Gems from March 2020

March 1

MEET  FOR THE  MASTER'S  USE

Serving the Lord with all humility of mind.  Acts 20:19

The eye that is most anointed will not be the first to see failure in others, and the soul that knows most of walking under the yoke with the Master will not be the first to undertake the putting right, according to its own mind, of what halts and limps in others.

Prayer is sure work and the harbinger of blessing . . . and often what sets us a praying for more is the a first dropping of His rich love and grace.

Through evil report and through good report Paul had to pass, and so far as any accusation against me is known to me as not true . . . I do not think one need to be unhappy about it. . . .  But there is a reward for our bearing false accusations. 
G. V. Wigram

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for My sake.  Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Matthew 5:11-12

N.J. Hiebert - 8042 

March 2

Lord, Thou knowest all things; Thou knowest that I love Thee.  John 21:17

It is not someone else, some temporarily possessing spirit, which says these words, but our true and very self, only changed and renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit.  And when "I do that which I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me" (Romans 7:16-17).

Our true self is the new self, taken and won by the love of God and kept by the power of God.

Yes, kept!  There is the promise on which we ground our prayer; or, rather, one of the promises.  For, search and look for your own strengthening and comfort,  and you will find it repeated in every part of the Bible from "I am with Thee, and will keep thee (Genesis 28:15) to "I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation" (Revelation 3:10).

And kept for Him!  Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you when it is only the fulfilling of His own eternal purpose in creating us?  "This people have I formed for Myself" (Isaiah 43:21).  Not ultimately only but presently and continually, "Thou shalt abide for Me." (Hosea 3:3).  "He that remaineth, even He shall be for our God"  (Zechariah 9:7).

Are you one of His people by faith in Jesus Christ? Then see what you are to Him.  You, personally and individually, are part of the Lord's portion and of His inheritance.  His portion and inheritance would not be complete without you; you are His peculiar treasure (Exodus 19:5); a special people unto Himself (Deuteronomy 7:6). 
Kept for the Master's Use - Frances R.Havergal 

N.J. Hiebert - 8043

March 3

Pray without ceasing.  1 Thessalonians 5:17

It has been rightly said that prayer does not equip us for greater work-- prayer is the greater work.

Some of God's people are given the responsibility to preach His word in public settings, even before large audiences, but the privilege of all God's people is to pray.

It can and must involve the sacrifice of time, the giving up of other things to focus upon the Lord. The joy of prayer and the power that flows from it is very much anchored to the discipline of interceding with God.

The need today is for true intercessors and that is
the challenge for each of us! 
Paul Young

In the busy round of life, do we stop to pray?
commit each day into His care, and seek His help alway.
Norah A. Young

N.J. Hiebert - 8044     

March 4

Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it.
Psalm 127:1

For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 3:11

We are building day by day a temple the world cannot see; building, building, for eternity.

If you are to have a good tomorrow you must lay the right foundation today. A foundation of wood, hay, or stubble will never support a character-making building.

An aged low-caste woman in India was once asked the price of a temple in the process of building.  She turned to the missionary in surprise and said: "Why, we do not know!  It is for our god; we don't count the cost."

He who builds with God, builds not alone.
Mountain Trailways for Youth  

We are building every day in a good, or evil way, And the structure as it grows, will our inmost self disclose. Build it well, what'er you do, build it straight, and strong and true; Build it clean, and high and broad, build it for the eye of God.
I. E. Dickenza  

N.J. Hiebert - 8045

March 5

"STEP  BY  STEP"

Then said the Lord unto Moses, behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day.
Exodus 16:4

A doctor was once asked by a patient who had met with a serious accident, "Doctor, how long shall I have to lie here?" The answer, "Only a day at a time," taught the patient a precious lesson.

The same lesson God taught His people, and the people of all ages since, through the method. of His provision for Israel during their wilderness journey.  "The day's portion in its day". Day by day the manna fell, enough for each day, and no more and no less.

So God promises us, not "As thy weeks," or "As thy months," but "As thy DAYS, so shall thy strength be." And that means Monday's grace for Monday, and Tuesday's grace for Tuesday, and so on.  Why, then, borrow trouble for the future?

