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Blessings to Cheer Us, January 4
Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that
fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee
before the sons of men!
Psalm 31:19
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God scatters blessings all along our path to brighten our journey and
lead our hearts out to love and praise Him, and He wants us to draw water
from the well of salvation that our hearts may be refreshed. We may
sing the songs of Zion, we may cheer our own hearts, and we may cheer
the hearts of others; hope may be strengthened, darkness turned to light.
God has not left us in a dark world—as pilgrims and strangers seeking a
better country, even an heavenly—without giving us precious promises to
lighten every burden. The borders of our path are strewn with fair flowers
of promise. They blossom all around, sending forth rich fragrance.
How many blessings we lose because we slight and overlook the
blessings we daily receive, yearning for that which we have not. Common
mercies which thickly strew our pathway are forgotten and undervalued.
We may learn lessons from the humble things of God in nature. The
flower in dark and humble places responds to all the rays of light it can
get, and puts forth its leaves. The caged bird sings in the prison cage,
in the sunless tenement, as if in the lordly, sunny dwelling. God knows
whether we will make a wise and saving use of His blessings; He will
never give them to us to abuse. God loves the thankful heart, trusting
implicitly in His words of promise, gathering comfort and hope and place
from them; and He will reveal to us still greater depths of His love.
If we praised God’s holy name as we should, the flame of love would
be kindled in many hearts.... The praise of God should continually be in
our hearts and on our lips. This is the very best way to resist the temptation
to indulge in idle, frivolous conversation.
The Lord would have us look up, and be grateful to Him that there is
a heaven.... Let us grasp by living faith the rich promises of God, and be
thankful from morning till night.
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