TIS MIDNIGHT AND ON OLIVE'S BROW

        I must admit that while growing up this was not one of my favorite Easter hymns.  I guess that might have been the result of a combination of the unusual prose and the somewhat haunting melody.  It may have also been because when I was younger I never really thought about the intensity of the pain and anguish which Christ bore as He approached the time of his suffering and death on the cross.  He knew what was ahead and as He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane He realized His arrest and crucifixion were just hours away.  And in His suffering He prayed alone and wrestled with His fears.  And while He struggled, the inner circle of His disciples slept nearby.  And for the sake of us, the guilty, the Savior wept and His sweat became as drops of blood. He must have been in horrendous agony. Now I must admit that I don't fully understand the fourth verse. The verse seems to allude to that part of the garden experience where "an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him" (Luke. 22:43). It is a heartening thought to think that an angel was sent to comfort the suffering Son.  The hymn's author, William B. Tappen (1794-1849) was a clock maker by trade.  In 1822 he was engaged as Superintendent of the American Sunday School Union, which later was named the American Missionary Fellowship and recently renamed InFaith.  In 1822 he was a 28-year old poet/educator/Christian believer, who evidently was touched, maybe during a sleepless night of his own, by his Lord's night of torment in Gethsemane.  And as a result the words of this hymn were penned and released in his second volume of poetry.  In 1853 musician William B. Bradbury put the poem to music and it has been part of the Easter season since then.  During your celebration this week of the Easter season, don't forget the events that lead up to the crucifixion, especially the time spent by Jesus in the Garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives.  This was part of the suffering that He went through for each of us.  We deserved to pay this price, but He bore it for us.  And understanding and remembering this should make Resurrection Day even that much more meaningful.   That is my desire for each of us this week.  Thank you Jesus for taking our place and making our salvation and our future with you possible.

'Tis midnight, and on Olive's brow

The star is dimmed that lately shone;

'Tis midnight, in the garden now

The suffering Savior prays alone.

'Tis midnight, and from all removed

Emmanuel wrestles lone with fears

E'en the disciple whom He loved

Heeds not his Master's grief and tears.

'Tis midnight, and for others' guilt

The Man of Sorrows weeps in blood;

Yet He who hath in anguish knelt

Is not forsaken by His God.

'Tis midnight, and from ether plains

Is borne the song that angels know;

Unheard by mortals are the strains

That sweetly soothe the Savior's woe.

Here are two choices for you to listen to.   LISTEN 1

The second is an interesting one done by what I believe is a Chinese choir.  I apologize if I have identified the incorrect nationality.  LISTEN 2

ON JORDAN'S STORMY BANKS (I AM BOUND FOR THE PROMISED LAND)

