Quotes on Heaven

By Jennifer R.

Since we are Thinking Heavenward this semester, our new Quotable Quotes bulletin board is sporting a new set of quotes on the topic of "heaven." Below are the quotes that are on the board this month.

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I had rather be in hell with Christ, than be in heaven without Him. ~ Martin Luther

If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. ~ CS Lewis

Without holiness on earth we shall never be prepared to enjoy heaven. Heaven is a holy place. The Lord of heaven is a holy Being. The angels are holy creatures. Holiness is written on everything in heaven… How shall we ever be at home and happy in heaven if we die unholy? ~ JC Ryle

One should go to sleep as homesick passengers do, saying, “Perhaps in the morning we shall see the shore.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

This earthly body is slow and heavy in all its motions, listless and soon tired with action. But our heavenly bodies shall be as fire; as active and as nimble as our thoughts are. ~ John Wesley

Many Christians dread the thought of leaving this world. Why? Because so many have stored up their treasures on earth, not in heaven. Each day brings us closer to death. If your treasures are on earth, that means each day brings you closer to losing your treasures. ~ Randy Alcorn

Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal. ~ Thomas Moore

If you are a Christian, you are not a citizen of this world trying to get to heaven; you are a citizen of heaven making your way through this world. ~ Vance Havner

Eternity to the godly is a day that has no sunset; eternity to the wicked is a night that has no sunrise. ~ Thomas Watson

The brightest crowns that are worn in heaven have been tried, and smelted, and polished, and glorified through the furnace of tribulation. ~ Edwin H. Chapin

Some day you will read in the papers that D.L. Moody, of East Northfield, is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it. At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now. I shall have gone up higher, that is all; out of this old clay tenement into a house that is immortal, a body that death cannot touch. ~ Dwight L. Moody

I am still in the land of the dying; I shall be in the land of the living soon. ~ John Newton (his last words)

God conceals from men the happiness of death that they may endure life. ~ Anonymous

Because the church doesn't really have heaven on its mind, it tends to be self-indulgent, self-centered, weak, and materialistic. Our present comforts consume too much of our thoughts, and if we're not careful, we inevitably end up inventing wrong fantasies about heaven - or thinking very little of heaven at all. ~ John MacArthur

We don't seek to escape this life by dreaming of heaven. But we do find we can endure this life because of the certainty of heaven. Heaven is eternal. Earth is temporal. Those who fix all their affections of the fleeting things of this world are the real escapists, because they are vainly attempting to avoid facing eternity - by hiding in the fleeting shadows of things that are only transient. ~ John MacArthur

I can safely say, on the authority of all that is revealed in the Word of God, that any man or woman on this earth who is bored and turned off by worship is not ready for heaven. ~ A.W. Tozer

Shall heaven be filled with praises for what was done on earth, and shall there be no praises on earth where it was done? ~ Jonathan Edwards

Our spiritual manhood in heaven will discard many things which we now count precious, as a full-grown man discards the treasures of his childhood. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

There cannot be heaven without Christ. He is the sum total of bliss; the fountain from which heaven flows, the element of which heaven is composed. Christ is heaven and heaven is Christ. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

Do you not think that Abel must have felt very strange when he went to heaven? How startled the angels must have been when they saw the first soul redeemed by blood in glory alone! Methinks they must have hushed their songs awhile to ask all about him. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

Such is the happiness we are looking forward to—the day-break; that we shall serve God day and night in his temple without any weariness, that we shall serve him without any sin, that we shall adore him without any wandering thoughts, that we shall be dedicated to him without anything that can stir the jealousy of his holy mind. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

I do not know that in heaven they know all things—that must be for the Omniscient only—but they know all they need or really want to know; they are satisfied there. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

The rougher the voyage the more the mariners long for port, and heaven becomes more and more “a desired haven,” as our trials multiply. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

My horse invariably comes home in less time than he makes the journey out. He pulls the carriage with a hearty good will when his face is towards home. Should not I also both suffer and labour the more joyously because my way lies towards heaven, and I am on pilgrimage to my Father’s house, my soul’s dear home and resting place? ~ C.H. Spurgeon

Ah, dear hearer! heaven is a prepared place for prepared people. If you do not learn heaven’s language on earth you cannot learn it in the world to come. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

As you come nearer heaven ought you not to be more heavenly? ~ C.H. Spurgeon

Quotes on Struggles

By Jennifer R.

