Witness And Testimony - Blog

Power To Raise

4/22/2018

Am I bowed down?

Then let me urge this word of grace before the LORD.

It is His way, His custom, His promise, His delight, to raise up them that are bowed down.

Is it a sense of sin and a consequent depression of spirit which distresses me?

Then the work of Jesus is, in this case, made and provided to raise me up into rest.

O LORD, raise me, for Thy mercy's sake!

Is it a sad bereavement or a great fall in circumstances?

Here again the Comforter has undertaken to console.

What a mercy for us that one Person of the sacred Trinity should become the Comforter!

This work will be well done since such a glorious One has made it His peculiar care.

Some are so bowed down that only Jesus can loose them from their infirmity, but He can, and He will, do it.

He can raise us up to health, to hope, to happiness.

He has often done so under former trials, and He is the same Savior and will repeat His deeds of lovingkindness.

We who are today bowed down and sorrowful shalt yet be set on high...

And those who now mock at us shall be greatly ashamed.

What an honor to be raised up by the LORD!

It is worthwhile to be bowed down that we may experience His upraising power.

~Charles Spurgeon~

My Choice Is His Choice

4/16/2018

Psa 47:4 He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.

Our enemies would allot us a very dreary portion, but we are not left in their hands.

The LORD will cause us to stand in our lot, and our place is appointed by His infinite wisdom.

A wiser mind than our own arranges our destiny...

The ordaining of all things is with God...

And we are glad to have it so...

We choose that God should choose for us.

If we might have our own way we would wish to let all things go in God's way.

Being conscious of our own folly, we would not desire to rule our own destinies.

We feel safer and more at ease when the LORD steers our vessel than we could possibly be if we could direct it according to our own judgment.

Joyfully we leave the painful present and the unknown future with our Father, our Savior, our Comforter.

O my soul, this day lay down thy wishes at Jesus' feet!

If thou hast of late been somewhat wayward and willful, eager to be and to do after thine own mind, now dismiss thy foolish self, and place the reins in the LORD's hands.

Say, "He shall choose."

If others dispute the sovereignty of the LORD and glory in the free will of man, do thou answer them, "He shall choose for me."

It is my freest choice to let Him choose.

As a free agent, I elect that He should have absolute sway.

~Charles Spurgeon~

The Worst Days I Have Ever Had!

4/9/2018

The Lord gets His Best Soldiers out of the Highlands Of Affliction.

Great hearts can only be made by great troubles.

The spade of trouble digs the reservoir of comfort deeper, and makes more room for consolation.

The Lord's mercy often rides to the door of our heart, upon the black horse of affliction!

I bear my witness that the worst days I have ever had, have turned out to be my best days!

And when God has seemed most unfriendly to me, He has then been most kind.

If there is anything in this world for which I would bless Him more than for anything else, it is for pain and affliction.

I am sure that in these things, the richest tenderest love has been manifested to me.

Our Father's wagons rumble most heavily, when they are bringing us the richest freight of the bullion of His grace.

Love letters from Heaven, are often sent in black-edged envelopes.

The cloud that is black with horror, is big with mercy.

Fear not the storm, it brings healing in its wings!

When Jesus is with you in the vessel, the tempest only hastens the ship to its desired haven.

~Charles Spurgeon~

We Have The Unspeakable Consolation!

4/3/2018

Rom 8:32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

We have the unspeakable consolation of knowing that the same divine and compassionate Redeemer who suffered, and bled, and died for us--has the entire management of our affairs;

And that nothing can happen in the course of providence, which is not appointed by Him "Who loved us and gave Himself for us!"

In proportion to our persuasion of His love for us, should be our confidence in His government over us.

And what proof of sincerity, or what pledge of love, can we desire-which is not given by His past dealings on our behalf?

If He died for us on the cruel cross-then certainly He will now, when all things are put under His power, "make all things work together for our good!"

We may rest assured that the love which He manifested for us on earth, is but a pledge of the love which He still bears to us...

And that He will neither forget nor forsake us, until He has accomplished the grand end of His mission, by our deliverance from all evil, and our joyful entrance into the glorious kingdom of Heaven!

