Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Thus Saith...

...J.I. Packer in Hot Tub Religion (emphasis mine) ~

"The heart of true religion is to glorify God by patient endurance and to praise him for his gracious deliverances. It is to live one's life, through smooth and rough places alike, in sustained obedience and thanksgiving for mercy received. It is to seek and find one's deepest joy, not in spiritual lotus-eating, but in discovering through each successive storm and conflict the mighty adequacy of Christ to save. It is the sure knowledge that God's way is best, both for our own welfare and for his glory. No problems of providence will shake the faith of the one who has truly learned this."

3 comments:

ellen b. said...

I'll have to pull that book off my shelf and read it...
:)

Connie said...

ellen b. - I've yet to make it ALL the way through, but I'm hanging in there.

His reminder that "No problems of providence will shake the faith of the one who has truly learned this" needs to be plastered on billboards, church bulletins, city buses... :-)

I'm just so regularly struck by Packer's 'common sense' and 'matter of fact' manner--I NEED that to keep me in check! Enjoy!

Marcian said...

Amen. With most of my life ahead of me (I hope) this is a statement that keeps me assured that nothing can separate me from the love of God. Because I know His "love" for me is not displayed by the circumstances around me, but by the seal of the Holy Spirit He's put on my heart. (Romans 5:3-5)

Thanks for the reminder. This looks like another book to put on the Wishlist.