Pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Hudson Taylor, a missionary in China, had three important beliefs concerning prayer: first, you can work without praying, but it is a bad plan; second, you cannot pray in earnest without working; and third, do not be so busy with work for Christ, that you have no strength left to pray. True praying requires strength. Warren Wiersbe wrote, “Prayer is not an escape from responsibility; it is our response to God’s ability. True prayer energizes us for service and battle.” Augustine said, “Pray as though everything depended on God, and work as though everything depended on you.” --Warren Henderson

O how praying rests the weary! Prayer will change the night to day;
So, when life seems dark and dreary, don’t! forget to pray. --M. A. K.

Will I pray?

Sometimes I have so much to do
I think it must be done.
I'll work so very, very hard
From morn till set of sun,
But there is something I have found;
This really doesn't pay.
I've always found I've weaker grown
If I have failed to pray.

Sometimes 'twas something for myself,
Sometimes it was for God,
Sometimes it was for other folks
That many steps I trod.
But 'tis no matter who 'twas for,
I truthfully must say,
My faith and trust had smaller grown
Because I failed to pray.

So I am trying hard to learn
That nothing's really great
If it must take my praying time,
So praying has to wait.
It's praying, makes me fit for work;
It is my staff and stay,
And work will never be the best,
If I have failed to pray.

Author unknown

God's Thoughts and Mine

The Hammer thoughts
That pound and shatter peace;
The Rodent thoughts
That gnaw and will not cease;

The Brier thoughts
That pull and prick and scratch;
The Rover thoughts
That I can never catch;

The Serpent thoughts
That leave their lairs at night;
The Shadow thoughts
That dim the new day's light;

These are my thoughts;
Oh, take them, Lord, I pray,
Out of my heart,
And cast them far away;

And in their stead
Give me those thoughts of Thine,
So crystal-clear,
So holy, high and fine,

That I shall grow
By their pure grace enticed,
Worthy to think
The lovely thoughts of Christ.

Annie Johnson Flint

Honour thy father...

And Shem and Japheth took the upper garment and both laid it upon their shoulders, and went backwards, and covered the nakedness of their father. And their faces were turned away, that they saw not their father's nakedness. - Genesis 9:23

Have always been struck by the way in which these two sons protected the honour of their drunk father. Am reminded of it again. No complains about how shameful Noah's behaviour was. No arguments about whether or not they should do what they did and the effects of Noah's doing on the family. No doubts about their duty to honour their father. Had they chosen not to cover Noah's nakedness, they could have argued that he asked for it, they could have reasoned that he deserved it or they could have rationalised that he had it coming to him. Instead, not only did they cover him so that others would not see his nakedness but they themselves refused to take a glimpse of their father's bareness and vulnerability, refusing to allow their father's flawed character to influence the degree of honour they should give him. Is it not said that love covers all trangressions?

Taking it a step further, here's a father who is but human, weak and sinful, like all earthly fathers. We may give the excuse that they make it difficult for us to honour them. But we who know the perfect Father in heaven, what excuse do we have not to honour Him in our lives? And if we say we honour Him, then wouldn't we honour our earthly fathers as He commanded us to?

Show Us Thy Grace

Show us our need, O Lord; how lost, how hopeless,
How poor, how sunk in sin our carnal hearts;
Show us how vain to change our sad condition,
Our best endeavor and our utmost arts;
Show us how weak we are, and how dependent,
How multiplied defeats our pride abase;
And then -- O Lord, lest we despair too wholly --
Show us Thy grace!

Show us Thy grace, the great, the all-sufficient,
Infinite riches for our poverty,
Mercy of God for uttermost salvation,
Weapon that turns defeat to victory;
Gladness unspeakable and full of glory,
Beyond our needs, a vast unmeasured space.
Lord, as we never yet have seen or known it,
Show us Thy grace!

Annie Johnson Flint

Quotes from my reading

A man who thinks much of himself saves others the trouble of thinking about him. - C. H. Mackintosh

In the case of Epaphroditus, the whole assembly at Philippi, the blessed apostle Paul and above all, God Himself all engaged in thinking about a man who did not think about himself.

My Advocate

I sinned. And straightway, post-haste, Satan flew Before the presence of the Most High God, And made a railing accusation there. He said,"This soul, this thing of clay and sod, Has sinned. 'Tis true that he has named Thy name, But I demand his death, for Thou hast said, 'The soul that sinneth, it shall die,' Shall not Thy sentence be fulfilled? Is justice dead? Send now this wretched sinner to his doom. What other thing can righteous ruler do?" And thus he did accuse me day and night, And every word he spoke, O God, was true! Then quickly One rose up from God's right hand, Before Whose glory angels veiled their eyes. He spoke," Each jot and tittle of the law Must be fulfilled: the guilty sinner dies! But wait....Suppose his guilt were all transferred To ME and that I paid his penalty! Behold My hands, My side, My feet! One day I was made sin for him, and died that he Might be presented faultless, at Thy throne!" And Satan fled away. Full well he knew That he could not prevail against such love, For every word my dear Lord spoke was true! Martha Snell Nicholson

The Task

But what things were gain to me these I counted, on account of Christ, loss. - Phil 3:7

To learn, and yet to learn, whilst life goes by,
So pass the student's days;
And thus be great, and do great things, and die,
And lie embalmed with praise.

