LOVE SHED ABROAD
Gracious God,
My heart praises thee for the wonder of thy love in Jesus;
He is heaven's darling, but is for me
the incarnate, despised, rejected,
crucified sin-bearer;
In him thy grace has almost out-graced itself,
In him thy love to rebels has reached its height;
O to love thee with a love like this!
My heart is stone, melt it with thy love,
My heart is locked, let thy love be the master key to open it;
O Father, I adore thee for they great love in the gift of Jesus,
O Jesus, I bless thee for resigning thy life for me,
O Holy Spirit, I thank thee for revealing to me this mystery;
Great God, let thy Son see in me the travail of his soul!
Bring me away from my false trusts to rest in him, and him only.
Let me not be so callous to his merit
as not to love him,
so indifferent to his blood
as not to desire cleansing.
Lord Jesus, Master, Redeemer, Saviour,
come and take entire possession of me;
this is thy right by purchase.
In the arms of love enfold and subdue my wilful spirit.
Take, sanctify, use my every faculty.
I am not shamed of my hope,
nor has my confidence led me into confusion.
I trusted in thee regarding my innumerable sins,
and thou hast cast them behind thy back.
I trusted in thee when evils encompassed me,
and thou broughtest me out into a wealthy place.
I trusted in thee in an hour of distress,
and thou didst not fail me, though faith trembled.
O God of the eternal choice,
O God of the restored possession purchased on the tree,
O God of the effectual call,
Father, Son, Holy Spirit,
I adore thy glory, honour, majesty, power, dominion for ever.
"O to love thee with a love like that!" I feel a song coming one...in fact, today I started thinking about composing songs based on these prayers. Could be an interesting project.
5 If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have betrayed the generation of your children. 16 But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, 17 until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.
Finally! Asaph begins to turn it around! He begins to ponder "this," by returning to "the sanctuary of God." In regard to materialism, Don Wyrtzen says this in A Musician Looks At the Psalms: "Materialism generates the notion of loving things and using people. Christianity produces love for people and subordinates things."
Important: When Asaph takes the step back to "the sanctuary of God," he joins a great support group. None of us should ever try to "go it alone." We need the support of the Family. No matter who we are, preachers, worship leaders, writers, musicians, recording artists, athletes; we need to be able to lean on other believers. "When that person becomes isolated in an ivory tower, when he believes his own stuff, when he becomes charmed by the press releases and his own notoriety, he is set up for a big fall. There is only one Superstar, the Lord Jesus Christ."
"When Asaph finally sees God as He really is, the stunning revelation gives him a whole new perspective on life."
So, my fellow Christians. When you start feeling like things are unfair because you see the "wicked" prospering all around while you struggle, do what Asaph did...return to the sanctuary of God; meet with other believers. God will give you discernment to see "their end."
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.
In the weekend article for Tabletalk magazine, author John P. Sartelle says, "I am convinced that one of the most powerful testimonies to Christ in our lives is a sensual, spiritual, unabashed, reveling, and unleashed joy."
Joy is commanded by God in Philippians 4:4. It is not something you "catch." It is not in the genes. It is "the second element listed in the fruit of the Spirit." "It is a decision - a choice - we make. Every day we will choose either joy or cynicism; joy or despair; joy or desolation; joy or worry; joy or complaining." Well, that last part just mashed my toes flat! It just about knocked me on my face. In fact, it did, at least spiritually. Right now, I'm spiritually before God on my face, almost in tears, confessing how cynical I've been recently. How despairing I've been. How much I've been worrying! God I've sinned, please forgive me and restore my JOY!!
"Many Christians are like Eeyore, the perennially dreary donkey from the Winnie the Pooh series who spreads gloom over the Hundred Acre Wood. He is not dismal because bad things happen to him. He is grim by choice even in favorable situations." So very true. (I still think Eeyore is adorable, though...)
The world is able to know joy, right? How is their joy different from ours? "Our joy is founded on Christ." It is consecrated; supernaturally empowered. "The follower of Jesus has been changed by the Holy Spirit in the core of his being." My heart has a greater capacity for joy! Our joy is a testimony to the truth of our rebirth and the presence of the Holy Spirit. Here's a scary statement. "An individual can confess orthodox Christian doctrine with his lips and deny that faith with a life marked by despondency and melancholy."
Once again, our joy is founded on Christ. This means it is NOT based on circumstances. Therefore, it can be constant. Sure, it's easy to express joy when looking at a beautiful sunset over the Pacific Ocean. But it's not so easy to say, "This is a day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" when you just buried a loved one. But God has not changed. "He is still sovereign, good, merciful, and present. His promises to work even the darkest acts of death for the good of His children are current and valid (Rom. 8:28)." This does not, of course, mean that we leave the graveside laughing. That's a shallow misinterpretation. It also doesn't mean that we have to have a big grin on our faces every time we set foot in the sanctuary. (I cringe every time I hear a minister proclaim "Are you glad to be here? Well your faces don't show it!" That is equally shallow. We all have different things going on in our lives when we walk in the doors of our meeting place. We aren't always going to "look" happy.) "Beneath the heart-wrenching sorrow, beneath the tears there abides the truth that we have a Father who gave His own Son to die for our sins. There is the truth that this [loved one] is with Him and that we shall see her again. There is the reality that no sorrow is outside of His all-powerful consolation." We can only truly know the power of God's joy when we have walked through the darkest hours.
In Nehemiah 8:10, Nehemiah told the people, "do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." The joy of God is a "powerful fortress." What is it that keeps our lives from being consumed by the earlier mentioned cynicism, despair, and sorrow? "The joy of the Lord is our stronghold." Paul implies this when he says that we are "more than conquerors" in troublesome circumstances (Romans 8:37).
Great article on joy!! I found it to be both inspiring and helpful. My spirit feels lighter this morning.
This joy also helps attitudes like Asaph's in Psalm 73. Suddenly, I don't really care if the "wicked" prosper or not. There is no reason for me to worry about what happens to anyone else. (Other than to pray for my brothers and sisters, that is...) Your joy in me is all I need.
"O to love thee with a love like that!" My God, I read these prayers and my spirit is inspired. You have loved me, a rebel, through Jesus Christ. And in Jesus, that love reached, as it said, new heights. Can I love you like that? I can only try. I may not succeed. But I will try.
Father, I love you! Thank you!
I pray for friends who have recently had interviews. I pray that the interviews will have good results and that they will get jobs.
I pray for my interview Monday, as well as the application that I placed last night.
I pray that Rachel will like her new job that she starts Monday.
I pray for Bonnie's leg pain to be relieved, and for Christi's knees to be pain-free, as well.
PRAY FOR OUR JUDICIARY
In issuing an injunction against the six-month moratorium on deep water drilling, Judge Martin Feldman said the ban
would cause irreparable harm to small oil companies and the public, and that the ban was arbitrary and capricious.
The Supreme Court in a 6 to 3 decision upheld a law against providing �material support� to terrorist groups. The
Justices who dissented were Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor.
Pray that our Judges and Justices will blend wisdom with common sense, and uphold the Constitution.
Grace and peace, friends! And JOY!!