We are told in Scripture that "we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God" (1 Cor. 2:12) and that "the Spirit of God dwells in us" (1 Cor. 3:16). But Christian, do you not realize that by this same Spirit, Christ dwells in our hearts through faith (Eph. 3:17)? Oh the glory of God's riches toward us to be strengthened with power through His Spirit so that we may have Jesus always with(in) us (Eph. 3:16)! How glorious to know the breadth and length and height and depth of the love of Christ which surpasses all knowledge (Eph. 3:18)!

That this indeed may be true, let us then say with the Apostle Paul, "...it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself up for me" (Gal. 2:20)!
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Evening, August 23

"That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith." Ephesians 3:17

Beyond measure it is desirable that we, as believers, should have the person of Jesus constantly before us, to inflame our love towards Him, and to increase our knowledge of Him. I would to God that my readers were all entered as diligent scholars in Jesus' college, students of Corpus Christi, or the body of Christ, resolved to attain unto a good degree in the learning of the cross. But to have Jesus ever near, the heart must be full of Him, welling up with His love, even to overrunning; hence the apostle prays "that Christ may dwell in your hearts." See how near he would have Jesus to be! You cannot get a subject closer to you than to have it in the heart itself. "That He may dwell"; not that He may call upon you sometimes, as a casual visitor enters into a house and tarries for a night, but that He may dwell"; that Jesus may become the Lord and Tenant of your inmost being, never more to go out.

Observe the words- that He may dwell in your heart, that best room of the house of manhood; not in your thoughts alone, but in your affections; not merely in the mind's meditations, but in the heart's emotions. We should pant after love to Christ of a most abiding character, not a love that flames up and then dies out into the darkness of a few embers, but a constant flame, fed by sacred fuel, like the fire upon the altar which never went out. This cannot be accomplished except by faith. Faith must be strong, or love will not be fervent; the root of the flower must be healthy, or we cannot expect the bloom to be sweet. Faith is the lily's root, and love is the lily's bloom. Now, reader, Jesus cannot be in your heart's love except you have a firm hold of Him by your heart's faith; and, therefore, pray that you may always trust Christ in order that you may always love Him. If love be cold, be sure that faith is drooping.

Unpopular opinion: I think Bill Cosby is the funniest comedian to ever hit the stage. I also think there was a sinister plan to take Bill Cosby down because of his pushback against the Hollyweird machine. Bill Cosby shot himself in the foot by some of the things he did that he should not have done, and Hollyweird, coupled with the judicial system, ruined his reputation and sent him to prison. He still has my respect as a comedian and voice for family friendly programming. I own several collections of his work on dvd, and I own most of his books. I pray for his salvation when I think of him.
https://youtu.be/lIyvxREShsg?si=MxzcvS56u9eqiUYW

“Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
This prophesy sent to Israelite captives in Babylon during Jeremiah’s time contains truths relevant for God’s people today.

Seeking God is never a vain pursuit. He told Israel, "You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13). Regarding our needs, food, drink, clothing, Jesus said, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you" (Matthew 6:33). God will not turn away those who seek Him wholeheartedly. If we truly seek Him, we will find Him, and He will change our hearts and meet our needs.
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Evening, August 21

"I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye Me in vain." Isaiah 45:19

We may gain much solace by considering what God has not said. What He has said is inexpressibly full of comfort and delight; what He has not said is scarcely less rich in consolation. It was one of these "said nots" which preserved the kingdom of Israel in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, for "the Lord said not that He would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven." 2 Kings 14:27. In our text we have an assurance that God will answer prayer, because He hath "not said unto the seed of Israel, Seek ye Me in vain." You who write bitter things against yourselves should remember that, let your doubts and fears say what they will, if God has not cut you off from mercy, there is no room for despair: even the voice of conscience is of little weight if it be not seconded by the voice of God. What God has said, tremble at! But suffer not your vain imaginings to overwhelm you with despondency and sinful despair. Many timid persons have been vexed by the suspicion that there may be something in God's decree which shuts them out from hope, but here is a complete refutation to that troublesome fear, for no true seeker can be decreed to wrath. "I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth; I have not said," even in the secret of my unsearchable decree, "Seek ye Me in vain." God has clearly revealed that He will hear the prayer of those who call upon Him, and that declaration cannot be contravened. He has so firmly, so truthfully, so righteously spoken, that there can be no room for doubt. He does not reveal His mind in unintelligible words, but He speaks plainly and positively, "Ask, and ye shall receive." Believe, O trembler, this sure truth- that prayer must and shall be heard, and that never, even in the secrets of eternity, has the Lord said unto any living soul, "Seek ye Me in vain."

"Thou art my strength." What a comforting message. Believer, do you attempt to stand in your own strength? Or do you rely instead on the strength of the One who saved you? It is God who says, "Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand" (Isaiah 41:10).