          If you've ever taken children on a trip you probably remember their continual questions, "How much longer?", "Are we soon there?".  Today most cars have a GPS which answers those questions for you.  But when we are bound for a special destination we are generally all filled with anticipation and excitement, especially as we get closer.  I remember when I was a child how we traveled each Christmas Eve to Bethlehem to celebrate with my grandparents and other relatives.  On that trip we always watched to see the PPL building in Allentown with its lighted upper floors.  My parents said look for the building. When we finally saw it we knew we were getting close.  Today all children of God are also on a trip to a beautiful destination.   At times it can be a rough journey with many challenges.  But we are comforted knowing that we are bound for a promised land.  We don't know how long it will be until we finally reach that final destination.  For some of us it may be soon.  For others it could be many years.  But while we journey closer the Bible has revealed much about that promised land to us and we know it will be a perfect place where we will be with Jesus, forever.  In this week's hymn choice the focus is on heaven, the land to which we are bound. The singer stands on the banks of the Jordan River looking across to the "fair and happy land" of Canaan, a metaphoric mixture of images from the books of Exodus and Revelation. Our true "possessions" lie in Canaan (Heaven) and not on the earthly side of Jordan. In stanza two we find that Canaan is a land of "wide extended plains" where "the eternal day" is always shining. In this land Jesus ("God the Son") reigns. Stanza three tells us that Canaan is a spiritually healthful place to live: "No chilling winds or poisonous breath can reach that healthful shore." Therefore, "sickness and sorrow, pain and death" do not exist in Canaan. In the final stanza, the singer obviously cannot wait to get there. Upon arrival in the Promised Land, we will "see [our] Father's face, and in his bosom rest." The refrain gives the hymn a sense of marching forward to eternal life. Samuel Stennett (1727-1795), an English Baptist, came from a long line of ministers.  His song originally had the title of "The Promised Land" and had eight four-line stanzas.  Originally written in a minor mode, Rigdon M. McIntosh, a Southern musician, altered the tune to the major mode, and, as was customary among American evangelicals in the 19th century, he added a refrain beginning with "I am bound for the promised land." This version was published in 1895 in H. R. Christie's Gospel Light and has become the standard version for many hymnals since that time.   As we get bogged down with the challenges of everyday living it often becomes easy to forget that we are just pilgrims here and that we, as God's children, are actually bound for a promised land.  Remembering that truth and following the Lord's leading will help you endure the disappointments that often come our way.   What a joy to remember that at the end of the journey we will see our Father's face.  Be encouraged and comforted by that truth this week.

(1)     On Jordan's stormy banks I stand,

And cast a wishful eye

To Canaan's fair and happy land,

Where my possessions lie.

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land;

Oh who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

(2)      All o'er all those wide extended plains

Shines one eternal day;

There God the Son forever reigns,

And scatters night away.

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land;

Oh who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

(3)     No chilling winds or poisonous breath

Can reach that healthful shore;

Sickness and sorrow, pain and death,

Are felt and feared no more.

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land;

Oh who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

(4)      When I shall reach that happy place,

I'll be forever blest,

For I shall see my Father's face,

And in His bosom rest.

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land;

Oh who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

This week's video is a little different than most that I've shared in my blogs because it's this week's hymn at the funeral of W.A. Criswell, former president of the Southern Baptist Convention and the former pastor of this church.       LISTEN

OH WHEN I COME TO THE END OF MY JOURNEY

         It is interesting how unexpected events can bring back to one's memory a song or a hymn that one hasn't heard for years.  This was the case for me recently when the GPS on our new car frequently used the phrase "turn at the end of the road" to give us directions when we approached a T in the roads.  After hearing this numerous times my mind began to recall the old Gospel song in which the first line of the chorus says "Oh when I come to the end of my journey."  The words to this song were penned by Lucie Eddie Campbell (1885-1963), an African American composer of hymns.  She was the youngest of nine children. Her mother, a widow, not only wanted her children to receive an education, but she also wanted them exposed to the performing arts.  She elected to give piano lessons to Lora, Lucie's older sister. While piano lessons were being given to Lora, Lucie listened attentively and practiced the lessons on her own. At the age of nineteen, Lucie organized a group of musicians into a Music Club. Other members later were added to form a thousand-voice choir that performed at the National Baptist Convention. She was also an activist for civil justice. She defied the Jim Crow streetcar laws when she refused to relinquish her seat in the section reserved for whites, and as president of the Negro Education Association she struggled with governmental officials to redress the inequities in the pay scale and other benefits for Negro teachers.  The National Sunday School and the Baptist Training Union Congress of the National Baptist Convention showed its appreciation to its "first lady of music" when it declared June 20, 1962, as Lucie E. Campbell Appreciation Day. While preparing to attend the celebration and banquet held in her honor, she suddenly became gravely ill and was rushed to hospital.  After a six-months' bout with illness, she died on January 3, 1963, in Nashville.  I could not find anything about the actual writing of this song but I can imagine that it may have been written as a result of her life experiences.   She knew that life can be challenging and at times discouraging.  And often our attempts to share the Gospel will be rejected.  But she reminds us of how our Savior was also misunderstood and was hung on the cross.  But the joy of the song is that there is a time coming when our labor will be ended and we will be rewarded for our service.   There will be a day when the One who understands our journey will say the words "Well done".  The last verse is also an encouragement to keep going no matter what the circumstances.  And Paul also echoed that challenge in Galatians 6:9, "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."  Are you weary and tired today in the journey?  Do you feel that you have failed and that you've given the best but have come up short?  Then be encouraged, He understands and one day will say "well done".

