The things we do at Christmas are touched with a certain extravagance, as beautiful, in some of its aspects, as the extravagance of nature in June.
From Luke 2:20: “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.”
Robert Collyer (1823-1912) was an English-born pastor. Early in his adult life, he emigrated to the United States and would later resuming preaching after having done so in England.
If we succeed in giving the love of learning, the learning itself is sure to follow.
We may sit in our library and yet be in all quarters of the world.
Englishman John Lubbock (1834-1913) spent much of his life in the family banking enterprises. However, he is well-known for his contributions to politics, science and philanthropic efforts.
Rather than trying hard to grope our way through the maze of man-made ideas and opinions, through Christ we find ourselves empowered by the tragedy and triumph of the cross.
From Romans 5:10: “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by His life.”
Each of us has only one life on this earth, and we should use it.
From 1 Chronicles 28:20: “David said further to his son Solomon, ‘Be strong and of good courage, and act. Do not be afraid or dismayed, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished.'”
Fred Rogers (1928-2003) was an American television host and producer, author, and Presbyterian minister. His highly successful young children’s television program, “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” ran from 1968 to 2001.
Conviction about God’s truth is like an anchor holding you steady in the waves of temptation and the winds of opinion.
From Daniel 1:16-17: “So the guard continued to withdraw their royal rations and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables. To these four young men God gave knowledge and skill in every aspect of literature and wisdom; Daniel also had insight into all visions and dreams.”
If you stop to be kind, you must swerve often from your path.
Saddle your dreams before you ride them.
Mary Webb (1881-1927) was an English romance novelist and poet.
Nothing so clears the vision and lifts up the life, as a decision to move forward in what you know to be entirely the will of the Lord.
From Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”
John Gibson Paton (1824-1907) was a Scottish-born Christian missionary who lived and served the Lord in the South Pacific.
Rather than trying hard to grope our way through the maze of man-made ideas and opinions, through Christ we find ourselves empowered by the tragedy and triumph of the cross.
From Romans 5:10: “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by His life.”
Things that make us alike are finer and stronger than the things that make us different.
The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life.
American activist Jane Addams (1860-1935) was the second woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931. Her accomplishments are many as she labored as a reformer, social worker, and author. She was a timeless voice for world peace and women’s suffrage.
The right thing to do with habits is to lose them in the life of the Lord, until every habit is so practiced that there is no conscious habit at all.
From Romans 12:2: “Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) was a Scottish evangelist and Christian teacher. Following his death from an illness while in Egypt during World War I, his wife took on the task of transcribing the detailed notes she had written from his lectures and sermons. Gertrude Hobbs Chambers’ efforts resulted in the publication in 1924 of MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST. I frequently read from this devotional, and it has greatly deepened my faith and understanding of God’s Word.
Big Sky Buckeye 