Fluttering Spirit

By Mrs. Charles E. Cowman


"And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings" (Ezek. 1:25).
That is the letting down of the wings? People so often say, "How do you get the voice of the Lord?" Here is the secret. They heard the voice when they stood and let down their wings.

We have seen a bird with fluttering wings; though standing still, its wings are fluttering. But here we are told they heard the voice when they stood and had let down their wings.

Do we not sometimes kneel or sit before the Lord and yet feel conscious of a fluttering of our spirits? Not a real stillness in His presence.

A dear one told me several days ago of a certain thing she prayed about, "But," said she, "I did not wait until the answer came."

She did not get still enough to hear Him speak, but went away and followed her own thought in the matter. And the result proved disastrous and she had to retrace her steps.

Oh, how much energy is wasted! How much time is lost by not letting down the wings of our spirit and getting very quiet before Him! Oh, the calm, the rest, the peace which come as we wait In His presence until we hear from Him!

Then, ah then, we can go like lightning, and turn not as we go but go straight forward whithersoever the Spirit goes. (Ezek. 1:1, 20)


"Be still! Just now be still!
Something thy soul hath never heard,
Something unknown to any song of bird,
Something unknown to any wind, or wave, or star,
A message from the Fatherland afar,
That with sweet joy the homesick soul shall thrill,
Cometh to thee if thou canst but be still.

"Be still! Just now be still!
There comes a presence very mild and sweet;
White are the sandals of His noiseless feet.
It is the Comforter whom Jesus sent
To teach thee what the words He uttered meant.
The willing, waiting spirit, He doth fill.
If thou would'st hear His message,
Dear soul, be still!"

Bring them hither to me

By A.B. Simpson


Why have you not received all the fullness of the Holy Spirit? Do you not long to be anointed with the rest of the oil? (Leviticus 14:17-18). Look around you at your situation. Are you not conscious of many needs at this very moment and almost overwhelmed with difficulties, trials and emergencies? 

These are all divinely provided vessels for the Holy Spirit's filling. If you would only understand their meaning, they will become opportunities for receiving new blessings and deliverances which you can obtain in no other way. 

Bring these vessels to God. Hold them steadily before Him in faith and prayer. Keep still. Cease your own restless working until He begins to work. Do nothing that He does not Himself command you to do. Give Him a chance to work, and He will surely do so. 

Then the very trials that threatened to overcome you with discouragement and disaster will become God's opportunity for the revelation of His grace and glory in your life, as you have never known Him before. Bring them [all needs] to me.

Wait! Your Wings Are Not Grown

By Mary Wilder Tileston


The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him.

LAMENTATIONS 3:25

BE patient till your wings are grown. I fear very much that you are too vehement and headlong in your wishes and attempts to fly. You see the beauty of spiritual light and good resolutions; you fancy that you have almost attained, and your ardor is redoubled; you rush forward, but in vain, for your Master has chained you to your perch, or else it is that your wings are not grown; and this constant excitement exhausts your strength. 

You must indeed strive to fly, but gently, without growing eager or restless. You resign yourself, but it is always with a BUT; you want this and that, and you struggle to get it. A simple wish is no hindrance to resignation; but a palpitating heart, a flapping of wings, an agitated will, and endless, quick, restless movements are unquestionably caused by deficient resignation. 

Do you know what you must do? You must be willing not to fly, since your wings are not yet grown. Do not be so eager with your vain desires, do not even be eager in avoiding eagerness; go on quietly in your path--it is a good path.

ST. FRANCIS DE SALES

Want to Run Away?

By Warren Wiersbe

Read Psalm 11:1-7 

Have you ever felt like running away? "In the Lord I put my trust; how can you say to my soul, 'Flee as a bird to your mountain'?" (v. 1). All of us have days when we feel like quitting. We throw up our hands and say, "That's it. I've had it, and I'm leaving."

At times we do need to get away to rest and regain our perspec-tive. Our Lord Jesus said to His disciples, "Let's just depart and rest a while." Vance Havner once remarked, "If you don't come apart and rest, you'll just come apart." But the psalmist was not talking about a vacation. "The wicked bend their bow" (v. 2). He was saying, "The wicked are doing this and that. Let's get out of here and go to some mountaintop and have a good Bible conference."

When you feel like running or flying away, remember, God's throne is secure. The Lord is in His holy temple. In a difficult time Isaiah looked up and saw the Lord on His throne, high and lifted up. In the Book of Revelation, John saw the Lord on His throne, and it gave him new courage.

