My Jesus, I love Thee
My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine;
for thee all the follies of sin I resign;
my gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou;
if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
2 I love thee because thou hast first loved me
and purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;
I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow;
if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
3 I'll love thee in life, I will love thee in death,
and praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath,
and say when the deathdew lies cold on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
4 In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright;
I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
Cleanse Me
1 Search me, O God, and know my heart today;
try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray.
See if there be some wicked way in me;
cleanse me from every sin and set me free.
2 I praise thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin;
fulfill thy word and make me pure within.
Fill me with fire where once I burned with shame;
grant my desire to magnify thy name.
3 Lord, take my life, and make it wholly thine;
fill my poor heart with thy great love divine.
Take all my will, my passion, self, and pride;
I now surrender, Lord-- in me abide.
These hymns were on my mind and had been sung in my early years in the Church I grew up in. Another is I Surrender All.
Whereas I am a big advocate for praise and worship music, there's something far more solemn and powerful to the old hymns. A good friend whom I know likes to look up the person and history behind hymns. There's much to be found in the Spiritual garden where these songs of faith came from. Pain, headache, heartbreak, joy, tears, deep communion with God. Honesty and the baring of hearts before our all knowing Savior.
Was there not anything from the devotionals to bring today? Yes, there is but these hymns bring it into better focus. Kind of like Spiritual Glasses.
The Bible isn't just a collection of words, of books, of letters sent between Churches. It's alive. It's words can strike to the core of our being. Many many hymns derive their message from a passage or chapter or book. Some modern artists came together to provide a collection of songs all with their centerpiece being Scripture.
The message of hymns can give us the ability to convey the state of our hearts before Our God.
We can grasp a better understanding of the love of God for us, for mankind. We can finally find the words to say back to the Father in gratitude and thanks.
We can grow Spiritually through them as well. Scripture tells us of speaking to one another in songs, hymns and Spiritual songs. To set our minds on things above not on things down here. A reminder of holiness in singing Holy, Holy, Holy.
Our days to come before our God will have a great deal of singing praise and worship to our Savior when we see Him face-to-face.
There's a reason why we are set apart in this world from the unbelieving. We don't share the things that are most important.
We in our faith hope and conduct point a dying world towards our Savior, our God.
A hymn can break down barriers we never realized were there.
We can sing a hymn in our hearts to God anytime, and anywhere.
When sin convicts, we need an outlet to yet still praise our God.
We are always on His mind. Always being tended to by Jesus and His angels. We are written on the palms of His hands. We are held in the palms of His hands. We are being made into His image. We are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works that we might walk in them.
We also need reminders that He is God and we are not. Hymns will do that.
Take my life and let it be...remember that hymn?
Great is Thy Faithfulness
Amazing Grace
There's Power in the Blood
Just as I Am
Hymns help us to strip away us and allow our Spirit to speak to His.
There's no room for pride in a heart that praises God. You can't do both. You can't be full of yourself and full of the Spirit too.
If you are praising God, if your mind is indeed set on things above and not on things down here, guess what you find?
Peace, not as the world gives, peace as Jesus said He gives.
You will find mountains that were before you obliterated. You will find rough waters calmed so much that yes even you will walk over them. Your mind and heart will indeed be set on Him and not you.
The hope that comes from a heart set on God isn't easily shaken or shattered. It's more than like being wrapped in a warm blanket on a cold night. It's being wrapped up in joy as if that were the perfect covering.
Stop what you are doing, remember your relationship with Jesus isn't only on Sunday Morning, Sunday Evening or Wednesday night. It's 24/7. The Disciples didn't get the rest of the week off when they were called to follow Christ. We don't either. We have tools the world doesn't understand. We have a direct hotline to our Savior that doesn't need to be three times day in a certain direction or any such thing. Anytime, anywhere. Long or short, our Savior lives and listens.
All the way my Savior leads me...
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