Showing posts with label Compassion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Compassion. Show all posts

October 02, 2014

The Place of Humiliation

If You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us —Mark 9:22

After every time of exaltation, we are brought down with a sudden rush into things as they really are, where it is neither beautiful, poetic, nor thrilling. The height of the mountaintop is measured by the dismal drudgery of the valley, but it is in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. We see His glory on the mountain, but we never live for His glory there. It is in the place of humiliation that we find our true worth to God— that is where our faithfulness is revealed. Most of us can do things if we are always at some heroic level of intensity, simply because of the natural selfishness of our own hearts. But God wants us to be at the drab everyday level, where we live in the valley according to our personal relationship with Him. Peter thought it would be a wonderful thing for them to remain on the mountain, but Jesus Christ took the disciples down from the mountain and into the valley, where the true meaning of the vision was explained (see Mark 9:5-6 , Mark 14-23).

“If you can do anything . . . .” It takes the valley of humiliation to remove the skepticism from us. Look back at your own experience and you will find that until you learned who Jesus really was, you were a skillful skeptic about His power. When you were on the mountaintop you could believe anything, but what about when you were faced with the facts of the valley? You may be able to give a testimony regarding your sanctification, but what about the thing that is a humiliation to you right now? The last time you were on the mountain with God, you saw that all the power in heaven and on earth belonged to Jesus— will you be skeptical now, simply because you are in the valley of humiliation?


謙卑的領域

你若能作什麼,求你憐憫我們,幫助我們。 (可九22)

每次高峰經歷之後,神會突然把我們帶下山去,面對既不美麗,也不詩意,更無興奮可言的現實。山峰的高度是以山谷中單調的生活來量度的,但正是這山谷的生活,才是榮耀神的生活。我們在山頂上看見神的榮耀,但卻永不會在那里為榮耀他而活。在謙卑低微的境地中,才真正顯露我們對神的價值,顯出我們的忠貞。在英雄的高台上,多半人都可以大顯身手,因為我們心中有自私的天性;但神卻要我們處身在枯燥平凡的境地,要我們在山谷中,單憑與他的關係而活。彼得以為留在山上最好不過,可是主耶穌卻把門徒從山上帶下山谷,在那裡,山上的異象才得以啟露。

[你若能作什麼……]在山谷的卑微中,才能把我們多疑的根拔掉。試回想你的經歷,在你認識主耶穌是誰以前,你是一個奸狡的不信者。在山上的時候,你什麼都相信,可是在山谷中面對現實時又如何呢?你大可以作見證,說成聖之道,可是對那如今令你屈辱的事,你如何處理?上一次你與神在山上,看見天上地下權柄都在耶穌手中;如今在卑下的山谷中,你有沒有疑惑?

祈禱◆主啊,昔日我在你面前的生活,彷如四處漂流、黯淡無光,直至你在我裡面出現。因著我相信你大能的救贖,我稱頌你,可是,噢,能察覺你的感動竟然會帶來如此的分別!

February 13, 2014

The Devotion Of Hearing

Samuel answered, ’Speak, for Your servant hears’ —1 Samuel 3:10

Just because I have listened carefully and intently to one thing from God does not mean that I will listen to everything He says. I show God my lack of love and respect for Him by the insensitivity of my heart and mind toward what He says. If I love my friend, I will instinctively understand what he wants. And Jesus said, “You are My friends . . .” (John 15:14). Have I disobeyed some command of my Lord’s this week? If I had realized that it was a command of Jesus, I would not have deliberately disobeyed it. But most of us show incredible disrespect to God because we don’t even hear Him. He might as well never have spoken to us.

