February 27

“He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is -fixed, trusting in the Lord.” Ps. cxii. 7.

SUSPENSE is dreadful. When we have no news from home we are apt to grow anxious, and we cannot be persuaded that “no news is good news.” Faith is the cure for this condition of sadness: the Lord by his Spirit settles the mind in holy serenity, and all fear is gone as to the future as well as the present.

The fixedness of heart spoken of by the Psalmist is to be diligently sought after. It is not believing this or that promise of the Lord, but the general condition of unstaggering trustfulness in our God, the confidence which we have in him that he will neither do us ill himself, nor suffer anyone else to harm us. This constant confidence meets the unknown as well as the known of life. Let the morrow be what it may, our God is the God of to-morrow. Whatever events may have happened which to us are unknown, our Jehovah is God of the unknown as well as of the known. We are determined to trust the Lord, come what may. If the very worst should happen, our God is still the greatest and best. Therefore will we not fear though the postman’s knock should startle us, or a telegram wake us at midnight. The Lord liveth, and what can his children fear?