The Ninety and Nine

There were ninety and nine that safely lay
In the shelter of the fold.
But one was out on the hills away,
Far off from the gates of gold.
Away on the mountains wild and bare.
Away from the tender Shepherd’s care.
Away from the tender Shepherd’s care.

“Lord, Thou hast here Thy ninety and nine;
Are they not enough for Thee?”
But the Shepherd made answer: “This of Mine
Has wandered away from Me;
And although the road be rough and steep,
I go to the desert to find My sheep,
I go to the desert to find My sheep.”

But none of the ransomed ever knew
How deep were the waters crossed;
Nor how dark was the night the Lord passed through
Ere He found His sheep that was lost.
Out in the desert He heard its cry,
Sick and helpless and ready to die;
Sick and helpless and ready to die.

“Lord, whence are those blood drops all the way
That mark out the mountain’s track?”
“They were shed for one who had gone astray
Ere the Shepherd could bring him back.”
“Lord, whence are Thy hands so rent and torn?”
“They are pierced tonight by many a thorn;
They are pierced tonight by many a thorn.”

And all through the mountains, thunder riven
And up from the rocky steep,
There arose a glad cry to the gate of Heaven,
“Rejoice! I have found My sheep!”
And the angels echoed around the throne,
“Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!
Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!”

Eliz­a­beth C. Cle­phane

Not I, but Christ

Not I, but Christ 

 
Not I, but Christ, be honored, loved, exalted;
Not I, but Christ, be seen be known, be heard;
Not I, but Christ, in every look and action,
Not I, but Christ, in every thought and word.

O to be saved from myself, dear Lord,
O to be lost in Thee,
O that it might be no more I,
But Christ, that lives in me.

Not I, but Christ, to gently soothe in sorrow,
Not I, but Christ, to wipe the falling tear;
Not I, but Christ, to lift the weary burden,
Not I, but Christ, to hush away all fear.

Christ, only Christ! no idle words e’er falling,
Christ, only Christ; no needless bustling sound;
Christ, only Christ; no self important bearing;
Christ, only Christ; no trace of "I" be found.

Not I, but Christ, my every need supplying,
Not I, but Christ, my strength and health to be;
Not I, but Christ, for body, soul, and spirit,
Christ, only Christ, here and eternally.

Christ, only Christ, ere long will fill my vision;
Glory excelling soon, full soon I’ll see—
Christ, only Christ, my every wish fulfilling—
Christ, only Christ, my all in all to be.
Ada Whiddington

The King of Love My Shepherd Is

Hymn Chords

Here are some nice resources for hymn chords that I use often.

• CCF Chordbook - This website has chords for many of the classic hymns.
• The Gospel Music Archive - This site has a large database of songs which include gospel songs, contemporary songs and classic hymns.
• Christian Gospel Songs - This website has chords for many hymns, gospel songs and worship songs. 
• Praise and Worship Chords - This website has chords for a few worship and praise songs.

 The nice thing about having so many different websites with hymn chords is that you get a variety of keys. For example, with the three links I have up above you have Amazing Grace in the keys of G, D and F, respectively!

Also, as a bit of a side note, I recently added "reactions" to my blog posts. If you like one of my posts but you don't want to leave a comment, please feel free to click on one or more of the little check boxes if you thought one of my posts was neat, useful, interesting and/or thought-provoking. If you'd like more options... you can leave me a comment. ;-)

He is Coming

He is Coming

He is coming, coming for us; 
 Soon we'll see His light afar, 
On the dark horizon rising, 
 As the Bright and Morning Star, 
Cheering many a waking watcher, 
 As the star whose kindly ray 
Heralds the approaching morning 
 Just before the break of day. 
   Oh! what joy, as night hangs round us, 
    "Tis to think of morning's ray; 
   Sweet to know He's coming for us, 
    Just before the break of day. 

He is coming, coming for us; 
 Soon we'll hear His voice on high; 
Dead and living, rising, changing, 
 In the twinkling of an eye 
Shall be caught up altogether, 
 For the meeting in the air; 
With a shout the Lord, descending, 
 Shall Himself await us there. 
   Oh! what joy that great foregathering, 
    Trysted meeting in the air; 
   Sweet to know He's coming for us, 
    Calling us to join Him there. 

