A Solid Rock in the Tempest

I used to be a slave to circumstance. I was happy with my walk with God, but I bowed to the devil’s lies when he tempted me, telling me, “What if this or that happens?” or “What will you do in the very last days?” These questions scared me. “You will be too weak to remain faithful to God,” he said. I preferred to avoid thoughts of future temptations, because I feared my own weakness, not trusting in God’s strength. But as God has deepened my experience, I realize that there is no need for such fears in my heart. I only need to build my character on a foundation – on a Rock. Jesus says, “Whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.” Matthew 7:24-25. As I read those words, I finally understood how I was to stand in future trials: Jesus said, “Whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them...” He is only asking us to be obedient to Him now; and we can be assured that no rain, or floods, or winds, beating upon us, shall be able to cause us to fall. All Jesus wants is for us to give Him today. Our consecration to Him needs to be a daily matter. When we choose to live for Him today, and choose Him again tomorrow, daily consecrating ourselves to Him in the morning, and living for Him all day long; then we can grow closer to Him, and stronger in Him, daily. He is smoothing away the roughness from our characters through our daily experiences. He is strengthening our weak points by allowing trials and temptations to come our way that test and exercise those areas of weakness. But we are promised that “God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13. Jesus said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing.” John 15:5. We are totally dependant upon our Saviour for any good works or obedience to God on our part. And we are assured that if we abide in Christ, we will bear much fruit – the fruit of the Spirit. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23. So whatever fruit of the Spirit we may need, we will bear it when we abide in Christ. It is that abiding presence that we all really need. In fact, it is what we all long for deep down in our hearts. We need the presence of the holy “God of peace” in our weak hearts, that we may be made strong. “Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you.” James 4:8. It is by drawing nigh to God that we abide in Him. As our relationships with God are strengthened, our characters are strengthened; and we are better able to meet with severe tests and trials. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Verse 7. When we submit to God, He enables us to resist the devil. And as we continue to do so, the devil will continue to flee from us – even if it seems like he is coming at us with stronger temptations and trials. One reason I was afraid of the prophesied crisis of the last days was this: I knew the truth; I knew what would happen; I knew what I would need to do; but I was not doing those things then. If I was not close enough to God then, I would obviously be too weak when difficulties and hardships took an extreme form. So, as we can see from my own experience, theological knowledge cannot help us in the end, or now – what we need is to abide in Christ the vine, to stand upon Christ the Rock, against Whom the gates of hell cannot prevail. So how do we abide in Christ the vine? John 15:10 says, “If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.” O dear friend, if you can relate to this article, John 15 is a chapter for you to read and really ponder! I cannot explain to you how to abide in Christ, because it is something that individuals must find for themselves through the abundant wisdom and love of God; but what better way to learn than through God Himself as He speaks to you through His holy word, the Bible! Take time for Jesus every day, learning what His voice sounds like in His word, and throughout the day, listen for and obey His voice in every slightest conviction as He speaks to you personally through your conscience. Talk to Him as a friend to a friend any time throughout the day, knowing that He is always there. This is a mutual relationship with mutual communication. This is your start for the abiding experience. Jesus says in Matthew 21:44, “Whosoever shall fall on this Stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.” So we must fall on Christ and be broken. What does that mean? I often think of a horse when I read that. To break a horse means to train it. If a horse is truly, fully broken, she will trust her master and obey his every command. If something spooks her, she will not buck and run and throw off her master. She will trust him when he commands her to be calm. Do you see the comparison? When we fall on Christ and are broken, it means that we have learned to trust and obey Him completely. When life gets scary, we don’t “throw off” our Master, if you know what I mean. And when we truly trust and obey our Master, we will not end up getting lost and feeling very far away from the One we had left in a moment of trial. But Jesus is ever ready to seek us out and draw us closer to Him, if we only ask Him to. And He is never far away. You see, we need to be abiding in Christ, standing on a solid Rock, when tempests of trial and temptation come our way. And when that great storm, relentless in its fury, hits the waters all around us, we will be safe on the Rock of our salvation. Though the waves rush over us, though we become cold and wet and uncomfortable, we will not be swept away into the angry waters. He will keep us in perfect peace when we focus on Him. And the stronger the storm becomes, the more firmly we will hold on to our Rock. And He promises, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my Helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Hebrews 13:5,6. So meet me on the Rock – that’s where I’ll be. I’ll be there for eternity. Infinite strength to meet each test; A Solid Rock in the tempest. ~Sister G. If this article contains principles that you feel a need to learn more about, here are some things for you to read: John 15; Isaiah 2:10-22; Deuteronomy 31:6; Proverbs 3:25,26; Proverbs 1:27-30,33; Daniel 2:34; Isaiah 32:17-19; Isaiah 28:16; Isaiah 43:1,2.

