April 14

2016-04-14 All day

He hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors–Isa. 53: 12.

As everyone who follows the Master’s footsteps must needs have some Gethsemane experiences, so also each must have a taste at least of all the Master’s experiences. Let us not forget, then, to look about us for opportunities for serving the “brethren,” the “little ones,” the fellow disciples of Christ. Let each be careful not to add to the reproaches that must fall upon all the followers of the Lamb, but on the contrary to offer words of sympathy, and to help bear each other’s crosses, difficulties and trials by the way. Thus can we best show to our Lord and Head how we would have appreciated the opportunity of helping Him bear His cross on the way to Calvary—Z ’99, 125 (R 2473).

Our Lord’s death was not a seeming death. His death was actual. His very being was surrendered in death. The process by which it was done was a slow, lingering one, covering a space of 3½ years, and working through physical exhaustion, mental sorrow and physical violence. So greatly did He love us that He went for parts of three days into the death state on our behalf; nor were His final hours passed amid ameliorating conditions. Though innocent of sin and crime, He was put to death as a sinner and criminal with sinners and criminals—P ’27, 55.

Parallel passages: Gen. 3: 15; Psa. 22: 1-21; 69: 21; Isa. 53:1-12; Dan. 9: 26; Zech. 12: 10; 13: 7; Matt. 27: 1-50; Mark 15: 1-37; Luke 23: 1-46; John 18: 28—19: 30.

Hymns: 168, 5, 28, 132, 135, 246, 290.
Poems of Dawn, 27: Christ Within.
Tower Reading: Z ’12, 228 (R 5064).

Questions: What effect did Jesus’ death have upon me this week? What were the circumstances and the results?

 

 
CHRIST WITHIN

A LIVING Christ, of wondrous birth,
Who trod the dreary paths of earth,
Shedding abroad His holy light
Through the deep gloom of sin’s dark night.

A dying Christ, whose precious blood
Seals the poor sinner’s peace with God;
And fills the soul with fullest love,
Like to the joy prepared above.

A Christ ascended—all is done,
A world redeemed, a victory won.
With angel hosts, a glorious throng,
We’ll sing with joy salvation’s song.

A living Christ our spirits need,
A loving Christ our souls to feed;
A dying Christ, our ransom He,
A risen Christ to set us free.

This, too, our need–a Christ within,
A life with God, afar from sin,
A Christ whose love our hearts shall fill,
And quite subdue our wayward will.

Related events

  • 2016-04-01 - 2017-03-31 All day

    Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation--Mark 14: 38.

    What may be the character of the temptations, we may not clearly discern until they are upon us; for if we knew all about them in advance, they would be but slight temptations. Watch, therefore, and pray always; for the only safe way is to be prepared; because your adversary, the devil, is seeking whom he may devour. He knows your weak points, and is ready to take advantage of them. We shall each need the graces of the Spirit in our hearts, as well as the Lord's "grace to help in time of need," if we would overcome.
    My soul, be on thy guard,
    Ten thousand foes arise,
    The hosts of sin are pressing hard
    To draw thee from the prize.
    —Z '03, 119 (R 3178)

    As long as we are in the flesh, temptations beset us on all sides. These will be powerless to allure us, if we heed the admonition, "watch and pray." Scrutinizing our dispositions, thoughts, motives, words, doings, surroundings and the influences operating upon us, in the light of the Word, will manifest the real nature of these suggestions; and heartfelt reliance on the power of God to deliver us, expressed in petitions for help in the name of Christ, will secure grace whereby a way of escape will be found—P '20, 32.

    Parallel passages: Ex. 23: 13; 34: 12; Deut. 4: 9; Psa. 119: 9; Prov. 4: 23-26; Matt. 26: 38-46; Acts 20: 28-30; 1 Cor. 16: 13; Eph. 6: 18; Matt. 6: 5-13; 7: 7, 8; Luke 11: 11-13; 18: 1; Phil. 4: 6; 1 Tim. 2: 8; Heb. 4: 16.

    Hymns: 13, 130, 136, 183, 35, 71, 239.
    Poems of Dawn, 109: My Prayer.
    Tower Reading: Z '13, 311 (R 5331).

    Questions: What have my experiences this week been along the lines of the text? What helped or hindered me therein? What were the results?

     

     
    MY PRAYER

    BEING perplexed, I say,
    Lord, make it right!
    Night is as day to Thee,
    Darkness is light.
    I am afraid to touch
    Things that involve so much.
    My trembling hand may shake,
    Mine unskilled hand may break;
    Thine can make no mistake.

    Being in doubt, I say,
    Lord, make it plain!
    Which is the true, safe way,
    Which would be vain?
    I am not wise to know,
    Nor sure of foot to go;
    My poor eyes cannot see
    What is so clear to Thee--
    Lord, make it clear to me
  • 2016-04-02 - 2017-04-01 All day

    As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith--Gal. 6: 10.

    The Christian is to be ready to do good at the expense of his own time and convenience to all men, but he is to be ready to lay down his life for the brethren—he is to seek opportunities for laying down his life day after day, in the sense of giving his time to the communication of the Truth, or helping the Lord's brethren in any manner, to put on the whole armor of God, and to stand in the evil day—Z '03, 121 (R 3180).

    Opportunities for well-doing present themselves on every hand. They should be seized and utilized at first sight, even as the miner seizes the diamond or ruby at first sight. God's children should develop a positive Christianity, seeking to do good to anyone and to all. Our well-doing should be regulated by a sound mind, which will direct us to serve the brethren especially, but not to the exclusion of others, on the principle of our Lord's words, "This ought ye to do, and not to leave the other undone"—P '36, 48.

    Parallel passages: 1 Cor. 15: 58; 2 Thes. 3: 13; 2 Cor. 4: 1; Heb. 10: 36; Eccles.3: 12; 9: 10; Matt. 5: 43, 44; John 9: 4; 12: 35; Psa.37: 3, 27; Mark 3: 4; Luke 6: 35; 1 Thes.5: 15; 1 Tim. 6: 17, 18; Titus 2: 14; 3: 8.

    Hymns: 309, 70, 116, 210, 267, 275, 280.
    Poems of Dawn, 169: Go Labor On.
    Tower Reading: Z '13, 357 (R 5357).

    Questions: Have I this week used opportunities for doing good? To whom? What were the circumstances? What was helpful or hindersome? What were the results?

     

     
    GO, LABOR ON

    GO, labor on; spend and be spent,--
    Thy joy to do thy Father's will;
    It is the way the Master went;
    Should not the servant tread it still?

    Go, labor on; 'tis not for naught;
    Thine earthly loss is heavenly gain;
    Men heed thee, love thee, praise thee not;
    The Master praises—what are men?

    Go, labor on; enough, while here,
    If He shall praise thee—if He design
    Thy willing heart to mark and cheer;
    No toil for Him shall be in vain.

    Men sit in darkness at thy side,
    Without a hope beyond the tomb;
    Take up the torch and wave it wide,
    The torch that lights the thickest gloom.

    Go, labor on; thy hands are weak,
    Thy knees are faint, thy soul cast down,
    Yet falter not; the prize we seek,
    Is near—a Kingdom and a crown!
  • 2016-04-03 - 2017-04-02 All day

    The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light--Rom. 13: 12.

    The works of darkness would be any works whatever that would not stand the fullest investigation, that would not stand approval in the light of the new dispensation, if it were fully ushered in. Let us remember that we belong to the new dispensation, and not to the old, and should, therefore, live in accordance with our citizenship and our responsibility toward the Prince of Light and in opposition to the prince of darkness, his works and his ways—Z '03, 122 (R 3181).

    The night of Satan's dark reign over the earth is almost ended. The day of Christ's joyous reign is at hand. As God's people we should cast off any and every work or quality imbued with the Adversary's spirit, and arm ourselves with every truth and grace of the Lord's Spirit. Thus our citizenship in the Kingdom of God will be properly attested, and our patriotism will be splendidly manifested, and that to the Divine pleasing—P '30, 31.

    Parallel passages: Gen. 6: 5, 11; 8: 21; Psa. 51: 5; Prov. 20: 9; Eccles. 7: 20; Isa. 1: 5, 6; 51: 1; 64: 6; Jer. 17: 9; Matt. 7: 17; 15: 19; John 3: 19; Rom. 1: 21-32; 3: 9-19, 23; 6: 6, 19, 20; Gal. 5: 17, 19-21; Eph. 4: 17-22; 5: 11; Col. 3: 8; Eph. 6: 12-18; 1 Thes. 5: 8; John 3: 21; 15: 2-8; 2 Cor. 9: 8; Gal. 6: 4, 7-9.

    Hymns: 192, 266, 82, 130, 13, 200, 272.
    Poems of Dawn, 241: The Field of Battle.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 280 (R 5768).

    Questions: Have I this week put off evil and put on good? How? What helped or hindered? With what results?

     

     
    THE FIELD OF BATTLE

    To grasp the two-edged sword, and forward rush
    upon the foe,
    To hear the Captain's cry, to see the flash of answer-
    ing eyes,
    To feel the throbbing hearts of battling comrades in
    the ranks,--
    That rapturous inspiration know, of warring for the
    Right,
    The holy joy of following Him who points and
    leads the way!

    Ah! yes, 'tis glorious thus to fight the goodly fight,
    and yet,
    Methinks, beyond the firing line, beneath those snowy
    tents,
    A fiercer conflict rages night and day, where trembling
    hands,
    Wan lips and fever-lighted eyes do battle with a host
    Of deadly foes,—grim giants, Doubt and Disappoint-
    ment, fierce
    Despair,—before whose fiery darts the bravest well
    might quail!

