Welcome!  Hymns have been and continue to be a real source of inspiration to me.  My desire in this blog is to share special hymns with my readers hoping that the words will minister to them, especially in times of great personal need.  If one of these hymns ministers to you, please take time to leave a comment so that I know that my blog is helping others as much as it helps me. Sometimes I will also provide a link where you can go to hear the hymn played.  So, please join me here each week and sing along as we praise God together.

Sunday, March 26, 2017

KNEEL AT THE CROSS


          During my college and graduate studies at Susquehanna University and Bucknell University, I enjoyed singing with a male quartet, The Gospel Four, from an area church.  We did a live 15 minute radio program at 9 am every Sunday morning on WKOK AM in Sunbury, Pennsylvania.  We really weren't very good, but we had quite a following and the men faithfully sang each Sunday morning for several decades.  We sang a variety of gospel songs including some southern gospel music.  One of my favorite of these was "Kneel At The Cross", written by Charles Ernest Moody (1891-1977) in 1948.  Moody was a Georgia composer and musician who played the fiddle, banjo and harmonica.  He played with a secular string band, the Georgia Yellowhammers, and wrote numerous secular songs and about a hundred gospel songs.  Many of his songs, such as "Drifting Too Far from Shore", became standards of southern gospel music.  Now while I enjoyed singing this week's choice, I think Moody could have added more depth to his lyrics.  Some reviewers have been very hard on him for his "shallow theology" in this song.  But I do think there is enough truth included to share it in this blog.  It is true that Christ will meet the need of sinners because of his death on Calvary.  And as one yields to Him and accepts Him he will be forgiven and receive a new life - we are a new creation.  Then we can leave our cares and sins with Him because He cares for and takes care of His children whom He loved enough to die for.  We come to the Cross as hell-bound sinners who have offended a holy God. Then we "kneel" at the cross to confess our helplessness and seek cleansing and forgiveness from Him. That includes, but is much more than just "giving up our idols".  It is because of His death and resurrection that we receive eternal salvation when we acknowledge who He is, what He has done for us and our need for Him. And then we do "begin life anew".  I also wish that Moody had expanded on the lines "harm can ne'er befall those who are anchored there." Christians are faced with harm through persecution and the cares of life on this earth.  But when we walk with the Lord, He provides the strength and wisdom and courage to face these challenges in His power.  The scripture tells us that nothing can separate His children from our Father.  He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us. He was tempted like as we are, yet without sin. We are anchored in Him.  So the premise of this song is good - because of the Cross of Calvary, we can come to Christ and experience salvation, a new life, and His presence. He does wait for us and will meet us there.  Hopefully this has been your experience.  If you haven't come to Calvary and confessed Jesus as Lord and Savior, today is the day to do that. "Jesus will meet you there." Today is the day of salvation.  And if you've already done that, then join me this week in thanking the Lord for His grace, His mercy, His plan, His salvation and for meeting us when we "knelt" before Him at the Cross.


1      Kneel at the cross, 
Christ will meet you there,
Come while he waits for you;
List' to His voice,
Leave with Him your care,
And start your life anew.
Chorus:
Kneel at the cross,
Leave every care,
Kneel at the cross,
Jesus will meet you there.

2      Kneel at the cross,
There is room for all
Who would His glory share;
Bliss there awaits,
Harm can ne'er befall
Those who are anchored there.
Kneel at the cross,
Leave every care,
Kneel at the cross,
Jesus will meet you there.

3      Kneel at the cross,
Give your idols up,
Look unto realms above;
Turn not away
To life's sparkling cup,
Trust only in His love.
Kneel at the cross,
Leave every care,
Kneel at the cross,
Jesus will meet you there.

Here are some choices for you to listen to:
LISTEN 1    (Quartet)
LISTEN 2   (Trio)
LISTEN 3   (Country)

