present ourselves—together with our families, businesses and
Our Experience 15
We ought to give thanks in all things, for such is God's commandment. In all things we should pray: "O God, I thank You, and I praise You." Even if we have met with difficulty, we still should say: "O God, I praise You." There was a story about a woman with nine children. She argued that surely the word "in nothing be anxious" could not possibly be applied to a mother like her, since to her, not to worry was sin. She had first had two children for whom she had continually worried until they died; and she then had had seven more to worry about concerning their progress towards maturity. Alas, this woman failed to see that worry was indeed a sin, whereas she had falsely imagined worry to be her Christian duty.
It is God's commandment that we "rejoice always" (1 Thess. 5.16). It is also His will that we do not worry about anything. It is equally His will that "in everything" we are to "give thanks" (1 Thess. 5.18a). All who overcome have the strength to keep God's commandment. Only those who do not overcome cannot keep His will.
7. Failure to Render to God His Due. God demands that we present ourselves—together with our families, businesses and wealth—wholly to Him. It seems, however, that every Christian tries to retain something for himself. Let us understand that although under the Old Covenant the people had to offer one-tenth to God, the New Covenant offering is ten-tenths. We ought to offer our houses, fields, wives, children, and our very selves altogether to the Lord.
Many Christians are fearful lest God trouble them. Once a believer who was afraid of offering himself to the Lord said, "If I offer myself to God, and He makes me suffer, what can I do?" To which I replied quite seriously: "Who do you think God is? Suppose a child who used to disobey his parents said to them that hereafter he will obey them. Do you think his parents will deliberately require him to do what he cannot do so as to make him suffer? If so, they are not parents, but judges. Being parents, they doubtless will be