I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
And in His word I do hope. My soul waits for the Lord
More than those who watch for the morning—
Yes, more than those who watch for the morning. Psalm 130:5-6
God is Light. God is a Sun. Paul says:
“God hath shined in our hearts to give the
light.” What light? “The light of the glory of
God, in the face of Jesus Christ.” Just as the
sun shines its beautiful, life-giving light on and
into our earth, so God shines into our hearts the
light of His glory, of His love, in Christ His Son.
Our heart is meant to have that light filling and
gladdening it all the day. It can have it, because
God is our sun, and it is written, “Thy sun shall
no more go down for ever.” God’s love shines
on us without ceasing.
But can we indeed enjoy it all the day? We
can. And how can we? Let nature give us the
answer. Those beautiful trees and flowers, with
all this green grass, what do they do to keep the
sun shining on them? They do nothing; they
simply bask in the sunshine, when it comes.
The sun is millions of miles away, but over all
that distance it sends its own light and joy; and
the tiniest flower that lifts its little head upwards
is met by the same exuberance of light and blessing
as flood the widest landscape. We have not have to provide
for the light we need for our day’s work;
the sun cares, and provides and shines the light
around us all the day. We simply count upon it,
and receive it, and enjoy it.
The only difference between nature and
grace is this, that what the trees and the flowers
do unconsciously, as they drink in the blessing
of the light, is to be with us a voluntary and a
loving acceptance. Faith, simple faith in God’s
word and love, is to be the opening of the eyes,
the opening of the heart, to receive and enjoy
the unspeakable glory of His grace. And even as
the trees, day by day, and month by month,
stand and grow into beauty and fruitfulness, just
welcoming whatever sunshine the sun may give,
so it is the very highest exercise of our Christian
life just to abide in the light of God, and let it,
and let Him, fill us with the life and the brightness
it brings.
And if you ask, But can it really be, that
even as naturally and heartily as I recognize and
rejoice in the beauty of a bright sunny morning,
I can rejoice in God’s light all the day? It can,
indeed. From my breakfast-table I look out on
a beautiful valley, with trees and vineyards and
mountains. In our spring and autumn months
the light in the morning is exquisite, and almost
involuntarily we say, How beautiful! And the
question comes, Is it only the light of the sun
that is to bring such continual beauty and joy?
And is there no provision for the light of God
being just as much an unceasing source of joy
and gladness? There is, indeed, if the soul will
but be still and wait on Him, ONLY LET GOD
SHINE.
~From
Andrew Murray, Waiting on God, ch.16
Faith is the key, that opens up the treasure chest of God's riches. If only we would use that key more often!
So happy to add Anna to our family circle. We made the trip to PA. Our last trip was 10 years ago. We prefer to head west instead of east but a son's wedding is good reason to make the trip. We met some really nice people there and it turned out to be a very enjoyable trip. We stayed for two nights at Larry and Naomi Burkholder's. Naomi is Anna's coworker and good friend. We loved our time there.They showed us some of their many photo albums of trips they had made together....Alaska, and Hawaii. They introduced us to their Water Buffalo and Yaks, and sent us home with a package of their Burkholder coffee, grown by their missionary son in Honduras.It is very good and when we grind it and drink it we think of them with warm memories!
