling surges of temptation

sweeping over heart and brain —

they shall never overflow us

for we know His word is true;

all His waves and all His billows

He will lead us safely THROUGH.

Threat’ning breakers of destruction,

doubt’s insidious undertow,

shall not sink us, nor shall drag us

out to ocean depths of woe;

for His promise shall sustain us,

praise the Lord, whose Word is true!

We shall not go down nor under,

for He says, Thou passest THROUGH.

Annie Johnson Flint

— January 7 —

At Ease

I’ve come to realize (the importance of) contentedness in whatever circumstance I am – Philippians 4:11

WHILE BEING DENIED every living comfort, Paul wrote the above verse in his darkened prison. His declaration brings to mind the story of a monarch, who, upon entering his garden one morning, found everything withered and dying. He was perplexed at the sight and asked the oak that stood near the front gate what the trouble was. He found it was sick of life and determined to die because it wasn’t tall and beautiful like the pine tree. The pine was discouraged because it couldn’t bear grapes, like the vine. The vine was determined to throw its life away because it couldn’t stand upright and have fruit as fine as the peach tree. Even the geranium was fretting because it wasn’t as lithe and fragrant as the lilac.

On went the conversation throughout the garden. Yet, coming to a heartsease, the overseer discovered its bright face lifted and cheerful as ever. Well, heartsease, I’m glad to find one brave little flower amidst all this disappointment. You don’t seem disheartened in the slightest!

The tricolored viola replied, Not really; and it may not account for much, but I figured that if you wanted an oak or a pine, a peach tree or a lilac shrub, you’d have planted another of those. Since I know you wanted heartsease in your garden, I’m determined to be the brightest and most gratifying dapple of heartsease that I can.

Others may do a greater work,

but you have your part to do; 

and no one in all God’s heritage

can do it so well as you.

People who are God’s own without reservation have learned to be in every state content; for His will becomes their will, and they desire to do for Him only what He desires them to do; they strip themselves of everything else, and in this nakedness find all things restored a hundredfold.

— January 8 —

The Rain Settles It

I’ll send downpourings of rain in their appropriate seasons; and they’ll bring showers of blessing – Ezekiel 34:26

IN WHAT SEASON do you find yourself this morning, friend? Is it a season of drought? If so, that’s the season for showers. Or is yours a season of great heaviness and ominous clouds? That’s the season for showers, too. Your strength shall equal your days (Deut 33:25) and "I’ll give thee … showers of blessing." Notice how the word’s in the plural here. All kinds of blessings God will send.

All God’s blessings go together, like links in a golden chain. If He gives lifesaving grace, He’ll add comforting grace as well. Our divine Groundskeeper will send showers of blessings. Look up with anticipation, today, O parched little plant; lift thy leaves and open thy flowers to receive a heavenly watering. – CH Spurgeon

Let but your heart become a valley low,

and God will rain on it till it will overflow.

Only You, dear Lord, can transform my thorn into a flower. And I so want this thorn refashioned into a fruiting blossom. We heard that Job received sunshine after his troubling rain, but was all the rain just a waste? Job wants to know, and I want to know, if the shower had nothing to do with the shining. You can tell me, Lord — Your cross can tell me. You’ve crowned Thy sorrow. Let this be my crown, O Lord. I’ll only triumph in You when I’ve learned the radiance of the rain. – George Matheson

The fruitful life seeks rain showers as well as sunshine.

The landscape, brown and sere beneath the sun,

needs but the cloud to lift it up from strife;

mist may damp the leaves of tree and flower,

yet it requires the cloud-distilled shower

to bring rich verdure to the pulseless life.

Ah, how like this, the landscape of a soul:

mists of trial fall like incense, rich and sweet;

yet bearing little in the crystal tray —

like nymphs of night, dews lift at break of day

and transient impress leave, like lips that meet.

But clouds of crises, bearing burdens rare,

leave in the heart, a moisture settled deep:

life kindles by the magic law of God;

and where before the thirsty camel trod,

there richest beauties to life’s landscape leap.

Then read thou in each cloud that comes to thee

the words of Paul, in letters large and clear:

so shall those clouds thy soul with blessing feed,

and with a constant trust as thou dost read,

all things together work for good. Fret not, nor fear!

