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Now am I one day nearer Heaven than I ever was!

(Richard Steele, "A Discourse Concerning Old-age, Tending to the Instruction, Caution and Comfort of Aged People" 1688.)

Though it is possible for the young to die soon--yet it is impossible for the aged to live long. Their manifest decays are a certain forecast of their approaching dissolution. No medicine has yet been found to cure old-age. The graves are ready for them, and the worms wait for their meal upon them! The moth of mortality, which is bred in our nature, will still be fretting the garment of our bodies, until they are consumed. Death is already got into the aged person's eye and ear--and in a short time will bring him unto the dust.

Now though death is an unwelcome messenger to those who live for this poor world--yet to a holy old man and woman, it is a blessed privilege. For as looking backward they see a tempting troublesome world--so looking forward they see a state of perfect holiness and happiness prepared for them. The end of their fight--is the beginning of their victory. As they part from their earthly labors--they take possession of their heavenly honors.

The aged Christian sees a woeful wilderness behind him--and the blessed land of promise before him. It is therefore no wonder that, with Moses, he longs to be in it! For where should the spouse desire to be, but with her husband? And upon this account, that holy Lady Falkland would usually say when she was going to bed, "Now am I one day nearer Heaven than I ever was!"

"I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far!" Philippians 1:23

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A special privilege and comfort of old-age

(Richard Steele, "A Discourse Concerning Old-age, Tending to the Instruction, Caution and Comfort of Aged People" 1688.)

"The silver-haired head is a crown of glory--IF it is found in the way of righteousness." Proverbs 16:31

Now the older a man grows--the wiser should he grow. And the wiser he grows--the less likely he is to chose evil. The more divine strokes and judgments he has seen upon evil-doers--the more he should be afraid of tampering with it.

A special privilege and comfort of old-age is that it is richer in experience than any other age. The aged believer can tell experimentally . . .
  of the wisdom and justice of God's providence,
  of the truth of His promises and threatenings,
  of the devices of Satan,
  of the deceitfulness of riches,
  of the wisdom of integrity,
  of the vanity of all carnal delights,
  of the wickedness of his own heart.
Old-age is rich in the experience of these things, whereby they are able to govern themselves, and to advise others. Their . . .
  judgments are more refined,
  passions are more sedate,
  graces are more strong,
  actions are more consistent,
  and their spiritual stature is taller.

Trace some godly aged men from morning to night, you shall still find them . . .
  so discreet in their charity,
  so grave in their counsels,
  so savory in their discourse,
  so constant in their piety,
  so considerate in their resolutions,
  so faithful in their reproofs,
  so poised in their temper,
  so charitable in their censures, and
  so uniform and useful in their lives--
that their practice may be a perpetual sermon--and an example to teach others their duty to God and man.

By long experience, aged believers are taught to avoid many dangers, which others fall into. Their manifold experience of the deceitfulness of the flesh, of the world, and of the devil--has enabled them to counter and somewhat conquer them. And their experience renders them able to give the most prudent counsels, and to forewarn others of those consequences which they easily foresee--IF they have treasured up wisdom according to their years.

"The silver-haired head is a crown of glory--IF it is found in the way of righteousness." Proverbs 16:31

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A fire-escape from Hell!

(Arthur Pink, "The Doctrine of Sanctification" 1937)

Christ is usually set forth as a fire-escape from Hell, but not as the great Physician to deal with the malady of indwelling sin, and to fit for Heaven.

Much is said upon how to obtain forgiveness of sins--but little is preached on how to be cleansed from its pollutions. The necessity for His atoning blood is set forth--but not the indispensability of experimental holiness.

Consequently, thousands who mentally assent to the sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice, know nothing about heart purity.

The precious blood of the Lamb not only delivers from Hell, but it also fits us for Heaven.

By our union with Christ we receive a new and holy nature, whereby we are capacitated for holy living--which holy living is determined and regulated by our practical and experimental fellowship with Him.

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There are dangers and perils peculiar to a state of prosperity

(Jared Bell Waterbury, "The Voyage of Life!" 1862)

"The cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the Word, and it becomes unfruitful." Mark 4:19

"How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Luke 18:24-25

There are dangers and perils peculiar to a state of prosperity.

