So teach us to number our days...

So teach us to number our days

    that we may get a heart of wisdom.

Return, O Lord! How long?

    Have pity on your servants!

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,

    that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,

    and for as many years as we have seen evil.

Let your work be shown to your servants,

    and your glorious power to their children.

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,

    and establish the work of our hands upon us;

    yes, establish the work of our hands!

 -Psalm 90:12-17

All to Honour Jesus

 

All to Honour Jesus 

CityAlight

V1

Father, may I serve like my Saviour

Give me eyes to see what you see

Teach my sinful heart to be humble

Help me be your hands and feet

V2

Father, may I love like my Saviour

As He had compassion on me

May I work for justice and mercy

For the ones in greatest need

CHORUS

God of love would you lead me

Take this heart, make it holy

Help me serve

through the strength of Christ

All to honour Jesus with my life

All to honour Jesus with my life

V3

Father, may I tell of my Saviour

How He offers hope for the lost

Help me share the grace and forgiveness

That he showed me at the cross

CHORUS

God of love would you lead me

Take this heart, make it holy

Help me serve

through the strength of Christ

All to honour Jesus with my life

All to honour Jesus with my life

BRIDGE

Praise my Saviour for His mercy

Praise the Servant King

All to Jesus be the glory

All to honour Him

Praise my Saviour for His mercy

Praise the Servant King

All to Jesus be the glory

All to honour Him

All to honour Him

CHORUS

God of love would you lead me

Take this heart, make it holy

Help me serve

through the strength of Christ

All to honour Jesus with my life

All to honour Jesus with my life

“He has done all things well..."

And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” -Mark 7:37

Let us remember it, as we look back over the past days of our lives, from the hour of our conversion. “Our Lord has done all things well!” In the first bringing us out of darkness into His marvelous light,—in humbling us and teaching us our weakness, guilt, and folly,—in stripping us of our idols, and choosing all our portions,—in placing us where we are, and giving us what we have—how well everything has been done! How great the mercy—that we have not had our own way!  -J.C. Ryle

But my kindness shall not depart from thee...

For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. -Isaiah 54:1

That your love may abound more and more...

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. -Philippians 1:9-11

Since then we have a great high priest...

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. 

-Hebrews 4:14-16 Image

Our Lord Jesus Christ, the word of God, of his boundless love, became what we are that he might make us what he himself is.  -Irenaeus

Where shall I go from your Spirit?

Where shall I go from your Spirit?

    Or where shall I flee from your presence?

If I ascend to heaven, you are there!

    If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!

If I take the wings of the morning

    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

even there your hand shall lead me,

    and your right hand shall hold me.

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,

    and the light about me be night,”

even the darkness is not dark to you;

    the night is bright as the day,

    for darkness is as light with you.

 -Psalm 139:7-12

If God is present at every point in space, if we cannot go where He is not, cannot even conceive of a place where He is not, why then has not that Presence become the one universally celebrated fact of the world? ... Men do not know that God is here. What a difference it would make if they knew. -A.W. Tozer

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell...

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. -Colossians 1:19-20 Image

The love, therefore, wherewith God loveth, is incomprehensible and immutable. For it was not from the time that we were reconciled unto Him by the blood of His Son that He began to love us; but He did so before the foundation of the world, that we also might be His sons along with His Only-begotten, before as yet we had any existence of our own.  -Augustine

You Will Make All Things New

 

You Will Make All Things New

 New Sovereign Grace Music 

VERSE 1

We can feel it in the suffering everywhere

Are we hopeless, are we broken, past repair? 

VERSE 2

Are you with us? Have You left us in the dark? 

Can you hear us? Do our cries still move Your heart?

CHORUS

Jesus, you will make all things new 

Jesus, you will make all things new 

VERSE 3

You will heal us, You will mend what death has torn 

Life will spring up, joy will bloom instead of thorns 

BRIDGE

The blind will finally see, the lame will run and leap 

The dead will rise and breathe for You have conquered

And every tear that fell will cry out “it is well”

The dark will be dispelled for You have conquered 

The Lamb for sinners slain is coming soon to reign

Our hope is not in vain for You have conquered 

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 need to confess to God our sin of neglecting His Holy Word. We have time enough—we take time—to read the writings of fellow-sinners, yet we have little or no time for the Holy Scriptures. The Bible is a series of Divine love letters, and yet many of God’s people have scarcely broken the seals.  -A.W. Pink

The voice of the Father will be heard...

The voice of the Father will be heard as He sets before us a widely opened door and receives us into blessed fellowship with Himself. When we pray for the Spirit's help, it will no longer be in the fear that prayer is too great an effort for us. Instead, we will simply fall down at the Lord's feet in our weakness. There we will find the victory and power that comes from His love. -Andrew Murray Image

Glory in His holy name!

