I have been a bit neglectful this week with my blog... I have had a few thoughts that I would like to get down but haven’t been able to make the time for them. I am away for my annual trip to Sandwood Bay straight after work tomorrow morning. It is 6.15pm at the moment and I'm just getting ready to go to work now. I will leave this one thought..
“Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown”
The good work that the Lord has begun in us, no matter how little we have a grasp of it, let us hold fast to what we do know of it.
I will add on this thought when I get back in July.
19 June, 2008
15 June, 2008
Sabbath 15th June 2008
It is 4.20am and I have been up for about an hour now. As I work permanent nightshift I am often awake at this time on my days off. These last few days and weeks have been more or less a constant joy. I have experienced comfort within, unspeakable joy at the word and providence of God and delight in Him.
Going back to my entry on the 8th June, re the morning portion of my Daily Light on Psalm 37, v.3, I searched through the sermons here for a sermon on this verse, but there wasn’t one for v.3, but there was for v.4, which I posted a little about on the10th June.
I also daily read the morning and evening devotionals of Mr Spurgeon and Saturday morning’s entry contained a devotional on Psalm 37, v.4.;
I have experienced this several times over the past 4 years, where I have read the word of God; either in the Bible or my Daily Light or in a sermon or book, and a part of it has stood out for me, a text or a verse, and then I find that text replicated in some other place, within hours, sometimes minutes. I remember the first few times I thought, “What wonderful coincidence” – a text would stand out for me in the Daily Light first thing in the morning, I would have breakfast then pick up a book – maybe my Bible for my daily reading or a book containing sermons by someone, and there I would find the same text at the very point where I had left off previously.
I find it happens regularly when I am more diligent and careful about spiritual matters.
Going back to my entry on the 8th June, re the morning portion of my Daily Light on Psalm 37, v.3, I searched through the sermons here for a sermon on this verse, but there wasn’t one for v.3, but there was for v.4, which I posted a little about on the10th June.
I also daily read the morning and evening devotionals of Mr Spurgeon and Saturday morning’s entry contained a devotional on Psalm 37, v.4.;
I have experienced this several times over the past 4 years, where I have read the word of God; either in the Bible or my Daily Light or in a sermon or book, and a part of it has stood out for me, a text or a verse, and then I find that text replicated in some other place, within hours, sometimes minutes. I remember the first few times I thought, “What wonderful coincidence” – a text would stand out for me in the Daily Light first thing in the morning, I would have breakfast then pick up a book – maybe my Bible for my daily reading or a book containing sermons by someone, and there I would find the same text at the very point where I had left off previously.
I find it happens regularly when I am more diligent and careful about spiritual matters.
12 June, 2008
Thursday 12th June 2008
I am feeling really tired today and not feeling up to making an entry. I am so looking forward to my holiday at the end of next week.
10 June, 2008
Tuesday 10th June 2008
"Habit, if not resisted, soon becomes necessity."
St. Augustine
I am sitting here with a mug of tea, it is 9am and I am intent on updating this blog daily, to make it a habit, and hopefully a necessity.
I had a great visit with the children last night; it is always so good to see them.
Read a sermon by Mr Spurgeon the Sabbath just past on Psalm 37, v.4.
“Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
I have had much delight in the Lord recently. Delight in such simple things, a great peace and joy with much comfort within. Delight in His word, and in His providence. I am learning to be content with His Will, to fully trust and know for sure that the good work that he has begun in me WILL be performed until the day of Jesus Christ.
My desires are the salvation of my children, of Sarah, my parents, brothers and sister and their families, my friends and work colleagues.
The desire to know Jesus
The desire to be turned from this world, to be subdued to His Will
The desire to bring forth fruit and for this work - my writing, to be blessed
The desire not to be scared to speak about gospel truths and of the ways of the Lord - His goodness, mercy and wonderful providence.
I also have another desire, but this is a desire of self; to have my own house once again, in North West Sutherland, overlooking the sea. But this is covetousness I fear.
St. Augustine
I am sitting here with a mug of tea, it is 9am and I am intent on updating this blog daily, to make it a habit, and hopefully a necessity.
I had a great visit with the children last night; it is always so good to see them.
Read a sermon by Mr Spurgeon the Sabbath just past on Psalm 37, v.4.
“Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
I have had much delight in the Lord recently. Delight in such simple things, a great peace and joy with much comfort within. Delight in His word, and in His providence. I am learning to be content with His Will, to fully trust and know for sure that the good work that he has begun in me WILL be performed until the day of Jesus Christ.
My desires are the salvation of my children, of Sarah, my parents, brothers and sister and their families, my friends and work colleagues.
The desire to know Jesus
The desire to be turned from this world, to be subdued to His Will
The desire to bring forth fruit and for this work - my writing, to be blessed
The desire not to be scared to speak about gospel truths and of the ways of the Lord - His goodness, mercy and wonderful providence.
I also have another desire, but this is a desire of self; to have my own house once again, in North West Sutherland, overlooking the sea. But this is covetousness I fear.