I understand how little apprehension is felt by the votaries of the world in regard to the moral dangers of earthly prosperity. "Be it so," says the eager devotee of wealth or fame; "I admit that there are some such dangers; yet who would not be willing to run the risk, if he might only be one of fortune's favorites? Give me my wishes in this respect, and I am ready to incur the hazard and to take the responsibility."

Foolish declaration! You know not what you say. Your selfish heart, thirsting for riches or reputation among men, and bent on their attainment, as containing, in your estimation, all that man can wish--sees not the evils which lurk in the path that leads to them--nor the perils to which, when obtained, their possessor is exposed! Blind, or rather dazzled to blindness, by that one object, the golden prize--you do not see the temptations which beset the man who is determined to seize upon it . . .
in the pursuit of wealth--dishonesty, sinful worldliness, neglect of the soul;
in the possession of wealth--avarice, pride, sensuality.

The "deceitfulness of riches" is a Scriptural expression which experience interprets and verifies. These are deceitful. Their power to make happy is mere pretension. Riches may add to one's happiness, who has other and higher elements of felicity; but, when they are sought as the principal means of happiness, they are sure to pierce their possessors through with many sorrows!

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows! But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness!" 1 Timothy 6:10-11

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Our only and all-sufficient portion!

(Jared Waterbury, "Meditations and Prayers" 1840)

"Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it--and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun!" Ecclesiastes 2:11

The author of the book of Ecclesiastes gives us his experience of the unsatisfying nature of all worldly honors and pleasures. Everything that could . . .
  please the eye,
  charm the ear,
  gratify the taste, or
  amuse and enrich the mind--
was by him, sought and enjoyed. The whole circle of earth's pleasures was tested. But in the end, all is pronounced "vanity and a striving after wind."

The disappointment results from the very nature of the soul. Its capacity being illimitable--no finite enjoyment can fully meet its enlarged desires. Nothing but a faithful discharge of duty, and the approving smile of God can make the soul happy. Give the soul whatever you will--gratify every earthly wish--it will still be wretched if it is without God. All below is vanity.

The consideration that all worldly good must so soon be relinquished, is of itself enough to cast a shadow over its enjoyment. The heart must feel that there is nothing permanent here in this poor world.
"Life is but a vapor."
All earth-born pleasures are transitory.
Death withers every flower as soon as it blooms.
Man too is hurried to the tomb--and then forgotten.

If then all below is stamped with vanity--then O, let us seek our all in God. Let us relinquish in desire, what we have been accustomed so much to value--that the soul may start anew in the race for a prize worthy of her struggles, and which when obtained will amply reward her toils. Let us fix our eye on the "Unfading crown of glory!" Let us deliberately renounce this vain world, and take God for our only and all-sufficient portion!

Whether on earth we are known or unknown, honored or despised; let us seek after this one thing:
  to secure the favor of God;
  to enjoy His presence; and
  at last to be with Him and inherit His glorious eternal kingdom!


PRAYER.
Unsatisfying, O Lord, as the world is--still a strange infatuation exists within our hearts, which leads us to covet its distinctions and its pleasures. As far as you have permitted us to test the world's power to produce happiness--we have been invariably disappointed. We have found it to be "vanity and vexation of spirit."
Its sweetest pleasures have turned bitter in the enjoyment.
Its loveliest scenery cannot charm us, apart from You.
Its honors--so far as obtained--have proved but empty bubbles.

Yet why, O Lord, do we still hanker after these vain delights? Why do we not learn to evaluate them at their true worth? Come into our souls, with all Your fullness, and then our hearts will quickly bid adieu to them. You know that we are never satisfied--never happy--when we are not living unto You, and holding sweet communion with You. You know how weary is our soul--though surrounded with earthly good--if You are not with us, or if we have failed to place You first in our affections! We will return to our rest--we fly to You our God once more. Heavenly Father, hear our humble prayer, for Jesus' sake. Amen.

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Should we not be prepared to kiss it?

