“In my prosperity I said I shall never be moved.”
Psalm 30:6

“Moab settled on his lees, he hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel.” Give a man wealth; let his ships bring home continually rich freights; let the winds and waves appear to be his servants to bear his vessels across the bosom of the mighty deep; let his lands yield abundantly: let the weather be propitious to his crops; let uninterrupted success attend him; let him stand among men as a successful merchant; let him enjoy continued health; allow him with braced nerve and brilliant eye to march through the world, and live happily; give him the buoyant spirit; let him have the song perpetually on his lips; let his eye be ever sparkling with joy–and the natural consequence of such an easy state to any man, let him be the best Christian who ever breathed, will be presumption; even David said, “I shall never be moved;” and we are not better than David, nor half so good. Brother, beware of the smooth places of the way; if you are treading them, or if the way be rough, thank God for it. If God should always rock us in the cradle of prosperity; if we were always dandled on the knees of fortune; if we had not some stain on the alabaster pillar; if there were not a few clouds in the sky; if we had not some bitter drops in the wine of this life, we should become intoxicated with pleasure, we should dream “we stand;” and stand we should, but it would be upon a pinnacle; like the man asleep upon the mast, each moment we should be in jeopardy.

We bless God, then, for our afflictions; we thank Him for our changes; we extol His name for losses of property; for we feel that had He not chastened us thus, we might have become too secure. Continued worldly prosperity is a fiery trial.

“Afflictions, though they seem severe,
In mercy oft are sent.”

Excerpt from Spurgeon’s Daily Devotional

Beware (Woe to you) when all men speak well of you. 

                                                                                      Luke 6:26

A very serious warning that I’m taking heed to these days and evaluting my life by!  

I’m realizing that I am not nearly as faithful as I should be in sharing Christ with others. If I were, then according to this scripture and the examples of godly men and women in the bible, I would have people not speaking well of me and more persecution.

I don’t think of myself as being ‘ashamed’ of Christ.. yet how often do I shrink back from sharing Him with a stranger or a family member?

A few days ago, as I was driving into town, I spotted a fat pigeon in the middle of the road. As I got closer I could see that he was shaking and probably near death. I jumped out of the car to scoop him up before a car  hit him and  found a safe spot to place him out of harms way.

When I got back in the car I immediately thought of my dear Aunt whose body was also dying at that very moment from melanoma. (She passed away yesterday) Immediately, my mind went to the verse below and suddenly it made so much sense to me.

I believe in some small way I now understand what this verse means when it says that the whole creation has been groaning. I could see it in my Aunt’s body and also in this little bird.

 I long for Christ’s return and I think often these days of what the earth will be like when it’s made new. No more death.. no more suffering… no more tears! What a glorious thought!

Come quickly, Lord Jesus!

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have “the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as” we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. Romans 8: 22-23