"All night long on my bed I looked for the One my
heart loves; I looked for Him but did not find Him."
Song of Songs 3:1
"Have you seen the One my heart loves?"
Song of Songs 3:3
"I opened for my lover, but my lover had left; He
was gone! My heart sank at His departure. I looked
for Him but did not find Him. I called Him but He
did not answer." Song of Songs 5:6
Let your hearts lie humble and low under the loss
of God's gracious presence.
The loss of God's gracious presence is the greatest loss.
The loss of God's gracious presence is a loss-embittering
loss; it is a loss that will greatly embitter all your worldly
losses. "I have lost my health, I have lost a precious child,
I have lost a gracious spouse, who was the delight of my
eyes and the joy of my heart; I have lost a costly estate,
I have lost an intimate friend, I have lost a thriving trade.
Oh, but that which embitters all my losses, and puts a sting
into them, is this—that I have lost the gracious presence
of God that once I enjoyed!"
The loss of God's gracious presence is a loss that all
outward comforts can never make up. When the sun
is set, nothing can make it day with us.
The loss of God's gracious presence is a soul loss; and
no losses can be compared to soul losses. As there are
no mercies compared to soul mercies, so there are no
losses to soul losses.
The loss of God's gracious presence is a loss which will cost
a man dearly, before it will be made up again. Oh the sighs,
the groans, the strong cries, the earnest prayers, the bottles
of tears that the recovery of the divine presence will cost!
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Thomas Brooks (1608 - 1680)
Much of what is known about Thomas Brooks has been ascertained from his writings. Born, likely to well-to-do parents, in 1608, Brooks entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1625, where he was preceded by such men as Thomas Hooker, John Cotton, and Thomas Shepard. He was licensed as a preacher of the Gospel by 1640. Before that date, he appears to have spent a number of years at sea, probably as a chaplain with the fleet.After the conclusion of the First English Civil War, Thomas Brooks became minister at Thomas Apostle's, London, and was sufficiently renowned to be chosen as preacher before the House of Commons on December 26, 1648. His sermon was afterwards published under the title, 'God's Delight in the Progress of the Upright', the text being Psalm 44:18: 'Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from Thy way'. Three or four years afterwards, he transferred to St. Margaret's, Fish-street Hill, London. In 1662, he fell victim to the notorious Act of Uniformity, but he appears to have remained in his parish and to have preached as opportunity arose. Treatises continued to flow from his pen.[3]
Thomas Brooks was a nonconformist preacher. Born into a Puritan family, he was sent to Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He soon became an advocate of the Congregational way and served as a chaplain in the Civil War. In 1648 he accepted the rectory of St. Margaret's, New Fish Street, London, but only after making his Congregational principles clear to the vestry.
On several occasions he preached before Parliament. He was ejected in 1660 and remained in London as a Nonconformist preacher. Government spies reported that he preached at Tower Wharf and in Moorfields. During the Great Plague and Great Fire he worked in London, and in 1672 was granted a license to preach in Lime Street. He wrote over a dozen books, most of which are devotional in character. He was buried in Bunhill Fields.