(Jared Waterbury, "Meditations and Prayers" 1840)

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose!" Romans 8:28

The believer, when smarting under the rod of temporal distress--is often ready to say with Jacob, "All these things are against me!" Owing to the weakness of his faith, he concludes that "God has forgotten him." He forgets that "Whom the Lord loves, He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives"--that his Lord once said, "Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows." To sink down under troubles, and conclude that there is no relief for us--is to distrust our Father's care--and to doubt His everlasting love for us.

It may not seem good to God, who orders each event of our lives--to grant us the prosperity which we naturally desire. He may discover in us so much remaining depravity--developed in the forms of pride, sensuality, or self-seeking--as to make it necessary to visit us with the rod of correction. When that rod is intended to extirpate these sins--should we not be prepared to kiss it? Is not God's rod designed to wean us from the world--and to drive us more closely to the bosom of eternal love? "All things"--including of course these very trials and afflictions--God causes to work together for our good.

Are we sick and suffering in body? Let us not despair. The affliction shall work for our good. Relief will come in due time. Or if the sickness "be unto death," God can make it conducive to a calm or triumphant departure.

Are you poor, and apprehensive that your needs may not be supplied? O trust in your Father's care, who will "withhold no good thing from those who walk uprightly."

Do enemies beset your path? God can change the bitterest of them into friends--or can defend and deliver you from their ire.

And what though all these afflictions press upon the soul at once--even then the promise is not nullified--it is only made the more precious!

Doubt not that His mercy is in your every trial and affliction.

And always remember, that when Heaven is attained, these sorrows will be felt no more forever!


PRAYER.
How precious, O God, are Your promises! They apply to us, your sinful and suffering children, under all circumstances. You have declared, that all of us must be partakers of chastisement. You have promised that the way to Your abode is rough and thorny. Why, then, should we fear to walk in it? Why wish to tread a smooth and easy path? We desire that measure of faith which shall recognize Your direct agency in every event of our lives!

O Lord, whatever be our earthly lot, joyous or sad--one sweet promise shall gild the darkest hours of our existence. We shall be cheered by the thought that You cause all things to work together for our good! And when we have done and suffered Your will on earth--we shall be admitted to Your glory, to see Your face and to sing Your praises forever. Amen.

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We are like that dove!

(Jared Waterbury, "Meditations and Prayers" 1840)

"But the dove could find no resting place to set its feet because there was water over all the surface of the earth. So it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark." Genesis 8:9

This passage has been beautifully applied to the condition of a Christian wandering over earth in search of rest--and disappointed, returning at length to his Savior--glad to be received again into His bosom, where alone there is peace. Surely he who has been accustomed to drink at the pure fountain of spiritual joy, can never find rest for the soul in this polluted world.

How true is it, that to one whose affections have been directed to things above--earthly pleasures seem to have lost their usual relish. No prospect however beautiful--no pleasures however tantalizing can be enjoyed--without the associated presence and blessing of God. Yet when God is recognized in them, and the heart is properly affected towards Him--then do even earthly scenes acquire an additional interest.

But let the Christian lose sight for a season of his heavenly inheritance, and wander over earth's surface in search of worldly good--how soon will he find an unsatisfying vacuity, where not even an olive leaf shall be found to greet his eye or to cheer his heart. The Christian may so far backslide, as to wish to explore anew the world which he professes to have forsaken--and God may allow him to do so. But O how soon his wing will tire, and his prospect become gloomy! Glad will he be to return and flutter around the ark, longing to be taken in, where he can once more feel himself happy and at home. And Jesus kindly extends His hand to take us in--even when we have sinfully wandered from His loving arms.

Why is it that we can be so often deceived? Have we not tried the world--and have we not been disappointed in the pursuit? Never again then let us leave the sacred ark--never again wander from our Lord.


PRAYER.
Ever blessed God, You have taught us to find our supreme felicity in You--for You are an all-sufficient portion. But O how prone are we to wander from You--to forsake "You, the fountain of living waters, and hew out cisterns--broken cisterns that can hold no water."

But away from You, how can we he happy? How soon does sadness invade our hearts, and sorrow sit upon our eye-lids! The creature cannot make us blessed. We have tried the creature--and found all on earth to be but vanity. Wander where we will--from place to place, from pleasure to pleasure--all is unsatisfying, if you O God are absent.