Sunday, March 19, 2017

JOY IN SERVING JESUS



        I recently read that 70% of workers don't like their jobs.  Another source said two out of three dislike what they are doing. One survey showed that only 13% actually enjoyed their work.  I guess I am surprised since I was blessed to enjoy my job for 39 years and I found it difficult when it was time to retire. However, I worked with many folks who did not enjoy their job and found no joy in what they were doing, except maybe for their paycheck.  I can't help but wonder what the percentages might be for Christian employees.  We are reminded in Colossians 3:23 that whatever we do should be done with our whole heart to please the Lord, not just others.   But there is another area of life that should bring joy for all believers and that is in our service for the Lord.  What a privilege we have to serve the Lord, the Creator of the Universe, our Savior.  He could have chosen other ways to share the amazing gospel - He could have written it in the clouds or had the wind ring out the good news or use another aspect of His creation - but He chose us, His children, to carry the message and minister for Him.  Now serving the Lord can carry challenges and is not always easy, but He is there to guide us and strengthen us and encourage us and walk with us.  He understands and has experienced challenges - "who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross" (Hebrews. 12:2).  What a joy it should be to serve Him.  Preacher, author, and missionary statesman, Dr. Oswald J. Smith was for many years the pastor of the People's Church, in Toronto.  He is the one who penned the words of this week's hymn.  In a sense it began as the personal testimony of Dr. Smith. He says, "In this hymn I express the joy that I have experienced in serving the Lord Jesus Christ." But that is a joy that every servant of God can share. The Apostle Paul desired to "finish [his] race [his life and served for Christ] with joy" (Acts 20:24) In spite of burdens and heartaches, in spite of challenges and difficulties, it should be our great delight to serve the King of kings. We are to "serve the Lord with gladness [joy, pleasure]" (Ps. 100:2)."  And Dr. Smith did serve the Lord with joy until he was taken home at the age of 97.  During the period of 1930 to 1958, he collaborated with B. D. Ackley in the writing of nearly a hundred gospel songs. It was a happy and productive pairing. And the very first song they created together was this one, Joy in Serving Jesus. When it was published, in 1931, Mr. Ackley predicted, in a letter to Pastor Smith, "I know it is a winner. A writer usually has a hunch when he writes something that he knows positively will go over." He was right. The song was enthusiastically embraced by the Christian community.  Ackley himself composed more than 3000 tunes. As the one who penned these words, Dr. Smith, found the secret that finding what Jesus would have you do lifts your own burdens and brings great joy.  He writes about that secret in the fourth verse.  He knew, too, that the joy that Jesus gives never fades.  The last line of the chorus says, "There is joy, joy, joy that never shall depart." Dr. Smith had a real experience.  He was not writing about doctrine he'd picked up somewhere.  "Joy that throbs within my heart" doesn't come from what he knew, it comes from what he lived.  Joy is not a product of looking at my circumstances. Joy is the product of my relationship with Jesus Christ. And that might be the reason for lack of joy today - focusing more time and energy upon our circumstances than upon our relationship. Are you experiencing joy in your relationship and walk with the Lord?  Do you rejoice in the fact that the Lord has chosen you to represent Him here on earth?  If that joy appears to be missing, meditate upon these words this week, and then pray,  "Lord, restore to me the joy of ministry; the joy of serving You. Restore to me the joy of sharing Your love and Your Word with others!"  And He will answer.

(1)     There is joy in serving Jesus
As I journey on my way
Joy that fills my heart with praises
Every hour and every day
Chorus:
There is joy, joy
Joy in serving Jesus 
Joy that throbs within my heart
Every moment, every hour
As I draw upon His power
There is joy, joy
Joy that never shall depart

(2)     There is joy in serving Jesus
Joy; that triumphs over pain
Fills my heart with heaven's music
Till I join the glad refrain
There is joy, joy
Joy in serving Jesus 
Joy that throbs within my heart
Every moment, every hour
As I draw upon His power
There is joy, joy
Joy that never shall depart

(3)     There is joy in serving Jesus
As I walk alone with God
'Tis the joy of Christ my Savior
Who the path of suffering trod
There is joy, joy
Joy in serving Jesus 
Joy that throbs within my heart
Every moment, every hour
As I draw upon His power
There is joy, joy
Joy that never shall depart

(4)     There is joy in serving Jesus
Joy amid the darkest night
For I've learned the wondrous secret
And I'm walking in the light
There is joy, joy
Joy in serving Jesus 
Joy that throbs within my heart
Every moment, every hour
As I draw upon His power
There is joy, joy
Joy that never shall depart