Don't flee to a mountain; flee to the throne of grace. When you feel like quitting or running away, remember that you can't run away from your troubles and you can't run away from yourself. The solution is not running away; it's running to. It's running to the throne of grace and finding grace to help in time of need.

Those times when you feel like quitting can be times of great opportunity, for God uses your troubles to help you grow. When you feel like running away, claim your privilege as a child of God and approach the throne of grace. There you will find the personal and tailored help you need.

His Eye Is on the Sparrow

By Hymn Stories


"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." -Matthew 10:19-31

"How can I be discouraged when my heavenly Father watches over each little sparrow, and I know He loves and cares for me?"

These words, spoken by a godly invalid woman to Mrs. Civilla Martin, author of this text, were the inspiration that prompted the writing of this favorite gospel song. Recalled Mrs. Martin:

"I wrote the song 'His Eye Is on the Sparrow' in the company of a bedridden saint in the city of Elmira, New York. I was reading and singing to her and during our conversation, I chanced to ask her if she did not sometimes get discouraged. This is when she responded about God's care for the sparrow. Her answer prompted me to find paper and pencil, and in a very short time I had completed the poem."

Mrs. Martin was the wife of an evangelist/teacher/pastor, Dr. Walter S. Martin. She wrote the "sparrow song" in 1904, along with another well-known favorite, "God Will Take Care of You," which she did in collaboration with her husband. Both of these gospel songs have enjoyed world-wide acceptance since that time.

The poem was sent to Charles Gabriel, one of the most prolific gospel song composers during the early twentieth century. Gabriel not only furnished the music for this text as well as a number of others, but he also wrote both words and music for many of his own songs, often using the pseudonym Charlotte G. Homer. Some of the Charles Gabriel songs still widely sung today include: "O That Will Be Glory," "He Lifted Me," "My Savior's Love," and "Send the Light."

It is interesting that our Lord chose the least valuable of all birds, the sparrow, to teach a profound truth. In God's eyes, no one is insignificant! He is vitally concerned with even the details of our lives; "The very hairs of your head are all numbered." The Bible also uses another bird to teach this inspiring truth: "Those who hope in the LORD ... will soar on wings like eagles" (Isa. 40:31). With an awareness of God's concern for our lives and the promise of His enabling power to five victoriously, "Why should I feel discouraged?"

Make the truth of this Scripture passage your life's directive:

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines ... yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior." - Habakkuk 3:17-18

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Desperate Days

By Mrs. Charles E. Cowman


"But 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).

The faith for desperate days.

The Bible is full of such days. Its record is made up of them, its songs are inspired by them, its prophecy is concerned with them, and its revelation has come through them.

The desperate days are the stepping-stones in the path of light. They seem to have been God's opportunity and man's school of wisdom.

There is a story of an Old Testament love feast in Psalm 107, and in every story of deliverance the point of desperation gave God His chance. The "wit's end" of desperation was the beginning of God's power. Recall the promise of seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sands of the sea, to a couple as good as dead. Read again the story of the Red Sea and its deliverance, and of Jordan with its ark standing mid-stream. Study once more the prayers of Asa, Jehoshaphat, and Hezekiah, when they were sore pressed and knew not what to do. Go over the history of Nehemiah, Daniel, Hosea, and Habakkuk. Stand with awe in the darkness of Gethsemane, and linger by the grave in Joseph's garden through those terrible days. Call the witnesses of the early Church, and ask the apostles the story of their desperate days.

Desperation is better than despair.

Faith did not make our desperate days. Its work is to sustain and solve them. The only alternative to a desperate faith is despair, and faith holds on and prevails.

There is no more heroic example of desperate faith than that of the three Hebrew children. The situation was desperate, but they answered bravely, "Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning, fiery furnace; and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up." I like that, "but if not !"

I have only space to mention Gethsemane. Ponder deeply its "Nevertheless." "If it is possible...nevertheless!" Deep darkness had settled upon the soul of our Lord. Trust meant anguish unto blood and darkness to the descent of hell--Nevertheless! Nevertheless!!

Now get your hymn book and sing your favorite hymn of desperate faith. --Rev. S. Chadwick

"When obstacles and trials seem
Like prison walls to be,
I do the little I can do
And leave the rest to Thee.

"And when there seems no chance, no change,
From grief can set me free,
Hope finds its strength in helplessness,
And calmly waits for Thee."

The Loss of the Fear of God

By Henry Blackaby


Holiness is God's plan for our "fullness of life." In fact, God is our fullness of life! He is holy and He wants to be actively present in our lives both personally and corporately. He has created us for an intimate and personal love relationship with Himself. Jesus said, "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent" (John 17:3). So, we come to know God in all His holiness when we experience the love relationship for which we were created.