Paul himself said that he would rather boast about his own weakness so that the power of Christ might dwell in him and that God's strength might be shown through Him (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). He wrote, "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13).

Christian, will you stand in your own strength to defeat the enemy and muddle your way through life? Or will you allow God to provide the strength you need and fully depend on Him for your victory?
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Evening, August 19

"Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for Thou art my strength." Psalm 31:4

Our spiritual foes are of the serpent's brood, and seek to ensnare us by subtlety. The prayer before us supposes the possibility of the believer being caught like a bird. So deftly does the fowler do his work, that simple ones are soon surrounded by the net. The text asks that even out of Satan's meshes the captive one may be delivered; this is a proper petition, and one which can be granted: from between the jaws of the lion, and out of the belly of hell, can eternal love rescue the saint. It may need a sharp pull to save a soul from the net of temptations, and a mighty pull to extricate a man from the snares of malicious cunning, but the Lord is equal to every emergency, and the most skilfully placed nets of the hunter shall never be able to hold His chosen ones. Woe unto those who are so clever at net laying; they who tempt others shall be destroyed themselves.

"For Thou art my strength." What an inexpressible sweetness is to be found in these few words! How joyfully may we encounter toils, and how cheerfully may we endure sufferings, when we can lay hold upon celestial strength. Divine power will rend asunder all the toils of our enemies, confound their politics, and frustrate their knavish tricks; he is a happy man who has such matchless might engaged upon his side. Our own strength would be of little service when embarrassed in the nets of base cunning, but the Lord's strength is ever available; we have but to invoke it, and we shall find it near at hand. If by faith we are depending alone upon the strength of the mighty God of Israel, we may use our holy reliance as a plea in supplication.

"Lord, evermore Thy face we seek:
Tempted we are, and poor, and weak;
Keep us with lowly hearts, and meek.
Let us not fall. Let us not fall."

The President does not understand the Gospel. It is my prayer that some of the faithful, doctrinally sound preachers or pastors that I know about can get an audience with him and share the Gospel with him. I pray for his salvation regularly. I would hate for him to have gone through all he has gone through in his presidencies, only to land in hell for all eternity.
https://x.com/atrupar/status/1957780439222906934

On His way to the cross, Christ needed no wine. He had a cup to drink that was unpleasant, but He intended to drink that cup which the Father offered Him. He was to offer Himself up for us, a ransom for our sin (Mt. 20:28), and to set an example of self-sacrifice and suffering that we are to follow (1 Pet. 2:19-24). Dear Christian, are you daily taking up your cross and following Jesus? (Mt. 16:24)
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Evening, August 18

"And they gave Him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but He received it not." Mark 15:23

A golden truth is couched in the fact that the Saviour put the myrrhed wine-cup from His lips. On the heights of heaven the Son of God stood of old, and as He looked down upon our globe He measured the long descent to the utmost depths of human misery; He cast up the sum total of all the agonies which expiation would require, and abated not a jot. He solemnly determined that to offer a sufficient atoning sacrifice He must go the whole way, from the highest to the lowest, from the throne of highest glory to the cross of deepest woe. This myrrhed cup, with its soporific influence, would have stayed Him within a little of the utmost limit of misery, therefore He refused it. He would not stop short of all He had undertaken to suffer for His people. Ah, how many of us have pined after reliefs to our grief which would have been injurious to us! Reader, did you never pray for a discharge from hard service or suffering with a petulant and wilful eagerness? Providence has taken from you the desire of your eyes with a stroke. Say, Christian, if it had been said, "If you so desire it, that loved one of yours shall live, but God will be dishonoured," could you have put away the temptation, and said, "Thy will be done"? Oh, it is sweet to be able to say, "My Lord, if for other reasons I need not suffer, yet if I can honour Thee more by suffering, and if the loss of my earthly all will bring Thee glory, then so let it be. I refuse the comfort, if it comes in the way of Thine honour." O that we thus walked more in the footsteps of our Lord, cheerfully enduring trial for His sake, promptly and willingly putting away the thought of self and comfort when it would interfere with our finishing the work which He has given us to do. Great grace is needed, but great grace is provided.

When His disciples asked Him how to pray, Jesus began, "Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be thy name." First and foremost in all things, we are to recognize God's holiness and give Him glory, as do even the angels. His purpose in creating was for His glory. We are told that whatever we do, it should be done to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). In the end, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:11).