We are like that dove, when out of the ark, which saw itself surrounded by one wide waste of waters. How glad was she to get back within her sacred retreat! Just so, O Savior, would we gladly flee into Your loving arms. We will search no longer for happiness here below. Henceforth, let us repose on Your kind bosom. Let us feel a holy indifference to the attractions of this deceitful world. May it be our privilege to be taken at last unto that secure ark--that glorious Heaven where no storms can come, and no temptations allure our souls away from you. Amen.

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I have this against you!

(Jared Waterbury, "Meditations and Prayers" 1840)

"Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love." Revelation 2:4

Have we lost or left our first love? If so, then has God something against us.

O, has not some secret evil been in operation to cool our love--to abate our zeal--to separate us from our heavenly Father's smile?

Is it the love of the world?

Is it the love of the creature?

Is it ambitious designs, or sensual indulgence?

Search us, O God--and enable us to search ourselves.


PRAYER
O we have to mourn over the sad decay in our spiritual affections. A thousand temptations have pressed in upon us; and by yielding we have driven ourselves from You and become cold in Your service. Well might You cast us off for our almost perpetual backslidings. But You, O God, are unchangeable. "Those whom You love--You love to the very end!" This is our hope.

We come to You, immutable Jehovah, and beg You to receive Your guilty but returning children. Embrace us once more in the arms of Your eternal love. O, let us once more rejoice in Your Fatherly smiles. We have been wretched in our wanderings--our souls can find happiness in nothing but Yourself. We do therefore renew our vows to be Yours--yes, Yours forever. Bind us to You "by the cords of love." Fasten our affections to the cross of Jesus! Never, O never more let us wander. Amen.

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Do not forget!

(Jared Waterbury, "Meditations and Prayers" 1840)

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all His benefits." Psalm 103:2

Were a kind earthly parent to be hourly bringing us new tokens of his favor--would we not express our gratitude for such favors? Why then are we not found praising our heavenly Father, "Who daily loads us with benefits," and "who gives us richly all things to enjoy?"

O, the very abundance and constancy of His gifts seem, in some instances, to harden the heart. Ungrateful man! Often do days and weeks pass away marked by this guilty forgetfulness.

Is it possible, that we can forget that Being "in whom we live and move and have our being"--whose hand is open to satisfy our every reasonable desire, and to whose protecting care we owe our safety? Above all, can we forget the love which He has bestowed upon us, in giving His dear Son to die for our sins--or the compassion which our Savior has manifested in dying to redeem us? Never, never let us forget these infinite favors!


PRAYER
O God, You have given all nature as a vast storehouse for the supply of our needs. And yet too seldom have we eaten our "bread with gladness and singleness of heart."

Through what troubles have You carried us!
From what billows of adversity have You rescued us!
In what perils have You guarded us!
Ten thousand thousand mercies have fallen around our paths!
In darkness, You have been our light.
In sorrow, You have been our consolation.
In despondency, You have been our only trust and stay.
You have been our guide through all our weary pilgrimage.
And O, above all, and as if to crown all, You have given us Your only begotten Son--and have sweetly constrained us to come for salvation.

And shall we forget all these benefits? Shall we, in view of them, refuse to praise You? O, forgive our past ingratitude. Let us pour forth our praises unceasingly to God and to the Lamb. Let us praise the Lord for His innumerable and unmerited mercies. Touch these cold, unfeeling hearts with Your grace; soften them into penitence; and awake in them a permanent feeling of gratitude and love. For the sake of our Advocate and adorable Redeemer. Amen.

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What the human heart craves!

(J.C. Ryle)

"Man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward!" Job 5:7

"Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows." John 16:33

The testimony of Scripture, that "man is born to trouble," is continually echoed by thousands who know nothing of the Scriptures, but simply speak the language of their own experience. The world, nearly all men agree, is full of trouble. It is a true saying, that we . . .
  come into life crying,
  pass through it complaining,
  and leave it disappointed.

Of all God's creatures, none is so vulnerable to sorrow, as man. Body, and mind, and affections, and family, and property--are all liable in their turn to become sources and avenues of sorrow. And from this, no rank or class possesses any immunity. There are sorrows . . .
  for the rich--as well as the poor,
  for the learned--as well as the unlearned,
  for the young--as well as the old,
  for the castle--as well as the cottage.
And neither wealth, nor science, nor high position can prevent their forcing their way into our homes, and breaking in upon us sometimes like an armed man! These are ancient things, I know; the poets and philosophers of old Greece and Rome knew them as well as we do. But it is well to be put in remembrance.

