Have thine own way, Lord
Adelaide Pollard was depressed and thought that God had deserted her. She had a great burden for the country of Africa and she believed that she should go there as a missionary, but now as she was preparing to sail, it was evident that the funds she needed could not be raised. That evening she read Jeremiah 18:3,4, the story of the potter. As she read she believed the story was her own. “Perhaps”, she said, “my questioning of God’s will shows a flaw in life, so God has decided to break me, as the potter broke the defective vessel, and then to mold my life again in His own pattern.” That evening she wrote the poem, which became the hymn, “Have Thine Own Way,Lord.” Adelaide Pollard finally did minister for God in Africa. She wouldspeak publicly until she was 72 years old.
Have Thine own way, Lord! have Thine own way!
Thou art the Potter; I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.
Have Thine own way, Lord! have Thine own way!
Search me and try me, Master, today!
Whiter then snow, Lord, wash me just now,
As in Thy presence humbly I bow.
Have Thine own way, Lord! have Thine own way!
Wounded and weary, help me, I pray!
Power – all power- surely is Thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!
Have Thine own way, Lord! have Thine own way!
Hold o’er my being absolute sway!
Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me!
Refuge
O Lord, Whose power is infinite and wisdom infallible, order things that they may neither hinder, nor discourage me, nor prove obstacles to the progress of Thy cause. Stand between me and all strife, that no evil befall, no sin corrupt my gifts, zeal, attainments. May I follow duty and not any foolish device of my own. Permit me not to labour at work which Thou wilt not bless, that I may serve thee without disgrace or debt. Let me dwell in Thy most secret place under thy shadow, where is safe impenetrable protection from the arrow that flieth by day, the pestilence that walketh in darkness, the strife of tongues, the malice of ill-will, the hurt of unkind talk, the snares of company, the perils of youth, the temptations of middle life, the moumings of old age, the fear of death. I am entirely dependent upon Thee for support, counsel, consolation. Uphold me by Thy free Spirit, and may I not think it enough to be preserved from falling, but may I always go forward, always abounding in the work Thou givest me to do. Strengthen me by Thy Spirit in my inner self for every purpose of my Christian life. All my jewels I give to the shadow of the safety that is in Thee—my name anew in Christ, my body, soul, talents, character, my success, wife, children, friends, work, my present, my future, my end. Take them, they are Thine, and I am thine, now and for ever. (From Puritan Prayers)
The missionary!
A minister once announced to his congregation
one Sunday morning, “I am going on a mission
to the heathen.”Now he had not told his deacons about it, and
they looked puzzled at one another. Some of
the good people in the congregation began
to take out their pocket handkerchiefs, as they
thought their minister was going to leave them–
he was so useful and necessary to them that they
felt sad at the bare idea of loosing him.“But” he added, “I shall not be out of town.”
So may you also go on a mission to the heathen
without going out of this huge town of yours!
You might almost preach to every sort of heathen
within the bounds of your town. If you want to
reach the heathen who have gone farthest into
sin, you need not certainly leave your town for
that. You shall find men and women rotten with
sin, and reeking in the nostrils of God with their
abominations. You may go about on a mission
to the heathen, and your railway ticket need
not cost you one penny!Spurgeon, “The Great Itinerant” No. 655
HT: Grace Gems
True faith
(Thomas Watson, “The Lord’s Prayer”)
True faith is joined with holiness. As a little
musk sweetens, so a little faith purifies. Though
faith does but touch Christ—it fetches a healing
virtue from Him. Justifying faith does that in a
spiritual sense, which miraculous faith does—it
removes the mountains of sin, and casts them
into the sea of Christ’s blood!True faith is prolific. It brings forth fruit; it has
Rachel’s beauty—and Leah’s fruitfulness. Faith is
full of good works. It believes as if it did not work
—and it works as if it did not believe. Faith is the
spouse-like grace which marries Christ; and good
works are the children which it bears!
Al Mohler’s Study
My first thought was ” WOW ” I can’t believe this… but he’s right, we all need our space… and I’m blessed to have one myself…but not like this. Check it out.
Al Mohler – Study Video from Together for the Gospel (T4G) on Vimeo.
The Missional Church… simple
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”Matthew 28:18-20
His Authority… Salvation is of the Lord… by His power we get saved.
GO!… I think that’s crystal clear… needing no explanation.
Make Disciples… People who are regenerated… born from above.
Teaching them all things… every word and command from His word.
His promise “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Go! The process starts over and over… that’s how Christ builds His Church.
GO!
Empowered by the Holy Spirit
Empowered by the Holy Spirit – Paul Washer from I’ll Be Honest on Vimeo.
At Calvary
Today is the author William Newell (1868-1956) born in Savannah, Ohio. Newell was an evangelist, Bible teacher and served for a time as assistant superintendent of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois. One day while Newell was on his way to teach a class, he thought about what Christ had done for him on the cross. The words to “At Calvary” came to him and he quickly entered an empty classroom and penned them down on the only available paper he had, an old envelope. He gave the words to Daniel Towner, who was the director of music at the school. Within an hour, our hymn, “At Calvary” was born. In 1895 it was published and Christians around the world have sang this testimonial as their own.
Years I spent in vanity and pride,
Caring not my Lord was crucified,
Knowing not it was for me He died on Calvary.
By God’s Word at last my sin I learn,
Then I trembled at the law I’d spurned,
Till my guilty soul imploring turned to Calvary.
Now I’ve giv’n to Jesus everything;
Now I gladly own Him as my King;
Now my raptured soul can only sing of Calvary.
O, the love that drew salvation’s plan!
O, the grace that brought it down to man!
O, the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary!
Mercy there was great, and grace was free;
pardon there was multiplied to me;
There my burdened soul found liberty, At Calvary.