Listen to it here.   LISTEN

Sunday, March 12, 2017

WHEREVER HE LEADS I'LL GO


          I often ask myself what I might have done if I had been involved in one of the stories shared in the Bible.  For example, what would I have done if one day I was about my job of fishing and Jesus would have appeared and said "follow me".  Would I have gladly given up my occupation and possessions to follow this teacher?  It really must have taken faith to quickly do this.  But if you are a believer who has spent years on this earth you have probably also often faced this challenge to follow His leading, not always knowing where it will go.  And sometimes He not only opens doors but closes them as well.  And have we always been willing to accept and follow His leading?  After graduating from college and beginning a job teaching, my wife and I considered going to the Philippines to serve as missionary teachers there.  We went through preliminary steps but then I was unexpectedly diagnosed with a physical problem and that door was suddenly closed.  But instead the Lord opened another unexpected door and opportunity which we recognized as His leading and quickly followed.  This choice led to several unusual ministry opportunities over many decades.  Rev. R. S. Jones had a similar experience in 1936.  He had recently returned from missionary service in Brazil and was the speaker at an Alabama Sunday School Convention.  There he met an old friend, Baylus Benjamin McKinney, a musician and hymn writer, who was leading the music at the convention. As the two men visited and caught up over dinner, Mr. Jones revealed that his doctors would not allow him to return to South America due to his recent ill health.  After a lifetime of serving God in Brazil, imagine how difficult this must have been for the missionary. "What will you do?" McKinney asked his friend.  Jones answered, "I don't know, but wherever He leads I'll go."   McKinney was unable to get his friend's words out of his mind.  Before the convention session that evening, he had expanded his friend's words to write both the lyrics and melody to the hymn, "Wherever He Leads I'll Go."  After Mr. McKinney shared the previous conversation with the congregation, he then premiered his new hymn as he began to sing, "Take up thy cross and follow me.  I heard my Master say."  Rev. Jones retired from a life of service in 1958, after serving as treasurer to the Foreign Mission Board for the last decade of his life.  Mr. McKinney also lived out a life that followed the words of his famous hymn.  When the Great Depression sent his seminary into a financial crisis, Mr. McKinney became the assistant pastor at Travis Avenue Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas.  In 1952, he had just left a conference in NC and was headed for another engagement in TN. But on the way he was killed in a car accident.  He left behind a legacy that included 149 hymns and gospel songs. The opening words of this hymn contain one of Jesus' most penetrating challenges to His disciples - a challenge so significant that it is found in each of the four gospels.  Luke 9:23 states, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me."  Have you willingly done this?  Are you willing to follow Him wherever He leads?  If you are, you will never be disappointed or alone.


1   "Take up thy cross and follow Me,"
I heard my Master say;
"I gave My life to ransom thee,
Surrender your all today."
Refrain:
Wherever He leads I'll go,
Wherever He leads I'll go;
I'll follow my Christ who loves me so,
Wherever He leads I'll go.

2   He drew me closer to His side,
I sought His will to know,
And in that will I now abide,
Wherever He leads I'll go. 
Wherever He leads I'll go,
Wherever He leads I'll go;
I'll follow my Christ who loves me so,
Wherever He leads I'll go.

3   It may be through the shadows dim,
Or o'er the stormy sea,
I take my cross and follow Him,
Wherever He leadeth me.
Wherever He leads I'll go,
Wherever He leads I'll go;
I'll follow my Christ who loves me so,
Wherever He leads I'll go.

4   My heart, my life, my all I bring
To Christ who loves me so;
He is my Master, Lord, and King,
Wherever He leads I'll go. 
Wherever He leads I'll go,
Wherever He leads I'll go;
I'll follow my Christ who loves me so,
Wherever He leads I'll go.

Listen to it being sung here.   LISTEN

Sunday, March 5, 2017

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS (TH3)


 TIMELESS HYMN #3 - Another revised and repeated blog of one of the great hymns of the faith - GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS - October 19, 2008



        "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."  (Lamentations 3:22-23). This hymn is my favorite because I have found it so very true throughout my life.  God, my Father, has never failed me.  He has kept all of His promises.  He never changes even though things all around us change.  He has provided all that I need.  And there examples of His faithfulness all around us.  The four seasons, the universe and all of nature remind us of that.  But I love the truth of the blessings shared in the third verse - pardon for sin, a peace that endureth, His presence to cheer and to guide, strength for today and a blessed hope for tomorrow.  And there are so many other blessings beside.  We are so blest! The author of this great hymn, Thomas Chisholm, was born in 1866 in the state of Kentucky. While he wrote over 1200 hymns, the one we remember the most is this one.  Chisholm did not write it because something great and miraculous had taken place in his life. No, he wrote it because over his entire life he had learned to see the greatness of God.  At the age of 75, he wrote: "My income has not been large at any time due to impaired health in the earlier years which has followed me on until now. Although I must not fail to record here the unfailing faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God and that He has given me many wonderful displays of His providing care, for which I am filled with astonishing gratefulness."  The tune for this great hymn was composed by William M. Runyan (1870-1957). Popular gospel singer and songwriter Beverly Shea first introduced this hymn to audiences in Great Britain in the Billy Graham Crusades in 1954.  It has been a favorite of believers since then.  Hopefully if you are a believer this hymn is also your personal testimony.  Hopefully each day you experience His new mercies and His provision and you can proclaim - great is His faithfulness.  Thank you Lord!

(1) Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
Great is Thy faithfulness!  Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;  
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

(2)  Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love. 
Great is Thy faithfulness!  Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;  
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

(3) Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!     
Great is Thy faithfulness!  Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;  
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

You can hear it here now.   LISTEN