Abiding in Christ

ABIDING IN CHRIST
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalm 91:1

“I used to think there was a mystery about abiding in Christ, but I see now that abiding only means trusting Him fully. When you understand this, it becomes the simplest matter in the world.

We sometimes say, speaking of two human beings, that they ‘live in each other’s hearts.’ By this we mean that perfect love and confidence exist between them and that doubt of one another are impossible. If my trust in the fortress of the Lord is absolute, I am abiding in that fortress.
The practical thing to do since God is our Fortress and our High Tower is to surrender by faith to put ourselves and all our interest into this divine dwelling place. Then we must dismiss all care or anxiety from our minds. Since the Lord is our dwelling place, nothing can possibly come to any harm that is committed to His care.

As long as we believe this, our affairs remain in His hands. The moment we begin to doubt, we take our affairs into our own hands, and they are no longer in the divine fortress. Things cannot be in two places at once. If they are in our own care, they cannot be in God’s care. And if they are in God’s care, the cannot be in our own.

This is as clear as daylight, and yet, for the lack of a little common sense, people often get mixed up over it. They put their affairs in God’s fortress, and at the same time put them into their own fortress as well. Either trust the Lord completely or else trust yourself completely; but do not try to mix the two trusts, for they will not mix.

It often helps to put your trust into words. Say aloud, ‘God is my dwelling place, and I am going to abide in Him forever. It is all settled; I am in this divine habitation, and I am safe here. I am not going to move out again.” – Hannah Whitall Smith

Good word for today. Are you abiding and trusting?

Great quote: Your sorrow itself shall be turned into joy. Not the sorrow to be taken away, and joy to be put in its place, but the very sorrow which now grieves you shall be turned into joy. God not only takes away the bitterness and gives sweetness in its place, but turns the bitterness into sweetness itself.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon