Letters of Hope

Dear Friends, 

The Master Craftsman of the ever-expanding Cosmos is in the process of creating beings in His own image and likeness.   

To the Potter’s house I went down one day,
And watched him while molding the vessels of clay,
And many a wonderful lesson I drew,
As I noted the process the clay went through.

Trampled and broken, down-trodden and rolled,
To render more plastic and fit for the mould.
How like the clay that is human, I thought,
When in Heavenly hands to perfection brought!

For Self must be cast as the dust at His feet,
Before it is ready, for service made meet;
And Pride must be broken, and Self-will lost -
All laid on the altar, whatever the cost.

But, lo!  By and by, a delicate vase
Of wonderful beauty and exquisite grace.
Was it once the vile clay?  Ah, yes;  yet how strange,
The Potter has wrought such a marvelous change!

Not a trace of the earth, nor mark of the clay -
The fires of the furnace have burned them away.
Wondrous skill of the Potter! – the praise is His due,
In Whose hands to perfection and beauty it grew.

Thus with souls lying still, content in God’s hand,
That do not His power of working withstand -
They are molded and fitted, a treasure to hold,
Vile clay now transformed into purest of gold!

             From Poems of Dawn © 1915

 “But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our Potter; and we all are the work of Your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)

Of the many varied word pictures which God uses to express His truths to us, this is another,  showing that  “We are HIS WORKMANSHIP, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God before prepared that we should walk in them,”  and “BEING CONFIDENT of this very thing, that He Who BEGAN A GOOD WORK in you WILL COMPLETE IT in preparation for the day of Jesus Christ.”  “The One calling you IS FAITHFUL, and HE WILL DO IT.”
(Eph. 2:10;  Phil. 1:6;  2 Thess. 5:24) 

He so loves each one He has created that He is intent on faithfully doing all that is necessary to bring us into the refinement of His Divine Perfections,  to bring forth
- the vessel of honor to hold the fragrant treasure of His Being; 
- the pure gold of His character in us;
- the finely tuned instrument to sound forth His praises;
- the exquisite tapestry woven to show forth the beauty of His Grace;
- the bright lamp that gives forth the Light of His Truth;
- the glorious temple fitted for His habitation.

“Have Thine own way, Lord;  have Thine own way;
Thou art the Potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.”           Amen! 

“Now the God of all HOPE fill you with all JOY and PEACE in the believing,
that you may abound in HOPE
through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
(Romans 15:13)

In Agape, Eulene

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Dear Friends, 

The word pictures that the Scriptures sometimes use to describe God’s dealings with His people are vividly graphic.  Both the prophets Zechariah and Malachi described Him as a Goldsmith or a Silversmith in His relationship with His chosen Nation.  

“…this third I will bring into the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will test them as gold is tested.  They shall call on My name and I will answer them.  I will say, They are My people, and they shall say, the LORD is our God.”  (Zech. 13:9) 

“And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver:  and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.”  (Mal. 3:3) 

Goldsmithing is the art of making jewelry or other precious objects from gold.  It is one of the oldest arts.  Ancient goldsmiths were skilled at shaping and soldering gold as early as 3500 B.C.  The oldest examples of goldsmithing come from Egypt and Mesopotamia.  Today, goldsmithing is part of the jeweler’s art.  But methods of making gold objects have changed little.  

The value of gold owes much to its physical properties of beauty, softness, resistance to chemicals, and density.  Scientists describe gold as “ductile” because it can be drawn out into fine wire.  They say it is “malleable”: because it can be hammered into thin sheets.  It can be shaped into any form that is desired.  After it is shaped, its resistance to rust and other chemical changes from the air keeps it from tarnishing. 

Gold is used as a form of international money and, until recent years, most countries were on the gold standard, meaning that a stated amount of gold could be obtained for most paper money.  Obviously, gold is a metal that is extremely valuable, and much gold is indicative of great wealth.  

The last line of the third verse of last week’s poem is relevant to the thought this week about the Goldsmith: “I know, as He brought me in, so He surely will bring me out.”  It is beautifully described again in this poem by an unknown author:- 

                     THE GOLDSMITH  

He sat by a fire of seven-fold heat
   As He watched by the precious ore,
And closer He bent with a searching gaze
   As He heated it more and more.           

He knew He had ore that could stand the test,
   And He wanted the finest gold
To mold as a crown for the King to wear,
   Set with gems with a price untold.

So He laid our gold in the burning fire,
  Though we fain would have said Him “Nay!”
And He watched the dross that we had not seen
   As it melted and passed away.

And the gold grew brighter and yet more bright;
   But our eyes were so dim with tears,
We saw but the fire – not the Master’s hand -
   And questioned with anxious fears.

Yet our gold shone out with a richer glow,
  As it mirrored a Form above
That bent o’er the fire, though unseen by us,
   With a look of ineffable love.

Can we think that it pleased His loving heart
   To cause us a moment’s pain?
Ah, no!  but He saw through the present cross
   The bliss of eternal gain.

