Archive for Devotional with Hymn

You Are Our Father

2015-10-08 Devotional with Hymn, Pictures of God No comments

from the devotional book, PICTURES OF GOD

Read Isaiah 63:15 – 64:12

In today’s scripture, God has punished His people for their deep and prolonged sin, and they are crying out to Him. They want Him and need Him to look down on them, remember them, and have mercy on them in their desperate situation. They beg Him to tear open the heavens and come down to them in awesome power, as He did so many times in their past.

In their sinfulness, what is their basis for coming to Him and boldly asking for such help?

You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us
And Israel does not recognize us.
You, O Lord, are our Father. (Isaiah 63:16, NASB)

Even when our earthly fathers fail us and cannot or do not help us, in a truer, deeper sense, God is our Father. We are most truly and fundamentally His children. That thought is expressed again a few verses later:

But now, O Lord, You are our Father,
We are the clay, and You are our potter;
And all of us are the work of Your hand. (Isaiah 64:8, NASB)

As earthly parents, we desperately want the very best for our children. But as they grow older, we increasingly realize that we can’t touch them and shape them in the areas that matter most. They are becoming, or have become, their own persons. Other voices and other examples are now influencing them.

Take comfort in the fact that God was their Father long before we were, and He will still be so when we’re gone. His Spirit is close to them in times and places and ways we can’t be. He will guide and provide for them far beyond our own ability.

Your children are most truly and fundamentally His children. Pray for them as such. Respect them as such – as fellow human beings before our Father. Trust them to Him, and make yourself completely available to Him. Let our Eternal Father be the father to your children, and allow Him to father them through you.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: A Father’s Prayer
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Lord, Give Me Light

2015-10-06 Devotional with Hymn No comments

[Jesus] said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.” (John 8:12, NIV)

Lord, give me light from Your side of reality today.
Don’t leave me here in the darkness of
my own little plans and
preoccupations.

Talk to me about what You see as important.
Lead me into what You want me to do.
Teach my heart to feel
what You feel
where You’re sitting.

Lord, give me light from Your side of reality today.
Don’t leave me here in the darkness of
my own little plans and
preoccupations.

I don’t want this to be an empty day,
a self-centered day.
As I pause, Lord, draw me closer.
Teach me about You.
Use me as would please You, Lord.
I love You.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: I Only Want to Walk in You
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I Am Your Servant

2015-10-04 Devotional with Hymn No comments

Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. (Mark 10:43-44, NIV)

Pray this simple prayer in all kinds of circumstances:

When you have time in front of you that is not yet spoken for;

When you are preoccupied with your own plans;

When you find yourself overwhelmed and confused;

When you don’t know which way to turn;

When someone is in need, but you don’t know how to help them.

Remind God, and yourself, that You are His, that You are open and listening to Him, that You are always available to Him.

God,
I am Your servant.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: If You Would Be Great
Recording
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Think and Feel the Truth

2015-09-29 Creative Process, Devotional with Hymn No comments

The truth about God is inexpressibly glorious. As a writer, I want people not only to think this truth, but to feel it. I want the truth to grab both their minds and their hearts. Somehow, such a magnificent truth doesn’t seem content to simply speak. It longs to sing and dance and shine as well.

Writing hymns lets me participate in that process. I long for people to be moved by how absolutely wonderful God is. I long for them to know Him on an even deeper level than one knows a spouse or dear friend. Since God is a Spirit, closer than our breath, this knowing can be constant. It is mind-to-mind and heart-to-heart. Our spirits fellowship with His. We are in Him. As we know Him in this way, we are reshaped by the encounter:

We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a  mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory. (2 Corinthians 3:18, NASB)

As we fellowship with Him, looking to Him, talking to Him, trusting Him, He makes us more and more like His holy Son Jesus. The Spirit of Christ grows within us.

I want everyone to know our God in this way, with every breath. That’s what drives me and draws me to write hymns. I want people to not only know the truth but to fully realize it with mind, heart, and imagination.

What does love for God draw You to do? How do you share His greatness and presence with those around you?

Listen and sing:
Hymn: I Have the Truth
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The Essence of Life

2015-09-27 Devotional with Hymn No comments

By current U.S. standards, my financial means are modest. I’m comfortable, but my lifestyle isn’t lavish. I’m a typical middle-class American.

Yet compared to other times and places, I am pampered beyond measure. My luxuries far outstrip what the world’s wealthiest could imagine just a few years ago.

I live in a comfortable, climate-controlled environment.

I enjoy virtually instant communication with almost anyone, anytime, anywhere.

With careful planning, I can travel nearly anywhere in the world. And compared to earlier years, travel today is quick, comfortable, and reliable.

I live in relative safety – the best civilization can provide. I live in a strong, stable country where the government works to protect its citizens from a wide variety of dangers.

