_THE OLD COMPANION ON THE NEW ROAD_
"_Get thee out ... and I will show thee."
"So Abram departed ... and the Lord appeared._"
--GENESIS xii. 1-9.
We must bring these separated passages together if we would appreciate the
graciousness of the Lord's call. They are like the two sides of the same
shield. They answer each other as voice and echo. When I move in obedience
the Lord moves in inspiration. He never lets me go on my own charges. "All
things are now ready." Before He makes me hunger the bread is prepared.
Before I thirst the water is at hand. Before He calls me He has opened
springs in difficult places and arbours of rest along the road. When Abram
set out from his own country the Lord went before him.
And so I need not fear the arduous call. The very measure of its
difficulty is also the measure of the riches of the divine provisions. "As
thy day so shall thy strength be." At every turning of the winding way the
Lord will appear unto us. At every new demand we shall discover new
bounty, and everywhere in the unfamiliar road we shall gaze upon the
familiar and friendly face of the Lord.