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A Charles Dickens Devotional

Thomas Nelson

Chapter One

That punctual servant of all work, the sun, had just risen, and begun to strike a light on the morning of the thirteenth of May, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven, when Mr. Samuel Pickwick burst like another sun from his slumbers, threw open his chamber window, and looked out upon the world beneath. Goswell Street was at his feet, Goswell Street was on his right hand—as far as the eye could reach, Goswell Street extended on his left; and the opposite side of Goswell Street was over the way. "Such," thought Mr. Pickwick, "are the narrow views of those philosophers who, content with examining the things that lie before them, look not to the truths which are hidden beyond. As well might I be content to gaze on Goswell Street for ever, without one effort to penetrate to the hidden countries which on every side surround it." And having given vent to this beautiful reflection, Mr. Pickwick proceeded to put himself into his clothes, and his clothes into his portmanteau. Great men are seldom over scrupulous in the arrangement of their attire; the operation of shaving, dressing, and coffee-imbibing was soon performed; and, in another hour, Mr. Pickwick, with his portmanteau in his hand, his telescope in his great-coat pocket, and his note-book in his waistcoat, ready for the reception of any discoveries worthy of being noted down, had arrived at the coach-stand in St. Martin's-le-Grand. "Cab!" said Mr. Pickwick. —The Pickwick Papers

Samuel Pickwick, a retired businessman, met the new day with enthusiasm. He saw it with the potential of discovery and maybe even adventure. If Pickwick and his friends from the Pickwick Club loved anything at all, it was searching for adventure. Every morning held the prospect of something new, something exciting.

How should we meet each new day? Psalm 118:24 tells us, "This is the day the lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." We should greet each day expecting God's kindness: "Through the lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning" (Lamentations 3:22–23). We should pray in the morning: "But to You I have cried out, O lord, and in the morning my prayer comes before You" (Psalm 88:13). And we should view morning as a pleasant, sweet time: "Truly the light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to behold the sun" (Ecclesiastes 11:7).

When you arise in the morning, do you throw open the window and look out at the world? Do you observe the same old things, or do you notice subtle changes, like buds opening on flowers, the scent of lilacs on the breeze, or the new song of a distant bird? This is the day the Lord has made! Rejoice in His bountiful, beautiful gift.

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That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting that there is none besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other. Isaiah 45:6

God's Voice

A few days have elapsed, and a stately ship is out at sea, spreading its white wings to the favouring wind.

Upon the deck, image to the roughest man on board of something that is graceful, beautiful, and harmless—something that it is good and pleasant to have there, and that should make the voyage prosperous—is Florence. It is night, and she and Walter sit alone, watching the solemn path of light upon the sea between them and the moon.

At length she cannot see it plainly, for the tears that fill her eyes; and then she lays her head down on his breast, and puts her arms around his neck, saying, "Oh Walter, dearest love, I am so happy!"

Her husband holds her to his heart, and they are very quiet, and the stately ship goes on serenely.

"As I hear the sea," says Florence, "and sit watching it, it brings so many days into my mind. It makes me think so much—"

"Of Paul, my love. I know it does."

Of Paul and Walter. And the voices in the waves are always whispering to Florence, in their ceaseless murmuring, of love—of love, eternal and illimitable, not bounded by the confines of this world, or by the end of time, but ranging still, beyond the sea, beyond the sky, to the invisible country far away! —Dombey and Son

Dickens's love scenes are often wrought with emotion. This one follows Florence Dombey's wedding to Walter Gay. In the last paragraph, Dickens writes about voices in the waves whispering to Florence. He describes them as reaching beyond this world, beyond the sky "to the in visible country far away." Perhaps when Dickens wrote this, he imagined the voice of God.

In the New King James Version, God's voice is described as "a still small voice" (1 Kings 19:12). The New International Version translates this as "a gentle whisper." In modern times we might recognize this whispering in our hearts as a conscience—the small voice inside us that leads us in the right way. Isaiah 30:21 says, "Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it.'" And in Hebrews 4:12 we discover that "the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."

When we hear our "conscience" speak to us, we should be careful to make certain that it is indeed God's voice that we hear. God's Word and prayer will help us to do this. God's voice will never lead us astray, nor will it contradict anything in the Bible. Thus, the more time we spend intimately with the Lord in prayer and in quiet contemplation of His Word, the better we are able to recognize His voice when He speaks.

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"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." John 10:27

The Earth

You may seek in vain, now, for the spot on which these sisters lived, for their very names have passed away, and dusty antiquaries tell of them as of a fable. But they dwelt in an old wooden house—old even in those days—with overhanging gables and balconies of rudely-carved oak, which stood within a pleasant orchard, and was surrounded by a rough stone wall, whence a stout archer might have winged an arrow to St. Mary's Abbey. The old abbey flourished then; and the five sisters, living on its fair domains, paid yearly dues to the black monks of St. Benedict, to which fraternity it belonged.

It was a bright and sunny morning in the pleasant time of summer, when one of those black monks emerged from the abbey portal, and bent his steps towards the house of the fair sisters. Heaven above was blue, and earth beneath was green; the river glistened like a path of diamonds in the sun; the birds poured forth their songs from the shady trees; the lark soared high above the waving corn; and the deep buzz of insects filled the air. Everything looked gay and smiling; but the holy man walked gloomily on, with his eyes bent upon the ground. The beauty of the earth is but a breath, and man is but a shadow....