He is coming as the Bridegroom, 
 Coming to unfold at last 
The great secret of His purpose, 
 Mystery of ages past. 
And the Bride, to her is granted 
 In His beauty now to shine, 
As in rapture she exclaimeth, 
"I am His and He is mine." 
   Oh! what joy that marriage union, 
    Mystery of love divine; 
   Sweet to sing in all its fulness, 
    "I am His and He is mine."

~

A.M. Monteath

Photos from the Farm

Mom and I have been staying at the farm for the last week and a half or so. The weather was gorgeous for the most part! Here are some photos.

The sunset is always beautiful on clear nights at the farmhouse!

O tell of God's might, O sing of God's grace, 
 whose robe is the light, whose canopy space, 
 whose chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form, 
 and dark is God's path on the wings of the storm.

A Mind at Perfect Peace

A Mind at Perfect Peace
 

 A mind at perfect peace with God,
Oh! What a word is this!
A sinner reconciled thro’ blood;
This, this indeed is peace!
 

 By nature and by practice far,
How very far from God!
Yet now by grace bro’t night to Him,
Thro’ faith in Jesus’ blood.
 

 So near, so very near to God,
I cannot nearer be;
For in the person of His Son
I am as near as He.
 

 So dear, so very dear to God,
More dear I cannot be;
The love where with He loves the Son:
Such is His love to me!
 

 Why should I ever careful be,
Since such a God is mine?
He watched o’er me night and day,
And tells me “Mine is thine.”

~

Catesby Paget

Autoharp hymn chords: Immanuel's Land

Lately I've been playing the autoharp some. I mostly play hymns on it, and I've decided to write down chords for some of them. There isn't much autoharp music out there, so I decided that, to make things easier, I'd make some up. :-)

Most of the hymns that I've written down chords for aren't "chorded" in the same keys as they are in the hymnbook that I use most of the time (Hymns of Truth and Praise, or "the red book"). That was just to make it slightly easier to play, plus I'm more familiar with keys like G, C and F. 

Here's one of my favorite hymns, which is actually really written in F! :-) 

Immanuel's Land / The Sands of Time are Sinking

By Anne Ross Cousin 

Music by Chré­ti­en d’Ur­han; ar­ranged by Ed­ward F. Rim­bault

    F                  C          Dm

1. The sands of time are sinking,

        Bb         F   Bb  C

The dawn of heaven breaks;

C     F            Bb          F        C

The summer morn I’ve sighed for

C     F              C/C7  F

The fair, sweet morn awakes:

Bb/F7 Bb                C    F

Dark, dark had been the midnight

Bb                     C F

But dayspring is at hand,

F Bb F       Bb F        Bb    

And glory, glory dwelleth

F        C F

In Immanuel’s land.

Victory

Victory

O lead me to the Man that died,
Who all God’s nature glorified;
Descending to the depths of woe;
And for us vanquished every foe!

O lead me to the empty tomb
His death has robbed of all its gloom;
He’s ris’n! the Lord of life and peace,
And holds me in His fond embrace.

O lead me up to heaven’s height,
To see the Lord enthroned in light;
That gazing on His glory there,
I may reflect His image here.

O lead me to that meeting rare,
So often longed for in the air;
Then, then His blessed face I’ll see,
And praise Him thro’ eternity.

O lead me on to Zion’s hill,
To see the Lord His Word fulfill;
His glorious King is sitting there,
Ruling o’er earth and sea and air.

O lead me to that scene sublime,
Prepared by God before all time;
Sin death and night have passed away;
Light, life, and love are there to stay.

There, too, th’Eternal Three in One,
Blest Father Spirit, and the Son,
Rest undisturbed forevermore;
I wonder, worship, and adore!
~
Alfred Mace

Jesus, I am Resting, Resting

Jesus, I Am Resting, Resting

Jesus, I am resting, resting,
In the joy of what Thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
Of Thy loving heart.
Thou hast bid me gaze upon Thee,
And Thy beauty fills my soul,
For by Thy transforming power,
Thou hast made me whole.

Refrain

Jesus, I am resting, resting,
In the joy of what Thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
Of Thy loving heart.

O, how great Thy loving kindness,
Vaster, broader than the sea!
O, how marvelous Thy goodness,
Lavished all on me!
Yes, I rest in Thee, Belovèd,
Know what wealth of grace is Thine,
Know Thy certainty of promise,
And have made it mine.