08 June, 2008
Sabbath 8th June
Whilst updating the William Sinclair Diaries blog, the latest entry contained the following lines from John Flavel;
"Then did the sunshine of Thy face,
And sweetest glimpses of Thy grace,
Like April showers and warming gleams,
Distil their dews, reflect their beams.
My dead affections then were green,
And hopeful buds were to be seen;
Oh joyful days, thrice happy state,
Each place was Bethel, heaven's gate.
What sweet discourse, what heavenly talk,
While daily I did with Thee walk;
Mine eyes o'erflow, my heart doth sink,
As oft upon those days I think.
For strangers now have come between
My God and me, and may be seen;
For what is now, and what was then,
'Tis just as if I were two men.
My fragrant branches blasted be,
No fruits like those now can I see;
Some canker worm lies at my root,
Which fades my leaves, destroys my fruit.
My soul is banished from Thy sight,
For this it mourneth day and night;
Yet why dost thou desponding lie?
Like Jonah, cast a backward eye,
That God who made the Spring at first,
When I was barren and accurst,
Can much more easily restore
My state to what it was before;
A word or smile on my poor soul
Would make it perfect, sound and whole."
"Then did the sunshine of Thy face,
And sweetest glimpses of Thy grace,
Like April showers and warming gleams,
Distil their dews, reflect their beams.
My dead affections then were green,
And hopeful buds were to be seen;
Oh joyful days, thrice happy state,
Each place was Bethel, heaven's gate.
What sweet discourse, what heavenly talk,
While daily I did with Thee walk;
Mine eyes o'erflow, my heart doth sink,
As oft upon those days I think.
For strangers now have come between
My God and me, and may be seen;
For what is now, and what was then,
'Tis just as if I were two men.
My fragrant branches blasted be,
No fruits like those now can I see;
Some canker worm lies at my root,
Which fades my leaves, destroys my fruit.
My soul is banished from Thy sight,
For this it mourneth day and night;
Yet why dost thou desponding lie?
Like Jonah, cast a backward eye,
That God who made the Spring at first,
When I was barren and accurst,
Can much more easily restore
My state to what it was before;
A word or smile on my poor soul
Would make it perfect, sound and whole."
Sabbath 8th June
Thoughts after reading this morning's portion of my Daily Light;
Psalm 37, v.3 "Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed."
To trust in the Lord with an active faith, in the daily reading of His word, spending time in prayer, meditating on His providence throughout the day, this is doing good and dwelling in the land, the spiritual land, spiritual Canaan, and verily thou shalt be fed - spiritually fed.
Having recently more, and yet still so little, trusted in my Lord, spending more time in prayer, I have been spiritually fed with this word this morning.
Psalm 37, v.3 "Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed."
To trust in the Lord with an active faith, in the daily reading of His word, spending time in prayer, meditating on His providence throughout the day, this is doing good and dwelling in the land, the spiritual land, spiritual Canaan, and verily thou shalt be fed - spiritually fed.
Having recently more, and yet still so little, trusted in my Lord, spending more time in prayer, I have been spiritually fed with this word this morning.
01 June, 2008
Sabbath 1st June
I have come across this work by A T Schofield - Plain papers for young believers. I found it very well written, concise and practical. I especially enjoyed the second and third papers - The Two Natures, and Eternal Life. Reading the Two Natures paper, I was reminded of some good words from The Shorter Catechism Illustrated, by John Whitecross. I have just now looked it up;
"Two or three years before John Newton's death, when his sight was become so dim that he was no longer able to read, an aged friend and brother in the ministry called on him to breakfast. Family prayers following, the portion of Scripture for the day was read to him. It was taken from Boganky's Golden Treasury: 'By the grace of God I am what I am.' It was Newton's custom on these occasions, to make a short familiar exposition on the passage read. After the reading of this text, he paused for some moments, and then uttered the following affecting soliloquy: 'I am not what I ought to be. Ah! how imperfect and deficient. I am not what I wish to be. I abhor what is evil, and I would cleave to what is good. I am not what I hope to be; soon, soon, I shall put off mortality, and with mortality all sin and imperfection. Yet, though I am not what I ought to be, nor what I wish to be, nor what I hope to be, I can truly say, I am not what I once was—a slave to sin and Satan; and I can heartily join with the apostle, and acknowledge, 'By the grace of God, I am what I am.' Let us pray."
"Two or three years before John Newton's death, when his sight was become so dim that he was no longer able to read, an aged friend and brother in the ministry called on him to breakfast. Family prayers following, the portion of Scripture for the day was read to him. It was taken from Boganky's Golden Treasury: 'By the grace of God I am what I am.' It was Newton's custom on these occasions, to make a short familiar exposition on the passage read. After the reading of this text, he paused for some moments, and then uttered the following affecting soliloquy: 'I am not what I ought to be. Ah! how imperfect and deficient. I am not what I wish to be. I abhor what is evil, and I would cleave to what is good. I am not what I hope to be; soon, soon, I shall put off mortality, and with mortality all sin and imperfection. Yet, though I am not what I ought to be, nor what I wish to be, nor what I hope to be, I can truly say, I am not what I once was—a slave to sin and Satan; and I can heartily join with the apostle, and acknowledge, 'By the grace of God, I am what I am.' Let us pray."
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