With eyes bent upon the ground, then, or only raised enough to prevent his stumbling over such obstacles as lay in his way, the religious man moved slowly forward. —The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby

Charles Dickens is remembered for using descriptive language to create vivid images in his readers' minds. Here, Dickens presents a vibrant picture contrasting the monk's gloomy attitude with the beauty of earth. How often do we humans walk like this monk with eyes bent to the ground, oblivious to God's magnificent creation?

Genesis 1 describes how God commanded the earth into existence. He said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.... Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees.... Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night" (vv. 9, 11, 14 NIV). When God saw what He had done, He proclaimed it good.

Earth does not belong to us; it belongs to God. Psalm 24:1 reminds us, "The earth is the lord's, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein." Our appreciation of its natural beauty is a reflection of the Spirit of God that dwells in our hearts. The Bible says that when God created man and woman, He put them on earth to work it and care for it (Genesis 2:15). We are the earth's stewards. As you care for the earth around you, take time to notice the beauty of creation and to praise its Creator.

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All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. John 1:3

Concerning the Poor

The room in which the boys were fed, was a large stone hall, with a copper at one end: out of which the master, dressed in an apron ... and assisted by one or two women, ladled the gruel at mealtimes. Of this festive composition each boy had one porringer, and no more—except on occasions of great public rejoicing, when he had two ounces and a quarter of bread besides.

The bowls never wanted washing. The boys polished them with their spoons till they shone again; and when they had performed this operation ... they would sit staring at the copper, with such eager eyes, as if they could have devoured the very bricks of which it was composed ... Oliver Twist ... was desperate with hunger, and reckless with misery. He rose from the table; and advancing to the master, basin and spoon in hand, said: ...

"Please, sir, I want some more."

The master was a fat, healthy man; but he turned very pale. He gazed in stupefied astonishment on the small rebel for some seconds, and then clung for support to the copper. The assistants were paralysed with wonder; the boys with fear.

"What!" said the master at length, in a faint voice.

"Please, sir," replied Oliver, "I want some more."

The master aimed a blow at Oliver's head with the ladle; pinioned him in his arm; and shrieked aloud for the beadle. —Oliver Twist

In this scene, Oliver and the other boys in Mr. Bumble's workhouse are near starvation after working hard and having very little to eat. The boys allotted Oliver the task of asking for more food, something for which he surely will be punished. Many of Dickens's works, particularly Oliver Twist, reflect his sympathy for the poor and his distain for aristocratic heartlessness.

In the Bible, God commanded Moses to have a right attitude toward the poor. He said, "The poor will never cease from the land; therefore I command you, saying, 'You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land'" (Deuteronomy 15:11). The Bible promises God's favor when we give to the poor: "If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday. The lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail" (Isaiah 58:10–11).

The favor that God shows us when we give to the poor is the satisfaction that we have done His will. We can help many people like Oliver by allowing God to lead us to the ways in which He wants us to help. Consider, today, how God may be leading you.

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Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy. Proverbs 31:9

About Grumbling

"A merry Christmas, uncle! God save you!" cried a cheerful voice. It was the voice of Scrooge's nephew, who came upon him so quickly that this was the first intimation he had of his approach.

"Bah!" said Scrooge, "Humbug!"

He had so heated himself with rapid walking in the fog and frost, this nephew of Scrooge's, that he was all in a glow ...

"Christmas a humbug, uncle!" said Scrooge's nephew. "You don't mean that, I am sure?"

"I do," said Scrooge. "Merry Christmas! What right have you to be merry? What reason have you to be merry? You're poor enough."

"Come, then," returned the nephew gaily. "What right have you to be dismal? What reason have you to be morose? You're rich enough."

Scrooge having no better answer ready on the spur of the moment, said, "Bah!" again; and followed it up with "Humbug."

"Don't be cross, uncle!" said the nephew.

"What else can I be," returned the uncle, "when I live in such a world of fools as this? Merry Christmas! ... What's Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money; a time for finding yourself a year older, but not an hour richer; a time for balancing your books and having every item in 'em through a round dozen of months presented dead against you? If I could work my will," said Scrooge indignantly, "every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart!" —A Christmas Carol

Ebenezer Scrooge, Dickens's most well-known character, personifies the very definition of grumpiness. He is crabby, cranky, cross, crotchety, irritable, irascible, petulant, prickly, short-tempered, snappish, snarky, snippety, stuffy, and testy too! His bad attitude separates him not only from people, but also from God.

When the Israelites wandered around the wilderness searching for the promised land, they felt grumpy, and they grumbled to their leader, Moses. "If only we had died by the lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death" (Exodus 16:3 NIV). Moses answered them, "Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the lord" (v. 8 NIV). In the New Testament, Jesus told His disciples, "Stop grumbling among yourselves" (John 6:43 NIV). And in Philippians 2:14–15 (NIV), Paul says, "Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation."

Complaining focuses on our dislikes instead of our blessings. Grumbling, as Moses said, is in truth grumbling against God. If we will but turn our complaining hearts into thankful hearts, then we will discover just how blessed we are.

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I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face and wear a smile. Job 9:27

(Continues...)

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Excerpted from A Charles Dickens Devotional by Jean Fischer Copyright © 2012 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.. Excerpted by permission of Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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