Hymns

Come Thou Fount

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For by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. Not as the result of works so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV

Maybe the reason this now ancient hymn strikes a chord in my heart is that the tumultuous life of young Robert Robertson was a lot like my own. Wandering far from the fold of God, was an understatement in both our lives. But into the middle of my mess, and on a collision course with disaster, God intervened, when someone offered me a ride while hitchhiking if I would just go to church. In Robert’s case, he and some ne’er-do-well friends, made plans to go to laugh and mock at a meeting where the famous evangelist George Whitefield was speaking. God must have chuckled, because there Robertson fell under the conviction of the Holy Spirit under Whitefield’s preaching, and not long afterward, committed His life to Jesu Christ. Then, just two years later, at the age of 22, the wonderful lyrics, of Come Thou Fount were born as Robert wrote:

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to me
Let Thy goodness like a fetter
Bind my wandering soul to Thee
Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here’s my heart O take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above

That great debt of grace, only paid by the precious blood of Jesus is what binds us in love to Him forever, if we give our hearts to Jesus Christ. I pray that our simple rendering of this wonderful hymn, will be a blessing to you all this Sunday. Have a wonderful Sunday, and may you find rest and peace in His grace.

Team Ministry

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All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthinas12:27 NLT

Many of us have been blessed to spend a single Sunday afternoon, singing or serving communion at a nursing home. But to carry on a long-term ministry outreach in our community calls for the teamwork of the body of Christ. None of us possess all the gifts, and our schedules are often dictated by things out of our control. People get sick, travel to visit family or have the water heater start leaking. That is when having other people pitching in makes a big difference. We were richly blessed this past Sunday at Discovery Villages to have my friend Ed come to play the piano. After seven years of singing along with my guitar, our residents were delighted to have a talented pianist leading us in the sweet hymn, “O! How I love Jesus!” I hope you will enjoy singing along with us and that you might consider getting involved in long-term care ministry in your own community. Have a blessed weekend everybody!

There is a Fountain

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We often hold the hymn writers in such high esteem that we forget that these giants of faith had feet of clay. Though being trained under the ministry of John Newton, William Cowper spent long periods of his life struggling with depression and thoughts of suicide. Those dark places are not what God wants for us, but it was from the depths of despair HIs words sprung:

There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Immanuel’s veins
And sinners, plunged beneath that flood, Lose all their guilty stains 
Lose all their guilty stains 
Lose all their guilty stains 
Lose all their guilty stains!

This week we opened the service at Discovery Villages with “There is a Fountain,” and talked about the dying thief who was promised paradise, in verse two of Cowper’s hymn. After we finished, I imagined a conversation between the thief and Abraham, with Abraham asking, “How long did you know Jesus?” and the thief answering, “About five minutes!” Just like that thief, our salvation doesn’t depend on the length of our walk with God or the number of things we have done in His name. Everything we will ever need we have only in one thing – the Cross of Christ! So, when we get to heaven, there will be no finger pointing! No shame! No more guilty stains! May you each have a blessed week. If you are considering volunteering at a nursing home in your community, remember that we have Mother’s Day right around the corner. Why not buy some inexpensive cards or even make your own and then pass them out to the ladies there. Your small act of kindness will be a blessing far beyond anything you can imagine!