|
A_Sweet_Fragrance
|
read my profile
sign my guestbook
Name: Vanessa
Gender: Female
Interests: My blog is about sharing the wisdom of Godly men and women of past centuries who chose the way of the Cross. I update almost every day with excerpts from old, rare Christian books or personal insights and stories. God offers each one of us the beauty of a cleansed life. Will you be one of the few who choose to follow Him?
Message: message me
Website: visit my website
Yahoo:  vanessa50981
Member Since:
6/19/2007
|
|
| When I had ceased from my struggles - F. B. Meyer
There is nothing else for you but to come to this. As long as you wrestle with God, you miss His richest blessings. Your hands are so occupied with your grasping and wrenching, that they are not open enough to receive His choice bestowments of life and peace. Jacob wrestled with God the whole night, and was no further advanced. It was when he could wrestle no more, because the sinew of his strength was shrivelled, and he was near falling, and clung to the angel, helpless and exhausted, that he received the blessing which made him a prince for the remainder of his days.
Is not this the mistake of your life? You have fought for the blessing: with strong cryings and tears you have made supplication, and sought to prevail; you have been almost angry, because you could not get what others had. Now lie down at the feet of Christ, a broken and emptied vessel, and see if He will not take you in hand, and fill you to overflowing. "By the strength shall no man prevail." "Not of works, lest any man should boast."
Suppose a man inexperienced to the water were drowning, how would you save him? Would you dare to put yourself in the way of his hands? Were you to do so, he would drag you with him to the bottom. As long as he struggles you can do little for him; you must swim around in easy reach till he is exhausted and about to sink in despair, then you come up from behind and support him through the water to the land. That is how God acts. He waits that He may be gracious (Isaiah 30:18). You think that He takes no notice of your tears, and prayers, and agonies. Ah, but He does! And He is not waiting because wanting in grace. He is waiting that He may show it. He cannot show His grace till you lie low and broken and helpless at his feet; then He will say, "I am thy salvation." -From Saved and Kept by F. B. Meyer | | |
| Christian example - Elizabeth Prentiss An excerpt from a letter by Elizabeth Prentiss: But perhaps I may put one beyond it - Christian example. I ought to be so saintly, so consecrated, that you could not be with me and not catch the very spirit of heaven; never get a letter from me that did not quicken your steps in the divine life. But while I believe the principle of love to Christ is entrenched in the depths of my soul, the emotion of love is not always in that full play I want it to be. No doubt He judges us by the principle He sees to exist in us, but we can't help judging ourselves, in spite of ourselves, by our feelings. At church this morning my mind kept wandering to and fro; I thought of you about twenty times; thought about my flowers; thought of 501 other things; and then got up and sang "I love Thy kingdom, Lord," as if I cared for that and nothing else. What He has to put up with in me! But I believe in Him, I love Him, I hate everything in my soul and in my life that is unlike Him. I hope the confession of my shortcomings won't discourage you; it is no proof that at my age you will not be far beyond such weakness and folly as often carry me away captive.... As far as earthly blessings go I am as near perfect happiness as a human being can be; everything is heaped on me. What I want is more of Christ, and that is what I hope you pray that I may have. -From The Life and Letters of Elizabeth Prentiss | | |
| Lord Jesus, Thou art here with me - Amy Carmichael Lord Jesus, Thou art here with me,
I do not need to cry to Thee
To come with me, my loving Lord,
For Thou art with me in the ward. And though I may not see Thy Face,
Yet as I go from place to place,
There is a hush upon my day,
That would not be, wert Thou away. When in the still white room I stand,
Thy viewless hand will guide my hand.
Dear Lord, what joy, what peace to be
About Thy healing work with Thee. -From Windows by Amy Carmichael 
| | |
| Jesus can save to the uttermost - Oswald Chambers The great challenge in personal work is - What relationship have I to Jesus Christ? It is not simply that we realize the power of Jesus to save, but that we recognize the possibilities for evil in our own heart, discerned in us by the Holy Spirit, and know that Jesus can save unto the uttermost. Let a man be a murderer, or an evildoer, or any of the things Jesus said men could be, it can never shake our confidence if we have been face to face with Jesus Christ for ourselves. It is impossible to discourage us because we start from a knowledge of Who Jesus Christ is in our own life. When we see evil and wrong exhibited in other lives, instead of awakening a sickening despair, it awakens a joyful confidence - I know a Saviour who can save even that one. One worker like that is of priceless worth, because through that one life the Son of God is being manifested. -From The Highest Good by Oswald Chambers | | |
| Waste? by Amy Carmichael God has some servants so trustful that He knows they will be content with any use He makes of whatever they give to Him. It is lawful for Him to do as He will with His own, that is their attitude, and it simplifies everything.
But sometimes we have wondered whether one who has sent a gift to save a child, was disappointed when that little one passed on. We can understand the temptation, for we have felt it too. Perhaps much prayer and work lay behind the salvation of that child, and a costly journey and months of nursery care. Within a few months, it may be, the little one was gone.
