When our afflictions do not drive us to God, nor cause us more humbly to hear and seek His work, but rather to stop our ears, and to run from it, and to seek unlawful means, let us then mourn secretily and heartily unto God, for the direction of God’s Spirit, for that case is dangerous. [Richard Greenham]
If the Lord shows lesser mercies to us than to others, we have no cause to complain because He is no debtor so we must not envy them that have greater gifts, for if we have any it is more than [our] due or than we deserve, and this will teach us to be contented with that which we have had. Let us then look on what we have and give God thanks for it, and know that if we should have more He would give more, yea, if we consider that they that have much must make the greater account, and that we are unfit to do so,we will thank God that we have no more than we have. [Richard Greenham]
Job served God in truth, and yet was punsished, and so Lazarus; but this was not so much for their own sin as for the trial of their faith and that after them, the Church might recieve great comfort by their examples. For as it hurts not the gold to be put into the fire, both because it is tried, and also made more pure–so it is not evil for the children of God to have their faith tried. If it be a strong faith, it will bear the fire; if it be weak, it will shine yet brighter. The Lord often… by outward crosses draweth us from the state of security and untowardness to good works. Neither can we truly repent, unless by some cross we know this world to be a place of sorrow, and not of mirth and delight. We must be as birds on a bough, to remove at God’s pleasure, and that without resistance when the Lord shall visit us. And because we are too much given to think that we have the things in our own right, which we hold of the free goodness of God, we are taught in affliction how heinous unthankfulness it were to bind the Lord continually to entertain us in this life at so full charge and cost. [Richard Greenham]
Whereof comes it that there is so much preaching and so little learning? But because men preach high and delight to hear plausible novelties, to please the ear rather than the simple power of the Word to please the heart. [Richard Greenham]
Satan hath no absolute power, but a power by permission to try us: against which we must arm ourselves by faith, which will assure us that either the Lord mitigate our temptation…or else if he enlarge the trial he will increase our strength…We must also pray that the Lord give not out that measure of leave to the devil which we give out to sin..but that he would rather make Satan a surgeon to show us our sins than a sergeant to confound us in them. [Satan] tries to persuade many that the weakness of their body, the feeblnesss of their brain proceedeth of their temptations, when indeed it cometh of their own unstayed minds, wandering too much after the motions of the devil, in that they are not resting on the Word, nor depending on Christ, nor contenting themselves to be tried; nor comforting themselves by meditation, attend too much and confer too much often with the devil’s illusions and temptations and they complain of the effects and not of the causes of the temptations being more grieved for their present sufferings, than for their sins past. The root of this worldly shame is pride…[Richard Greenham]
Nothing much to tell. I’m walking a single solitary pilgrims walk, in England, that is not an easy one. I am a Calvinistic Covenanter Christian, My Autonomic Nervous system is failing slowly, which has led to severe disability, with an ultra rare disease than medics don’t even understand, often misdiagnose.and will no doubt kill me at some point. But, I trust the Lord to get me where I’m going. All glory to HIM.
The symptomology listed on the link, most porphyrics will only have most of those symptoms if in an acute attack. A few of us, with the ongoing, smouldering symptoms, that never go away, have most if not all of the symptom list, even when not in an acute attack, and are persistent and constant. Anyone who has ever been in the psychiactric system, diagnosed as this or that, even if physically well, should consider this illness could be responsible. King George III, the most famous porphyric, his sole symptom was “insanity.” Its so rare in part, because it’s massively under-diagnosed. But in making this illness known, when it struck me physically a few years ago, God vindicated me from every mis-diagnoses and bersmirchment upon me medically that has ever been made, and has made them all null and void.
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| Josh Mitchell on Humility |
