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Octavius Winslow, 1856 (edited for
today's reader by Larry E. Wilson, 2010)
Bible Verse
"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!' " (Gal. 4:4–6).
Devotional
Fellowship with God is the highest, purest, sweetest mercy a saint of God can have on earth. Yes, it is also the highest, purest, sweetest bliss the saints of God can have in heaven. What is the enjoyment of heaven? Not merely exemption from trial, freedom from sorrow, rest from toil, and release from conflict. Oh no! it is the presence of our Father there—his full unclouded presence! To be with Christ, to behold his glory, to gaze upon his face, to hear his voice, to feel the throbbings of his bosom, to bask in the radiance of God's presence— oh, this is heaven, the heaven of heaven!
We have the dawn of this glory here on earth. "I am not alone," each sorrowful and banished soul can exclaim, "for the Father is with me" (John 16:32). Yes, beloved, your own Father! "To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12). In Jesus God is your Father, your reconciled, pacified Father. All the thoughts that he thinks of you are peace. All the ways that he takes with you are love.
The presence, the voice, the smile of a loving father, how precious and soothing! Especially when that presence is realized, that voice is heard, and that smile is seen in the dark, desolate hour of adversity. God is our heavenly Father. His presence, his care, his smiles are ever with his children. And if there is a single child of the one family that more richly shares in the blessing of the Father's presence than another, it is the sick, the suffering, the lone, the chastened child.
Yes, your Father is ever with you. He is with you to cheer your loneliness, to sweeten your solitude, to sanctify your sorrow, to strengthen your weakness, to shield your person, to pardon your sins, and to heal all your diseases. Listen, in your deep solitude, to his own touching words: "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand" (Isa. 41:10).
Enough, my Father! if you thus are with me, then I am not alone. I cannot be alone. And if such is the bliss with which you do sweeten and the glory with which you do illuminate the solitude of your hidden ones, then Lord, let me ever be a hidden one—shut out from all others, shut in alone with you!
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
is laid for your faith in his excellent Word!
What more can he say than to you he hath said,
you who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?
"Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed;
I, I am thy God, and will still give thee aid;
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.
"When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
the rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee thy troubles to bless,
and sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.
"When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
my grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
the flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.
"E'en down to old age all my people shall prove
my sovereign, eternal, unchangeable love;
and when hoary hairs shall their temples adorn,
like lambs they shall still in my bosom be borne.
"The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to his foes;
that soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I'll never, no, never, no, never forsake."
("K" in Rippon's Selection, 1787)
Be sure to read the Preface by Octavius Winslow and A Note from the Editor by Larry E. Wilson.
Larry Wilson is an ordained minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. In addition to having served as the General Secretary of the Committee on Christian Education of the OPC (2000–2004) and having written a number of articles and booklets (such as God's Words for Worship and Why Does the OPC Baptize Infants) for New Horizons and elsewhere, he has pastored OPC churches in Minnesota, Indiana, and Ohio. We are grateful to him for his editing of Morning Thoughts, the OPC Daily Devotional for 2011.
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