20 MARTHA’S SABBATH LESSONS Lord, open our eyes January 24, 1892 Scripture: II Kings 6:17 “And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.” Martha’s Thoughts: “This text is a graphic description of our surroundings in this world. We are often in the midst of trials sorrows and disappointment- are in straits and know not what to do. But these words are ours ‘Fear not; for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.’ The subject of the text is our surroundings as Christians in this world- As Christians we are surrounded by two great armies. One army seeking our destruction the other waiting to save and redeem us – headed as it is by the great Captain of our Salvation. When external and internal foes are too strong for us- then God draws near and delivers us. In the cloudy and dark day God reveals Christ to us and strengthens us. In the dark and cloudy day he reveals to us the truth of the Bible. In the dark and cloudy day Christ comes between us and the storm and the clouds and the billows. Our most signal victory comes in answer to prayer and by using the means God has appointed- what we need is our eyes open and the eyes of the world open- And this can be done as Elisha did- by prayer. My personal experience is that we have come to God to remove some sin to give us some victory and we have been waiting and asking so long that we have become discouraged- our faith grows weak- for our hands drop down- but now I feel we need the assurance ‘Fear not for they that be with us, are more than they that be with them.’ O, for more faith for more power to look up and see the ‘mountain full of horses and chariots of fire.’ O for that victory that overcomes the world even our faith.” Remember: Christians are not alone in this world. God is with us, and we can trust Him in every circumstance we face because we know we do not face it alone. We also know that Christ— "the Captain of our Salvation”—has overcome the world. Submitted by: Michelle Wood
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