|
"Oh that I were as in months past."
- Job 29:2
(The following is from Spurgeon)
Numbers of Christians can view the past with pleasure,
but regard the present with dissatisfaction; they look
back upon the days which they have passed in
communing with the Lord as being the sweetest and
the best they have ever known, but as to the present,
it is clad in a sable garb of gloom and dreariness.
Once they lived near to Jesus, but now they feel that
they have wandered from him, and they say, "Oh that
I were as in months past!" They complain that they
have lost their evidences, or that they have not present
peace of mind, or that they have no enjoyment in the
means of grace, or that conscience is not so tender, or
that they have not so much zeal for God's glory.
The causes of this mournful state of things are manifold-
It may arise through a comparative neglect of prayer, for
a neglected closet is the beginning of all spiritual decline.
Or it may be the result of idolatry. The heart has been
occupied with something else, more than with God; the
affections have been set on the things of earth, instead
of the things of heaven.
A jealous God will not be content with a divided
heart; he must be loved first and best.
He will withdraw the sunshine of his presence from
a cold, wandering heart. Or the cause may be found
in self-confidence and self-righteousness.
Pride is busy in the heart, and self is exalted
instead of lying low at the foot of the cross.
Christian, if you are not now as you "were in months
past," do not rest satisfied with wishing for a return
of former happiness, but go at once to seek your Master,
and tell him your sad state. Ask his grace and strength
to help you to walk more closely with him; humble
yourself before him, and he will lift you up, and give
you yet again to enjoy the light of his countenance.
Do not sit down to sigh and lament. While the
beloved Physician lives there is hope, nay there
is a certainty of recovery for the worst cases!
|