And if you call on him as Father...

And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.  -1 Peter 1:17-21 Image

Jesus Paid it All

 

Jesus Paid it All 

Hymns of Grace

1 I hear the Savior say,

"Thy strength indeed is small,

Child of weakness, watch and pray,

Find in Me thine all in all."

Refrain:

Jesus paid it all,

All to Him I owe;

Sin had left a crimson stain,

He washed it white as snow.

2 Lord, now indeed I find

Thy pow'r and Thine alone,

Can change the leper's spots

And melt the heart of stone. 

Refrain

3 For nothing good have I

Where-by Thy grace to claim;

I'll wash my garments white

In the blood of Calv'ry's Lamb. 

Refrain

4 And when, before the throne,

I stand in Him complete,

"Jesus died my soul to save,"

My lips shall still repeat.

 Refrain

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness...

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. -Romans 8:26-27

To strive in prayer means to struggle through those hindrances which would restrain or even prevent us entirely from continuing in persevering prayer. It means to be so watchful at all times that we can notice when we become slothful in prayer and [that we] go to the Spirit of prayer to have this remedied. In this struggle, too, the decisive factor is the Spirit of prayer.  

-O. Hallesby Image

"Yes” and “Amen” in Christ...

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. -2 Corinthians 1:20-22

If the anointing which we bear come not from the Lord of hosts we are deceivers, and since only in prayer can we obtain it, let us continue instant, constant, fervent in supplication... Think not to be a messenger of grace to others till you have seen the God of grace for yourselves, and had the word from his mouth.   -Charles Haddon Spurgeon Image

You guide me with your counsel...

You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

-Psalm 73:24-26

Prayer is the expression of a good desire. The human heart is full of restless desires, and the prayers of men consist for the most part of the unsifted petitions which are urged by their varying passions... To desire what is right, and to desire it consistently, and passionately, is the first condition of true living. The desires can be corrected only by truth, the mind must apprehend God, and then it will say, “There is none upon earth that I desire beside Thee.”   -James Hastings Image

That I may know him and the power of his resurrection...

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.  

-Philippians 3:8-11

Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is to know God, most of life’s problems fall into place of their own accord.   -James I. Packer

Heavenly Father, we ask you today to be with us and our country...

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. 1 Timothy 2:1-6

**********************************

    Heavenly Father, we ask you today to be with us and our country now as you have been since our first days as a nation. Help us to listen less to harsh rhetoric and more to the Holy Spirit. Help us to feel how Your Spirit will guide us, no matter the election’s outcome. We pray for peace, love and hope, in Your name. Amen.

    Christ, our King, we pray today that we can look beyond the current political landscape, in a moment when it seems like it’s the only thing everyone is talking about, and remember that we are builders of Your kingdom here on earth. Prince of Peace, help peace flourish amid division, and strengthen us to live generously and charitably in Your name. Amen.

    God, may Your Spirit unify us. May we recognize that we are all created in Your image, regardless of which political candidate we vote for. As we approach this election, open our eyes to recognize that people we may disagree with are still our brothers and sisters, Your children. In Jesus’s name we pray. Amen. Prayer here

For you were called to freedom...

For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14

Let a man set his heart only on doing the will of God and he is instantly free. No one can hinder him. If we understand our first and sole duty to consist of loving God supremely and loving everyone, even our enemies, for God’s dear sake, then we can enjoy spiritual tranquility under every circumstance.   -A.W. Tozer Image

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

 

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

For the word of God is living and active...

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. -Hebrews 4:12

We cannot attain to the understanding of Scripture either by study or by the intellect. Your first duty is to begin by prayer. Entreat the Lord to grant you, of His great mercy, the true understanding of His Word. There is no other interpreter of the Word of God than the Author of this Word, as He Himself has said, “They shall be all taught of God.” (John 6:45) Hope for nothing from your own labors, from your own understanding: trust solely in God, and in the influence of His Spirit. Believe this on the word of a man who has experience.   

-Martin Luther Image

Christ is the master; the Scriptures are only the servant.

-Martin Luther

You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart...

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.  -Jeremiah 29:11-13

Prayer is not a way of making use of God; prayer is a way of offering ourselves to God in order that He should be able to make use of us. It may be that one of our great faults in prayer is that we talk too much and listen too little. When prayer is at its highest we wait in silence for God’s voice to us; we linger in His presence for His peace and His power to flow over us and around us; we lean back in His everlasting arms and feel the serenity of perfect security in Him.  -William Barclay

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain..."

Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might

and honor and glory and blessing!”

