Opportunities

Let seed unsown be this day steeped in tears of deep regret. The old Covenanters used to tell with joy the story of Mr. Guthrie, who lost his way one night on a moor. His companions went on, and he missed them. When he at last rejoined them, having found the way, he showed them that it was a blessed piece of providence. Said he, “I wandered across the moor till I came to a little cottage where was a sick and dying woman. The priest was just administering to her extreme unction, and when he went out I went in. She was troubled in mind, I told her the gospel, and she believed in Jesus. I found her in a state of nature, I preached the gospel to her until I saw her in a state of grace, and when I came away I left her in a state of glory.”

Yes, God will make us miss our way that souls may find theirs. He will put us into positions where we may find out his banished ones. He will bring them into contact with his earnest people in ways which will conduce to the saving result. Let us be on the look-out. He who observes his opportunities will find them plentifully given him. God devises for us, and we have but to follow the trail of providence.

From a sermon by Charles Haddon Spurgeon entitled "Means For Restoring The Banished," delivered September 11, 1870. Image by Forest Wander under Creative Commons License.