It never ceases to amaze me how precious truths can become dearer still when interpreted through the poet’s pen. Here is a wonderful bit of verse from John Greenleaf Whittier as he masterfully speaks of God’s comfort in our sorrows and losses.

To weary hearts, to mourning homes,God’s meekest Angel gently comes;No power has he to banish pain,Or give us back our lost again;And yet in tenderest love, our dearAnd Heavenly Father sends him here.
There’s quiet in that Angel’s glance,There’s rest in his still countenance!He mocks no grief with idle cheer,Nor wounds with words the mourner’s ear;But ills and woes he may not cureHe kindly trains us to endure.
Angel of Patience! sent to calmOur feverish brows with cooling palm;To lay the storms of hope and fear,And reconcile life’s smile and tear;The throbs of wounded pride to still,And make our own our Father’s will.
O thou who mournest on thy way,With longings for the close of day;He walks with thee, that Angel kind,And gently whispers, “Be resignedBear up, bear on, the end shall tellThe dear Lord ordereth all things well!”

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you today.
Today’s Kindle deals include a few new options for collectors.
(Yesterday on the blog: The Night Is Far Gone)

This is a really good article with a really good point to make. “We are responsible for the fields of our lives, for the tending of their soil and for the seeds that we plant within them. Unless we are vigilant in weeding our lives, in taking care over the seeds planted within them, and in inspecting what each seed yields, it may not take long for our entire characters to be overrun by error or made barren and fruitless.”

Lara has a sweet article for those whose fathers may have been unfatherly. “This is our Heavenly Father. Though our earthly dads were meant to reflect him, he in no way mirrors them. Take courage, and run with abandon to the open arms of your Father. He is not like the great mighty stars piercing the blackness of the sky, distant and making you feel insignificant and small. He is the father running toward the prodigal and commanding feasts and celebration over him.”

Kathryn Butler explains what hospice care is and what we should expect when a loved one enters into it.

The struggles and suffering of those who experience panic attacks is real. This article explains some of the basics.

This may be a helpful resource for your church—an explanation of how and why to write a mission policy. It includes a very good example of one.

This is an in-depth look at how a wolf attacked a church and the tactics he used. It’s helpful reading for any church leader or member.

We judge other people’s actions with the harshest of measures but treat our own with the softest. After all, we tend to grow fond of our sins, and especially those besetting sins. 

It is not as important to God that we understand his purposes in a particular providence as it is that we trust in his character.
—Jon Bloom

It can be difficult to make sense of our trials as we endure them. But the Bible always assures us that our difficulties are never purposeless but always in some way purposeful. God is always using them to accomplish something good. This is the theme of this short devotional reflection from my friend Paul Tautges (and drawn from his new book Remade).

❖
The simple gold ring on my left hand is priceless to me. It is my most valuable piece of jewelry because it symbolizes God’s gracious gift of a faithful wife. Originally, it belonged to another man, my wife’s great-grandfather, but was given to my wife by her grandmother when we got engaged. Karen took it to a local jeweler to get it resized so she could place it on my finger on our wedding day. Yet, as valuable as the gold used to make this ring may be, there is something else that is more precious and valued: faith that is tested by fire and proven to be genuine.
Commentator Kenneth Wuest explains the apostle’s illustration of an ancient goldsmith, who
refines the crude gold ore in his crucible. The pure metal is mixed with much foreign material from which it must be separated. The only way to bring about this separation is to reduce the ore to liquid form. The impurities rise to the surface and are then skimmed off. But intense heat is needed to liquefy this ore. So the goldsmith puts his crucible in the fire, reduces the ore to a liquid state and skims off the impurities. When he can see the reflection of his face clearly mirrored in the surface of the liquid, he knows that the contents are pure gold. The smelting process has done its work.
In the same way, the divine Goldsmith turns up the thermostat of our lives to sanctify us. He heats up the smelting furnace of affliction to reveal imperfections in our hearts so they can be skimmed off by our confession and repentance. Today’s Scripture reading makes it clear that God does does this not to defeat us but to prove the “genuineness” of our faith.
This was the case with Job, an Old Testament hero of the faith. God brought Job to the devil’s attention: “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” (Job 1:8). Satan is not coequal with God. He is a finite creature who is accountable to the Creator. Even though the devil meant his attacks for evil, God meant them for good.
Job understood the process Peter describes. The furnace was turned up to very hot when God permitted Satan to attack Job’s family, health, financial security, and reputation. When Satan’s tsunami came ashore, Job fell in broken, submissive worship (1:20). When blistering heat revealed Job’s pride, Job confessed and repented (see Job 38-39). On the other side of his tragedy and trauma, Job spoke well of God: “When he has tried me, I shall come out [of the smelting pot] as gold” (23:10). Through it all, Job’s faith was tested and proven genuine; his suffering accomplished its intended purposes.
Be encouraged! God is up to something good amid your pain. As the refiner’s fire removes impurities to bring out the beauty of gold, so God uses trials to refine and bring out the beauty of your faith. The Father looks to the heart that clings to him while faith is being refined and sees the image of his Son being revealed. In this, he is pleased and glorified.
(For similar devotional reflections, consider Paul’s book Remade).