What shall best help man to meet and bear sorrow? That is the question! If our condition is such, since the Fall, that we cannot escape sorrow--then what is the surest remedy for making it tolerable? The cold lessons of Stoicism have no power in them. Resignation and submission to the will of God are excellent things to talk about in fine weather. But when . . .
  the storm strikes us,
  and our hearts ache,
  and our tears flow,
  and gaps are made in our family circle,
  and our friends fail us,
  and our money makes itself wings,
  and sickness lays us low--
then we need something more than abstract principles and general lessons. We need a living, personal Friend--a Friend to whom we can turn with firm confidence that He can help and sympathize with us.

We have One sitting at the right hand of God, as our sympathizing Friend, who has all power to help us, and can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities--even Jesus, the Son of God. He knows the heart of a man and all his conditions, for He Himself was born of a woman, and took part of flesh and blood. He knows what sorrow is, for He Himself in the days of His flesh wept, and groaned, and grieved. He has proved His love towards us . . .
  by suffering for thirty-three years in this world,
  by a thousand acts of kindness,
  by ten thousand words of consolation,
  and by finally dying for us on the cruel cross.

I can imagine no truth more suited to man's needs than this. Rules, and principles, and prescriptions, and instructions in times of sorrow are all very well in their way--but what the human heart craves is a personal friend to go to, to talk to, to lean back upon, and commune with. The risen Christ, living and interceding for us at God's right hand, is precisely the Person that we need.

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Who is this amazing spectacle of woe and torture?

(Samuel Davies, "The Preaching of Christ Crucified, the Means of Salvation")

"Christ died for the ungodly!" Romans 5:6

In the cross of Christ, God's hatred to sin is manifested in the most striking light--and the evil of sin is exposed in the most dreadful colors! Now it appears, that such is the divine hatred against all sin, that God can by no means forgive sin, without punishment; and that all the infinite benevolence of His nature towards His creatures cannot prevail upon Him to pardon the least sin--without an adequate atonement.

Nay, now it appears that when so malignant and abominable a thing is but imputed to His dear Son, His co-equal, His darling, His favorite--that even He could not escape unpunished--but was made a monument of vindictive justice to all worlds!

What can more strongly expose the evil of sin--than the cross of Christ? Sin is such an intolerably malignant and abominable thing, that even a God of infinite mercy and grace, cannot let the least instance of it pass unpunished!

It was not a small thing which could arm God's justice against the Son of His love. Though He was perfectly innocent in Himself--yet when He was made sin for us--God spared not His own Son--but delivered Him up unto death--the shameful, tormenting, and accursed death of the cross!

Go, you fools, who make a mock at sin! Go and learn its malignity and demerit--at the cross of Jesus!

WHO is it that hangs there writhing in the agonies of death . . .
  His hands and feet pierced with nails,
  His side gashed with a spear,
  His face bruised with blows,
  drenched with tears and blood,
  His heart melting like wax,
  His whole frame racked and disjointed,
  forsaken by His friends, and even by His Father,
  tempted by devils,
  and insulted by men?
Who is this amazing spectacle of woe and torture? It is . . .
  Jesus, the eternal Word of God,
  God's Elect, in whom His soul delights,
  God's beloved Son, in whom He is well pleased!

And WHAT has He done? He did no wickedness; He knew no sin--but was holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners.

And WHY then, all these dreadful sufferings from Heaven, earth, and Hell?
Why, He only stood in the law-place of sinners
--He only received their sin by imputation.
And you see what it has brought upon Him!
You see how low it has reduced Him!
What a horrid evil must that be--which has such tremendous consequences, even upon the Darling of Heaven!

Oh! what still more dreadful havoc would SIN have made, if it had been punished upon the sinner himself in his own person! Surely all the various miseries which have been inflicted upon our guilty world in all ages, and even all the punishments of Hell--do not so loudly proclaim the terrible desert and malignity of sin--as the cross of Christ!

