Archive for the ‘Devotional’ Category
Posted on August 24, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
Fairest Lord Jesus
Fairest Lord Jesus! Ruler of all nature!
O Thou of God and man the Son.
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul’s glory, joy, and crown!
Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing!
Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling starry host;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels heaven can boast!
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This has long been one of my favorites.
Posted on July 7, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
Jesus Calls us
Mrs. Cecil F. Alexander and William H Jude
Jesus calls us over the tumult
of our life’s wild, restless sea,
Day by day His sweet voice soundeth,
Saying, “Christian, follow Me.”
Jesus calls us from the worship
of the vain world’s golden store,
From each idol that would keep us,
Saying, “Christian, love Me more.”
In our joys and in our sorrows,
days of toil and hours of ease,
Still He calls, in cares and pleasures,
“Christian, love Me more than these.”
Jesus calls us: by Thy mercies,
Saviour, may we hear Thy call,
Give our hearts to Thy obedience,
Serve and love Thee best of all.
Posted on June 8, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
Holy, Holy, Holy
Reginald Heber & John B Dykes
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Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty,
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty,
God in three Persons, blessed Trinity.
Holy, holy, holy, all the saints adore thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea.
Cherubim and Seraphim, falling down before thee,
Who wert, and art, and ever more shall be.
Holy, holy, holy, Tho’ the darkness hide thee.
Tho’ the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see.
Only thou art holy; there is none beside thee,
Perfect in power, in love, and purity.
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
All thy works praise thy name in earth, and sky, and sea.
Holy, holy, holy, Merciful and Mighty,
God in three Persons, blessed Trinity.
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Just a good worship song, with a dash of theology.
Posted on April 1, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
How Firm a Foundation
K-
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said,
You, who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?
In every condition, in sickness, in health;
In poverty’s vale, or abounding in wealth;
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea,
As thy days may demand, shall thy strength ever be.
Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.
When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.
When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.
Even down to old age all My people shall prove
My sovereign, eternal, unchangeable love;
And when hoary hairs shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs they shall still in My bosom be borne.
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.
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Excellent hymn. Not a happy go lucky song; not a “bless me, bless me” song, but plenty of solid truth there. I give this hymn to enthusiastic thumbs up! Although I’d rather not sing it because then I am responsible to believe it!
This hymn was sung at the funerals of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson. In addition:
[It] was the favorite of Deborah Jackson [sic; her name was actually Rachel] President Andrew Jackson’s beloved wife [he was President-elect at the time], and on his death-bed the warrior and statesman called for it. It was the favorite of Gen. Robert E. Lee, and was sung at his funeral. The American love and familiar preference for the remarkable hymn was never more strikingly illustrated than when on Christmas Eve, 1898, a whole corps of the United States Army Northern and Southern, encamped on the Quemados hills, near Havana [Cuba], took up the sacred tune and words. – from cyberhymnal.org
Posted on March 29, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
Oh my, here’s one you’re not likely to hear sung at Joey Osteen’s church, or rarely any church these days for that matter. This one is brutal.
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Faith of our Fathers
Fredrick W. Faber and H.F. Hemy
Faith of our fathers, living still,
in spite of dungeon, fire and sword.
O how our hearts beat high with joy,
whenever we hear that glorious word!
Our fathers chained in prisons dark,
were still in heart and conscience free.
How sweet would be their children’s fate,
if they, like them, could die for thee!
Faith of our fathers, we will love
both friend and foe in all our strife.
And preach thee, too, as love knows how,
by kindly words and virtuous life.
Faith of our fathers, holy faith, we will be true to thee till death!
Posted on March 22, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life
F. Mason North, music by Beethoven
Where cross the crowded ways of life,
where sound the cries of race and clan,
Above the noise of selfish strife,
We hear thy voice, O Son of Man!
In haunts of wretchedness and need,
On shadowed thresholds dark with fears,
From paths where hide the lures of greed,
We catch the vision of thy tears.
The cup of water given for Thee,
Still holds the freshness of they grace;
Yet long these multitudes to see,
The sweet compassion of thy face.
O Master, from the mountain side,
Make haste to heal these hearts of pain,
Among these restless throngs abide,
O tread the city’s streets again.
Till sons of men shall learn thy love,
And follow where they feet have trod:
Till glorious from thy heaven above,
Shall come the city of our God. Amen.
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Not going to comment on this one. It simply has a uniqueness about it. It’s not worshipful, but still directed towards God…it mixes the messy and the holy. Guess I did sort-a comment.
Posted on March 2, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
My Prayer
P.P. Bliss
More holiness give me, more striving within.
More patience in suffering, more sorrow for sin.
More faith in my Savior, more sense of His care.
More joy in His service, More purpose in prayer.
More gratitude give me, more trust in the Lord.
More pride in His glory, more trust in His Word.
More tears for His sorrows, more pain for His grief.
More meekness in trial, more praise for relief.
More purity give me, more strength to overcome.
More freedom from earth-stains, more longings for home.
More fit for the kingdom, more used I would be,
More blessed and holy, more, Savior, like thee.
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Now, at first glance this seems very ME centered. And, if you’ve read any of my other Hymn postings, then you know that is one of the things I’ve complained about lot, referring that is to the seemingly overwhelming ME orientation of many of our modern worship songs. But, look deeper at this one, and you will see a difference. It’s clear the author (no comment on his strange name…PP Bliss. Pee Pee Bliss. Sounds like the relief you get when you have to go pee pee really, really bad and you finally find a toilet – I digress) – seems like the author thought long and hard about each “item” of prayer in this hymn. Look at each one individually, and ask about it concerning your life.
