Decisive Delight

"Delight thyself also in the LORD, and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart" (Psalm 37:4). "Mary... sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving.... And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: but one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:39-42).

One thing is needful above all the rest:
A decisive delight in the Lord and His beauty.
God will examine our works by this test:
Was it done out of love, or mechanical duty?

There's no substitution for time with the Lord,
Yet surely we know there are duties required.
But work is delightful when Christ is adored,
And love fuels the labor that's worship-inspired.

There's no commendation for workers who slumbered
When God called at harvest to go to His field.
But attitude matters! We should not be cumbered
With worries and troubles that we have concealed.

O Lord, there are so many things we might do,
Yet help us to hold to Priority One:
Delighting ourselves, above all else, in You,
That You may find pleasure in all we have done.

Vanishing Vision

"Where there is no vision, the people perish" (Proverbs 29:18). "Now it came to pass... that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.... And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake" (Ezekiel 1:1-28). "Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them.... Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest" (Luke 9:44-46).

There is a vision that we need
To hold the things we ought to cherish.
Cannot we hear the Spirit plead
With souls lest they forever perish?

The vision of Ezekiel,
And afterwards the voice he heard,
Comprised the message he would tell
By God's prophetic, holy Word.

How lofty were the things he saw
Portraying Christ and His salvation!
How filled he was with urgent awe
When he received this revelation!

And shouldn't we be likewise moved
To preach the Gospel in our day?
Or do we need to be reproved
To hear what Jesus had to say?

O Lord, revive in us Your vision
And cause Your words to sink within
To plead with souls for a decision
To come to Christ and flee from sin!

Light Lent

"No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed, but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light.... Now the man out of whom the devils were departed besought Him that he might be with Him: but Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to thine own house, and show how great things God hath done unto thee. And he went his way, and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him" (Luke 8:16, 38,39).

God has lent to us His light;
What then shall we do with it?
As a candle shining bright,
Let your household see it lit!

In the circle of your friends,
In the shadows where you are,
In each place the Savior sends,
Shine in darkness like a star.

Tell the things that God has done;
Publish them throughout the city.
Shine the light of God the Son,
Pray for souls with heaven's pity.

Lord, You lent to us Your flame
To shine the Gospel in this place.
So may we exalt Your name
And show Your work of truth and grace!

Pursue Peace

"Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it" (Psalm 34:14). "My son, be wise, and make My heart glad, that I may answer him that reproacheth Me. A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself" (Proverbs 27:11,12). "Jesus answering said.... Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house.... Thou gavest Me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss My feet.... And He said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace" (Luke 7:40-50).

The Lord has called us to pursue
His peace and from our sin depart.
In all we think, and say, and do,
May we in truth pursue His heart.

Despite what other people say,
We ought to live alone for God.
Pursue His gladness, come what may,
Though others scorn and count it odd.

Now see the love our Lord commended,
Pursuing more than status quo:
When superficial love has ended,
The grateful sinner's love will show.

Lord, thank You for Your steadfast love
Upon the cross to win our peace!
As we pursue the things above,
Lord, may our love for You increase.

Morning Mercies

"Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy, to deliver their soul from death... Our soul waiteth for the LORD: He is our Help and our Shield" (Psalm 33:18-20). "It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:22,23).

The mercies of God are new every morning;
For this very reason we are not consumed.
Thank God for His grace and compassionate warning,
Without which we all surely would have been doomed!

The eye of the Lord is upon all His own
Who hope in His mercy and serve Him with fear.
It's by His compassion we're called to His throne
To find grace to help as we boldly draw near.

Lord, You are the Fountain that flows from above
To fill us each day with Your mercies anew.
How great is Your faithful and wonderful love
That daily reminds us to draw near to You!

Right Rule

"I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with Mine eye. Be not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee" (Psalm 32:8,9). "As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.... He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls" (Proverbs 25:12,28).

How we need our Lord's instruction
And the guidance of His eye,
That will guard us from seduction
Crafted by the devil's lie!

How we need our Savior's rule
That keeps us walking in His path,
Led, not as the horse or mule,
But gratefully preserved from wrath!

Lord, thank you for Your voice that calls,
Reproving us with truth and pity,
Lest we should be as broken walls
And as an unprotected city.

