Daily Devotions From Faith's Checkbook

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 15 Desires of Righteous Granted The desires of the righteous shall be granted. (Proverbs 10:24)  Because it is a righteous desire it is safe for God to grant it. It would be neither good for the man himself, nor for society at large, that such a promise should be made to the unrighteous. Let us keep the Lord's commands, and He will rightfully have respect to our desires. When righteous men are left to desire unrighteous desires, they will not be granted to them. But then these are not their real desires; they are their wanderings or blunders, and it is well that they should be refused. Their gracious desires shall come before the Lord, and He will not say them nay. Does the Lord deny us our requests for a time? Let the promise for today encourage us to ask again. Has He denied us altogether? We will t

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 14 My Choice Is His Choice He shall choose our inheritance for us. (Psalm 47:4)  Our enemies would allot us a very dreary portion, but we are not left in their hands. The Lord will cause us to stand in our lot, and our place is appointed by His infinite wisdom. A wiser mind than our own arranges our destiny, The ordaining of all things is with God, and we are glad to have it so; we choose that God should choose for us. If we might have our own way we would wish to let all things go in God's way. Being conscious of our own folly, we would not desire to rule our own destinies. We feel safer and more at ease when the Lord steers our vessel than we could possibly be if we could direct it according to our own judgment. Joyfully we leave the painful present and the unknown future with our Father, our Savior

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 13 This Body Fashioned Anew Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body. (Philippians 3:21)  Often when we are racked with pain and unable to think or worship, we feel that this indeed is "the body of our humiliation," and when we are tempted by the passions which rise from the flesh we do not think the word vile at all too vigorous a translation. Our bodies humble us; and that is about the best thing they do for us. Oh, that we were duly lowly, because our bodies ally us with animals and even link us with the dust! But our Savior, the Lord Jesus, shall change all this. We shall be fashioned like His own body of glory. This will take place in all who believe in Jesus. By faith their souls have been transformed, and their bodies will undergo such a renewal as sh

Daily devotions from Spurgeon's classic, read by Doug Smith. Read online at spurgeon.org. Visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com for more information. April 12 He Remembers No More For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. (Jeremiah 31:34)  When we know the Lord, we receive the forgiveness of sins. We know Him as the God of grace, passing by our transgressions. What a joyful discovery is this! But how divinely is this promise worded: the Lord promises no more to remember our sins! Can God forget? He says He will, and He means what He says. He will regard us as though we had never sinned. The great atonement so effectually removed all sin that it is to the mind of God no more in existence. The believer is now in Christ Jesus, as accepted as Adam in his innocence; yea, more so, for he wears a divine righteousness, and that of Adam was but human. The great Lord will not remember our sins so as to punish them, or so as to love us one atom the less because of them. As a debt when

Daily devotions from Spurgeon's classic, read by Doug Smith. Read online at spurgeon.org. Visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com for more information  April 11 Close Fellowship And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 31:34) Truly, whatever else we do not know, we know the Lord. This day is this promise true in our experience, and it is not a little one. The least believer among us knows God in Christ Jesus. Not as fully as we desire; but yet truly and really we know the Lord. We not only know doctrines about Him, but we know Him. He is our Father and our Friend. We are acquainted with Him personally. We can say, "My Lord, and my God." We are on terms of close fellowship with God, and many a happy season do we spend in His holy company. We are no more strangers to our God, but the secret of the Lord is with us. This is more than nature could h

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 10 Look and Live And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shalt come to pass, that everyone that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. (Numbers 21:8)  This is a glorious gospel type. Jesus, numbered with the transgressors, hangs before us on the cross. A look to Him will heal us of the serpent-bite of sin; will heal us at once—"When he looketh upon it, he shall live." Let the reader who is mourning his sinfulness note the words—"Everyone that looketh upon it shall live." Every looker will find this true. I have found it so. I looked to Jesus and lived at once, I know I did. Reader, if you look to Jesus you will live, too. True, you are swelling with the venom, and you see no hope.  True, also there is no hope but this one. But t

