MOUNTAINS of DREAD...
VALLEYS
of PROMISE
A ONE YEAR CALENDAR of DAILY
DEVOTIONAL READINGS from the SCRIPTURES
A Trail of Enlightenment, Encouragement and
Illumination
Most recent edition January 1st, 2006
Welcome to Mountains of Dread, Valleys of
Promise. Here, while hiking this particular trail, you can
experience informative, encouraging and inspiring daily devotionals, worded
entirely from the Scriptures, for twelve months of the year! To access
this scenic calendar, simply click on the COMPASS, directly below. If you are a first
time visitor to this trail, we kindly suggest that you hike through the
Authors Preface, and, How to Benefit the Most from this Daily
Devotional.
¤
AUTHOR'S
PREFACE
HIKING
THE TRAIL OF TRUTH VOLUME 3
Collected and arranged by MARK STEPHEN TAYLOR
A DEVOTIONAL
CALENDAR
From the New Geneva Study Bible; New King James Translation,
Bringing the Light of Reformation to Scripture 1995, paraphrased by
MARK STEPHEN TAYLOR, with excerpts from the Contemporary
Parallel (eight translations) New Testament 1997
December 2003
From the 1998 Series HIKING THE TRAIL OF
TRUTH;
Volume 1: A Profound Look At Pure Reality Volume 2: The
Monuments Volume 4: HTTOT The Website
M. S. TAYLOR
PRODUCTIONS/TAYLORFILM LIMITED
LONE WOLF FILM COMPANY/LONE WOLF
LIMITED
1987-2006
This
daily reader has been created, in its entirety, using modern English
translations of the worlds' only known written revelation from God, the
Bible. I have long believed that the daily reading of Gods' encouraging
words, put actively into practice, is the one and only means of gaining the
true understanding necessary for our survival in this present world. We all
stumble through life and experience failure, in many ways (James 3:2). There is obviously then no question regarding our
need for higher encouragement, our need to listen to what God has
to say...
Encouragement is not something you always get from your wife,
your husband, your parents, your children, your grandchildren, your friends or
relatives, your neighbors or your employer, yet, we are expressly taught within
the Scriptures to encourage one another on a daily basis
(Hebrews 3:13, 10:24-25, 13:22). There are indeed many
ways to encourage others. Words can be very effective, if we are careful with
them, but direct, specific actions, no matter how limited, are most
valuable.— The nature, characteristics and attributes of true
encouragement are discovered only through Gods' written Word, which has
come to us by the Spirit of God, and which has been remarkably preserved
throughout history by that same Spirit... The Bible has been best
defined as the mind of God in human language.
Within our present
physical realm, we are surrounded by a myriad of natural evidences of
Gods' own actions of encouragement toward us. We have certainly not
earned these actions of grace, yet there are no limitations to His
kindness and mercy. Everyday, if we have been blessed with eyesight, we
behold the miracle of dawn in the rising of the sun. We observe the clouds with
their diverse, captivating formations. We look upon this beautiful earth; the
mountains and the deserts, the trees, plants and flowers, the lakes, rivers and
streams. At dusk we are provided with exquisite sunsets. We see the heavens and
the earth brought together romantically at twilight. We gaze on the infinite
stars of the heavens, each one different, stretching out forever across the
expanse of the universe. We have all witnessed or heard about the full moon and
the enchanting light it casts upon the earth. The particular splendor of the
crescent moon too is indeed inspiring. We have all, for the most part, stood in
His wind, felt the caress of His rain on our face, witnessed the beauty and
power of His lightning, and have observed the falling of His delicate
snowflakes, of which no two are alike. We've seen noble birds in flight,
observed His animals in the wild, and are aware of the vast numbers of assorted
fish roaming the great seas. Then there is mankind...human beings, each of us,
male and female alike, with our own personal uniqueness...
How
remarkably encouraging that each of us are different (with no two
fingerprints alike in the world), that each of us are novel, and that God has
taken a special, individual interest in His personal plans for each and every
one of us. Even if we are among the blind or deaf He can and has used
that contrariety, through His creation and through His Word, in helping us to
actually see further or to hear more in detail. If we have been physically
disabled in any fashion during this lifetime there are His great and precious
promises to rely on; to give us hope, allowing us to triumphantly bare our
earthly burdens. Again, He is our encouragement.
Reason
with me now; If we are truly honest with one another, it is unthinkable that we
(individually) can successfully encourage ourselves without generating some
form of conceit, an earthly pride, or a false sense of security. Undoubtedly
then our only true, sustaining encouragement comes from God Himself;
either directly through His creation or His written Word, or indirectly through
the providential words and/or actions of other human beings. In consideration
of these things we need then to spend important, meaningful, life-giving time
with God; Time to honor the inspiring wonders He has made, and time to listen
to His living, encouraging, healing, exhilarating words. We need to acquire
true understanding if we desire to make sense of this life. We must
learn to think and act on His precepts daily. We need to enthusiastically
listen to Him and to be obedient to His direction...