-Revelation 5:11-12

Praise is the most heavenly of Christian duties. The angels pray not, but they cease not to praise both day and night; and the redeemed, clothed in white robes, with palm-branches in their hands, are never weary of singing the new song, “Worthy is the Lamb.”   -Charles Haddon Spurgeon Image

In the beginning was the Word...

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.  In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.  -John 1:1-5

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the Sun has risen, not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.  -C.S. Lewis Image

O Lord, you have searched me and known me!

O Lord, you have searched me and known me!

You know when I sit down and when I rise up;

you discern my thoughts from afar.

You search out my path and my lying down

and are acquainted with all my ways.

Even before a word is on my tongue,

behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.

-Psalm 139:1-4

We need never shout across the spaces to an absent God. He is nearer than our own soul, closer than our most secret thoughts.  -A.W. Tozer

“Enter by the narrow gate..."

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."  -Matthew 7:13-14

In an age when comfort and convenience are unspoken articles of our modern bill of rights, the Christian faith is not a license to entitlement, a prescription for an easy-going spirituality, or a how-to manual for self-improvement. The cross of Jesus runs crosswise to all our human ways of thinking. A rediscovery of the hard and the unpopular themes of the gospel will therefore be such a rediscovery of the whole gospel that the result may lead to reformation and revival.   -Os Guinness Image

Christ Is Mine Forevermore...

 

Christ Is Mine Forevermore 

CityAlight

Mine are days that God has numbered

I was made to walk with Him

Yet I look for worldly treasure

And forsake the King of kings

But mine is hope in my Redeemer

Though I fall, his love is sure

For Christ has paid for every failing 

I am his forevermore

Mine are tears in times of sorrow

Darkness not yet understood

Through the valley I must travel

Where I see no earthly good

But mine is peace that flows from heaven

And the strength in times of need

I know my pain will not be wasted

Christ completes his work in me

Mine are days here as a stranger

Pilgrim on a narrow way

One with Christ I will encounter

Harm and hatred for his name

But mine is armour for this battle

Strong enough to last the war

And he has said he will deliver

Safely to the golden shore

And mine are keys to Zion city

Where beside the King I walk

For there my heart has found its treasure

Christ is mine forevermore

Come rejoice now, O my soul

For his love is my reward

Fear is gone and hope is sure

Christ is mine forevermore

If we ever are to attain to true Divine Peace...

But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 

-Romans 6:17-18

If we ever are to attain to true Divine Peace, and be completely united to God, all that is not absolutely necessary, either bodily or spiritually, must be cast off; everything that could interpose itself to an unlawful extent between us and Him, and lead us astray: for He alone will be Lord in our hearts, and none other; for Divine Love can admit of no rival.  -Johannes Tauler Image

I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation...

I have told the glad news of deliverance

in the great congregation;

behold, I have not restrained my lips,

as you know, O Lord.

I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;

I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;

I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness

from the great congregation.

-Psalm 40:9-10

 

I look upon all the world as my parish; thus far I mean, that, in whatever part of it I am, I judge it meet, right, and my bounden duty, to declare unto all that are willing to hear, the glad tidings of salvation.  -John Wesley

For here we have no lasting city...

For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.  

-Hebrews 13:14-16 Image

The loving service which God sends His people into the world to render includes both evangelism and social action, for each is in itself an authentic expression of love, and neither needs the other to justify it.  -John Stott

“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word..."

Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. -John 14:23

It is out of the question to be one with Him in any other way than in the way of nature, and character, and life. Unless we are Christ-like in our thoughts and our ways, we are not one with Him, no matter how we feel.  -Hannah Whitall Smith

The Lord is good to those who wait for him...

The Lord is good to those who wait for him,

to the soul who seeks him.

It is good that one should wait quietly

for the salvation of the Lord.

-Lamentations 3:25-26

Do not be afraid of silence in your prayer time. It may be that you are meant to listen, not to speak. So wait before the Lord. Wait in stillness. Wait as David waited when he “sat before the Lord.” And in that stillness, assurance will come to you. You will know that you are heard; you will know that your Lord ponders the voice of your humble desires; you will hear quiet words spoken to you yourself, perhaps to your grateful surprise and refreshment.   -Amy Carmichael

" And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” -Matthew 11:4-6 Image

Thou didst call, and cry aloud, and break through my deafness. Thou didst blaze forth, and shine, and scatter my blindness. Thou wert fragrant, and I drew in my breath, and pant for Thee. I tasted, and now I hunger and thirst. Thou didst touch me, and I burned for Thy peace.  -Augustine

Trisagion: Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy Immortal One

 

 Trisagion

 Fernando Ortega 

 Holy God, 

Holy and mighty 

Holy Immortal One, 

Have mercy; 

Have mercy on us.

