37. The Patient reflects that Suffering and Distress come from God

EXHORTATION.

"The Lord killeth and maketh alive; he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up."—1 Sam. ii. 6.

God is love, and loveth men fervently. True believers experience daily proofs of this love, in his gracious assistance and numberless benefits. They also see it in the great works of creation, redemption and sanctification. This truth, that God is love, is richly fraught with consolation, to those afflicted by sickness. 1. It teaches the sufferer that his troubles were sent, not by an enemy who hates, but by a friend who loves him.

2. Therefore, the patient must commit himself to God, diligently call upon him in prayer, trustingly look up to heaven and think, he who has brought my ill can drive it away, he well knows how to end all my sufferings.

3. He must not suffer himself to be disturbed by the violence of his disease, or the apparent imminence of the danger, for here again he has the consolation, that God who imposes the burden, will help to carry it.

THE PATIENT REFLECTS THAT SUFFERING

Lord God! Merciful, long-suffering, and of great goodness and truth, thou who dost pardon trespasses and sins! Behold me at thy feet, beseeching thee to look down upon me from thy lofty throne, and hear my prayer. I believe and know that my suffering and sorrow come from thee; thy hand smites, but it also heals, it wounds, and it binds up; and if my sickness comes from heaven, to heaven I look for comfort. I lift up mine eyes unto the hills, whence my help cometh; my help cometh from the Lord, who made the heavens and the earth. Health, life, and prosperity, I have received at thy hands; should I not accept this sickness also! The trees of the orchard are sometimes filled with blossoms, or beautifully adorned with leaves and fruits, fresh and shining in the sun, yet in winter they appear to be dead and sapless, and the storm and the frost assail them. All this comes, O God, from thee. Therefore I will also bear in mind, that this my time of distress and suffering is of thy sending. Thou knowest of every star, whether it stands high or low in the sky, so dost thou also know how it stands with me. Thou knowest the weight of my burden, thou art acquainted with the duration of my sufferings, thou art aware of the extent of my powers of AND DISTRESS COME FROM GOD.

endurance. O then, dear Lord, impose whate'er thou wilt, but give me the strength needed to sustain it. I know that without thy will, not a hair can fall from my head; how much less, then, can I fall sick? If not a sparrow can fall to the earth without thy will, how could I, without thy will, be subjected to pains, and disquietude, and even death? If my troubles come from thee, they come from my father; if they come from my father, they come from a loving heart, not for my destruction, but for the good of my soul. Chastise me, my father, yet in moderation, and do not entirely destroy me. Afflict me, but make me glad again; if thou dost awhile conceal thy countenance, let it shine forth again; let the light of thy countenance shine upon me, and I shall be whole. Willingly will I fall into the hands of my father, if I have deserved punishment, for his wrath endureth but a moment, and he loveth the living. Without thy will nothing can befall me; thou canst curse and bless again, I am thy child and have deserved thy discipline; send thy warm sunshine after the bleak rain. I know that thou hast never yet forgotten me; in the midst of my tribulation I think upon the Lord, even though he press me with crosses and fears. Amen. 1. To be a child of God, and yet oppressed with sadness,

Is quite compatible, for an interior gladness

Remaineth in the soul, with faith and piety,

Though to the outward eye, 'tis ruin utterly.

2. He who here gathers thorns shall once be crowned with splendor,

And who here weeps and groans, shall there all grief surrender.

He is a child of God, e'en in the midst of care,

The Lord still loves him well, and keeps his mansions there.

3. Still to thy God be true, in faith and firm reliance,

And thou shalt soon perceive the worth of his alliance;

And even should thy life on earth be full of woe,

What matter? At the end to heaven thou'lt surely go.

4. Thy father loves thee, though his chastening rod annoy thee,

And though thy heart should bleed, yet he will not destroy thee.

God loves a child that looks to heaven with steady gaze,

And still its prayerful eye doth to its Lord upraise.

THE PATIENT APPRECIATES, ETC.