Our new Quotable Quotes bulletin board is sporting a new set of quotes on the topic of "struggles.' Below are the quotes that are on the board this month.

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Press forward. Do not stop, do not linger in your journey, but strive for the mark set before you. ~ George Whitefield

What then are we to do about our problems? We must learn to live with them until such time as God delivers us from them. We must pray for grace to endure them without murmuring. Problems patiently endured will work for our spiritual perfecting. They harm us only when we resist them or endure them unwillingly. ~ A.W. Tozer

Though there is nothing more dangerous, yet there is nothing more ordinary, than for weak saints to make their sense and feeling the judge of their condition. We must strive to walk by faith. ~ Thomas Brooks

I would go to the deeps a hundred times to cheer a downcast spirit. It is good for me to have been afflicted, that I might know how to speak a word in season to one that is weary. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

Our first problem is that our attitude towards sin is more self-centered than God-centered. We are more concerned about our own “Victory” over sin than we are about the fact that our sin grieves the heart of God. We cannot tolerate failure in our struggle with sin chiefly because we are success oriented, not because we know it is offensive to God. ~  Jerry Bridges

No words can express how much the world owes to sorrow. Most of the Psalms were born in the wilderness. Most of the Epistles were written in a prison. The greatest thoughts of the greatest thinkers have all passed through fire. The greatest poets have “learned in suffering what they taught in song.” In bonds Bunyan lived the allegory that he afterwards wrote, and we may thank Bedford Jail for the Pilgrim’s Progress. Take comfort, afflicted Christian! When God is about to make pre-eminent use of a person, He put them in the fire. ~ George MacDonald

If thou dost not stumble at this stone, the devil hath another at hand to throw in the way. He is not so unskillful a fowler as to go with one single shot into the field; and therefore expect him, as soon as he hath discharged one, and missed thee, to let fly at thee with a second. ~ William Gurnall

Afflictions are not to punish, but to purify the believing soul. They are not in wrath, but in mercy. Amidst the distresses and miseries of life – it is a felicity to belong to Christ, without whose permission and appointment, no evil can befall us! He always sends afflictions for our good; and knows by experience, what it is to suffer them. His kind hand will speedily put an end to all the pains we feel when we have derived from them all the good which He intends to do for us, by them. ~ John Fawcett

Your afflictions may only prove that you are more immediately under the Father’s hand. There is no time that the patient is such an object of tender interest to the surgeon, as when he is bleeding beneath his knife. So you may be sure if you are suffering from the hand of a reconciled God, that His eye is all the more bent on you. ~ Robert Murray McCheyne

I am mended by my sickness, enriched by my poverty and strengthened by my weakness… What fools are we, then, to frown upon our afflictions! Those, how crabbed soever, are our best friends. They are not intended for our pleasure, they are for our profit. ~ Unknown Puritan

The Lord afflicts us at times; but it is always a thousand times less than we deserve, and much less than many of our fellow-creatures are suffering around us. Let us therefore pray for grace to be humble, thankful, and patient. ~ John Newton

As the world is wearied of me so am I of it. ~ John Knox

Those who dive in the sea of affliction bring up rare pearls. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

Give up the struggle and the fight; relax in the omnipotence of the Lord Jesus; look up into His lovely face and as you behold Him, He will transform you into His likeness. You do the beholding–He does the transforming. There is no short-cut to holiness. ~  Alan Redpath

The Lord gets his best soldiers out of the highlands of affliction. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

God never allows pain without a purpose in the lives of His children. He never allows Satan, nor circumstances, nor any ill-intending person to afflict us unless He uses that affliction for our good. God never wastes pain. He always causes it to work together for our ultimate good, the good of conforming us more to the likeness of His Son (see Romans 8:28-29). ~ Jerry Bridges

The first second that we spend in heaven will immediately erase every affliction that we have encountered while upon the earth! ~ Tim Senn

Quotes on Missions

By Jennifer R.

The Missions Conference begins this Friday night, so our new Quotable Quotes bulletin board is sporting a set of quotes on missions. If you haven't had a chance to read them on the board, the quotes are listed below. If you don't have time to read them all right now, print them out and just read a few and discuss them at the dinner table each night this week in preparation for the conference.

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When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, "You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages." To that, Calvert replied, "We died before we came here."

