“It was only after the consideration of many months, and after much self-examination as to my motives, and after much earnest prayer, that I came to the conclusion to write this little work. I have not taken one single step in the Lord’s service, concerning which I have prayed so much. My great dislike to increasing the number of religious books would, in itself, have been sufficient to have kept me forever from it, had I not cherished the hope of being instrumental in this way to lead some of my brethren to value the Holy Scriptures more, and to judge by the standard of the word of God the principles on which they act. But that which weighed more with me than any thing was, that I have reason to believe from what I have seen among the children of God, that many of their trials arise, either from want of confidence in the Lord as it regards temporal things, or from carrying on their business in an unscriptural way. On account, therefore, of the remarkable way in which the Lord has dealt with me in temporal things, within the last ten years, I feel that I am a debtor to the Church of Christ, and that I ought, for the benefit of my poorer brethren especially, to make known, as much as I can, the way in which I have been led. In addition to this, I know it to be a fact, that to many souls the Lord has blessed what I have told them about the way in which He has led me, and therefore it seemed to me a duty to use such means, whereby others also, with whom I could not possibly converse, might be benefited. That which at last, on May 6, 1836, induced me finally to determine to write this Narrative was, that, if the Lord should permit the book to sell.”
This is from the beginning of George Müller’s journal book, which he had thought of writing from many months before really putting pen to paper. He says that he doesn’t want to “increase the number” of religious books, and that only because of the thought that it could bless others, was he persuaded to seek the Lord’s will more.
How often do we ask the Lord, and patiently wait upon Him, for our decisions? Often we rush into them, and pride or selfish wants have a lot to do with that. But it is apparent that Müller doesn’t desire to have his name on a book, or to be known as a published author, but instead he seeks the Lord’s will. Paul says “Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.” (Ephesians 3:8) When we acknowledge that God is the giver of vision and the director of our steps, we will suddenly find ourselves closer to God than before.
Quotation From “Preface To The First Edition Of The First Part,” A Narrative Of Some Of The Lord’s Dealing With George Müller By George Müller, Part 1, First Edition Manuscript.
Question: How easy is it for you to give up your pride and self-motivation and let God control your life?
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