— January 9 —

Butterfly Effect

I now reckon the burden of our immediate difficulties as weightless when compared to the splendrous worth that’s being revealed to us – Romans 8:18

I ONCE SAVED the jar-shaped cocoon of an emperor moth for nearly a year. Its construction was delightfully peculiar. A narrow opening’s left in the free end, through which the mature insect forces its way, so its abandoned cocoon remains as perfectly intact as one still inhabited. There are no tears in the interlacing fibers. Seeing the great disparity between the size of the tiny opening and the rest of the pupa, though, it’s a wonder how anything survives the exit — of course, it’s never without great labor and difficulty. It’s actually believed that the confining pressure the moth’s body is subjected to, when passing through such a narrow orifice, is nature’s way of forcing blood plasma into the capillaries of its wings, since they’re less developed when emerging from the chrysalis.

I happened to witness the first efforts of my imprisoned moth trying to escape from its long confinement. All morning, from time to time, I watched it patiently striving and struggling to be free. It never seemed able to get beyond a certain point, though, and at last my patience was exhausted. Its woven casing was probably drier and less elastic than if I’d left it all the winter on its native heather, where nature intended it to be. At all events, I thought I was wiser and more compassionate than its Maker, and resolved to give it a helping go. With the point of my scissors, I snipped the uppermost threads to make the egress just a little easier, and lo! immediately, and with perfect ease, my moth crawled out, dragging a huge swollen body and little, shriveled wings. I watched, in vain, to see that marvelous process of expansion in which these silently and swiftly unfurl before one’s eyes. Anticipating the display, I even noticed all its spots and colorful patterns, in miniature, and longed to see them in grandiose proportion. I knew this was one of nature’s loveliest varieties and couldn’t wait to see its consummate beauty. But I looked in vain. My false tenderness had proved its ruin. The little starter suffered as a stunted abortion, crawling painfully through that brief existence instead of flying through the air on rainbow wings.

I’ve thought of my little moth often—oh so often—and especially when my tearful eyes see others struggling with sorrow, difficulty, and distress; and my tendency’s always to alleviate their suffering by offering some kind of remedy. That just disrupts the discipline, though, and how short-sighted is that? How do I know if one of these pains or groans should be relieved? The forward-looking kind of immaculate love, that seeks the perfection of its object, doesn’t feebly wince back from immediate, momentary suffering.

Our Father’s love is too steadfast to be weak. Because He loves His children and wants us to be competent life-citizens, He disciplines us … that we may eagerly seize upon his holiness (Heb 12:10). With this glorious purpose in mind, He doesn’t arbitrarily relieve our crying. Made perfect through sufferings, as our elder Brother was, we children of God are trained up to grateful obedience and brought to glory through much tribulation. – from A Tract

— January 10 —

Show Me the Way

the holy Spirit barred them from preaching the word in Asia Minor – Acts 16:6

IT IS INTERESTING to learn about the way God extended guidance toward the early heralds of the cross. Oddly enough, it was often conveyed through obstructions and prohibitions when they set their initiatives on another course than the right. When they sought to venture left, toward Asia, God stayed them in their tracks. When they tried to sail right, into Bithynia, He stayed that, too. In after years, Paul would accomplish some of his most gratifying work in that very region, but just now the door was closed against him by the holy Spirit. The time wasn’t ripe for those endeavors into what appeared impregnable bastions of Satan. Apollos must come there for pioneering work. At the same time, Paul and Barnabas were needed yet more urgently elsewhere, which provided further training for answering this responsible task.

Beloved, whenever you lack confidence about the path you’re on, submit your entire judgment to the spirit of God, asking Him to shut every door against you except the proper one. When you find a moment, say aloud, Blessed Spirit, I cast on You absolute responsibility of closing against my steps any and every course that’s not of God. Let me hear Your guiding voice behind me whenever I veer to the right hand or the left (Deut 5:32).

