Others May, You Cannot

G.D. Watson, 1845-1924

If God has called you to be really like Jesus, He will draw you to a life of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience, that you will not be able to follow other people, or measure yourself by other Christians, and in many ways He will seem to let other good people do things which He will not let you do.

Other Christians and ministers who seem very religious and useful may push themselves, pull wires, and work schemes to carry out their plans, but you cannot do it; and if you attempt it, you will meet with such failure and rebuke from the Lord as to make you sorely penitent.

Others may boast of themselves, of their work, of their success, of their writings, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such thing, and if you begin it, He will lead you into some deep mortification that will make you despise yourself and all your good works.

Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor, because He wants you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence on Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an unseen treasury.

The Lord may let others be honored and put forward, and keep you hidden in obscurity, because He wants you to produce some choice, fragrant fruit for His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade. He may let others be great, but keep you small.  He may let others do a work for Him and get the credit of it, but He will make you work and toil on without knowing how much you are doing; and then to make your work still more precious, He may let others get the credit for the work which you have done, and thus make your reward ten times greater when Jesus comes.

The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you, with a jealous love, and will rebuke you for little words and feelings, or for wasting your time, which other Christians never seem distressed over. So make up your mind that God is an infinite Sovereign, and has a right to do as He pleases with His own.

He may not explain to you a thousand things which puzzle your reason in His dealings with you. But if you absolutely sell yourself to be His…slave, He will wrap you up in a jealous love, and bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are in the inner circle.

Settle it forever, then, that you are to deal directly with the Holy Spirit, and that He is to have the privilege of tying your tongue, or chaining your hand, or closing your eyes, in ways that He does not seem to use with others.  Now when you are so possessed with the living God that you are, in your secret heart, pleased and delighted over this peculiar, personal, private, jealous guardianship and management of the Holy Spirit over your life, you will have found the vestibule of Heaven.

8 thoughts on “Others May, You Cannot”

  1. Oh, Kari, such a hard lesson, but so very true! This morning the hymn “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus” has been playing in my head- another reminder that all fades away in light of His face. That devotion to following Him is how I want to live my life. So good!

  2. Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor, because He wants you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence on Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an unseen treasury.

    So that’s why I’m struggling to take care of my family and can barely pay my bills. Awesome. Thanks! Useless much?

  3. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. (Luke 17:33) and For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? (Mark 8:36) have been rattling around in my heart and showing up in ‘random’ places these past few days. And then this thoughtful arrow. Oh that we all would choose the right way that seems the hard thing over the way that seems easy and delightful but is dead and empty of our greatest gift…HIM.

  4. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
    I know you and Jeff are earnestly seeking him, and He is the desire of your hearts.

    Praying for you Bob

  5. How powerful this is. I am drawn up short by the great and fearful truth of this message. My thanks.

  6. YES! Yes! Yes! This has been on my frig for 8 years now and God has used it so many times!

  7. Thank you once again for your lovely writing. Helps me get such perspective in life right now. Especially how u said, “just because others aren’t beside you doesn’t mean they aren’t following Jesus, maybe just running another race”. to not compare, not look around, not wallow in self pity…but rather to look to Jesus for my EVERYTHING that is the goal im einning to! Thank you!!

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