And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. John 17:3.
If we will come into close relation with God, if we will yield to God His own—our mind, our heart, and all that there is of us—we will indeed find peace and happiness that we can obtain nowhere else.
What does it amount to to live in this world dependent upon the applause and amusements that we can find here? Do these bring us happiness? No; they bring us only unrest and dissatisfaction, and at the same time we are losing the most precious treasure, the richest blessings that God can bestow upon us. We need to understand much more than we do the worth of our souls. We need to know what we shall do that we may work the works of God. “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent” (John 6:29). He can be to us all that we desire.
Jesus proclaimed on the last great day of the feast, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink” (chap. 7:37); and again we hear Him saying, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). Have you tried it? There are many who have, and they know that the words of Christ are verity and truth, and that when trouble has come in like a flood, they have looked to Jesus and have been comforted and strengthened.
Christ has promised that if we yoke up with Him we shall find peace and comfort and hope, and we [shall] know by experience [that] His words are true. He wants everyone to be saved. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:16, 17)….
Jesus Christ knew that humanity had not power in itself to resist the temptations of the enemy of souls, and therefore He clothed His divinity with humanity, left His royal throne and high command, and came to this world all seared and marred with the curse, and humiliated Himself, in order to set us an example…. He came to this world, not to attend horse races, not to attend the theater, but He came meek and lowly, and He invites us to learn of Him, the King of glory. By doing this we shall obtain the moral power He left the courts of heaven to bestow upon us.—Manuscript 16, October 20, 1895, untitled manuscript, apparently a sermon preached at the Armadale Campground, Australia.
The Upward Look p. 307
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for me am not well am having balancing problems and problems with my ears. Rosemary
—-Pls pray for my son Methuselah he’s sick. Markus
—-we need your prayers. At the moment my Dad is hospitalized with pneumonia. Val
—-Please pray for one of my sons. He acts like he is totally demon possessed. Connie
—-Please pray that David will get on medication. Buck
—-I am pretty sick, Admitted to hospital. I don’t know anyone on this great group personally but if anyone wants to pray for me I would greatly appreciate it. Christopher
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Dear Friends,
My grandmother, Ida, used to enjoy getting letters to her friend who lived far away. Every week she would look forward to a nice long letter about all that had happened to Annabel and her family. She began to notice that the letters became more infrequent. Sometimes she wouldn’t get a letter for two or three weeks. She began to worry. The next letter she received let her know that all was well. Annabel just put off writing because she had other things to do.
As time passed, the letters were arriving monthly and then stopped altogether. My grandmother decided to do something different. She could not call her friend as we did not have a telephone and Annabel lived in Florida—a long way from Michigan. Taking several sheets of writing paper, she wrote on the first page, “Dear Ida,”. Folding the paper carefully, she put it in an envelope and addressed it to Annabel.
Soon she received a letter from Annabel. She told my grandmother how when she opened her mailbox and saw the thick envelope, she had put it in her pocket to read after her housework was done. All day she looked forward to reading that letter. Finally she was able to sit down and relax. Pulling the envelope out of her apron pocket, she unfolded the paper. Surprised and disappointed she stared at the blank pages. She wrote more often after that.
Just as those two friends looked forward to hearing from each other, so our Great Creator looks forward to hearing from us. He longs to have us talk to Him, to bring Him all our perplexities, to share with Him our joys, to ask His advice, to listen as He speaks to us through His Word and through the Holy Spirit’s promptings. How can we know it is the Holy Spirit speaking to us? We must make sure that the promptings agree completely with the Scriptures as did those in Berea, who “were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” Acts 17:11 We must also make sure that we are following all of the light that we already have, for Jesus promised, “My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.” John 7:16-18
David declared, “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.” With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth. I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches. I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.” Ps 55:17; 119:11-16 Paul advises, “Pray without ceasing.” 1 Thes 5:17 As we go through the day, our Dear Saviour longs for us to be conscious of His presence. He desires to be part of all we do, all we say, all we think. How often He waits for us to think of Him, but we often go through our daily routine with scarcely a thought Heavenward.
“I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found…Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” Ps 32:5-8 As we pray, He instructs us. As we meditate on His Word, He enlightens us. “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Blessed art thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes.
May we draw near to our Loving God through Bible study, meditating upon His Word, and heartfelt prayer. May our sweetest thoughts be of Him, Who is our Redeemer, our Advocate, our Soon-Coming King. May the words of our mouth and the meditations of our heart be acceptable unto the One Who loves us so is my prayer. (Ps 19:14)
Rose

Overcoming Power Promised