God Is Near To All That Call Upon Him, January 4
            
            
              The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him
            
            
              in truth.
            
            
              Psalm 145:18
            
            
              .
            
            
              God is pleased when we keep our faces turned toward the Sun of Righteous-
            
            
              ness.... When we are in trouble and pressed down with anxieties, the Lord is near,
            
            
              and He bids us cast all our care upon Him, because He cares for us....
            
            
              He comes to all His children in their affliction. In time of danger He is their
            
            
              refuge. In sorrow, He offers them joy and consolation. Shall we turn from the
            
            
              Redeemer, the fountain of living water, to hew out for ourselves broken cisterns,
            
            
              which can hold no water? When danger approaches, shall we seek for help from
            
            
              those as weak as ourselves, or shall we flee to Him who is mighty to save? His
            
            
              arms are open wide, and He utters the gracious invitation, “Come unto me, all ye
            
            
              that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
            
            
              It is not the manifestation of His great and awful majesty and unparalleled
            
            
              power that will leave us without excuse if we refuse Him our love and obedience.
            
            
              It is the love, the compassion, the patience, the long-suffering that He has shown
            
            
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              which will witness against those who do not offer Him the willing service of
            
            
              their lives. Those who turn to God with heart and soul and mind will find in Him
            
            
              peaceful security....
            
            
              He knows just what we need, just what we can bear, and He will give us grace
            
            
              to endure every trial and test that He brings upon us. My constant prayer is for a
            
            
              greater nearness to God.
            
            
              Every provision has been made to meet the needs of our spiritual and our
            
            
              moral nature....Light and immortality are brought to light through the Lord Jesus
            
            
              Christ. Jesus has said that He has set before us an open door, and no man can shut
            
            
              it. The open door is before us, and through the grace of Christ, beams of merciful
            
            
              light stream forth from the gates ajar.
            
            
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