August 11:  Delight and Goodwill.

Love in Disguise.
"[They said] to Aaron, 'Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'  And they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands."--Acts 7:40, 41, NKJV

THE FELLOW LABORER OF MOSES, who was left with the solemn charge of the people in his absence, heard them uttering complaints that Moses had left them, and expressing a desire to return to Egypt; yet, through fear of offending the people, he was silent.  He did not stand up boldly for God, but to please the people he made a golden calf.  He seemed to be asleep to the beginning of the evil.  When the first rebellious word was spoken, Aaron might have checked it; but so fearful was he of offending the people that he apparently united with them and was finally persuaded to make a golden calf for them to worship.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 514.

"These," said Aaron without hesitation or shame, "be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of Egypt."  Aaron influenced the children of Israel to go to greater lengths in idolatry than had entered their minds.  They were no longer troubled lest the burning glory like flaming fire upon the mount had consumed their leader.  They thought they had a general who just suited them, and they were ready to do anything that he suggested.  They sacrificed to their golden god; they offered peace offerings, and gave themselves up to pleasure, rioting, and drunkenness.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, 300.

How often, in our own day, is the love of pleasure disguised by a "form of godliness"!  A religion that permits men, while observing the rites of worship, to devote themselves to selfish or sensual gratification, is as pleasing to the multitude now as in the days of Israel.  And there are still pliant Aarons, who while holding positions of authority in the church, will yield to the desires of the unconsecrated, and thus encourage them in sin.--Patriarchs and Prophets, 317.

August 10:  Delight and Goodwill.

Choosing Suffering Over Corruption.
By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.--Hebrews 11:24, 25, NKJV

MOSES WAS OFFERED the palace of the Pharaoh and the monarch's throne; but the sinful pleasures that make men forget God were in those lordly courts, and he chose instead the "durable riches and righteousness."  Proverbs 8:18.  Instead of linking himself with the greatness of Egypt, he chose to bind up his life with God's purpose.  Instead of giving laws to Egypt, he by divine direction enacted laws for the world.  He became God's instrument in giving to men those principles that are the safeguard alike of the home and of society, that are the cornerstone of the prosperity of nations--principles recognized today by the world's greatest men as the foundation of all that is best in human governments.

The greatness of Egypt is in the dust.  Its power and civilization have passed away.  But the work of Moses can never perish.  The great principles of righteousness which he lived to establish are eternal.--Education, 68, 69.

All who will turn from the pleasures of earth, and with Moses choose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of the world, will, with faithful Moses, receive the unfading crown of immortality and the far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 100.

August 9:  Delight and Goodwill.

The Only Source of True Happiness.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.  May my meditation be sweet to Him; I will be glad in the Lord.  May sinners be consumed from the earth, and the wicked be no more.  Bless the Lord, O my soul!  Praise the Lord!--Psalm 104:33-35, NKJV

YOU HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED the saving power of God as it is your privilege, because you have not made it the great aim of your life to glorify Christ.  Let every purpose you form, every work in which you engage, and every pleasure you enjoy, be to the glory of God.  Let this be the language of your heart: I am thine, O God, to live for Thee, to work for Thee, and to suffer for Thee.

Many profess to be on the Lord's side, but they are not; the weight of all their actions is on Satan's side.  By what means shall we determine whose side we are on?  Who has the heart?  With whom are our thoughts?  Upon whom do we love to converse?  Who has our warmest affections and our best energies?  If we are on the Lord's side, our thoughts are with Him, and our sweetest thoughts are of Him.  We have no friendship with the world; we have consecrated all that we have and are to Him.  We long to bear His image, breathe His Spirit, do His will, and please Him is all things.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 262.

To be brought into favor with God--what a privilege!  To commune with Him--what can more elevate, and exalt us above the frivolous pleasures of earth?  To have our corrupt natures renovated by grace, our lustful appetites and animal propensities in subjection, to stand forth with noble, moral independence, achieving victories every day, will give peace of conscience which can arise alone from rightdoing.

Young friends, I saw that with such employment and diversion as this you might be happy.  But the reason why you are restless is, you do not seek to the only true source for happiness.  You are ever trying to find out of Christ that enjoyment which is found only in Him.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, 503, 504.

August 8:  Delight and Goodwill.

Enjoyment of Nature.
The works of the Lord are great, studied by all who have pleasure in them.--Psalm 111:2, NKJV

ALTHOUGH SIN HAS cast its shadow over the earth, God desires His children to find delight in the works of His hands.--The Ministry of Healing, 261.