Supreme Sorrow

"Into Thine hand I commit My spirit.... for Thou hast considered My trouble; Thou hast known My soul in adversities" (Psalm 31:5-7). "Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? Behold, and see if there be any sorrow, which is done unto Me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted Me in the day of His fierce anger" (Lamentation 1:12).

That final saying by God's Son
That followed sorrow so supreme,
Was uttered when His work was done
To ransom those He would redeem.

Multitudes are passing by,
Indifferent to His agony,
Never even asking why
He gave Himself at Calvary.

O Man of sorrows and of grief,
It was our burden that You bore!
How many by their unbelief
Increase Your sorrow even more!

O Lord, to what can we compare
The sorrow that Your soul endured?
Ah this! The measure of Your care
That made You die for those You cured!

Gracious Garments

"Thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness, to the end that my glory may sing praise to Thee and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto Thee forever" (Psalm 30:11,12). And it came to pass... that [the] king of Babylon... lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison, and spake kindly unto him... and changed his prison garments: and he did continually eat bread before him all the days of his life" (Jeremiah 52:31-33).

Out of my prison of darkness I came,
Into the presence of Jesus my King,
Girded with gladness to praise His dear name,
Nevermore silent, His praises I sing!

Out of the tomb of the hopelessly dead,
Into the joy of my Lord's resurrection,
Supping with Jesus my King, I break bread,
Clothed by His grace with a sinless perfection!

Out of the prisoner's garments I wore,
Into the garments of praise my Lord gave,
Displaying His mercy and truth evermore,
I am a pattern of those He will save!

Out of my shame now, my head You have lifted;
Speaking so kindly, my Savior and Lord!
Great are Your mercies so graciously gifted,
Freely bestowed by Your Spirit outpoured!

Giving God Glory

"Give unto the LORD the glory due unto His name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.... The LORD will give strength unto His people; the LORD will bless His people with peace" (Psalm 29:2,11). "Unto you is born this day in the city of David as Savior, which is Christ the Lord.... And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:10-14).

Give to Jesus Christ our Lord
The glory that is due His name.
Angels did with one accord,
And we should surely do the same.

For unto us is born a Savior;
Unto us God gave His Son.
Not to angels was this favor,
But for mankind was this done!

Lord, help us magnify Your worth,
As heaven's praise which does not cease,
For how much more should we on earth
Give glory for Your Gift of peace!

Hardened or Helped

"Because they regard not the works of the LORD, nor the operation of His hands, He shall destroy them, and not build them up.... The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped" (Psalm 28:5-7). A wicked man hardeneth his face: but as for the upright, He directeth his way" (Proverbs 21:29). "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.... He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree" (Luke 1:46-52).

Those refusing to regard
The works of God shall surely stumble,
Because they make their own hearts hard,
Yet God will surely help the humble.

The sinner who has set his face
Against the Lord enthroned above,
Will not regard His saving grace
Nor operation of His love.

But oh, my soul has magnified
And has rejoiced in God my Savior!
He gave Himself for me and died!
He rose and helps me with His favor!

Lord, help us to persuade the lost
Whose hearts against You yet are hardened,
To humbly count the dreadful cost,
To trust in You, and thus be pardoned.

Impossible Implied

"Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?" (Proverbs 20:9). "And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher?.... Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: He is risen; He is not here: behold the place where they laid Him" (Mark 16:3-6).

Who can rightly testify
I made my own heart clean?
Impossible! This must imply
What man has never seen!

Who could roll the stone away,
And (much less) raise the dead?
Come and see where Christ did lay:
He's risen as He said!

Only God could move that stone
And conquer death as well,
And Jesus Christ our Lord alone
Could rescue us from hell.

O Lord, we never could begin
To do what You have done:
We thank You that You cleansed our sin,
And raised Your glorious Son!

Favor for Fathers

"Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end. There are many devices in a man's heart; nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand.... Cease, my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err from the words of knowledge. An ungodly witness scorneth judgment: and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity. Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools" (Proverbs 19:20-29).

O Lord, we give thanks for the Word of Your truth
That gives us, as fathers, the counsel to lead
And train up our children in their tender youth,
And give them the godly instruction they need!

Cease from the cynical counsel of fools
And from the confusion of godless instruction!
Embedded in business, infecting our schools,
This ungodly counsel will lead to destruction.

Woe to the person, the household, the nation
That laughs with the cynic who blasphemes the Lord!
Woe to the scorner rejecting salvation,
Embracing the counsel with judgment ignored!

