MurrayA_With Christ In The School Of Prayer

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by the word. And if he enjoys the reading of the word little, that is just the reason why
he should read it much; for the frequent reading of the Scriptures creates a delight in
them, so that the more we read them, the more we desire to do so.
Above all, he should seek to have it settled in his own mind that God alone by
His Spirit can teach him, and that therefore, as God will be inquired of for blessings, it
becomes him to seek God s blessing previous to reading, and also whilst reading.
He should have it, moreover, settled in his mind that although the Holy Spirit is
the best and sufficient Teacher, yet that this Teacher does not always teach immediately
when we desire it, and that therefore we may have to entreat Him again and again for
the explanation of certain passages; but that He will surely teach us at last, if indeed we
are seeking for light prayerfully, patiently, and with a view to the glory of God. 1
We find in his journal frequent mention made of his spending two and three
hours in prayer over the word for the feeding of his spiritual life. As the fruit of this,
when he had need of strength and encouragement in prayer, the individual promises
were not to him so many arguments from a book to be used with God, but living words
which he had heard the Father s living voice speak to him, and which he could now
bring to the Father in living faith.
PRAYER AND THE WILL OF GOD.
One of the greatest difficulties with young believers is to know how they can
find out whether what they desire is according to God s will. I count it one of the most
precious lessons God wants to teach through the experience of George Muller, that He
is willing to make know, of things of which His word says nothing directly, that they
are His will for us, and that we may ask them. The teaching of the Spirit, not without
or against the word, but as something above and beyond it, in addition to it, without
which we cannot see God s will, is the heritage of every believer. It is through THE
WORD, AND THE WORD ALONE, that the Spirit teaches, applying the general
principles or promises to our special need. And it is THE SPIRIT, AND THE SPIRIT
ALONE, who can really make the word a light on our path, whether the path of duty in
our daily walk, or the path of faith in our approach to God. Let us try and notice in
what childlike simplicity and teachableness it was that the discovery of God s will was
so surely and so clearly made known to His servant.
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With regard to the building of the first Home and the assurance he had of its
being God s will, he writes in May 1850, just after it had been opened, speaking of the
great difficulties there were, and how little likely it appeared to nature that they would
be removed: But while the prospect before me would have been overwhelming had I
looked at it naturally, I was never even for once permitted to question how it would
end. For as from the beginning I was sure it was the will of God that I should go to the
work of building for Him this large Orphan Home, so also from the beginning I was as
certain that the whole would be finished as if the Home had been already filled.
The way in which he found out what was God s will, comes out with special
clearness in his account of the building of the second Home; and I ask the reader to
study with care the lesson the narrative conveys:--
Dec. 5, 1850. Under these circumstances I can only pray that the Lord in His
tender mercy would not allow Satan to gain an advantage over me. By the grace of
God my heart says: Lord, if I could be sure that it is Thy will that I should go forward
in this matter, I would do so cheerfully; and, on the other hand, if I could be sure that
these are vain, foolish, proud thoughts, that they are not from Thee, I would, by Thy
grace, hate them, and entirely put them aside.
My hope is in God: He will help and teach me. Judging, however, from His
former dealings with me, it would not be a strange thing to me, nor surprising, if He
called me to labour yet still more largely in this way.
The thoughts about enlarging the Orphan work have not yet arisen on account
of an abundance of money having lately come in; for I have had of late to wait for about
seven weeks upon God, whilst little, very little comparatively, came in, i.e. about four
times as much was going out as came in; and, had not the Lord previously sent me
large sums, we should have been distressed indeed.
Lord! how can Thy servant know Thy will in this matter? Wilt Thou be pleased
to teach him!
December 11. During the last six days, since writing the above, I have been, day
after day, waiting upon God concerning this matter. It has generally been more or less
all the day on my heart. When I have been awake at night, it has not been far from my
thoughts. Yet all this without the least excitement. I am perfectly calm and quiet
respecting it. My soul would be rejoiced to go forward in this service, could I be sure
that the Lord would have me to do so; for then, notwithstanding the numberless
difficulties, all would be well; and His Name would be magnified.
On the other hand, were I assured that the Lord would have me to be satisfied
with my present sphere of service, and that I should not pray about enlarging the work,
by His grace I could, without an effort, cheerfully yield to it; for He has brought me into
such a state of heart, that I only desire to please Him in this matter. Moreover, hitherto
I have not spoken about this thing even to my beloved wife, the sharer of my joys,
sorrows, and labours for more than twenty years; nor is it likely that I shall do so for
some time to come: for I prefer quietly to wait on the Lord, without conversing on this
subject, in order that thus I may be kept the more easily, by His blessing, from being
influenced by things from without. The burden of my prayer concerning this matter is,
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that the Lord would not allow me to make a mistake, and that He would teach me to do
His will. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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