This leaves only one question for you today: are you glorifying God?
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Morning, August 16

"Give unto the Lord the glory due unto His name." Psalm 29:2

God's glory is the result of His nature and acts. He is glorious in His character, for there is such a store of everything that is holy, and good, and lovely in God, that He must be glorious. The actions which flow from His character are also glorious; but while He intends that they should manifest to His creatures His goodness, and mercy, and justice, He is equally concerned that the glory associated with them should be given only to Himself. Nor is there aught in ourselves in which we may glory; for who maketh us to differ from another? And what have we that we did not receive from the God of all grace? Then how careful ought we to be to walk humbly before the Lord! The moment we glorify ourselves, since there is room for one glory only in the universe, we set ourselves up as rivals to the Most High. Shall the insect of an hour glorify itself against the sun which warmed it into life? Shall the potsherd exalt itself above the man who fashioned it upon the wheel? Shall the dust of the desert strive with the whirlwind? Or the drops of the ocean struggle with the tempest? Give unto the Lord, all ye righteous, give unto the Lord glory and strength; give unto Him the honour that is due unto His name. Yet it is, perhaps, one of the hardest struggles of the Christian life to learn this sentence- "Not unto us, not unto us, but unto Thy name be glory." It is a lesson which God is ever teaching us, and teaching us sometimes by most painful discipline. Let a Christian begin to boast, "I can do all things," without adding "through Christ which strengtheneth me," and before long he will have to groan, "I can do nothing," and bemoan himself in the dust. When we do anything for the Lord, and He is pleased to accept of our doings, let us lay our crown at His feet, and exclaim, "Not I, but the grace of God which was with me!"

Christian, are you setting aside time each day to spend with God in prayer and meditating on His word? Or do you fritter away your free moments with trivial tasks and meaningless minutiae? Set aside a few moments alone to commune with God, as even Jesus did. The benefits you will reap are immeasurable!
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Morning, August 15

"Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide." Genesis 24:63

Very admirable was his occupation. If those who spend so many hours in idle company, light reading, and useless pastimes, could learn wisdom, they would find more profitable society and more interesting engagements in meditation than in the vanities which now have such charms for them. We should all know more, live nearer to God, and grow in grace, if we were more alone. Meditation chews the cud and extracts the real nutriment from the mental food gathered elsewhere. When Jesus is the theme, meditation is sweet indeed. Isaac found Rebecca while engaged in private musings; many others have found their best beloved there.

Very admirable was the choice of place. In the field we have a study hung round with texts for thought. From the cedar to the hyssop, from the soaring eagle down to the chirping grasshopper, from the blue expanse of heaven to a drop of dew, all things are full of teaching, and when the eye is divinely opened, that teaching flashes upon the mind far more vividly than from written books. Our little rooms are neither so healthy, so suggestive, so agreeable, or so inspiring as the fields. Let us count nothing common or unclean, but feel that all created things point to their Maker, and the field will at once be hallowed.

Very admirable was the season. The season of sunset as it draws a veil over the day, befits that repose of the soul when earthborn cares yield to the joys of heavenly communion. The glory of the setting sun excites our wonder, and the solemnity of approaching night awakens our awe. If the business of this day will permit it, it will be well, dear reader, if you can spare an hour to walk in the field at eventide, but if not, the Lord is in the town too, and will meet with thee in thy chamber or in the crowded street. Let thy heart go forth to meet Him.

God is not unaware of our troubles. Lay them at His feet. Let Him lift you up. He says to us, "Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am God; I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand" (Isaiah 41:10). We need but ask for His help, and He will bring us peace: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7).
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Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Evening, August 14

"I know their sorrows." Exodus 3:7

The child is cheered as he sings, "This my father knows"; and shall not we be comforted as we discern that our dear Friend and tender soul-husband knows all about us?

1. He is the Physician, and if He knows all, there is no need that the patient should know. Hush, thou silly, fluttering heart, prying, peeping, and suspecting! What thou knowest not now, thou shalt know hereafter, and meanwhile Jesus, the beloved Physician, knows thy soul in adversities. Why need the patient analyze all the medicine, or estimate all the symptoms? This is the Physician's work, not mine; it is my business to trust, and His to prescribe. If He shall write His prescription in uncouth characters which I cannot read, I will not be uneasy on that account, but rely upon His unfailing skill to make all plain in the result, however mysterious in the working.

2. He is the Master, and His knowledge is to serve us instead of our own; we are to obey, not to judge: "The servant knoweth not what his lord doeth." Shall the architect explain his plans to every hodman on the works? If he knows his own intent, is it not enough? The vessel on the wheel cannot guess to what pattern it shall be conformed, but if the potter understands his art, what matters the ignorance of the clay? My Lord must not be cross-questioned any more by one so ignorant as I am.

3. He is the Head. All understanding centres there. What judgment has the arm? What comprehension has the foot? All the power to know lies in the head. Why should the member have a brain of its own when the head fulfils for it every intellectual office? Here, then, must the believer rest his comfort in sickness, not that he himself can see the end, but that Jesus knows all. Sweet Lord, be thou for ever eye, and soul, and head for us, and let us be content to know only what Thou choosest to reveal.