(J. C. Philpot, "The Going Forth of the Lord" 1841)

"And we know that all things work together for good
 to those who love God, to those who are the called
 according to His purpose." Romans 8:28

I am often a marvel to myself, feeling at times . . .
  such barrenness,
  such leanness,
  such deadness,
  such carnality,
  such inability to any spiritual thought.

It is astonishing to me how our souls are kept alive.

Carried on, and yet so secretly?worked upon,
and yet so mysteriously?and yet led on, guided
and preserved through so many difficulties and
obstacles?the Christian is a miracle of mercy!

He is astonished how he is preserved amid all his . . .
  difficulties,
  obstacles,
  trials, and
  temptations.

Sometimes he seems driven and sometimes drawn,
sometimes led and sometimes carried?but in one
way or another the Spirit of God so works upon him
that, though he scarce knows how, he still presses on!

His very burdens make him groan for deliverance.

His very temptations cause him to cry for help.

The very difficulty and ruggedness of the road
make him want to be carried every step.

The very perplexity of the path compels him to cry out
for a guide?so that the Spirit working in the midst of, and
under, and through every difficulty and discouragement,
still bears him through, and carries him on?and thus brings
him through every trial and trouble and temptation and
obstacle?until He sets him in glory!

He will then understand, that he has . . .
  not had one trial too heavy,
  nor shed one tear too much,
  nor put up one groan too many,
but all these things have, in a most mysterious
and inexplicable manner, worked together for
his spiritual good!

"And we know that all things work together for good
 to those who love God, to those who are the called
 according to His purpose." Romans 8:28