# devotions

devotion:
<i> If ye will inquire, inquire ye. - <a href='B:290 21:12'>Isa 21:12</a>. </i><p>&ldquo;WISDOM,&rdquo; says Solomon, &ldquo;is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom, and, with all thy getting, get understanding.&rdquo; One mode of obtaining this is by inquiry; for all knowledge is originally external, and we fetch it in by application and labour. &ldquo;Through desire, a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom.&rdquo; A very superior man once said, &ldquo;Much of the little knowledge I possess has been obtained by my never being above asking questions of others,&rdquo; adding that there is hardly any one but knows something which we do not, or know not so well. If it be inquired, Of whom are we to ask? we say, first and supremely of God himself. And how encouraging is the assurance,-&ldquo;If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him.&rdquo;<p>Next, we consult his inspired servants, the prophets and the apostles. Then we ask good men, who in his light see light, and are led by his Spirit into all truth. And surely the old should not be overlooked. &ldquo;With the aged is wisdom, and in length of days is understanding.&rdquo; &ldquo;The old, indeed,&rdquo; says Elihu, &ldquo;are not always wise, neither do the aged understand judgment;&rdquo; yet &ldquo;I said, Days should speak, and multitude of years should teach wisdom.&rdquo; And we should naturally conclude that the young would pay some deference to those who have gone before them, and occasionally, at least, ask their advice; and they would, if young men were not &ldquo;wise in their own conceit.&rdquo; Yea, we are sent for information even to the brute creation:-&ldquo;Ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee, and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee.&rdquo; Therefore says Solomon, &ldquo;Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise; which, having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.&rdquo; And says the Saviour, &ldquo;Be ye wise as serpents and harmless as doves.&rdquo; Yea, we are sent even to the material creation:-&ldquo;Go speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee.&rdquo; &ldquo;Behold the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these;&rdquo; &ldquo;Behold the fig-tree, and all the trees; when they shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.&rdquo;<p>Yea, time is to be one of our preceptors, and time, though senseless in itself, is full of lessons of importance. While we should readily give the future to providence, and the present to duty,-so that &ldquo;whatsoever our hands find to do, we may do it with our might,&rdquo;-yet we should never forget that &ldquo;God also requires that which is past,&rdquo; and he requires us to remember it. &ldquo;Thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God hath led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what is in thine heart, whether thou wouldst keep his commandments or no.&rdquo; But how is this to be done without consulting former times and seasons? 


devotion:
<i> I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness. - <a href='B:230 17:15'>Psa 17:15</a>. </i><p>WE are assured, by infallible authority, that &ldquo;the righteous is more excellent than his neighbour.&rdquo; It would be very easy to exemplify this preeminence in numberless instances, but we shall only remark on one,-namely, his prospects. The sinner, when he looks back, finds a thousand things filling his mind and conscience with pain and remorse. And what pleasure can he feel if he looks forward? He sees death and eternity approaching, and feels unprepared for their approach. All his relief must arise from his banishing these subjects from his thoughts; and this is no easy matter. But this putting the evil day far off is not putting it away. Come it must.<p>And so also the Christian feels sorrow in the review and in the remembrance of the days of his unregeneracy, and of his deficiencies since he has known God, or, rather, been known of him. But then he sorrows after a godly sort, and he feels more pleasure in his sorrow than he ever found in all the pleasures of sin or dissipations of folly. It was &ldquo;a time of love,&rdquo; when God passed by, and said unto him, &ldquo;Live;&rdquo; and the thought of the means he employed to turn his feet into the way of peace, and the various dispensations which so often surpassed and surprised his hope, fills him &ldquo;with joy unspeakable and full of glory,&rdquo; which strangers intermeddle not with. Oh, what a scene opens before him beyond this vale of tears! The proverb says, &ldquo;All is well that ends well.&rdquo; It is the end that proves, all, that finishes all, and that crowns all. We are far from denying that there are very many present advantages in religion; but now in regard to the Christian, in all his service, in all his sacrifice, in all his sorrowing, we should reckon that the sufferings and enjoyments of^ this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.