Finding God by Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“O that I knew where I might find Him!”

–Job 23:3

In Job’s uttermost extremity he cried after the Lord. The longing desire of an afflicted child of God is once more to see his Father’s face. His first prayer is not “O that I might be healed of the disease which now festers in every part of my body!” nor even “O that I might see my children restored from the jaws of the grave, and my property once more brought from the hand of the spoiler!” but the first and uppermost cry is, “O that I knew where I might find HIM, who is my God! that I might come even to His seat!” God’s children run home when the storm comes on. It is the heaven-born instinct of a gracious soul to seek shelter from all ills beneath the wings of Jehovah. “He that hath made his refuge God,” might serve as the title of a true believer. A hypocrite, when afflicted by God, resents the infliction, and, like a slave, would run from the Master who has scourged him; but not so the true heir of heaven, he kisses the hand which smote him, and seeks shelter from the rod in the bosom of the God who frowned upon him.

Job’s desire to commune with God was intensified by the failure of all other sources of consolation. The patriarch turned away from his sorry friends, and looked up to the celestial throne, just as a traveller turns from his empty skin bottle, and betakes himself with all speed to the well. He bids farewell to earth-born hopes, and cries, “O that I knew where I might find my God!” Nothing teaches us so much the preciousness of the Creator, as when we learn the emptiness of all besides. Turning away with bitter scorn from earth’s hives, where we find no honey, but many sharp stings, we rejoice in Him whose faithful word is sweeter than honey or the honeycomb. In every trouble we should first seek to realize God’s presence with us. Only let us enjoy His smile, and we can bear our daily cross with a willing heart for His dear sake.
This is a public domain version of Morning and Evening.

Have you ever been in an inconsolable place in which you had nothing but God? How did it feel?

Take a moment to get to know these classic devotions, all available for free online reading:

• First up is the famous My Utmost for His Highest devotional series, written by Oswald Chambers. Chambers traveled the world teaching the Bible during the early 20th century, and served as a chaplain during World War I. My Utmost is his most famous work, a collection of daily inspirational messages that’s been continually in print since 1935. You can a bit more about Chambers here, and of course you can read My Utmost for yourself at RBC Ministries’ website.
• A.W. Tozer was sometimes called a “20th century prophet”—and reading his devotional series Insight for Leaders, it’s easy to see why. His messages, intended for Christian leaders of every type, whether famous or humble, are just as relevant for today’s church and community leaders as they were when he wrote them decades ago. You can read about Tozer here, and his Insight for Leaders daily messages are online at the Literature Ministries International website.
• Charles Spurgeon is another well-known, highly influential preacher and writer who lived and ministered in 19th century Britain. His Morning and Evening devotionals are unique in that each devotional is split into two parts: one to read in the morning and the other to read at night. Wikipedia has plenty of information about Spurgeon’s life and ministry, and you can check in daily to read Morning and Evening at Answers in Genesis.

These aren’t the only “classic” devotionals out there, of course, but these three have been particularly well-regarded by Christians throughout the years. If you’ve never had the pleasure of exploring these vintage spiritual insights, take a few minutes to see why they remain popular so many years after they were first written!