Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28.
Heaven is to begin on this earth.63Testimonies for the Church 7:131.
Those who take Christ at His word, and surrender their souls to His keeping, their lives to His ordering, will find peace and quietude. Nothing of the world can make them sad when Jesus makes them glad by His presence. In perfect acquiescence there is perfect rest. The Lord says, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3. Our lives may seem a tangle; but as we commit ourselves to the wise Master Worker, He will bring out the pattern of life and character that will be to His own glory. And that character which expresses the glory—character—of Christ will be received into the Paradise of God. A renovated race shall walk with Him in white, for they are worthy.
As through Jesus we enter into rest, heaven begins here. We respond to His invitation, Come, learn of Me, and in thus coming we begin the life eternal. Heaven is a ceaseless approaching to God through Christ. The longer we are in the heaven of bliss, the more and still more of glory will be opened to us; and the more we know of God, the more intense will be our happiness.64The Desire of Ages, 331.
When the Lord’s people are filled with meekness and tenderness, they will realize that His banner over them is love, and His fruit will be sweet to their taste. They will make a heaven below in which to prepare for heaven above.65Testimonies for the Church 7:131.
As we walk with Jesus in this life, we may be filled with His love, satisfied with His presence. All that human nature can bear, we may receive here. But what is this compared with the hereafter? There “are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters.” Revelation 7:15-17.66The Desire of Ages, 331, 332.
The Faith I Live By p. 367
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for my daughter who is starting chemo and radiation. Linda
—-Please pray for G, Fran, and Brenda’s health and healing. Rose
—-Roger and Harriet need prayers. They lost a loved one last week. Renee
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Dear Friends,
Going to potluck is always a risk someone with food allergies faces. I’m sneezing and have itchy eyes so I’m guessing that I ate something my body is reacting to. Sometimes it’s just from the residue of an allergen on manufacturing equipment can be enough to cause an allergic reaction. Usually it does not bother me, but if the food happens to be the first batch just after a batch of allergen-containing food has been run, I’ll get an allergy attack. Esther and some others at church have the same problem.
Just as a little allergen in the food causes big problems, a little sin in our life will spoil our whole Christianity. Solomon puts it this way, “Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.” Ecc 10:1 So true. How often we have been overcome by the evil one because we have allowed him an entrance through some cherished sin. Indeed, the Great God of the Universe warns, “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” Isa 59:1, 2 That is not to say that He will not hear the prayer of repentance, for He is yearning for us to let go of our darling sin, confess that sin, and allow Him to cleanse us from it. (1 John 1:9) With tears in His Voice, He pleads, “As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die?” Eze 33:11
May we pray as did David, “Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Ps 51:9-12; 19:14
Rose