    They also hear the call, and hoarsely cry, "Lord,
    here am I!"
    They strive to reach their swords, to struggle to their
    feet, but back
    In helpless agony of weakness on their pallets fall,
    With brain afire, and reason tottering on its throne,
    their tears
    Of anguish flow! Sometimes the noise of battle
    sweeps beyond
    The range of those poor, straining ears, and then the
    spectre Fear
    Stalks through the room, and lays an icy hand upon
    each heart:
    The awful thought, Our captain hath forsaken and
    forgot,
    Our comrades forge ahead, they leave us here alone
    to die!

    But no! the Lord of Battles is most merciful, He
    sends
    A swift-winged messenger: "Yea, though a mother
    may forget
    Her sucking child, yet will I not forget!" Then,
    like the calm
    That cometh after storm, sweet peace and quiet reign
    within
    Those troubled breasts, and so He giveth His beloved
    sleep.

    Ah! then, true-hearted comrades in the forefront of
    the fight,
    Remember that the wounded to God's army still
    belong,
    And send betimes to them a white-winged messenger
    of cheer.
    Oh, give Love's roses now, nor keep them for the
    coffin's lid,
    (A single flower is sweeter far than thousands by
    and by);
    Take time to speak a tender word, to shed a pitying
    tear,
    Or breathe, at least, a prayer throughout the watches
    of the night,
    And thus prove more than conquerors through the
    power of deathless love!
  • 2016-04-04 - 2017-04-03 All day

    Let us walk honestly, as in the day--Rom. 13: 13.

    Each one should see to it that he is honest, not only in matters of dollars and cents, but honest in his treatment of his neighbors, in his treatment of the brethren, and above all, honest in his confessions respecting his God and his faith. The test is being made along this line, and those who love the favor of men rather than the favor of God, and who dishonestly are willing to confess and profess a lie, will be given up to their lie, will be permitted to blight their eternal interests, will be proving themselves unfit for the Kingdom—whatever else they may ultimately become fit for—Z '03, 122 (R 3181).

    God's people should live aboveboard. Their conduct should be a living expression and illustration of justice. With uprightness of heart should they give to all their dues. So should their conduct be, that at any time, and at all times, if seen by others, it should cause them no shame. They should walk honestly, as in the Millennial day, and as though seen by God and by all men—P '35, 61.

    Parallel passages: Phil. 4: 8; Col. 1: 12, 13; Song 2: 7, 17; 1 Cor. 13: 12; Rev. 22: 5; 1 Pet. 2: 12; 2 Pet. 3: 11, 12; 2 Cor. 6: 7; Eph. 6: 13-18; 1 Pet. 4: 7, 8; 1 Thes. 5: 4-8; John 9: 4.

    Hymns: 164, 307, 13, 192, 114, 277, 58.
    Poems of Dawn, 118: Thy Will Be Done.
    Tower Reading: Z '12, 287 (R 5097).

    Questions: Have I this week walked as though in the Kingdom? Under what circumstances? What was helpful or hindersome therein? What resulted therefrom?

     

     
    THY WILL BE DONE

    MY Lord, Thy will not mine be done:
    Whatever path Thy love shall choose for me,
    Through desert sands, or if beside the sea,--
    Thy will be done!

    Oh, may Thy will in me be done:
    Should "harvest" labor be for me Thy will,
    Or if I may but suffer and be still,--
    Thy will be done!

    My Father, let Thy will be done:
    If sweet the cup Thou pourest for me to drink,
    I'll praise Thee, but if bitter, I'll not shrink,--
    Thy will be done!

    Forever may Thy will be done:
    I would not choose, I leave it all with Thee,--
    The pilgrimage, if short or long it be,--
    Thy will be done!
  • 2016-04-05 - 2017-04-04 All day

    My mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips, when I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches--Psa. 63: 5, 6.

    Prayer is not a privilege merely, but also a necessity—commanded as indispensable to our Christian growth. Whoever loses the desire to thank and worship and commune with the Father of mercies, may rest assured that he is losing the very spirit of sonship, and should promptly seek and remove the barrier—the world, the flesh or the devil. Every additional evidence of the Lord's confidence in us by the revealing to us of His character and Plan, so far from diminishing our worship and prayers, should multiply them. If our hearts are good soil, they will bring forth the more abundantly—Z '96, 161 (R 2004).

    Whoever acts as a mouthpiece of Christ proclaims joyful doctrines; for God's eternal purpose is replete with blessing for all, reflects credit upon the Father and displays His wisdom, justice, love and power. Resting upon the Truth, as a bed, and contemplating the mercies of God in seasons of distress, the Christian may proclaim the Lord's Plan and thereby praise the Father's character. Our chief object in proclaiming the Lord's Word should be to manifest to others how praiseworthy, appreciable and adorable Jehovah our God and Father is!—P '34, 36.

    Parallel passages: Lev. 7: 12; Psa. 34: 1; 50: 14, 23; 69: 30, 31; 107: 22; 116: 17; 119: 97; Isa. 63: 7; Hos. 14: 2; Eph. 5: 19, 20; Col. 3: 17; Phil. 4: 6; 1 Thes. 5: 18; 2 Thes. 1: 3; 1 Pet. 2: 5; 4: 11.

    Hymns: 238, 23, 49, 296, 116, 44, 260.
    Poems of Dawn, 268: My Psalm.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 311 (R 5785).

    Questions: Have my meditations and speech this week been on the Lord's Word and Character? Under what circumstances? With what results?

     

     
    MY PSALM

    I MOURN no more my vanished years:
    Beneath a tender rain,
    An April rain of smiles and tears,
    My heart is young again.

    The west winds blow, and, singing low,
    I hear the glad streams run;
    The windows of my soul I throw
    Wide open to the sun.

    No longer forward nor behind
    I look in hope or fear,
    But, grateful, take the good I find,
    The best of now and here.

    I break my pilgrim staff, I lay
    Aside the toiling oar,
    The angel sought so far away
    I welcome at my door.

    The woods shall wear their robes of praise,
    The south winds softly sigh,
    And sweet, calm days, in golden haze,
    Melt down the amber sky.

    Not less shall manly deed and word
    Rebuke an age of wrong;
    The graven flowers that wreathe the sword
    Make not the blade less strong.

    But smiting hands shall learn to heal,--
    To build as to destroy;
    Nor less my heart for others feel,
    That I the more enjoy.

    All as God wills, who wisely heeds
    To give or to withhold,
    And knoweth more of all my needs
    Than all my prayers have told.

    Enough that blessings underserved
    Have marked mine erring track;--
    That whensoe'er my feet have swerved,
    His chastening turned me back;--

    That more and more a Providence
    Of love is understood,
    Making the springs of time and sense
    Sweet with eternal good;--

    And death seems but a covered way
    Which opens into light,
    Wherein no blinded child can stray
    Beyond the Father's sight;--

    That care and trial seem at last,
    Through memory's sunset air,
    Like mountain ranges overpast,--
    The purple distance fair;

    That all the jarring notes of life
    Seem blending in a psalm,
    And all the angles of the strife
    Now rounding into calm.

    And so the shadows fall apart,
    And so the west winds play;
    And all the windows of my heart
    I open to the day.
  • 2016-04-06 - 2017-04-05 All day

    If any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf--1 Pet. 4: 16.

    Sickness and discomfort of any sort, incurred by our energy in the service of the Truth, are permitted by our Father as evidences of our fidelity and love; because if not liable to such tribulations, or if relieved of them instantly by a miracle, the Lord's service would cost us no sacrifice and the test of our willingness to endure for the Truth's sake would be wanting. As it is, however, every ache or pain or wound of person or of feelings, and beheading socially or literally for the Truth's sake, becomes a witness of the Spirit, testifying to our faithfulness. And in all such tribulations we should rejoice greatly—as say our Lord and the Apostle Peter—Z '96, 166 (R 2004).

    To suffer as a Christian means to suffer from the same causes, in the same forms, in the same spirit, for the same purposes, and with similar results as Jesus. Whoever is so highly favored, far from being ashamed, should count it the greatest privilege and cause for rejoicing and thanksgiving possible for a human being to have. It gives him fellowship with the Father, the Son and the saints, appreciation of their characters, great peace and joy in this life, preparation for the Kingdom, and eventually the prize of our calling—P '33, 63.

    Parallel passages: Matt. 5: 10-12; Rom. 8: 35, 36; 1 Cor. 15: 31, 32; 2 Cor. 1: 5, 9; 12: 10; Gal. 2: 20; 6: 17; Phil. 1: 29; 3: 10; Heb. 10: 32-34; Jas. 1: 2, 12; 1 Pet. 1: 6, 7; 2: 19-24; 4: 12-14; 5: 1, 10.

    Hymns: 134, 47, 114, 208, 302, 325, 326.
    Poems of Dawn, 287: And Sitting Down, They Watched Him There.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 297 (R 5778).

    Questions: What were this week's experiences in line with this text? How were they borne? What were the results?

     

     
    "AND SITTING DOWN, THEY WATCHED HIM THERE"
    MATTHEW 27: 36

    SITTING down, they watched Him there,
    Watched Him, fairest of the fair,
    Gazed with cold, unpitying eye,
    While the jeering crowd passed by;
    For His vesture cast a lot
    (Seamless robe, without a spot)--
    Watched the "Man of Sorrows" there,
    Who the world's great sin must bear,
    Watched while darkness veiled the sun,
    Watched until He cried, " 'Tis done!"

    God of Heaven, forbid that I
    Thus should gaze with pitiless eye
    On a suffering child of Thine,
    Watch him while his foes malign,
    Watch him while his life-blood flows,
    Watch until the dark day's close;
    Grant me, Lord, a heart of love,
    Make me like a tender dove,
    Let me bring him strength and peace,
    Until death shall send release!
  • 2016-04-07 - 2017-04-06 All day

    My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus--Phil. 4: 19.

    If you have no burning zeal to preach the good tidings of great joy, pray earnestly and faithfully and persistently for it, and strive for it, and you will soon have it. If you have a zeal and love for the Gospel, and lack ability to present it, pray for the ability, while you make full use of what you have. If you have the zeal and ability, and lack an opportunity, take it to the Lord in prayer as soon as you can, telling Him that you are faithfully using all the opportunities you have. Then watch for more opportunities, without slackening your hand to use the very humblest and smallest within your reach—Z '96, 163 (R 2004).