The Struggle

Early one morning, a chrysalis can be seen dangling from a small weed. Inside, a butterfly is trapped within his own dark, small world. Not long before, he had enjoyed a simple life of crawling on the plant which he had hatched on, eating the greenery until there were holes large enough to crawl through. Life had been easy.
But he could not remain a caterpillar forever. There was something better in store for him. He was destined to fly with other butterfly companions in the clear blue sky. But between the caterpillar and his butterfly destiny lay a long, difficult process.
And that is where he finds himself now. He has worked hard spinning his chrysalis. He has waited long days as the whole make-up of his body began to transform into something totally different. And now it has been almost two weeks. He has wings, but they are tightly enclosed in his little green chamber. He has a hard task to do before he will be free from his chrysalis. This is the reality. But does he now stop to question whether the struggle before him is worthy of his effort? Does he wonder if he should not just stay in his chrysalis for the rest of his life – or even, just one more day? No. He gets right to work, stretching his wings, and using all six of his new legs in the effort to break free from his prison. The sun begins to rise upon him, and the dew glistens in beautiful reflection of the soft, bright rays.
A while later, a beautiful butterfly emerges and holds onto his chrysalis as his wings slowly dry. And finally, he takes off for his first flight. Higher, higher, and higher his wings take him, until he is out of our sight.
The hard toil, the long days, and his last dark struggle – all are now rewarded. He has become strong because of the exercise that had at first exhausted him. And wouldn’t you agree that he is in a much better condition than he was before his metamorphosis?
Pain, sorrow, affliction, and hardship may come to us in this life; but let us always look upward to our Father and Creator, and let us look forward to brighter days. We are assured that all things work together for good to those who love God. Christ will bring us forth in victory, and we will more fully comprehend the mercy and love of God in allowing hard times to come to us.
Here are three of my favorite promises from God’s word:
“He shall call upon Me, and I WILL answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.” Psalms 91:15.
“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57.
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33.
~Dylann, a fellow sojourner.

Just a Little Flower

I was walking one morning, enjoying some time with God in the country setting around my home. As I was walking and talking with the Lord, I stopped at the side of the road to pick a flower, putting it behind my ear for safe-keeping on my way home. Then I went on, forgetting about the little flower as I prayed in the fresh air and sunshine.

Then I heard a quiet noise behind me in the road, like something small had fallen to the ground. I felt behind my ear, and to my dismay, I felt no little flower! So I turned around and frantically looked at the gravel beneath me; but to no avail. I finally saw it a few feet away from me, and picking it up gently, I put it back in its place in my hair. I breathed a sigh of relief and moved on feeling secure because it was with me.

I began pondering the situation. Why did I care so much about just a little flower? It was just one among many of its kind growing along this road; I could easily have replaced it. Why bother going to all of that trouble to find that one? To this day, I honestly don’t understand why I wanted it so badly. Yet its incomprehensibility makes it all the more closely parallel the tender, loving care of our Savior toward us.

When we fall and are lost, Jesus seeks us high and low, far and near, until He finds us, lying alone on the ground. He gently lifts up our fragile form, holding us close to Himself. We are safe and sound in His keeping, and He feels secure to move on. As He goes on, He picks up more fallen, lost souls to carry home with Him.

We have nothing to worry about, because Jesus will always care for us – just as I was so careful with that little flower. He says in Matthew 6:28-34, "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? Or, What shall we drink? Or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."

Let’s take God at His word. He says, "All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: the grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God will stand for ever." Isaiah 40: 6-7.

In His loving care,

Sister G.

P.S. This article is not for girls only! Let’s all take a lesson from one of God’s most beautiful and fragile creations!

In the Rain

A positive victory over a negative spirit

We hear so much these days being positive and negative, optimist and pessimist; and it’s generally accepted that positive is the way to go. Really, we need to accept things the way they come to us from the hand of our loving, all-wise Father in heaven, and with a humble, happy attitude. In fact, why would we not do so, when we know that "ALL things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose"? Romans 8:28. God’s word says, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." 1 Thessalonians 5:18. It is God’s will that we be happy and thankful despite circumstances. Isn’t that wonderful? God doesn’t want us to be unhappy. And it is by His power and grace that we can be preserved from having a negative spirit.

The way we look at situations honestly does have a major effect on our happiness in general. We need to let God take full control of our hearts and lives, including our thoughts and attitude. When we let Him reign within, He fills us with peace no matter what comes our way. 2 Thessalonians 3:16 says, "Now the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always by all means." Even trials give us deeper peace as we learn to approach them having Jesus with us, in us, and through us.

