DAILY PRAYER (BY SPURGEON)
May we be a people who will abide by the doctrines of the gospel, come what may. May we not be ashamed to be old fashioned, and to be thought fanatical. May we not wish to be thought cultured, nor aim to keep abreast of the times. May we be side by side with you, O bleeding Savior; and be content to be rejected, be willing to take up unpopular truth, and to hold fast despised teachings of sacred writ even to the end. Oh make us faithful—faithful unto death.
And now Lord, bless our beloved church. You have been very gracious to us; be gracious to us still. Oh that we had health and strength to labor here as our heart desires: may it please you yet to give us these! But if not, use what there is of us till the last is gone, and be pleased ever to find someone or other to go in and out before this people, to feed them with knowledge and understanding.
Amen.
VERSE OF THE DAY (COMMENTARY BY SPURGEON)
“If the world hates you, understand that it hated me before it hated you.” (John 15:18)
It is no new thing for the ungodly to hate the godly, so let us not be surprised if that is our portion. It ought to be quite sufficient for the servant if he is treated as his Lord was; what higher honor than that could he wish to have?
The witness of the Spirit of truth still continues, and Christ’s disciples are still privileged to he co-witnesses even with the Holy Spirit himself; let us take care to avail ourselves of this privilege whenever we can.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCE
We all can learn a lot from a midnight talk with a flying cat.
It’s incredibly hard to find children’s books that are theologically-sound and creative. Sophie and the Heidelberg Cat by Andrew Wilson is a great example of this rare breed of books.
The book follows a little girl named Sophie who is trying to hide from the world after disobeying her parents. But a magical cat takes her on a late night stroll over the rooftops to teach her an important lesson about God’s grace and forgiveness.
The cat teaches Sophie that the Bible tells stories of hundreds of people, and all of them disobey God… except one. So hope doesn’t come from the good things we do. It comes as a gift, from what Jesus has done.
This is a great, fun, and incredibly encouraging book for kids. I hope you’ll make it a part of your child’s library!