The infinite malignity of sin, and God's hatred to it, appear nowhere in so striking and dreadful a light--as in the cross of Christ! Let a reasonable creature take but one serious view of that cross--and surely he must ever after tremble at the thought of the least sin!

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In short, all must drink of the bitter cup!

(Jared Waterbury, "Meditations and Prayers" 1840)

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble!" Psalm 46:1

"Man is born to trouble, as the sparks fly upwards." The world in which we dwell is but "a valley of tears." Sin has caused these tears to flow; and every sinner must, sooner or later, pour in his contribution of personal grief, to swell the general tide of sorrows. The domestic circle must be invaded by the ruthless hand of death. Wealth may abound one day, to be followed by poverty the next; or even if retained, riches may prove a source of anxiety and temptation to its possessor. In short, all must drink of the bitter cup!

Alas, the poor lost sinner, who finds all his happiness in the things of earth--when these are gone, has nothing left. He has no shelter from the storm. It must beat upon his naked head. But not so the Christian. He can say, under the severest afflictions, "God is my refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble!"

O what an unspeakable blessing to have an almighty support! How calming to the soul in the dark hour of adversity, to be able to pour all its sorrows into the bosom of God! When death has seemed to hover over us, to aim his shafts at us or ours--what sweet consolation have we found in God! In "the secret place of the Most High," we have been able to dwell safely. When the world without has been covered with gloom--all has been sunshine within. When the power of the tempter has overwhelmed us--the arm of Jesus has lifted us up and pointed out a way of escape. Whatever then are our trials, let us still trust in God--our "ever-present help in times of trouble." His promise--whatever is our situation, is "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness. So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me!" 2 Corinthians 12:9


PRAYER
O God, it is the hour of darkness for me. "Fearfulness and trembling have come upon us, and horror has overwhelmed us." Where can we look, but unto You? What now can be our support, but Your precious promises? You have declared Yourself to be "a refuge" to Your people, "their ever-present help in times of trouble." Often have Your redeemed people experienced the truth of this comforting declaration. When trouble and sorrow, fear and anxiety, have taken hold upon them--they have fled to this sweet refuge. They have poured out their souls unto You--and You have helped them in the time of their distress. You have calmed their rising fears, and enabled them to resign every event into Your nail-scarred hands. What peace has then pervaded their souls!
Let Your merciful loving-kindness then visit us in this hour of our tribulation. Hide not Your face from us. O speak peace to our troubled spirits. Hide us under the shadow of Your wings "until these calamities are over and past." Strengthen our faith to take a firm hold of Your promises, and let no vicissitudes of this life, no threatening dangers--shake our confidence in You or in Your declarations. For the sake of Jesus Christ, our hope and our Redeemer. Amen.

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Playing with monkeys and parrots!

(Thomas Watson, "The Christian's Charter")

"You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand!" Psalm 16:11

Eternity is the highest link of the saint's happiness! The believer shall be forever bathing in the pure and pleasant fountain of bliss! There is neither intermission nor expiration--in the joys of Heaven! When once God has set His plants in the celestial paradise--He will never again pluck them up! You may sooner separate light from the sun--than a glorified saint from Jesus Christ. O eternity, eternity! what a never-failing spring of delight will that be!

The glory of Heaven is infinitely satisfying! There is neither lack, nor excess. This cannot be properly said of anything but Heaven. You who look to the world for satisfaction--remember what the creature says, "It is not in me!" Heaven alone, is commensurate to the vast desires of the soul. Here the Christian cries out in a divine ecstasy, "I have enough, my Savior, I have enough!" O eternity, eternity! what a never-failing spring of delight will that be!

"You feed them from the abundance of Your own house, letting them drink from Your rivers of delight!" Psalm 36:8. Not drops--but rivers! These alone can quench the thirst. Every day in Heaven, shall be a feast! There is no lack at this feast! Here is soul-satisfaction! O the glory of this Paradise! It is more than we can ever imagine! There is:
  unspotted purity,
  unstained honor,
  unparalleled beauty!

