"He is Faithful that Promised."
"As thy days, so shall thy strength be."--DEUT. xxxiii. 25.
Needful Grace.
God does not give grace till the hour of trial comes. But when it
_does_ come, the amount of grace, and the nature of the special grace
required is vouchsafed. My soul, do not dwell with painful apprehension
on the future. Do not anticipate coming sorrows; perplexing thyself with
the grace needed for future emergencies; to-morrow will bring its
promised grace along with to-morrow's trials. God, wishing to keep His
people humble, and dependent on himself, gives not a stock of grace; He
metes it out for every day's exigencies, that they may be constantly
"travelling between their own emptiness and Christ's fulness"--their own
weakness and Christ's strength. But _when_ the exigency comes, thou
mayest safely trust an Almighty arm to bear thee through! Is there now
some "thorn in the flesh" sent to lacerate thee? Thou mayest have been
entreating the Lord for its removal. Thy prayer has, doubtless, been
heard and answered; but not in the way, perhaps, expected or desired by
thee. The "thorn" may still be left to goad, the trial may still be left
to buffet; but "more grace" has been given to endure them. Oh! how often
have His people thus been led to glory in their infirmities and triumph
in their afflictions, seeing the power of Christ rests more abundantly
upon them! The strength which the hour of trial brings, often makes the
Christian a wonder to himself!
"REMEMBER _THIS_ WORD UNTO THY SERVANT, UPON
WHICH THOU HAST CAUSED ME TO HOPE!"