THE AMBER SPOT

THE AMBER SPOT

Go where one will in this dark scene there is but one bright spot, as it is expressed in Ezekiel 1: 4, “And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind ... out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber”. As one in a dark night watches for the moon, there is a great moral difference as to whether one is dwelling on the clouds that intercept the light, which “rules the night”, or whether the eye is simply and entirely watching for the light, though it may often be obscured. If you are occupied with the clouds, that is with the interruptions, you will feel tortured; everything will seem against you, and you will feel as one crushed and deserted; but if you are occupied with the “amber” spot, though there be a great whirlwind and a great cloud, you will be assured of heart, in the consciousness that you are waiting for a display of a well-known power which will disperse all the clouds, and afford you a full bright view of Himself in a cloudless sky even in your journey here. Trials and clouds and vexations you will have; we need them in order to convince us that it is all night here, but then our business is not with the clouds, but with the One who is the light in the midst of darkness. Apparently there would be little difference between two travellers journeying along in a dark and stormy night; there is apparently no more light to one than to the other, yet the one taken up with his sufferings because of the storm and the darkness would be crushed and distressed in a way that the one whose eye was fixed on the moon, or on a star, to cheer and alleviate the trials, would be quite superior to; the latter counts on the efficacy of a well-known resource, one which is known to exist, and which every now and again is displayed with such distinct help, such complete victory over the interruptions that the very value and charm of the light is enhanced by the temporary obstructions, and a deeper sense of its worth is obtained to impart greater courage and more hope when clouds would again prevail.

Thus one thinks of the light and not of the clouds; and clouds, like wants to a rich man, only afford an opportunity for making a good investment, feeling how rich one is when the want is presented. The moment of need and misery to a poor man is the moment of complacency to a rich man because he has resources to meet it. The one with his eye on the clouds I compare to the poor man; the one with his eye on the blessed light and cheer of our hearts is the rich man — the man rich in Christ.

May you, my dear Mrs. ————, be always the one rich in Christ.