Now I wish to tell you about an experience of mine that happened just a few weeks ago. Personal testimonies always seem to have more power and deeper meaning than talking without sharing a real-life, practical example.

I woke up one morning and noticed that my left foot was a little swollen near the toes. But I went about the day, hardly noticing it at all. However, I noticed later in the evening that my foot was pretty swollen in that area, and standing or walking on it was something I had to do with special care. My shoe felt tighter than before.

Over the next couple of days I struggled with a complaining, whining attitude, as my left foot had not healed yet and both of my feet had a slight skin problem. I had found myself telling my family all about my foot problems – which is fine, but considering the fact that I had already told them more than once and they well knew what was going on down there, it became apparent to me that my complaining was an issue that needed to be dealt with. Hence the struggle. I ended up on my knees multiple times a day over this issue.

A few days later brought me a powerful experience that closely corresponds with the following E.G.W. quote: "God’s children are always being tested in the furnace of affliction. If they endure the first trial, it is not necessary for them to pass through a similar ordeal the second time; but if they fail, the trial is brought to them again and again, each time being still more trying and severe. Thus opportunity after opportunity is placed before them of gaining the victory and proving themselves true to God. But if they continue to manifest rebellion, God is compelled at last to remove His Spirit and light from them." MS 69, 1912.

So I will tell you about my next ("still more trying and severe") test.

It was getting later and later, and I still had not done my outdoor chores, thinking it might be a better time that evening. I decided to do them after I took a shower. When I got out, it was late enough that I could not wait any longer to do my work. But it was growing cloudy and dark. These were definitely rain clouds coming in, and I did not want to do my work in the rain.

On top of this, my feet had still not healed up and I had a fresh little cut on my right ankle. And do you think I wanted to put on my slip-on shoes (the left of which felt too small for my foot) and after having just taken a shower, go out in the rain for fifteen minutes or so, giving water to my pets? I secretly hoped that somebody would offer to do it for me. And the other thought that went through my head was that maybe they didn’t need water since it was raining anyway. But I knew that they did not all have access to the rain water.

I was tempted to complain to my family about it, but was convicted to be positive. I struggled hard. I went to my room and knelt, asking for God’s help with my attitude. I then put my outdoor clothes on and headed toward the back door.

As I stepped out the door, I realized that it was really pouring much harder than I had thought. Satan was quick to tell me that this situation was worth being unhappy over. Yet I knew that if I went about my work murmuring, I would not be happy or at peace with Jesus. So I prayed while standing next to the house, sheltered by the wall from the rain. I told the Lord that I knew I would be happier if I went into the situation with Him; that I did not want to complain; that I wanted to be happy in all situations. And I told Him that I knew He could make me happy no matter what happened in my earthly life. I asked Jesus for His grace to do my work with a Christlike attitude. And I began working with a deep assurance that my prayers were answered.

I quickly made my way to the hose, laughing to myself, "I don’t know why I need the hose for anything when it’s raining so hard!"

Things went so efficiently as I watered my pets that night. I wasted no time going back and forth to do something somewhere where I had already been. I multitasked more than I had ever thought to do before. I was very quick, because "a voice" kept letting me know what would be the most efficient task to do next.

After just a little while into this, I was enjoying myself so much that I began to sing as I went about my work. Like I said earlier, even trials can give us deeper peace when we have Jesus with us. And I experienced that to the full in the rain that night; I felt so near to God that if I had been locked outside in this condition, it would not have mattered to me at all. My peace was deeper than a flood created by a thousand years of this hard rain could ever be – because my peace came from Jesus Christ.

Drops of rain trickled down my forehead as I bent over or leaned forward. I paused in my song of praise only to laugh at my drenched condition. I practically forgot about my foot and other problems; it did not hurt nearly as much as it had bothered me when I made a point to think about it.

I came in the house toward the end of the song and mixed my singing with laughter as I saw the expressions on the faces I passed by on my way up to my room. I came back down with a towel over my clothes and sat at the table for a very pleasant time of family worship.

You see, happiness does not in the slightest degree depend on circumstances; it is the way we learn and choose to deal with every situation of our lives. Just pause to think of it this way: God can order and provide the circumstances of our individual lives however He sees fit, and His deepest desire is for us to be happy. So when you put it together, you can only realize that all of the events of your life – whether they seem good or bad – were ordained of God for your very best interest and peace for life and eternity. Besides, it just does not fit for a Christian to be unhappy over something that is only earthly and temporary, not effecting one’s promise of eternity.

