...a parable Jesus tells his disciples "to show them that they should always pray and not give up" (Luke 18:1)...."However when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8) The real problem is not with God's unwillingness to answer, but with our faithless and lethargic refusal to ask.[DA Carson, For the Love of God, meditation on Luke 18]
There are many ways of promoting Christian wakefulness. Let me strongly advise Christians to converse together concerning the ways of the Lord. Christians who isolate themselves and walk alone are very liable to grow drowsy. Keep Christian company and you will be kept wakeful by it and refreshed and encouraged to make quicker progress in the road to heaven....let the eye of faith be constantly on Him. Let your heart be full of Him. Let your lips speak of His worth. Friend, live near the cross and you will not sleep.[CS Spurgeon, Morning & Evening, meditation on 1 Thess 5:6]
Hers were not just a belief in a distant intellectual truth; her beliefswere part of her life. She gave her practical, everyday lilfe a lot of thought. This way her routine included the spaces needed to practice the presence of God - time to read His Word, to ponder it, and pray. She set aside her very best hour of teh day for "Bible reading and earnest prayer." She chose the time when she said "I feel quite fresh," so that she could give the Gospel "that full gaze of the mind we call attention.[Susan Schaeffer Macauley referring to Charlotte Mason in For the Family's Sake]
Thursday, March 06, 2008
quotes
Since I have not had much time to write any new posts....here are a few quotes from things I have been reading lately....(the bold parts are my emphasis)
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1 comment:
Bethany, those are fantastic and timely quotes! Thank you! I love Spurgeon, and am all for "[us] Christians... convers[ing] together concerning [in] the ways of the Lord" and avoiding isolation through our blogs, face to face, on the phone or in any other manner we can use. Let's do that on a regular basis, Bethany! Conversing with our God is also so very important, as your quotes from DA Carson remind us. And finally, Susan Schaeffer's encouragement to pursue Biblical meditation is so very important and right up my alley. Merely reading the Bible isn't enough if we are to be more conformed into the image of Christ.
Bethany, please continue to share helpful quotes and your thoughts with us. We need that, and one another.
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