If God has called you to be really like Jesus, He will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience, that you will not be able to measure yourself by other Christians; and in many ways, He will seem to let to let other good people do things which He will never let you do.
Other Christians and ministers, who seem very religious and useful, can push themselves, pull wires and work schemes to carry out their Christian goals, but these things you simply cannot do. Others may boast of their work or their writings or their success, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such thing, and if you ever try it, He will lead you into some deep mortification that will make you despise yourself and all your good works.
Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, but most likely God will keep you poor, because He want you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence on Him and the joy of seeing Him supply your needs day by day out of an unseen Treasury.
The Lord may let others be honored and keep you hidden and unappreciated because He wants to produce some choice, fragrant fruit for His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade. He may let others do a work for Him and get the credit for it, but He will make you work on and on without others knowing how much you are doing; and then, to make your work still more precious, He may let others get the credit for the work which you have done, and thus make your reward ten times greater when Jesus comes.
The Holy Spirit will rebuke you for little words or deeds or even feelings, or for wasting your time, which other Christians never seem to be concerned about, but you must make up your mind that God is an infinite Sovereign and He has a right to do whatever He pleases with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things which puzzle your reason in the way He deals with you, but if you will just submit yourself to Him in all things, He will wrap you up in a jealous love and bestow upon you many blessing which come only to those who are very near to His heart.
Settle it then, that He is to have the privilege of tying your tongue, or chaining your hand, or closing your eyes, in ways that He does not seem to use with others. Now, when you are so possessed with the living God that your secret heart becomes pleased and delighted with this peculiar, personal, private, jealous guardianship and management of the Holy Spirit over your life, then you will have entered the very vestibule of heaven itself.
Greetings in Christ Jesus. Cliff Smith here, doing what I often do...checking out your website for topics of importance for those I encounter in my field of service and testimony. I was quite surprised (..although I should't have been) when I found a tract that God used in my early years as His child to stabilize my heart and mind, while placing me on the peculiar road to which He was going to assign me: DEFENSE OF HIS TRUTH (the Word of God.)
The tract I refer to, ...and have referred to time and time again in my field of service is "Others May, You Cannot" I first came across that tract in 1966 while I was living/working in Florida. It has been one from which I draw strength, even until this day.
Thank you for making it available to brethren (and sisters) everywhere. It is an amazingly powerful message to store in the heart if you're going into any kind of service in the Lord. Keep up God's work, brother Noel; your home-going is imminent. Christ's appearing is nigh. May God richly bless all that you do.
In Christ, unto His praise, honor and glory, ...now and forever,
-Cliff Smith