Are you unhappy? Why not consider changing your attitude? Just don’t make the same mistake I have made before. When cherished sin has separated me from Jesus, I have at times tried to tell myself that I was not at peace for false reasons, such as my attitude – thus excusing my real sin. But if you hear the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit convicting you that you, too, have an attitude problem, just yield yourself to Jesus and be happy!

Let’s all take a lesson from the murmuring Israelites who missed out on so many blessings because they refused to see God’s providence and leading, and simply trust in Him. God says to us, "Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come." 1 Corinthians 10:10-11.

God bless and keep you all in His infinite love and joy – come what may!

~Sister G.

He is Able To Keep Us!

“But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.” 2 Thess. 3:3
“Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.” Jude 1:21,24
_____As these two verses say, God is able to keep us from evil, from giving into the temptations that the devil will throw at us. God can only keep us if we ask Him to; we must be willing and we must be following what He has said in His holy word! We need to be surrendered to Christ, and walking and talking with Him all throughout the day!
_____He longs to keep us from doing evil, from falling to Satan’s lies and temptations! Why don’t we give Christ our whole heart today, right now, and invite Him to be our Guide, to be our Protector each minute of the day?! Tell Him, “Jesus, pilot me, be my Guard and Guide! Carry me through!” He will never fail you! Have faith in Him! “But seek ye first the kingdom of God... and all these things shall be added unto you”! Matthew 6:33.
_____We are on an upward journey; we can't afford to give in to Satan’s temptations and start going downward! We must resist the devil and he will flee from us!
_____Keep looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, as you continue on the upward journey to the glory land!
Posted by: Sister K.

A Changing of Heart!

"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23,24.

"A new heart also will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you. I will take the stony heart out of your flesh and give you an heart of flesh. And I will put My spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and ye shall keep my judgments and do them." Ezekiel 36:26,27

_____I want to tell you a true story. Though sad at first, it turned out glad. To say the truth, I will be telling you a story of the changing of my own heart - the changing of my heart from not desiring God as I should, and desiring the evil things of this world, to then, hating the things of this world, and desiring and loving God!
_____It will be most hard for you to believe, but praise the Lord for not forsaking me!
_____Let me now begin.
_____For two whole weeks there was a mighty war going on in my heart. It was like I was standing on a cliff, at the very edge. I could choose to go off to death, (the things of this world) or to turn around and run to the safety of the Mighty Rock, Jesus Christ!
_____I realized I needed to stop playing Christian, that I needed to either be one in heart and soul or not be one at all. Satan was putting lies in my head, like: "If you surrender all to Christ you won't be able to do all these 'fun' things. You would be missing out on 'real life.'" But then the Lord would speak to my heart: "Child, there is true happiness and fun walking with Me!" I kept going back and forth. Do I choose to throw God and a Christian life out the door and live for the world, or throw the world out the door and live for God? That was a question that was warring.
_____I stopped having morning devotions(stopped eating spiritually); I hardly prayed. All that would fill my mind was me telling myself made up stories and thinking of movies I've seen. (I'm even now ashamed to write so.)
_____I finally didn't want anything to do with God and the Bible. (Most terrible thing.) I turned my back. I was shocked at myself when I got the desire to watch something I would have never dreamed of watching before. The war kept going on.
_____No one would have known, for I just put this pretty smile on my face and acted like everything was go lucky good. (Terrible, isn't it?) But I knew I was miserable. My heart was longing for something. I thought that in forsaking a Christian walk with God, I would maybe find it. But I then realized I was terribly wrong!
_____I could feel the Lord calling me and calling me to come to Him!! At times it was most strong! I just didn't know how to go about it! I knew, yes, surrender to Him; but I just didn't have the power, the will to do so. The verse in Matthew 11:28-30 kept coming to mind: "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart. And ye shall find rest unto your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light!"
_____There were times I would make a couple steps to safety, but then I would turn around and make those steps back to "death"(desire of this world).
When I finally decided to give up and stop playing Christian and throw it out the door, everything just seemed to go all terribly wrong!
_____I was washing the dishes yesterday afternoon, and I asked myself, "What is wrong with me, I'm so selfish and mean! I used to be kind and love everyone. What is going on, I'm so miserable! I thought letting go on religion would make me some how 'happy.'" Then I remembered a story I had read a couple weeks ago in a YD issue, about a girl who went through the same thing I did. But after she decided to give up being a Christian and all, and everything just seemed to go wrong, she then realized how much she needed Christ in her life, how she couldn't live without Him and be truly happy. That's what happened to me. I realized how I just was not able to live without Christ, how I need Him!! How much He truly was a big part of my every day life!! How so many times I would tell Him about something, and after doing so, how much greatly better I felt!! How much I actually talked to Him and told Him things, how much I just needed Him!!
_____I then ran away, I fled from the cliff like a lamb running away from a lion who wants to kill them, I ran to the great safety of the Mighty Rock, Jesus Christ!
_____It wasn't until then, did I have peace and great joy! It wasn't until I realized my wrong in thinking I didn't need Christ and I came back to Him, did I have the victory in the great war between choosing to live for Christ or the world.
_____Even now I smile as I think about it and look back, how God led me!
_____Also one thing that kept me from turning my back all the way from Christ was how I knew my family and friends would take it. I just couldn't break their hearts so! And most of all, Christ's!
_____Praise the Lord for never forsaking me!!!!!
_____I feel ashamed to be writing this and it all being true, but let's turn away from the fact about how terrible it was for me to want nothing to do with God for that short time and let's look at how He rescued me and picked me up from that terrible pit!! Praise Him!!
_____My joy is full, but I am not to be content, I am to grow closer to God each and everyday, spending time with Him!!
_____At this time I would like to give special thanks to two good dear friends of mine: Sister C. and Sister G. for all they have said to encourage me on the Upward Journey!! God has truly spoken greatly to me through them! Thank you girls for it all! Praise the Lord!! You both are SUCH a wonderful blessing!!
_____I want to close with a Bible verse and a poem by a fellow sojourner.
_____"I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise to our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord." Psalm 40:1-3.

