My dear Friend,—Asaph had a grand cure for his despondency and doubts. The way he was led to take was to ask Asaph, the Doubter, six questions and all to be answered according to the chart drawn by the divine Designer of the course taken by the heirs of glory between the first Adam’s fall and the last Adam’s completion of His mystical body.
Question (1).—Will the Lord cast off for ever? Question (2).—Will He be favourable no more? (3).—Is His mercy clean gone for ever? (4).—Doth His promise fail for evermore? (5).—Hath God forgotten to be gracious? (6).—Hath He in anger shut up His tender mercies? The Asaph, who had the substance of the things hoped for and the evidence (title deeds) of the things not seen, gave Asaph the Doubter the whole length of “Selah” so that he would have ample time to answer all the questions and write a good examination paper. The result of the examination was that Asaph the Doubter, after stating at the end of each question a “no” and an “utter impossibility” and that it would be bordering on blasphemy to entertain such dishonourable views of the Lord’s dealings, made a clean confession that the dismal, unbelieving thoughts which he had allowed to pass through his mind were his sin, unthankfulness, ingratitude, in a word, his infirmity. When he went on in his examination paper to say that the Lord was a God that did wonders, that His mighty power had been shown among the heathen; especially when he confessed that God’s way was in the sea and that we could not fathom Jehovah’s footsteps, but for all that, He guided and preserved His people in the midst of all their trials and perplexities, why Asaph, the more than conqueror through Him that loved Him, had to write 100% on the examination paper and that with the full approval of the Divine Education Authority and of the Divine Director Himself.
I hope you are well in soul and body, also your mother and all the friends. There is nothing for our present condition as a generation but that He will make the waves of the sea, a way for His ransomed to pass over.
With our kindest regards to all, Yours very sincerely, Malcolm Gillies.