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April 7
His appointment
For reading & meditation: Proverbs 22:17-29
"Listen to this wise advice; follow it closely, for it will do you good ' Trust in the Lord." (vv.17-19, TLB)
Are you afraid of loneliness? If so, then it is likely that there is a greater fear than that in your life - the fear of "a corn of wheat afraid to die". Settle that fear, and all other fears are as nothing in comparison. When our attitude is that of complete and utter surrender to God and confidence in the outcome of His purposes, then we can face anything that comes - good, bad or indifferent. An extremely prominent minister who was greatly used by God got caught up in a spiritual conflict because he had his eye upon a position in his denomination which he desired for himself. He shared his desire with a prominent laymen and tried to get him to use his influence in securing the position. The layman said: "I do not think it right to use my influence in the way you ask. The decision must be with those who have been selected for that purpose." The minister was deeply upset by his friend's remarks and became extremely bitter and morose. In due course the position was given to someone else, and the minister, unable to cope with the disappointment, withdrew from the ministry and now lives in a big house all by himself - terribly alone. He was "a corn of wheat afraid to die". Had he been willing to die to the desire for self-aggrandisement, position and prestige, he would have seen the disappointment as "His-appointment". Now he is lonely with the loneliness that comes to all who fail to realise that God always gives the best to those who leave the choice to Him. My Father and my God, I see that there is no greater loneliness than the loneliness that comes from being locked into my own purposes and my own desires. Help me to be continually centred in You and not in myself. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen
Prayer:
My Father and my God, I see that there is no greater loneliness than the loneliness that comes from being locked into my own purposes and my own desires. Help me to be continually centred in You and not in myself. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen
For further study:
Proverbs 3:1-6; Psalms 37:3-5
1. What does "trust" mean?
2. What is promised to those who trust?