O Father in heaven, we thank You today
For truth that outlasts the devices of men!
When all of their falsehood is driven away,
Your counsel alone makes us wise in the end!

Commendable Could

"There came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she break the box, and poured it on His head. And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this waste of ointment made?.... And Jesus said, let her alone; why trouble ye her? She hath wrought a good work on Me.... She hath done what she COULD" (Mark 14:3-8).

Let others have their indignation
And scorn what heaven says is good.
Lord, I would have Your commendation
To know I did all that I could.

It matters not if none applaud
If I achieve the highest pleasure
Of the commendation of my God:
A sweet success by heaven's measure!

So let the world call it wasted,
This full surrender so disdained.
There is a joy they haven't tasted,
A treasure they have never gained.

Lord, help me, by Your grace and plan,
Now meet this standard You commend:
That I may do all that I can
And know Your pleasure in the end.

Christ is Coming

"Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory" (Psalm 24:9,10). "And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.... Watch ye therefore.... lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping" (Mark 13:26-36).

Our great King of glory is coming again.
Who is this King? He's the Savior of men!
When is coming? We do not know when.
We watch, for it may be today!

Our great King of glory is coming with might;
O lift up your heads at this glorious sight!
With power and glory, He'll come forth as light;
He'll come, and He will not delay!

Our great King of glory will come as He said,
Just as He promised to rise from the dead!
The Stone once rejected shall come as the Head,
No matter what mockers now say!

O great King of glory, our Savior and Lord,
We know You are coming! We're looking toward
The day when Your reign on the earth is restored;
Till then we would watch, work, and pray.

Proper Percent

"The LORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want.... though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil" (Psalm 23:1,4). "For even the Son of man came... to give His life a ransom for many.... And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength" (Mark 10:45, 12:30).

My Lord laid His life down that I may thus live;
Now shouldn't I give Him one hundred percent?
Whatever percentage I fail to give,
Lord, show me that I may sincerely repent!

The shadow of death held such horrible fear,
A fear that was valid that soon I must face!
But now I am safe, though that shadow draws near,
For Christ took my judgment and gave me His grace.

And shall I not love Him with all of my heart,
With all of my soul, my mind, and my strength?
The Lord calls for all of me, not just a part,
One hundred percent of my life for its length.

O Lord, You're my Shepherd, I know I won't lack
Because You laid all of Your life down for me.
And now, Lord, forbid it, that I should hold back
This life that You ransomed that I might be free!

Astonishing Answer

"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? Why art Thou so far from helping Me?.... They pierced My hands and My feet.... For He hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, neither hath He hid His face from him, but when he cried unto Him, He heard.... They shall come, and shall declare... that He hath done this" (Psalm 22:1-31). "The prayer of the upright is His delight.... Hell and destruction are before the LORD: how much more then the hearts of the children of men?" (Proverbs 15:8,11).

O Lord, we view the awful pain
Of Christ our Savior on the cross
That He would suffer for our gain
To spare us from eternal loss.

We hear His words of agony,
"My God, My God", we hear Him pray,
"Why hast Thou forsaken Me?"
And wait to hear what God will say.

The answer is astonishing!
He knew that hell was opened wide;
He saw that we were perishing
And would not brush our prayer aside!

The thief who cried, "Remember me!"
Could never hope for paradise
Without the grace that sets us free
And saves the sinner when he cries.

O Lord, we thank You and declare
The work of grace that You have done,
That other souls may lift their prayer
And put their trust in God the Son.

Above the Asking

"The king.... asked life of Thee, and Thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever" (Psalm 21:1,4). "Blind Bartimaeus.... came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way" (Mark 10:46-52).

O Lord, I do remember well
That night so filled with inner strife:
I asked for an escape from hell;
You gave me everlasting life!

Your blessings, like a glorious mountain,
Were far above what I could dream!
Abundant life was like a fountain
That grew into a mighty stream!

As Bartimaeus, who was blind,
Was longing to receive his sight,
The blindness of my darkened mind
Had shrouded me in fearful night.

And just as Bartimaeus found
Upon that day You made him whole,
You gave me sight, and then You crowned
My path with blessings to my soul!

I thank You, Lord, that You endured
The cross to spare my soul from wrath
And for the blessings thus procured
Above the asking on my path.