Understanding the Trisagion: Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy Immortal One 

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth..."

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

-Matthew 6:19-21

The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness. Or if he must see them go, one after one, he will scarcely feel a sense of loss.   -A.W. Tozer

Sing to God, sing praises to his name...

Sing to God, sing praises to his name;

lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts;

his name is the Lord;

exult before him!

-Psalm 68:4

Tune me, O Lord, into one harmony

With thee, one full responsive vibrant chord;

Unto thy praise all love and melody,

Tune me, O Lord.

-Christina Rossetti

But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray...

But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. 

-Luke 5:16

Prayer has everything to do with moulding the soul into the image of God, and has everything to do with enhancing and enlarging the measure of Divine grace. It has everything to do with enriching, broadening and maturing the soul’s experience of God. That man cannot possibly be called a Christian, who does not pray.  -E.M. Bounds Image

But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake...

But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil. -1 Peter 3:14-17

He has great tranquility of heart who cares neither for the praises nor the fault-finding of men. He will easily be content and pacified, whose conscience is pure. You are not holier if you are praised, nor the more worthless if you are found fault with. What you are, that you are; neither by word can you be made greater than what you are in the sight of God.  -Thomas à Kempis

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above...

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. -James 1:17

All of God’s acts are consistent with all of His attributes. No attribute contradicts the other, but all harmonize and blend into each other in the infinite abyss of the Godhead. All that God does agrees with all that God is, and being and doing are one in Him.  -A.W. Tozer

The Messiah came as a Servant...

And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  -Mark 10:42-45

The Servant Messiah carries out his ministry in the lives of his ministers. His life is reproduced in their lives, so they also are servants. But this ministry is exercised in and towards the Church, so as to enable the Church itself to carry out the ministry of the Servant. The Messiah came as a Servant; his ministers are servants; and the Church he created is a Servant-Church.   -Anthony T. Hanson

Our Father, hear our prayer...

 

 Our Father 

Don Moen

Hear our prayer

We are your children and

We've gathered here today

We've gathered here to pray

Hear our cry, Lord we need your mercy

And we need your grace today

Hear us as we pray

Our father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name'

Our father hear us from heaven

Forgive our sins we pray

Hear our song

As it rises to heaven

May your glory fills the air

As the waters cover the sea

See our heart

And remove anything

That is standing in the way

Of coming to you today

Our father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name'

Our father hear us from heaven

Forgive our sins we pray

And though we are few

We're surrounded by many

Who have crossed that river before

And this the song we'll be singing for ever

Holy is the lord

Repeat

Hear our prayer

We are your children and

We've gathered here today

We've gathered here to pray

Hear our cry, Lord we need your mercy

And we need your grace today

Hear us as we pray

Our father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name'

Our father hear us from heaven

Forgive our sins we pray

Those who believed were of one heart and soul...

Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 

-Acts 4:32-35 Image

Love—and the unity it attests to—is the mark Christ gave Christians to wear before the world. Only with this mark may the world know that Christians are indeed Christians and that Jesus was sent by the Father.  -Francis A. Schaeffer

Enlighten us, O God, by your Spirit...

Enlighten us, O God, by your Spirit, in the understanding of your Word, and grant us the grace to receive it in true fear and humility, that we may learn to put our trust in you, to fear and honor you, by glorifying your Holy Name in all our life, and to yield you the love and obedience which faithful servants owe to their master and children to their fathers, seeing it has led you to call us to the number of your servants and children. 

-John Calvin Image

Guard me, O Lord...

Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;

preserve me from violent men,

who plan evil things in their heart

and stir up wars continually.

They make their tongue sharp as a serpent's,

and under their lips is the venom of asps. Selah

Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;

preserve me from violent men,

who have planned to trip up my feet.

-Psalm 140:1-4

 

To relinquish any of the Psalms on the excuse that its sentiments are too violent for a Christian is a clear sign that a person has also given up the very battle that a Christian is summoned...to fight. The Psalms are prayers for those who are engaged in an ongoing spiritual conflict. No one else need bother even opening the book. -Patrick Henry Reardon

Such is our dependence upon God...

In the path of your judgments,

O Lord, we wait for you;

your name and remembrance

are the desire of our soul.

My soul yearns for you in the night;

my spirit within me earnestly seeks you.