The goal of my spiritual life is such close identification with Jesus Christ that I will always hear God and know that God always hears me (see John 11:41). If I am united with Jesus Christ, I hear God all the time through the devotion of hearing. A flower, a tree, or a servant of God may convey God’s message to me. What hinders me from hearing is my attention to other things. It is not that I don’t want to hear God, but I am not devoted in the right areas of my life. I am devoted to things and even to service and my own convictions. God may say whatever He wants, but I just don’t hear Him. The attitude of a child of God should always be, “Speak, for Your servant hears.” If I have not developed and nurtured this devotion of hearing, I can only hear God’s voice at certain times. At other times I become deaf to Him because my attention is to other things— things which I think I must do. This is not living the life of a child of God. Have you heard God’s voice today?

專一的聽

請說,僕人敬聽。 (撒上三10)

我在某一件事上專一聽神,並不表示我凡事都聽從他。我的靈與心志對他的話反應遲鈍,正表示我不愛神,也不尊敬他。若我愛朋友,自然體察他的需要。耶穌說:[你們是我的朋友。 ]這一周裡,我有沒有違背主的命令呢?我若明白那是主的命令,就不會故意違背了。但我們多數蔑視神,根本不聽神在說什麼,似乎神從未說過話一般

屬靈生活的極峰,就是達到與耶穌基督合而為一,常常聽神說話。神也時常聽我(約十一4),若我與耶穌基督聯合,就會隨時隨地專心聽他一朵百合花、一棵樹、一位神的僕人,都可以帶來神的信息叫我聽不到神的,是纏累我的其他事物。我不肯聽他,是我心有外鶩,不在適當的事上專心。我只專注在事物上、事奉上、信念上、神只管說:我卻置若罔聞。嬰孩的態度始終是:[主啊,請說,僕人敬聽。 ]要是沒有培養好這種專心聆聽的習慣,就只能在某些時刻聽到神的聲音,其他時間卻被世務纏身,無法擺脫。於是我向神就是聾了耳,沒有孩子的樣式。我今日聽見神的聲音沒有?

祈禱◆噢,主啊,我要稱頌你聲音的語調和能力,你的語調帶著溫柔和滿有恩典的愛;你的語調亦帶有自然界強大風暴的能力。主啊,讓你榮耀的聲音在這地方被聽聞,亦讓我的靈得以聽見。

October 02, 2013

The Place of Humiliation

If You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us —Mark 9:22

After every time of exaltation, we are brought down with a sudden rush into things as they really are, where it is neither beautiful, poetic, nor thrilling. The height of the mountaintop is measured by the dismal drudgery of the valley, but it is in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. We see His glory on the mountain, but we never live for His glory there. It is in the place of humiliation that we find our true worth to God— that is where our faithfulness is revealed. Most of us can do things if we are always at some heroic level of intensity, simply because of the natural selfishness of our own hearts. But God wants us to be at the drab everyday level, where we live in the valley according to our personal relationship with Him. Peter thought it would be a wonderful thing for them to remain on the mountain, but Jesus Christ took the disciples down from the mountain and into the valley, where the true meaning of the vision was explained (see Mark 9:5-6 , Mark 14-23).

“If you can do anything . . . .” It takes the valley of humiliation to remove the skepticism from us. Look back at your own experience and you will find that until you learned who Jesus really was, you were a skillful skeptic about His power. When you were on the mountaintop you could believe anything, but what about when you were faced with the facts of the valley? You may be able to give a testimony regarding your sanctification, but what about the thing that is a humiliation to you right now? The last time you were on the mountain with God, you saw that all the power in heaven and on earth belonged to Jesus— will you be skeptical now, simply because you are in the valley of humiliation?