Perfecting our Petitions

"The LORD fulfill all thy petitions" (Psalm 20:5). "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.... The desire accomplished is sweet to the soul: but it is abomination to fools to depart from evil" (Proverbs 13:12,19). "Ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying, Pray for us unto the LORD our God, and according to all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it. And now I have this day declared it to you; but ye have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God" (Jeremiah 42:20,21). "Lord, I believe; help Thou mine unbelief" (Mark 9:24).

Petitions spoken loud and clear
May differ from our heart's desire.
The Lord knows when we're insincere,
And what correction we require.

Our hope deferred may make us sick,
But this is when God works within.
Though we may want an answer quick,
The Lord would rather purge our sin.

The object, after all, of prayer
Is not to satisfy our choice,
But rather that we cast our care
On God as we obey His voice.

O Lord, You know our heart's condition;
Uphold us with sincerity.
Perfect in us a pure petition
In faith, in hope, and charity.

Rejoicing in the Right

"The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes" (Psalm 19:8). "The thoughts of the righteous are right: but the counsels of the wicked are deceit" (Proverbs 12:5).

The statutes of the LORD are right,
And His commandments pure.
The truth is proven in His light,
Of that we may be sure!

Our thoughts shall also surely be
As right as God's own Word,
When we will read it faithfully,
Obeying what we've heard.

We thank You for the absolutes,
O Lord, that You reveal,
That give our thoughts eternal roots
In things forever real.

Wonderful and Well

"Thou hast also given me the shield of Thy salvation: and Thy right hand hath holden me up, and Thy gentleness hath made me great" (Psalm 18:35). "He hath done all things well: He maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak" (Mark 7:37).

The Lord has gently made us great:
He stooped to pluck our souls from hell!
He saved us from our lost estate;
Our Savior has done all things well!

The Lord has given us His shield
Protecting us from every harm,
And as we humbly to Him yield
He holds us up with His strong arm.

The Lord has made the deaf to hear;
He also made the dumb to speak.
He gently speaks to draw us near,
And hears our prayer when we are weak.

How wonderful and well we see
Your work, O Lord, in us is done!
How rightly for eternity
Your praise ascends that's now begun!

Excellent Expectation!

"As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness" (Psalm 17:15). "The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.... The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish" (Proverbs 10:24,28).

I know I will behold the face
Of Jesus Christ in righteousness.
My expectation is by grace;
It's not an optimistic guess!

Yes, I will stand before His throne,
And there I shall be satisfied
With righteousness that's not my own,
But rather Christ's, who for me died.

Yes, after death when I awake,
I shall be like my Lord above,
Because He suffered for my sake,
And gave Himself for me in love.

How horrible the contrast is
For those who will not trust the Lord,
Refusing righteousness that's His
And His reproof, which they've ignored.

Lord, thank You for the expectation
That You have given by Your Word;
The Gospel of Your great salvation
Is by Your faithfulness assured!

Counting on His Counsel

"I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons" (Psalm 16:7).

The counsel that our Savior gave
In every season of our life
Has taught us how we should behave
In joy and sorrow, peace and strife.

How much we need this everyday
To shun the wrong, to do the right,
To understand, and to obey
His word of counsel, day and night.

O Lord, we thank You for Your Word
That counsels us with Your instruction
To guide us by the truth we've heard
And guard us daily from seduction.

Charged with Choking

"The cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful" (Mark 4:19).

We hear the charges that are hurled
Against those things that choke the Word,
As cares and riches of this world
With lusts for other things are stirred.

Beware of cares that will consume
Your precious energy and time
And in the process leave no room
For things eternal and sublime.

Beware of riches that deceive
And choke the fruit you had before,
Which compromise what you believe,
That you might gain a little more.

Beware of lusts for other things
Instead of Christ who satisfies,
And choke the fruit the Spirit brings,
Exchanging truth for empty lies.

Protect us, Lord, from things You've found
That choke Your Word producing fruit,
And make us rather as the ground
That's good, wherein Your Word takes root!

When Fools are Forced

"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good" (Psalm 14:1). "He goeth.... as a fool to the correction of the stocks" (Proverbs 7:22). "Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the roll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying, Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned.... And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity" (Jeremiah 36:27-31).

The fool may say, There is no God;
But one day he'll be forced to see,
Though multitudes of fools applaud,
That God is a Reality.

The fool will come to his correction,
As one who marches to the stocks
With others in the same direction
Who join him as he loudly mocks.