To what purpose is this waste? We would not say so, but sometimes we have almost thought so. Something so much more useful than this, for which we have nothing to show, could have been done with the money and the time and strength - that is how we are tempted to feel. It looks rather like love's labour lost. And yet love's labour is never lost.
If only our ears were opened for a moment, as the eyes of the young man were opened when he saw, "and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire," and we could hear the laughter and see the play of the happy child whom that gift was used to save or to help to save, if we could see the Lord's purpose for that life redeemed by Him - if only that could be, we should never feel tempted to wonder about waste.
For there is a thought that comes to one who understands the spiritual nature of this fight, That child might have lived if it had not been brought to us. There is no satanic attack on the life of a child dedicated to Satan. But there is an attack on every life (we have come to know this) snatched from those clutching hands.
Four short sentences have become axioms with us: God never wastes His servants' pain.
God never wastes His servants' time.
God never wastes His servants' toil.
God never wastes His servants' gifts. The cheque for 23 pounds 17 s. 7 d. sent to us on July 29th, 1933, was not wasted. This is its story and the story of part of what it has done; what it will do, we shall know hereafter.
The giver was speaking at a Bible Conference in a city in the States. He spoke in the morning over the radio, at noon in the theatre and at night in the tent. It was hot weather, he was wearied and, above all, burdened, for he found himself working with men with whom he had little spiritual affinity. "I was fighting not only against the powers of darkness, but also the seeming indifference of the leaders."
At the end of the meetings a cheque was handed to him. It was a time of need with him, and the cheque was for much less than usual. He was, as he says, "humanly disappointed," but he was reading a Dohnavur book at the time to which he now returned. He had come to the place where these lines were quoted: I saw it not with eyes,
It was not spoken.
These mysteries
Have neither sign nor token. "And then very, very definitely the Lord told me that you were to get the $108.65. So here it is. I am having it converted into a pound draft.
"It was 2am of the night of Friday, July 28th, when I had this leading. As well as I can figure it out, it was early in the afternoon of July 29th in Dohnavur. I would like to know sometime if your log-book showed some special need at that time, or if you had been praying for some token from the Lord on the day you get this letter." Early in the afternoon of July 29th, the day that letter was written, a battle was being fought in the invisible world which enfolds us on every side, not withdrawing, though we sometimes forget that it is there. Two forces were contending for the possession of a little Brahman boy. The visible battle-field was an Indian city, famous for its huge, many-towered temple and secret temple-houses, and those other houses where little boys are trained for the dramatic societies of the South. No one, I suppose, has ever discovered, or could discover, the number of children ruined there. Once a boy crosses the doorstep of such a house every influence that is brought to bear upon him makes for the warping of his mind and the pollution of his soul, so that long before it begins to think, the pure child-spirit is stained to the dye those evil powers have ordained shall be the colour of his life.
Sometimes in the midst of such an hour, when the fate of the child seemed to swing backwards and forwards and one could not foresee how the matter would end, we have been conscious of a sudden release of power; and we have known, though we could not prove it, that somewhere prayer had set loose great forces of deliverance. "It came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun." So we connect prayer offered in an American city with deliverance wrought in an Indian city. When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed.
All through the afternoon of that day (July 29) the forces of evil had fought hard for the possession of the child, and they had all but won. Then suddenly they withdrew. At once the woman who knew the baby's danger prepared for her journey, and that night saw her in the train for the South. Twelve hours later he was in our arms.
He was a beautiful boy, "fair unto God," as they said of the infant Moses: the kind for whom the scouts of the dramatic societies are always on the watch. We have never once succeeded in saving such a child after those other hands have had him in their grasp.
We called him Sura, meaning Valour, and when we heard of that midnight or early morning vigil on the day of his salvation, can you wonder that we looked for valorous life on earth for him, child of such prayer? It was not to be. Before the friend who prayed that prayer and sent that gift came to see us in Dohnavur, as he did eighteen months later, little Valour, an unstained little soldier, had passed into the fuller life.
Waste? What do the blessed people who are training that boy to highest heavenly uses say about it now? What do the angels say? What does his Saviour say? Does He not call him His little brother? and to that other brother I think He has already said, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren - unto this My little brother - ye have done it unto Me." Then, was it waste? -From Windows by Amy Carmichael | | |
|
|
~Books worth reading~
|
The child of an Indian village, from a Hindu family, heard one afternoon of a God who loved her, and she lived from then on under His influence. Read this remarkable story of the girl who was embraced by the love of God and overcame every kind of opposition and trouble.
