Evening and Morning
By Charles Haddon Spurgeon
February 28
Morning
"My
expectation is from Him."—Psalm 62:5.
It is the believer's
privilege to use this language. If he is looking for aught from the world, it
is a poor "expectation" indeed. But if he looks to God for the supply
of his wants, whether in temporal or spiritual blessings, his expectation"
will not be a vain one. Constantly he may draw from the bank of faith, and get
his need supplied out of the riches of God's lovingkindness.
This I know, I had rather have God for my banker than all the Rothschilds. My Lord never fails to honour
His promises; and when we bring them to His throne, He never sends them back
unanswered. Therefore I will wait only at His door, for He ever opens it with
the hand of munificent grace. At this hour I will try Him anew. But we have
"expectations" beyond this life. We shall die soon; and then our
"expectation is from Him." Do we not expect that when we lie upon the
bed of sickness He will send angels to carry us to His bosom? We believe that
when the pulse is faint, and the heart heaves heavily, some angelic messenger
shall stand and look with loving eyes upon us, and whisper, "Sister
spirit, come away!" As we approach the heavenly gate, we expect to hear
the welcome invitation, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." We are
expecting harps of gold and crowns of glory; we are hoping soon to be amongst
the multitude of shining ones before the throne; we are looking forward and
longing for the time when we shall be like our glorious Lord—for "We
shall see Him as He is." Then if these be thine
"expectations," O my soul, live for God; live with the desire and
resolve to glorify Him from whom cometh all thy supplies, and of whose grace in
thy election, redemption, and calling, it is that thou hast any
"expectation" of coming glory.
Evening
"The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail,
according to the word of the Lord, which He spake by
Elijah."—1 Kings 17:16.
See the faithfulness of
divine love. You observe that this woman had daily necessities. She had herself
and her son to feed in a time of famine; and now, in addition, the prophet
Elijah was to be fed too. But though the need was threefold, yet the supply of
meal wasted not, for she had a constant supply. Each day she made calls
upon the barrel, but yet each day it remained the same. You, dear reader, have
daily necessities, and because they come so frequently, you are apt to fear
that the barrel of meal will one day be empty, and the
cruse of oil will fail you. Rest assured that, according to the Word of God,
this shall not be the case. Each day, though it bring
its trouble, shall bring its help; and though you should live to outnumber the
years of Methuselah, and though your needs should be as many as the sands of
the seashore, yet shall God's grace and mercy last through all your
necessities, and you shall never know a real lack. For three long years, in
this widow's days, the heavens never saw a cloud, and the stars never wept a
holy tear of dew upon the wicked earth: famine, and desolation, and death, made
the land a howling wilderness, but this woman never was hungry, but always
joyful in abundance. So shall it be with you. You shall see the sinner's hope
perish, for he trusts his native strength; you shall see the proud Pharisee's
confidence totter, for he builds his hope upon the sand; you shall see even
your own schemes blasted and withered, but you yourself shall find that your
place of defence shall be the munition
of rocks: "Your bread shall be given you, and your water shall be
sure." Better have God for your guardian, than the Bank of England for
your possession. You might spend the wealth of the Indies, but the infinite
riches of God you can never exhaust.