<p>The believer has now much in hand, but more in hope; he has much in possession, but more in reversion. &ldquo;Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. - <a href='B:660 4:14'>Jas 4:14</a>. </i><p>IF life be compared to things so evanescent, let us seek the &ldquo;wisdom which cometh from above,&rdquo; that we may well and wisely consider our latter end. How short is human life, if we fix the period! Place it at threescore years and ten; place it even at fourscore years; &ldquo;It is soon cut off, and we fly away.&rdquo; But how uncertain is our reaching this period! at what age, in what place, in what condition, in what employment, have not men died! How many of our companions and neighbours have been unexpectedly and prematurely carried down to the dust! Let none, therefore, rely on youth or strength, for &ldquo;surely every man at his best estate is vanity.&rdquo;<p>Seeing that we are hastening to the grave, let us consider what is true wisdom, what the one proper and rational part which creatures circumstanced as we are have to act. Is it not to prefer the soul to the body, and eternity to time? Is it not to make the concern of the apostle supremely and constantly our own,-&ldquo;That I may win Christ and be found in him&rdquo;? This subject should teach us, also, that; &ldquo;Whatsoever our hand findeth to do, to do it with all our might,&rdquo; and to do it immediately, for there is &ldquo;no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave whither we are going.&rdquo; While we delay, our opportunities may have fled, never to be recalled; while we linger, we ourselves may be gone, and every possibility of usefulness be cut off. The season for doing good with us is limited to this short and equally uncertain duration. In consequence of this, what an inestimable value attaches to the present hour!<p>Let us therefore &ldquo;redeem the time, because the days are evil.&rdquo; To the Christian earth has one privilege above heaven; it is the privilege of beneficence. They who are now in joy and felicity would be ready, were it the will of God, to descend from their glory and re-enter the body and traverse again this vale of tears, to be able to do what we have now an opportunity of doing,-of &ldquo;serving our generation by the will of God.&rdquo; Of our Saviour it is said, He went about doing good. He said, &ldquo;I must work while it is called today, for the night cometh, when no man can work;&rdquo; but at last he said, &ldquo;I have glorified thee on the earth, I have finished the work thou gavest me to do, and now I am no more in the world: holy Father, I come to thee.&rdquo; And such, too, is the removal that awaits all his followers.<p>We shall soon be no more in the world; how soon it is impossible to determine. But with some, from the infirmities of nature and the course of years, the event cannot be very remote. With many, &ldquo;the night is far spent, and the day is at hand.&rdquo; &ldquo;Now is their salvation nearer than when they believed.&rdquo; O Thou in whose hands our breath is, and whose are all our ways, &ldquo;So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> But now they desire a better country. - <a href='B:650 11:16'>Heb 11:16</a>. </i><p>THESE words refer to the patriarchs who lived in a remote period of the world&rsquo;s history. Yet, if we are Christians, we, like them, are &ldquo;strangers and pilgrims upon earth;&rdquo; and, so far as their religion is concerned, we are commanded to be followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. With regard to their desire, here are two things for us to observe. First, The preference for the country. It is obvious this language is metaphorical, and refers to a state of future blessedness; and we may notice six exemplifications of it. It is &ldquo;a better country.&rdquo;<p>First, Locally. We do not view heaven principally as a place, but as a state. Still, however, it is a place: and what a place! What a place of beauty and blessedness was Eden! and earth has some delightful spots where God displays the perfection of his nature, and yields us richly all things to enjoy. But, alas! earth has storms as well as sunshine, winter as well as spring, sickness as well as health, night as well as day, death as well as life. There is enough to entitle it to the character of a &ldquo;vale of tears.&rdquo; But there is no night, no thorns and briers, no ravenous beasts to go up thereon, no disease, no death; for &ldquo;there shall be no more curse.&rdquo; It is corporeally better. What a body must that be which is destined for the Christian! Compared with that, the apostle calls this a &ldquo;vile body.&rdquo; It is to be fashioned like unto the Saviour&rsquo;s glorious body. It is intellectually better. God&rsquo;s people are now said to be made &ldquo;wise unto salvation.&rdquo; &ldquo;Now we know in part; there shall we know even as we are known.