So He waited there with a watchful eye,
   With a love that is strong and sure,
And His gold did not suffer a bit more heat
   Than was needed to make it pure!             

 JOB understood and declared that, though the Lord had “BROUGHT HIM IN” to the trial, He would surely “BRING HIM OUT:”   “But He knows the way that I take;  when He has tried me, I SHALL COME FORTH AS GOLD.”  And He did, triumphantly!  (Job. 23:10)

 PAUL reckoned “that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed…”(Rom. 8:18)

 And PETER assured us “that the testing of your faith, being more precious than gold that perishes, though it is proved by fire, may be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”   (1 Peter 1:7)

 Dr. Stuart Holden tells of visiting a factory in Northern England where costly china was being made.  What interested him most was the painting on the finished product.  “It had been through many different processes, and was taken to the studio for the artists to complete.  I saw the pattern being put on in various colors, and noticed that a great deal of black was being used.  On asking why, I was told, ‘It is black now, BUT IT WILL BE GOLD WHEN IT COMES OUT OF THE FIRE!’   Is not this just as in our lives?  What is put on black, we do not recognize as gold at the time, and the thing which is gilding our lives is very often put on in darkness and blackness.”

 “Though you have lain among the pots, yet shall you be as the wings of a dove, covered with silver and her feathers with yellow gold.”  (Psalm 68:13) 

WAIT FOR GOD’S “AFTERS!” 

“Now the God of all HOPE fill you with all JOY and PEACE in the believing,
that you may abound in HOPE
through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
(Romans 15:13)

  In Agape, Eulene

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Hello again, 

Speaking about being carried:-  our Savior, Jesus Christ, first of all “carried” us across the great gulf of sin and death that once separated us from our Heavenly Father.  ”And you, estranged as you once were and even hostile in your minds, amidst your evil deeds, He has now, in His human body, reconciled to God by His death, to bring you holy and faultless and irreproachable into His presence.”   Isaiah articulates it so clearly:  “Surely He has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows…”  The Apostle Peter confirms this when He writes, “He Himself carried our sins in His own body on the tree that, dying to sins, we might live to righteousness…”
(Col. 1:21,22;  Isa. 53:4;  1 Peter 2:24) 

Then His promise is to “feed His flock like a shepherd,” to “gather the lambs in His arm,” to “carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who have their young.”  Of His beloved nation, it says that “in all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His Presence saved them;  in His love and in His pity He redeemed them, and He bore them, and carried them all the days of old.” (Isa. 40:11; 63:9)  

You no doubt are familiar with the now famous poem:  “Footsteps.”  When I see a father carrying his child up on his strong shoulders, I picture our Heavenly Father picking us up and carrying us over the rough places of life,  “…and even to old age…and even to gray hairs will I carry you;  I have made, and I will bear; Yes, I will carry, and will deliver.”  (Isa. 46:4) 

It is claimed that the central verse in the Bible is Psalm 118:8:  “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.”  That principle certainly is a central theme of the Bible.  Conversely, Jeremiah declares, “Cursed be the one who trusts in man and makes flesh – (self or others) – his arm and whose heart departs from the Lord…Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord and whose HOPE the Lord is.” (Jer. 17:5,7) 

I believe nothing pleases our Heavenly Father more than when His children place all their confidence, trust and reliance on Him for every circumstance.  

There is a special poem by Annie Johnson Flint that just about covers it all;  and I just recently learned that all her wonderfully inspiring poetry came out of a lifetime of loss and pain:- 

I will trust Him, yes, I will trust, for He never has failed me yet;
And never a day nor an hour, but my uttermost need is met.
Though I dwell in the midst of foes, yet there is my table spread,
And His Presence wraps me round and His wings are over my head.

Father and Infinite God, my Refuge and Fortress Rock,
Where I hide from the tempest’s wrath and feel not the earthquake shock.
So I bide with a soul serene and a heart that is undismayed;
He is my Strength and my Shield;  of whom shall I be afraid?

I will not be afraid, for I know that He keeps me safe from all harm,
And He shall defend His own with a strong and a stretched-out arm.
Though I grope in perilous paths, in darkness and danger and doubt,
I know, as He brought me in, so He surely will bring me out.

For the God I serve today is one with the God of old;
Still does He guide my steps and still does His hand uphold.
He, too, gives me rest from fear, for on Him my mind is stayed,
He is the Strength of my life;  of what shall I be afraid?

I will trust and not be afraid.  I have seen, I have heard, I have known -
This mighty and terrible God has called me and made me His own.
“Dread not!  Faint not!”  He has said, “for the battle belongs to Me!
Go forth with a song of praise, and My victory you shall see.”

And where I go He will go, and He knows the way that I take;
He is with me unto the end, and He will not fail nor forsake.
They that trust in the Lord shall never be moved nor swayed.
“Fear not!”  He has said unto me;  then why should I be afraid?

 REACH UP, AND LET FATHER CARRY YOU…

 “Now the God of all HOPE fill you with all JOY and PEACE in the believing,
that you may abound in HOPE
through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
(Romans 15:13)

In Agape, Eulene

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