Oh My Lord, Help Me Now!

Oh my Lord, oh help me now,
Help me to get through this all,
Oh how my heart longs for Thee,
Oh come so very close to me.
___That I might feel Thy presence flow,
___So close to me that I shall know,
___That You have come to rescue me
___From all my sins to make me free.
To be the one
You decided me to be.
To live that all might see
That You have come to rescue me.
___And that You would gladly do the same for them,
___If they would only ask-
___And turn to You, a loving friend
___Then they shall be rescued at last;
From all their sins and be made free,
And some day soon go to Heaven bright and free,
And see our King that loves us so abundantly!
Oh thank You Lord for helping me!
___For coming to my rescue and my plea
___Your lovingkindness is all I need.
___For Lord, if You live in me,
___I will have it all, for that's what I needed.
By Sabrina, a fellow sojourner.
November 30th, 2008.

_____The Lord changed and is still changing my heart! He will do the same for you, though sinful you may be, just turn to Him, flee from that terrible cliff, (the desires and things of this world) and run to the safety of Jesus Christ!! (saving treasures in heaven.)
_____We are on an Upward Journey to a great and glorious land, let's continue on, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, and our hand in His, each step of the way!!
_____Even so, come Lord Jesus!!

Posted by: Sister K.

A Lesson from My Toothpaste

_____The other day, I opened the bathroom cabinet to brush my teeth. As I was holding my tube of toothpaste, I actually paused to read it for some reason. The words that were emphasized the most were: “Gently removes surface stains.” Through these words, God reminded me of His power to remove the stains from my character. And isn’t He gentle about it? But He does it thoroughly, cleansing away each stain, to make us whiter than snow. Here are the gentle words of our heavenly Father: “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord; though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18.
_____He also says to us, “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do well…” Isaiah 1:16-17. There is some effort on our part involved. Just think of it this way: if we want our teeth to be clean, do we leave it up to the toothpaste to do it all? Of course we don’t. We get our toothbrushes out and brush thoroughly until the difference is seen and felt. When we see a stain in our characters, we need to accept the help of the Holy Spirit, and then believe and do according to His will and leading. We take hold of God’s strength as our effort is combined with His divine power, to remove stains “and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” And for a tangible example, we use the toothpaste (like the Holy Spirit) AND the toothbrush (our cooperation). Neither the toothpaste nor the toothbrush will whiten our teeth all by itself. The cooperation is so necessary and essential.
_____Friends, do we spend enough time with God? Do we devote our time to Him as we should? It isn’t a one time thing. Ask yourself, “How often do I brush my teeth?” We need to take our walk with God more seriously than our dental care. When we are baptized, or give our lives to God, is that the end? I cannot imagine that any of us would say, “My teeth are clean. I brushed them once when I was ten years old; that’s enough.” Do you know that the spiritual things are more real than the physical, tangible things that we come to take so seriously? Paul says, “...Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
_____May we diligently take care of our outward and inward man; and in faith, cooperate with our heavenly Father.

In God-given faith, hope, and charity,
Sister G.