I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. John 17:15.
Many professed Christians are well represented by the vine that is trailing upon the ground and entwining its tendrils about the roots and rubbish that lie in its path. To all such the message comes, “Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 6:17. Your tendrils must be severed from everything earthly…. It is impossible for you to unite with those who are corrupt, and still remain pure.
O that the young might realize that they may be as precious plants in the Lord’s garden…. Let the delicate tendrils of the affections twine about Jesus, to receive nourishment from Him; and instead of creeping upon the earth, turn the face toward the Sun of Righteousness, that you may catch divine rays of light. Day by day grow up into His likeness, and become a partaker of His divine nature, that you may at last be found perfect in the paradise of God….
Rivet the soul to the eternal Rock; for in Christ alone there will be safety.
A union with Christ by living faith is enduring; every other union must perish…. But this union costs us something…. There must be a painful work of detachment, as well as a work of attachment. Pride, selfishness, vanity, worldliness—sin in all its forms—must be overcome, if we would enter into a union with Christ. The reason why many find the Christian life so deplorably hard, why they are so fickle, so variable, is, they try to attach themselves to Christ without detaching themselves from these cherished idols.
Will we accept the condition laid down in His Word—separation from the world? … Our consecration to God must be a living principle, interwoven with the life, and leading to self-denial and self-sacrifice. It must underlie all our thoughts, and be the spring of every action. This will elevate us above the world, and separate us from its polluting influence.
Faith I Live By p. 221
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for my 45 years old Aunt that her ultrasound will turn to be a good result. Her Name is Anna Liza. Jesselle
—-I ask now for pray for my Aunt Carolea Reigel she fell breaking her leg. They have to do surgery on it. She is very fragile. Beverly
—-Asking prayers for my Island home. Jamaica
Women and children are being slaughtered everyday like wild animals. May God have mercy on us. Joan
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Dear Friends,
For the first six years of our life together, Ron and I lived in Michigan. Winters in that state are very cold and there is a great deal of snow. Ron had always enjoyed hiking in the snow, so he wanted me to enjoy it too. We would often take long walks in the woods. I reveled in the quietness and peacefulness of the woods in winter (but not the coldness). How beautiful the earth would look in a blanket of whiteness! We would spend hours walking among large pines whose branches were heavily-laden with a thick, white overcoat. Sometimes, we would come upon a creek whose fast-rushing water had kept the ice from forming. This was my favorite scene. We would stand and watch for a few moments drinking in its beauty before pressing onward.
We, too, can be like that fast-flowing creek amongst the coldness of this world. If we allow God’s blessings to flow out to others as fast as we receive them, we will be like a beautiful creek that continues flowing even when all around is frozen and cold. The Great Giver of All Good reminds us, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” Acts 20:5; Luke 6:38
If, however, we hoard all of God’s blessings for our self and do not share them with others, we become like a stagnant pond. In the summer it is full of slimy green algae and looks revolting. In the winter it is frozen with ice and snow and becomes indistinguishable from the surrounding area. Our Dear Saviour told a parable of a man who lived totally for self, “The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?” Luke 12:16-20
May we allow our Dear Saviour to use us as an ever flowing channel of blessing to those around us, remembering that “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” Ps 19:17 May we daily give our lives to Him Who gives us all good things. May our heart be filled continually with love and gratitude to Our Loving Redeemer, Who “gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Gal 1:4, 5
Rose