Men, in their pride, delight in magnificent and costly edifices and glory in the works of their own hands; but God placed Adam in a garden.  This was his dwelling.  The blue heavens were its dome; the earth, with its delicate flowers and carpet of living green, was its floor; and the leafy branches of the goodly trees were its canopy.  Its walls were hung with the most magnificent adorning--the handiwork of the great Master Artist.  In the surroundings of the holy pair was a lesson for all time--that true happiness is found, not in the indulgence of pride and luxury, but in communion with God through His created works.  If men would give less attention to the artificial, and would cultivate greater simplicity, they would come far nearer to answering the purpose of God in their creation.  Pride and ambition are never satisfied, but those who are truly wise will find substantial and elevating pleasure in the sources of enjoyment that God has placed within the reach of all.--Patriarchs and Prophets, 49.

                                              "You alone are the Lord;
                                                You have made heaven,
                                      The heaven of heavens, with all their host,
                                               The earth and everything on it,
                                              The seas and all that is in them,
                                                     And You preserve them all.
                                               The host of heaven worships You."
                                                                                       --Nehemiah 9:6, NKJV

August 7:  Delight and Goodwill.

The Best Life Has to Offer.
Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor, this also, I saw, was from the hand of God.--Ecclesiastes 2:24, NKJV

AT THE CREATION, labor was appointed as a blessing.  It meant development, power, happiness.  The changed condition of the earth through the curse of sin has brought a change in the condition of labor; yet though now attended with anxiety, weariness, and pain, it is still a source of happiness and development.  And it is a safeguard against temptation.  Its discipline places a check on self-indulgence, and promises industry, purity, and firmness.  Thus it becomes a part of God's great plan for our recovery from the Fall....

...While God has created and constantly controls all things, He has endowed us with a power not wholly unlike His.  To us has been given a degree of control over the forces of nature.  As God called forth the earth in its beauty out of chaos, so we can bring order and beauty out of confusion.  And though all things are now marred with evil, yet in our complete work we feel a joy akin to His, when, looking on the fair earth, He pronounced it "very good."--Education, 214.

                                          Whatever you do, do it heartily,
                                            as to the Lord and not to men,
                                     knowing that from the Lord you will receive
                             the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.
                                                                                              --Colossians 3:23, 24, NKJV
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August 6:  Delight and Goodwill.

To Do Justice.
It is a joy for the just to do justice, but destruction will come to the workers of iniquity.--Proverbs 21:15, NKJV

HE WHO IS FULLY CONTENT to receive his commission from above will be cheered by the promises of God, as he seeks to do justice and judgment.  To have unwavering trust in God, to be a doer of His word, is to pursue a safe course.  The counsel of God simplifies the perplexities of business and domestic duties.  The followers of Chirst who work with an eye to the glory of God will have heavenly wisdom.--Testimonies for the Church, vol 8, 141.

The words and law of God, written in the soul, and exhibited in a consecrated, holy life, have a powerful influence to convict the world.  Covetousness, which is idolatry, and envy, and love of the world, will be rooted from the hearts of those who are obedient to Christ, and it will be their pleasure to deal justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly before God.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, 201.

               Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
                   let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us,
                           and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
                              looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,
                           who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross,
                                            despising the shame, and has sat down
                                             at the right hand of the throne of God.
                              
                                                       --Hebrews 12:1, 2, NKJV

August 5:  Delight and Goodwill.

The Christian's Many Sources of Happiness.
Do you have faith?  Have it to yourself before God.  Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves.--Romans 14:22, NKJV

THOSE WHO FIND true happiness must have the blessing of Heaven upon all that they possess and all that they do.--The Adventist Home, 67.

Let us never lose sight of the fact that Jesus is a wellspring of joy.  He does not delight in the misery of human beings, but loves to see them happy.

Christians have many sources of happiness at their command, and they may tell with unerring accuracy what pleasures are lawful and right.  They may enjoy such recreation as will not dissipate the mind or debase the soul, such as will not disappoint and leave a sad after-influence to destroy self-respect or bar the way to usefulness.  If they can take Jesus with them and maintain a prayerful spirit, they are perfectly safe.

Any amusement in which you can engage asking the blessing of God upon it in faith will not be dangerous.  But any amusement which disqualifies you for secret prayer, for devotion at the altar of prayer, or for taking part in the prayer meeting is not safe, but dangerous.--The Adventist Home, 513.