In the time being, continue along the blessed path you’ve already been treading. Abide in your present calling until you’re clearly told to do something else. The spirit of Jesus waits to be to you, O pilgrim adventurer, what He was to Paul. Only be careful to obey the slightest restrictions and warnings. Then, after you’ve aired all your believing prayers and you don’t encounter any evident hindrance, go forward with an enlarged, benevolent heart. Don’t be surprised if the answer appears as closed doors, though. When doors are shut right and left, an open road’s sure to lead to your Troas. There Luke’s expecting you, and heavenly visions will point the way, where vast opportunities stand open, and faithful friends are waiting. – from Paul, by FB Meyer

Is there some problem in your life to solve,

some passage seeming full of mystery?

God knows, who brings the hidden things to light.

He keeps the key.

Is there some door closed by the Father’s hand

which widely opened you had hoped to see?

Trust God and wait — for when He shuts the door

He keeps the key.

Is there some earnest prayer unanswered yet,

or answered NOT as you thought ‘twould be?

God will make clear His purpose by-and-by.

He keeps the key.

Have patience with your God, your patient God,

all wise, all knowing, no dear time-waster He,

and to the door of all your future life

He keeps the key.

Unfailing comfort, sweet and blessed rest,

to know of EVERY door He keeps the key.

That He at last when just He sees ‘tis best,

He will give it THEE.

Anonymous

— January 11 —

Give Away the Store

‘comfort ye, comfort ye my people,’ saith your God – Isaiah 40:1

STORE UP COMFORT. This was the prophet’s commission. The world’s so full of desolate hearts, today, starving for comfort; and ere you’re sufficient for this lofty ministry, you must be trained. Your lessons are costly, however, in the extreme; for, to render it perfect, you must pass through the self-same afflictions that are wringing countless hearts of tears and blood. Thus, your own life becomes the hospital ward where you’re taught the divine art of comfort. Thou art wounded, that in the binding up of thy wounds by the Great Physician, thou mayest learn how to render first aid to the wounded everywhere.

Do you wonder why you’re passing through a particularly excruciating sorrow, friend? Wait till ten years are passed, and you’ll find many others afflicted as you are now. You’ll tell them how you suffered, how you were comforted, and as your story unfolds, the anodynes will be applied that your God once wrapped around you. Then, in the eager look and the gleam of hope that shall chase the shadow of despair across the soul, you’ll know why you were afflicted. You’ll bless God for the discipline that stored your life with such a glorious treasure of experience and helpfulness. – selected

God doesn’t comfort us to make us comfortable, but to make us comforters. – John Henry Jowett

They tell me I must bruise

the rose’s leaf,

ere I can keep and use

its fragrance brief.

They tell me I must break

the skylark’s heart,

ere her cage song will make

the silence start.

They tell me love must bleed,

and friendship weep,

ere in my deepest need

I touch that deep.

Must it be always so

with precious things?

Must they be bruised and go

with beaten wings?

Ah, yes! by crushing days,

by caging nights, by scar

of thorn and stony ways,

these blessings are!

— January 12 —

Completely Hedged In

precede everything with a joyful disposition … even when you fall into hedges of various colored trials and temptations, since you’re coming to realize that the testing of faith produces vibrant endurance – James 1:2-3

GOD INTRODUCES HEDGES around His own in order to preserve them. Quite often, though, we only consider the difficult side of the brambles, and therefore misunderstand God’s intentions. This was the case for Job when he cried out, Why would You keep me alive just to be hemmed in like a hermit! (Job 3:23). Ah, but his envious tormentors saw the value of it when they accused, Haven’t you placed a hedge around his house and everything he owns? (see Job 1:10).

Through the leaves of every thorny trial, granted, are chinks of shining light, as you’ve seen. Plus, the thorns don’t prick unless you lean against them, and not one glances without His knowledge.

The words that hurt you, the letter which gave you pain, the cruel wound of your dearest friend, shortness of money, the way you let yourself down — are all known to the divine Caregiver who sympathizes as none other. He watches to see if, through all, you’ll dare to trust Him wholeheartedly.

The hawthorn hedge that keeps us from intruding,

looks very fierce and bare

when stripped by winter, every branch protruding

its thorns that would wound and tear.

But spring-time comes; and like the rod that budded,

each twig breaks out in green;

and cushions soft of tender leaves are studded,

where spines alone were seen.