Glory in his holy name;

    let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

Seek the Lord and his strength;

seek his presence continually!

-Psalm 105:3-4

O Lord our God, grant us grace to desire Thee with our whole heart; that, so desiring, we may seek, and seeking find Thee; and so finding Thee may love Thee; and loving Thee, may hate those sins from which Thou hast redeemed us.   -Anselm

With rev'rence let the saints appear...

With rev'rence let the saints appear,

And bow before the Lord;

His high commands with rev'rence hear,

And tremble at his word.

 

How terrible thy glories be!

How bright thine armies shine!

Where is the power that vies with thee,

Or truth compared to thine?

 

Thy words the raging winds control,

And rule the boist'rous deep;

Thou mak'st the sleeping billows roll,

The rolling billows sleep.

 

Justice and judgment are thy throne,

Yet wondrous is thy grace;

While truth and mercy, joined in one,

Invite us near thy face.

-Isaac Watts

"Because I go to the Father..."

“It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”  -John 16:7–11

"It was the whole Trinity, which at the beginning of creation said, "Let us make man". It was the whole Trinity again, which at the beginning of the Gospel seemed to say, "Let us save man"." -JC Ryle Image

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord...

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;

    let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

    let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

For the Lord is a great God,

    and a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth;

    the heights of the mountains are his also.

The sea is his, for he made it,

    and his hands formed the dry land.

   Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

    let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!

For he is our God,

    and we are the people of his pasture,

    and the sheep of his hand.

          -Psalm 95:1-7

Jesus, Our Judge and Our Savior

Jesus, Our Judge and Our Savior 

 Sovereign Grace Music

Call now, O sinner, on your coming Judge

To be here even now as your Savior

Fall now, O sinner, on the mercy and grace

Of Jesus, our Judge and our Savior

Who is He we shall meet at the end of life’s road

The One who will judge every heart, every soul

Who is He who will one day sift the tares from the wheat?

Jesus, our Judge and our Savior

Call now, O sinner, on your coming Judge

To be here even now as your Savior

Fall now, O sinner, on the mercy and grace

Of Jesus, our Judge and our Savior

Who is He who will end all the sin and the pain?

The One who was dead yet who rose up again?

Who is He heaven praises as the Lamb who was slain?

Jesus, our Judge and our Savior

Call now, O sinner, on your coming Judge

To be here even now as your Savior

Fall now, O sinner, on the mercy and grace

Of Jesus, our Judge and our Savior

For the Lord will come down and the trumpet will sound

At the mighty command of the Lord

And the saints will arise, meet the Lord in the skies

To be joyful in Jesus forever

Call now, O sinner, on your coming Judge

To be here even now as your Savior

Fall now, O sinner, on the mercy and grace

Of Jesus, our Judge and our Savior

I will bless the Lord at all times...

I will bless the Lord at all times;

    his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

My soul makes its boast in the Lord;

    let the humble hear and be glad.

Oh, magnify the Lord with me,

    and let us exalt his name together!

I sought the Lord, and he answered me

    and delivered me from all my fears.

Those who look to him are radiant,

    and their faces shall never be ashamed.

This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him

    and saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the Lord encamps

    around those who fear him, and delivers them.

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!

    Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

       -Psalm 34:1-8 Image

Oh, the breadth of the love of Christ!

Do you think, Christian, that you can measure the love of Christ? Think of what His love has brought you-justification, adoption, sanctification, eternal life! The riches of His goodness are unsearchable! Oh, the breadth of the love of Christ! Shall such a love as this have half our hearts? Shall Jesus' marvelous loving-kindness and tender care meet with but faint response and tardy acknowledgment? O my soul, tune your heart to a glad song of thanksgiving! Go through the day rejoicing, for you are no desolate wanderer, but a beloved child, watched over, cared for, supplied, and defended by your Lord. -Charles H. Spurgeon Image

“You are the light of the world..."

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. -Matthew 5:14-16 Image

Remember, a small light will do a great deal when it is in a very dark place. You put one little tallow candle in the middle of a large hall, and it will give a good deal of light. -Dwight L. Moody

But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy...

"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..." -1 Peter 3:15

The task of the people of God is to proclaim the kingdom of God, which is a universal kingdom extending to every aspect of human life. In a secular society, religion cannot remain a department of life. It must be the expression of a faith that extends over the whole of life, or it will be nothing.   

-John Lawrence

The Spirit himself bears witness...

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. -Romans 8:16-18

The Lord afflicts us at times; but it is always a thousand times less than we deserve, and much less than many of our fellow-creatures are suffering around us. Let us therefore pray for grace to be humble, thankful, and patient.  -John Newton

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you...