We are especially told by the Lord to "Take no thought for tomorrow." Deuteronomy 33:25. The true rule is to live by the day, to live a life of trust.  The law of Divine grace is,  "Sufficient unto the day."  The law of Divine deliverance, is,  "A very present help." The law of Divine guidance is, "Step by step."
Comforted of God - A. J. Pollock

N.J. Hiebert - 8046   

March 6

THE  POWER  OF  THE  SPIRIT OF GOD

God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you. 2 Samuel 12:23

Having anointed both Saul and David--the man of the people's choice, and the man after God's own heart, Samuel's public work was finished.  Henceforward he lived in quiet retirement at Ramah.

But one thus constrained to live in quietness has not necessarily ceased to be of value to his brethren.  The ministry of intercession is open to all who have the heart for it. To this ministry Samuel devoted himself until his life's end.

Aged brethren, crippled brethren, imprisoned brethren, take courage!  Although you can no longer run the Lord's errands, you can still serve the people of God at the throne of grace.

Paul in his Roman prison ceased not to give thanks for his Ephesian brethren, making mention of them in his prayers (Ephesians 1:16); the Philippians also he remembered in every prayer for them making request with joy (Philippians 1:4); for the Colossians too he prayed regularly, and doubtless also for saints in other places, both known and unknown.

Epaphras, when deprived of his liberty, laboured fervently for his brethren that they might "stand perfect and complete in all the will of God" (Colossians 4:12).
W.W. Fereday - God's Emergency Man

N.J. Hiebert - 8047   

March 7

THE  SLACK  BOW-STRING

Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. Galatians 6:9 

The word used here is ek-luo,'I loose,' or,' I unloose,' as, for example, a bow-string: letting it become slack.

When I was a boy my father took me down to a wagon shop (I suppose there are no such things now) and there he got a piece of nice,well seasoned ash; and from this he made me a beautiful bow.

The good piece of ash alone could not make the bow, there had to be a strong cord, tied from end to end of the wood, and tightened till the wood was well bent, and the cord was taut.  Then with a good straight arrow, what a joy it was to any boy!

But suppose the cord got slack, and loose, what then?  The bow is useless in spite of having such a good piece of ash to make it. One secret of a good bow is having a good tight bow-string.

Notice that in the Gospels it is our body that faints, and in Hebrews it is our mind. Note again Galatians 6:9 quoted above. I suppose it might be both body and mind that faint. But in all these cases we grow slack, like the bow-string: and a slack bow-string is no use to its master.
Hid Treasures - G. C. Willis

N.J. Hiebert - 8048

March 8

God's  Finished  Product

The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me.  
Psalm 138:8

I have heard of a little boy whose sailor father was coming home to see him.  The youngster worked the afternoon long trying to carve a ship model from a block of wood.

He fell asleep, with very little success achieved for all his whittling. That night his father came, removed the block of wood and put in its place a real wooden ship exquisitely carved and rigged to perfection.

Your life and mine often bears poor resemblance to the Perfect Model. At our best we are like the carving of the little boy.  But one day we shall awake in His likeness and see Him as He is.  And we shall find that we bear the image of the heavenly.

He who has begun a good work in us in regeneration will perform it in sanctification until the day of Jesus Christ in glorification. We were predestinated to be conformed to the image of God's  Son, and God will make of us a finished product and a perfect creation.

It will be great to awaken in the morning and find that we are just like Jesus!  Cheer up my brother.  He will perfect that which concerneth you!
Day by Day with Vance Havner

N.J. Hiebert - 8049

March 9

And Joseph said unto them (his brethren), Fear not: for am I in the place of God?  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. (Genesis 50:19-20)

The mixing of good and evil is like a stream flowing with polluted water.  Shall I drink of this water that may poison me?  I cannot, but this stream is absorbed by the river into which it flows.

The river is a great waterway receiving water from the muddiest of streams and bearing them to the sea.  So it is with the ways of God; His ways make use of the most unlikely elements to feed the vast sea of His counsels.