The sorrows, that to us seem so perplexing,

are mercies kindly sent

to guard our wayward souls from sadder vexing,

and greater ills prevent.

To save us from the pit, no screen of roses

would serve for our defense,

the entrance that completely interposes

stings back like thorny fence.

At first, when smarting from the shock, complaining

of wounds that freely bleed,

God’s hedges of severity us paining,

may seem severe indeed.

But afterward, God’s blessed spring-time cometh,

and bitter murmurs cease;

the sharp severity that pierced us bloometh,

and yields the fruits of peace.

Then let us sing, our guarded way thus wending

life’s hidden snares among

of mercy and of judgment sweetly blending;

Earth’s sad, but lovely song.

— January 13 —

Above The Strife

in all these circumstances we’re more than conquerors through Christ who loves us – Romans 8:37

THIS IS MORE than victory. This is triumph so complete that we’ve not only escaped defeat and catastrophe but have completely neutralized our antagonizers. Hereby, we’ve secured unimaginatively valuable spoil, that’s so worthwhile, we can actually thank God for the troubling struggle. How can we be more than conquerors? We can glean a spiritual discipline out of the conflict that geometrically strengthens our faithfulness and establishes our spiritual character. Temptation’s necessary to settle and confirm us in the spiritual life, this way. It’s like the fire that burns mineralized painting detail onto ceramic or fierce winds that encourage mighty cedars to fix their roots more deeply into the soil of the mountain slope.

Spiritual conflicts are among our most gratifying blessings, and the skirmishes incited by our great adversary are used to train us for his ultimate defeat. The ancient Phrygians of Asia Minor had a legend, that every time they conquered an enemy, the victor absorbed the physical power of the aggressors, which added so much to their own capability and valor. You know this truth by the scale of your own wins and losses: that temptation, victoriously met, doubles your spiritual strength and equipment. It’s possible, therefore, to not only defeat our enemy, but to capture him and make him fight in our ranks.

The prophet Isaiah speaks of flying on the shoulders of the Philistines (Isa 11:14). The Philistines were their implacable enemies, yet this passage suggests that they wouldn’t only be able to conquer the Philistines, but would use that momentum to propel themselves onto further triumphs. Just as wise sailors can employ a merciless headwind to carry them forward—by utilising its tenacious force to tack and gybe through a zig-zag pattern—it’s possible for us to repurpose obstacles that threaten our spiritual life. Through the victorious grace of God, it’s possible to flip the most unfriendly and unfavorable hazards. It’s then you’ll catch yourself continuously marveling, All those things that were against me have happened to promote the gospel! (Phil 1:12). – from Life More Abundantly

A noted scientist, observing how early voyagers claimed that coral-forming animals instinctively built the great Atoll Islands to protect themselves within circular lagoons, set about testing the speculation. By investigating various factors, He demonstrated that the insect builders can only live and thrive when fronting the open ocean in the highly-oxygenated foam of its resistless billows. In many disciplines, likewise, it’s commonly believed that protected ease is the most favorable condition of life. Yet, the lives of the noblest and strongest among us substantiate the contrary — that enduring hardship, especially a variety of them, is the making of a person. It’s the factor that distinguishes between existence and vigorous vitality. Adversity builds character. – selected

Now thanks be unto God, Who continually leads us along the triumphal procession of the anointed One, and Who diffuses by us the fragrant knowledge of Christ in every place – 2 Corinthians 2:14

— January 14 —

The Sound of Music

when casting his flock, the shepherd goes before them – John 10:4

THIS IS AGONIZING work for Him and us. It’s difficult for us to be sent out, but equally bitter for Him to cause us pain; yet it must be done. It wouldn’t suit our best interest to perpetually remain in the same comfortable lot. He, therefore, puts us forth. The fold’s deserted, that the sheep may wander over the bracing mountain slope. In the same way, the laborers must be thrust out into the harvest, else the golden grain would spoil.

Take heart, beloved! It could never be a better option to stay when He determines otherwise; and if the loving hand of our Lord puts us forth, it must be well. Onward then, in His name, to green pastures and still waters and mountain heights (see Ps 23:2)! "He goeth before thee," so whatever awaits, therefore, is encountered first by Him. Faith’s vision can always perceive His majestic presence in front; and when that cannot be seen, it’s too dangerous to move that direction.

