The Right Exercise of the Will

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Philippians 2:13.
God’s promise is, “Ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13.
The whole heart must be yielded to God, or the change can never be wrought in us by which we are to be restored to His likeness.
Pure religion has to do with the will. The will is the governing power in the nature of man, bringing all the other faculties under its sway. The will is not the taste or the inclination, but it is the deciding power which works in the children of men unto obedience to God or unto disobedience.
The Saviour says, “Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33. Whatever shall draw away the heart from God must be given up. Mammon is the idol of many. The love of money, the desire for wealth, is the golden chain that binds them to Satan. Reputation and worldly honor are worshiped by another class. The life of selfish ease and freedom from responsibility is the idol of others. But these slavish bands must be broken. We cannot be half the Lord’s and half the world’s. We are not God’s children unless we are such entirely….
Desires for goodness and holiness are right as far as they go; but if you stop here, they will avail nothing. Many will be lost while hoping and desiring to be Christians. They do not come to the point of yielding the will to God. They do not now choose to be Christians.
The Lord does not propose to save us in companies. Individually we are to make our choice. One by one we are to appropriate the grace of God to the soul, and one cannot decide for another what course he shall take.
A pure and noble life, a life of victory over appetite and lust, is possible to everyone who will unite his weak, wavering human will to the omnipotent, unwavering will of God.
The Faith I Live By p. 154
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Prayer Requests
—-update—Thank you for your prayers! Got Charles settled down. Dealing with his sensory issues is more than my 15-year-old son can handle. RJ’s coworker
—-Please pray for my boss’ mother who has just been diagnosed with acute leukemia and is to start chemo right away. RJ
—-I’m asking for prayers, I lost my job. Jenny
—-Please pray for my cousin brother, he is in his late 20’s as per age . He is currently admitted in hospital in Juba and the doctors say that he is suffering from Acute pancreatic pain and Salmonella infection. Please for him, he has been over drinking alcoholic drinks. Please put him in prayers so that Jesus Christ heals him completely. Luba
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Dear Friends,
My birth father had had two children by a former marriage. I only met my half-brother in 2004, but I have met my half-sister about five or six times and talked to her on the phone occasionally. On one such occasions, she told me about something that had happened to her when she was about twelve. This was a cherished memory. She was walking on the main street of our home town, Kalamazoo, Michigan. She had stopped on the corner waiting for the traffic light to turn green. As soon as she saw the green light, she started to step into the street but did not as she felt a hand on her shoulder holding her back. Just then a speeding car turned the corner right where she would have been if she had not been held back. She turned to thank her protector, but there was no one there! Surely God had sent an angel to keep her from becoming terribly injured or maybe even from death!
We live in a world full of dangers. Because of sin, Satan has become the god or prince of this world and causes all kinds of disasters, troubles, and heartaches. (2 Cor 4:4; John 16:11) There are dangers on every side, but, praise God, the evil one does not have full control. In his great mercy, the Great King of the Universe protects us over and over again. “The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.” Ps 34:7 He only allows those trials and troubles that He knows are for our best good. “God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1 Cor 10:13 We have this assurance as did David when he said, “I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.” Ps 4:8
Psalm 91 was my grandmother’s favorite psalm. It is full of promises of God’s protecting care. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling….Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.”
Let us daily claim God’s wonderful promises for guidance and protection. Let us ever realize that He is continually near to us, watching over us, tenderly caring for us, guarding us from danger both seen and unseen. Let us “praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” Ps 107:8
Rose