                                        O Lord, You are my God.
                                                I will exalt You,
                                           I will praise Your name,
                                For you have done wonderful things;
                           Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
                                                                                       --Isaiah 25:1, NKJV

August 4:  Delight and Goodwill.

Joyfully Ministering to Others.
I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives.--Ecclesiastes 3:12, NKJV

GOD CALLS UPON MEN to minister gladly to their fellow men.--The Ministry of Healing, 103.

Every effort we make for Christ will be rewarded by Him, and every duty we perform in His name will minister to our own happiness.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 19.

Life is too valuable, too full of solemn, sacred responsibilities, to be wasted in pleasing self....

Men and women have hardly begun to understand the true object of life.  They are attracted by glitter and show.  They are ambitious for worldly pre-eminence.  To this the true aims of life are sacrificed.  Life's best things--simplicity, honesty, truthfulness, purity, integrity--cannot be bought or sold.  They are as free to the ignorant as to the educated, to the humble laborer as to the honored statesman.  For everyone God has provided pleasure that may be enjoyed by rich and poor alike--the pleasure found in cultivating pureness of thought and unselfishness of action, the pleasure that comes from speaking sympathizing words and doing kindly deeds.  From those who perform such service the light of Christ shines to brighten lives darkened by many shadows.--The Ministry of Healing, 98.

                               I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light
                                 so that you can understand the confident hope
                                 he has given to those he called--his holy people
                                 who are his rich and glorious inheritance.
                                                                                      --Ephesians 1:18, NLT

August 3:  Delight and Goodwill

Finding Delight in God's Word.
"If they obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures."--Job 36:11, NKJV

THE CHRISTIAN HAS A SOURCE of strength and happiness to which the lovers of pleasure are strangers.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, 616.

Conversion is a work that most do not appreciate.  It is not a small matter to transform an earthly, sin-loving mind and bring it to understand the unspeakable love of Christ, the charms of His grace, and the excellency of God, so that the soul shall be imbued with divine love and captivated with the heavenly mysteries.  When he understands these things, his former life appears disgusting and hateful.  He hates sin, and, breaking his heart before God, he embraces Christ as the life and joy of his soul.  He renounces his former pleasures.  He has a new mind, new affections, new interest, new will; his sorrows, and desires, and love are all new.  The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, which have heretofore been preferred before Christ, are now turned from, and Christ is the charm of his life, the crown of his rejoicing.  Heaven, which once possessed no charms, is now viewed in its riches and glory; and he contemplates it as his future home, where he shall see, love, and praise the One who hath redeemed him by His precious blood.

The works of holiness, which appeared wearisome, are now his delight.  The word of God, which was dull and uninteresting, is now chosen as his study, the man of his counsel.  It is as a letter written to him from God, bearing the inscription of the Eternal.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 294.

                              If your instructions hadn't sustained me with joy,
                                           I would have died in my misery.
                                  I will never forget your commandments,
                                          for by them you give me life.
                                                                            --Psalm 119:92, 93, NLT

August 2:  Delight and Goodwill.

The Road to Perdition Is Wide, Not Easy.
"Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?" says the Lord God, "and not that he should turn from his ways, and live?"--Ezekiel 18:23, NKJV

SATAN WILL PRESENT the path of holiness as difficult while the paths of worldly pleasure are strewed with flowers.  In false and flattering colors will the tempter array the world with its pleasures before you.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, 502.

Yet do not therefore conclude that the upward path is the hard and the downward road the easy way.  All along the road that leads to death there are pains and penalties, there are sorrows and disappointments, there are warnings not to go on.  God's love has made it hard for the heedless and headstrong to destroy themselves.  It is true that Satan's path is made to appear attractive, but it is all a deception; in the way of evil there are bitter remorse and cankering care.  We may think it pleasant to follow pride and worldly ambition, but the end is pain and sorrow.  Selfish plans may present flattering promises and hold out the hope of enjoyment, but we shall find that our happiness is poisoned and our life embittered by hopes that center in self.  In the downward road the gateway may be bright with flowers, but thorns are in the path.  The light of hope which shines from its entrance fades into the darkness of despair, and the soul who follows that path descends into the shadows of unending night.--Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, 139,

                                            "Thus says the Lord of hosts:
                                             'If you will walk in My ways,
                                          And if you will keep My command,
                                          Then you shall also judge My house,
                                         And likewise have charge of My courts;
                                                I will give you places to walk
                                                Among these who stand here.' "
                                                                                --Zechariah 3:7, NKJV