Oswald Chambers

One of my favorite daily devotions is Oswald Chambers' 'My Utmost for His Highest'. Oswald Chambers was an early pioneer of modern ministry to the military. Following years of preaching in Scotland and England, shepherding a Bible college and many revivals and prayer meetings he felt a call to serve the military during WWI. His assignment to the Y.M.C.As in Egypt was fraught with adventure for his young wife and baby daughter. They bravely trusted the Lord to build up a struggling mission to spiritually reach the thousands of United Kingdom soldiers from England, Australia and New Zealand who were assigned to the difficult combat zones of North Africa and Palestine. The impact the Chambers' had among the soldiers was powerful. If you're interested in learning more about Oswald and Biddie Chambers' lives I would recommend reading, "Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God" by David McCasland.

"My Utmost for His Highest" was edited by Biddie Chambers' after she and her daughter returned to England following Oswald's death in Cairo. After reading his biography I had a better context for the heart and spirit behind the writings and they've had a deeper impact on me as a result. During the hard years following Oswald's death Biddie spent tireless hours editing his writings and publishing them. A trained stenographer, she had well prepared to take the notes, but the pre-production work didn't compare to the post-production effort to accomplish everything. Just as during their time in Egypt, Biddie refused to take a salary from the earnings of the publications preferring to invest the money into ministries and more publications. Many of these works would become highly popular throughout the mid-20th century, but none would exceed "My Utmost for His Highest".

I would recommend it to anyone looking for a daily devotional.