The sea engulfs and deposits in its depths--in other words, judges--every impure element so that nothing but pure water rises from the sea to the sky to which the sun draws it.

This is the work of the sea and the sun and not our work.  God is sovereign; He alone may use evil, but I have no option but to withdraw from evil.
Meditations on 2 Samuel - Dr. H. L. Rossier

N.J. Hiebert - 8050 

March 10

All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing froward or perverse in them.  They are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.
Proverbs 8:8-9

This is faith's answer to the caviler who prates of contradictions and errors in the inspired Word of God.  Modesty alone might suggest the thought that the fault might be in the reader--not in the Word.

But man's vanity and pride will not book such a conclusion. Yet so it shall soon be proven to be; for "one jot or one tittle (the smallest letter or vowel point) shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." (Matthew 5:18) How soon difficulties vanish when faith is in exercise!

Seemingly insuperable objections are swept away in a moment when the light of heaven shines into the soul and on the page of Scripture.  Jesus, in resurrection, opened both the scriptures and the understanding of the two with whom He (Jesus) walked to Emmaus.

It is this double enlightenment that causes difficulties to vanish like mist before the rays of the sun.

"They are all plain to him that understandeth." Proverbs 8:9 for "The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him." Psalm 25:14.  
Proverbs - H. A. Ironside

N.J. Hiebert - 8051   

March 11

THE  WORK  OF  CHRST

It is finished: and He bowed His head and gave up the ghost.  John 19:30

"It is finished!" thus He spoke on the cross and the words assure us that all is done. The rent veil and the open tomb tell us "It is finished." But what has been accomplished in this blessed work?  We cannot fully grasp it now as long as we look into a glass darkly.

When at last we are brought into His Presence, transformed into His own image, when we shall have share with Him in His glorious inheritance, when at last sin and death are no more and a new heaven and new earth are called into existence, then shall we more fully know what that work has accomplished.

All, ALL we have and are, all we shall have and shall be as His own, has its blessed source in the cross of Christ.  He died for all. He gave Himself a ransom for all.  He tasted death for every man.  He is the propitiation for the whole world (not for the sins of the  whole world, else the whole world would be saved).

It means His work is available to all sinners.  Upon that fact that He died for all, the Gospel is preached to lost and guilty sinners.  Christ died for the ungodly.  "Whosoever will" - "Whosoever believeth," these are the precious conditions of the Gospel of Grace which sounds forth from the finished work of Christ on the cross.

And all who believe on Him and accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour, for them He bore their sins on the cross.

Each believing sinner can look back to the cross and can say, "He loved me, He gave Himself for me."  He paid my debt.  He bore my sins in His own body on the tree.  He stood in my place.  He was my substitute.  He tasted death for me.
A. C. Gaebelein

N.J. Hiebert - 8052 

March 12

And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, . . .    Psalm 107:22

What is a sacrifice?  It is an offering to God.  A "sacrifice of thanksgiving" is to praise God when you do not feel like it; when you are depressed and despondent; when your life is covered with thick clouds and midnight darkness.

While we are admonished to "pray without ceasing," are we not also commanded to "rejoice evermore"?

Many homes display the motto, "Prayer changes things," and great blessing has resulted from this simple statement.  We are all aware that prayer does change things.

We know, also, that many times the enemy has not been moved one inch from his stronghold, although we have persisted in prayer for days, months -- yes, often years.

Such was my own experience when passing through a time of very great pressure, and prayer did not change things.

I came into possession of a wonderful secret.  That secret is simply this: after we have prayed and believed, "Praise Changes Things."
Streams in the Desert - Mrs. Charles E. Cowman

N.J. Hiebert - 8053

March 13

". . . there was a famine in the land.  And a certain man of Bethlehem-judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he (Elimelech), and his wife (Naomi), and his two sons (Mahlon and Chilion)". (Ruth 1:1-2)

Elimelech, the head of this family, purposed in his heart to leave God's people, and all the sweet associations connected with the place where God had set His name, that he might go forth to a strange land to dwell among strange people, who knew not God, nor thought upon His name.

