Virginia Brandt Berg (1898-1968)
This is a very precious poem, and we are going to make it a prayer for you:
Out of my bondage, sorrow and night,
Jesus I come.
Into Thy freedom, gladness and light,
Jesus I come.
Out of my sickness, into Thy health,
Out of my want and into Thy wealth,
Out of my sin and into Thyself,
Jesus I come to Thee.
Out of my shameful failure and loss,
Jesus I come.
Into the glorious gain of the Cross,
Jesus I come to Thee.
Out of my sorrows, into Thy balm,
Out of life's storms, into Thy calm,
Out of distress to jubilant psalm,
Jesus I come to Thee.
Out of unrest and arrogant pride,
Jesus I come.
Into Thy blessed Will to abide,
Jesus I come to Thee.
Out of myself to dwell in Thy love,
Out of despair to raptures above,
Upward for aye on wings like a dove,
Jesus I come to Thee!
Out of the fear and dread of the tomb,
Jesus I come.
Into the joy and light of Thy Home,
Jesus I come to Thee.
Out of the depths of ruin untold,
Into the peace of Thy shelter and fold,
Ever Thy glorious face to behold,
Jesus I come to Thee!
Our mediation is from Deuteronomy 1:28 where it says, "our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, the people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven, and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there."
Now someone might say, "you surely aren't going to talk about Joshua and Caleb and the spies that went to spy out the land of Canaan, that much-used story? We've heard it so much!" But yes I am! We need it now more than ever.
And on the subject of discouragement, we want to warn especially about letting others discourage you regarding any stand of faith you've taken! Don't let others discourage you! Note again the words in this passage: "Our brethren have discouraged our heart."
Yet first off the spies did not bring back such an evil report, for on their return they said, "We came into the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it flows with milk and honey and this is the fruit of it."
For you see, they had returned with the fruit of the land: grapes, pomegranates, figs, proving they had faithfully searched the land.
But God's Word says they brought back an evil report because they enlarged upon the fact that the people of the land were like giants in whose sight the Israelites were like grasshoppers, and the cities were great with strong walls.
So on second thought, how great the sin of unbelief is here! For they laid not their emphasis on what God had promised to do! They laid it on the wrong things: circumstances, conditions, and on that which they saw! Not on what God had promised at all, but on all that was contrary to that which God had said.
God said, "I have set before thee this land, go up and possess it, fear not, neither be discouraged." -- But the spies made God out a liar and said, "We be not able to go up against these people for they are stronger than we."
God was not taken into the equation, and this evil report caused the heart of the people to be discouraged, and they wept and murmured against God and against Moses, and went on into further rebellion and unbelief until God had to terribly punish them.
You remember, however, that Joshua and Caleb, the two faithful spies who gave the good report and believed God, tried so hard to encourage the people, telling them that God was able to bring them into the land! And Caleb said,
"Let us go up at once and possess the land, we are well able to overcome it!" You know the rest of the story, how God let them wander in the wilderness for 40 years because they believed the evil report and did not trust His promises,
And the ten spies that brought back the evil report that discouraged the hearts of the people died by the plague before the Lord. -- You find that story in Numbers 14:36 and 37.
I haven't told you any real personal experience, except about the marvelous miracle that happened one time in my life when I was such an invalid, but I do want to tell you something now regarding this passage of Scripture. I was en route to Revivals in Cuba and the Bahamas and had stopped over in a town not far from Miami.
Unexpected emergencies had left me without funds and I needed them to reach my appointment. I was looking to the Lord definitely, and I knew that it had to be a miracle. -- Because of conditions around me and circumstances all considered, it would just have to be a miracle of God if any funds came to me.
I got alone with the Lord, and claimed certain definite promises and I waited for His answer. Not only did I need the Lord to supply this need, but I had had the flu on the way down and I desperately needed healing for my body.
While alone I read many of the promises, and had a heart-searching to see if all was well in my own heart, that I had met God's conditions. There were circumstances that did not make it easy to exercise faith, but I just had to do all I could.
This particular evening I attended a Bible conference, and there came into my hands a small book by a learned Bible teacher, well-known for his great knowledge of the Scriptures. The little book explained just why God no longer worked miracles. It stated emphatically that nowhere did the Bible teach that miracles would continue after the days of the Apostles.
It was so clearly brought out, and he was so emphatic about it, and he was such a great and learned man, that for just a moment I was shaken, for the Devil took advantage of this and came against my faith with fiery darts unspeakable!
He was such a scholar! He taught the Word of God with such clarity and brilliance and he knew that Word from cover to cover!
He had traveled far in the land of promise, but for me he had, like those spies, brought back an evil report, and discouraged the stand of faith I had taken. I left that auditorium and in the quiet of my room I again read over many passages in God's precious Word.
It was right there, I saw it in God's Word, God said it! There were the verses: He would supply my every need "according to His riches in glory" and "whatsoever things ye desire, when you pray, believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them." God says so! It's so because God says so!
"Let every man be called a liar but God be found true." -- Suddenly light broke through the darkness, faith flooded my soul; I asked the Lord to forgive me for that wavering.
I'd gotten my eyes on this intellectual giant in the land, and for just a moment simple faith was almost shaken. It is not uncommon for those who are seeking God for help to come under the power of unbelief in others who want to discourage. God's Word then came to me in this passage, so very definite was this Scripture brought to me:
"Ye shall not respect persons in judgment, and ye shall not be afraid of the face of this man; the judgment is God's: The cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto Me, I will hear it." -- How wonderful that was! It says in Hebrews 3:19,
"You see that they could not enter in because of unbelief." And the pity of it is that these discouragers not only did not enter in themselves, but by discouraging others, they had kept them all from entering in. This was my verse for that hour:
"Be of good courage, have I not commanded you? Neither fear the people for they are bread for us." -- Wonderful! It inspired my heart and all the fear departed from me, just as God's Word says,
"Their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us, let us go up at once and possess the land!" -- You know, it's far better to stand alone and seem simple-minded to some, than to seek help from leaders who weaken faith by their discouraging words, when we're standing on God's promises.
If you are compelled to live in an atmosphere of doubt and unbelief, ask God to protect you, to hide you away in Himself! Refuse to accept every doubt, every discouragement, and He'll find you with His Spirit that you can stand in the evil day, stand! -- Now you wonder, was my prayer answered? Yes!
I awakened the next morning refreshed in body, almost entirely well, and that day a large gift came from the most unexpected source I could have dreamed of! I would never have conceived of a gift from that source, for they knew nothing of my circumstances and my plans! It was God alone who had done this and answered prayer. It was a miracle!
Don't let anyone discourage you! God's Word stand sure and steadfast, He'll not fail you! Go in and possess the land and He will go with you. Stand your ground! God is still on the Throne and prayer does change things!