October 19

Morning

Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual, but as worldly—as infants in Christ. — 1 Cor 3:1 BSB

Are you feeling discouraged, believer, because your spiritual life seems weak—because your faith is so small and your love so faint? Take heart! You have plenty of reasons to be thankful. Remember that in some key ways, you are just as blessed as the greatest and most mature Christian. You were bought with the same precious blood of Christ as they were. You are just as much an adopted child of God as any other believer. Just as an infant is fully a child of its parents, so too are you fully a child of God. You are just as completely justified, for justification isn’t something that happens in degrees—your faith, even if it is small, has made you fully justified. You have the same right to the promises of the covenant as the most advanced believers, for your right is based not on your level of spiritual growth but on the covenant itself. Your faith in Jesus is not the measure of your inheritance; it is the sign of it. You are as rich as the richest, even if you don’t fully enjoy it yet—your riches are real and eternal.

Even the smallest star shines in the heavens, and the faintest ray of light is connected to the great sun. In the book of life, the names of the small and the great are written with the same hand. You are just as dear to your Father’s heart as the most eminent saint. Jesus cares for you tenderly. Though you may feel like smoldering flax, He will not snuff you out. Though you may feel like a bruised reed, He will not break you. Others may see no use in you, but Jesus cherishes you.

Instead of feeling defeated by your weakness, rejoice in Christ. You may be small in the eyes of men, but in Christ, you are seated in heavenly places. You may feel poor in faith, but in Jesus, you are an heir to everything. If there is even the root of faith in you, rejoice in the Lord and glory in the God of your salvation!

Evening

But no one asks, ‘Where is God my Maker, who gives us songs in the night, — Job 35:10 BSB

Anyone can sing when the sun is shining and the cup of life is overflowing. When wealth abounds and blessings are easy to see, praise comes naturally. It’s not difficult for an Aeolian harp to play sweet music when the breeze is blowing—but the real test of skill is making music when there’s no wind at all. It’s easy to sing when we can see the music notes clearly in the daylight, but it takes true skill to sing when there’s no light and no music to read—when the song must come straight from the heart.

No man can sing a song in the night by his own strength. He may try, but he’ll quickly realize that only a divinely inspired song can fill the night. When everything is going well, I can weave melodies from the flowers along my path, but place me in the desert where no flowers grow, and how can I sing a song of praise? How can I crown the Lord with praises when I have no jewels to offer? As long as I have a clear voice and a healthy body, I can sing God’s praise. But if you silence my voice and lay me on a bed of pain, how can I continue to praise God unless He Himself gives me the song? It is not in human strength to sing when all is dark unless a coal from the heavenly altar touches our lips.

It was a divinely inspired song that Habakkuk sang when he said, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.” Since it is the Lord who gives songs in the night, let us look to Him for our music. O great Musician, don’t leave us silent because of our afflictions—tune our hearts to sing songs of thanksgiving!