The Cost of Being Used by God “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.” Luke 14:28–30 Without question, Charles Spurgeon was one of the most gifted men to ever stand behind a pulpit. His greatly successful ministry began when he was just a teenager. But his private life was filled with pain. Spurgeon suffered crippling rheumatism and gout that often left him unable to preach. He was routinely condemned in the newspapers of his day. In 1856 while Spurgeon preached to more than 10,000 at the Surrey Gardens Music Hall someone shouted “Fire!” and seven people were trampled to death in the panic. Spurgeon was greatly depressed afterward and said that he would often burst into tears just thinking of the event. On a wall in his bedroom Charles Spurgeon had a plaque with the words of Isaiah 48:10 on it: “I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.” Spurgeon wrote: “It is no mean thing to be chosen of God. God’s choice makes chosen men choice men...We are chosen, not in the palace, but in the furnace. In the furnace, beauty is marred, fashion is destroyed, strength is melted, glory is consumed; yet here eternal love reveals its secrets, and declares its choice.” A life of service and usefulness to God is worth the cost, but we should not forget that there is a cost to be paid. We may be misunderstood, attacked, and criticized. We may not have the health and wealth that we desire. We may have to make significant sacrifices. But for those who are willing to submit to God’s refining process, there is great opportunity for service and blessing. Today’s Renewal Principle: Nothing great has ever been accomplished for God by those unwilling to pay the price.
Posted on: Wed, 14 Jan 2015 10:38:37 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015