God: Providence

God: Providence

Comforted by God's Promises
A preacher going to a country church one Sunday morning was overtaken by a deacon who remarked, "What a bitter cold morning, sir. I am sorry the weather is so wintry." "Oh," replied the minister, "I was just thanking God for keeping His Word." The man stared at him and asked, "What do you mean?" "Well, over 3,000 years ago God promised that cold and heat should not cease, so I am strengthened by this weather to emphasize the sureness of His promises." A Fasting Father Takes a Meal
Siamese Bettas are called "fighting fish" because the males will fight each other to the death. Usually, if only one of the species is kept in a fish tank, it gets along well with the other fish. Yet in reproduction, it is the male that makes the nest. Using its saliva and air, the male builds a nest of tiny bubbles, each smaller than a BB-shot. When the nest is about the diameter of a coffee cup, the male mates with the female and the eggs fall. The male gathers the eggs and places each one in an air bubble.
After mating and during the gestation period, the male remains under the bubble nest, not eating. He carefully catches each developing egg when a bubble breaks and places it in a new bubble. He continues this effort around the clock under a forced fast for about two weeks. When the young hatch out, they usually are too small to be seen by the naked eye, but the male fighting fish cares for them until they begin to leave the nest and adhere to the sides of the breeding tank looking like little shards of broken glass.
Suddenly the time of parenting is over. It is as though an alarm goes off inside the fish, as it turns from minister to marauder. If the breeder is not alert, he may lose all the young to the hungry father, who then eats up the very ones he so diligently cared for.
How fortunate is man that God has designed parents so that though the young may become independent and venture in life on their own, unlike these fish, ours are not short-term parents, but lifetime parents, even as God is our eternal parent.

Wonder of God's Providence
The year was 1772. One of those almost impenetrable fogs had settled down over the city of London.
In a dismal flat in the heart of the crowded East End, a man stood gazing into the fireplace. Then suddenly, overcome by emotions of discouragement, gripped by fears that he could not name, he threw his cloak about him and walked resolutely toward the door. He turned the key and walked out into the night.
Carefully he groped his way across the pavement and felt for the iron horse's head and the ring of the hitching post. Then, guided by the curbstone, he made his way to the nearest corner, where he knew a horse-drawn cab was always waiting.
He opened its door and ordered the driver, "To the Thames, sir!" For in his deep depression there seemed no way out but to jump from the bridge.
It should have taken 15 minutes, but after an hour and a half of negotiating the dark and foggy streets they realized they were hopelessly lost. In desperation, he decided to walk and paid the driver his fare.
But as he alighted, his arm struck a familiar object. It was the iron horse's head of the hitching post that to him was so familiar. After an hour and a half of fitful wandering he had alighted in front of his own home.
So impressed was he that he climbed the stairs to his flat, lighted the lamp, and knelt to ask God to forgive him for what he had thought to do. And then, there in that same room that had so lately overcome him with its gloom, he wrote these immortal words that were long a favorite hymn:
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break
In blessings on your head.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.
Yes, it was William Cowper who learned that night something of the wonder of God's providence.

Lord of the Impossible
Research into the migratory habits of quail in the Middle East makes the miracle of the Lord's provision all the more exciting. Each autumn, the birds fly from central Europe to Turkey. There they prepare for a crossing of the Mediterranean. The flight across the ocean is done in a single flight at a very high speed. Any bird that falters falls into the sea. When the birds approach the land, they drop down in altitude but maintain their high speed. As soon as they are over the coastland they land exhausted and completely drained. They lie motionless for hours while they regain their strength. For years Bedouins who lived near the coast harvested the easy prey. Recently a law was passed and enforced which prohibited quail trapping.
The amazing thing about the biblical account of the provision of the quail is that the birds must have kept flying until they reached the wilderness of Sinai. How did the quail know to fly on farther after their already exhausting flight? Only the Lord who created them could have pressed them on.

New Every Morning
In the Philippines, there is a lovely flower, the hibiscus, whose blossoms range from white, yellow, orange to deep red. They seem to grow everywhere, throughout the days of the year. They color the countryside with great splashes of color and beauty. The blossoms have many shapes and textures.
One of the unique aspects of this flower is that it blooms every morning; however, the bloom lasts only one day. That means that a bouquet only lasts one day.
So it with God's steadfast love which comes with freshness to us every morning. Just as He provided fresh manna each morning for the children of Israel in their wilderness journey, so He provides for us, each day, renewed mercies and faithfulness. But, we must gather fresh manna each day.

Heaven's Grocery Store
As I was walking down life's highway a long time ago,
One day I saw a sign that read "Heaven's Grocery Store."
As I got a little closer, the door came open wide
And when I later found myself, I was standing there inside.
I saw a host of angels that were standing everywhere.
One handed me a basket and said, "My child, now shop with care."
Everything a Christian needed was in that grocery store;
And all you couldn't carry, you could come back next day for more.
First I got some PATIENCE, and LOVE was in the same row.
Further down was UNDERSTANDING, which you need wherever you go.
I got a box or two of WISDOM, and a bag or two of FAITH.
I just could not miss the HOLY GHOST 'cause it was all over the place.
I stopped to get some STRENGTH and COURAGE to help me run this race.
By then my basket was getting full, but I remembered I needed GRACE.
I did not forget SALVATION, for salvation there was free,
So I tried to get enough of that to save both you and me.
Then I started up to the counter, to pay my grocery bill.
For now I thought I had everything to do my Master's will.
At the end of the aisle I saw PRAYER and I just had to put that in,
For I knew when I stepped outside, I would run right into sin.
PEACE and JOY were plentiful. They were on the very last shelf.
SONGS and PRAISES were stacked nearby, so I just helped myself.
Then I said to the angel, "Now, how much do I owe?"
He just smiled and said to me, "Just take them wherever you go."
Again, I smiled at him and said, "How much do I really owe?"
He smiled again and said,
"My child, Jesus paid your bill a long time ago."