Author: Gospel Folio Press

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 15; Proverbs 12; 1 Peter 4

The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.  Proverbs 18:10

In Tokyo there is a tower 2,080 feet high and strong enough to withstand the earthquakes that often rock Japan. Engineering technology allows it to sway with the most violent shocks and absorb them without cracking. The tower is called Sky Tree. We live in times when many of God’s people around the world are going through appalling troubles and sufferings. When such come upon us we need to run to the Lord, our strong tower. Trials and suffering may reel and rock us, but we will not snap or crack. How grateful we should be for the Lord who for His people is a strong tower of refuge. —W. Ross Rainey

Jesus, before Thy face we fall—Our Lord, our life, our hope, our all!
For we have nowhere else to flee—No sanctuary, Lord, but Thee!
—Medley

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 14; Proverbs 11; 1 Peter 3

For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.  2 Corinthians 8:9

The word “rich” is exhausted describing Christ’s preincarnate glory. With the Father and the Spirit, the Son of God dwelt in unapproachable light. Yet He willingly relinquished His unassailable position in heaven in order to become the servant who sacrificed His life at the cross. Our poverty was commensurate with His riches; we possessed nothing valuable in ourselves. Yet in matchless grace He enriched us at His own terrible expense. Thank the Lord for such a gift! —K. R. Keyser

Thine the cost and Thine the suffering, Thine the cross and shame;
Ours the never-ending blessing, through Thy precious name.
—P. Ellis

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 12-13; Proverbs 10; 1 Peter 2

And when they came unto the borders of Jordan…the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by Jordan, a great altar to see to.  Joshua 22:10

Building this huge altar was a mistake which almost led to a Jewish civil war. It proves a valuable principle. Unity and the tools that preserve unity are in God’s hands. We cannot fabricate it though our own cleverness. The unity of the Church is preserved by the power of the Holy Spirit as Christians pursue a better understanding of Scripture. Unity is not forged by fabricated “altars of witness” such as human creeds and Church traditions (Eph. 4:3, 13-15). The closer we draw to Christ the closer we will draw to one another. —W. A. H.

The Church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord,
She is His new creation by water and the Word.
—S. J. Stone

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 11:4-35; Proverbs 9; 1 Peter 1

And thou shalt shew thy son in that day, saying, This is done because of that which the Lord did unto me when I came forth out of Egypt.  Exodus 13:8

It is our duty as Christian parents to constantly remind our children and grandchildren that any blessing that has come our way is from the Lord. It will instill in them a fear of the Lord and an appreciation of His goodness, which will never leave them. On the other hand, a negative and complaining spirit will likewise be contagious. —Brian Russell

Jesus paid it all;
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.
—E. M. Hall

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 9 to 10:10; Proverbs 6:20 to 7:27; Mark 16

These were the potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges: there they dwelt with the king for his work.  1 Chronicles 4:23

What an honour to serve the King of Kings! He has a task for you! If you would “work for Him” the essential thing is to “dwell with Him”. Listen to His voice, learn His will, submit to His authority, and follow His leading.  —George Hall

Is your place a small place? 
Tend it with care! He set you there!
Is your place a large place? 
Guard it well! He set you there!
Whate’er your place, it is not yours alone, but His! 
He set you there!
—John Oxenham

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 8; Proverbs 5 to 6:19; Mark 15:24-47

Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his.  Psalm 30:4

Singing is an important part of our worship. When God created the universe, the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy (Job 38:7). When God delivered Israel from Egypt, they sang the first recorded song in Scripture (Ex. 15:1-2). In the Psalms, eleven times the psalmist encourages us to, “Sing unto the Lord.” Paul exhorts us to speak to ourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord (Eph. 5:19). The last song recorded in Scripture is the song of the Lamb (Rev. 15:3). Have you a song to sing to the Lord today? —K. C. Ung

I feel like singing all the time, my tears are wiped away; 
For Jesus is a Friend of mine, I’ll serve Him every day; 
I’m singing, singing, singing all the time.
—E. P. Hammon

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 7; Proverbs 4; Mark 15:1-23

The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.  Proverbs 4:18

Past navigators of the oceans would look to the heavens to find their compass bearings. What would Henry Hudson and others have discovered if they had not relied upon the position of the stars for their direction? Even today, from Hudson’s Bay to the Sea of Tranquility, travel involves direction finding and accurate bearings. For believers, we are led by the Spirit of Christ and also the certain and necessary light of the Scriptures of truth. And so our path shines. —Mark Fenn

True north, there’s a strong steady light that is guiding us home,
True north, in the lingering light we are never alone. 
His shining light, please show the way,
Star of the night, light as the day.
—Twila Paris

DAILY?READINGS: Numbers 6; Proverbs 3; Mark 14:53-72

…I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him and would not let him go… Song of Solomon 3:4

Harry Ironside’s comment is as valid today as the moment he said it. “Nothing gives our Lord more delight than to find a heart that joys in Him for what He is in Himself. Too often we think rather of the gifts, the gracious favours He bestows. It is right and proper that these should stir us to thanksgiving; but it is as we get to know Himself and to joy in His love that we really worship in blissful communion.” —Pete Smith

The Bride eyes not her garments,
But her dear Bridegroom’s face;
I will not gaze at glory,
But on my King of grace!
—Anne R. Cousin