The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed. ~ Hudson Taylor

So, you have three possibilities in world missions. You can be a goer, a sender, or disobedient. The Bible does not assume that everyone goes. But it does assume that the ones who do not go care about goers and support goers and pray for goers and hold the rope of the goers. ~ John Piper

"I will go down, if you will hold the ropes." [his missions philosophy] ~ William Carey

"Does it not stir up our hearts, to go forth and help them, does it not make us long to leave our luxury, our exceeding abundant light, and go to them that sit in darkness?" ~ Amy Carmichael

Missions is not about “What can I spare?” The question is “What’s it going to take?” Risk. Abandon. Sacrifice. Radical dependence on Christ. Everything. Are you passionately committed to God’s glory among all peoples? ~ AsiaLink Worker

"People who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives ... and when the bubble has burst, they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted."~ Nate Saint, missionary martyr

"We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God." ~ John Stott

"If you take missions out of the Bible, you won't have anything left but the covers" ~ Nina Gunter

"A God-centered theology has to be a missionary theology" ~ John Piper

"Missions is the overflow of our delight in God because missions is the overflow of God's delight in being God." ~ John Piper

"God is pursuing with omnipotent passion a worldwide purpose of gathering joyful worshipers for Himself from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. He has an inexhaustible enthusiasm for the supremacy of His name among the nations. Therefore, let us bring our affections into line with His, and, for the sake of His name, let us renounce the quest for worldly comforts and join His global purpose." ~ John Piper

"Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't." ~ John Piper

"We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the first." ~ Oswald J. Smith

"If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him." ~ C.T. Studd

"No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard it once." ~ Oswald J. Smith

"If a commission by an earthly king is considered a honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?" ~ David Livingstone

"If God would grant us the vision, the word sacrifice would disappear from our lips and thoughts; we would hate the things that seem now so dear to us; our lives would suddenly be too short, we would despise time-robbing distractions and charge the enemy with all our energies in the name of Christ." ~ Nate Saint, two weeks before he was martyred by the Aucas

"As we have a high old time this Christmas may we who know Christ hear the cry of the damned as they hurtle headlong into the Christless night without ever a chance. May we be moved with compassion as our Lord was. May we shed tears of repentance for these we have failed to bring out of darkness. Beyond the smiling scenes of Bethlehem may we see the crushing agony of Golgotha" ~ Nate Saint, two weeks before he was martyred by the Aucas

"It's not that God has a mission for his Church in the world, but that God has a Church for his mission in the world" ~ Chris Wright

O Christian! do not falter,
The harvest field is white,
And many souls are sinking
Into eternal night.
~ William E. Penn

”I wasn’t God’s first choice for what I’ve done for China. I don’t know who it was. It must have been a man—a well–educated man. I don’t know what happened. Perhaps he died. Perhaps he wasn’t willing. And God looked down… and saw Gladys Aylward. And God said, ‘Well, she’s willing.’” ~ Gladys Aylward

"I am ready to burn out for God. I am ready to endure any hardship, if by any means I might save some. The longing of my heart is to make known my glorious Redeemer to those who have never heard."~ William Burns

You Are His Valentine

By Jennifer R.

As I was reading Embracing Obscurity by Anonymous recently, I came across the quote below. As I considered each phrase, it almost took my breath away. Read it slowly, and mediate on the amazing truth that the God of the universe loves unlovable and undeserving people such as us!

Christ calls us His bride. Savor these truths: He desires you, pursues you, purifies and delights in you! He moved heaven and earth so He could be near you. He’s gone to get the house ready, and waits anxiously for your arrival.

If that doesn't make you feel loved, nothing will!

Quotes on Leadership

By Jennifer R.

The summer men's Bible study begins tonight and is focusing on the topic of "leadership," so our new Quotable Quotes bulletin board is sporting a new set of quotes on this topic. Below are the quotes that are on the board this month.

