“For who hath despised the day of small things?” (Zechariah 4:10).
“Gad” means “a troop or an army cometh” (Gen. 30:11). Gad was the first son of mother Zilpah, but Leah
believed that a troop was following after him. She saw something great in that which was seemingly small.
We also should learn to look far beyond the small beginning and see the great things that will take place
later. For example in John 4:3 we read that the Lord Jesus Christ left Judea for Galilee. There were two
roads to Galilee. One via Samaria and other via mount Carmel. The Jews would never go via Samaria (John
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4:9) but the Lord Jesus Christ wanted to go through Samaria. The Lord said to His disciples, “I have decided
to go through Samaria”, but they replied, “Why go that way? Who will give us food to eat and water to
drink?” The Scripture says, “he must needs go through Samaria”. What was the reason? For the sake of
one woman He went there and the whole of Samaria was shaken. Through one soul, He won the whole
country (John 4:39; Acts 8:5-8).
We think that the Lord works more through big crowds. That is not God’s way. Through small things, He
does great things. One day a man came in tears to see us. He said, “Please pray for my wife, she is very
ill.” He was a Hindu. We went to see her, gave a short message then prayed and left. The Lord healed that
woman and through her husband many people came to the Lord in that area. On another occasion, a lady
came to see me in Madras. She said to me, “Please pray for my husband, he is very, very sick in the
hospital. The doctors are not able to cure him.” We spent only a few minutes with them in prayer, gave
a short message and came away. Afterwards, the whole family which was from Hyderabad came for
fellowship. In the year 1950 they wrote to me, requesting me to go to Hyderabad and that is how the Lord
began to work in that city through a small thing, not through great things. That is what we learn from Gad.
daily devotion
What is controlling you?
Jan 17
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
—John 8:32
Ours is an age of philosophical uncertainty, and we no longer know what we believe. We stand uncommitted. Everywhere I go, I ask students, “What is controlling you?” When I was a student, I had to face Christ. Who was He? He had made the astounding claim, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me.” I wrestled with the inescapable fact that either Jesus Christ was who He claimed to be, or He was the biggest liar, fraud, and charlatan in history. Which was it? Buddha said toward the end of his life, “I am still searching for the truth.” But here was Jesus who appeared and said, “I am the embodiment of all truth. All truth is centered in me.”
Recent Devotions
what is heavenly pattern
January 17
“Take heed now; for the Lord hath chosen thee to build an house for the sanctuary: be strong,
and do it. Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses
thereof ……. All this, said David, the Lord made me understand in writing by his hand upon
me, even all the works, of this pattern” (1 Chro.28: 10,19).
The very spot where David was punished became the site of God’s House. (2 Chron. 3:1).
From that day David’s true joy began. He had happy days, wonderful days, but nothing
compared to the joy he found there at the altar, on the site for the temple of God.
God was now able to give to David the pattern for His temple, and the assurance that his son
had been chosen of God to build it. The joy that David now experienced was an entirely
different kind of joy. It was the joy that comes with the revelation of the heavenly plan for
the house of God. The king rejoiced and the people rejoiced also. Yet David could not have
rejoiced as he did now without going through all those other experiences. Every stage was
necessary.
The joy of the Lord is your strength, but the joy of the revelation of the heavenly pattern, and
of knowing that God has called us to share in it, supersedes all other joys that you may have
experienced on other occasions. In this joy you enter into the plan and purpose of God
regarding His people, both now and in ages to come. Pray then that the Lord will lead you on
from joy to joy, till you come to the fullness of the joy of the Lord which is your strength.
Recent Devotions
David’s history
January 16
“So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. And David built
there an altar unto the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord was
entreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel” (2 Samuel 24:24b, 25).
There was still another happy day in David’s history, when God brought him to the threshing
floor of Araunah the Jebusite. He had been tempted to number the people, as though his
strength depended on them and on the size of his army. So God had to punish him, and he
repented at the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
It had been a very grievous sin, but God had forgiven him, and that is why it was such a
happy day in David’s life. Is it not a very happy day in your life, when God forgives you some
grievous sin done in blind disobedience to His will?
Recent Devotions
Our living God | January 16
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3).
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This is a precious promise from God’s Word. Our living God has planned from eternity to give us every
spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ Jesus . All of us who are redeemed by the precious blood of
the Lord Jesus Christ have the privilege of claiming these blessings and then the Lord Himself will teach us
how to be qualified for these blessings. First of all we have to believe that this is the Word of God and not
man’s word and that it is meant for all of us and not just for the apostles or God’s servants. These words
are meant for all those who believe in the Lord. Howsoever foolish, weak and ugly you may be, if you can
truthfully say that you are redeemed by the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, then you have every
right to claim that promise. That is how we can enjoy all the spiritual blessings because unto Him you are
very precious.
Because the Lord Jesus Christ bought us with His blood, we have become more precious to Him than the
angels or heavenly beings. So by thanking Him for such love and salvation we understand more and more
how to enjoy all spiritual blessings and that is why we find the apostle Paul thanking the Lord on behalf of
the Ephesian believers. “Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers” (Eph.
1:16). This is the very first thing we should learn, to go on thanking God. We can begin every day in the
same way. “Yes Lord, even though I am weak and foolish, worthless and useless, in Thy sight I am very
precious because of Thy precious blood and that is why I thank Thee”.
Secondly, we should learn to seek God’s face even for small matters by prayer. In Col 4:2, Paul exhorts the
believers to continue in prayer. In Eph. 6:18 also we have the same thought. “Praying always with all
prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for
all saints”.
Thirdly, we have to go on claiming divine wisdom to understand divine mysteries. “That the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him” (Eph. 1:17).
Fourthly, we need to have our blind eyes opened. “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened…”
(Eph. 1:18). To understand heavenly things we need heavenly vision and that is why we have to pray,
“Lord, open my eyes and let me see more and more from Thy wondrous Word.” The mysteries hidden
from the wise and prudent will be revealed to babes, that means, those who have simple faith. We can
dig deeply into God’s Word and always find something new. It is the Word of God and not man’s word. It
is like a very deep mine of gold. We have to go very deep into God’s Word. Then we will be able to enjoy
all blessings in heavenly places.