    All Christians need wisdom, justice, love and power, which God has pledged Himself to develop in the faithful. Jehovah has in His unfathomable resources of Wisdom, Justice, Love and Power a plentitude of riches to supply all their needs. Generously indeed does He supply these to all who ask for them in and through His Son, whom He has made unto us Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification and Deliverance—P '27, 55.

    Parallel passages: Psa. 23; 34: 7-10; 50: 10; 65: 9-13; Prov. 8: 21; Isa. 25: 4; Mal. 3: 10; Matt. 6: 26-33; Rom. 8: 28; 2 Cor. 9: 8, 9; Heb. 13: 5, 6; 1 Pet. 5: 7; Eph. 1: 7; 3: 16.

    Hymns: 67, 110, 63, 119, 121, 293, 301.
    Poems of Dawn, 210: Take Heart.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 230 (R 5508).

    Questions: Has God this week supplied my need? Under what circumstances? How did it affect me?

     

     
    TAKE HEART

    LET me take heart! The present scene shall soon
    be o'er;
    The clustering clouds shall hide the sun at noon no
    more.
    The tears now dropping from mine eyes shall be forgot;
    And joys, undimmed by sin and misery, my lot.

    The storm now sweeping through the troubled sky
    be past;
    The longed-for morning without clouds arise at last.
    The hindmost shadow soon shall utterly depart;
    Then let me watch and wait, and hopefully take heart.
  • 2016-04-08 - 2017-04-07 All day

    If any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him--Heb. 10: 38.

    The drawing back may at first be a very slight departure from the narrow way of sacrifice—only a looking back perhaps, with a sigh for the things behind; a little slowing up of speed in the race set before us; then a little disposition to compromise the Truth in favor of the cravings of the fallen nature. Thus the way is prepared for the arts of the Tempter, who is quick to note our weak points, and to take advantage of them in a manner best suited to our case. Subtle errors are brought to bear against the judgment; pleasing allurements, with a show of righteousness, are presented to the fleshly mind; and, almost imperceptibly, the soul forgets its "first love" for the Lord, and its first zeal for His service, and drifts away from the Truth and the spirit of it, being no longer led of the holy Spirit of God—Z '95, 93 (R 1798).

    To draw back signifies to withdraw one's consecration, and to return to a life of sin, error, selfishness and worldliness. One's leaving an evil life and consecrating himself to God cause Jehovah much pleasure, as it is written, "The Lord taketh pleasure in all his saints." Accordingly God is more displeased with those who have known the way of life and have forsaken it than with those who never knew it. They are in the hands of the living God for destruction—P '20, 71.

    Parallel passages: Gen. 19: 26; Psa. 85: 10; 125: 5; Hos. 11: 7; Luke 9: 62; 17: 32; Matt. 5: 13; 6: 23; John 17: 12; 2 Tim. 2: 12; Heb. 6: 4-9; 10: 26-31; 2 Pet. 2:1-22; 3: 17; 1 John 5:16.

    Hymns: 13, 130, 136, 20, 95, 196, 198.
    Poems of Dawn, 130: Be Vigilant.
    Tower Reading: Z '12, 278 (R 5093).

    Questions: What have been my temptations along the lines of this text? How did I overcome therein? What are my resolutions as to these experiences?

     

     
    BE VIGILANT

    UP then, and linger not, thou saint of God,
    Fling from thy shoulders each impending load;
    Be brave and wise, shake off earth's soil and sin,
    That with the Bridegroom thou mayst enter in.
    O watch and pray!

    Clear hath the voice been heard, Behold I've come--
    That voice that calls thee to thy glorious home,
    That bids thee leave these vales and take swift wing,
    To meet the hosts of thy descending King;--
    And thou mayst rise!

    Here's a thick throng of foes, afar and near;
    The grave in front, a hating world in rear;
    Yet flee thou canst not, victory must be won,
    Ere fall the shadows of thy setting sun:--
    And thou must fight.

    Gird on thine armor; face each weaponed foe;
    Deal with the Sword of heaven the deadly blow;
    Forward, still forward, till the prize Divine
    Rewards thy zeal, and victory is thine;
    Win thou the crown.
  • 2016-04-09 - 2017-04-08 All day

    Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain--1 Cor. 9: 24.

    To gain the victory we must not only put on the armor of God, but we must also be heroes in the strife, and wage an aggressive warfare upon the lusts of the eye and flesh and pride of life and all the foes of righteousness and purity. Love—love for the Lord, for the Truth and for righteousness—must inspire us, or we shall never be victors. Love alone will keep us faithful even unto death, and make us meet for the inheritance of the saints. Where fervent love rules the heart, it implies that the heart is fully submitted to the Lord, and that means that nine tenths of the battle is already won. But, even then, as the Apostle says (Jude 21), we must keep ourselves in the love of God, in watchfulness and prayer and zeal; and grace will abound where love abounds—Z '95, 93 (R 1798).

    The Christian life is compared to a race. To win the race, careful preparation, great exertion, undiminished perseverance, undeviating endeavor, and the closest possible adherence to regulations are required. He who neglects these will fail to win, while he who persists in these to the end will surely win. Our endeavor should be so to run as to win—P '36, 48.

    Parallel passages: Psa. 19: 5; Eccles. 9: 11; Jer. 12: 5; Phil. 3: 14; Heb. 12: 1; 1 Cor. 9: 25-27; Gal. 2: 2; 5: 7; Phil. 2: 16; 2 Tim. 2: 5; 4: 7, 8; Eph. 6:12; 1 Tim. 6: 12; 1 Pet. 1: 4; 5: 4; Jas. 1: 12; Rev. 3: 11.

    Hymns: 20, 1, 44, 71, 78, 130, 183.
    Poems of Dawn, 288: He Leads Us On.
    Tower Reading: Z '07, 260 (R 4050).

    Questions: How have I run this week? What was my motive therein? What hindered or helped therein? What resulted therefrom?

     

     
    HE LEADS US ON

    HE leads us on, by paths we did not know,
    Upward He leads us, though our steps be slow,
    Though oft we faint and falter on the way,
    Though storms and darkness oft obscure the day,
    Yet when the clouds are gone
    We know He leads us on.

    He leads us on through all the trialsome years;
    Past all our dreamland hopes, and doubts, and fears
    He guides our steps. Through all the tangled maze
    Of sin, of sorrow, and o'erclouded days
    We know His will is done;
    And still He leads us on.

    And then, at last, after the weary strife,
    After the restless fever we call life,
    After the dreariness, the aching pain,
    The wayward struggles which have proved in vain,
    After our toils are past--
    He'll give us rest at last.
  • 2016-04-10 - 2017-04-09 All day

    Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time--1 Pet. 5: 6.

    It is indeed no easy matter to tread the pathway of humility, to check continually the human aspirations and to keep the sacrifice on the altar until it is fully consumed. But thus it is that we are to work out our own salvation as Christians with fear and trembling, lest we come short of worthiness for the reward that God has promised to the faithful overcomers who tread closely in the footsteps of our blessed Forerunner … who was meek and lowly of heart. It is when we are thus humble and faithful that the Lord makes us His chosen vessels to bear His name to others. Thus emptied of self, He can fill us with His Spirit and with His Truth, and we can go forth strong in the Lord of hosts and in His mighty power, to do valiant service as soldiers of the cross—Z '93, 7 (R 1486).

    Christ is the mighty hand of God, under whom we are. To humble ourselves under Him would mean to empty ourselves of self-appreciation, whether it be along physical, mental, moral or religious lines, and to maintain that estimate of ourselves that the Spirit, Word and providences of God warrant us in having. Whoever, amid the varying scenes of life so humbles himself under Christ, will in due time be exalted by God under Christ—P '30, 31.

    Parallel passages: Jas. 1: 9, 10; 4: 6; Isa. 57: 15; 66: 2; Job 22: 29; Prov. 15: 33; 29: 23; Dan. 4: 37; Luke 1: 52; 10: 21; 14: 10, 11; 18: 14; 1 Pet. 5: 3, 5; Matt. 5: 3; 11: 29; 18: 2-4; 20: 26, 27; 23: 12; Rom. 12: 3, 10, 16; 1 Cor. 13: 4; 2 Cor. 12: 5-12; Eph. 4: 2; 5: 21; Phil. 2: 3-11.

    Hymns: 95, 21, 6, 1, 58, 105, 216.
    Poems of Dawn, 51: Right Was The Pathway.
    Tower Reading: Z '13, 56 (R 5185).

    Questions: What were this week's experiences as to this text? How were they met? What was helpful or hindersome therein? In what did they result?

     

     
    RIGHT WAS THE PATHWAY

    LIGHT after darkness,
    Gain after loss,
    Strength after suffering,
    Crown after cross.
    Sweet after bitter,
    Song after sigh,
    Home after wandering,
    Praise after cry.

    Sheaves after sowing,
    Sun after rain,
    Sight after mystery,
    Peace after pain.
    Joy after sorrow,
    Calm after blast,
    Rest after weariness,
    Sweet rest at last.

    Near after distant,
    Gleam after gloom,
    Love after loneliness,
    Life after tomb.
    After long agony
    Rapture of bliss!
    Right was the pathway
    Leading to this!
  • 2016-04-11 - 2017-04-10 All day

    Let us walk … not in rioting and drunkenness--Rom. 13: 13.

    Some have an intoxication for money, wealth; others an intoxication for business; others for dress; others for music; others for art; but as the Lord's people, who have gotten a glimpse of the new day, and the great work of God which is to be accomplished in that day, our hearts should be so absorbed in the work of God that these matters, which would be thought proper enough and right enough in others, worldly people—because they are not awake as we are, and because they see not the future as we see it—should be far from our conception and course—Z '03, 123 (R 3179).

