From his triumph in the Garden of Eden Satan has relied quite heavily on his ability to arouse dissatisfaction within the hearts of men. No one is exempt from the temptation to become dissatisfied and impatient with his position in life. Happiness often eludes us because someone "less worthy" than we has been elevated to a position of prominence and esteem, while we have been left to struggle on unnoticed and "unappreciated". This is a weakness, a sin, and an evidence that our hearts and minds have not been wholly brought "into captivity .... to the obedience of Christ".
    John Newton once said: "If two angels came down from heaven to execute a divine command, and one was appointed to conduct an empire, while the other was appointed to sweep the streets, they would feel no inclination to change employments". And why not? Because each of them would be fully confident that he was doing what his Lord commanded and that by his faithful service, lowly or great, he was glorifying God.
    There is real joy to be found in

    There was a time when the men of David said: "Behold, the day of which the Lord said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand", (I Sam. 24:4).
    It appears that David's servants were putting their own interpretation on his opportunity to harm Saul at En-gedi -- calling it providential. All of us are too inclined to interpret what accords with our own wishes as providential opportunity. If we are strongly desiring to be led in a certain manner we are quite sure to find "providences" that seem to favor our preference.
    Opportunity, however, does not always indicate duty. When the merchant mistakenly returns fifty cents too much change, there is an opportunity to make a half-dollar; but who will say that we ought to accept it? When you find an enemy in trouble, there is an opportunity

to take revenge for the mischief he has done to you. But does the opportunity really justify retaliation? The duty in the one case is honesty; in the latter it is in showing love to an enemy.
    It is entirely possible for a Christian to wantonly sin against his brethren in a path of stubborn self-will. When the matter is concluded, and it appears that he has saved ten dollars by following his own way, he can say "It certainly must have been the Lord's will that I do it this way: surely it could not have come out better". But the question is, "Better for WHOM?"
    No responsible Christian will consider an opportunity to do some thing positively sinful as divine providence. It is always sinful to take revenge -- no matter how much an enemy deserves punishment, or how good a chance one has for punishing him. It is a sin to steal -- even though opportunity makes it easy enough to do it. God leads US by His providence, BUT NEVER INTO SIN!!

    The ancient statue of Mamnon was supposed to become musical when the sun rose and the beams of morning light fell upon it. When the light of the Gospel falls upon a darkened heart, it begins to sing. No wonder salvation gives joy! Think of what one has been saved FROM -- the horrible pit of sin and hell -- and of what we are saved UNTO -- sonship in God's family. Can anyone who can grasp the full significance of so great a deliverance FAIL TO REJOICE?
    Every child of God ought to be a singer. If we are unable to acquire the vocal art, we should at least sing and make melody in our hearts unto the Lord. God would have a song in the hearts and on the lips of all His children. And our song should be one that nothing can ever cause to cease. Jesus sang with His disciples in the Upper Room as He looked forward to the imminent offering up of Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. Paul sang in prison while his feet were fast in the stocks and his back gashed with bloody stripes. No circumstance or apparent trouble, or even pain, should have the power to hush the song of gladness in a Christian's heart.
    Our lives themselves may, and ought to, be one glad song. We may not all be poets, to write joyful hymns of praise for others to sing; or vocalists, to thrill hearts by the sweetness of our voices; but we may LIVE so that our lives fairly "sing"; and this is just as pleasing to God.

    Recently published by Ed Sanders, of WheatonCollete, is a very interesting and informative series of "Outline Studies on the Rapture Question". This series of studies is "designed to examine crucial questions and topics associated with our Lord's Return. The pre - tribulational rapture theory is examined critically and a Scriptural alternative is given".
    Copies of this outline are available from EdSanders
        826 Parkway Drive
        Wheaton, Ill. 60187.
    Why not send Ed a dollar TODAY and get an extra copy to share with a friend. I predict that many of you will soon be placing a second order for QUANTITIES. E.G.

"How shall I describe to you what I found in the New Testament? I had not read it for many years and was prejudiced against it before I took it in hand. The light which struck Paul with blindness on his way to Damascus was not more strange, more surprising to him than it was to me when I suddenly found the fulfillment of all hopes, the highest perfection of philosophy, the explanation of all revelation, the key to the many seeming contradictions of the physical and moral world. If the religion of the Bible is not divine, I know nothing at all."

    "Forever, 0 Lord, thy Word is SETTLED in heaven!"

following the path of God's choosing -- the path that inevitably leads to eternal glory. The Psalmist made a proper judgment of relative values when he wrote: I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield: The Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. 0 Lord of hosts, Blessed is the man that trusteth in thee', (Psa. 84:10-12).

    Could we recognize our own unbelief, while knowing the faithfulness of God, we surely would not question His providences, nor would we fret and complain about our "lonely" position.
    The confidence of being in God's will brings real Christian contentment to the heart that can trust Him. Though facing much that most of us have never endured "for Christ's sake", the apostle Paul could write to his beloved Philippians from a Roman prison: "I have learned, in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content", (4:11).
    Whoever learns this lesson is making real spiritual progress.

    Have YOU "forsaken all" to follow Christ? Then, do it NOW!