He did this rather than endure the chastening of the Lord in the land of promise.  Led away by "the wandering of the desire" (Ecclesiastes 6:9) he found his anticipated joy become unmitigated sorrow, and nothing left but "vanity and vexation of sprit," (Ecclesiastes 6:9).  

God dealt with Elimelech in this way by death, and took him away.  So let us be warned and seek not to avoid the chastening of the Lord, but rather let us be exercised thereby, that we may bring forth "the peaceable fruit of righteousness." (Hebrews 12:11).

He tried to flee from the discipline of God, and he fell into Satan's snare; "as if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand upon the wall, and a serpent bit him." 
(Amos 5:19).

Elimelech is unquestionably brought before us as a proof that all those who act wilfully must eventually reap that which they have sown.  He had turned away from the fountain of life, and found the cup which he had mingled one of death, unhappy death.

Beware then, for the desire of the Spirit is "That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God."  (Colossians 1:10).
Meditations on The Book of Ruth - D. McKendrick

N.J. Hiebert - 8054           

March 14

Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, 
known and read of all men.  
2 Corinthians 3:2

The great nineteenth century evangelist, D. L. Moody used to say, "Where one man reads the Bible, a hundred read you and me."

Today fewer and fewer people spend time in serious reading of Holy Scripture but Christians are "read" every day.

Do the readers see kindness, compassion, patience and purity or something else?  Do they see a reflection of the attractive character of Christ and yearn to see more?

That is the challenge for us as Christians today.
Paul Young

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,
All His wondrous compassion and purity.
By the Spirit divine may Christ from my life shine,
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.
Tom M. Jones

N.J. Hiebert - 8055 

March 15

The  Test

Pray without ceasing.  1 Thessalonians 5:17.

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.  James 5:16.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication.  Ephesians 6:18.

During the American Revolutionary war a British soldier--a Scottish Highlander--was brought before his commanding officer who also was a Scotsman.  The charge against the young soldier was that he had been communicating with the enemy.  If proven guilty the sentence would be immediate execution.

Though there was no direct proof against the Highlander of subversion or contact with the enemy, British tempers were riled to a peak due to the previous capture and execution as a spy of Major Andre, a high ranking officer.

The circumstantial evidence against the young Scottish soldier was that he had been seen in the darkening twilight furtively stealing out from a thick clump of bushes and underwood that bordered the dense forest.

Though in the immediate neighbourhood of the British, the forests swarmed with the General George Washington's troops.  The charges brought against the young soldier were based on the conjectures and assumptions of those who saw him.

The Highlander's defence to his commanding officer was given in few words.  He claimed that having some 'off duty' time, he had quietly left his fellow soldiers to spend an hour or two in secret prayer.

The Scottish commanding officer sternly asked the young soldier; "Have you been in the habit of spending hours in secret prayer?"  Receiving an affirmative reply he drew out his watch and continued; "Then never in all your life had you more need for prayer than now; Kneel down, Sir, and pray aloud that we may hear you".

Expecting instant death the young Highlander knelt down and began to earnestly pray.  His prayer was obviously uttered by one used to communing with his God.  His language, earnestness, reverence and calm demeanour all gave clear testimony to the reality of his Christianity and the reliability of his defence.

When he finished praying his commanding officer quietly said; "You may go, sir.  You have not, I dare say, had any contact with the enemy tonight". 
The Christian Shepherd - 2009

N.J. Hiebert - 8056 

March 16

Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, 
and he prayed earnestly.    
James 5:17 

Do you think that God will welcome that prayer to heaven which has not your heart to bear it company?  And how can your heart go with it, when you have sent it another way?

Will God hear you when you mock Him?  And if this be not to mock Him, what is it?  Like children that knock at a door, and then run away to their play again; thus you raise your voice to God, and then are gone in your roving thought to hold converse with the world, or worse.  Is this not trifling with God?

Satan disturbs you in praying, that he may make you weary of praying.  Indeed he is not likely to miss his mark, if you let these vermin go on to breed in your heart; for these will rob you of the sweetness of prayer; and when the marrow is once out, you will easily be persuaded to throw the bone away.

