"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed,
for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Is. 41:10
Oh! this special, this favorable presence of the Lord with
His people, in their greatest troubles and deepest distresses,
is a sweet presence, a comfortable presence, a delightful
presence, a blessed presence!
O Christian, be in whatever place you will, and with whatever
company you will, and in whatever condition you will—yet
your loving God, your kind Father, your bosom Friend, will
be still with you! He will never leave you, nor forsake you!
Oh what a spring of comfort this should be to you!
O Christian! are your troubles . . .
many in number,
strange in nature,
heavy in measure,
much in burden, and
long in continuance?
Remember that your God is near . . .
whose mercies are numerous,
whose wisdom is wondrous, and
whose power is miraculous!
O my friends, how can you lack comfort—who
have the God of all consolation present with you?
How can you lack counsel—who have the
wonderful Counselor so near unto you?
How can you lack grace—who have the God
of all grace standing by you?
How can you lack peace—who have always the
presence of the Prince of peace with you?
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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.