謙卑的領域

你若能作什麼,求你憐憫我們,幫助我們。 (可九22)

每次高峰經歷之後,神會突然把我們帶下山去,面對既不美麗,也不詩意,更無興奮可言的現實。山峰的高度是以山谷中單調的生活來量度的,但正是這山谷的生活,才是榮耀神的生活。我們在山頂上看見神的榮耀,但卻永不會在那里為榮耀他而活。在謙卑低微的境地中,才真正顯露我們對神的價值,顯出我們的忠貞。在英雄的高台上,多半人都可以大顯身手,因為我們心中有自私的天性;但神卻要我們處身在枯燥平凡的境地,要我們在山谷中,單憑與他的關係而活。彼得以為留在山上最好不過,可是主耶穌卻把門徒從山上帶下山谷,在那裡,山上的異象才得以啟露。

[你若能作什麼……]在山谷的卑微中,才能把我們多疑的根拔掉。試回想你的經歷,在你認識主耶穌是誰以前,你是一個奸狡的不信者。在山上的時候,你什麼都相信,可是在山谷中面對現實時又如何呢?你大可以作見證,說成聖之道,可是對那如今令你屈辱的事,你如何處理?上一次你與神在山上,看見天上地下權柄都在耶穌手中;如今在卑下的山谷中,你有沒有疑惑?

祈禱◆主啊,昔日我在你面前的生活,彷如四處漂流、黯淡無光,直至你在我裡面出現。因著我相信你大能的救贖,我稱頌你,可是,噢,能察覺你的感動竟然會帶來如此的分別!

October 02, 2012

The Place of Humiliation

If You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us —Mark 9:22

After every time of exaltation, we are brought down with a sudden rush into things as they really are, where it is neither beautiful, poetic, nor thrilling. The height of the mountaintop is measured by the dismal drudgery of the valley, but it is in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. We see His glory on the mountain, but we never live for His glory there. It is in the place of humiliation that we find our true worth to God— that is where our faithfulness is revealed. Most of us can do things if we are always at some heroic level of intensity, simply because of the natural selfishness of our own hearts. But God wants us to be at the drab everyday level, where we live in the valley according to our personal relationship with Him. Peter thought it would be a wonderful thing for them to remain on the mountain, but Jesus Christ took the disciples down from the mountain and into the valley, where the true meaning of the vision was explained (see Mark 9:5-6 , Mark 14-23).

“If you can do anything . . . .” It takes the valley of humiliation to remove the skepticism from us. Look back at your own experience and you will find that until you learned who Jesus really was, you were a skillful skeptic about His power. When you were on the mountaintop you could believe anything, but what about when you were faced with the facts of the valley? You may be able to give a testimony regarding your sanctification, but what about the thing that is a humiliation to you right now? The last time you were on the mountain with God, you saw that all the power in heaven and on earth belonged to Jesus— will you be skeptical now, simply because you are in the valley of humiliation?


謙卑的領域

你若能作什麼,求你憐憫我們,幫助我們。 (可九22)

每次高峰經歷之後,神會突然把我們帶下山去,面對既不美麗,也不詩意,更無興奮可言的現實。山峰的高度是以山谷中單調的生活來量度的,但正是這山谷的生活,才是榮耀神的生活。我們在山頂上看見神的榮耀,但卻永不會在那里為榮耀他而活。在謙卑低微的境地中,才真正顯露我們對神的價值,顯出我們的忠貞。在英雄的高台上,多半人都可以大顯身手,因為我們心中有自私的天性;但神卻要我們處身在枯燥平凡的境地,要我們在山谷中,單憑與他的關係而活。彼得以為留在山上最好不過,可是主耶穌卻把門徒從山上帶下山谷,在那裡,山上的異象才得以啟露。

[你若能作什麼……]在山谷的卑微中,才能把我們多疑的根拔掉。試回想你的經歷,在你認識主耶穌是誰以前,你是一個奸狡的不信者。在山上的時候,你什麼都相信,可是在山谷中面對現實時又如何呢?你大可以作見證,說成聖之道,可是對那如今令你屈辱的事,你如何處理?上一次你與神在山上,看見天上地下權柄都在耶穌手中;如今在卑下的山谷中,你有沒有疑惑?

祈禱◆主啊,昔日我在你面前的生活,彷如四處漂流、黯淡無光,直至你在我裡面出現。因著我相信你大能的救贖,我稱頌你,可是,噢,能察覺你的感動竟然會帶來如此的分別!