God says they shall not; but further, they cannot overflow me, because God is with me : "When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee." I am passing through the waters now; then let me be sure of this, that God is with me. But if God were with me, would He let the waters be so deep? Would He allow them thus to distress and frighten me? Let me but think of His presence, let me believe that He is with me now, and then perhaps (nay, certainly) my fears will grow less, and even vanish entirely. It is in the deep waters that He promises to be with me; He does not say that His being with me will make them not deep, but He does say that His presence they shall not overflow me. will keep me safe, and His presence He promises: "I will be with thee." O my God and Father, be with me now, and show me that Thou art. Quicken and strengthen my faith. Let me be conscious of Thy presence, let me feel Thy hand. Speak to me in the flood. As the waters rise, assure my heart of Thy nearness to me. Peter was actually sinking, when the Lord stretched out His hand and held him up. I am only afraid of sinking; but preserve me from my own fears; make me to be not afraid, because Thou art with me; let this thought, this firm belief, stablish my heart, and make me calmı and strong, strong in Thee. were But I find yet another figure here; fire, as well as water. Isaiah lived and prophesied before Daniel, or one would think that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego alluded to in these words, "When thou walkest through the fire, thou shall not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee." But this very promise was exactly fulfilled to them, and perhaps it was in their minds, and emboldened and comforted them. I too am now cast into a fiery furnace, the furnace of affliction. No cruel tyrant has cast me into it; this is my Father's appointment. 0 Father, be Thou with me! As there appeared a fourth in the furnace, and the form of the fourth was like the Son of God, so may Thy blessed Son, my Saviour, be with me now! Give me Thy presence, though unseen. By Thy Spirit come to me, and stay with me. My Saviour said, "If a man love Me, he will keep My words; and My Father will love him, and We will come unto him, and make Our abode with him." O Lord Jesus, I do love Thee, though not as I would; and I desire to keep every word of Thine: now in the furnace may I feel and know my Father's love, and find my Father and my Saviour to come to me and abide with me. This is Thy word of promise, O Saviour; help me to keep this word, to treasure it in my heart, to believe it, and rest in it. Then when this promise is fulfilled, then the fire cannot burn me, and the flame cannot kindle upon me. It may be all round me, but it cannot hurt me; it may sometimes terrify me, but it can do me no harm. "Like the Son of God," Nebuchadnezzar said; but He Who promises to come to me is the God. Nebuchadnezzar did but appearance, but may I feel the actual presence, the personal presence, Saviour and my Father, and thus may I be safe and of good cheer. Son of see the of my And give me grace, O my God, to glorify K Thee in the fires, by patience, by submission to Thy will, by faith and trust and love. Help me to glorify Thee in my heart, thanking and praising Thee; help me to glorify Thee before others. These floods and fires could not befall me without Thy will. It is in them that I am now to glorify Thee. Alas, I have lost many an opportunity of glorifying Thee. When I was in health, why did I not make it my first object to live to the glory of God? When I was strong, why did I not use my strength chiefly in serving Him? When I was in prosperity, when no floods threatened to overwhelm me, and no fires to burn me, why did I not seek more earnestly to use God's gifts to His praise and glory? How little can I do now! Health and strength are now departed from me, and prosperity is fled, and opportunities are past. Yet no, not all. My very troubles furnish me with an opportunity of a new kind. By His grace, I may glorify God in the fires; and that, as I could not do except in the fires. By His grace, not without. Lord, give me grace; send to me Thy Holy Spirit; sanctify |