Oh! how cheering to know, that amidst the joys of Heaven-Jesus has not forgotten any one of His "little flock" for whom He suffered in the garden and on the cross!

~James Buchanan~

Dauntless Faith

3/29/2018

Act 18:10 For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city.

So long as the LORD had work for Paul to do in Corinth, the fury of the mob was restrained.

The Jews opposed themselves and blasphemed; but they could neither stop the preaching of the gospel nor the conversion of the hearers.

God has power over the most violent minds.

He makes the wrath of man to praise Him when it breaks forth...

But He still more displays His goodness when He restrains it...

And He Can Restrain It.

By the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone, till thy people pass over, I Am The LORD.

Do not, therefore, feel any fear of man when you know that you are doing your duty.

Go straight on, as Jesus would have done, and those who oppose shall be as a bruised reed and as smoking flax.

Many a time men have had cause to fear because they were themselves afraid...

But a dauntless faith in God brushes fear aside like the cobwebs in a giant's path.

No man can harm us unless the LORD permits.

He who makes the devil himself to flee at a word can certainly control the devil's agents.

Maybe they are already more afraid of you than you are of them.

Therefore, go forward, and where you looked to meet with foes you will find friends.

~Charles Spurgeon~

Drawing Near To God

3/27/2018

Jas 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

The nearer we come to God, the more graciously will He reveal Himself to us.

When the prodigal comes to his father, his father runs to meet him.

When the wandering dove returns to the ark, Noah puts out his hand to pull her in unto him.

When the tender wife seeks her husband's society, he comes to her on wings of love.

Come then, dear friend, let us draw nigh to God who so graciously awaits us, yea, comes to meet us.

Did you ever notice that passage in Isaiah 58:9?

Isa 58:9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

There the LORD seems to put Himself at the disposal of His people, saying to them, "Here I am."

As much as to say...

What have you to say to me?

What can I do for you?

I am waiting to bless you.

How can we hesitate to draw near?

God is nigh to forgive, to bless, to comfort, to help, to quicken, to deliver.

Let it be the main point with us to get near to God.

This done, all is done.

If we draw near to others, they may before long grow weary of us and leave us...

But if we seek the LORD alone, no change will come over His mind...

But He will continue to come nearer and yet nearer to us by fuller and more joyful fellowship.

~Charles Spurgeon~

The True Vine

3/26/2018

John 15:1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

The True vine is that which fulfills the One and Only purpose of its existence.

So Jesus brings this illustration over to Himself and His Church, and it is perfectly clear what is the nature of the Lord Jesus.

He is reaching out to all men, Embracing the whole world.

He asks ALL the nations Into His Heart.

ALL men are His concern and not any one nation.

He said to His disciples: "Go ye therefore, and make disciples of ALL THE NATIONS" .

It is the very nature of Jesus to do that.

It is quite foreign to Him to be exclusive, small and narrow and self-occupied....

But it is all very well to think of this objectively.

It has to come down to every one of us...

What is the proof that Christ is in you and in me?

How can it be known that Christ is in us?

Only in one way...

That others are receiving Life through us...

That we minister the Life of Christ to others...

That when hungry and needy people come into touch with us they feel the touch of Life.

They may express it in different ways, but it amounts to this:...

That man, that woman, has something that I have not got...

And it is something that I need.

There is something about them that I feel, and it is what I really need.

That should be true of every Christian because Christ is in us, expanding Himself through us and ministering His Life through us.

Oh, do pray, dear friends, every day as you get up...

Lord, make me a channel of Life to someone today..

Lord, minister Your own Life through me to someone today.

May I bring Life wherever I am..

The Lord has no other purpose for you and for me.

We may try to do a lot of things, but if we belong to the Vine we are no good for anything but to bear fruit...

And that is to bring Life to others.

~T. Austin Sparks~

Trouble Is A Messenger

3/22/2018

It is comforting to think of trouble, in whatever form it may come to us, as a Heavenly Messenger, bringing us something from God.

In its earthly aspect it may seem hurtful, even destructive...

But in its spiritual out-working it yields blessing.

Many of the richest blessings which have come down to us from the past are the fruit of sorrow or pain.

