When a man is first born again, he becomes incoherent, there is an amount of unrelated emotion about him, unrelated phases of external things.

In the apostle Paul there was a strong steady coherence underneath, consequently he could let his external life change as it liked and it did not distress him because he was rooted and grounded in God.

Most of us are not spiritually coherent because we are more concerned about being coherent externally.

Paul lived in the basement; the coherent critics live in the upper storey of the external statement of things, and the two do not begin to touch each other.

Paul's consistency was down in the fundamentals. The great basis of his coherence was the agony of God in the Redemption of the world, viz., the Cross of Jesus Christ.

Re-state to yourself what you believe, then do away with as much of it as possible, and get back to the bedrock of the Cross of Christ.

In external history the Cross is an infinitesimal thing; from the Bible point of view it is of more importance than all the empires of the world.

If we get away from brooding on the tragedy of God upon the Cross in our preaching, it produces nothing.

It does not convey the energy of God to man; it may be interesting but it has no power.

But preach the Cross, and the energy of God is let loose.

"It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe."

"We preach Christ crucified."

God was pleased” (1 Corinthians 1:21) to take my youngest child from this world, under circumstances that caused me severe trials and pain. And as I returned home from the church cemetery, having just laid my little one’s body in the grave, I felt a compulsion to preach to my people on the meaning of trials.

I found that the verse “My grace is sufficient for you” was the text of next week’s Sunday school lesson, so I chose it as my Master’s message to the congregation, as well as His message to me. Yet while trying to write the sermon, I found that in all honesty, I could not say that the words were true in my life. Therefore I knelt down and asked the Lord to make His grace sufficient for me. While I was pleading in this way, I opened my eyes and saw this exact verse framed and hanging on the wall. My mother had given it to me a few days before, when I was still at the vacation resort where our little child had been taken from us. I had asked someone to hang it on the wall at home during my absence but had not yet noticed its words.

Now as I looked up and wiped my eyes, the words met my gaze: “My grace is sufficient for you.”

The word “is” was highlighted in bright green, while the words “my” and “you” were painted in yet another color. In a moment, a message flashed straight to my soul, coming as a rebuke for having prayed such a prayer as, “Lord, make Your grace sufficient for me.” His answer was almost an audible voice that said, “How dare you ask for something that is? I cannot make My grace any more sufficient than I have already made it. Get up and believe it, and you will find it to be true in your life.”

The Lord says it in the simplest way: “My grace is [not will be or may be] sufficient for you.” The words “my,” “is,” and “you” were from that moment indelibly written upon my heart. And thankfully, I have been trying to live in the reality of that truth from that day to the present time.

The underlying lesson that came to me through this experience, and that I seek to convey to others, is this: Never change God’s facts into hopes or prayers but simply accept them as realities, and you will find them to be powerful as you believe them. H. W. WEBB PEPLOE

He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater, He sendeth more strength when the labors increase; To added affliction He addeth His mercies, To multiplied trials His multiplied peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance, When our strength has failed ere the day is half done, When we reach the end of our hoarded resources Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

His love has no limit, His grace has no measure, His power no boundary known unto men; For out of His infinite riches in Jesus He giveth and giveth and giveth again.

ANNIE JOHNSON FLINT