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 9 The Bible's Supreme Place Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them. (Psalm 119:165)  Yes, a true love for the great Book will bring us great peace from the great God and be a great protection to us. Let us live constantly in the society of the law of the Lord, and it will breed in our hearts a restfulness such as nothing else can. The Holy Spirit acts as a Comforter through the Word and sheds abroad those benign influences which calm the tempests of the soul. Nothing is a stumbling block to the man who has the Word of God dwelling in him richly. He takes up his daily cross, and it becomes a delight. For the fiery trial he is prepared and counts it not strange, so as to be utterly cast down by it. He is neither stumbled by prosperity—as so many are&mdash

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 8 Preserved to Work's End The Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome. (Acts 23:11)  Are you a witness for the Lord, and are you just now in danger? Then remember that you are immortal till your work is done. If the Lord has more witness for you to bear, you will live to bear it. Who is he that can break the vessel which the Lord intends again to use? If there is no more work for you to do for your Master, it cannot distress you that He is about to take you home and put you where you will be beyond the reach of adversaries. Your witness-bearing for Jesus is your chief concern, and you cannot be stopped in it till it is finished: therefore, be at peace. Cruel slander, wicked misrepresentation, desertion o

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 7 Without Fear of Man And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be afraid of thee. (Deuteronomy 28:10)  Then we can have no reason to be afraid of them. This would show a mean spirit and be a token of unbelief rather than of faith. God can make us so like Himself that men shall be forced to see that we rightly bear His name and truly belong to the holy Jehovah. Oh, that we may obtain this grace which the Lord waits to bestow! Be assured that ungodly men have a fear of true saints. They hate them, but they also fear them. Haman trembled because of Mordecai, even when he sought the good man's destruction. In fact, their hate often arises out of a dread which they are too proud to confess. Let us pursue the path of truth and uprightness without the

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 6 One King, One Lord And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one. (Zechariah 14:9)  Blessed prospect! This is no dream of an enthusiast but the declaration of the infallible Word. Jehovah shall be known among all people, and His gracious sway shall be acknowledged by every tribe of man. Today, it is far from being so. Where do any bow before the great King? How much there is of rebellion! What lords many and gods many there are on the earth! Even among professed Christians what diversities of ideas there are about Him and His gospel! One day there shall be one King, one Jehovah, and one name for the living God. O Lord, hasten it! We daily cry, "Thy kingdom come." We will not discuss the question as to when this shall be lest we lose the comfort

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 5 Not Forgotten Thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. (Isaiah 44:21)  Our Jehovah cannot so forget His servants as to cease to love them. He chose them not for a time but forever. He knew what they would be when He called them into the divine family. He blots out their sins like a cloud; and we may be sure that He will not turn them out of doors for iniquities which He has blotted out. It would be blasphemy to imagine such a thing. He will not forget them so as to cease to think of them. One forgetful moment on the part of our God would be our ruin. Therefore He says, "Thou shalt not be forgotten of me," Men forget us; those whom we have benefited turn against us. We have no abiding place in the fickle hearts of men; but God will never forget one of His true servants. He bi

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. ith's Check Book, Daily Entry C. H. Spurgeon   April 4 God's Hornets   And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. (Exodus 23:28) What the hornets were we need not consider. They were God's own army which He sent before His people to sting their enemies and render Israel's conquest easy. Our God by His own chosen means will fight for His people and gall their foes before they come into the actual battle. Often He confounds the adversaries of truth by methods in which reformers themselves have no hand. The air is full of mysterious influences which harass Israel's foes. We read in the Apocalypse that "the earth helped the woman." Let us never fear. The stars in their courses fight against the enemies of our souls. Oftentimes w

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 3 Sensitive to Warning Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. (2 Kings 22:19)  Many despise warning and perish. Happy is he who trembles at the Word of God. Josiah did so, and he was spared the sight of the evil which the Lord determined to send upon Judah because of her great sins. Have you this tenderness? Do you practice this self-humiliation? Then you also shall be spared in the evil day. God sets a mark upon the men that sigh and cry because of the sin of the times. The destroying angel is commanded to keep his sword in its sheath till