I have ready access to virtually any educational information I desire.

I have a comfortable home, meaningful work, a wonderful wife, and healthy, intelligent children.

I am in good health and have affordable access to excellent health care.

A wide variety of nourishing foods is always at my fingertips.

Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to go where I want, leisure time, a whole range of entertainments, a strong, active church—all these luxuries and more surround me every day. I have virtually every good thing the human imagination can conceive.

Yet with all this, my happiness is determined not by what I have, but by what I give. It is measured not by what I possess, but by the love I give out and live out day by day.

I look at my life. I look honestly at my daily happiness, and I see that it is so.

Specifically, my happiness is determined by my response to what Jesus called life’s two greatest commandments: 

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.
Love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:30, 31, NIV).

Love shapes my happiness. Not material goods. Not comfort. Not the finest luxuries. Love.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: The Rich Young Ruler
Recording
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Lord, Forgive Me

2015-09-22 Devotional with Hymn No comments

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9, NIV)

We are so weak and inconsistent, so dull and ungrateful.

Yet if we repent and consciously turn away from our sins, not even they need separate us from God. The One who died for us doesn’t ask us to beg for forgiveness.

He doesn’t expect us to earn it or deserve it in any way.

You can’t. Don’t try.

He just wants you to ask Him to forgive you and trust Him to do it.

Jesus,
forgive me.
I trust You.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Father, I’ve Failed You
Recording
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Daily Needs

2015-09-20 Devotional with Hymn No comments

Give us…our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11, NIV)

God gives us what we need day by day. We are “daily” creatures.

Our families need us every day.

It wouldn’t be good enough if God responded to our needs only when convenient to Him. “At my convenience” isn’t good enough for our families either.

We’ve made a commitment to them. Whether they verbalize it or not, whether they realize it or not, they depend on us for certain needs. It may be to talk, to listen, to encourage, or to give help with daily tasks. It may be to simply be there, to spend relaxed time together and just enjoy being with them. When we fail in our day-to-day commitments, they suffer.

Don’t give leftovers to the people you love the most. Their needs are daily. Be there for them daily.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Happy Our Home When God Is There
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Give Yourself to Him

2015-09-13 Devotional with Hymn No comments

I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. (Romans 12:1, NIV)

We are made for God, and for Him alone.

His love, His wisdom, His will for us are perfect. But He cannot do in us what He wants as long as we are distracted by other desires. To be His, to live in unbroken communion with Him, our hearts must be empty of everything else. Otherwise He cannot act and do there what He pleases.

Trust Him completely. Want only His will. Make Him and His glory the focus of all that you do and say and undertake. Free Him to do and be all that He desires in you.

by Brother Lawrence and Ken Bible

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Nothing Between
Recording
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Psalm 1: Fruits of God’s Blessing

2015-09-10 Devotional with Hymn, Pictures of God No comments

from the devotional book, PICTURES OF GOD

Read Psalm 1:3-6

Make God’s word your delight, not your duty. Psalm 1:3-6 draws a beautiful picture of God’s blessings on those who feed their minds and hearts on His word.

  • God’s blessing is stability. You will be like a tree firmly planted. You will be immovable, not because of your own strength, but because your roots are imbedded in what cannot move.

The righteous man will flourish like the palm tree,
He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Planted in the house of the Lord…
They will still yield fruit in old age;
They shall be full of sap and very green. (Psalm 92:12-14, NASB)

  • God’s blessing is sufficiency. You will never run dry, for you will be planted by an eternal source of life-giving water.

“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:38, NASB)

  • God’s blessing is fruitfulness. Your life will bear fruit that feeds others and honors God. Notice that this blessing will involve growth. Your fruit will grow naturally and gradually, in its proper season.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23, NASB)

  • God’s blessing is Himself. You will be constantly and forever wrapped in His knowing, His caring, His guarding, and His prospering.

Thus says the Lord, your Creator…He who formed you…“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine!…You are precious in My sight…you are honored and I love you.” (Isaiah 43:1, 4, NASB)

God Himself is the only source of all life and all that is good. Without Him, the inevitable result is life that is dry, rootless, meaningless, and quickly passing. But Sovereign God has decreed the well-being of those who trust and obey Him. His life and His love do not fluctuate with money or external situations.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Walking with You
Recording
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Looking for Acceptance

2015-09-08 Devotional with Hymn No comments

He is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God. (Romans 2:29, NASB)

Lord, You saved me out of my sin.
And our relationship is person to person,
You and me.
You have called me,
prepared me, and
enabled my every step.
It is You who is working through me.
And all my work is for You alone, Lord.

Then why do I hunger so much for human acceptance of my work?
Why do I gauge its worth, and mine,
by the amount of response from others?

Father, help me to look for acceptance only in Your face.
Let obedience to You,
not recognition,
be the measure of my success.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Focus
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

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