We should never forget that redemption, the world's greatest blessing, is the fruit of the world's greatest sorrow.

In every time of sharp pruning, when the knife is deep and the pain is sore, it is an unspeakable comfort to read, "My Father is the husbandman."

Doctor Vincent tells of being in a great hothouse where luscious clusters of grapes were hanging on every side.

The owner said, "When my new gardener came, he said he would have nothing to do with these vines unless he could cut them clean down to the stalk...

And he did, and we had no grapes for two years, but this is the result.

There is rich suggestiveness in this interpretation of the pruning process, as we apply it to the Christian life.

Pruning seems to be destroying the vine, the gardener appears to be cutting it all away...

But he looks on into the future and knows that the final outcome will be the enrichment of its life and greater abundance of fruit.

There are blessings we can never have unless we are ready to pay the price of pain.

There is no way to reach them save through suffering.

~Dr. Miller~

I walked a mile with Pleasure...

She chattered all the way

But left me none the wiser...

For all she had to say

I walked a mile with Sorrow...

And ne'er a word said she

But, oh, the things I learned from her...

When sorrow walked with me.

Fear To Fear

3/17/2018

Jer 1:8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

Whenever fear comes in and makes us falter, we are in danger of falling into sin.

Conceit is to be dreaded, but so is cowardice.

Dare to be a Daniel.

Our great Captain should be served by brave soldiers.

What a reason for bravery is here!

God is with those who are with Him.

God will never be away when the hour of struggle comes.

Do they threaten you?

Who are you that you should be afraid of a man that shall die?

Will you lose your situation?

Your God whom you serve will find bread and water for His servants.

Can you not trust Him?

Do they pour ridicule upon you?

Will this break your bones or your heart?

Bear it for Christ's sake, and even rejoice because of it.

God is with the true, the just, the holy, to deliver them; and He will deliver you.

Remember how Daniel came out of the lions' den and the three holy children out of the furnace.

Yours is not so desperate a case as theirs; but if it were, the LORD would bear you through and make you more than a conqueror.

Fear to fear....

Be afraid to be afraid...

Your worst enemy is within your own bosom.

Get to your knees and cry for help...

And then rise up saying, "I will trust, and not be afraid."

~Charles Spurgeon~

The Guest

3/10/2018

A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new to our small town.

From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our family.

The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the world a few months later.

As I grew up, I Never Questioned his place in our family.

Mom taught me to love the Word of God.

Dad taught me to obey it.

But the stranger was our storyteller--he could weave the most fascinating tales.

Adventures, mysteries and comedies were daily conversations.

He could hold our whole family Spellbound for Hours each evening.

He was Like A Friend to the whole family.

He took Dad and me to our first major league baseball game.

He was Always Encouraging Us to see the movies, and he even made arrangements to introduce us to several movie stars.

The stranger was an incessant talker.

Dad didn't seem to mind, but sometimes Mom would quietly get up--while the rest of us were enthralled with one of his stories of faraway places--and go to her room and read her Bible and pray.

I wonder now if she ever prayed that the stranger would leave.

My Dad ruled our household with certain Moral Convictions.

But this stranger Never Felt an obligation to honor them.

Profanity was not allowed in our house--not from us, our friends, or adults.

Our longtime visitor, however, used four-letter words that burned my ears and made Dad squirm.

To my knowledge, the stranger was Never Confronted.

Dad didn't permit alcohol in his home.

But the stranger enlightened us to other ways of life.

He often offered us beer and other alcoholic beverages.

He made cigarettes look appealing, cigars manly, and pipes distinguished.

He talked freely about sex.

His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.

I know now that my early concepts of the man/woman relationship were influenced by the stranger.

I believe it was only by the grace of God that the stranger did not influence us even more.

Time after time He Opposed my parents' values.

Yet he was Seldom Rebuked and Never Asked To Leave.

More than thirty years have passed since the stranger moved in with the young family.

He is not nearly so intriguing to my Dad now, as he was in those early years.

But if I were to walk into my parents' home today, I would still see him sitting over in a corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk, and watch him draw his pictures.

His name?

We always called him TV.

~Author Unknown~