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God’s Plans are Perfect, February 1
By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country,
dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the
same promise: for he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose
builder and maker is God.
Hebrews 11:9, 10
.
Jesus ascended to the Father as a representative of the human race, and God
will bring those who reflect His image to behold and share with Him His glory.
There are homes for the pilgrims of earth. There are robes for the righteous, with
crowns of glory and palms of victory. All that perplexed us in the providences of
God will then be made plain. The things hard to be understood will then find an
explanation. The mysteries of grace will unfold before us. Where our finite minds
discovered only confusion and broken purposes, we shall see the most perfect and
beautiful harmony. We shall know that infinite love ordered the experiences that
seemed most trying and hard to bear. As we realize the tender care of Him who
makes all things work together for our good, we shall rejoice with joy unspeakable
and full of glory.
Pain cannot exist in the atmosphere of heaven. In the home of the redeemed
there will be no tears, no funeral trains, no badges of mourning. “The inhabitant
shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their
iniquity” (
Isaiah 33:24
). One rich tide of happiness will flow and deepen as
eternity rolls on. Think of this; tell it to the children of suffering and sorrow, and
bid them rejoice in hope.
The nearer we come to Jesus, the more clearly we behold the purity and
greatness of His character, the less we shall feel like exalting self. The contrast
between our characters and His will lead to humiliation of soul and deep heart
searching. The more we love Jesus, the more entirely will self be humbled and
forgotten....
He who is meek in spirit, he who is purest and most childlike, will be made
strong for the battle. He will be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner
man. He who feels his weakness, and wrestles with God as did Jacob, and like
this servant of old cries, “I will not let thee go, except thou bless me,” will go
forth with the fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit. The atmosphere of heaven will
surround him. He will go about doing good. His influence will be a positive force
in favor of the religion of Christ....
Our God is a very present help in time of need. He is acquainted with the most
secret thoughts of our hearts, with all the intents and purposes of our souls. When
we are in perplexity, even before we open to Him our distresses, He is making
arrangements for our deliverance.—
Letter 73, February 1, 1905
, to Drs. D. H.
and Lauretta Kress.
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