There will God give us infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope! Is not this enough? What more could we ask for! A man could ask for million of worlds--but in Heaven God will give us more than we can ask--nay, more than we can ever imagine! We could imagine--
  what if all the dust of the earth were turned to silver;
  what if every stone were a wedge of gold;
  what if every flower were a ruby;
  what if every blade of grass were a pearl;
  what if every sand in the sea were a diamond!
Yet all this is nothing--compared to the glory of Heaven! It is as impossible for any man in his deepest thoughts, to comprehend glory--as it would be for him to measure the Heavens with a ruler; or drain the oceans with a thimble. O incomparable place!

But why do I expatiate? These things are unspeakable and full of glory! Had I as many tongues as hairs on my head, I could never sufficiently set forth the beauty and resplendency of this blissful inheritance! Such is the excellence of this celestial paradise, that if the angels would take up their brushes to delineate it in its colors, they would but stain and eclipse the glory of it! I have given you only the dark shadow the picture--and that but crudely and imperfectly!

How should we be inflamed with desire to taste of those rare and sweet delicacies, which are above at God's right hand! O what madness is it for men to spin out their time, and tire out their strength--in pursuing the vanities of this world! Who would, for the indulging of a lust--forfeit so glorious an inheritance! Lay the whole world in scales with Heaven--it is lighter than vanity!

It is reported of Caesar, that traveling through a certain city, as he passed along, he saw some of the women playing with monkeys and parrots; at which sight he said, "What! have they no children to play with!"

So I say, when I see men toying with these earthly and beggarly vanities, "What! are there not more glorious and sublime things to mind!"

[nChrist]

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The Trojan horse!

(Thomas Watson, "The Lord's Prayer")

"Deliver us from evil." Matthew 6:13

In this petition we pray to be delivered from the evil of our heart, that it may not entice us to sin.

The heart is the poisoned fountain, from whence all actual sins flow. "For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness." Mark 7:21-22

The cause of all evil lies in a man's own bosom--all sin begins at the heart! Lust is first conceived in the heart--and then it is midwifed into the world. Whence comes rash anger? The heart sets the tongue on fire. The heart is the shop where all sin is contrived and hammered out.

The heart is the greatest seducer, "Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust." James 1:14. The devil could not hurt us--if our own hearts did not give consent. All that he can do is to lay the bait--but it is our fault to swallow it! How needful, therefore, is this prayer, "Deliver us from the evil of our hearts!"

It was Augustine's prayer, "Lord, deliver me from that evil man--myself!"

Beware of the bosom traitor--the flesh. The heart of a man is the Trojan horse--out of which comes a whole army of lusts! O let us pray to be delivered from the lusts and deceits of our own heart! "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life!" Proverbs 4:23

[nChrist]

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He has done all things well!

(Octavius Winslow)

"He has done all things well!" Mark 7:37

Yes, from first to last, from our cradle to our grave, from the earliest pang of sin's conviction, to the last thrill of sin's forgiveness, from earth to heaven--this will be our testimony in all the way the Lord our God has led us in the wilderness: "He has done all things well!"

In providence and in grace,
in every truth of His Word,
in every lesson of His love,
in every stroke of His rod,
in every sunbeam that has shone,
in every cloud that has shaded,
in every element that has sweetened,
in every ingredient that has embittered,
in all that has been mysterious, inscrutable, painful, and humiliating,
in all that He gave,
in all that He took away,
this testimony is His just due, and this our grateful acknowledgment through time and through eternity: "He has done all things well!"

Has He converted us through grace by a way we had thought the most improbable?
Has He torn up all our earthly hopes by the roots?
Has He thwarted our schemes, frustrated our plans, disappointed our expectations?
Has He taught us in schools most trying, by a discipline most severe, and lessons most humbling to our nature?
Has He withered our strength by sickness, reduced us to poverty by loss, crushed our heart by bereavement?

And have we been tempted to exclaim, "All these things are against me!"
Ah! no! faith will yet obtain the ascendancy, and sweetly sing:
"I know in all things that befell,
 My Jesus has done all things well!"

Beloved, it must be so, for Jesus can do nothing wrong!

Study the way of His providence and grace with the microscopic eye of faith--view them in every light, examine them in their minutest detail, as you would the petal of a flower, or the wing of an insect; and, oh, what wonders, what beauty, what marvelous adaptation would you observe in all the varied dealings with you, of your glorious Lord!