Morning, August 31
“On mine arm shall they trust." —Isaiah 51:5
Spurgeon: Morning and Evening
In seasons of severe trial, the Christian has nothing on earth that he can trust to, and is therefore compelled to cast himself on his God alone. When his vessel is on its beam-ends, and no human deliverance can avail, he must simply and entirely trust himself to the providence and care of God. Happy storm that wrecks a man on such a rock as this! O blessed hurricane that drives the soul to God and God alone! There is no getting at our God sometimes because of the multitude of our friends; but when a man is so poor, so friendless, so helpless that he has nowhere else to turn, he flies into his Father’s arms, and is blessedly clasped therein! When he is burdened with troubles so pressing and so peculiar, that he cannot tell them to any but his God, he may be thankful for them; for he will learn more of his Lord then than at any other time. Oh, tempest-tossed believer, it is a happy trouble that drives thee to thy Father! Now that thou hast only thy God to trust to, see that thou puttest thy full confidence in him. Dishonour not thy Lord and Master by unworthy doubts and fears; but be strong in faith, giving glory to God. Show the world that thy God is worth ten thousand worlds to thee. Show rich men how rich thou art in thy poverty when the Lord God is thy helper. Show the strong man how strong thou art in thy weakness when underneath thee are the everlasting arms. Now is the time for feats of faith and valiant exploits. Be strong and very courageous, and the Lord thy God shall certainly, as surely as he built the heavens and the earth, glorify himself in thy weakness, and magnify his might in the midst of thy distress. The grandeur of the arch of heaven would be spoiled if the sky were supported by a single visible column, and your faith would lose its glory if it rested on anything discernible by the carnal eye. May the Holy Spirit give you to rest in Jesus this closing day of the month.
Spurgeon, C. H. (1896). Morning and evening: Daily readings. Passmore & Alabaster.
Reflection
By God's grace, I was led this morning through my old Logos dashboard to the evening and morning or the morning and reading daily readings from Charles Spurgeon. And today, August 31, the morning reading is
Isaiah 51:5
"on mine arm, shall they trust.
And it's a short few words, but Spurgeon writes quite a bit about it. And there's many quotes from this short morning reflection that are very relevant to me in light of my work situation. One of the things there I've been processing the most is the powerlessness I feel in regards to corporate policy and the control that my employer wants to exercise over my life. But the other side of that coin of control is me and me placing my trust in my employer to provide security for me. And God has been very good to me and still has given me security outside of my primary job. But I did trust that job. And it's in the wake of losing it. I'm not even stretched that thin in losing my job. But in the stretching that is taking place, Spurgeon says some things about God that I should impress into my heart.
Oh, blessed hurricane that drives the soul to God and God alone.
Should we not consider trials - Joy? I'm sure not acting that joyful. But God has been very sweet to me through these reflections, through drawing my eye and soul to him through the lens of trust.
There is no getting at our God sometimes because of the multitude of our friends. But when a man is so poor, so friendless, so helpless that he has nowhere else to turn, he flies into his father's arms and is blessedly clasped therein.
Spurgeon clearly isn't saying we can't have friends here. I think what he is saying is "the multitude of our {idols}", really. Like Job's friends, maybe, the ones who keep our attention on work and the world and money and my 401k and the future. Those things are my "friends" because those things give me security. And maybe I have trusted too much, and now God is drawing me closer to him. And may I say, blessed be the name of the Lord who gives and takes away. O blessed hurricane that drives the soul to God and God alone. Amen.