Jan 21, 2026 – Ministering
We ended with Streams yesterday, so we’ll start with it today (since I left it out on the table rather than putting it back in the bag). Acts 20:24 – “I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me.” Cowman takes a passage from Days of Heaven upon Earth for the beginning of today’s devotion and takes us down a path I didn’t see coming, but should have, based on the overriding premise of her book.
I went to the front of Streams to read and share about how Cowman came to put these devotions together, but it was not there. I guess I read somewhere else (likely Google, which I will check now because I’ve probably woken some curiosities) that “it was written when Lettie’s [Cowman] husband was terminally ill…words of comfort for those facing the darkest times.” That’s how this book became a treasure to me (and to the folks I’ve given copies to) after finding it in my lawyer’s bathroom while negotiating the settlement for my divorce.
What I found at the front of the book were the dedication and introduction written by the Jim Reimann, the man tasked with editing the original version of Streams in the Desert and My Utmost for His Highest because they both, according to Google, “used older phrasing that could be challenging for contemporary audiences” (indeed that was true with my lawyer’s copy). Reimann tells all that happened in his family just before and in the months after he agreed to work on this project. It is what Cowman addresses in today’s devotion when she shares from Days of Heaven upon Earth from 2 Samuel and how the Philistines began searching for David after he was anointed king over Israel, “The moment we receive anything from the Lord worth fighting for, the Devil comes seeking to destroy us…. we should accept it as evidence of our salvation, and claim double the blessing, victory, and power. Power is developed through resistance…. And one day, we too will understand that even Satan has been used as one of God’s instruments of blessing.”
Prevail #21 – Leviticus 19:32 – “Stand up in the presence of the elderly and show respect for the aged. Fear your God. I am the Lord.” What a great Scripture to follow a passage about L. B. Cowman whose memory I honor now and who I will look for when I get to heaven (after I find my Great Aunt Betty to thank her for all of the Christmas presents she sent when I was a child that I never thanked her for…and then my parents…) to thank her for how the devotional she put together really ministered to me through the years.
I love how Larson says it, “Honor those who’ve gone before you…. [Larson is speaking in general about our elders and not about Cowman specifically] she has weathered the storms of life with her faith intact and her love for Jesus evident. Celebrate her! ….It’s not a small thing to finish strong. We live in a day when elders are dismissed and youth are idolized. Yet we need to acknowledge every generation for the Body of Christ to function in a healthy way.”
JA – “TO ENJOY MY PRESENCE MORE FULLY, you need to think less and less about yourself…. it’s the secret to living more abundantly…. If you’re struggling with a self-centered idea that recurs again and again, try connecting it to a favorite scripture or a brief prayer…. You are training your mind to seek My Face, and this endeavor is pleasing to Me.” See John 10:10, Psalm 27:8, and Amos 5:4.
Utmost – Jeremiah 2:2 – “I remember…the kindness of thy youth.” I have the “Classic Edition” of Chamber’s book (given to me by a friend in a small group a while back) which is why I sometimes have difficulty pulling the meaning from his words (which is why Reimann’s editing work is so valuable). However, it is good exercise for my brain to have to think and rethink at times about what he is trying to convey. Chambers writes, “Am I as spontaneously kind to God as I used to be, or am I only expecting God to be kind to me? Am I full of the little things that cheer His heart over me, or am I whimpering because things are going hardly with me? There is no joy in the soul that has forgotten what God prizes. It is a great thing to think that Jesus Christ has need of me – ‘Give Me to drink.’
Max comforts us about the trials we face, “God’s answer for troubled times has always been the same: heaven has an occupied throne.” His verse for today is Psalm 9:7 – “The Lord reigns forever.”
JC – “I want you to be all Mine. I am weaning you from other dependencies. Your security rests in Me alone….”
Power – Joyce entitled today’s devotion, “Let Your Words Be Positive and Few” which we are due for after yesterday’s long blog. She reminds us, “Jesus experienced adverse circumstances all the time, and while He did talk about His situations, He never did so in a negative way…. [Makes me think of Cowman] Jesus knew when to talk, when not to talk, and how to talk. [I could get better at that for sure] He obviously knew the power and impact of words.” Cowman allowed God to minister to her through Scripture and through the words of others; and, because of that season of recording comforting passages, she has been ministering to millions of grateful people for over 100 years.