&rdquo; It is morally better. Holiness is the beauty of the soul and the glory of God; and though here the believer is made a partaker of the divine nature, yet he finds he is not perfect in holiness. When he &ldquo;would do good, evil is present with him.&rdquo; And therefore he sings so joyously now,- <p>&ldquo;There I shall see his face, <p> And never, never sin.&rdquo; </i><p>There I shall never grieve his Spirit whom I infinitely love, nor pierce that dear bosom on which I now lean; but I shall be &ldquo;presented faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.&rdquo; It is socially better. Much of our present happiness is derived from society, and much of our present misery is also from the same source. We may judge a little of the happiness of the social life in glory by two classes of characters with whom we hope to be privileged to enjoy sweet fellowship,-those who have shone in the world as the Lord&rsquo;s faithful servants, the world&rsquo;s best benefactors, and also the company of those of the saints whom we personally loved. We pay dearly for our social enjoyments, but some of them are worth all the tax they impose upon us; but when we meet again, there will be no separation, nothing to mar or to chill us in our embraces, but both shall be forever with the Lord. It is durably better. &ldquo;Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.&rdquo; Laurels here soon wither on the brow of the conqueror; riches, when amassed, make to themselves wings and flee away; nature itself decays; but there <p>&ldquo;Everlasting spring abides, <p> And never-withering flowers.&rdquo; </i><p>But, after all, its excellency and preeminence doth not yet appear, for we can find nothing in the world wherewith to compare it. But, Secondly, Observe the peculiarity of the desire. It is not natural to man. &ldquo;They that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; and they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.&rdquo; The Christian&rsquo;s desires flow from conviction; they say, &ldquo;Then shall I be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.&rdquo; What the Christian thus really desires bears three relations. It is right in its objects, in its nature, and in its expectation. Yes; to all believers heaven is infinitely desirable, and of these the apostle speaks as well as of patriarchs; and they shall not desire it in vain. Now they have some Pisgah views of it; now they appropriate it by faith; now they get some earnests and foretastes of it; but they shall ere long go up and take full possession of their promised and reserved inheritance in this &ldquo;better country.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. - <a href='B:520 6:6'>Rom 6:6</a> </i><p>THE renewal of the mind begins by faith in a crucified Saviour. Oh, says the believer, it was the sight of the cross that first allured my soul from earthly things, and taught me to esteem as dross the mirth of fools and pomp of kings. <p>&ldquo;All joy to the believer! He can speak, <p> Trembling yet happy, confident yet meek. <p> Since the dear hour that brought me to thy foot <p> And cut up all my follies by the root, <p> I never trusted in an arm but thine, <p> Nor hoped but in thy righteousness divine.&rdquo; </i><p>Oh, what a change, says the believer, has the grace of God wrought in me!-what new scenes have opened before my mind. Oh, what new feelings do I possess!-what new fears, what new aversions, what new desires:-&ldquo;Old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.&rdquo; Oh, that sight of the cross, how it melted my frozen heart, how it composed my troubled conscience, how it satisfied my longing desires, how it ended my rovings and sanctified my soul! Yes, and from that period sin is rendered odious and become embittered; for, as Cowper says,- <p>&ldquo;The cross once seen <p> Is death to every sin.&rdquo; </i><p>&ldquo;Knowing this,&rdquo; says the apostle, &ldquo;that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.&rdquo; And we may also observe that, as the work commences in the cross, so it is carried on in the same way. The more our spirits are imbued with the truths connected with the cross of Christ, the more frequent and sweet will be the communings we shall have with him; and the more dead we become to this present evil world, the more shall we &ldquo;grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.&rdquo; It is important, therefore, for us to inquire how we stand affected towards this vain world. There are some, and we hail them, who have said,- <p>&ldquo;Farewell, world; thy gold is dross, <p> Now I&rsquo;ve seen my Saviour&rsquo;s cross; <p> Jesus died to set me free <p> From the world, and sin, and thee.&rdquo; </i><p>But, as to others, the world is their all in all. They cannot determine upon any thing without first asking, &ldquo;What will the world think of me? What will people say of me?