These concepts
form the basis of and the purpose for this particular daily reader. There is
not a single word, phrase or sentence within the Scriptures that doesn't teach
us something. There is not a single wonder throughout His creation that doesn't
help us to mature in our understanding of Him. The longer God allows me to live
on this present earth, the more I see the unparalleled richness of His wisdom.
There are several important reasons then that I have compiled the Scriptures as
I have throughout this writing, having sought diligently to arrange them
carefully through much thought and pursuit of purpose. The most profound reason
of course is my sincere desire for you to learn how to listen evermore
closely to God. I believe that a purely Scriptural devotional is one of the
best ways to learn to listen. Mainly because it takes Scriptures from various
books of the Bible and weaves them together in a unity that reveals the whole
counsel of God. This procedure is essential to true understanding.
In
addition to my own personal Bible studies, God has generously allowed me to
visit and to hike among many great wonders throughout the west, teaching me all
the while how to honor and to appreciate Him through the things He has
made. He opened my ears and my eyes and has helped me hike the trail of
learning to depend completely upon Him. He continues this effort; ever
forgiving, ever teaching, ever strengthening, ever training, and ever
encouraging and maturing me in His truth. He is molding me into the character
He has always wanted me to become (Isaiah 64:8). He does
this for me and He can do it for you as well, because He truly loves us.
His thoughts turn constantly to each of us, day by day, night by night
(Psalm 139:17-18). He loves us exceedingly far beyond
our own comprehension of love (Romans 8:37-39).
What I have been so graciously allowed to experience and to learn from
Him, during my journey thus far through life, has most mercifully rendered an
increasing sight to my spiritual blindness. Though my sight is limited
(1st Corinthians 13:12), I would now like to share that
bit of sight with you through this particular arrangement of His words.
I would like to help you on your own journey, to put some needful things
into your backpack, so to speak, that you may indeed learn of His infinite
encouragement and, through Him, gain the eternal wisdom and insight needed
to encourage others.— It is God's will that, by the encouragement of
the Scriptures (Romans 15:4), you would advance
along the difficult trail of life with an ever-increasing faith of purpose;
therewith to descend from your natural "proneness to wander" atop those
mountains of dread, and therewith to learn how to find peace, hope,
truth and understanding within the valleys of promise.
OH
LORD, the earth is full of your unfailing love; teach me your principles...
Open my eyes, that I might see Wondrous things from your law, for I am a
stranger in the earth. Do not hide your commandments from
me. My soul is crushed with longing for your judgments at all
times.
Psalm 119:64 & 119:18-20
DEDICATION
This particular volume of
Hiking The Trail Of Truth is most gratefully dedicated to the subscribers of
the video and newsletter series, who have encouraged me from the start of the
series in 1998, and who continue to reward me with kind letters of appreciation
and life-giving words of encouragement to this date. I only hope that the
MOUNTAINS OF DREAD, VALLEYS OF PROMISE daily reader will help to return the
refreshment of spirit and reassurance of hope they have so graciously given me.
I am glad that we have been able to continue Hiking the Trail of Truth together
... the summit awaits us!
Sincerely, Mark S
Taylor
HOW TO BENEFIT THE MOST FROM THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
A perceptive spiritual mind-set is required for you to obtain
the best and the most from this writing. In order to gain that particular mind
set I suggest that you take a season of time, according to your purpose, and
find a solitary place, free from the distractions of the everyday world. Climb
a mountain, ascend a hill, sit among the trees or atop a boulder, or just sit
down on the ground where there is a good view of nature. You may find a
secluded bank by the river or stream, or an outcrop of rocks, or you may choose
the midst of a field or a grassy knoll out in the country. If you are not able
to get out of doors, perhaps the quietness of your living room or bedroom may
have to do. A back porch may be a good place as well. The idea is to be alone
with God so that you can not only talk or reflect, but that you might become
truly silent before Him, meditate on all His wonders, wait patiently on Him,
and learn to listen...
* Meditation is the activity of
calling to mind, and thinking over, and dwelling on, and applying to oneself,
the various things that one knows about the works and ways and purposes and
promises of God. It is an activity of reverent thought, consciously performed
in the presence of God, under the eye of God, by the help of God, as a means of
communion with God. Its purpose is to clear one's mental and spiritual vision
of God, and to let His truth make its full and proper impact on one's mind and
heart. It is a matter of talking to oneself about God and oneself; it is,
indeed, often a matter of arguing with oneself; reasoning oneself out of moods
of doubt and unbelief, into a clear apprehension of God's power and grace. Its
effect is to ever humble us as we contemplate God's greatness and glory, and
our own littleness and sinfulness, and to encourage and reassure us; comfort us
in the old, strong Bible sense of the word, as we contemplate the unsearchable
riches of divine mercy displayed in the Lord Jesus Christ.
*J. I.
Packer ( Knowing God, 20th Anniversary Edition,
1993)
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