Bind this comfort unto your heart, dear friend, that your Savior’s tried all the ordeals He asks you to pass. He’d never ask you to pass through them if He knew they were too strenuous or too difficult for your feet.

This is the blessed life — not anxious to see far in front, nor preoccupied with the next step; not eager to choose the path, nor weighed down by the heavy responsibilities of the future; but quietly enjoying the opportunity to follow behind the Shepherd, one step at a time.

Dark is the sky! and veiled the unknown morrow!

Dark is life’s way, for night is not yet o’er;

the longed-for glance I may not meanwhile borrow;

yet, this I know sure — HE GOES ON BEFORE.

Dangers are nigh! and fears my mind are shaking;

heart seems to dread what life may hold in store;

but I am His — He knows the way I’m taking,

more blessed e‘en still — HE GOES ON BEFORE.

Doubts cast their weird, unwelcome shadows o’er me,

doubts that life’s best — life’s choicest things are o’er;

what but His Word can strengthen, can restore me,

and this blest fact; that still — HE GOES BEFORE.

HE GOES BEFORE! Be this my consolation!

He goes before! On this my heart would dwell!

He goes before! This guarantees salvation!

HE GOES BEFORE! And therefore all is well.

J Danson Smith

The Oriental shepherd was always ahead of his sheep. He was down in front. Any attack upon the flock had to take him into account. For us, now, God is out front. He inhabits our tomorrows; and it’s tomorrow that fills people with dread. The good Shepherd’s there already. All the tomorrows of our life have to pass Him before they can get to us. – FB Meyer

God is in every tomorrow,

therefore I live for today,

certain of finding at sunrise,

guidance and strength for the way;

Power for each moment of weakness,

hope for each moment of pain,

comfort for every sorrow,

sunshine and joy after rain.

— January 15 —

Well on Your Way

the Lord appeared to Isaac the same night – Genesis 26:24

THE LORD APPEARED to Isaac the night he went to Beer-sheba. Do you think this revelation was a coincidence? Do you think the time of it was an accident? Do you think it could have happened on any other night so well as this? If so, you’re grievously mistaken. Why did he meet that sort of vision in the same night he reached Beer-sheba? Because that was the night he arrived at rest. In his old locality, he was constantly tormented. There was an ongoing series of petty disputes over paltry wells, there, and whether rights should be decided by historic use, land ownership, or rule of capture. Isaac was fed up with that relentless conflict, so he repeatedly gave in to the oppressors and moved on. Each time he revitalized the next of his dad’s old springs, though, the same troubles followed. Hardly any worry’s so disturbing as the pestering kind, especially when they accumulate; and Isaac knew those feelings better than he cared to. Even when the dust settled, the place held a disagreeable association that conjured tiresome demons. He needed a change of scenery, so he set his mind on leaving and headed out. He pitched his tent a healthy distance from the prolonged strife, and that very night a revelation came. God spoke to him when his inner storm cleared. He couldn’t speak with a clouded mind; the Counselor’s voice demands silence of the soul. Only in the hush of the spirit could Isaac hear the garments of his God sweep by. His still night was his starry night.

My soul, have you pondered these words, Be still, and know (Ps 46:10)? In the hour of distress you can’t hear the response to your prayers. How often has the answer seemed to come long after? The heart got no answer in the desperate moments of crying — in its thunder, its earthquake, and its fire. But when the wailing ceased, when the stillness fell, when your hand grew tired of knocking at the iron gate, when the interest of other lives broke the tragedy of your own — then appeared the long-delayed reply. Thou must rest, O soul, if thou wouldst have thy heart’s desire. Still the beating of thy pulse of personal care. Hide thy storm of individual trouble behind the altar of a common tribulation and, that same night, the Lord will appear to thee. His rainbow arch shall span the scene of the subsiding flood, and in thy stillness thou shalt hear the everlasting music. – George Matheson

Tread in solitude thy pathway,

quiet heart and undismayed.

Thou shalt know things strange, mysterious,

which to thee no voice has said.

While the crowd of petty hustlers

grasps at vain and paltry things,

thou wilt see a great world rising

where soft mystic music rings.