For when your judgments are in the earth,

the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

-Isaiah 26:8-9

Such is our dependence upon God that we are obliged not only to do everything for His sake, but also to seek from Him the very power. This happy necessity of having recourse to Him in all our wants, instead of being grievous to us, should be our greatest consolation. What a happiness is it, that we are allowed to speak to Him with confidence, to open our hearts and hold familiar conversation with him by prayer! He Himself invites us to it.  -François Fénelon

Continue steadfastly in prayer...

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.  At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

   Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. -Colossians 4:2-6

Give me an open ear, O God, that I may hear Thy voice calling me to high endeavor.

Give me an open mind, O God, a mind ready to receive and to welcome such new light of knowledge as it is Thy will to reveal to me.

Give me open eyes, O God, eyes quick to discover Thine indwelling in the world which Thou hast made.

Give me open hands, O God, hands ready to share with all who are in want the blessings with which Thou hast enriched my life.   -John Baillie

You shall fear the Lord your God...

You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear. He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. -Deuteronomy 10:20-21

Let God’s distinguishing love to you be a motive to you to fear Him greatly. He hath put His fear in thy heart, and hath not given that blessing to thy neighbour; perhaps not to thy husband, thy wife, thy child, or thy parent. O what an obligation should this consideration lay upon thy heart greatly to fear the Lord! Remember also... that this fear of the Lord is His treasure, a choice jewel, given only to favourites, and to those that are greatly beloved.   -John Bunyan

Holy, Holy, Holy!

Holy, Holy, Holy!

Keith & Kristyn Getty

Verse 1

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!

Verse 2

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 evermore shalt be

Verse 3

Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee

Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see

Only Thou art holy, there is none beside Thee

Perfect in pow'r, in love and purity

Verse 4

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!

All Thy works shall praise Thy name, 

in earth and sky and sea

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!

Let love be genuine...

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. 

-Romans 12:9-13

Love—and the unity it attests to—is the mark Christ gave Christians to wear before the world. Only with this mark may the world know that Christians are indeed Christians and that Jesus was sent by the Father.   -Francis A. Schaeffer

And with his wounds we are healed...

Surely he has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

and with his wounds we are healed.

-Isaiah 53:4-5

God may thunder His commands from Mount Sinai and men may fear, yet remain at heart exactly as they were before. But let a man once see his God down in the arena as a Man, suffering, tempted, sweating, and agonized—finally dying a criminal’s death—and he is a hard man indeed who is untouched.  -J.B. Phillips

Blessed are those who dwell in your house...

How lovely is your dwelling place,

O Lord of hosts!

My soul longs, yes, faints

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and flesh sing for joy

to the living God.

Even the sparrow finds a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may lay her young,

at your altars, O Lord of hosts,

my King and my God.

Blessed are those who dwell in your house,

ever singing your praise! 

-Psalm 84:1-4

To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, [and] to devote the will to the purpose of God. 

-William Temple

But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise...

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” -1 Corinthians 1:26-31

The life of holiness is the life of faith in which the believer, with a deepening knowledge of his own sin and helplessness apart from Christ, increasingly casts himself upon the Lord, and seeks the power of the Spirit and the wisdom and comfort of the Bible to battle against the world, the flesh, and the devil.  

-Edmund P. Clowney

He is the radiance of the glory of God...

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. -Hebrews 1:1-4 Image

Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God...

Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us. -1 John 3:21-24

Accustom yourself then by degrees thus to worship Him, to beg His grace, to offer Him your heart from time to time, in the midst of your business, even every moment, if you can. Do not always scrupulously confine yourself to certain rules, or particular forms of devotion, but act with a general confidence in God, with love and humility.   -Brother Lawrence

I Will Sing of My Redeemer

 

I Will Sing of My Redeemer 

 Fernando Ortega

1. I will sing of my Redeemer,

And His wondrous love to me;

On the cruel cross He suffered,

From the curse to set me free.

 

Sing, oh, sing of my Redeemer,

With His blood He purchased me,

On the cross He sealed my pardon,

 Paid the debt, and made me free.

2. I will tell the wondrous story,

How my lost estate to save,

In His boundless love and mercy,

He the ransom freely gave.

3. I will praise my dear Redeemer,

His triumphant pow’r I’ll tell,

How the victory He giveth

Over sin, and death, and hell.

“Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”

And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?” -Matthew 8:23-27

Fear not the storm, it brings healing in its wings, and when Jesus is with you in the vessel, the tempest only hastens the ship to its desired haven.  -CH Spurgeon Image

As you come to him, a living stone...

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. -1 Peter 2:1-5

Wherever souls are being tried and ripened, in whatever commonplace and homely ways—there God is hewing out the pillars for his temple.   -Phillips Brooks Image