I pray earnestly that our gracious Lord may be pleased to bless this little book, to help those who seek to know Him fully, as He has already blessed it in its original issue in a different (the Dutch) language. I pray still more earnestly that He would, by whatever means, make the multitudes of His dear children who are still living divided lives, to see how He claims them wholly for Himself, and how the wholehearted surrender to abide in Him alone brings the joy unspeakable and full of glory. Oh, let each of us who has begun to taste the sweetness of this life, yield himself wholly to be a witness to the grace and power of our Lord to keep us united with Himself, and seek by word and walk to win others to follow Him fully. It is only in such fruit-bearing that our own abiding can be maintained.
In conclusion, I ask to be permitted to give one word of advice to my reader. It is this. It needs time to grow into Jesus the Vine: do not expect to abide in Him unless you will give Him that time. It is not enough to read God’s Word, or meditations as here offered, and when we think we have hold of the thoughts, and have asked God for His blessing, to go out in the hope that the blessing will abide. No, it needs day-by-day time with Jesus and with God. We all know the need of time for our meals each day—every workman claims his hour for dinner; the hurried eating of so much food is not enough. If we are to live through Jesus, we must feed on Him (John 6:57); we must thoroughly take in and assimilate that heavenly food the Father has given us in His life. Therefore, my brother, who would learn to abide in Jesus, take time each day, ere you read, and while you read, and after you read, to put yourself into living contact with the living Jesus, to yield yourself distinctly and consciously to His blessed influence; so will you give Him the opportunity of taking hold of you, of drawing you up and keeping you safe in His almighty life. ~Andrew Murray
170 pages.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Andrew Murray (1828 - 1917) was a missionary, statesman, educator, revivalist, evangelist, and pastor during the nineteenth century. He is one of the best loved and most widely read writers on the deeper Christian life.
It was a choice of logic to become a minister, but during the course of his studies, he met the God of the Bible and came to know Him more intimately than most. The theme of his life was, “May not a single moment of my life be spent outside the light, love, and joy of God's presence, and not a moment without the entire surrender of myself as a vessel for him to fill full of his Spirit and his love.”
His personal knowledge and insight of God’s inward grace was evident in all his writings. With his extraordinary skill at putting his spiritual insight into the written word, it is no surprise that he was used mightily by God in his lifetime, with the effects of his literature still having far-reaching results in the hearts and lives of Christians today.
