Category: Carmichael, Amy

When we can’t understand

Sr. Dorcee, belovedLeave a comment

Often we find ourselves in situations where it is so difficult to understand what God is doing, why He is allowing some particular thing to happen, why it appears that Satan has the upper hand.  Her is a bit of sage wisdom from Amy Carmichael which I trust will provide encouragement for any of you in those types of situations:

Some find it hard to believe that Satan (a conquered foe) can interfere in the affairs of a child of God.  Yet we read of St. Paul earnestly endeavoring to do something and Satan hindering him [1 Thess 2.18].  The reason for Satan’s power was not prayerlessness.  ‘Night and day am I praying with passionate earnestness that I may see your faces’ [1 Thess 3.10 Way].  Satan could not touch his spirit, his heart’s affections, or any other vital thing in him, but he could so order events that the apostle could not do for these children of his love all that he longed to do.  He could only write letters.  He could not be with them

And in the familiar 2 Cor 12.7, we have a still stranger thing, a messenger from Satan allowed to do bodily hurt, and allowed to continue to hurt, we are not told for how long.

So it is clear that there are activities in the Unseen which are not explained to us.  Every now and then the curtain between is drawn aside for a moment, and we see.  But it is soon drawn back again.

Only this we know: ‘On the day I called, thou didst answer me, my strength of soul thou didst increase’ [v. 3].  If that be so what does anything matter? Oh, to use all disappointments, delays and trials of faith and patience as St. Paul used his.  What golden gain came to our glorious Lord because of these experiences.  And see how he closes this letter to the Thessalonians which is so full of human longing: ‘The very God of peace sanctify you wholly: and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Faithful is He that calls you, Who also shall do it’ [1 Thess 5.23,24].  Faithful is He: He will do it.” (AC, Edges, pp. 141-142)

Dull weather

Sr. Dorcee, beloved1 Comment

Is it “one of those days”?  Here is a little encouragement from Amy Carmichael:

Ps. 76.4 LXX Thou dost wonderfully shine forth from the everlasting mountains.

Sometimes it is dull weather in our soul.  Here is a word for such days.  Often when it is misty on the plains it is bright on the mountains.  ‘Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains’ is a lovely word, I think, but this beautiful LXX rendering, which our Lord must often have read, carries us even further.  The mist may lie low on the plains, but there is a shining forth from the mountains.

There is nothing in me.  I may be as dull as the plains are when the mist is heavy upon them, but what does that matter?  ‘Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens; and Thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds.  Thy righteousness is like the great mountains’ [Ps 36.5-6], and from those everlasting mountains ‘Thou dost wonderfully shine forth’.

In dull weather learn to look up to the mountains.  Refuse to look down to the plains.

May you have the grace today to look up to the mountains.

“The brimming river of God’s love”

Sr. Dorcee, belovedLeave a comment

A commentary by Amy Carmichael on the banner scripture for this blog:

Rom 5.5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

This verse seems clearly to mean that love comes first into our hearts.  Then because love has come we hope, and that hope “never disappoints,” as Weymouth puts it.

Experience worketh hope, Romans 5.4 tells us.  And so it does.  But it also worketh fear.  If we have had long experience of the weakness of souls, and seen many a time what seemed a great blaze-up of blessing fizzle out, we do become fearful of hoping too much.

And yet the word stands.  Here it is Way’s paraphrase (vv.3-5): “I will go further, and say that we actually exult in such afflictions as ours, knowing as we do that affliction develops unflinching endurance; that endurance develops tested strength, and tested strength develops the habit of hope.  This hope is no delusive one, as is proved by the fact that the brimming river of God’s love has already overflowed into our hearts, on-drawn by His Holy Spirit, which He has given to us.”

“What do we say when we are grieved and angry?”

Sr. Dorcee, belovedLeave a comment

An encouragement from Amy Carmichael to not respond in kind when we are accused:

Mk 8.5: And he looked around them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored.

Mk 3.21-23: And when his friends heard it, they went out to seize him, for they said, “He is beside himself.”  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebub, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”  And he called them to him, and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan?”

When our Lord had looked around on them with anger, being grieved for their hardness of heart, He said a loving word to a poor man who was probably a good deal troubled because of the excitement in the place.

What do we say when we are grieved and angry?  Do we speak a kind word to someone who needs it?

Some said: “He is beside Himself.”  Others declared: “He casts out devils by the prince of the devils.”  But He asked, How can Satan cast out Satan?  There was not a word of indignant self-defense, just a quiet question.  It was the overflow of the sweetness and peace of His heart.  When we are unkindly and unjustly accused, perhaps just when we have been helping someone, how do we react?  Perhaps there is not time for a long prayer in that moment of quick temptation, but there is always time for a look up to Him.  “Thy sweetness, Lord.  Thy peace, Lord.”

It will always be given.

In another form

Sr. Dorcee, belovedLeave a comment

Ann Voskamp, in her book One Thousand Gifts, writes about how important it is for us to have God’s perspective concerning all the events in our lives: “Can it be that that which seems to oppose the will of God actually is used of Him to accomplish the will of God?  That which seems evil only seems so because of perspective, the way the eyes see the shadow above the clouds, light never stops shining.”  Amy Carmichael tackles this issue as well:

Mark 16.12 After that He appeared in another form.