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Spiritual leadership is knowing where God wants people to be and taking the initiative to get them there by God’s means in reliance on God’s power. ~ John Piper

Servanthood does not nullify leadership; it defines it. Jesus does not cease to be the Lion of Judah when He becomes the lamblike servant of the church. ~ John Piper

According to [the Bible], a leader is first and foremost a servant. His concern is not for himself; his concern is not to give orders, to boss other people around, to have his own way. His concern is to meet the needs of others. ~ Wayne Mack

Dwight L. Moody once said that he would rather put a thousand men to work than do the work of a thousand men. ~ Oswald Sanders

A leader will seldom say, “I don’t have the time.” Such an excuse is usually the refuge of a small-minded and inefficient person. Each of us has the time to do the whole will of God for our lives. ~ Oswald Sanders

A spiritual leader will, first and foremost, have a calling from God. His work will not be his profession, but his calling. ~ Zac Poonen

Experience has taught me that the Shepherd is far more willing to show His sheep the path than the sheep are to follow. He is endlessly merciful, patient, tender, and loving. If we, His stupid and wayward sheep, really want to be led, we will without fail be led. Of that I am sure. ~ Elisabeth Elliot

We must truly serve those whom we appear to command; we must bear with their imperfections, correct them with gentleness and patience, and lead them in the way to heaven. ~ Francois Fenelon

The chief occupational hazard of leadership is pride. ~ John Stott

The authority by which the Christian leader leads is not power but love, not force but example, not coercion but reasoned persuasion. Leaders have power, but power is safe only in the hands of those who humble themselves to serve. ~ John Stott

A true and safe leader is likely to be one who has no desire to lead, but is forced into a position of leadership by the inward pressure of the Holy Spirit and the press of the external situation. ~ A.W. Tozer

It is very rare for the spirituality of a group of Christians to exceed that of its leaders. ~ John Benton

We cannot sit back and wait for the sheep to lead. A few will, but by and large they are looking to us for direction, feeding, and leadership by our stepping out courageously in faith. ~ Curtis C. Thomas

When God’s sheep are in danger, the shepherd must not gaze at the stars and meditate on “inspirational” themes. He is morally obliged to grab his weapon and run to their defense. ~ A.W. Tozer

Leadership training cannot be done on a mass scale. It requires patient, careful instruction and prayerful, personal guidance over a considerable time. Disciples are not manufactured wholesale. They are produced only one by one, because someone has taken the pains to disciple, to instruct and enlighten, to nurture and train one that is younger. Oswald Sanders
Leadership may be defined as the ability…to develop other people’s maximum potential for their own works of service in the body of Christ. ~ Derek Prime and Alistair Begg

The effectiveness of leadership is measured in terms of influence. When you see someone’s influence reflected so profoundly in the lives of other people, you have identified someone who is by definition a leader. ~ John MacArthur

It is no commendation of our leadership if everything collapses when we are not there or when the time comes for us to leave. ~ Derek Prime and Alistair Begg

No man, however gifted and devoted, is indispensable to the work of the kingdom. ~ Oswald Sanders

When I submit to the leaders God places over me, I do so not in trust of them, but in trust of God who placed them. My trust is not that they will always make the right decisions, but rather, that God is able to work in their hearts and in my life even in their mistakes. The bottom line of submission on every level is not “Can I trust this leader,” but “Can I trust God to work in, through, and in spite of this leader?” ~ Eddie Rasnake

Quotes on Friendship

By Jennifer R.

If you haven't seen the new bulletin board upstairs, here's a picture of it.

We will be changing the topic every month, but this month - since we're focusing on godly friendships in the summer ladies Bible study and in the upcoming fall retreat - the topic is "friendship." Below are the quotes that are on the board this month.

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If I take offence easily; if I am content to continue in cold unfriendliness, though friendship be possible, then I know nothing of Calvary love. ~ Amy Carmichael

It’s impossible to have friendships that aren’t directed by the heart. And it’s impossible to have genuine, authentic friendships if what is in our heart is self-centered and self-absorbed. Bad hearts produce bad friendships. Good hearts produce good friendships. (Luke 6:45) ~ Amy Baker

When I have learnt to love God better than my earthly [best friends], I shall love my earthly [best friends] better than I do now. In so far as I learn to love my earthly [best friends] at the expense of God and instead of God, I shall be moving towards the state in which I shall not love my earthly [best friends] at all. When first things are put first, second things are not suppressed but increased. ~ C.S. Lewis

Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, “What! You, too? I thought I was the only one.” ~ C.S. Lewis

A true friend never gets in your way unless you happen to be going down. ~ Arnold Glasow

The dearest friend on earth is a mere shadow compared to Jesus Christ. ~ Oswald Chambers

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. ~ Jesus (John 15:13)