    Unless the Christian takes heed to his ways, he will become intoxicated with error, sin, selfishness and worldliness. Such intoxication inevitably leads him into spiritual rioting in which all law and order are forgotten, and violence to spiritual life and limb are inflicted upon those in his way. Destruction frequently marks his course, and the strong arm of the Divine law must put down this rioting in the Second Death—P '35, 61.

    Parallel passages: Prov. 23: 20; Luke 21: 34; 1 Pet. 4: 3; Rom. 8: 29; 1 Cor. 6: 9; 1 Pet. 2: 11, 21, 22; Gal. 5: 16-26; 6: 18; Eph. 5: 5, 11, 14, 16; Col. 3: 8-10, 12.

    Hymns: 130, 315, 71, 78, 83, 136, 1.
    Poems of Dawn, 46: The Narrow Way.
    Tower Reading: Z '13, 323 (R 5338).

    Questions: What were this week's experiences connected with this text? How were they met? What was their outcome?

     

     
    THE NARROW WAY
    MATT. 7: 14.

    "DEAR Lord, the way seems very dark,
    I cannot see."
    "Yes, child, I know, but I will be thy Light--
    Come, follow Me!"

    "Dear Lord, so lonely is this way--
    Where are my friends?"
    "My child, dost thou forget how far from Me
    Their pathway tends?"

    "Dear Master, I am growing weak,
    I scarce can stand."
    "O, foolish child, trust not in thine own strength,
    Come, take My hand;

    "For I have trod this way before,
    So dark to thee.
    I know each step, its weariness and pain,
    Wilt trust in Me?"

    "Yea, Lord, though friendless, lonely, dark,
    This way may be,
    I will be strong. Beloved Guide, lead on,
    I follow Thee!"
  • 2016-04-12 - 2017-04-11 All day

    The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the participation of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the participation of the body of Christ? For we being many are one loaf--1 Cor. 10: 16, 17.

    It is one cup, though it be the juice of many grapes, even as it is one loaf, though it be from many grams. The grains cannot maintain their individuality and their own life, if they would become bread for others; the grapes cannot maintain themselves as grapes, if they would constitute the life-giving spirit; and thus we see the beauty of the Apostle's statement that the Lord's people are participants in the one loaf and cup. There is no other way that we can attain the new nature than by accepting the Lord's invitation to drink of His cup, and be broken with Him as members of the one loaf, and to be buried with Him in baptism into His death, and thus to attain with Him resurrection glory, honor and immortality—Z '01, 76 (R 2771).

    While the primary thought symbolized in the Memorial Supper is that of justification, its secondary thought is consecration. From this standpoint the cup symbolizes the sufferings incident to the sacrificial dying process, poured out by the Father for us to endure, and the bread represents the humanity of the Church given over unto death sacrificially. Thus in the Memorial the death of the Church as well as that of Jesus is pictured forth—P '34, 46.

    Parallel passages: Ex. 12: 3-14, 18, 21-28; Matt. 26: 26-28; Mark 14: 22-25; 10: 35-39; Luke 12: 50; John 18: 11; 1 Cor. 11: 23-34; Luke 22: 19, 20; Rom. 6: 1-11; 8: 10, 17; 12: 1; 1 Cor. 15: 29-34; 2 Cor. 1: 5; 4: 8; Gal. 2: 20; Phil. 3: 10; Col. 1: 24; 2 Tim. 2: 10-12; 1 Pet. 2: 19-24; 3: 17, 18; 4: 13-19; Col. 1: 27; 1 Cor. 12: 12, 13; Heb. 3: 1; 7: 26, 27; 1 Pet. 2: 5, 9; Heb. 10: 4-10; 13: 10-14; 9: 13-23.

    Hymns: 122, 276, 160, 191, 281, 31, 322.
    Poems of Dawn, 54: The One Loaf.
    Tower Reading: Z '13, 327 (R 5341).

    Questions: Have I this week fellowshipped with the Lord and the brethren in suffering? In what ways? Under what circumstances? What helped or hindered therein? With what results?

     

     
    THE ONE LOAF
    1 COR. 10: 17.

    THE twilight hour, when all the world doth dream,
    I stand amid
    The ripening grain, the ripples, like the bosom of
    a lake
    Beneath the evening breeze. I pluck, and idly hold
    within
    My hand, one golden ear, the while in swift succession
    pass
    Strange visions of the olden time: I see a threshing-
    floor,--
    The wheat by wooden flail bereft of chaff and shining
    husk.
    The scene is changed: I see a woman grinding at
    a mill,--
    Between the upper and the nether stones the grain is
    crushed
    Until no semblance of its former state remains, but
    each
    Is merged into one common whole,—a coarse and
    homely meal.
    Another picture,—mixed with water and with salt
    a loaf,
    Or flattened cake, is formed and laid upon the glow-
    ing coals.

    And as I gaze my thoughts are lifted to a higher
    plane;
    I see "the members of His body," like the golden
    grain,
    Denuded of their glittering robes of earthly pride and
    fame;
    The upper and the nether stones of life's vicissitudes
    Are slowly, surely, grinding rich and poor, the high,
    the low,
    Into one common-union,—heart and mind, and zeal
    and love;
    With purifying salt, life-giving water of the Word,
    The mass is being drawn and held and moulded in
    "one loaf."

    Ah, then, beloved, when we drink of that memorial
    cup,
    And eat the symbol of His flesh, let us partake with
    joy,
    Nor marvel if we need that strange, transforming
    power of fire,
    Ere we are counted worthy to be like our Lord and
    Head,
    And "broken" that a hungry, fainting, dying world
    be fed!
  • 2016-04-13 - 2017-04-12 All day

    Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you--John 6: 53.

    Gladly, dear Lord, we eat (appropriate to our necessities) the merit of Thy pure nature sacrificed for us—for our justification. Gladly, too, we will partake of the cup of suffering with Thee, realizing it to be a blessed privilege to suffer with Thee, that in due time we may also reign with Thee; to be dead with Thee, that in the everlasting future we may live with Thee, and be like Thee and share Thy love and Thy glory as Thy Bride. Oh! that we may be faithful, not only in the performance of the symbol, but also of the reality. Blessed Lord, we hear Thy Word saying, "Ye shall indeed drink of my cup and be baptized with my baptism." Lord, we are not of ourselves able thus to sacrifice; but Thy grace is sufficient for us; for we are wholly Thine, now and forever—Z '99, 51 (R 2436).

    To eat the flesh of the Son of Man means in part to appropriate by faith His perfect humanity; and to drink His blood means in part to appropriate His perfect life by faith. Thus we appropriate from Christ an exact equivalent of our debt on account of Adam's sin; and this appropriated perfect humanity and life reckon us as being perfect and having perfect life. Without this appropriation we are dead in Adam and cannot have life, but with it we have life. To eat His flesh and to drink His blood, particularly the latter, also mean in part the Church sharing with Him in the sacrificial death—P '33, 63.

    Parallel passages: Matt. 26: 26-28; 1 Cor. 11: 23-29; John 6: 47-58; 1 Cor. 10: 16; Rom. 6: 3-10; 8: 10; 1 Cor. 15: 29-34; Col. 1: 24; 2 Tim. 2: 10-12; Heb. 13: 13-16.

    Hymns: 325, 123, 277, 135, 259, 132, 299.
    Poems of Dawn, 55: "Until He Come."
    Tower Reading: Z '13, 328 (R 5342).

    Questions: Did I this week eat His flesh and drink His blood? How? Why? With what results?

     

     
    "UNTIL HE COME"

    "TILL He come!"–Oh, let the words
    Linger on the trembling chords;
    Let the little while between,
    In their golden light be seen;
    Let us think how heaven and home
    Lie beyond that "Till He come."

    When the weary ones we love
    Enter on their rest above,
    Seems the earth so poor and vast,
    All our life-joy overcast?
    Hush! Be every murmur dumb;
    It is only "Till He come."

    Clouds and conflicts 'round us press;
    Would we have one sorrow less?
    All the sharpness of the cross,
    All that tells the world is loss,
    Death and darkness and the tomb
    Only whisper, "Till He come."

    See, the feast of love is spread.
    Drink the wine and break the bread;
    Sweet memorials!—till the Lord
    Call us 'round His heavenly board;
    Some from earth, from heaven some,
    Severed only—till He come!
  • 2016-04-15 - 2017-04-14 All day

    Father, into thy hands I commend [deposit] my spirit--Luke 23: 46.

    With full confidence our dear Redeemer looked up to the Father, and full of faith declared that He committed all of life and all of the blessed hopes for the future to the Father's love and to the Father's power, to be provided in harmony with the Father's Plan and Word. And so must we, as followers in our Master's footsteps, look forward with faith, and in our dying hour commit all our interests to the keeping of Him who has manifested His love for us, not only in the gift of His Son as our Redeemer, but all our journey through—in His providential care, as well as in the exceeding great and precious promises which go before us and give us strength, comfort and assurance—Z '99, 128 (R 2473).

    Though but a few moments before His death our Lord felt Himself abandoned by God, just at the moment of His death He recovered the consciousness of God's favor, and therefore addressed Him as Father; and so complete was His confidence in the Father's favor that without the shadow of a doubt He committed His hopes for future existence into the Father's power, having perfect assurance that the Father would restore Him to life. The literal rendering shows that He also deposited with the Father His human life-rights and His right to human life, for the use of others—P '20, 71.

    Parallel passages: 1 Chron. 5: 20; 2 Chron. 33: 12, 13; Job 1: 20, 21; 2: 9; Psa. 22: 1-21; 31: 5; 89: 26; Isa. 53:1-12; Matt. 26: 39; John 8: 11; Acts 7: 59, 60; 21: 14; 1 Pet. 2: 21-24; Phil. 2: 8; Heb. 2: 9, 14; 12: 3, 4; 1 Pet. 4: 12-14, 19; 2 Tim. 4: 6.

