We cannot expect to learn much of the life of trust without passing through hard places. When they come, let us not say as Jacob did: “Everything is against me!” (Genesis 42:36).

Let us rather climb our Hills of Difficulty and say, “These are faith’s opportunities!”

I would not lose the hard things from my life, The rocks o’er which I stumbled long ago, The griefs and fears, the failures and mistakes, That tried and tested faith and patience so.

I need them now: they make the deep-laid wall, The firm foundation-stones on which I raise— To mount therein from stair to higher stair— The lofty towers of my House of Praise.

Soft was the roadside turf to weary feet, And cool the meadows where I fain had trod, And sweet beneath the trees to lie at rest And breathe the incense of the flower-starred sod;

But not on these might I securely build; Nor sand nor sod withstand the earthquake shock; I need the rough hard boulders of the hills, To set my house on everlasting rock.

ANNIE JOHNSON FLINT

Crises reveal character: when we are put to the test we reveal exactly the hidden resources of our character.

Many people are lacking when its comes to power . But how is power produced?

The other day, my friend and I were passing by the power plant that produces electricity for the streetcars. We heard the hum and roar of the countless wheels of the turbines, and I asked my friend, “How is the power produced?” He replied, “It simply is generated by the turning of those wheels and the friction they create. The rubbing produces the electric current.”

In a similar way, when God desires to create more power in your life, He creates more friction. He uses this pressure to generate spiritual power . Some people cannot handle it, and run from the pressure instead of receiving the power and using it to rise above the painful experience that produced it.

Opposition is essential to maintaining true balance between forces. It is the centr ipetal and centrifugal forces acting in opposition to each other that keep our planet in the proper orbit. The propelling action coupled with the repelling counteraction keep the earth in orbit around the sun instead of flinging it into space and a path of certain destruction.

God guides our lives in the same way. It is not enough to have only a propelling force . We need an equal repelling force, so He holds us back through the testing ordeals of life. The pressures of temptations and trials and all the things that seem to be against us further our progress and strengthen our foundation.

Let us thank Him for both the weights and the wings He produc es. And realizing we are divinely propel led, let us press on with faith and patience in our high and heavenly calling. A. B. S IMPSON

In a factory building ther e are wheels and gearings, There are cranks, pulleys, belts either tight or slack— Some ar e whirling swiftly , some ar e turning slowly , Some ar e thrusting forwar d, some ar e pulling back; Some ar e smooth and silent, some ar e rough and noisy , Pounding, rattling, clanking, moving with a jerk; In a wild confusion in a seeming chaos, Lifting, pushing, driving—but they do their work.

From the mightiest lever to the smallest cog or gear , All things move together for the purpose planned; And behind the working is a mind contr olling, And a for ce dir ecting, and a guiding hand.

So all things ar e working for the Lor d’s beloved; Some things might be hurtful if alone they stood; Some might seem to hinder; some might draw us backwar d; But they work together , and they work for good, All the thwarted longings, all the stern denials, All the contradictions, har d to understand.

And the for ce that holds them, speeds them and r etards them, Stops and starts and guides them—is our Father ’s hand.

ANNIE JOHNSON FLINT