I am convinced, by the way, that friendships provide the most fertile soil for evangelism. When the reality of Christ is introduced into a relationship of love and trust that has already been established, the effect is powerful. And it seems that invariably, when someone becomes a true follower of Christ, that person's first impulse is to want to find a friend and introduce that friend to Christ. ~ John MacArthur

A blessed thing it is for any man or woman to have a friend; one human soul whom we can trust utterly; who knows the best and the worst of us, and who loves us in spite of all our faults; who will speak the honest truth to us, while the world flatters us to our face, and laughs at us behind our back. ~ Charles Kingsley

God's is the only friendship that can really meet all our soul's deep needs and cravings. Human companionship helps us at a few points; but the divine friendship has its blessing for every experience. We never shall be left alone when we have Christ. When other helpers fail and comforts flee—He will ever stand close beside us. When other faces fade out of view—His will shine out with gentle love, pouring its light upon us. ~ J.R. Miller

Good friends are among our greatest blessings – they may keep us back from much evil, quicken us in our course, speak a word in season, draw us upward, and draw us on. But a bad friend is a positive misfortune, a weight continually dragging us down, and chaining us to earth. Keep company with an irreligious man, and it is more than probable you will in the end become like him. That is the general consequence of all such friendships. The good go down to the bad, and the bad do not come up to the good. ~ J.C. Ryle, Thoughts For Young Men

To become another's friend in the true sense—is to take the other into such close, living fellowship that his life and ours are knit together as one. It is far more than a pleasant companionship in bright, sunny hours. It is more than an association for mutual interest or profit or enjoyment. A genuine friendship is entirely unselfish. It seeks no benefit or good of its own. It does not love - for what it may receive - but for what it may give. Its aim is “not to be served—but to serve” (Mark 10:45). ~ J.R. Miller

Christ loves us—not according to our worthiness—but according to the riches of His own loving heart! So should it be with our giving of friendship—not as the person deserves—but after the measure of our own character. ~ J.R. Miller

Prayer for Grace

By Jennifer R.

My hands will I lift up unto Thy commandments which I have loved.
Open Thou mine eyes that I may see,
incline my heart that I may desire,
order my steps that I may follow,
the way of Thy commandments.
O Lord God, be Thou to me a God,
and beside Thee none else,
none else, nought else with Thee.
Vouchsafe to me, to worship Thee and serve Thee
1. in truth of spirit,
2. in reverence of body,
3. in blessing of lips,
4. in private and in public;
5. to pay honour to them that have the rule over me,
by obedience and submission,
to shew affection to my own,
by carefulness and providence;
6. to overcome evil with good;
7. to possess my vessel in sanctification and honour;
8. to have my converse without covetousness,
content with what I have;
9. to speak the truth in love;
10. to be desirous not to lust,
not to lust passionately,
not to go after lusts.

~ From the Private Devotions of Lancelot Andrewes

There is so much in this prayer that is convicting to me! The lines that have the most impact on me, though, are the first five lines. There is great humility in realizing that unless God opens my eyes, I won't see. Unless He inclines my heart, I won't desire Him. Unless He orders my steps, I will go my own way and not walk in the way of His commandments.

As we come upon the beginning of another year, some of us will set goals or resolutions for the year. That is a good and healthy thing to do. However, as we set those goals, let us acknowledge that we are powerless to accomplish them in our own strength. May we humbly pray for our eyes to be opened, our hearts to be inclined to desire Him, and our steps to be ordered to follow His ways.

Mortifying Sin

• When you meditate on the mercy and compassion of Christ, the mighty Maker who died in your place...
• When you remember that your ransom was purchased at the price of His precious blood...
• When you consider the cost of the gifts you have received through the cross - wisdom, righteousness, holiness, sonship, redemption, and future resurrection to glory forever...
• When you reflect on the salvation and safety that your Brother, your Captain, and your King has secured for you...
• When you realize that God is more satisfied with Jesus' obedience than He was grieved by your sins...
• When you ponder the pain and the shame of the scourging and scoffing, the spitting and mocking, the crown of thorns and the nails in His hands, and all the cruel wounds He received on your behalf...
• When you understand that you are not only acquitted but accepted as fully righteous in God's sight, perfect in the eyes of the law, because the full measure of divine wrath was poured out on Jesus for you, and His obedience has been counted as yours...
• When your heart is filled with the glories of His triumph over Satan, sin, and death...
• When your affections are captured anew by the self-sacrificing love of the Lord and Lover of your soul...

