Said David, “I will take heed to my ways.” Ps. 39; and in Ps. 119:9, he asks a very important question, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? The answer is brief but full of instruction, “By taking heed thereto, according to Thy Word.” Again, in verse 11, he says, “Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Storing our minds with the Word of God will prove a preventive against evil. By doing so, we shall better prepared to lead virtuous lives and develop pure characters. The apostle John says, “I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong and the Word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.” 1 John 2:14. Yes, we become strong in God by taking His Word as our rule of life, and following closely in our Saviour’s footsteps. Let us earnestly seek to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Let us endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.
Are not many of us weak and destitute of spiritual life, through the neglect of God’s Word, prayer, and watchfulness? “Search the Scriptures,” said the Saviour. He also declared that “men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” The apostle Paul exhorts us to “pray without ceasing.” While we may be engaged in the duties of life, our hearts may be uplifted to God, and we be growing stronger. Paul says, in 1 Cor. 16:13, “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” We may feel our weakness, and think we cannot overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil; but the Lord is for us, and He is greater than all that can be against us. Let us thank Him and take courage.
Let us heed his warning given through the Testimonies. We read in them that “none are living Christians unless they have a daily experience in the things of God.” Let us then earnestly seek and obtain it. If we do not do this, we shall be shaken out. Let us gather every ray of light, press forward, be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, and soon we shall receive the overcomer’s reward.
M. Randall
The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald June 20, 1871