&rdquo; What is this world, to which they are so alive? Is it not &ldquo;vanity and vexation of spirit&rdquo;? Are not its votaries ashamed to be enslaved by it? What has it done for them? Oh that they would leave it before they are eventually ruined by it! Oh that, with Moses, they would &ldquo;choose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;&rdquo; and that, with David, they would pray unto God, &ldquo;Save me from the men of this world, who have their portion in this life.&rdquo;.<p>Oh that, when we are called to leave it, we may be able to say, with him; &ldquo;As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. - <a href='B:500 1:14'>Joh 1:14</a>. </i><p>THIS intimates to us the Saviour&rsquo;s intercourse and his sociableness. All great minds love and seek solitude. The Saviour loved and often sought retirement, and, had he pleased himself, he would have more frequently retired from public view; but he never refused the company of those who sought his presence, and therefore he did not refuse to be a guest when the Pharisee invited him to his table; nor did he refuse to be a guest at the wedding at Cana in Galilee. It was on this occasion he wrought a notable miracle, turning the water into wine. This condescension and grace drew forth the maliciousness of his enemies; hence the allegation, This man &ldquo;receiveth sinners and eateth with them.&rdquo; &ldquo;John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil;&rdquo; that is, he is melancholy and a recluse. The Son of man came eating and drinking; there was no excess, but &ldquo;simple living&rdquo; according to the common mode of life; and they say, He is &ldquo;a wine-bibber,-a friend of publicans and sinners.&rdquo;<p>This was a foul and scandalous reproach. But, though he did not love men&rsquo;s sins, he loved their souls; and was concerned for their salvation. All through life he was never actuated by the spirit of the Pharisee, saying, &ldquo;Stand by; come not near me; I am holier than thou.&rdquo; He never indulged in the abominations of monasticism. He never said, Touch not, taste not, handle not. He knew that &ldquo;every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving, and sanctified by the word of God and prayer.&rdquo; His prayer to his heavenly Father was, &ldquo;I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from the evil.&rdquo; He was in the world, but not of it. We, also, are to be in the world, but not of it. His religion, if we understand it properly, calls us at once out of the world as well as into it.<p>Out of the world as to its spirit and principles and maxims, and what the apostle calls &ldquo;the course of the world;&rdquo; but into it as a field of action and a sphere of usefulness,-if there are any tried ones to be relieved-if any hungry to be fed-if any naked to be clothed, or sick to be healed -if there are the ignorant and uninformed to be instructed, the vicious to be reclaimed, or the lost to be saved. 


devotion:
<i> Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright; for the end of that man is peace. - <a href='B:230 37:37'>Psa 37:37</a>. </i><p>THE death of a Christian is peculiarly worthy attention. In how many instances has it proved the means of awaking the careless, and quickening those who have believed through grace! How often has the death of a minister exemplified and confirmed and enforced his public exhortations and warnings, so that he has in the chamber of affliction accomplished what he failed of doing in the sanctuary! A parent on his death-bed, surrounded by his weeping family, has been heard to purpose, when, like Mr. Bolton, he has thus solemnly addressed them:-&ldquo;See that none of you meet me in an unconverted state at the day of judgment.&rdquo; And who can forget the tender and affectionate solicitude of a dying mother, as, with heaven in her tearful eye, she gazes for the last time, and, with her last trembling embrace, she bids her beloved children farewell? And there are instances in which the husband, who refused to hear the word, though urged by the tenderest affection and tearful solicitude, when the desire of his eyes has been removed, is now won by her pious conversation, made sacred by death, and resolves, while he builds a monument to her memory, to retrace his steps,-alas! now to be taken alone.<p>And the death of the Christian is not only an object of interest to friends and relations, but to all who may witness it. All they do and say is regarded now with peculiar attention; all is stamped with sincerity and importance; all that is heard and seen is final. The world, with all its interesting associations, connections, and anxieties, is passing away. But the Christian has in his heart and eye enduring substance. The outward man perishes, but the inward man is renewed; heart and flesh are failing him, but God is the strength of his heart and his portion forever. Mrs. Savage says, &ldquo;The people of the world never speak well of it at parting. But the Christian can bear his testimony to the excellency and pleasantness of wisdom&rsquo;s ways;&rdquo; and he recommends them to others from experience, and says, &ldquo;Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man that trusteth in him.