Aches and Praise Four Hundred & Seven

June 27, 2019
 
 
Dear friends,
 
It is a beautiful sunny day in southern Quebec, but there is a threat of thunderstorms later in the day, according to the Weather Channel. As believers, we have much for which to be thankful, especially our salvation because of the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus on our behalf. There are threats to our well-being, of course, as the enemy of our souls takes aim at our joy and seeks to derail us as we ride the “rails” that God has set before us.
 
Looking ahead, we are excited that our daughter, Bethany, is planning to travel to Southeast Asia on a short-term missions trip this summer. In a recent letter, she wrote: “I have decided to finish at the Montreal Children’s Hospital at the end of July in order that I may take the month of August off to dedicate time and prayer to missions work. I have been presented with the opportunity to take a short-term missions trip to Penang, Malaysia and serve alongside Paul Elliott and his family, who are missionaries that my parents have known through their ministry … Please pray with me that this trip would be fruitful for the kingdom and that I would use my social work background on the mission field to spread the message of the gospel.” If you would like to support Bethany financially for this missions trip, you can do so at www.gracechurchverdun.com or by sending a cheque or money order to Grace Church Verdun, 501 5th Avenue, Verdun, QC, H4G 2Z2, designating your gift for “short-term missions.” There is a remaining need of $1500. Your prayer support would be greatly appreciated.
 
In his book “The Prodigal Prophet,” Timothy Keller writes: “Most of us are like Jonah, We must have multiple exposures both to our need for God’s grace – which usually come through experiences of disappointment and failure – and to the gospel message. To get God’s love and Christ’s grace down into the motivational principles of our hearts, to the foundational layer of our identities, is a process, and often a slow one.” I thank the Lord for men like Pastor Robert Johnson, who patiently answered questions on the radio when I was young, inspiring me to want to know more about Christ.
 
Someone who was the same age as I was when I listened to Pastor Johnson, went to sea and experienced the difficulties that came with working on a ship and dealing with hardened adults. After John Newton trusted Christ as his Saviour, his life was transformed and he became a pastor in London, England. Although best known for writing “Amazing Grace,” John Newton also wrote the following hymn:
 
I asked the Lord, that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace;
Might more of his salvation know;
And seek more earnestly his face …
 
I hoped that in some favored hour,
At once he’d answer my request;
And by his love’s constraining power
Subdue my sins – and give me rest.
 
Instead of this, he made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart;
And let the angry powers of hell
Assault my soul in every part.
 
Yea more, with his own hand he seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe;
Crossed all the fair designs I schemed,
Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.
 
“Lord, why is this,” I trembling cried,
“Wilt thou pursue thy worm to death?”
“Tis in this way,” the Lord replied,
“I answer prayer for grace and faith.
 
These inward trials I employ,
From self, and pride, to set thee free;
And break they schemes of earthly joy,
That thou may’st find thy all in me.”
 
By God’s grace, may we learn to be devoted disciples from the trials that He sends.
 
Scripture for the weekend: “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13 (NASB)
 
Thought for the weekend: “Paul had no interest in allowing the sinful patterns from which he had escaped through God’s grace to enslave him again. He didn’t ask, ‘What’s wrong with it?’ as much as, ‘Is this the Lord’s will for me? Will it honor and glorify Him?’” – Dr. Charles Stanley commenting on 1 Corinthians 6:12 (from “The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible”)
 
By His grace,
 
Steve

^