    Hymns: 5, 15, 132, 187, 168, 190, 246.
    Poems of Dawn, 189: He Knows.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 38 (R 5621).

    Questions: What has Christ's deposited merit meant to me this week? How has His trust in God affected me this week? What blessings flowed from these to me this week and through me to others?

     

     
    HE KNOWS

    HE knows the way I take,--
    What matter then if dark it be,
    Or rough, or hedged about,--
    His staff shall comfort me.

    And should His love withhold
    What seems so near, so dear, so sweet,
    I'll humbly take this thing
    And lay it at His feet.

    How sweet to know he knows,
    And cares, and holds me by the hand,--
    Will safely guide until
    I reach the Heavenly Land!
  • 2016-04-16 - 2017-04-15 All day

    They shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him--Mal. 3: 17.

    Had the Lord sent us forth to seek His elect, we might have gathered in some whom He rejects as unworthy, because we are unable to read the heart. This thought should make us very humble, gentle and meek toward all, and very trustful of the Lord, and very much inclined to look for His leading in respect to our labors as His servants, just as Samuel looked to the Lord in connection with the anointing of David—Z '03, 223 (R 3225).

    The Lord makes glorious promises to those who seek Him as the chief object in their lives. He makes them His own, even His own sons, and this will be particularly manifested in the great day. With tender regard does He deal with them. No earthly father ever treated his children with greater leniency than Jehovah treats His children who delight to do His will—P '36, 48.

    Parallel passages: Psa. 66: 16; 56: 8; Isa. 65: 13, 14; Heb. 3: 14; Psa. 135: 4; John 17: 6, 9, 10, 24; Isa. 62: 3; Psa. 103: 8-13; Song of Solomon 2: 16; John 10: 27-30; 1 Cor. 3: 23; 6: 20; Gal. 5: 24; 2 Thes. 1: 7-10; Ex. 19: 5; Deut. 7: 6; Titus 2: 14; 1 Pet. 2: 9; Rom. 8: 32; 2 Cor. 6: 18; 1 John 3: 1-3.

    Hymns: 29, 18, 21, 72, 155, 201, 204.
    Poems of Dawn, 259: Coming By and By.
    Tower Reading: Z ' 12, 326 (R 5119).

    Questions: How has this text affected me this week? Why? Under what conditions? With what results?

     

     
    COMING BY AND BY

    A BETTER day is coming, a morning promised
    long,
    When truth and right, with holy might, shall over-
    throw the wrong;
    When Christ the Lord will listen to every plaintive
    sigh,
    And stretch His hand o'er sea and land, with justice
    by and by.

    The boast of haughty tyrants no more shall fill the
    air,
    But age and youth shall love the truth and speed it
    everywhere.
    No more from want and sorrow shall come the hopeless cry
    But war shall cease, and perfect peace will flourish
    by and by.

    The tidal wave is coming, the Year of Jubilee;
    With shout and song it sweeps along, like billows of
    the sea,
    The jubilee of nations shall ring through earth and
    sky;
    The dawn of grace draws on apace—'tis coming
    by and by.

    O! for that glorious dawning we watch and wait and
    pray,
    Till o'er the height the morning light drive the
    gloom away;
    And when the heavenly glory shall flood the earth
    and sky,
    We'll bless the Lord for all His works and praise
    Him by and by
  • 2016-04-17 - 2017-04-16 All day

    The anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you--1 John 2: 27.

    The blessing and power of the Lord accompanied David's anointing in some manner—just how, we may not understand—enabling him to progress in knowledge, etc., and fitting and preparing him for the duties of the office to which he had been anointed. May we not consider as an antitype to this, the anointing which comes upon the Church from the time of her acceptance with the Lord? Ours is not a physical anointing, nor are the blessings conferred of a temporal character; it is as New Creatures that we grow in grace and knowledge and love, and as New Creatures that, by and by, we shall be perfected in the First Resurrection and come to the Throne with our Lord and Master as our Head—Z '03, 223 (R 3225).

    It never entered the minds of the ancients that the Anointed would consist of a company, but to the Gospel Church this mystery has been made clear, and their position in this anointed company remains secure to the faithful. The holy heart and mind begotten in them at their consecration was the earnest of their inheritance, the immutable pledge of God's faithfulness to the faithful—P '30, 31.

    Parallel passages: Psa. 18: 50; 20: 6; 23: 5; 45: 7; Heb. 1: 9; Psa. 89: 20-23; Isa. 11: 2, 3; 61: 1-3; Dan. 9: 24; Matt. 3: 16, 17; Acts 4: 27; 10: 38; 2 Cor. 1: 21; 1 John 2: 20, 27; 1 Cor. 12: 12, 13; 15: 23.

    Hymns: 1, 21, 90, 14, 165, 217, 218.
    Poems of Dawn, 42: Full Consecration.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 297 (R 5549).

    Questions: What has this text meant to me this week? How? With what results?

     

     
    FULL CONSECRATION

    O SACRED union with the Perfect Mind!
    Transcendent bliss, which Thou alone canst give,
    How blest are they this Pearl of price who find,
    And, dead to earth, have learned in Thee to live!

    And thus, while dead to human hopes I lie,
    Lost, and forever lost, to all but Thee,
    My happy soul, since it has learned to die,
    Has found new life in Thine infinity.

    With joy we learn this lesson of the cross,
    And tread the toilsome way which Jesus trod;
    And counting present life and all things loss,
    We find in death to self the life of God.
  • 2016-04-18 - 2017-04-17 All day

    though some strange thing happened unto you; but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are made partakers of Christ's sufferings; that when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy--1 Pet. 4: 12, 13.

    In an unfriendly world we can expect to receive only the reproaches of our Master, for the servant is not above his Lord. The world, the flesh and the devil oppose our way. There are fightings within and fears without, and many are the arrows and fiery darts aimed at the righteous. But what is the safe attitude of the soul under afflictions and severe testings? Is it not in silence before God, waiting and watching first to see His leading, His will, in every matter before presuming to touch things that often involve so much? So the Psalmist suggests, saying, "I was dumb with silence; I held my peace, even from good [even from doing or saying what seemed good in my own sight]"—Z '96, 31 (R 1937).

    It should not surprise God's children when trials come, for their consecration implies suffering with Christ. Nor should it discourage them; rather it should be the cause of rejoicing, because it affords them the privilege of suffering with Christ, an experience which should make all the sweeter the glory to follow. The greater the suffering endured, the greater will be the glory to be revealed. Well may this thought encourage us—P '35, 61.

    Parallel passages: Rom. 6: 1-11; 8: 10, 17; 2 Cor. 1: 5; 4: 10; 1 Cor. 15: 29-34; Mark 10: 35-39; Col. 2: 11, 12; Gal. 2: 20; 2 Tim. 2: 10-12; Phil. 3: 10; 1 Pet. 2: 19-24; 3: 14, 17, 18; 4: 16, 19; Heb. 7: 26, 27; 13: 10-16; 10: 4-10, 19; 9: 13-23; 1 Pet. 2: 5, 9.

    Hymns: 299, 114, 134, 244, 326, 259, 325.
    Poems of Dawn, 174: Perfect Through Suffering.
    Tower Reading: Z ' 15, 297 (R 5778).

    Questions: Have I this week suffered with Christ? How? Why? With what results?

     

     
    PERFECT THROUGH SUFFERING

    GOD never would send you the darkness,
    If He felt you could bear the light;
    But you would not cling to His guiding hand,
    If the way were always bright;
    And you would not care to walk by faith,
    Could you always walk by sight.

    'Tis true He hath many an anguish,
    For your sorrowful heart to bear,
    And many a cruel thorn-crown,
    For your poor, tired head to wear;
    He knows how few would reach heaven at all,
    If pain did not guide them there.

    So He sends you the blinding darkness,
    And the furnace of seven-fold heat:
    'Tis the only way, believe me,
    To keep you close to His feet--
    For 'tis always so easy to wander,
    When our lives are glad and sweet.

    Then nestle your hand in your Father's
    And sing, if you can, as you go;
    Your song may cheer some one behind you,
    Whose courage is sinking low;
    And, well, if your lips do quiver--
    God will love you better so.
  • 2016-04-19 - 2017-04-18 All day

    Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things--Matt. 12: 34, 35.

    Our first concern, then, should be for the heart—that its affections and disposition may be fully under the control of Divine grace; that every principle of truth and righteousness may be enthroned there; that justice, mercy, benevolence, brotherly kindness, love, faith, meekness, temperance, supreme reverence for God and Christ, and a fervent love for all the beauties of holiness, may be firmly fixed as the governing principles of life. If these principles be fixed, established, in the heart, then out of the good treasure of the heart the mouth will speak forth words of truth, soberness, wisdom and grace—Z '96, 30 (R 1937).

    The heart is the source of our words and acts; therefore as one's words and acts are, his heart is. A good heart overflows in good words and acts; a wicked heart, in evil words and acts. How necessary, therefore, to keep the heart pure! To all the Lord's followers the admonition is certainly appropriate, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life" (Prov. 4: 23)—P '34, 47.

    Parallel passages: Luke 6: 45; Psa. 37: 30; Prov. 10: 20; 12: 6, 17-19; 15: 4, 23; Deut. 5: 29; 6: 5, 6; 1 Sam. 16: 7; 1 Chron. 28: 9; 2 Cor. 12: 14; Psa. 51: 10; Jer. 17: 9, 10; Matt. 5: 8; 12: 33, 36, 37; 15: 18-20; 23: 26; Heb. 3: 8.

    Hymns: 116, 44, 130, 125, 136, 49, 154.
    Poems of Dawn, 146: Scatter Seeds of Kindness.
    Tower Reading: Z '06, 92 (R 3746).

    Questions: What were this week's experiences in line with this text? How did this text prove true in this week's experiences? What were the results?

