Meet me at the Brook...... Rom 8:28

My good brother in Christ, Mike, quite often sings a little ditty as he meets me in the hallway of our work.  He sings, "meet me at the Brook."   That's all, the whole song. "Meet me at the Brook."  Short, but I LOVE IT.  Mike's  words and tune sometimes continuously ring in my head so catchy is the tune and so wonderful the subject to which he refers.  There is a kind of a RAP sound to it.   Mike is referring not to some stream somewhere but actually to the puritan, Thomas Brooks.   Mike owns  the Complete Works of Thomas Brooks.  Very cool.  I have only Precious Remedies and now Spurgeon's, Smooth Stones from Ancient Brooks.   Last I spent time with Mike we poured through the index and volumes of the Complete Works, and found the following on Romans 8:28.  Having read this little excerpt several times now I commend it wholly for your consideration.

Twelfthly and lastly, If thou art a holy person, if thou art one that hast that real holiness without which there is no happiness, then know for thy comfort that all things shall work together for thy good: Rom. viii. 28, 'And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.' All the afflictions, and all the temptations, and all the desertions, and all the oppressions, and all the oppositions, and all the persecutions that befalls a godly man shall work for his good, Rev. ii. 10. Every cross, every loss, and every disease that befalls the holy man shall work for his good; every device, every snare, every method, every depth, every stratagem, and every enterprise of Satan against the holy man shall work for his good ; they shall all help to make him more humble, more holy, more heavenly, more spiritual, more faithful, more fruitful, and more watchful, 2 Cor. xii. 9, 10; every day of prosperity, and every night of adversity shall work for the holy man's good ; every storm and every calm, every bitter and every sweet, every cross and every comfort, shall work for his good that is holy, Hosea ii. 5-7. When God gives a mercy, that shall work for his good ; and when God takes away a mercy, that shall work for his good; when God gives him large commons, that shall work for his good; and when God cuts his commons short, that shall work for his good ; yea, and all the falls and all the sins of the saints shall work for their good. As I get hurt by my graces, so I get good by my sins, said famous Mr. Foxe. Oh the care, the fear, the watchfulness, the tenderness, the zeal, the revenge, that God raises in the souls of his saints by their very falls! 2 Cor. vii. 8-13. Oh the hatred, the indignation, and the detestation that God raises in the hearts of his children against sin, by their very falling into sin! Oh what love to Christ, what thankfulness for Christ, what admiration of Christ, what cleaving to Christ, what exalting of Christ, and what drawing from Christ, are saints led to by their very falls! Oh what exercise of grace, what increase of grace, what magnifying of grace, what liftings up of divine power, and what a high price are holy men led to set upon the precious blood of Christ, and all by their falls! It is the glory of God's holiness that he can turn spiritual diseases into holy remedies, and soul poisons into heavenly cordials; that he can prevent sin by sin, and cure falling by falling. One calls that 8th of the Romans and the 28th verse the blind man's promise; and I may call it the lame man's promise that is holy, and the deaf man's promise that is holy, and the dumb man's promise that is holy, and the needy man's promise that is holy, and the sick man's promise that is holy, and the languishing man's promise that is holy, and the dying man's promise that is holy. Oh the comfort, oh the sweet, oh the content, oh the satisfaction that this promise hath afforded to many a precious saint, when other promises have not been at hand! Christian, what though friends and relations frown upon thee, what though enemies are plotting and conspiring against thee, what though wants, like an armed man, are ready to break in upon thee, what though men rage and devils roar, what though sickness be in thy family, and death stands every day at thy elbow, yet there is no reason for thee to fear or faint, because all these things shall work for thy good. Yea, there is wonderful cause of joy and rejoicing in all the afflictions and tribulations that comes upon thee, considering that they shall all work for thy good. Christians! I am afraid, I am afraid, that you do not run so often as you should to the breasts of this promise, nor draw that sweetness and comfort from it that it would yield, and that your several cases may require. And thus I have done with this use of comfort and consolation to all God's holy ones. You see what comfort, what consolation, yea, what strong consolation, waits upon all God's sanctified ones. I have been the longer upon this use, because the times require it, and the condition of God's people calls for the strongest cordials, and the choicest and the sweetest comforts.  click here to read online -  Note also the that I have added links to the complete Works of Thomas Brooks over on the right of this blog.