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 2 True Heart-Energy Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them, that thy profiting may appear to all. (1 Timothy 4:15)  This is, practically, a promise that, by diligent meditation and the giving up of our whole mind to our work for the Lord we shall make a progress which all can see. Not by hasty reading but by deep meditation we profit by the Word of God. Not by doing a great deal of work in a slovenly manner, but by giving our best thought to what we attempt, we shall get real profit. "In all labor there is profit" but not in fuss and hurry without true heart-energy. If we divide ourselves between God and mammon, or Christ and self, we shall make no progress. We must give ourselves wholly to holy things, or else we shall be poor traders in heavenly business, and at our stocktaking no p

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. April 1 The King's Highway The wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. (Isaiah 35:8)  The way of holiness is so straight and plain that the simplest minds cannot go astray if they constantly follow it. The worldly wise have many twists and turns, and yet they make terrible blunders and generally miss their end. Worldly policy is a poor, shortsighted thing, and when men choose it as their road, it leads them over dark mountains. Gracious minds know no better than to do as the Lord bids them; but this keeps them in the King's highway and under royal protection. Let the reader never for a moment attempt to help himself out of a difficulty by a falsehood or by a questionable act; but let him keep in the middle of the high road of truth and integrity, and he will be following the best possible course

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. March 31 Presence of Mind Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken. (Proverbs 3:25-26)  When God is abroad in judgments, He would not have His people alarmed. He has not come forth to harm but to defend the righteous. He would have them manifest courage. We who enjoy the presence of God ought to display presence of mind. Since the Lord Himself may suddenly come, we ought not to be surprised at anything sudden. Serenity under the rush and roar of unexpected evils is a precious gift of divine love. The Lord would have His chosen display discrimination so that they may see that the desolation of the wicked is not a real calamity to the universe. Sin alone is evil; the punishment which fo

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. March 30 Prayer, Thanksgiving, Praise Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)  No care but all prayer. No anxiety but much joyful communion with God. Carry your desires to the Lord of your life, the guardian of your soul. Go to Him with two portions of prayer and one of fragrant praise. Do not pray doubtfully but thankfully. Consider that you have your petitions, and therefore thank God for His grace. He is giving you grace; give Him thanks, Hide nothing. Allow no want to lie rankling in your bosom; "make known your requests." Run not to man. Go only to your God, the Father of Jesus, who love

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com. March 29 Dauntless Faith I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee. (Acts 18:10)  So long as the Lord had work for Paul to do in Corinth, the fury of the mob was restrained. The Jews opposed themselves and blasphemed; but they could neither stop the preaching of the gospel nor the conversion of the hearers. God has power over the most violent minds. He makes the wrath of man to praise Him when it breaks forth, but He still more displays His goodness when He restrains it; and He can restrain it. "By the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone, till thy people pass over, O Lord." Do not, therefore, feel any fear of man when you know that you are doing your duty. Go straight on, as Jesus would have done, and those who oppose shall be as a bruised reed and as smoking flax. Many

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com.       March 28 Lead the Way The Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail. (Deuteronomy 28:13)  If we obey the Lord, He will compel our adversaries to see that His blessing rests upon us. Though this be a promise of the law, yet it stands good to the people of God; for Jesus has removed the curse, but He has established the blessing. It is for saints to lead the way among men by holy influence: they are not to be the tail, to be dragged hither and thither by others. We must not yield to the spirit of the age, but compel the age to do homage to Christ. If the Lord be with us, we shalt not crave toleration for religion, but we shall seek to seat it on the throne of society. Has not the Lord Jesus made His people priests?  Surely they are to teach and must not be learne

Daily Devotions from Charles Spurgeon, read by Doug Smith.  To read the entire book online, visit spurgeon.org.  For more information about the program, visit brotherdougsmith.wordpress.com.       March 27 Drawing Near to God Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. (James 4:8)  The nearer we come to God, the more graciously will He reveal Himself to us. When the prodigal comes to his father, his father runs to meet him. When the wandering dove returns to the ark, Noah puts out his hand to pull her in unto him, When the tender wife seeks her husband's society, he comes to her on wings of love. Come then, dear friend, let us draw nigh to God who so graciously awaits us, yea, comes to meet us. Did you ever notice that passage in Isaiah 58:9? There the Lord seems to put Himself at the disposal of His people, saying to them, "Here I am." As much as to say—"What have you to say to me? What can I do for you? I am waiting to bless you." How can we hesitate to