F.B. Meyer
Behold, the battle was before and behind. 2 Chron, xiii. 14.
ABIJAH'S address is full of true and noble utterances, especially when he describes God as being the Captain of the Host; and this spirit soon permeated his people, so that when the battle was sorest, and they were hemmed in by their foes, it was natural for them to turn to the Lord, and for the priests to give a blast on the trumpets, like that with which the new moon and the solemn feasts were inaugurated.
The point for us to remember is that our enemies may shut us in on all sides, preventing reinforce‑ments from north, south, east, and west; but no earthly power can ever shut off God from above us. The way upwards is always kept clear; the ladder which links the beleaguered soul with God and heaven can never be blocked, except by transgression and sin.
The Priest is always with thee, child of God. His help is always at hand. Neither death, nor life, nor height, nor depth, nor principalities, nor powers, can ever separate thee from the down‑coming of God's love.
The battle is often before and behind. From behind come memories of past failure, the consequences of mistakes, the misunderstandings which have alienated us from others, and made it difficult for us to live as we would; on the other hand perplexities and anxieties seem to bar our future path.
But when the battle is before and behind, remember that God besets his people behind and before, and covers them with his hand. The invisible film of his protection makes the soul invulnerable. The life that is hid with Christ in God is beyond the reach of harm.
(F.B. Meyer)
"Hide yourself by the brook Cherith" 1 Kings 17:3
God's servants must be taught the value of the hidden life. The man who is to take a high place before his fellows — must take a low place before his God. We must not be surprised if sometimes our Father says: "There, child, you have had enough of this hurry, and publicity, and excitement; get hence, and hide yourself by the brook — hide yourself . . .
in the Cherith of the sick chamber, or
in the Cherith of bereavement, or
in some solitude from which the crowds have ebbed away."
Happy is he who can reply, "This Your will is also mine; I flee unto You to hide me. Hide me in the secret of Your tabernacle, and beneath the covert of Your wings!"
Every saintly soul who would wield great power with men, must win it in some hidden Cherith. The acquisition of spiritual power is impossible, unless we can hide ourselves from men and from ourselves, in some deep gorge where we may absorb the power of the eternal God; as vegetation through long ages absorbed these qualities of sunshine, which it now gives back through burning coal.
Passing back to the blessed age from which we date the centuries: Patmos; the seclusion of the Roman prisons; the Arabian desert; the hills and valleys of Palestine — are forever memorable as the holy Cheriths of the new testament disciples.
Our Lord found His Cheriths at Nazareth; in the wilderness of Judea; amid the olive groves of Bethany; and the solitude of Gadara.
None of us, therefore, can dispense with some Cherith, where the sounds of human voices are exchanged for the waters of quietness, which are fed from the throne of God; and where we may taste the sweets and imbibe the power of a life hidden with Christ.
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