He is in danger to forsake his meat, who has lost his relish for it.  Prayer is a tedious work for him who has no pleasure in it: and weariness in it stands next door to weariness of it.
The Christian in Complete Armour - William Gurnall (1617-1679)

N.J. Hiebert - 8057 

March 17

"Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where . . . Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan . . . Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom . . . the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly."  Genesis 13:10-13.

The world has more power over a Christian in a low state than the Word and promises of God.  Satan's aim always is to rob us of those things which constitute our joy and strength; and he succeeds only too well.  Let us not forget how gradual declension is.

We all belong to a period of declension.  It is too late for the Church, collectively, to return; but let us, at least, individually, avoid this slippery path.  Let us watch against the world, and mistrust even its fairest baits, seeking, in these closing days, to be among the faithful ones to whom the Lord can say, "I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.  (Revelation 3:20).

God grant that holy separation from the world, and increasing communion with the Lord, may characterize us until the close of our course.
Meditations on the Book of Judges - H. L. Rossier

N.J. Hiebert - 8058

March 18

Take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  Ephesians 6:13

I am in the war, and I can never get out of it, though I may get out of the evil day.  What then am I to do?  I am to take the whole armour of God.

And now I just ask you to inspect each part of this armour.  Is there one single piece of that which is declared to be the armour of God fitted to send you out into the field of battle with flesh and blood?

Is that the way God armed Joshua and David?  They were to meet flesh and blood; and they were carnal weapons which He put into their hands.  Now there is not a touch of that here.  There are no slings and stones and jaw-bones of donkeys; and this is declared to be the whole armour of God.

If this is not the armour I have on me, I am not fighting for Christ.  Saints may take carnal weapons; but if I do--if, for instance, I go into a court of justice to assert my rights--do not let me talk of being in the light God.  That is where dispensational truth is so important.

I find here that the Spirit sends me into a field of battle, and I find that my security depends on truth, righteousness, faith, peace, and the sword of the Spirit.
Ephesians - J. G. Bellett

N.J. Hiebert - 8059     

March 19

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord."   Psalm 37:23

We have the fullest assurance that our God can and does guide His children in all things.  He can signify His mind to us as to this or that particular act or movement.  If not, where are we?

How are we to get on?  How are we to regulate our movements?  Are we to be drifted hither and thither by the tide of circumstances?  Are we left to blind chance, or to the mere impulse of our own will?

Thank God, it is not so.  He can, in His own perfect way, give us the certainty of His mind in any given case; and, without that certainty, we should never move.

Our Lord Jesus Christ can intimate His mind to His servant as to where He would have him go, and what he would have him do, and no true servant will ever think of moving or acting without such intimation.

If we are not sure, let us be quiet and wait.  Very often we harass and fret ourselves about movements that God would not have made us make at all.

A person once said to a friend, "I am quite at a loss to know which way to turn."  "Then don't turn at all,"  was the friend's wise reply.
Traveling Toward Sunrise

N.J. Hiebert - 8060        

March 20

GRACE  OPENS  THE  DOOR

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.  
John 1:14

And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness.  
2 Corinthians 12:9

Do we not always fail when God confers a responsibility upon us?  Only grace can keep us.  How thankful we can be that grace always overrules when we have spoiled everything.  It gives us an "open door."

No, this is not to return to what we have ruined.  Rather, grace gives us something entirely new--something better than what we previously possessed.

When Sardis did not repent, the Lord gave an open door--not a door back to the beginning of Sardis (Revelation 3:1-6), but a door to Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13).  The meaning of this open door is not liberty in preaching the gospel; it has nothing to do with this.

Even when it concerns the gospel an open door does not mean that we will not have any opposition.  On the contrary the apostle Paul writes: "For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries." (1 Corinthians 16:9).

An open door means that the Lord is clearly showing us which way He wants us to go.  In a world where Satan has his way there will always be tremendous opposition and problems to overcome.
The Book of Ruth - H. L. Heijkoop

N.J. Hiebert - 8061  

March 21

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:7 

And stayed by joy divine, as hireling fills his day,
Through scenes of strife, and desert life, I tread in peace my way.

