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September 5
"Blessed are all they that wait for him." (Isa. 30:18)
ＷE hear a great deal about waiting on God. There is, however, another side. When we wait on God, He ia waiting till we are ready; when we wait for God, we are waiting till He is ready.
There are some people who say, and many more who believe, that as soon as we meet all the conditions, God will answer our prayers. They say that God lives in an eternal now; with Him there is no past nor future; and that if we could fulfill all that He requires in the way of obedience to His will, immediately our needs would be supplied, our desires fulfilled, our prayers answered.
There is much truch in this belief, and yet it express only one side of the truth. While God lives in an eternal now, yet He works out His purposed in time. A petition presented before God is like a seed dropped in the ground. Forces above and beyond our control must work upon it, till the true fruition of the answer is given.
─The Still Small Voice.
I longed to walk along an easy road,
And leave behind the dull routine of home,
Thinking in other fields to serve my God;
But Jesus said, "My time has not yet come."
I longed to sow the seed in other soil,
To be unfettered in the work, and free,
To join with other laborers in their toil;
But Jesus said. "Tis not My choice for thee."
I longed to leave the desert, and be led,
To work where souls were sunk in sin and shame.
That I might win them; but the Master said,
"I have not called thee, publish here My name."
I longed to fighht the batties of my King,
Lift high His standards in the thickest strife;
But my great Captain bade me wait and sing,
Songs of His conquests in my quiet life.
I longed to leave the uncongenial sphere,
Where all alone I seemed to stand and wait,
To feel I had some human helper near,
But Jesus bade me quard one lonely gate.
I longed to leave the round of daily toil,
Where no one seemed to understand or care;
But Jesus said, "I choose for thee this soil,
That thou might'st raise for Me some blossoms rare."
And now I have no longing but to do,
At home, or else afar, His blessed will,
To work amid the many or the few;
Thus, "choosing not to choose," my heart is still.
─Seledted.
"And Patience was willing to wait."
─Pilgrim's Progress.
「天然的生命是無法比直接不斷的啟示所產生一股能力活的更久，因此除非信靠順服聖靈，並在祂裏面行事，向祂祈求直接的啟示，否則不可能保守人類脫離罪惡。除非聖靈親自運行或在聖靈內，神的國度作成應作的，否則全備福音的真理就無法顯明出來。」
主曾對門徒說：「我實實在在告訴你們，我去原是與你們有益。」祂教導他們，除非在心靈中得到祂靈的啟示，以代替外面人間語言的教導，否則他們無法在任何情況下喜樂地盼望更高更多的福分。
在此有兩個基本的事實完全顯明出來：第一，就是除非基督得了榮耀，祂的國度也因著聖靈直接而繼續啟示，得以完全在人間彰顯，使人真正體驗屬靈生活的喜樂，否則全備福音的事實毫無用武之地。
其次，就是除非聖靈向使徒或其他人的心中啟示基督救贖的大能大力，否則沒有人在世界末了以前，能有這方面有福的真知識。然而，這在使徒和第一批福音使者身上，皆有正面的果效。
讓我們承認在幾次偶然事件或正常情況中，聖靈在我們身上做了多少工作，讓我們來回憶當困難臨到我們時，我們是否有意降服自己，完全讓聖靈作直接而不斷啟示的工作；這有絕對的必要，也是神對我們的應許，讓我們渴慕這個目標並為此代禱。
「同我儆醒。」馬太福音廿六章40節
「同我儆醒」──是全然不許你私人的見解參加的，須著重完全同我的「我」字。在開始的階段中，我們不是與耶穌一同儆醒，乃是注視著祂。我們不照著聖經的啟示同祂儆醒；僅僅藉著我們生活的環境同祂儆醒。我們的主要我們在客西馬尼園裡與祂合而為一，而我們不去，說：「主啊，不能，我見不到這事的意義，這是痛苦。」這樣我們怎能與那不可思議的一位一同儆醒呢？甚至於我們不知道祂為甚麼犧牲，我們怎能充分瞭解祂，在祂的客西馬尼園裡，同祂一同儆醒呢？我們不知道怎樣同祂儆醒；我們僅僅知道利用耶穌同我們儆醒的觀念。
門徒愛耶穌，僅僅到了人性所能及的限度，卻不知道祂所追求的如何。在客西馬尼園，他們都因自己的憂愁睡去，在最親密的三年的末了，「門徒都都離開祂逃走了」。
「他們就都被聖靈充滿」（徒二4）──「他們」是一樣的，但其間有奇妙的事件發生，例如我們的主的死、復活、升天，以及門徒為聖靈所充滿。我們的主曾說：「但聖靈降臨在你們身上，你們就必得著能力。」（徒一8）這便是說，他們需用餘下的歲月去同祂儆醒。
「說了這話，就向他們吹一口氣，說：『你們受聖靈……』」約翰福音二十章22節
「向他們吹一口氣」這幾個字，充滿了簡單的教導。接受聖靈就和呼吸一樣地容易。主似乎已經給了祂的門徒吸氣的清晰印象，且說：「這就是接受聖靈的方法。」
我們不必到醫院隔離室去吸滿一肺的髒空氣，只要我們一分鐘前所吸進肺中的空氣不吐出來，就會要我們的命。因為那空氣中純淨的元素都已被利用了，所以剩下的只是炭及其他致命的氣體。
所以，如果我們要被聖靈充滿，我們必須先倒空滿了罪的老我，並改變老我的屬靈生活。每時刻我們都得有新鮮的氣息，否則就會死。同理，神要我們在祂裡面完全倒空，然後我們才能不費太多力氣地接受祂。
一個真空的空間總是會被充滿，一雙空空的肺也會不可避免地吸進乾淨的空氣。如果我們的態度正確，那麼接受聖靈將是毫無問題的事。