My work is but to lose and to forget,
Thus small, despised to be;
All to unlearn—this task before me set;
Unlearn all else but Thee.

Gerhard Ter Steegen

Shut In

God sometimes shuts the door while heart to heart
He whispers some sweet message o'er and o'er,
Some tender message while we sit apart,
When God has shut the door.

God sometimes shuts the door, that so His word
Shall not be marred, or hurt, by earthly din,
And every softest syllable be heard,
When He has shut us in.

God shuts the door and shuts us in. How sweet
To feel that He would have us so alone;
And waiting in the silence at His feet
How precious He has grown.

God shuts the door; His love would have us so
In peaceful rest for just a little space,
That, when He opens it and bids us go,
We may recall His face.

God shuts us in; not harshly, but in love
The door is closed that keeps us fast within;
His yearning face bends closer from above
When He has shut us in.

God shuts us in. No longer now we beat
His barrier, impatient to be free.
Throb low, my heart,a secret, tender, sweet,
The Master speaks to thee.

Shut in, but not alone. O wondrous Guest!
His hand is on the latch, He speaks once more.
Lord, till I know in full Thy sweet behest,
I pray, hold fast the door.

Gussie Packhard DuBois

Divine dialogue

And God said,"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over the whole earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth on the earth." - Gen 1:26

But about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying,"Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is,"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?" - Matt 27:46

And Jesus, having cried with a loud voice, said,"Father, into Thy hands I commit my spirit. And having said this, He expired. - Luke 23:46

The Bible is filled with accounts of conversation between the Persons of the triune God. The longest one being in John 17. What a privilege to be allowed a glimpse into the intimacy of the Son of God with the Father. In Genesis we find the first recorded conversation. It speaks of exclusiveness in creation and unity in the Godhead. It shows that the Lord Jesus is indeed the Word who was always with God. We find the Lord Jesus being in the centre of the creation account. In the gospels we find the last written conversation. In the extraordinary darkness, the Lord cried out, My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me? It speaks of separation in the Godhead because the wrath of a Holy God was upon the Bearer of the sin of the whole world. I'm glad that it didn't end there. The Lord Jesus could go on to say that He committed His spirit into the Father's hands: For Thou wilt not leave My soul to Sheol, neither wilt Thou allow Thy Holy One to see corruption (Ps 16:10). The conversation continues now that the Lord has resurrected, ascended and is seated at the right hand of God. But now the conversation is on our behalf: Whence also He is able to save completely those who approach by Him to God, always living to intercede for them.

Borrowed from Choice Gleanings

Lord's Day
JUNE 18

If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father...all the men of his city shall stone him with stones that he die. - Deuteronomy 21:18, 21
I have glorified thee on the earth; I have finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do. - Jn 17:4
This is My beloved Son. - Luke 9:35
He spared not His own Son. - Romans 8:32

The Old Testament is full of rebellious sons who shamed their fathers in many ways. The New Testament is full of the righteous Son who glorified His Father in every way. Out of love, many rebellious sons were spared. Out of love, one righteous Son was not. -- S. McE.

Jehovah bade His sword awake; O Christ it woke ‘gainst Thee.
Thy blood the flaming blade must slake; Thy heart its sheath must be.

Feet washing

Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. - Gen 18:4

After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe [them] with the towel wherewith he was girded. - John 13:5

We have here the first and the last recorded occurrences of feet washing in relation to the Lord Jesus. The disciples didn't seem to have seen the opportunity that was presented to them. The opportunity to bow down in submission, to stoop low in surrender and to wash the Lord's feet in service. They didn't learn from their patriarch who was presented with the same opportunity but made full use of it. How true the words, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." All there is to learn about the Messiah is there in the Old Testament, including how He should be treated. But therein also lies how He would be treated.

The Real Miracle

Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered. - Luke 4:2

After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. - John 19:28

"We're impressed that He miraculously provided wine at Cana and bread to the multitudes. But Christ had been sustaining others for as long as the creation existed. The truly astounding thought is that the One who could provide food and drink at will, began His ministry hungry and ended it thirsty." - James Martin (taken from UPLOOK, April 2006)