It is a serious thing, whatever be the goodness of God, to find peace with a God of holiness.  Christ has made peace; but He would have us feel what it is to have need of it, in order that we may know it.

You look to getting the victory in order to get peace; we must get peace to get the victory--peace already made by Christ's work--then you will get strength.  We do not find it till we see we have none.

The gospel of peace is ours in Christ; but I must have the spirit of peace in my heart.  Peace has been made for us that we may dwell in peace.

It is Christ's work which gives peace to the conscience; but it is subdued will, having none of our own, which in great and in little things makes us peaceful in heart in going through a world of . . . trial.

In all things . . . instead of disquieting ourselves . . . we ought to present our request to God with prayer, with supplication . . . so that, even while making our petition to Him, we can already give thanks, because we are sure of the answer of His grace, be it what it may. . . .  It does not say, you will have what you ask; but God's peace will keep your hearts. . . .  Oh, what grace! that even our anxieties are a means of our being filled with this marvellous peace.
Pilgrim Portions for the Day of Rest. - J.N.D,

N.J. Hiebert - 8062   

March 22

VINEYARD - KEEPING

They made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.    Song of Solomon 1:6

Busy running to and fro,
Busy toiling here and there;
Not an idle hour to show,
Not a minute left to spare.

To every call a ready  ear,
For every task a hand adept;
But one thing's left undone, I fear--
"My own vineyard I have not kept."

I would not slow the busy pace,
I would not stay the helpful hands;
Nor would I, with averted face,
Pass by when need my help demands.

But teach me, Lord (for was Thou not
The busiest, yet the holiest Man?)
How first to tend my private plot,
Then haste to do what else I can.
Bells and Pomegranates - James M. S. Tait

N.J. Hiebert - 8063 

March 23

He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and He made the waters to stand as a heap.  And He led them on safely, so that they feared not. 
Psalm 78:13,53

We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair.  
2 Corinthians 4:8

Threatening breakers of destruction,
Doubt's insidious undertow,
Shall not sink us, shall not drag us
Out to ocean depths of woe;
For His promise shall sustain us,
Praise the Lord, whose Word is true!
We shall not go down, or under,
For He saith, "Thou passest THROUGH."
Annie Johnson Flint

N.J Hiebert - 8064

March 24

MY  GENERATION 

For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption. 
Acts 13:36.

"David served his own generation by the will of God."  Could you have a nobler motto than that to write on the flyleaf of your Bible?  "I will serve my own generation by the will of God."

This is life at its highest and best.

"The great secret of success is to be ready when your opportunity comes."
Lord Beaconsfield

"Can anything be sadder than work left unfinished?
Yes; work never begun."  Christina Rossetti
Mountain Trailways for Youth

N.J. Hiebert - 8065

March 25

Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.  Philippians 1:6 

In one of London's galleries there stands an unfinished piece of statuary - crude and imperfect - with barely the outline of a human form emerging.

Some one remarked, "The rough block of white marble is here to indicate the crudeness from which these perfect forms have been chiseled."

There was the touch of genius in the outline.  Why could not the ideal there have been released?  Upon closer observation one notices these words inscribed upon the pedestal, "The artist died at this stage of the work."

Many a youth has started out as this artist did but died to God and high ideals and went into sin with his life not finished as God had planned it should be.

To each man is given a marble to carve for the wall!
A stone that is needed to heighten the beauty of all:
And only his soul has the magic to give it grace,
And only his hands have the cunning to put it in place.

Yes, the task is given to each man, no other can do:
So the errand is waiting; it has waited ages for you,
And now you appear; the hushed ones are turning their gaze
To see what you do with your chance in the chamber of days.   
Mountain Trailways for Youth

N.J. Hiebert - 8066

March 26

CORONA  MEANS  CROWN

The four and twenty elders fall down before Him that sat on the throne, and worship Him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.   

