September 17
Bring Your Children Today
Despairingly the poor disappointed father turned away from the disciples to their Master. His son was in the worst possible condition, and all means had failed, but the miserable child was soon delivered from the evil one when the parent in faith obeyed the Lord Jesus' word, "Bring him to me."
Children are a precious gift from God, but much anxiety comes along with them. They may be a great joy or a great bitterness to their parents; they may be filled with the Spirit of God or possessed with the spirit of evil. In all cases, the Word of God gives us one prescription for the cure of all their ills: "Bring him to me."
We need to engage in agonizing prayer on their behalf while they are still babies! Sin is there; so let our prayers begin to attack it. Our cries for our offspring should precede those cries that herald their arrival into a world of sin. In the days of their youth we will see sad evidences of that dumb and deaf spirit that will neither pray properly, nor hear the voice of God in the soul, but Jesus still commands, "Bring him to me." When they are grown up, they may wallow in sin and foam with enmity against God; then when our hearts are breaking we should remember the Great Physician's words, "Bring him to me." We must never cease to pray until they cease to breathe. No case is hopeless while Jesus lives.
The Lord sometimes allows His people to be driven into a corner that they may learn how necessary He is to them. Ungodly children, when they show us our own powerlessness against the depravity of their hearts, drive us to the strong for strength, and this is a great blessing to us. Whatever our morning's need may be, may it like a strong current carry us to the ocean of divine love. Jesus can soon remove our sorrow; He delights to comfort us. Let us hurry to Him while He waits to meet us.
Family Bible reading plan
verse 1 2 Samuel 13
verse 2 2 Corinthians 6
Why We Pray
Prayer is essential to the Christian life, but sometimes it seems hard. Written by a pastor with years of teaching and counseling experience, Why We Pray doesn’t simply tell us why we should pray, but instead focuses on four blessing-filled reasons that will help us want to pray.
Rather than feeling discouraged and disheartened by our inconsistent prayer, Why We Pray helps us approach God with reinvigorated confidence and joy, delighted by the privilege of talking directly to our loving, heavenly Father.
Click here to learn more about Truth For Life
From Morning & Evening revised and edited by Alistair Begg copyright © 2003. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org.