&rdquo; &ldquo;I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.&rdquo; <p>&ldquo;The chamber where the good man meets his fate <p> Is privileged beyond the common walks of life.&rdquo; </i><p>Here a glory has been shed, an influence felt, that has impressed the careless, confirmed the undecided, emboldened the timid, and induced even the skeptic to say, &ldquo;Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end he like his.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> Ask now of the days that are past. - <a href='B:50 4:32'>Deu 4:32</a>. </i><p>THERE is something very solemn in the thought of &ldquo;days that are past,&rdquo;-past never to return, while their moral results remain forever as subjects of future responsibility. And who has not to reckon upon days that are past? for time, like tide, stays for no man; and wherever we have been, and however engaged, this has been passing on. And can we think of it and not say, with Job, &ldquo;When a few more years are come, I shall go the way whence I shall not return,&rdquo; or without praying, with the Psalmist, &ldquo;Make me to know mine end and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am&rdquo;? Here, indeed, is a great variety.<p>What past days have some experienced! What fine days! How full of means and opportunities, and the excitements of conscience, and the strivings of the Spirit of God! How many of these past days have we had! And if with some the days of their years be threescore and ten, with the possibility (for it is hardly a probability) that they should reach fourscore years, what invasions have now been made upon their ranks, and how well does it become us all to say, &ldquo;There is but a step between us and death&rdquo;! Others are in the middle of their days, and there are many who are not advanced so far; yet all have had their days that are past: yes, the young die as well as the old; and &ldquo;in the midst of life we are in death.&rdquo; What says the poet?- <p>&ldquo;&rsquo;Tis greatly wise to talk with our past hours, <p> And ask them what report they bore to heaven, <p> And how they might have home more welcome news.&rdquo; </i><p>Let us then summon in our past days, and ask them what they have to say. First, Let us ask them what they have to say concerning the world. Mrs. Savage has strikingly remarked, &ldquo;I never knew any of the people of the world praise it at parting.&rdquo; Nor need we wonder at this: we should wonder if they did. They have been too much in it, and seen too much of it,- they have been too much deceived by it,-to recommend it to others, when dying, from their own history or experience.<p>Hear what Solomon has said, who had tried it in every favourable form: -&ldquo;Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity and vexation of spirit;&rdquo; &ldquo;vanity&rdquo; if they succeed, and &ldquo;vexation of spirit&rdquo; if they are disappointed; and to one of these all are liable. Oh, what a cheat, what a miserable painted cheat, is the world! Surely this is enough to induce us to forsake it, and to comply with the admonition of the Wise Man:-&ldquo;Forsake the foolish and live; and go in the way of understanding.&rdquo;<p>Secondly, Let us &ldquo;ask the days that are past&rdquo; what they have to say concerning ourselves. Have they not shown us many things with which we were formerly unacquainted, and filled us with surprise and regret? Ah! how many convictions have been violated, how many resolutions broken! In moments of solitude, when the imagination has given place to the remonstrances of truth, many have reflected, prayed, and vowed; but in company they have again yielded to temptation, and their iniquities, like the wind, have carried them away. Has not life been very unlike the picture our early imagination drew? We said, I shall be very happy when I have attained such an end; when I have formed such a connection; when I have gained such an appointment; or when I have filled such an office.<p>Have not our dependencies often proved broken reeds,-not only unable to sustain our hopes, but which have &ldquo;pierced us through with many sorrows&rdquo;? And yet, further, will not these &ldquo;days that are past&rdquo; also tell us something else? Will not they tell us that life has been at least a checkered scene? Let us review them again, especially under a sense of our unworthiness of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which our heavenly Father has shown us.<p>If we have been in the wilderness, have we not found grace in the sanctuary? Have we not had there the fiery, cloudy pillar to guide us, the manna to sustain us, and the waters from the rock to refresh us? Can we refuse to say, &ldquo;Goodness and mercy have followed me all the days of my life&rdquo;? 


