From Spurgeon: “Our root is Christ Jesus, and our life is hidden in Him; this is the secret of the Lord. The source of the Christian life is as secret as the life itself. How permanently active is the water in the cedar! In the Christian the divine life is always full of energy–not always in fruit-bearing, but in inward operations. The believer’s graces are not always in constant motion, but his life never ceases to palpitate within. He is not always working for God, but his heart is always living in Him. As the water reveals itself in producing the foliage and fruit of the tree, so with a truly healthy Christian, his grace is externally displayed in his walk and conversation.”

“…but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers” Psalm 1:2-3.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:3-7.

I read this passage this morning and shook my head at the wonder of it. It’s too vast, too wonderful for me to fully grasp. God has found it necessary that for this little while we have been grieved by various trials. But in this rejoice, that according to his great mercy he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus; we have an inheritance in heaven; and we are being guarded through faith for salvation. May my faith be proven genuine, to the praise and glory of Jesus.

There are times when solitude is better than company, and silence is wiser than speech. We would be better Christians if we were alone more often, waiting on God and gathering through meditation on His Word spiritual strength for service in His kingdom. We ought to ponder the things of God, because that is how we get the real nutriment out of them. –Charles Spurgeon

“Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition.” —Jeremiah Burroughs

My devotional reading this week is in Hebrews. It’s been very enouraging, because life seems to be a deliberate putting of one foot in front of the other to move foreward. It’s not a smooth or easy gait; it takes thought and prayer and courage. It takes hope.

I read from the ESV Reformation Study Bible, and in reading Hebrews 6 today, there is a boxed-in commentary on the subject of hope. I will quote the whole thing, because it’s good.

Christians look forward with hope to the joy of being wih Christ in glory forever. Faith is defined as “the assurance of things hoped for” (Heb. 11:1) because the invisible things hoped for in the future are grasped through faith. Hope is certain; it is “a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul” (Heb. 6:18,19). According to the Bible, Christ is “our hope” (1 Tim 1:1), and our God is called “the God of hope” (Rom. 15:13).

An ethic of hope pervades the New Testament. It is an ethic of pilgrimage for strangers on their way home (Heb. 11:13; 1 Pet. 2:11). It is an ethic of purity, as the one who hopes to be like Jesus when He appears “purifies himself as he is pure” (1 John 3:3). It is an ethic of preparedness, since we should be ready to leave this world at any time (2 Cor. 5:6-8; Phil. 1:21-24; cf. Luke 12:15-21). Hope calls us to be patient (Rom. 8:25; cf. 5:1-5.). Hope gives strength and confidence for running the race, fighting the good fight, and enduring the tribulations that continue in this life (John 16:33; Acts 14:22; Rom. 8:18; 2 Tim. 4:7-8).

Though the Christian life is marked more by suffering than by triumph (Acts 14:22; 1 Cor. 4:7-18), our hope is sure and our mood should be free from despair (1 John 4:18).

I definitely like triumph more than suffering, The ongoing, unchanging, circumstances of suffering wear me out if I start to drift away from a vibrant, lively hope in Christ. It takes paying constant attention to the truths of the Bible. Meditating on them, singing them, speaking them all keep them in the front of my mind and help them to sink deep into my heart. Christ is my hope, and he has provided all that I need to be and do as he is.

“Heaven is not here, it’s There. If we were given all we wanted here, our hearts would settle for this world rather than the next. God is forever luring us up and away from this one, wooing us to Himself and His still invisible kingdom, where we will certainly find what we so keenly long for.”

—Elisabeth Elliot in Keep a Quiet Heart