As I read in Hebrews, I came upon a cause for very great thankfulness that I had not noticed before. Suppose the Old Testament promises were only for those to whom they were first given; suppose we had no right to take them for ourselves (some teach that this is so); what a tremendous loss it would be. Hebrews 13:5 was the word that brought this home to me just now. There we have the essence of three glorious verses from the Old Testament, from the Scriptures that belonged to other people (from ancient history), now given to us for our own use. I take it that the Spirit of God guided the writer of Hebrews, both in the choice of His quotations and in the translation of them, so that we have the very words which can help us most. “I will in no way fail thee, neither will I in any way forsake thee;” (Gen. 28:15; Deut. 31:6,8; Josh. 1:5) and then “The Lord is my helper, I will not fear: what shall man do to me?” (Psalm 118:6; Psalm 56:9-13). So what can man, the devil, or even myself do to me, if I truly know that the Lord of heaven and earth is my Helper, and that He truly says to me, “I will in no way fail thee, neither will I in any way forsake thee.”
So let us cherish thankfulness–“In God’s word will I rejoice; in the Lord’s word will I comfort myself.” For though my soul is among lions every day of my life, with me is the most high God, that shall perform the cause which I have in hand.
From the midst of frustrations in central Africa, Fred Arnot, who was considered the David Livingstone of those regions, wrote, “I am learning never to be disappointed, but only to praise.” I read that journal letter of his when it came home from Africa forty years ago. But that vital word, in an ordinary letter, remained with me, ready for a moment of need. I am learning never to be disappointed, but only to praise. God keeps us so near to Himself that there will be little shining seeds in our letters, seeds that will bear harvests of joy somewhere, sometime, and be melody to others in their heaviness. Let us learn to not be disappointed in anything, but instead to praise.
– Amy Carmichael