“God is the One who gives gifts, and God is also the One who gives the ability to enjoy gifts…If we neglect God in our pursuit of joy, everything good in life—for example, possessions and pleasures—slips through our grasp. But if we give ‘thanks to God the Father’ through Jesus Christ (Col. 3:17; 1 Tim. 4:4-5) for every good gift, then whatever we receive from him—practical wisdom, daily bread, red table wine, our lifetime of labors, and so on—is seen…
“In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3:6. “Take one step at a time, every step under Divine warrant and direction. Ever plan for yourself in simple dependence on God. It is nothing less than self-idolatry to conceive that we can carry on even ordinary matters of the day without his counsel. He loves to be consulted. Therefore take all thy difficulties to be resolved by him. Consider no circumstances too clear to…
“Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace. Every day of our Christian experience should be a day of relating to God on the basis of His grace alone. We are not only saved by grace, but we also live by grace every day.” Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace, 18.
“‘Wait on the Lord’ is a constant refrain in the Psalms, and it is a necessary word, for God often keeps us waiting. He is not in such a hurry as we are, and it is not his way to give more light on the future than we need for action in the present, or to guide us more than one step at a time. When in doubt, do nothing, but continue to wait on God. When action is needed,…
“[Adoption] is the highest privilege that the gospel offers: higher even than justification… That justification—by which we mean God’s forgiveness of the past together with his acceptance for the future—is the primary and fundamental blessing of the gospel is not in question. Justification is the primary blessing, because it meets our primary spiritual need. We all stand by nature under God’s judgment; his law condemns us; guilt gnaws at us, making us restless, miserable, and in our lucid moments afraid; we…