The prayer is for the character of Christ, and it includes a willingness to suffer. This part was particularly important for me, because I tend to avoid suffering at all costs, and I even plan around it. By suffering we have to include the obvious and the not so obvious. Can sitting in traffic be suffering? Yes, especially if it evokes certain emotions in you, similar to those evoked by someone in a prison cell. I’m not justifying the emotion you and I have while sitting in traffic, but I am saying, if we respond to it as to suffering, we can take a different attitude. Anyway, that’s not the point. The point is I like this hymn enough to put it up here. Hope you like it too.
Posted on February 25, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
The Fight Is On
C.H. Morris
The fight is on, the trumpet sound is ringing
The cry to arms is heard afar and near.
The Lord of hosts is marching on to victory
The triumph of the Christ shall soon appear.
The fight is on, arouse ye soldiers brave and true.
Jehovah leads and victory will assure;
Go, buckle on the armor God has given you,
And in His strength unto the end endure.
The Lord is leading on to certain victory,
The bow of promise spans the eastern sky;
His glorious name in every land shall honored be;
The morn will break, the dawn of peace is nigh
The fight is on, O Christian soldier, and face to face in stern array,
With armor gleaming, and colors streaming, the right and wrong engage today!
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That last line (the chorus) is reeeeeeal nice. Sounds more like the theme song to the Ultimate Fighting Channel than the songs we sing in church today. How dare we mention right and wrong anymore, nevertheless sing about it in a song with the words “fight”, “armor”, and “cry to arms”. Don’t get me wrong. I am NOT advocating any sort of Christian jihad. That’s crazy. Neither am I talking about barricading ourselves in, ala “Waco Style” with uzi’s and grenades. I’m talking about fighting for people, and fighting for character, and fighting for doctrine, and fighting for morality, transparency, justice, and at times, when necessary, freedom. But its much easier to sit and sing songs in church that sound more like Stuart Smalley’s Daily Affirmations (I deserve good things. I am entitled to my share of happiness. I refuse to beat myself up. I am attractive person. I am fun to be with…because Jesus is always with me). I added that last part, but the rest is from Stuart.
I know I am a whiner. I just like these songs. If you’ve read, or heard about, many of the popular books (I won’t list any names) written for Christian men in the past decade, you know that while some are a bit over the top (at least for me) the central message is true. Men need a fight in life to be happy. And they will search for it, even if it means finding a battle with the weeds in the garden. That’s why we are attracted in general to sports, war movies, and people beating the crap out of each other on TV. So, maybe the feminized Jesus in so many of our churches is one reason why guys are reluctant to show up, and women (single and married sometimes dragging kids with them alone) outnumber men in church. And, I hate to admit it…but 10,000 years of history back me up on this…to keep a society moving and functioning, you need…….drum roll please…………women. You thought I was going to say men. Nope. You need men to win battles, and start revolutions, and protect the women and children. You need women to keep things sane. You need men to keep things safe. You need women to keep things right. You need men to make things right. If the church does not attract strong men, it will die. Why, because women are weak. Come on, we all know that’s not true. It’s because what is needed to keep the church alive is fighting. Not maintenance. The gospel is bloody work, and it’s not suited to women…at least not on any sort of long-term, historical basis. The church needs women desperately; let me restate that so that I stay out of trouble. But, at this point in history, the church needs men more “desperatelyer”, ie, really bad.
Maybe if we gave any inclination that church life, and the Christian life, was a war, more men would start snooping around. It would be nice to invite a guy friend to church by saying, “hey, wanna go talk about fighting, war strategy, and defending our familys, nation, and soul with the truth?” Yeah, that would be nice. But, only so long as when he gets to church it’s not a mix of Oprah, Stuart Smalley, and Queer Eye for Straight Guy. I guess that’s a show…never seen it.
Posted on February 22, 2010 - by admin
Quote
“It’s not the hours you put in your work that counts, it’s the work you put in the hours.” – Sam Ewing
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Is this true or not? I think I can see it both ways. Hours put on a job do matter, but hours without effort produce waning results. Was Sam Ewing efficient, or lazy?
Posted on February 17, 2010 - by admin
Hymn
His Eye is on the Sparrow
Mrs. C.D. Martin and Chas H. Gabriel
Why should I feel discouraged, why should shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely and long for heaven and home,
When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He.
His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.
“Let not your heart be troubled” His tender word I hear,
And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears;
Tho by the path He leadeth but one step I may see,
His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.
Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise,
When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies,
I draw closer to Him, from care he sets me free,
His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.
I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free
For His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.
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For some reason I just cannot imagine that this song is not it’s best when it is being sung by a black gospel choir. Sorry, but I just don’t know if white folks like me could do this song justice. Maybe it because of the Whoopie Goldberg movie….ummm….Sister Act, you know the one where she works at an inner city church and teaches the kids to sing the old hymns and they become an amazing choir and then they make a sequel that really bombs? They actually did some really cool renditions of the of the hymns there, and I think most of the good ones are from Sister Act II. Now, you are probably thinking that I know a little TOO much about Sister Act. Maybe you are right. I promise I’ve only seen the movie like 1.5 times, but it’s just that I have some of the songs in my itunes account from a long time ago.
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