     

     
    SCATTER SEEDS OF KINDNESS

    LOVING words will cost but little,
    Journeying up the hill of life;
    But they make the weak and weary
    Stronger, braver for the strife.
    Do you count them only trifles?
    What to earth are sun and rain?
    Never was a kind word wasted,
    Never was one said in vain.

    When the cares of life are many,
    And its burdens heavy grow
    For the ones who walk beside you,
    If you love them, tell them so.
    What you count of little value
    Hath an almost magic power,
    And beneath that cheering sunshine
    Hearts will blossom like a flower.

    So, as up life's hill we journey,
    Let us scatter all the way
    Kindly words, to be as sunshine
    In the dark and cloudy day.
    Grudge no loving word, my brother,
    As along through life you go,
    To the ones who journey with you;
    If you love them, tell them so.
  • 2016-04-20 - 2017-04-19 All day


        This does not mean that the Lord's people are to be content with the usual routine of daily life in the home or in the shop, and are to say to themselves, "God accepts my labor as though it were given directly to Him in some other more desirable form," but it does mean that each person so situated should day by day carefully scan his earthly duties and obligations to see in what manner he could justly and properly cut off moments, hours or days from the service of earthly things and earthly interests that now might be given to sacrifice for spiritual things and spiritual interests of himself or others. The consecrated heart, the self-denying disciple, is the one who will improve the moments as they swiftly fly, using them as far as possible in the Father's business—Z '03, 407 (R 3265).

    One's character is manifest in all he does; therefore his treatment of little things and small duties is as good an evidence of his character as is his conduct in great things. This is the Divine rule of estimating character, and measures the saints, whose faithfulness to the Lord in the little things of the present life He considers a sufficient guarantee of their faithfulness in the great things of the future—P '33, 63.

    Parallel passages: Zech.4: 10; Matt. 25: 21; Luke 16: 11, 12; 19: 17; Heb. 3: 2; Prov. 28: 20; Matt. 10: 22; 24: 45-47; 1 Cor. 4: 2; Rev. 2: 7, 10, 17, 26, 27; 3: 5, 11, 12, 21.

    Hymns: 312, 13, 110, 114, 183, 197, 200.
    Poems of Dawn, 295: My Service.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 234 (R 5740).

    Questions: Have I this week been faithful? In what things? At what cost? With what results?

     

     
    MY SERVICE

    I ASKED the Lord to let me do
    Some mighty work for Him;
    To fight amid His battle hosts,
    Then sing the victor's hymn.
    I longed my ardent love to show,
    But Jesus would not have it so.

    He placed me in a quiet home
    Whose life was calm and still,
    And gave me little things to do,
    My daily round to fill;
    I could not think it good to be
    Just put aside so silently.

    Small duties gathered round my way,
    They seemed of earth alone;
    I, who had longed for conquests bright
    To lay before His throne,
    Had common things to do and bear,
    To watch and strive with daily care.

    So then I thought my prayer unheard,
    And asked the Lord once more
    That He would give me work for Him
    And open wide the door--
    Forgetting that my Master knew
    Just what was best for me to do.

    Then quietly the answer came:
    "My child, I hear thy cry;
    Think not that mighty deeds alone
    Will bring thee victory.
    The battle has been planned by Me,
    Let daily life thy conquests see."
  • 2016-04-21 - 2017-04-20 All day

    We have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need--Heb. 4: 15, 16.

    In the moment of temptation the heart should lift itself to the great Master, in full assurance of faith, recognizing His love, His wisdom and His ability to help us, and His willingness to make all things work together for good to those who love Him. Asking for assistance in such a time of need would surely draw to us the Lord's counsel and help and strength for righteousness, truth, purity and love; and thus we shall be hourly victorious, daily victorious, and finally victorious—Z '98, 23 (R 2248).

    There is no experience of trial from the flesh, the world and Satan falling to the lot of the Lord's people that the Lord has not in principle endured. Even though His temptations were not along the line of sin, but along the line of worldliness and natural selfishness, they were nevertheless keen, and worked in Him sympathy for us under like trials. This should give us confidence to approach God through and in Him for help in every time of need—P '27, 55.

    Parallel passages: Heb. 2: 17, 18; 3: 1; 5: 1-5; 7: 11-28; 8: 12; 9: 23; Luke 23: 34; John 14: 6, 13-16; 16: 23-26; 17: 20-22; Rom. 8: 34; 1 Cor. 10: 13; Eph. 3: 12; Heb. 10: 19-21.

    Hymns: 96, 139, 167, 168, 299, 35, 239.
    Poems of Dawn, 35: There's Only One.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 358 (R 5585).

    Questions: What experiences of this week have been in line with this text? How was I exercised by them?

     

     
    THERE'S ONLY ONE
    PSALM 73: 25

    THERE'S only one upon whose care
    We safely lay our thoughts to rest;
    There's only one who knows the depth
    Of sorrow in each stricken breast.

    There's only one whose pity falls
    Like dew upon the wounded heart;
    There's only one who never leaves,
    Though enemy and friend depart.

    There's only one, when none are by,
    To wipe away the falling tear;
    There's only one to heal the wound,
    And stay the weak one's timid fear.

    There's only one who understands
    And enters into all we feel;
    There's only one who views each spring
    And each perplexing wheel in wheel.

    There's only one who can support,
    And who sufficient grace can give
    To bear up under every grief,
    And spotless in this world to live.

    O blessed Jesus, Friend of friends!
    Above us raise Thy sheltering arm,
    And while amid this evil world,
    Protect us from its guilt and harm.
  • 2016-04-22 - 2017-04-21 All day

    I say unto you, That every idle [unprofitable or pernicious] word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment--Matt. 12: 36.

    If, in the daily scrutiny of our ways, which is the duty of every Christian, we discover that in any particular our words have been dishonoring to the Lord, we should remember that in the name of our Advocate we may approach the Lord in prayer, explain to our Heavenly Father our realization of the error, our deep regret at our failure to honor His name and His cause by a holy walk and conversation, and humbly request that the sin be not laid to our charge, but that it may be blotted out through His gracious provision for our cleansing through Christ, humbly claiming that in His precious blood is all our hope and trust. Thus we should render up our account for every idle word; and by our words of repentance, supplemented by the merit of Christ applied by faith, shall we be acquitted—Z '96, 32 (R 1937).

    The words that are uttered are but expressions of one's sentiments, and therefore go to make up one's character. Idle words are useless and pernicious thoughts expressed, and inevitably undermine character. When one comes on trial for life, this undermining of character will have to be accounted for and righted. It behooves each one therefore to pray: "Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth, keep the door of my lips"—P '20, 71.

    Parallel passages: Psa. 26: 1-4; 50: 3-6; 139: 23, 24; Jer. 11: 20; 20: 12; 2 Thes. 1: 4, 5; Matt. 25: 14-30; 1 Cor. 11: 31; Ezek. 18: 20-28; Matt. 11: 22; 12: 37-42; 25: 31-46; John 5: 22-30; Acts 17: 31; Rom. 2: 5-16; 1 Pet. 4: 5, 7.

    Hymns: 63, 67, 230, 333, 24, 73, 171.
    Poems of Dawn, 143: In the Presence of the King.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 245 (R 5517).

    Questions: What have been this week's experiences respecting this text? What lessons did I learn from them?

     

     
    IN THE PRESENCE OF THE KING

    IF we could always feel each little thing
    We do, each hour we spend
    Within the presence of the King,
    What dignity—'twould lend!

    If we could realize our every thought
    Is known to Him, our King,
    With how great carefulness would it be fraught,
    And what a blessing bring!

    If, when some sharp word leaves a cruel sting,
    Our faith could know and feel
    'Twas heard within the presence of the King,
    How soon the wound would heal!

    Oh, when the song of life seems hard to sing,
    And darker grows the way,--
    Draw nearer to the presence of the King,
    And night shall turn to day!
  • 2016-04-23 - 2017-04-22 All day

    That on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience--Luke 8: 15.

    Everyone who will be a sacrificer must of necessity be meek, humble, teachable, else very shortly he will get out of the way. He must also learn to develop the grace of the Lord along the line of patience, because it certainly requires patience to deny ourselves and to submit at times to injustice where there is no proper means of avoiding it without doing injury to the Lord's cause or to some of His people. It also implies a cultivation of brotherly kindness and, in a word, the development of the whole will of God in our hearts and lives, namely, love, which must be attained in a large and overcoming measure ere we shall have completed our work of sacrificing—Z '03, 408 (R 3265).

    An honest and good heart is the best of all possessions, for to such hearts God gives the Truth, and in such hearts the Truth remains, and through such hearts the Truth works, bringing forth an abundant fruitage, ultimately ripening into the Divine likeness, necessary for all who would share with Christ in administering the affairs of the Kingdom—P '36, 48.

    Parallel passages: Job 23: 11, 12; Psa. 119: 11, 129; Luke 11: 28; Acts 17: 11; Matt. 13: 23; John 8: 31; 14: 21; 15: 5, 8; Jas. 1: 22, 25; Heb. 3: 14; Rom. 2: 7; Heb. 10: 36; 12: 1; 4: 2; 1 Pet. 2: 1, 2; Psa. 1: 1-3; Col. 1: 6, 10.

    Hymns: 125, 22, 49, 154, 198, 267, 315.
    Poems of Dawn, 73: Even So, Father.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 228 (R 5736).

    Questions: What have been this week's experiences in line with this text? How were they received? What did they effect?

     

     
    EVEN SO, FATHER

    SOMETIME, when all life's lessons have been
    learned,
    And sun and stars forevermore have set,
    The things which our weak judgment here hath
    spurned--
    The things o'er which we grieved with lashes wet--
    Will flash before us out of life's dark night,
    As stars shine most in deeper tints of blue;
    And we shall see how all God's plans were right,
    And how what seemed unkind was love most true.