Leave the dusty road to others,

spotless keep thy soul and bright,

as the radiant ocean’s surface

when the sun is taking flight.

from The German of V Shoffel – H.F.

— January 16 —

Heart of Oak and Iron Bound

there arose a majestic stirring of gale force winds – Mark 4:37

SOME OF LIFE’S storms appear suddenly — a great sorrow, a bitter disappointment, a crushing defeat. Others advance more slowly. They appear on the tattered edges of the horizon no larger than a person’s hand; yet, trouble that seems so insignificant spreads until it covers the sky and overwhelms us.

It’s in the storm, nevertheless, that God equips us for service. When God wants an oak, He plants it on the moor to face the shaking storms where curtains of rain will bear down upon it; and it’s in the midnight struggle with the elements that the oak wins it’s rugged fiber and becomes king of the forest.

This same way, when God looks to fortify a person’s character, He places them into a storm. The history of humankind’s always been rough and rugged. No one’s complete until they’ve been out in the surge of their own personalized storm and latched onto sublime fulfillment of the harrowing prayer, O God, take me, break me, make me.

A French artist once shared their interpretation of universal genius. In the painting stand orators, philosophers and martyrs, all who achieved preeminence in various aspects of life. There’s an underpinning truth about the picture, though: each person who’s depicted, all renowned for specific abilities, was first preeminent for suffering. In the foreground stands that paternal figure who was denied the promised land, Moses. Beside him, another, feeling quite the same — blind Homer. Milton’s there, sightless and heartbroken. Now comes the form of One who towers above them all. What’s His characteristic? His face is marred more than any other’s. The artist may well have written under that great picture, The Storm.

The marvels of nature come after the tempest. The rugged beauty of the mountain is borne of cataclysmic uplift, followed by interminable weathering, and the heroes of life are the storm-swept and battle-scarred.

You have doubtless been in your share of storms and swept by roaring gusts. Have they left you broken, weary, beaten in the valley, or have they lifted you to the sun-kissed summits of a richer, deeper, more abiding manhood or womanhood? Have they left you with more sympathy with the storm-swept and battle-scarred? – selected

The wind that blows can never kill

The tree God plants;

it blows toward east, and then toward west,

the tender leaves have little rest,

but any wind that stirs is best.

The tree that God plants

strikes deeper root, grows higher still,

spreads greater boughs, for God’s good will

meets all its wants.

There is no storm hath power to blast

The tree God knows;

no thunderbolt, nor beating rain,

nor lightning flash, nor hurricane;

when they are spent, it does remain, The tree God knows,

through every tempest standeth fast,

and from its first day to its last

still fairer grows.

selected

— January 17 —

Votre Personelle Je’suis

O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy Sovereign — the one thou attend so faithfully — able to rescue thee from the lions? – Daniel 6:20

HOW MANY TIMES we read this expression in the Scriptures and yet find it the very thing we’re so prone to neglect? We’ve heard "the living God" and know it as a well-worn phrase; but in our daily life, there’s almost nothing we lose sight of so practically as the fact that God is the living God. We forget that He’s today exactly whatever He’s been for untold millennia, containing the same preeminent power, and extending the same gracious love toward those who cherish and serve Him. We habitually overlook the fact that He’ll do for us, now, exactly what he did for all those others, two, three, four thousand years hence, simply because He’s the living God, the unchanging One. What better evidence is there for persuading us to invest all our confidence in Him and, in our darkest moments, to never lose sight of the fact that He is still and ever will be the living God!

Rest assured, beloved, if you walk with the Lord, look to Him, and expect help from Him, He will never fail you. An older sibling-disciple, who’s known the Lord forty-four years, wrote this for your encouragement, God has never failed me. Even through my greatest difficulties, under the burden of my weightiest trials, and from within my deepest poverty and need, He’s never failed me. Because I was enabled by divine grace to trust Him, He’s always come to my aid. I delight in speaking well of His name. – George Mueller

Martin Luther was entranced in deep thought, once, during a perilous and fearful episode of his life. Needing to grasp unseen strength, then, He was subconsciously tracing the words, Vivit! Vivit! onto his desk with his finger, meaning, He lives! He lives! This