devotion:
<i> Ask now of the days that are past. - <a href='B:50 4:32'>Deu 4:32</a>. </i><p>LET us inquire what these &ldquo;days that are past&rdquo; have to say concerning the scriptures. First, Have they not tended to confirm them? We must have been very unobservant indeed if they have not greatly established our faith in revelation. As we have heard, so have we seen, that the Scripture does not belie human nature, though it describes it as most depraved. It indeed represents men everywhere as fallen, guilty, corrupt, and alienated from the life of God. It tells us that &ldquo;the way of transgressors is hard,&rdquo; and we have seen this in actual instances. It tells us that &ldquo;there is that withholdeth more than is meet, and it tendeth to poverty;&rdquo; and we have seen those who have laid up what they ought to have laid out in the cause of God and the poor, exercised with losses, or wretched in their connections, or declining in their health, or depressed in their spirits, unfollowed by regret when they have died, and leaving no memories to embalm their names when they are gone.<p>On the other hand, we have never known a public-spirited Christian in our lives, who was not happy or in some way peculiarly blessed. &ldquo;They shall prosper that love thee.&rdquo; The Scripture tells us that &ldquo;the prosperity of fools shall destroy them;&rdquo; and how often have we observed how &ldquo;their table has become a snare, and that which would have been for their welfare a trap&rdquo;! We have seen persons rising in life, and, as riches multiplied, they have set their hearts on them, and begun to give up the Lord&rsquo;s day, the sanctuary, and one religious ordinance after another, concerned only to make provision for the flesh.-The Scripture says, &ldquo;Is any man afflicted? let him pray.&rdquo; And have we not found prayer our best relief in trouble, both by its answers and by its exercises? &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; says God, &ldquo;that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy salvation as the waves of the sea.&rdquo; And have we not found it true that &ldquo;the backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways&rdquo;?<p>On the other hand, the Scripture has told us that &ldquo;they that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength;&rdquo; and have we not gained fresh succours when we have been thus engaged? The Scripture has told us that &ldquo;they that sow in tears shall reap in joy;&rdquo; and have we not found our humble and penitential hours our very best seasons?<p>Secondly, Have not the &ldquo;days that are past&rdquo; tended also to explain them? The Scripture explains providence, and providence explains Scripture.&rsquo; How often have we heard Christians say, &ldquo;I never saw so much force and beauty in such a passage until I was brought into that affliction, or exercised with that dispensation&rdquo;! &ldquo;When the Puritans fled from persecution in this country to America, at first they depended much upon supplies from the mother-country. A company of them having gone down to the sea-shore, after looking anxiously for a vessel which was to bring them corn, and being disappointed, hunger induced them to search among the pebbles; and they soon found a kind of muscle, which they partook of, and found that it was wholesome and nutritious. One day, after they had made a hearty meal of this kind, a venerable old man stood up, and, returning thanks, blessed God that he had given them &ldquo;to suck of the abundance of the seas, and of treasure hid in the sand,&rdquo; -words which occur in the blessing of Zebulun, but which none of them had observed before, and perhaps never would but for this.<p>Thirdly, Have not &ldquo;the days that are past&rdquo; tended to endear them? Good men have always been fond of their Bibles; but when have they felt most attached to them? If we ask David, he will tell us, &ldquo;This is my comfort in my affliction; for thy word hath quickened me;&rdquo; &ldquo;Unless thy law had been my delights, I should have perished in mine affliction;&rdquo; &ldquo;Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> I wait for the Lord; my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. - <a href='B:230 130:5'>Psa 130:5</a>. </i><p>NOTHING can be more interesting than to see a good man calm and patient while in a very trying and distracted condition. Such a one is a witness for God, by showing the reality, efficiency, and excellency of the religion he professes; David, therefore, in his troubles, had recourse to God. Waiting includes not only seeking, but expecting; and waiting-patiently waiting-for the Lord implies that God does not always immediately come to release and relieve his people. &ldquo;While he is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness,&rdquo; yet he may not come to our relief at the time we expected him, and therefore we feel disappointed. But he is not bound to observe our prescribed rules; and he must know, in his infinite wisdom, that we have often very improperly fixed the times and seasons for him to manifest himself. We may always depend upon him, and that in his own good time and way he will listen to our prayer and interfere on our behalf. He hath said, &ldquo;He that believeth shall not make haste.