From “Morning and Evening” by C. H. Spurgeon

I found comfort in this.  Perhaps you will, too.

“Gather not my soul with sinners.”  – Psa_26:9
Fear made David pray thus, for something whispered, “Perhaps, after all, thou mayst be gathered with the wicked.” That fear, although marred by unbelief, springs, in the main, from holy anxiety, arising from the recollection of past sin. Even the pardoned man will enquire, “What if at the end my sins should be remembered, and I should be left out of the catalogue of the saved?” He recollects his present unfruitfulness-so little grace, so little love, so little holiness, and looking forward to the future, he considers his weakness and the many temptations which beset him, and he fears that he may fall, and become a prey to the enemy. A sense of sin and present evil, and his prevailing corruptions, compel him to pray, in fear and trembling, “Gather not my soul with sinners.” Reader, if you have prayed this prayer, and if your character be rightly described in the Psalm from which it is taken, you need not be afraid that you shall be gathered with sinners. Have you the two virtues which David had-the outward walking in integrity, and the inward trusting in the Lord? Are you resting upon Christ’s sacrifice, and can you compass the altar of God with humble hope? If so, rest assured, with the wicked you never shall be gathered, for that calamity is impossible. The gathering at the judgment is like to like. “Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.” If, then, thou art like God’s people, thou shalt be with God’s people. You cannot be gathered with the wicked, for you are too dearly bought. Redeemed by the blood of Christ, you are his for ever, and where he is, there must his people be. You are loved too much to be cast away with reprobates. Shall one dear to Christ perish? Impossible! Hell cannot hold thee! Heaven claims thee! Trust in thy Surety and fear not!

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My Prayer to the Father, August 17, 2012

Heavenly Father
You, who are the eternal God
Have in Your providence
And love
Given me all that which
Is good and praise worthy,
Even my very life
And the air I
Breath
Are gifts from
Your loving hand.

Heavenly Father
It is in recognition
of who You are,
And all that You are
That I come before Your eternal throne
Of justice, holiness and perfection
To offer You praise and worship,
And to tell You that
I love you
And that there is no one
And nothing
that I desire
To put over You
Or give place
To other than You.

Heavenly Father
It is You, and only You
That is worthy of all I have to give
In the way of love
Honor,
Praise,
Worship,
And any and all things
That have any value
To You
And Your eternal kingdom
That I shall one day
Live in.

Heavenly Father
I know You have prepared
My heart
And determined the outcome
Of my life.
How great is such knowledge,
Father, to know that
You who have made the stars
shine so bright
Have made the purpose
Of my life
To do the same.

Heavenly Father
You, who, have made all things;
Have made me
For Your own pleasure;
And, I know, Father, that
Even the wicked,
and the evil
With their purposeful intent
Are weaved
into Your intricate design
for good;
So that even what
they try to destroy
Is turned into
perfection,
And Beauty,
And Love.

Heavenly Father
I thank You for showing me
That it is by Your
Mercy and truth
That my sin is purged
From my soul;
And, that it’s by my
great fear of You, the great
God almighty
That I desire, and hasten to depart
the sin
That lies within me.

Heavenly Father
I thank You for making Yourself
Known to me
For I know by Your holy word
I would not have come
To You
Had You not drawn me.
I know Father for You
Have shown me
That those who seek
Righteousness
And pursue peace
Shall find it
Within You.

Heavenly Father
I come to You with just
One plea.
Father I ask You
To impart to
My brothers and sisters
The knowledge You
Have made available
Through Your word
To all who seek You;
To all who desire
To live lives
Of holiness.

Heavenly Father
I ask You to convict their hearts.
Make them realize, Father
That apart from Your word
Living within
There can be no
Desire to live holy;
And, that without
A desire to live
Holy,
There can be no desire
To live without sin.

In Jesus name, I pray,
Amen.

 

From “The Word For You Today” by Bruce Christian

BE HOLY

Holiness isn’t a subject we hear much about these days.  So, what does it mean to “be holy”?  First, let’s understand what it doesn’t mean:  (1) It doesn’t isolate you from the world, it insulates you against it’s negative influences.  (2)  It’s not a scorecard for deciding who’s close to God and who is not.  It’s having a heart that’s aware of your shortcomings and praying, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God” (Ps 42:1 NIV).  Holiness means to be set apart in a special and exclusive way, as in Holy Communion where the bread and wine are set apart from everyday use to honor Christ’s death.  Or holy matrimony, where a couple promises to be faithful to each other to the exclusion of all others.  Chuck Swindoll wrote: “When I was…a…young husband serving in the marines…eight thousand miles away from my wife, I knew Cynthia existed.  I could read her letters, and occasionally hear her voice on the phone, but I couldn’t see or touch her.  I’d only the memory of us standing together three years earlier before God and a minister who’d pronounced us husband and wife, setting us exclusively to each other for the rest of our lives.  We were wed in June 1955, but regardless of how long ago it was, we stood together and committed ourselves to a holy intermingling of our lives.  To be intimate with another woman would break that holy relationship, that exclusive oneness.  Remembering that helped keep me faithful while we were apart those many months…and it still helps forty-one years later.!”

Unshakable Truth

If you haven’t seen this  you should watch it. Powerful and True.  I pray you’ll share it if you agree with it.

From Winslow “Morning and Thoughts”

     As christians our view of holiness and our occupation with it’s role in our lives says a lot about our witness and relationship with Christ Jesus.  If you’ve never given thought to the subject of holiness in your life perhaps it’s time to do so.

“As you therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk you in him: rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.”

Colossians 2:6, 7

BY simple, close, and crucifying views of the cross of Christ does the Spirit most effectually sanctify the believer. This is the true and great method of gospel sanctification. Here lies the secret of all real holiness, and, may I not add, of all real happiness. For, if we separate happiness from holiness, we separate that which, in the covenant of grace, God has wisely and indissolubly united. The experience of the true believer must testify to this. We are only happy as we are holy-as the body of sin is daily crucified, the power of the indwelling principle weakened, and the outward deportment more beautifully and closely corresponding to the example of Jesus. Let us not, then, look for a happy walk, apart from a holy one. Trials we may have; yes, if we are the Lord’s covenant ones, we shall have them, for He Himself has said, “in the world you shall have tribulation;” disappointments we may meet with-broken cisterns, thorny roads, wintry skies; but if we are walking in fellowship with God, dwelling in the light, growing up into Christ in all things, the Spirit of adoption witnessing within us, and leading to a filial and unreserved surrender-oh, there is happiness unspeakable, even though in the very depth of outward trial. A holy walk is a happy walk: this is God’s order, it is His appointment, and therefore must be wise and good.

Seek high attainments in holiness. Do not be satisfied with a low measure of grace, with a dwarfish religion, with just enough Christianity to admit you into heaven. Oh, how many are thus content-satisfied to leave the great question of their acceptance to be decided in another world, and not in this-resting upon some slight evidence, in itself faint and equivocal, perhaps a former experience, some impressions, or sensations, or transient joys, long since passed away; and thus they are content to live, and thus content to die. Dear reader, be you not satisfied with anything short of a present Christ, received, enjoyed, and lived upon. Forget the things that are behind-reach forth unto higher attainments in sanctification-seek to have the daily witness, daily communion with God; and for your own sake, for the sake of others, and for Christ’s sake, “give all diligence to make your calling and election sure.”