Refrain

Simply trusting Thee, Lord Jesus,
I behold Thee as Thou art,
And Thy love, so pure, so changeless,
Satisfies my heart;
Satisfies its deepest longings,
Meets, supplies its every need,
Compasseth me round with blessings:
Thine is love indeed!

Refrain

Ever lift Thy face upon me
As I work and wait for Thee;
Resting ’neath Thy smile, Lord Jesus,
Earth’s dark shadows flee.
Brightness of my Father’s glory,
Sunshine of my Father’s face,
Keep me ever trusting, resting,
Fill me with Thy grace.

Refrain

- Jean S. Pigott -

Quoted from: The Cyber Hymnal

To live is Christ...

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."
Philippians 1:21

If to live is Christ: We have everything. [Romans 8:32]
Ephesians 1:3 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ..."
If to die is gain: We have even more. [Revelation 22:3-4]
John 11:25-26 "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?"

"Yet it must be: Thy love had not its rest
Were Thy redeemed not with Thee fully blest.
That love that gives not as the world, but shares
All it possesses with its loved co-heirs."

John N. Darby

Good Christian websites

Here are some links to some good Christian resources online. I'm sure there are many more, but these are just a few of the ones I've come across.

Sermons/Messages:
Voices for Christ - This website has hundreds (thousands, perhaps) of messages by many excellent speakers.
GoodNewsNows.info - This website has several different CD with good gospel presentations which you can order or listen to online.
BUCKIT Week messages - These are the messages from the 2008 and 2009 BUCKIT (Bible University Christian Knowledge Intensive Training) weeks. You can read more about what it is here.

Articles:
Uplook.org - This is the website for the Uplook magazine. You can read the latest edition and browse older editions as well.
Powered Youth - This is a sporadically updated website/online magazine with articles by and for young people.

Publishers:
Lamplighter Publishing - Lamplighter publishes books with excellent character-building stories. They have recently starting producing them in dramatized audio format.
Gospel Folio Press - GFP publishes many good Christian books, calendars and more.

Music/Hymns:
The Cyber Hymnal - This site has the tunes and lyrics for thousands of hymns.
Saints Serving - This website provides good resources for learning to sing 4-part harmony from Hymns of Truth and Praise (the red book) and Hymns of Worship and Remembrance (the blue book).
Bible Memory System - This website provides Scripture verses put to music.
PursuingLife.com - This website has many of the Psalms arranged a capella.

None but Christ

None but Christ

O Christ, in Thee my soul hath found,
And found in Thee alone,
The peace, the joy I sought so long,
The bliss till now unknown.

Refrain

Now none but Christ can satisfy,
None other Name for me!
There’s love, and life, and lasting joy,
Lord Jesus, found in Thee.

I sighed for rest and happiness,
I yearned for them, not Thee;
But, while I passed my Savior by,
His love laid hold on me.

Refrain

I tried the broken cisterns, Lord,
But, ah, the waters failed;
Even as I stooped to drink they fled,
And mocked me as I wailed.

Refrain

The pleasures lost I sadly mourned,
But never wept for Thee,
Till grace the sightless eyes received,
Thy loveliness to see.

Quoted from: The Cyber Hymnal

Savior, We Love Thee!

This is a hymn with a lovely tune and beautiful words. It is one of my favorites (and I know it is a favorite of a good friend of mine as well!).

Savior! We love Thee, long for Thy return;
The night is dark, and oh, our spirits yearn
To hear the call out from the radiant sky,
The calling Home, the resurrection cry.

This thrilling word that ends this night of gloom,
That binds death's power and triumphs o'er the tomb;
When in a moment we shall mount above
And know the fullness of Thy heart of love.

Oh, wondrous call that bringeth to Thy side
In unmarred beauty Thy beloved Bride,
To know Thy love, its wonders to explore,
In rapture bow, and worship evermore.

Oh, wondrous love! to see Thy face Divine,
To know the whispered joy of being thine.
Oh tell me not of glories I shall see,
This is the deepest- being near to Thee.

Lord Jesus, come! Thy Bride her Lord would see,
And know the joy of being like to Thee;
So worlds on worlds will see what grace has done,
As long as everlasting ages run.
~
Samuel Trevor Francis