Revelation 4:10-11 

Corona 

Corona is a short - term blip along the line of time,
Selective shut-down slows it, but can't stop it on a dime.
But spread is sped by airplane trips by thousands every day,
Best to be alerted, cautious, wash your hands, and pray.

Corona is a worldly crown, but this one spells corruption
For cases in the older group, a major life disruption.
Attacking lungs and breathing tubes to varying degrees,
Breathing may get difficult, the ventilator please.

There's a better crown for Christians, one that cannot fade away,
That is the crown of glory, that our Saviour gives one day.
When we get to heaven; he'll say as He bestows,
Well done thou faithful servant, it was earned while down below.

Forever with our Saviour is the promise in His Word,
And all diseases will have gone and justice is His sword.
We'll be among the number when He greets the Holy City,
Then all the world will bow to Him - His love and grace and pity.

But what about those future crowns, handed out on high,
We all know why we have them, because the Saviour died.
Will we get to keep them, like Olympic athletes do?
We'll cast them at His feet someday; Lord we all love you.
Lorne C. Perry      

N.J.  Hiebert - 8067

March 27

MARVELLOUSLY  HELPED

But when he (Peter) saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.  Matthew 14:30

Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen [helped] with a little help.   Daniel 11:34

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Psalm 46:1 

Then shall we not "be holpen with a little help", which is too often all we really expect from our omnipotent Helper, just because we do not feel that we have "no might." (2 Chronicles 20:12).

Peter was a good swimmer (John 21:7), but he did not say, "Lord help me to swim!"  He said, "Lord, save me!"   (Matthew 14:30)  And so the Master's help was instant and complete.

Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities,that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  2 Corinthians 12:9  

The Lord hath done great things for thee!
All through the fleeted days
Jehovah hath dealt wondrously;
Lift up thy heart and praise!
For greater things thine eyes shall see,
Child of His loving choice!
The Lord will do great things for thee;
Fear not, be glad, rejoice!
Royal Bounty - F. R. Havergal

N.J. Hiebert - 8068 

March 28

All things are against me.  Genesis 42:36
All things work together for good to them that love God.  Romans 8:28

Many people are wanting (lacking) power.  Now how is power produced?  The other day** we passed the great works where the trolley engines are supplied with electricity.  We heard the hum and roar of the countless wheels, and we asked our friend, "How do they make the power?"

"Why," he said, "just by the revolution of those wheels and the friction they produce.  The rubbing creates the electric current."

And so, when God wants to bring more power into your life, He brings more pressure.  He is generating spiritual force by hard rubbing.  Some do not like it and try to run away from the pressure, instead of getting the power and using it to rise above the painful causes.

Opposition is essential to a true equilibrium of forces.  The centripetal and centrifugal forces acting in opposition to each other keep our planet in her orbit.  The one propelling, and the other repelling, so act and re-act, that instead of sweeping off into space in a pathway of desolation, she pursues her even orbit around her solar centre.

So God guides our lives.  It is not enough to have an impelling force--we need just as much a repelling force, and so He holds us back by the testing ordeals of life, by the pressure of temptation and trial, by the things that seem against us, but really are furthering our way and establishing our goings.

Let us thank Him for both, let us take the weights as well as the wings, and thus divinely impelled, let us press on with faith and patience in our high and heavenly calling .
A. B. Simpson (1843-1919)**

N.J. Hiebert - 8069   

March 29

BLESSED  AND  BLESSING

". . . my cup runneth over."  Psalm 23:5

The cup of judgment was drained for us by our Lord (Matthew 26:42); the cup of salvation He has mixed for us out of the chalice of His supreme sufferings (Psalm 116:13); and now the cup of blessing overflows from us to others (Psalm 23:5).

This is ever the divine order: we must be vessels of mercy ere we can be channels of blessing; the "well" of living water meeting all local requirements must precede the "rivers" which are to flow out in blessing to others (compare John 4:14 and John 7:37,38).

"My cup runneth over."  What does that mean?  Abundance?  It means more than that; it means redundance.  How does a vessel overflow?  Only by being under, and as long as it is kept under, a flowing fountain.

