Morning “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” / 1 Peter 5:7

It is a happy way of soothing sorrow when we can feel–“HE careth for me.”

Christian! do not dishonour religion by always wearing a brow of care; come,

cast your burden upon your Lord. You are staggering beneath a weight which

your Father would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to

him but as the small dust of the balance. Nothing is so sweet as to

“Lie passive in God’s hands,

And know no will but his.”

O child of suffering, be thou patient; God has not passed thee over in his

providence. He who is the feeder of sparrows, will also furnish you with what

you need. Sit not down in despair; hope on, hope ever. Take up the arms of

faith against a sea of trouble, and your opposition shall yet end your

distresses. There is One who careth for you. His eye is fixed on you, his

heart beats with pity for your woe, and his hand omnipotent shall yet bring

you the needed help. The darkest cloud shall scatter itself in showers of

mercy. The blackest gloom shall give place to the morning. He, if thou art one

of his family, will bind up thy wounds, and heal thy broken heart. Doubt not

his grace because of thy tribulation, but believe that he loveth thee as much

in seasons of trouble as in times of happiness. What a serene and quiet life

might you lead if you would leave providing to the God of providence! With a

little oil in the cruse, and a handful of meal in the barrel, Elijah outlived

the famine, and you will do the same. If God cares for you, why need you care

too? Can you trust him for your soul, and not for your body? He has never

refused to bear your burdens, he has never fainted under their weight. Come,

then, soul! have done with fretful care, and leave all thy concerns in the

hand of a gracious God.

 

Evening  “Now the hand of the Lord was upon me in the evening.” / Ezekiel 33:22

In the way of judgment this may be the case, and, if so, be it mine to

consider the reason of such a visitation, and bear the rod and him that hath

appointed it. I am not the only one who is chastened in the night season; let

me cheerfully submit to the affliction, and carefully endeavour to be profited

thereby. But the hand of the Lord may also be felt in another manner,

strengthening the soul and lifting the spirit upward towards eternal things. O

that I may in this sense feel the Lord dealing with me! A sense of the divine

presence and indwelling bears the soul towards heaven as upon the wings of

eagles. At such times we are full to the brim with spiritual joy, and forget

the cares and sorrows of earth; the invisible is near, and the visible loses

its power over us; servant-body waits at the foot of the hill, and the

master-spirit worships upon the summit in the presence of the Lord. O that a

hallowed season of divine communion may be vouchsafed to me this evening! The

Lord knows that I need it very greatly. My graces languish, my corruptions

rage, my faith is weak, my devotion is cold; all these are reasons why his

healing hand should be laid upon me. His hand can cool the heat of my burning

brow, and stay the tumult of my palpitating heart. That glorious right hand

which moulded the world can new-create my mind; the unwearied hand which bears

the earth’s huge pillars up can sustain my spirit; the loving hand which

incloses all the saints can cherish me; and the mighty hand which breaketh in

pieces the enemy can subdue my sins. Why should I not feel that hand touching

me this evening? Come, my soul, address thy God with the potent plea, that

Jesus’ hands were pierced for thy redemption, and thou shalt surely feel that

same hand upon thee which once touched Daniel and set him upon his knees that

he might see visions of God.