(1)     If when you give the best of your service

Telling the world that the Saviour has come

Be not dismayed when men don't believe you

He'll understand and say well done 

Oh when I come to the end of my journey

Weary of life and the battle is won 

Carrying the staff and the cross of redemption 

He'll understand and say well done

(2)     Misunderstood the Saviour of sinners

Hung on the cross He was God's only son

Oh, hear Him calling His Father in Heaven

Lord, not my will, but Thine be done.

Oh when I come to the end of my journey

Weary of life and the battle is won 

Carrying the staff and the cross of redemption 

He'll understand and say well done

(3)     Oh when this life of labor is ended

And the reward of the race you have run

Oh the sweet rest that's prepared for the faithful

Will be his blest and final "Well done"

Oh when I come to the end of my journey

Weary of life and the battle is won 

Carrying the staff and the cross of redemption 

He'll understand and say well done

(4)     If when you've tried and failed in your trying, 

hands sore and scarred from the work you've begun 

Take up your cross and come quickly to Jesus,

He'll understand and say well done

Oh when I come to the end of my journey

Weary of life and the battle is won 

Carrying the staff and the cross of redemption 

He'll understand and say well done

Listen to it here.    LISTEN

EACH STEP I TAKE

           Recently I stepped out of my car and suddenly in that one step I did something to my back and leg which not only was extremely painful but resulted in a multitude of doctor visits and tests.  A few days later my wife just turned to take a step and pulled something in her hip which caused her problems walking.  A Lancaster pedestrian took a few steps to cross a street and was suddenly hit by a hit and run driver and he eventually died from his injuries.  It is amazing how one little step can change our lives so suddenly.  And that is why we need to daily commit each step in our lives to the Lord.  Whether it actually is a physical step or a decision or another event, it is a comfort to know that our Savior not only knows and directs our steps. but He really does go before us and leads us. There will always be struggles and painful trials here on our journey through this life, but the Lord is with us and will lead us safely above. In 1953, at the age of 19, Elmo Mercer composed this week's choice, "Each Step I Take". It has been recorded by hundreds of artists in many languages, including Slim Whitman and George Beverly Shea.  It is loved and has been sung around the world for over 50 years. It was a favorite duet that my wife and I would enjoy singing because of the truth of its words. Mercer's formal musical training consisted of two years of piano lessons in the 4th-5th grades. At age 14 he wrote his first gospel song which was published by the John T. Benson company in Nashville, Tennessee. By the age of 19 he had a contract as a staff writer. At age 29 he became the music editor, a position he held for more than two decades. He also arranged music for the Gaithers for nearly a decade. Mercer has written more than 1,600 songs many of which have been recorded by many of the most famous names in commercial gospel music.  Now I don't know what led him to write these words, especially as a teenager, but I must assume that it probably was the result of personal experiences in which Mercer saw the Lord leading him step by step.   None of us know where our next step may lead us, but what a joy to walk with Him each day and experience the leading of His loving hand.  And no matter what may come our way, He has promised to be with us until our last step here on earth is taken.  Thank Him for that this week and experience the comfort, peace and joy that His leading can bring to your every step.

(1)     Each step I take my Savior goes before me,

And with His loving hand He leads the way.

And with each breath I whisper "I adore Thee,"

O, what joy to walk with Him each day.

Each step I take I know that He will guide me;

To higher ground He ever leads me on.

Until some day the last step will be taken,

Each step I take just leads me closer home.

(2)     At times I feel my faith begin to waver,

When up ahead I see a chasm wide.