But sin has so affected the people of God in America today that we neither see the need for holiness nor do we desire it. Our hearts have turned away from God and we've lost the fear of Him and His judgment. And as we turn from God, we choose to disobey God and we replace Him, His purposes, and His ways with something of the world. We substitute work, recreation, relationships with people, and a love of worldly things for our love relationship with God.

Of course, this is not new as God's people have always had the tendency to depart from Him. The Bible is filled with examples of people who turned, lived in disobedience, and chose substitutes for God. God knew His people would shift and so He warned them: "...if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them, I announce to you today that you shall surely perish..." (Deut. 30:17).

In love God wants us to choose life and prosperity, not death and destruction. His command is that we love Him with all our heart, obey Him fully, and release our life to Him so that He can take up residence in us and express Himself through us to a watching world. But if we fail to heed God's warning and continue in sin then His judgment is certain. According to the Scriptures, there are never alternatives to these two actions. We either repent or we perish. In repentance our right relationship with God is restored. Without it, we experience God's judgment.

History reveals how severe that judgment can be. When God judged Israel, the Northern Kingdom, He annihilated them. Likewise, His judgment on Judah, the Southern Kingdom, was very thorough. He destroyed both Jerusalem and the temple and kept them in bondage for seventy years. And in Jesus day, He dealt with His people so completely that they remained scattered for nineteen hundred years.

While the history of God's judgment should cause any of us to tremble, it is the loss of the fear of God that characterizes the people of God in America today. We no longer believe that God disciplines and judges His people. We have become complacent, and we feel that we have no need to tremble. It sounds strange to this generation of believers because we only see God as our friend!

But hear the grieving heart of God: "Will you not tremble at My presence..." (Jer. 5:22)? And the Scriptures tell us that He looks upon those who tremble at His word (Isa. 66:2). So why does God expect us to tremble? Holiness! When we're truly in God's presence and we experience His holiness our sin is radically exposed!

Isaiah experienced the holiness of God. And when he suddenly found himself in the presence of God Isaiah trembled in the fear of God and cried out:

Woe is me, for I am undone!
Because I am a man of unclean lips,
And I dwell in the midst
of a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King,
The Lord of hosts (Isa. 6:5).

The whole of Isaiah's life was quickly reoriented out of a self-centeredness into an immediate God-centeredness! And he then realized that there was much in his life, and the people he associated with, that was full of sin.

Then, after God cleansed Isaiah of his sin, he had an ear to hear God asking for someone to give everything they had for what was on the heart of God. And He heard God saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" And Isaiah responded, "Here am I! Send me" (Isa. 6:8). Thus, out of an encounter with holy God Isaiah entered in the fullness of life that God had prepared him for. the heart of God. And He heard God saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" And Isaiah responded, "Here am I! Send me" (Isa. 6:8). Thus, out of an encounter with holy God Isaiah entered in the fullness of life that God had prepared him for.

The Ministry Of The Unnoticed

By Oswald Chambers


'Blessed are the poor in spirit.'
Matthew 5:3

The New Testament notices things which from our standards do not seem to count. "Blessed are the poor in spirit," literally - Blessed are the paupers - an exceedingly commonplace thing! The preaching of to-day is apt to emphasize strength of will, beauty of character - the things that are easily noticed. The phrase we bear so often, Decide for Christ, is an emphasis on something Our Lord never trusted. He never asks us to decide for Him, but to yield to Him - a very different thing. At the basis of Jesus Christ's Kingdom is the unaffected loveliness of the commonplace. The thing I am blessed in is my poverty. If I know I have no strength of will, no nobility of disposition, then Jesus says - Blessed are you, because it is through this poverty that I enter His Kingdom. I cannot enter His Kingdom as a good man or woman, I can only enter it as a complete pauper.

The true character of the loveliness that tells for God is always unconscious. Conscious influence is priggish and un-Christian. If I say - I wonder if I am of any use - I instantly lose the bloom of the touch of the Lord. "He that believeth in me, out of him shall flow rivers of living water." If I examine the outflow, I lose the touch of the Lord.

Which are the people who have influenced us most? Not the ones who thought they did, but those who had not the remotest notion that they were influencing us. In the Christian life the implicit is never conscious, if it is conscious it ceases to have this unaffected loveliness which is the characteristic of the touch of Jesus. We always know when Jesus is at work because He produces in the commonplace something that is inspiring.