    And we shall see that while we weep and sigh
    God's plans go on as best for you and me;
    How, when we called, He heeded not our cry,
    Because His wisdom to the end could see;
    And e'en as prudent parents disallow
    Too much of sweet to craving babyhood,
    So God, perhaps, is keeping from us now
    Life's sweetest things, because it seemeth good.

    And if, sometime, commingled with life's wine,
    We find the wormwood, and recoil and shrink,
    Be sure a wiser hand than yours or mine
    Pours out this portion for our lips to drink;
    And if some friend we love is lying low,
    Where human kisses cannot reach his face,
    Oh! Do not blame the loving Father—no.
    But bear your sorrow with obedient grace.

    And you shall shortly know that lengthened breath
    Is not the sweetest gift God sends His friend,
    And that sometimes with sable pall of death
    There also comes a boon His love doth send.
    If we could push ajar the gates of Truth,
    And stand within, and all God's workings see,
    We could interpret all apparent strife,
    And for life's mysteries could find the key.

    If not to-day, be thou content, poor heart!
    God's plans, like lilies pure and white, unfold;
    We must not tear the close-shut leaves apart;
    Time will reveal the calyxes of gold.
    And if, through patient toil, we reach the land
    Where tired feet, with sandals loosed, may rest,
    When we shall clearly know and understand,
    I think that we shall say that God knew best.
  • 2016-04-24 - 2017-04-23 All day

    Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification--Rom. 15: 2.

    The lesson to each disciple of the Lord is that the special mission of his office, vocation, calling in the present time, is to sacrifice. … One form of service frequently not discerned by the Lord's disciples is the opportunity of renouncing our own ways or plans, our own methods or preferences, and in the interests of peace accepting instead the plans, the preferences of others—where it is merely a matter of personal preference, and where we believe the Lord will be as willing to have the matter one way as another. We can in the interests of peace sacrifice our preferences to the wishes of others, if we see some good can be gained by such a course—Z '14, 308, 309 (R 5555).

    From the connection, we see that St. Paul means by one's neighbor, a fellow disciple of the Lord Jesus, and others in a lesser sense. It is not only the duty, but also the privilege of the disciple of Christ to deny self in order to please the others, not their flesh, however, but their new hearts, minds and wills. This pleasing is to be for their good, so that they may be built up in faith, hope and love—P '30, 31.

    Parallel passages: Matt. 8: 19-22; 10: 37-39; 13: 44-46; 16: 24, 25; 19: 12, 21; Luke 14: 26-33; 21: 2-4; John 12: 25; Acts 20: 22-24; 21: 13; Rom. 14: 1—15: 5; 1 Cor. 6: 12; 8: 10-13; 9: 12-27; 10: 23, 24; Phil. 2: 4; 3: 7-11; 1 Pet. 2: 11-16; 4: 1, 2; Jude 20, 21.

    Hymns: 224, 8, 23, 95, 134, 170, 259.
    Poems of Dawn, 165: A Little Light.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 69 (R 5412).

    Questions: Have I this week denied self for the brethren? How? Why? What helped or hindered therein? With what results?

     

     
    A LITTLE LIGHT

    'TWAS but a little light she bore,
    While standing at the open door;
    A little light, a feeble spark,
    And yet it shone out through the dark
    With cheerful ray, and gleamed afar
    As brightly as the polar star.

    A little light, a gentle hint,
    That falls upon the page of print,
    May clear the vision, and reveal
    The precious treasures doubts conceal,
    And guide men to an open door,
    Where they new regions may explore.

    A little light dispels the gloom
    That gathers in the shadowed room,
    Where want and sickness find their prey,
    And night seems longer than the day,
    And hearts with many troubles cope
    And feebler glows the spark of hope.

    Oh, sore the need that some must know
    While journeying through this vale of woe!
    Dismayed, disheartened, gone astray,
    Caught in the thickets by the way,
    For lack of just a little light
    To guide their wandering steps aright.

    It may be little we can do
    To help another, it is true;
    But better is a little spark
    Of kindness, when the way is dark,
    Than one should walk in paths forbidden
    For lack of light we might have given.
  • 2016-04-25 - 2017-04-24 All day

    Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him--Heb. 11: 6.

    "According to thy faith be it unto thee," would seem to be the Lord's method of dealing with all who are His disciples, from first to last of their Christian walk and experience. Faith when He seems not to notice us; faith when things seem to be going prosperously with us in our spiritual affairs and in our temporal affairs; and faith equally strong when the currents and forces seem all to be against us. The victory that overcomes the world is the faith that in all conditions is able to look up to the Lord with absolute confidence in His goodness and faithfulness, and to realize that, according to His promise, eventually all things will work together for good to us because we are His people—Z '00, 139 (R 2625).

    Except love, nothing is more pleasing in the sight of God than faith. The Father, therefore, is pleased with those who exercise confidence in His character. Accordingly, those who distrust His character, impugning, as they thereby do, His wisdom, justice, love and power, cannot but be displeasing and, therefore, unacceptable to Him, because "without faith it is impossible to please God." Therefore let us have faith in God—P '35, 62.

    Parallel passages: Heb. 11:1-40; Acts 14: 15; Rom. 4: 11, 12, 16, 18, 19; 1 Thes. 1: 9; 1 Tim. 4: 10; 1 John 5: 4; John 3: 15-18, 36; Gen. 15: 1; Matt. 5: 12; 6: 1, 2, 5, 16; 10: 41, 42; 6: 33; Jer. 29: 13; 2 Pet. 1: 5, 10; 3: 14.

    Hymns: 174, 198, 125, 21, 58, 32, 92.
    Poems of Dawn, 90: Is It for Me?
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 197 (R 5716).

    Questions: What were this week's experiences in line with this text? How were they met? What results did they bring?

     

     
    IS IT FOR ME?

    IS it for me, dear Savior,
    Thy glory and Thy rest?
    For me, so poor and humble,
    Oh! shall I thus be blest?

    Is it for me to see Thee
    In all Thy glorious grace,
    And gaze in endless rapture
    On Thy beloved face?

    Is it for me to listen
    To Thy beloved voice,
    And hear its sweetest music
    Bid even me rejoice?

    A thrill of solemn gladness
    Hath hushed my very heart
    To think that I may really
    Behold Thee as Thou art;

    Behold Thee in Thy beauty;
    Behold Thee face to face;
    Behold Thee in Thy glory
    And rest in Thine embrace.
  • 2016-04-26 - 2017-04-25 All day

    He that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his--Heb. 4: 10.

    Instead of demanding one day of the seven, the law of love really controls, regulates our entire time; seven days of the week we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength; seven days of the week we are to love our neighbor as ourselves; and seven days in the week we are to rest also—rest from our own works; rest by faith in the finished work of Christ; rest in the love of God; and rest in the peace of God which passes understanding, ruling in our hearts continually—Z '02, 205 (R 3037).

    To enter into rest implies that we accept Christ's finished work as our justification before God, and that we abide with perfect assurance in the consciousness of the reckoned enjoyment of all Millennial blessings. He who has this faith, instead of going about to establish his own righteousness, has peace in the sense of enjoying Christ's righteousness. Thus justifying faith gives Him the rest of justification. Furthermore, in consecration, ceasing from living for self and the world, and looking forward with perfect assurance to the successful outcome of God's Plan, he has the same kind of rest that God enjoys—P '34, 47.

    Parallel passages: Heb. 3: 7—4: 11; Job 22: 21, 26; 34: 29; Psa. 4: 8; 17: 15; 25: 12; 29: 11; 37: 4, 11, 37; 119: 165; 125: 1, 5; Prov. 3: 17, 24; Isa. 26: 3, 12; 28: 12; 53: 5; 54: 10, 13; 57: 2, 19; John 14: 27; 16: 33; Acts 10: 36; Rom. 5: 1; 8: 6; 14: 17; 15: 13; Gal. 5: 22; Eph. 2: 14-17; Phil. 4: 7, 9; Col. 3: 15; 2 Thes. 3: 16.

    Hymns: 251, 97, 115, 179, 244, 305, 307.
    Poems of Dawn, 83: Assurance.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 25 (R 5387).

    Questions: What have been this week's experiences in line with this text? How were they met? What helped or hindered therein? In what did they result?

     

     
    ASSURANCE

    IT may not come to us as we have thought,
    The blessed consciousness of sins forgiven;
    We may not hear a voice that shall proclaim
    Our title clear to the sweet rest of heaven.

    We may not see a light upon the path
    Above the brightness of the noonday sun,
    Whose radiance shall reveal our names enrolled
    As ransomed by the Lord's Anointed One.

    Not thus may the sweet knowledge come to us,
    That all is well with us forevermore;
    Not with a flash of glory on the soul
    Do all pass into life through Christ the door.

    But like the winter merging into spring,
    Or gently as the trees put forth their leaves,
    May come to us the impulse of that life
    Which God bestows on those sin truly grieves.

    If we are conscious of a firm resolve
    To follow Jesus as our constant guide;
    If, in prosperity or in distress,
    Our hearts cling closely to the Crucified;

    If we are not ashamed to have it known
    That in His service is our chief delight;
    Though we may never feel the ecstasy
    Which those attain who reach the mountain height;

    Yet, if the hour of secret prayer be sweet,
    When we hold converse with the Friend Divine,
    And dear the time when with His "own" we meet,
    For us the promise stands, "They shall be Mine."
  • 2016-04-27 - 2017-04-26 All day

    Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus--Phil. 2: 5.

    To have the mind of Christ is indeed the one requirement of lawful striving—a mind which humbly and faithfully submits itself to the will of God as expressed in His great Plan of the Ages, and which devotes all energy to the accomplishment of His will, because of an intelligent appreciation of the ends He has in view. If so filled with the same mind that was in Christ Jesus, we, like Him, will desire to be as free as possible from entangling earthly affairs, and to have our time as free as possible for the Lord's service, and then to devote all energy, ability and effort to that service—Z '02, 265 (R 3069).

