Life's Highest Joy - Fellowship with God

Apr 22, 2009 at 01:08 o\clock

Our Purpose

by: soundwords

Source: Joy and Strength
Scripture Reference: Zephaniah 3:17 

The Purpose of Man

The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love; He will joy over thee with singing.

ZEPHANIAH 3:17

MADE for Thyself, O God!
Made for Thy love, Thy service, Thy delight;
Made to show forth Thy wisdom, grace and might;
Made for Thy praise, whom veiled archangels laud;
O strange and glorious thought, that we may be
A joy to Thee.
F. R. HAVERGAL

IT is not of God's severity that He requires much from man; it is of His great kindness that He will have the soul to open herself wider, to be able to receive much, that He may bestow much upon her. Let no one think that it is hard to attain thereunto. Although it sound hard, and is hard at first, as touching the forsaking and dying to all things, yet, when one has reached this state, no life can be easier, or sweeter, or fuller of pleasures; for God is right diligent to be with us at all seasons, and to teach us, that He may bring us to Himself, when we are like to go astray. None of us ever desired anything more ardently than God desires to bring men to the knowledge of Himself.
J. TAULER

God always fills in all hearts all the room which is left Him there.
F. W. FABER

Apr 16, 2009 at 17:17 o\clock

Pressing Onward

by: soundwords

Source: Joy and Strength
Scripture Reference: Psalm 110:3 Job 24:13 

On Through the Darkness

They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the ways thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof.
JOB 24:13

Thy people shall be willing in the day of Thy power.
PSALMS 110:3

SEE, in Thy hands I lay them all--
My will that fails, my feet that fall;
My heart that wearies everywhere,
Yet finds Thy yoke too hard to bear.
KATHARINE T. HINKSON

THE way may at times seem dark, but light will arise, if thou trust in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him. That light may sometimes show hard things to be required, but do not be distressed if thy heart should rebel; bring thy unwillingness and disobedience to Him, in the faith that He will give thee power to overcome, for He cannot fail. "Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world," so keep close to Him, and the victory will be won. But do not, I beseech thee, neglect anything that is required, for disobedience brings darkness; and do not reason or delay, but simply follow the leadings of the Holy Spirit, and He will guide thee into all peace.
ELIZABETH T. KING

Jan 23, 2009 at 21:01 o\clock

Cheerfulness

by: soundwords

Source: Joy and Strength
Scripture Reference: Psalm 40:8-8 

Changing Discontent to Delight

I delight to do Thy will, O my God; yea, Thy law is within my heart.
PSALMS 40:8

CROWN us with love, and so with peace;
Transfigure duty to delight;
Our lips inspire, our faith increase,
Brighten with hope our darkest night.
Bring us from earthly bondage free
To find our heaven in serving Thee.
HENRY WILDER FOOTE

WE often make our duties harder by thinking them hard. We dwell on the things we do not like till they grow before our eyes, and, at last, perhaps shut out heaven itself. But this is not following our Master, and He, we may be sure, will value little the obedience of a discontented heart. The moment we see that anything to be done is a plain duty, we must resolutely trample out every rising impulse of discontent. We must not merely prevent our discontent from interfering, with the duty itself; we must not merely prevent it from breaking out into murmuring; we must get rid of the discontent itself. Cheerfulness in the service of Christ is one of the first requisites to make that service Christian.
FREDERICK TEMPLE

Jan 6, 2009 at 19:21 o\clock

Weariness into Joy

by: soundwords

Source: Joy and Strength
Scripture Reference: Psalm 43:4 Psalm 40:16 

Weariness into Joy

Let all those that seek Thee rejoice and be glad in Thee; let such as love Thy salvation say continually, The Lord be magnified.
PSALMS 40:16

Then will I go unto the altar of God; unto God, my exceeding joy.
PSALMS 43:4

WE doubt the word that tells us: Ask,
And ye shall have your prayer;
We turn our thoughts as to a task,
With will constrained and rare.

And yet we have; these scanty prayers
Yield gold without alloy;
O God, but he who trusts and dares
Must have a boundless joy!
GEORGE MACDONALD

TELL them that, until religion cease to be a burden, it is nothing,--until prayer cease to be a weariness, it is nothing. However difficult and however imperfect, the spirit must still rejoice in it.
EDWARD IRVING

From a weary laborer, worn with slavish and ineffectual toil, I had become as a little child receiving from God the free gift of eternal life and of daily sustenance; and prayer, from a weary spiritual exercise, had become the simple asking from the Heavenly Father of daily bread, and thanking Him.
ELIZABETH RUNDLE CHARLES

Dec 22, 2008 at 17:28 o\clock

In God's Presence

by: soundwords

Source: Joy and Strength
Scripture Reference: Psalm 140:13 Psalm 91:1 

Living in God's Presence

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
PSALMS 91:1

The upright shall dwell in Thy presence.
PSALMS 111:13

My soul and all its powers
Thine, wholly Thine shall be;
All, all my happy hours
I consecrate to Thee:
Me to Thine image now restore,
And I shall praise Thee evermore.
CHARLES WESLEY

IF the wish is wakened in our soul to be ever in His presence, let us go to Him this moment, and ask Him what to do, and how to feel, believing that He is more ready to hear than we to pray. He will give us realization of His love, and convictions of duty. Let us follow those convictions implicitly; let us ask Him every day to teach us more, and help us more; and we shall soon say, with Paul, "Thanks be unto God, for His unspeakable gift!"
WILLIAM R. HUNTINGTON

The all-important thing is not to live apart from God, but as far as possible to be consciously with Him. It must needs be that those who look much into His face will become like Him.
CHARLES H. BRENT