For such was king Jehoiakim
Who burned and then dismissed the scroll
That Jeremiah sent to him
From God who would have spared his soul.

What foolishness was this to burn
The scroll that God in mercy sent,
As wisdom called for him to turn
And and seize that moment to repent!

O Lord, we see the lesson now,
That fools may mock You for a season,
But one day every knee shall bow,
When fools are forced at last to reason.

Supper with Sinners

"When the scribes and the Pharisees saw Him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto His disciples, How is it that He eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners? When Jesus heard it, He saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Mark 2:16,17).

How is it that our Lord invites
The sinner to His table?
How can sinners have such rights?
By grace He makes us able!

How could sinners so diseased
With sin be rendered whole?
We praise the Lord who has been pleased
To cure the sin-sick soul!

O Lord, we praise You for Your love
That stooped to lift us up
To seat us with You up above,
And at Your table sup.

We thank You for Your remedy
By which we now are cured
Because You went to Calvary
And for our souls endured.

Forming Fishers

"And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men" (Mark 1:17).

Evangelism has a key
That guarantees a sure success:
Our Lord said, "Come ye after Me";
Do nothing more and nothing less.

Perhaps that sounds a little odd,
For shouldn't there be more to do?
Yet this instruction comes from God,
And so we know that it is true!

For only as our Lord shall lead,
And surely not at all till then,
Shall any efforts thus succeed
To make us fishers after men.

For such a time, Lord, in this place,
We follow with this expectation:
That You will lead us by Your grace
To fish for souls who need salvation.

Confidence in the Commission

"If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? The LORD is in His holy temple, the LORD'S throne is in heaven: His eyes behold, His eyelids try, the children of men" (Psalm 11:3,4). "Call unto Me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not" (Jeremiah 33:3). "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations.... and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:18-20).

Servants by the Lord employed:
Proclaim His great salvation!
His throne can never be destroyed,
And this is our foundation!

He shows us great and mighty things
And makes them understood.
He's working all, as King of kings,
Together for our good.

O Lord, we've heard Your great command
That we should spread abroad
Through all the earth in every land
The Gospel of our God.

And since we've heard, we would not fail
To go where You will send,
Assured that hell cannot prevail
Against those You defend.

Dire Desire

"Lord, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble: Thou wilt prepare their heart, Thou wilt cause Thine ear to hear" (Psalm 10:17). "He giveth grace to the lowly" (Proverbs 3:34). "What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?" (Matthew 27:22).

What then shall I do with Christ
Who gave Himself for me,
Who for my sins was sacrificed,
And died on Calvary?

O Lord, You know my heart's desire,
Which You Yourself prepared!
My path was dark, my need was dire,
And none but You, Lord, cared!

There is one answer I would give
To Christ, who loved my soul:
Lord Jesus, take this life I live,
And take complete control!

Our Hour

"The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee" (Jeremiah 31:3). "And He cometh to the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?" (Matthew 26:40).

It was our Lord's eternal love
Which drew us to His side,
For which He left His throne above,
For which He also died.

His saving grace is like a tower;
His love has drawn us in.
Our life is like a fleeting hour;
Shall we not cease from sin?

With love eternal on display,
It's not too much to ask
That we should in our hour pray
As in His love we bask!

How great the contrast is we see:
Our hour is not long,
Compared to love eternally
Unceasing and so strong!

O Lord, we hear You call again
To watch in this our hour,
For such a time as this is when
We surely need Your power!

Mindful of Man

"O LORD our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth, who hast set Thy glory above the heavens.... When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained, what is man, that Thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him?" (Psalm 8:1-4).

When we think of God's creation
That all the earth and heavens span,
We marvel in the contemplation
That God was mindful so of man.

When the heavens are explored
With all the stars, which God has named,
We see the glory of the Lord
Upon the scroll of night proclaimed.

When we think of who God is
And ponder everything He's done,
Who gave Himself to call us His,
We worship Christ, His glorious Son.

O Lord, we search, yet cannot find
A cause in us that would compel
A holy God to pay us mind,
Much less to save our souls from hell!

And though we cannot fathom why
You'd visit sinners likeYou did,
The cross and tomb still testify:
Your love for us cannot be hid!

O Lord, we thank You for Your love,
In all the earth so clearly true,
That caused You to be mindful of
The souls of all who call on You.