A delightfully personal collection of Elizabeth Prentiss' letters and personal recollections of friends and family. This book gives a glimpse into the spiritual life of one of America's greatest Christian women.
 |
If
By Amy Carmichael / Christian Literature Crusade
|
A little book about Calvary love in common life. Based on 1st Corinthians 13. Sharply convicting about the true nature of Calvary love. Not for the fainthearted!
 |
Vanya
By Myrna Grant / Strang Communications
|
Out of the dark shadows of Soviet atheism rose a fearless young man whose boldness for Christ would make him a testimony to millions of believers around the world. This is the true story of Ivan (Vanya) Moiseyev, a soldier in the Soveit Red Army who was ruthlessly persecuted and incarcerated for his faith. Through two years of trial and torture, he never denied his Saviour, and he never hesitated to share the Gospel with anyone who would listen. Twenty years after his martyrdom, Vanya's powerful testimony-which included angelic visitations and a miraculous appearance of the apostle John-continues to change lives.
Amy Carmichael was always ready to gather what our Father is always ready to give. To her there were no problems which were not met by the promises found in the Word. "Thou openest Thine hand, they are filled with Good." In 1931 an accident confined this missionary almost entirely to her room for the remaining twenty years of her life Taught and led of God through these difficult circumstances, Amy shared in writing to her "family" these spiritual insights learned. In these pages you will find some of these truths that she gleaned where He so abundantly gave.
This little book seemed to set an utterly impossible standard. It was however, the same standard I found in the words of Jesus: If you want to be my disciple, you must give up right to yourself, take up the Cross, and follow.
Letters written originally to the Dohnavur Fellowship Invalid's League, but now shared with any ill who care to have this rose from our brier. 198 pages, softcover from Christian Literature Crusade.
Aunt Jane's Hero was first published in 1871. With vivid pictures of life and character, it's object is to depict a home whose happiness flows from the living rock, Christ Jesus. It protests also against the extravagance and other evils of the times, which tends to check the growth of such homes, and aims to show that there are still treasures of love and peace on earth, that may be bought without money and without price.
Little Susy's Six Birthdays was written by Elizabeth Prentiss, author of Stepping Heavenward, Flower of the Family, as well as many other books and stories. Mrs. Prentiss had written this story in one setting and with no corrections. She wanted the book for a few of her friends. It gave her pleasure to have people request the first book which led her on too write the companion stories. You will discover these stories to be very fine reading for your children. Mrs. Prentiss does not gloss over the failings of little children. She uses the characters in her stories to teach adults and children how to behave. Enjoy the humor, pathos, and love found in these delightful tales. May you be blessed by Elizabeth Prentiss work; it was her desire. Recommended for ages 8 to 12.
The Flower of the Family a book for girls, was written in 1856. It was the greatest desire of Elizabeth Prentiss, author of Stepping Heavenward, that our young people would know Jesus, and in knowing Him find true happiness. The Flower of the Family is the touching story of Lucy, the second child of ten children. Though often threatened by poverty, this family finds a real sanctuary in a real God. Elizabeth Prentiss has once again brought the trials and cares of this world into perspective for the Christian in this lovely story of a young lady who is dedicated to Christ.Recommended for ages 8 to 12.
Dear Mrs. Grey, Some years ago... I was struck with the difference between your family and those of others...I am the mother of six children, the eldest a boy of fourteen, and the youngest a baby. In deep humility, in bitter disappointment, my husband and myself have come to this conclusion: our boys and girls are exceptionally troublesome, or we are very bad managers. Our homelife I beset with disorder and discomfort, which is becoming intolerable... can you, and will you, undertake the task of spending a day or two, more or less, as you think best, in our family? Could this future generation be saved for Heaven? The Home at Greylock is a book for child rearing. Mrs. Grey's wisdom will be yours, and your family a bit of Heaven on earth.
Urbane and His Friends is quite likely the best book Elizabeth Prentiss wrote. Christians today will be personally blessed by the questions discussed and principles clarified. Mrs. Prentiss explains, encourages and urges us onward in our walk with Jesus through her characters and their lives. We are admonished to go to God expecting to find Him. May your expectations be realized! Recommended for ages 12 and up.
 |
Golden Hours
By Elizabeth Prentiss / Solid Ground Christian Books
|
This is a rare glimpse into the heart of a sufferer. Elizabeth Payson Prentiss was a daughter of Edward Payson, one of the great revival preachers of the early 1800's. Her famous hymn More Love to Thee, O Christ and book Stepping Heavenward are familiar to many. This volume of heart-hymns, written during the most trying years of her life, was unavailable for 100 years. A priceless gift to those who find themselves faced with the stewardship of suffering from a gracious sufferer who sat at the feet of Jesus and learned of Him.
"How dreadfully old I'm getting! Sixteen!" writes Katherine in her new journal on January 15, 1831. Follow her on her poignant journey from sweet 16 to adulthood as she struggles to become obedient to God's will. Her discovery that true happiness comes from giving oneself to others will immeasurably enrich your own spiritual walk. 300 pages, softcover from Barbour.
|
|
![83234: God"s Missionary](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/tiny/8/83234.gif "83234: God"s Missionary")
![37345X: Aunt Jane"s Hero](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/tiny/3/37345x.gif "37345X: Aunt Jane"s Hero")
