Paul welcomed hearbreak, disillusionment and tribulation for only one reason - - these things kept him immovable in his devotion to the gospel of God.

If we have never had the experience of taking our commonplace religious shoes off our commonplace religious feet, and getting rid of all the undue familiarity with which we approach God, it is questionable whether we have ever stood in his presence.

Some of us are like the Dead Sea, always taking in but never giving out, because we are not rightly related to the Lord Jesus.

The greatest competitor of devotion to Jesus is service for Him.

The Bible talks plentifully about joy, but it nowhere talks about a 'happy Christian.' Happiness depends on what happens; joy does not. Remember, Jesus Christ had joy, and He prayed 'that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.'

We do not pray at all until we are at our wits' end.

Character in a saint means the disposition of Jesus Christ persistently manifested.