THE
GRACIOUS HAND OF GOD
BREAD
16 You
open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. 17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he
has made. Psalms 145:16-17 (NIV)
10 David
praised the Lord in the presence
of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, O Lord, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to
everlasting. 11 Yours,
O Lord, is the greatness and the
power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven
and earth is yours. Yours, O Lord,
is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. 12 Wealth and honor come from
you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to
exalt and give strength to all. 13 Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your
glorious name. 14 But
who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously
as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from
your hand.” 1 Chronicles 29:10-14 (NIV)
23 If the
Lord delights in a man's way, he
makes his steps firm; 24 though
he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord
upholds him with his hand. Psalms
37:23-24 (NIV)
3 It was
not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them
victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you
loved them. Psalms 44:3 (NIV)
8 My
soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. Psalms 63:8 (NIV)
7 Where
can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you
are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the
dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will
guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. Psalms 139:7-10 (NIV)
13 For I
am the Lord, your God, who takes
hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. 14 Do not be afraid, O worm
Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you," declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of
Israel. Isaiah 41:13-14 (NIV)
27 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow
me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one
can snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them
to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand.
30 I and the Father are one.”
John 10:27-30 (NIV)
BUTTER
“God is
wonderful in all his doings, his ways are past finding out; at the end we can
see best the wise and gracious steps he took with us: therefore, when things take such a wonderful
turn that we are quite at our wits’ end, and do not know which way to go, we
may believe the hand of the Lord is in it, and some good will come of it at
last. As we experience the name of
Christ to be wonderful at such times, we may well expect that he will show
himself to be our Counsellor and mighty God also. At first, everything may seem to be against us,
and go quite contrary; but at last, we see plainly that it was highly needful
that it should go contrary to our corrupt nature, and that thus it went well;
for though the ways of God are marvelous, yet they are glorious.” K. H. Von Bogatzky
“When
God fixes our position for us, we may rest assured that it is a wise and salutary
one; and even when we foolishly and willfully choose a position for ourselves,
He most graciously overrules our folly, and causes the influences of our
self-chosen circumstances to work for our spiritual benefit.” Older Commentator
of Exodus 14
“Let
me carefully mark the inward workings of thy grace, and the outward tokens of
thy providence, so as daily to have a true sense of thy gracious presence in
every thing, more or less important; and thereby to be ever strengthened in
faith, and kept in a composed state of mind; considering that nothing happens
by mere chance, but all is wisely ordered by thy providential care to our good;
firmly believing, if anything goes contrary to expectation, that something
better will follow in its stead, if we only can be quiet, and wait the time.” K.H.
Von Bogatzky
“However, faith
has its trials, as well as its answers.
It is not to be imagined that the man of faith, having pushed out from
the shore of circumstances, finds it all smooth and easy sailing. By no means.
Again and again, he is called to encounter rough sea and stormy skies;
but it is all graciously designed to lead him into deeper and more matured
experience of what God is to the heart that confides in Him. Were the sky always without a cloud and the
ocean without a ripple, the believer would not know so well that God with Whom
he has to do; for alas, we know how prone that heart is to mistake the peace of
circumstances for the peace of God. When
everything is going on smoothly and pleasantly—our property safe, our business
prosperous, our children carrying themselves agreeably, our residence
comfortable, our health excellent—everything in short, just to our mind, how
apt we are to mistake the peace which reposes upon such circumstances for that
peace which flows from the realized presence of Christ.” C.H. Mackintosh
HEART
SAVOR
- · It is the Lord’s hand that bestows all.
- · The Lord upholds me with His righteous right hand.
- · The Lord is my constant guide, my source of strength, my refuge.
