To be near unto God - pagina 48

The midnight watch has something of Sabbath stillness about it, which is inaugurated by the evening reading of God's Word, and by the evening prayer, when on bended knees the soul was poured out before God. At length we are

And now

the cares and anxieties of either be resolutely put aside or we must enter upon such close fellowship with God that he carries them for us. All this, however, is not entirely in our own hands. It is not enough that we think of God and make our approach to him. Communion

at rest. the day

must

proceeds from both sides. Unless God draws near to us, we can have no close fellowship with him. To think: God is ever ready to wait on me, it merely depends upon me whether or not I will meet him, does not indicate sufficient humility or sense of dependence. Thinking of God is not fellowship with God. True fellowship is far more devout and far more intimately personal. And as often as we have true fellowship with God, it is a grace and a benefit for which we owe him thanks. It is not that we are so good and so devout as to lift up our heart unto God. But it is rather Divine Compassion that condescends to us to bless us and to make us rich with the experience of his presence. If before sleep the latest feeling is one of delight in the tenderness of the Lord, and if the first conscious thought on waking in the morning of itself goes out after God, the gain This makes us to be accustomed is very great. to God, and prepares us for the night of the grave, when there shall be no more interruption in our fellowship with him. 40

Deze tekst is geautomatiseerd gemaakt en kan nog fouten bevatten. Digibron werkt voortdurend aan correctie. Klik voor het origineel door naar de pdf. Voor opmerkingen, vragen, informatie: contact.

Op Digibron -en alle daarin opgenomen content- is het databankrecht van toepassing. Gebruiksvoorwaarden. Data protection law applies to Digibron and the content of this database. Terms of use.

Printen