He is the fountain of living water (Jeremiah 2:13); and if we are in touch with Him there is no limit to what He can accomplish in, and by, and with, and for, and through us.  Then, indeed, shall we be like Abraham of old - blessed and made a blessing (Genesis 12:2).
The Pearl of the Psalms - George Henderson

N.J. Hiebert - 8070  

March 30

He which testifieth these things saith, surely I come quickly. Revelation 22:20 

A sign on a plot of land in my home town announced the development of luxury homes, "Coming Soon!" was splashed across it.

Five years later the sign is still there.  No new houses have been built.  Reputedly, the builder did not have enough money to even get the project started.

Christians are assured that a future home has been prepared for them - every thing is ready and paid for and the Lord is coming soon to collect us.

There is nothing to hinder His coming.  Could it be today?
Brian Powlesland

I am waiting for the coming of the Lord Who died for me;
O His words have thrilled my spirit "I will come again for thee".
S. Trevor Francis

N.J. Hiebert - 8071  

March 31

"By faith Moses . . .  choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.  Hebrews11:24-25.

"By faith Moses refused". Faith rests on promise; to faith the promise is equivalent to fulfillment; and if only we have the one, we may dare to count on the other as already ours.

It matters comparatively little that the thing promised is not given; it is sure and certain because God has pledged His word for it, and in anticipation we may enter on its enjoyment.

Had Moses simply acted on what he saw, he had never left Pharaoh's palace. But his faith told him of things hidden from his contemporaries; and these led him to act in a way which to them was perfectly incomprehensible.

One blow struck when the time is fulfilled is worth a thousand struck in premature eagerness.  "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in His own power" (Acts 1:7).  Wait thou only upon God; let your expectation be from Him. 
F. B. Meyer

N.J. Hiebert - 8072

April 1

ENTANGLED  CIRCUMSTANCES

For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, they are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in.  Exodus 14:3

Some times when problems come up and we see no way through, or when souls we love seem entangled, we are tempted to think of what Pharaoh will say.

There can be no entanglement, the wilderness cannot possibly shut in anyone whom God is leading Home.  It has been said, "What we see as problems, God sees as solutions"; and what we have to do through the age-long minute before we see, is to wait in peace and refuse to be hustled.

"Fear ye not, stand still," and sooner or later, "see the salvation of the Lord"  Exodus 14:13.  There will be no entanglement.

And is it not comforting that the Lord Jesus knows beforehand what Pharaoh will say?  So we need not pay the slightest attention to him, even if he does make discouraging remarks.

The last word is never with Pharaoh.  "They did cry there, Pharaoh king of Egypt is but a noise"  (Jeremiah 46:17).  So let us trust and not be afraid.
Amy Carmichael - Thou Givest . . . They Gather

N.J. Hiebert - 8073 

April 2

HIS  RESURRECTION

To whom also He showed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.  Acts 1:3   

The resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ was attested by "many infallible proofs (Acts 1:3).  On one occasion He was seen by "over five hundred brethren at once" (1 Corinthians 15:6).   Peter included the other eleven apostles with him when he said, "this Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we are all witnesses" (Acts 2:32).

Our Lord's disciples handled Him (Luke 24:39), talked with Him (Acts 1:6-9), and "did eat and drink with Him after He rose from the dead" (Acts 10:41).  This companying with the disciples after our Lord's resurrection was for "forty days" (Acts 1:3).

Others were raised from the dead, like Lazarus (John 11:43-44), and the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-16), and the twelve year old daughter of Jairus (Mark 5:35-43); but these all rose to die again. 

The renown of our Lord's resurrection is that when He emerged  from death He brought the "keys of hell and death" with Him (Revelation 1:18).  He was a conqueror, not conquered.  Our Lord took His life again in resurrection (John 10:17-18).  Resurrection was His own act by His own inherent power.

Our Lord will never die again, for death has "no more dominion over Him" (Romans 6:9).  He ever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25).
Our Lord Jesus Christ - A Plant of Renown - Leonard Sheldrake

N.J. Hiebert - 8074 

April 3