It's then I turn and look up to my Savior;

I am strong when He is by my side.

Each step I take I know that He will guide me;

To higher ground He ever leads me on.

Until some day the last step will be taken,

Each step I take just leads me closer home.

(3)     I trust in God, no matter come what may,

For life eternal is in His hand.

He holds the key that opens up the way,

That will lead me to the promised land.

Each step I take I know that He will guide me;

To higher ground He ever leads me on.

Until some day the last step will be taken,

Each step I take just leads me closer home.

Listen to it here.   LISTEN

BREAK THOU THE BREAD OF LIFE

          Did you ever wonder what it would have been like to be part of the crowds who saw Jesus do miracles and heard him teach?  There are several events that I would have liked to have shared.  One of those is the miracle of feeding 5,000 with just five small barley loaves and two small fish (John 6: 1-14).  They saw Him break the bread and multiply the food.  Amazing! But can you imagine what it would have been like to spend the entire day listening to him?  Today we often get edgy when our pastor goes over 30 minutes on Sunday morning.  That night He walked on the water and the next day the crowds found Him again on the opposite side of the sea.  It was there that He called Himself the "bread of life" and the "living bread".  The context was probably obvious to His listeners who had seen His miracle the previous day.  Just as God had provided bread in the wilderness for Israel, so Jesus had provided food miraculously when it was needed and little could be found.  But He was talking about more than earthly bread which sustains our physical life.  He only is the One who will provide and sustain our spiritual life when we trust Him.  He alone can satisfy our spiritual hunger.  The hymn, "Break Thou the Bread of Life," came out of the Chautauqua Movement of the late 1800s. The Chautauqua Movement was founded in 1874 on the shores of Chautauqua Lake in New York State by a Methodist layman, Lewis Miller, and a Methodist pastor, John Vincent. Known originally as the Chautauqua Lake Sunday School Assembly, it was intended to be a summer training program for Sunday school teachers, but quickly expanded to include a wide variety of classes and entertainments, even Broadway plays, operas, and would you believe, movies.  Mary Lathbury (1841-1913), a commercial artist, enjoyed visiting Chautauqua during the summer. John Vincent asked her to write a hymn to be sung at the Chautauqua Bible studies.  Mary wrote it originally to honor Jesus as the "bread of life" and the "living Word" of God. It is a fitting accompaniment to Bible studies, because it prays that we will be able to move "beyond the sacred page", meaning the Bible, to the "living Word", Christ himself.  Verses 3 and 4 are credited to Alexander Groves, a grocer, an accountant as well as a trustee, auditor, and actuary for Henley Savings Bank. He also served as the organist for the Henley Wesleyan Chapel.  I am afraid today that many regular church goers no longer have a burning hunger for the Bread of Life.  Often they come to a Sunday service primarily to meet friends, to enjoy the music and the musicians, and to hear a brief devotional from a talented speaker.  And then they leave to take on the coming week's activities with no change in their spiritual life or no new passion for the Lord and the Word.  Oh may we have a passion to see Jesus and hear His truth revealed.  Maybe the words of this hymn should serve as our personal prayer as we worship Him.

(1)     Break Thou the bread of life, dear Lord, to me,

As Thou didst break the loaves beside the sea;

Beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord;

My spirit pants for Thee, O living Word!

(2)     Bless Thou the truth, dear Lord, to me, to me,

As Thou didst bless the bread by Galilee;

Then shall all bondage cease, all fetters fall;

And I shall find my peace, my all in all.

(3)     Thou art the bread of life, O Lord, to me,

Thy holy Word the truth that saveth me;

Give me to eat and live with Thee above;

Teach me to love Thy truth, for Thou art love.

(4)     O send Thy Spirit, Lord, now unto me,

That He may touch my eyes, and make me see:

Show me the truth concealed within Thy Word,

And in Thy Book revealed I see the Lord.

Listen to it here.   LISTEN