    The mind that was in Christ Jesus disposed Him to self-emptying of His prehuman nature and to self-sacrifice, even to the ignominious death of the cross, that He might glorify God. Such a disposition is surely the fitting attitude of everyone who loves God supremely. As supreme love for self leads to self-exaltation, so supreme love for God leads to self-humiliation, that He may be exalted; and as truly as one abases Himself under God's mighty hand, so truly will the Lord exalt him in due time—P '33, 64.

    Parallel passages: Isa. 53:1-12; Matt. 11: 29; 20: 26, 27; 23: 12; John 13: 14, 15; Rom. 15: 3; 2 Cor. 8: 9; Phil. 2: 7, 8; 1 Pet. 2: 21; Phil. 3: 7-9; Heb. 13: 13; Prov. 3: 34; 15: 33; 25: 6, 7; Isa. 57: 15; 66: 2; Jer. 45: 5; Luke 22: 24-27; Jas. 4: 6, 10; 1 Pet. 5: 3, 5, 6.

    Hymns: 322, 167, 168, 144, 4, 134, 229.
    Poems of Dawn, 82: Just to Let Thy Father Do What He Will.
    Tower Reading: Z '11, 440 (R 4928).

    Questions: Have I this week abased myself for the Lord's sake? How? Under what circumstances? With what results?

     

     
    JUST TO LET THY FATHER DO WHAT HE WILL

    JUST to let Thy Father do what He will;
    Just to know that He is true, and be still.
    Just to follow, hour by hour, as He leadeth;
    Just to draw the moment's power, as it needeth.
    Just to trust Him, this is all. Then the day will
    surely be
    Peaceful, whatso'er befall, bright and blessed, calm
    and free.

    Just to let Him speak to thee, through His Word,
    Watching, that His voice may be clearly heard.
    Just to tell Him everything, as it rises,
    And at once to bring to Him all surprises.
    Just to listen, and to stay where you cannot miss His
    voice,
    This is all! and thus today, you, communing, shall
    rejoice.

    Just to trust, and yet to ask guidance still;
    Take the training or the task, as He will.
    Just to take the loss or gain, as He sends it;
    Just to take the joy or pain as He lends it.
    He who formed thee for His praise will not miss the
    gracious aim;
    So today, and all thy days, shall be moulded for
    the same.

    Just to leave in His dear hand little things;
    All we cannot understand, all the stings.
    Just to let Him take the care sorely pressing;
    Finding all we let Him bear changed to blessing.
    This is all! and yet the way marked by Him who
    loves thee best:
    Secret of a happy day, secret of His promised rest.
  • 2016-04-28 - 2017-04-27 All day

    We glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope; and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given unto us--Rom. 5: 3-5.

    We have need of patience, and that can only be gained by trials. We have need of faith, and that can only be developed by necessities. We have need of experience for our future work, which can be gained only by such experiences as permit us to be touched with a feeling of the infirmities and difficulties and trials of those about us, to whom we shall be ministers and representatives in God's Kingdom. For us, then, the lesson of present experiences is to resist evil, and not with evil, but with good—Z '03, 348 (R 3228).

    In themselves tribulations are not to be gloried in, but we may glory in them, when they work in us patience; and such perseverance in well-doing is rewarded by God's approval, which, when realized, fills the heart with hope for ultimate victory. Nor is this hope vain, because God delights in giving this victory to those whose hearts are filled with Divine love, a love that is the choice fruit of the holy Spirit given us by God in Christ Jesus—P '27, 55.

    Parallel passages: Matt. 5: 11; 1 Pet. 3: 12-14; 2 Cor. 4: 16-18; 7: 4; Heb. 12: 5-13; Jas. 1: 2-4, 12; Phil. 1: 20; 2 Tim. 1: 12; 2 Cor. 1: 22; Gal. 4: 6; Eph. 1: 13, 14.

    Hymns: 300, 305, 263, 92, 201, 166, 90.
    Poems of Dawn, 203: Our Blessed Hope.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 291 (R 5544).

    Questions: What were this week's experiences along the line of this text? How did I receive them? What did they accomplish for me?

     

     
    OUR BLESSED HOPE

    WHAT though this earthly house of clay
    Sink into ruin and decay,
    Though health and vigor pass away,
    Christ is my life.

    What though fond dreams of youth be fled,
    The light that shone upon my head
    Extinguished and forever dead,
    Christ is my light.

    What though bright hopes now withered lie,
    Like autumn leaves, all sere and dry,
    Or meteors vanished from the sky,
    Christ is my hope.

    What though rude billows round me roll,
    His voice the tempest can control;
    They ruffle not my tranquil soul,
    Christ is my peace.

    What though dear friends I once caressed
    Within the silent grave now rest,
    The valley clods above them pressed,
    Christ ever lives.

    What though perplexing paths appear,
    God's Word, a lamp, makes all things clear;
    Onward I pass, nor evil fear,
    Christ is my way.

    What though the darkness deeper grows,
    And foes more active to oppose,
    God's truth provides a sweet repose,
    Christ shall appear.
  • 2016-04-29 - 2017-04-28 All day

    He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him--Psa. 91: 15.

    It is always our blessed privilege to carry our sorrows and vexations to the Lord,
    For He knows
    How to steal the bitter from life's woes.
    He does it by showing us, through experience, the vanity of all earthly things and their utter inability to satisfy the soul's cravings, or to comfort the wounded spirit. Then comes the thought that however vexing our experiences, they will soon be over; and if we permit them to do so, they will only work out in us the peaceable fruits of righteousness, and develop in us strong and noble characters, disciplined to thorough self-control, thoughtful consideration, patient endurance of affliction and loving loyalty and faithfulness and trust in God—Z '96, 31 (R 1937).

    It is the privilege of Christians to pray to God through Christ, to thus have access to God in prayer at any time; and to them is given the assurance of a gracious answer. God also is with them in all afflictions with His sympathy, love and help. His deliverance out of the trouble is sure, when the latter has accomplished its purpose. Amid the trouble He is their support, and the highest honors possible of attainment for such He has in reservation for them in His glorious Kingdom—P '20, 71.

    Parallel passages: Job 14: 14, 15; Psa. 27: 8; 50: 15; 145: 18; Matt. 6: 6; 7: 7, 8; John 16: 23-26; Dan. 12: 1-3; Psa. 21: 2, 4; 107: 6, 7; 2 Tim. 4: 8, 18; Rev. 2: 7, 10, 17, 26, 27; 3: 4, 5, 12, 21.

    Hymns: 19, 35, 41, 72, 120, 204, 310.
    Poems of Dawn, 30: To Jesus Always.
    Tower Reading: Z '15, 264 (R 5757).

    Questions: What have been this week's experiences in reference to this text? How have its assurances affected me?

     

     
    TO JESUS ALWAYS

    I ALWAYS go to Jesus,
    When troubled or distressed;
    I always find a refuge
    When I with Him can rest.
    I tell Him all my trials,
    I tell Him all my grief;
    And while my lips are speaking
    He gives my heart relief.

    When full of dread forebodings,
    And flowing o'er with tears,
    He calms away my sorrows,
    And hushes all my fears.
    He comprehends my weakness,
    The peril I am in,
    And He supplies the armor
    I need to vanquish sin.

    When those are cold and faithless,
    Who once were fond and true,
    With careless hearts forsaking
    The old friends for the new,
    I turn to Him whose friendship
    Knows neither change nor end:
    I always find in Jesus
    An ever faithful Friend.

    I always go to Jesus;
    No matter when or where
    I seek His gracious presence,
    I'm sure to find Him there.
    In times of joy or sorrow,
    Whate'er my need may be,
    I always go to Jesus,
    And Jesus comforts me.
  • 2016-04-30 - 2017-04-29 All day

    Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light--1 Pet. 2: 9.

    The very object of our being called into this light is that we may let it shine. If we do not let it shine we are unworthy of it, and the treasure will be taken away and we shall be left in darkness. If indeed we have received the light and have consecrated ourselves fully to God, let us ask ourselves, What am I doing to show forth the praises of Him who has called me out of darkness? Am I going forth with these tidings to my neighbors near and far?
    Can I truly affirm that I am:
    All for Jesus, all for Jesus--
    All my being's ransomed powers;
    All my thoughts, and words, and doings,
    All my days and all my hours?
    —Z '03, 165 (R 3199).

    God's people are selected from the rest of mankind to become sharers in His Kingdom, a people separate from others and dedicated to the Lord, a possession entirely the Lord's. To such a destiny, to such a high privilege are they called, that they might reflect credit upon God by proclaiming in words and acts, His wisdom, justice, love and power. This being our calling, let us hold up His attributes before others by our teachings and example—P '36, 48.

    Parallel passages: Ex. 19: 5, 6; Deut. 7: 6; 10: 15; Dan. 7: 18, 22, 27; Isa. 61: 6; 66: 21; Zech. 6: 12, 13; 1 Pet. 1: 2; 2: 5; Eph. 1: 4, 5; Matt. 5: 16; John 15: 8; Titus 2: 14; Acts 20: 28; Rom. 8: 23-25; Rev. 1: 6; 5: 10; 20: 6; John 17: 9.

    Hymns: 225, 41, 322, 153, 216, 310, 6.
    Poems of Dawn, 38: Lord, Here I Bring Myself.
    Tower Reading: Z '14, 151 (R 5460).

    Questions: How did this week's text affect me? In what circumstances? With what result?

     

     
    LORD, HERE I BRING MYSELF

    LORD, here I bring myself,
    'Tis all I have to give,
    My heart's desire is wholly this,
    Henceforth for Thee to live;

    To own no will but Thine,
    To suffer loss or shame,
    All things to bear, if only I
    May glorify Thy name;

    Henceforth mine every power
    Each day for thee to use,
    My hands, my feet, my lips, mine all,
    As Thou, my Lord, shalt choose.

    Dear Lord, my constant prayer
    Is for increase of grace,
    That I by faith may walk with Thee,
    Till I behold Thy face.

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