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;

    my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

    as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,

    beholding your power and glory.

Because your steadfast love is better than life,

    my lips will praise you.

So I will bless you as long as I live;

    in your name I will lift up my hands.

   -Psalm 63:1-4

Christ Our Wisdom

 

Christ Our Wisdom 

Sovereign Grace Music

Christ our wisdom, we are humbled

When You hide Your ways from us

You have purposes unnumbered

Each one good and glorious 

Help us trust when we grow weary 

Free us from our anxious thoughts 

Give us grace to see more clearly  

You are God and we are not    

Christ our wisdom, be our gladness

When we fail to understand

You ordain all joy and sadness

To fulfill Your perfect plan

Help us know You rule with power

Over every raging flood

In our most uncertain hour 

You are God and we are loved

 

Christ our wisdom, we will follow

Though the way ahead is veiled

As we journey through the shadows 

Grant us faith where sight has failed 

Help us cling to Your commandments 

Strengthened by Your faithful Word 

We will never be abandoned 

You are God and we are Yours  

Christ our wisdom we adore You

For the beauty of the cross

Once in foolishness we scorned You

But Your blood has ransomed us

Help us sing the endless mercies

Of Your humble heart to save 

Christ our wisdom, Christ our glory

You are God forever praised

Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

Why do the nations rage

    and the peoples plot in vain?

  The kings of the earth set themselves,

      and the rulers take counsel together,

      against the Lord and against his Anointed, saying,

  “Let us burst their bonds apart

     and cast away their cords from us.”

  He who sits in the heavens laughs;

      the Lord holds them in derision.

  Then he will speak to them in his wrath,

      and terrify them in his fury, saying,

  “As for me, I have set my King

      on Zion, my holy hill.”

  I will tell of the decree:

    The Lord said to me, “You are my Son;

     today I have begotten you.

  Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,

       and the ends of the earth your possession.

  You shall break them with a rod of iron

      and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.”

  Now therefore, O kings, be wise;

       be warned, O rulers of the earth.

  Serve the Lord with fear,

       and rejoice with trembling.

  Kiss the Son,

       lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,

       for his wrath is quickly kindled.

Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

 -Psalm 2

When you walk through fire you shall not be burned...

But now thus says the Lord,

He who created you, O Jacob,

He who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

    I have called you by name, you are mine.

  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

    and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,

    and the flame shall not consume you.

     -Isaiah 43:1-2

As sure as ever God puts his children in the furnace, He will be in the furnace with them. -CH Spurgeon 

Blessings in disguise...

For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. -Hebrews 12:11

Good when He gives, supremely good;

Nor less when He denies:

Afflictions, from His sovereign hand,

Are blessings in disguise.

   -Brother Lawrence Image

He made you for an end...

"There is not a spider hanging on the king's wall but hath its errand; there is not a nettle that groweth in the corner of the churchyard but hath its purpose; there is not a single insect fluttering in the breeze but accomplisheth some Divine decree; and I will never have it that God created any man, especially any Christian man, to be a blank, and to be a nothing. He made you for an end. Find out what that end is; find out your niche and fill it. If it be ever so little, if it is only to be a hewer of wood and a drawer of water, do something in the great battle for God and truth." -C.H. Spurgeon

Charity is a paradox, like modesty and courage...

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. -Luke 6:32-35

Charity is a paradox, like modesty and courage. Stated baldly, charity certainly means one of two things—pardoning unpardonable acts, or loving unlovable people.  

-GK Chesterton

Faith is required of thee, and a sincere life...

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. -Ephesians 2:8-10

Faith is required of thee, and a sincere life, not loftiness of intellect, nor deepness in the mysteries of God. If thou understandest not... the things which are beneath thee, how shalt thou comprehend those which are above thee? Submit thyself unto God, and humble thy sense to faith, and the light of knowledge shall be given thee, as shall be profitable and necessary unto thee. -Thomas à Kempis

O Blessed Assurance...

 

Blessed Assurance 

CityAlight

All my attempts to be satisfied

Were vain and empty

Until the moment you rescued me

And your love filled me

My soul sings

Now my soul sings

What blessed assurance

I’ve found in you

I’ve found in you

I won’t be shaken I will not be moved

How steadfast your strong hand

Is keeping me

Is keeping me

I won’t be shaken I will not be moved

Oh blessed assurance

No other love that I’ve ever known

Compares to you God

No other love that I’ve ever found

Has done what you’ve done

Ever my anchor

Ever my strength

Ever my portion

And all I need

Ever my healing

Ever my hope

Ever the truth that leads me home

That leads me home

Fire is the chosen symbol of Heaven for moral passion...