John 16.23 And in that day you shall ask Me nothing.

“We always expect the Lord to come to us in a joy.  Instead of that He sometimes appears in another form, He comes in a big disappointment.

“In the day that we see Him all will be clear.  The mysteries which now perplex us will be illuminated.  One day we shall see the glory to our glorious God and the good to all of us contained in the disappointment we cannot understand.

“So let us live as those who believe this to be true.  Let us praise before we can see.  Let us thank our Lord for trusting us to trust Him.”  (Amy Carmichael)

“If we meet unkindness today . . .”

Sr. Dorcee, beloved1 Comment

Lk 9.52-53 They went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for Him.  And they did not receive Him, because His face was set toward Jerusalem.

Lk 10.33  But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him.

Of all unkind things, one of the unkindest is to refuse to give a tired traveler a place to rest.  No Indian would do that. [Note: Amy Carmichael lived in India.]  But the Samaritans did it: They did not receive Him.

When anyone has been unkind to us, what do we feel inclined to do?  How do we feel inclined to speak of them?

A little while after this unkindness of the Samaritans, our Lord Jesus told a story about kindness, and of all the people of Palestine He chose a Samaritan as an illustration of true, tender kindness.

If we meet unkindness today, let us react as our dear Lord did.

~Amy Carmichael

He knows

Sr. Dorcee, beloved1 Comment

Ps 103.14 For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.
Job 23.10 He knows the way that I take: when he has tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

“Perhaps those words, He knows, are meant for you today because God has allowed you some special trial of faith.  The love of God is very brave.  He does not hold trial off lest we should be overwhelmed.  He lets it come and then gloriously strengthens us to meet it.  And at the end, I shall come forth as gold.”  (Amy Carmichael, Whispers of His Power)

Over the flocks

Sr. Dorcee, belovedLeave a comment

And to complete the trilogy:

1 Chron 27.31 And over the flocks was Jaziz the Hagerite.

His name meant “Shining.” Most of us have sometimes to do with camels, sometimes to do with asses, but oftenest, thank God, with the flocks of the Good Shepherd.

There was once an unhappy shepherd, Zechariah, who dismissed three under-shepherds in one month, and said, And my soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred me (Zech 11.8).  We have a very different flock from that committed to poor Zechariah, and quite different fellow-shepherds.  Are we half grateful enough for the joys of good fellowship?

Jaziz had a beautiful name–Shining.  No dullness, no heavy-heartedness as he tended the flocks.  God make us all to be Jazizes–happy shepherds, shining shepherds.  (Amy Carmichael)

Over the camels

Sr. Dorcee, beloved1 Comment

I just discovered a new collection of Amy Carmichael writings that I had not known about.  (I hope none of you are groaning. 😉  My disclaimer is that I write most of these posts for myself . . .  I always experience such wonder at what she discovers in Scripture and such hope from her words.  Here’s the first of a series of three.  This one makes me smile.

1 Chronicles 27.30 Over the camels was Obil the Ishmaelite

Have you to try to help people who are rather like camels?  You want them to go one way, and they go another.  You try persuasion and they turn sulky.  It is difficult to be patient with an animal that never looks pleased.  It is very difficult to be patient with human camels.

But God knows all about you and your difficulties, and your name is not forgotten to Him.  He htought the name of a camel driver who lived three thousand years ago worth writing in His Book.  The names of thousands of great kings are buried and forgotten, but the name of David’s camel driver is remembered to this day: Over the camels was Obil.

Obil means “driver” or “leader.”  I expect he sometimes found leading better than driving, and so sometimes shall we.  God give His Obils patience to deal with their camels.

🙂

The unoffended

Sr. Dorcee, beloved1 Comment

I have been fascinated with the life of John the Baptist these past few years.  Today being the Feast of his death, I cannot but help think back to an insight I gained through reading Amy Carmichael that has never left me: the notion of living a life of taking no offense at the Lord and whatever He may be about in our lives, whether we understand what He is doing or not.  I’ll let Amy speak for herself:

I have been reading Luke 1.  “With God nothing shall be impossible” [Luke 1.37].   Then I read Acts 12.  James was killed in prison; Peter was set free.  God, with whom nothing is impossible, did not answer the prayers of those who loved James in the same way as He answered prayers of those who loved Peter.  He could have done so, but He did not.  “And blessed is he who takes no offense at Me” [Luke 7.43].  The words seem to me to be written across Acts 12.  John must have wondered why the angel was not sent to James, or at least have been tempted to wonder.  Again and again in Acts the Lord Jesus seems to say those words under His breath, as it were.  Let us turn all our puzzles, all our temptations to wonder why, into opportunities to receive the blessing of the unoffended.

And now all the grief of those days has been utterly forgotten by those who loved James; they have all been together with him in the Presence of the Lord for 1900 years, and the one thing that matters now is how they lived through those days when their faith was tried to the uttermost.

So it will be with any who are longing to see the answer to their prayers for those who are in affliction, or any other adversity.  In a few years–how few we do not know, but few at most–we shall all be together in joy.  So with us, too, all that matters is how we live through these days while we are trusted to trust.   (Thou Givest . . . They Gather, p. 76)

Sometimes we see this lived out so well among the very poor or the very sick–an abandonment, a complete surrender, a unsullied trust in God and His ways.  May we too be among those who live their lives as “unoffended.”