... then you will discover that the stranglehold of sin on your heart has grown weaker, that sin is less alluring, and that your fallen desires have been displaced by desires for God, His glory, and His grace.

~ Brian G. Hedges, Licensed to Kill: A Field Manual for Mortifying Sin, p. 82

Is the Bible the Word of God?

Is the Bible the Word of God? Then mind that you do not neglect it. Read it! Begin to read it this very day. What greater insult to God can a man be guilty of than to refuse to read the letter God sends him from heaven? Oh, be sure, if you will not read your Bible, you are in fearful danger of losing your soul!

Is the Bible the Word of God? Then be sure you always read it with deep reverence. Say to your soul, whenever you open the Bible, “O my soul, you are going to read a message from God!”

Is the Bible the Word of God? Then be sure you never read it without fervent prayer for the help and teaching of the Holy Spirit. Humble prayer will throw more light on your Bible than any commentary that ever was written. You will not understand it unless your heart is right. You will find it a sealed book without the teaching of the Holy Spirit. Its contents are often hidden from the wise and learned, and revealed to babes.

Is the Bible the Word of God? Then let us all resolve from this day forward to prize the Bible more. God has given us the Bible to be a light to guide us to everlasting life. Let us not neglect this precious gift. Let us read it diligently, and walk in its light.

~J.C. Ryle

Quotes on Humility

Below is a selection of short quotes on the subject of humility.


“The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us; just as the roof of a sunhouse does not attract the sun because it is bright, but becomes bright because the sun shines on it.” ~ C.S. Lewis

“Keep us little and unknown, prized and loved by God alone.” ~ Charles Wesley

"It is the laden bough that hangs low, and the most fruitful Christian who is the most humble." ~ Unknown

“Nothing will make us so charitable and tender to the faults of others, as, by self-examination, thoroughly to know our own.” ~ Francois Fenelon

“Humility and love are precisely the graces which the men of the world can understand, if they do not comprehend doctrines. They are the graces about which there is no mystery, and they are within reach of all classes. The poorest Christian can every day find occasion for practicing love and humility.” ~ J.C. Ryle

“He that is down needs fear no fall. He that is low, no pride; He that is humble, ever shall have God to be his Guide.” ~ John Bunyan

“Let not your peace rest in the utterances of men, for whether they put a good or bad construction on your conduct does not make you other than you are.” ~ Thomas a Kempis

“I am only a wick... It is only when the wick is soaked in oil that it can burn... If people begin to talk about the wick, there is generally something wrong with the burning.” ~ D. H. Dolman

Live As If Christ Will Appear Today

Live as if you thought that Christ might come at any time. Do everything, as if you did it for the last time. Say everything, as if you said it for the last time. Read every chapter in the Bible, as if you did not know whether you would be allowed to read it again. Pray every prayer, as if you felt it might be your last opportunity. Hear every sermon, as if you were hearing once and forever. This is the way to be found ready. This is the way to turn Christ’s second appearing to good account. This is the way to put on the armor of light.

~ J.C. Ryle

What is the Bible?

This Book is the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation,
the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers.
Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding;
its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable.

Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to be holy.
It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you.
It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s character.
Here paradise is restored, heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed.
Christ is its grand subject, our good its design, and the glory of God its end.

It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet.
Read it slowly, frequently, prayerfully.
It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure.
Follow its precepts and it will lead you to Calvary, to the empty tomb, to a resurrected life in Christ; yes, to glory itself, for eternity.

~Anonymous

The Secret of the Happy Christian

Believers, if you would have an increase of happiness in Christ’s service, labor every year to grow in grace. Beware of standing still. The holiest men are always the happiest. Let your aim be every year to be more holy–to know more, to feel more, to see more of the fullness of Christ. Do not rest on old grace: do not be content with the degree of Christianity which you have attained. Search the Scriptures more earnestly; pray more fervently; hate sin more; mortify self-will more; become more humble the nearer you draw to your end; seek more direct personal communion with the Lord Jesus; strive to be more like Enoch– daily walking with God; keep your conscience clear of little sins; grieve not the Spirit; avoid arguments and disputes about the lesser matters of religion: lay more firm hold upon those great truths, without which no man can be saved. Remember and practice these things, and you will be more happy.