Fire is the chosen symbol of Heaven for moral passion. It is emotion aflame. God is love; God is fire. The two are one. The Holy Spirit baptises in fire. Spirit-filled souls are ablaze for God. They love with a love that glows. They believe with a faith that kindles. They serve with a devotion that consumes. They hate sin with a fierceness that burns. They rejoice with a joy that radiates. Love is perfected in the Fire of God. 

-Samuel Chadwick

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

If the spiritual life be healthy, under the full power of the Holy Spirit, praying without ceasing will be natural.  -Andrew Murray

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God...

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.

 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,

    and cry to her

that her warfare is ended,

    that her iniquity is pardoned,

that she has received from the Lord's hand

    double for all her sins.

-Isaiah 40:1-2

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

O for a closer walk with God,

A calm and heavenly frame,

A light to shine upon the road

That leads me to the Lamb!

So shall my walk be close with God,

Calm and serene my frame;

So purer light shall mark the road

That leads me to the Lamb.

    -William Cowper Image

God is love...

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 

-1 John 4:15-16

A Christian should always remember that the value of his good works is not based on their number and excellence, but on the love of God which prompts him to do these things.  

-St. John of the Cross

I have set the Lord always before me...

I have set the Lord always before me;

    because he is at my right hand, 

I shall not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad, 

and my whole being rejoices;

    my flesh also dwells secure.

For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,

    or let your holy one see corruption.

You make known to me the path of life;

    in your presence there is fullness of joy;

    at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

 -Psalm 16:8-11

It is not necessary to maintain a conversation when we are in the presence of God. We can come into His presence and rest our weary souls in quiet contemplation of Him. Our groanings, which cannot be uttered, rise to Him and tell Him better than words how dependent we are upon Him.  -O. Hallesby Image

“If anyone would come after me..."

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. -Matthew `16:24-25

“The astonishing paradox of Christ's teaching and of Christian experience is this: if we lose ourselves in following Christ, we actually find ourselves. True self-denial is self-discovery. To live for ourselves is insanity and suicide; to live for God and for man is wisdom and life indeed. We do not begin to find ourselves until we have become willing to lose ourselves in the service of Christ and of our fellows.”  -John Stott

Do not be conformed to this world...

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. -Romans 12:1-2

God desires and is pleased to communicate with us through the avenues of our minds, our wills, and our emotions. The continuous and unembarrassed interchange of love and thought between God and the souls of the redeemed men and women is the throbbing heart of the New Testament.  

-A.W. Tozer

He Will Keep You...

 

He Will Keep You (Psalm 121)

Sovereign Grace Music 

VERSE 1

I lift my eyes and see, 

I need not be afraid

All my help comes from the Lord

Who the earth and sky has made

CHORUS

He will keep you from all evils, 

behind you and before

He will sustain you, 

through this journey

From now and evermore

VERSE 2

The Lord will never sleep

My steps He has ordained

For the One who holds the night

Is the Sovereign of my days

In this is love...

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. -1 John 4:10

It is not that we keep His commandments first, and that then He loves; but that He loves us, and then we keep His commandments. This is that grace, which is revealed to the humble, but hidden from the proud.  -Augustine Image

A life devoted unto God...

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.  -2 Corinthians 1:3-5 Image

A life devoted unto God, looking wholly unto Him in all our actions, and doing all things suitably to His glory, is so far from being dull, and uncomfortable, that it creates new comforts in everything that we do.  -William Law

But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith...

But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.   -Jude 20-21

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

“My grace is sufficient for you..."

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  -2 Corinthians 12:9

Workers, here is your first lesson: learn to be nothing, learn to be helpless. The man who has got something is not absolutely dependent; but the man who has got nothing is absolutely dependent. Absolute dependence upon God is the secret of all power in work. The branch has nothing but what it gets from the vine, and you and I can have nothing but what we get from Jesus.  -Andrew Murray

If we are going to be used by God...

For thus says the One who is high and lifted up,

    who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:

“I dwell in the high and holy place,

    and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,

to revive the spirit of the lowly,

    and to revive the heart of the contrite.

  -Isaiah 57:15

A great many think because they have been filled once, they are going to be full for all time after; but O, my friends, we are leaky vessels, and have to be kept right under the fountain all the time in order to keep full. If we are going to be used by God we have to be very humble. A man that lives close to God will be the humblest of men. I heard a man say that God always chooses the vessel that is close at hand. Let us keep near Him.   -Dwight Lyman Moody

Cast your burden on the Lord...

Cast your burden on the Lord,

    and he will sustain you;

He will never permit

    the righteous to be moved.

-Psalm 55:22

Give me a stout heart to bear my own burdens. Give me a willing heart to bear the burdens of others. Give me a believing heart to cast all burdens upon Thee, O Lord. -John Baillie