May 9

Thursday in Passion Week

Thank God. 2 THESSALONIANS 1. 3.

PERHAPS God has some reason for preventing your more frequent victory. God often wounds us in the leg that we may not go far from His throne. He sees we can better thrive while here below with war than with victory. Fighting is better than conquering on earth. He leaves us many scorpions and serpents to fight with in the wilderness, that we may look the more to the serpent of brass; the Rock of our strength, the Redeemer, even Christ the Lord. Believer in Jesus, this is your inward strife, this is your agony, in which you are like your suffering Redeemer. Thank God that you are allowed to suffer with Him. Thank God that Christ has passed that strife before you; that He can tell and know your sufferings; that if you are His in the garden agony, His you shall be on the cross, His at the broken sepulchre, His on the mount of Ascension, His when the throne is set for judgment, His in suffering, His in glory; share in His earthly agony, share in His heavenly triumph; His in life, in death, in all things. Pour forth, then, without a doubting thought, into His ear of pity, "By Thine agony and bloody sweat, by Thy Cross and Passion, good Lord, deliver me."

From the devil and his dangers, From the pomp and pride of life, Lord, as pilgrims and as strangers, Keep us in the holy strife.

From all lusts, depraved and fleshly, Set our struggling spirits free; Strike the rock, and gushing freshly All our springs be found in Thee.

Thee, by Whom we heaven inherit, We for Thee the world forsake, Called by Thine Almighty Spirit, And received for Jesu's sake.