~ J.C. Ryle

Practical Religion, “Happiness”, [Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1998], 259.

The Gift of Gifts

The following prayer is called "The Gift of Gifts" and is from The Valley of Vision.

O Source of all Good,
What shall I render to Thee for the gift of gifts,
Thine own dear Son, begotten, not created,
my Redeemer, Proxy, Surety, Substitute,
His self-emptying incomprehensible,
His infinity of love beyond the heart's grasp.

Herein is wonder of wonders:
He came below to raise me above,
He was born like me that I might become like Him.

Herein is love;
when I cannot rise to Him He draws near on wings of grace,
to raise me to Himself.

Herein is power;
when Deity and humanity were infinitely apart
He united them in indissoluble unity, the uncreated and the created.

Herein is wisdom;
when I was undone, with no will to return to Him,
and no intellect to devise recovery,
He came, God-incarnate, to save me to the uttermost,
as man to die my death,
to shed satisfying blood on my behalf,
to work out a perfect righteousness for me.

O God, take me in spirit to the watchful shepherds,
and enlarge my mind;
let me hear good tidings of great joy,
and hearing, believe, rejoice, praise, adore,
my conscience bathed in an ocean of repose,
my eyes uplifted to a reconciled Father,
place me with ox, donkey, camel, goat,
to look with them upon my Redeemer's face,
and in Him account myself delivered from sin;
let me with Simeon clasp the new-born Child to my heart,
embrace Him with undying faith,
exulting that He is mine and I am His.

In Him Thou hast given me so much that heaven can give no more.

[Arthur Bennett, ed., The Valley of Vision (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2002), 28-29.]

Thanksgiving Quotes

How worthy it is to remember former benefits when we come to beg for new. ~Stephen Charnock

We should spend as much time in thanking God for his benefits as we do in asking him for them. ~ Vincent de Paul

Prayer without thanksgiving is like a bird without wings. ~ William Hendriksen

Thanksgiving is good but thanks-living is better. ~ Matthew Henry

Thankless men are like swine feeding on acorns, which, though they fall upon their heads, never make them look up to the tree from which they come. ~ Jean Daille

I fear that what will surprise us most, when we see our Lord, will be the extent of our own ingratitude. ~ E. B. Pusey

It must make the devils themselves marvel to see us able to receive a pardon and a title to everlasting glory with scarcely more than a few cold syllables of gratitude to God. ~ Maurice Roberts

Ingratitude is not only the basest and meanest of sins, but it is the most frequent. ~ Wilton Merle Smith

It is sad when there is nothing for which we feel grateful to God, but it is serious when there is something and we fail to show gratitude, and it is tragic when we are so busy asking for more that we forget to thank him for what we have received. ~ William Still, from The Complete Gathered Gold

It's So Easy

It's so easy to convince myself
that I have arrived.
It's so easy to swindle myself into believing
that I am righteous.
It's so easy to calm my conscience
by recasting my own history.
It's so easy to make myself feel better
by measuring myself by somebody else.
It's so easy to persuade myself
that my way is the best way.
It's so easy to think
that I'm serving You when I'm really serving me.
It's so easy to judge others
who fail to do what I'm not doing either.
It's so easy to daily hunt
for what I've already been given in Christ.
It's so easy to be more concerned
about the sin of someone else than I am my own.
It's so easy to withhold grace
while I am being showered with grace.
It's so easy to think
that I know more than I know.
It's so easy to fretfully forget
that you are ever with me.
It's so easy to love the world
more than I have loved You.
It's so easy to enthrone myself
in the center of my world.
It's so easy to view myself as poor
when grace has made me rich.
It's so easy to talk myself into feeling okay
about what You say is wrong.
It's so easy to forget
how fundamentally needy I am.
Because these things are so
Natural
Instinctive
Frequent
Common
Normal
Spontaneous
Easy.
There is not a
Situation
Location
Relationship
Circumstance
Moment
where I am free of needing You.
I live in constant need of
the rescue of your grace.
I am so thankful
that your grace is never stronger
than in those moments of
weakness when dangerous things
are all too easy.

~ Re-posted from Paul Tripp's blog

What Will Make You Happy?

