Excerpt: In the aftermath of catastrophic loss, it is natural to speculate, to retrace the preceding events, to root around in the morass known as, What if? What if I had called or texted her an hour earlier? What if I had not left him alone? What if the doctor had not been negligent? What …
Charles Spurgeon: "Blessed is that man who is done with chance, who never speaks of luck--but believes that from the least, even to the greatest, all things are ordained by the Lord. We dare not leave out the least event! The creeping of an aphid upon a rosebud is as surely arranged by the decree of Providence--as …
Continue reading Chance, Accident, Luck or Divine Providence?
John MacDuff, from "Family Prayers" 1885 The desire of our eyes has been taken away by a stroke! The shadows of death have unexpectedly fallen around us! Oh forbid that we should rebel under the rod, and refuse to be comforted. Let us glorify You "in the fires!" Let us feel that if we are Your children, there …
The Blessings of Sound Doctrine (Part four of a four-part series) Great peace have they which love thy law... Psalm 119:165 To be optimally prepared for the devastations of life, we must know Him, and we must believe what He has said. We do not have to know much about God to reap the blessings of …
Continue reading Strengthened According to His Word: Part Four
PART THREE OF A THREE PART SERIES TRIED BY FIRE (Excerpts) A.W. Pink (1886-1952) “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold.”—Job 23:10 3. THE ULTIMATE ISSUE: “I shall come forth as gold.” Observe the tense here. Job did not imagine that he was …
Continue reading Lessons From Job Part 3: ‘Tried by Fire’ | A.W. Pink
PART TWO OF A THREE PART SERIES TRIED BY FIRE (Excerpts) A.W. Pink (1886-1952) “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold.”—Job 23:10 2. DIVINE TESTING: “When he hath tried me.” :“The fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold: but the LORD trieth …
Continue reading Lessons From Job Part 2: ‘Tried by Fire’ | A.W. Pink
Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me. Psalm 139:5 I do not believe in accidents. If I thought the crash was “just an accident”, a freak chance event, I might just lose myself in despair, in the pointlessness of it. It would take an impossible amount of faith for …
PART ONE OF A THREE PART SERIES TRIED BY FIRE (Excerpts) A.W. Pink (1886-1952) “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold.”—Job 23:10 Job here enunciates a noble view of life. How splendidly optimistic he was! He did not allow his afflictions to turn …
Continue reading Lessons From Job Part 1: ‘Tried by Fire’ | A.W. Pink
"We cannot, in this life, have full and satisfying answers to What if? questions. The answers are elusive because they are infinite. Every shift in circumstances causes a chain reaction of new variables. There are no answers to What if? because it is a question that seeks to reconcile events and contingencies that did not happen. Even …
Joni Eareckson Tada on Doubting God's Goodness Excerpts: "Although so many so-called Christian therapists will try to convince you that it’s okay to lay it all out and vent your anger against God full force. Some will even tell you that you need to forgive God… friend that is the wrong advice. Never cast aspersions on His …
Everything is necessary — Nothing is necessary (John Newton) Everything is necessary, which God sends. Nothing is necessary, which God withholds. How happy are those . . . who can resign all to Him, who see His hand in every trying dispensation, and who believe that He chooses better for them — than they could …
Continue reading Christ is Sovereign Over All of Our Trials-John Newton
"God is good when things are going my way. God is good when things are not optimal. God is good when life is smooth and peaceful. God is good when calamity strikes. The fact that God allows painful things to happen does not change who He is." Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou …
Nothing whatever, whether great or small, can happen to a believer — without God's ordering and permission. (J.C. Ryle, 'The Gospel of Luke' 1858) courtesy of gracegems.org 'I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that can do no more. . . . Are not five sparrows sold for …
Did God Take Our Son, or Was it an Accident? “No, God does not do evil. God is good. But he does direct events here on earth and allows sinful man a lot of freedom to prove his utter hopelessness apart from the Almighty. And sometimes that gets pretty ugly.” Grieving, suffering mother, you could …
Religion can mean different things to different people. I do not consider myself to be a religious person. I am a Christian. A Believer. A Bible Believer. I might even be a Baptist. I go to church every week to worship and hear the Word of God preached. But I would not refer to myself …
You Can Trust Him. 