&rdquo;<p>If the Lord appears to tarry, we are to wait for him. The husbandman does not go out and murmur at the clouds, or blame the weather; he well knows that there must be a season between sowing and reaping, and that the various influences of nature, the rough and the smooth, the sunshine and the storm, all operate and combine to produce the final result; therefore he &ldquo;hath long patience for it.&rdquo; &ldquo;Be ye,&rdquo; says the apostle, &ldquo;therefore patient.&rdquo; It is frequently very trying to flesh and blood to wait for God, and it is necessary for great patience to be exercised by us. But let us ever remember we have no claim upon God; and let us also think how long we have kept him waiting for us, how long he stood knocking at the door of our hearts, week after week and month after month, before we arose up and opened unto him.<p>Then it becomes us to exercise full confidence in God, and to feel assured that he will fulfil all his promises; that his delays will be advantageous, and that his is the best time; therefore it is said, &ldquo;Blessed are all they that wait for him.&rdquo; They are blessed, for they are preserved from those painful reflections that others feel who disobey him, and who charge him foolishly and unkindly, before he explains himself; they are preserved from having recourse to sinful and improper expedients to extricate themselves from present difficulties, and to obtain relief. Had some Christians let God alone, (so to speak,) to bring about his purposes in his own time and way, how many stripes and how many storms in providence had they escaped!<p>In nothing can we honour God more than by confiding in him. And God says, &ldquo;Them that honour me I will honour.&rdquo; 


devotion:
<i> He hath done all things well. - <a href='B:480 7:37'>Mar 7:37</a>. </i><p>THE particular providence of God attends the Christian in all his concerns. He goes on board a vessel, launching on the ocean of life; he gives God the command of the helm. Thus we are enjoined to &ldquo;commit all our ways unto the Lord,&rdquo; and to trust also in him; and we are at the same time assured that he will bring it to pass, for when we &ldquo;commit our works unto the Lord, the thoughts of our hearts are established.&rdquo; Thus, also, we are enjoined to &ldquo;be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, to let our request be made known unto God.&rdquo; It is when we obey the apostle&rsquo;s injunction that we feel the &ldquo;peace of God, that passeth all understanding, keeping our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.&rdquo; &ldquo;The way of the Lord is perfect;&rdquo; but we may be left to charge him foolishly, and in so doing we only display our ignorance. In the world, in the nation, in the church, in the family, and with regard to the concerns of every individual, he is not only doing all things, but doing all things well.<p>Do we believe this? There is a vast difference between the reality, and our believing and acknowledging it. And what is it that keeps us from acknowledging that in all things and in all dispensations his providence is doing all things well? First, Because we judge too selfishly. We are not detached individuals; we are placed in connection with others. What is not good for us may be good for them; and what is not good for one part may be good for the whole.<p>Then, Secondly, We judge too carnally. What is not good for our pleasure may be good for our profit; our temporal losses maybe our spiritual gains; we may be &ldquo;chastened with the righteous, that we may not be condemned with the wicked.&rdquo; Here is cause for praise and gratitude. But, oh, how we yield to flesh and blood! When every thing is easy and prosperous, there is no obscurity then. No; but let a change take place, let affliction fall upon us; then, with a sad heart and sorrowful countenance, we immediately exclaim, &ldquo;His way is in the sea, and his path in deep waters;&rdquo; as if it were, after all, so wonderfully mysterious that he should suffer us to be afflicted; as if God were less wise and righteous and good in the dark than in the light, in a stormy day than in a calm one.<p>Jacob said, &ldquo;All these things are against me;&rdquo; but, if he had waited a little while longer, he might have said, with the apostle, &ldquo;We know that all things work together for good to them that love God.&rdquo; Hence the apostle enjoins upon believers that they &ldquo;judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts.&rdquo; <p>&ldquo;Blind unbelief is sure to err, <p> And scan his work in vain: <p> God is his own interpreter, <p> And he will make it plain.&rdquo;