The possession of the whole world, and all that it contains, will never make a person happy. Its pleasures are false and deceptive. Its riches, rank, and honors, have no power to satisfy the heart. So long as we have not got them they glitter, sparkle, and seem desirable. The moment we have them we find that they are empty bubbles, and cannot make us feel content. And, worst of all, when we possess this world’s good things, to the utmost bound of our desire, we cannot keep them. Death comes in and separates us from all our property forever. Naked we came upon earth, and naked we go forth, and of all our possessions we can carry nothing with us. Such is the world, which occupies the whole attention of thousands! Such is the world, for the sake of which millions are every year destroying their souls!

~ J.C. Ryle

Many men think that when they are troubled and have not got contentment it is because they have but a little in the world, and that if they had more then they should be content. That is just as if a man were hungry, and to satisfy his craving stomach he should gape and hold open his mouth to take in the wind, and then should think that the reason why he is not satisfied is because he has not got enough of the wind. No, the reason is because the thing is not suitable to a craving stomach. Yet there is really the same madness in the world: the wind which a man takes in by gaping will as soon satisfy a craving stomach ready to starve, as all the comforts in the world can satisfy a soul who knows what true happiness means.
...
O poor deulded man! It is not because you have not got enough of it, but because it is not the thing that is proportionable to the immortal soul that God has given you.

~ Jeremiah Burroughs, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, pg. 91

Thanking God for Afflictions

If we are true Christians, we must not expect everything smooth in our journey to heaven. We must count it no strange thing if we have to endure sicknesses, losses, bereavements, and disappointments, just like other people. Free pardon and full forgiveness, grace by the way and glory to the end – all this our Savior has promised to give. But He has never promised that we shall have no afflictions. He loves us too well to promise that.

By affliction He teaches us many precious lessons, which without it we should never learn. By affliction He shows us our emptiness and weakness, draws us to the throne of grace, purifies our affections, weans us from the world and makes us long for heaven. In the resurrection morning we shall all say, ‘it is good for me that I was afflicted.’ [Psalm 119:71] We shall thank God for every storm.

~ J.C. Ryle

You're Not

This great poem/prayer was posted by Paul Tripp on his blog today.

When I'm
Weary and exhausted
You're not.
When I'm
Confused and discouraged
You're not.
When I'm
Fickle and unfaithful
You're not.
When I'm
Doubtful and disheartened
You're not.
When I'm
Fearful and anxious
You're not.
When I'm
Short-sighted and fearful
You're not.
When I'm
Tired and about to quit
You're not.
When I'm
Lacking in hope and love
You're not.
When I'm
Shocked and surprised
You're not.
When I'm
Angrily withholding grace
You're not.
When I'm
Unfaithful to what I've promised
You're not.
When I'm
Selfish and disloyal
You're not.
Oh, Lord of
Faithfulness and grace
I am so thankful
That
In those moments
When I'm
Losing my way
You're not.

~ Paul Tripp

Evangelism Quotes

By Jennifer R.

In preparation for our conference this weekend, I thought it would be helpful to review a few short, thought-provoking quotes on evangelism.

Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where to get bread. ~ D. T. Niles

Evangelism is the redistribution of spiritual wealth. ~ John Blanchard

In making a person a Christian, God takes a burden off the heart and places another on the shoulders. ~ Anonymous

Christian mission is the only reason for our being on earth. ~ Andrew Murray

The gospel is not a secret to be hoarded but a story to be heralded. ~ Vance Havner

Holy Writ is to be kept not under a bushel, but under men's noses. Its message is to be held forth as diligently as it is held fast. ~ J. I. Packer

If a church does not evangelize it will fossilize. ~ A. W. Pink

The greatest charity in the world is the communication of divine truth to the ignorant. ~ Alexander Maclaren
No candle which God lights was ever meant to burn alone. ~ J. C. Ryle

The highest form of selfishness is that of the man who is content to go to heaven alone. ~ J. C. Ryle

Evangelism is always dangerous, though it is not so dangerous as the lack of evangelism. ~ George Sweazey

We cannot bring the whole world to Christ, but we must bring Christ to the whole world. ~ John Blanchard

Every Christian is either a missionary or an impostor. ~ C. H. Spurgeon

Evangelism's highest and ultimate end is not the welfare of men, not even their eternal bliss, but the glorification of God. ~ R. B. Kuiper

If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for. ~ C.H. Spurgeon