11. November Archive Index

November Archive Index

1. Hymn: How We Learn

2. Hymn: Christ Is Made The Sure Foundation

3. Devotional: What Is Painful Will End

4. Hymn: Praise To The Lord, The Almighty

5. Devotional: Lawn Care

6. Hymn: I Do Not Ask, O Lord

7. Devotional: Broken Bread

8. Hymn: Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

9. Hymn: Trust In The Lord

10. Devotional: Heavenly Alchemy

10. Devotional: Heavenly Alchemy

Heavenly Alchemy 

by C. H. Spurgeon 

(Audio)

Your sorrow shall be turned into joy. (John 16:20)     

    Their particular sorrow was the death and absence of their LORD, and it was turned into joy when He rose from the dead and showed Himself in their midst. All the sorrows of saints shall be thus transmuted, even the worst of them, which look as if they must forever remain fountains of bitterness.          Then the more sorrow, the more joy. If we have loads of sorrow, then the LORD's power will turn them into tons of joy. 

    Then the bitterer the trouble the sweeter the pleasure: the swinging of the pendulum far to the left will cause it to go all the farther to the right. The remembrance of the grief shall heighten the flavor of the delight: we shall set the one in contrast with the other, and the brilliance of the diamond shall be the more clearly seen because of the black foil behind it.          

    Come, my heart, cheer up! In a little while I shall be as glad as I am now gloomy. Jesus tells me that by a heavenly alchemy my sorrow shall be turned into joy. I do not see how it is to be, but I believe it, and I begin to sing by way of anticipation. This depression of spirit is not for long; I shall soon be up among the happy ones who praise the LORD day and night, and there I shall sing of the mercy which delivered me out of great afflictions.

9. Hymn: Trust In The Lord

Trust In The Lord

Author: Thomas O. Chisholm

1. Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    This is God’s gracious command;
    In all your ways acknowledge Him,
    So shall you dwell in the land.

Refrain:  

Trust in the Lord, O troubled soul, 

Rest in the arms of His care; 

Whatever your lot, it mattereth not, 

For nothing can trouble you there; 

Trust in the Lord, O troubled soul, 

Nothing can trouble you there.

2. Trust in the Lord who ruleth all,
    Seeth all things as they are,
    Be it a birdling in its nest,
    Or yonder uttermost star.

3. Trust in the Lord and peaceful be,
    Fret not thy spirit in vain,
    What though the answer tarries long,
    Still shalt thou praise Him again.

4. Trust in the Lord—His eye will guide
    All thro’ your pathway ahead,
    He hath redeemed and He will keep,
    Trust Him and be not afraid.

8. Hymn: Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Author: Robert Robinson

Tune: NETTLETON

(Vocal)

1. Come, Thou Fount of ev'ry blessing, 

    Tune my heart to sing thy grace; 

    Streams of mercy, never ceasing, 

    Call for songs of loudest praise. 

    Teach me some melodious sonnet, 

    Sung by flaming tongues above; 

    Praise the mount-I'm fixed upon it-

    Mount of Thy redeeming love.  

2. Here I'll raise mine Ebenezer; 

    Hither by Thy help I've come; 

    And I hope, by Thy good pleasure, 

    Safely to arrive at home. 

    Jesus sought me when a stranger, 

    Wand'ring from the fold of God; 

    He, to rescue me from danger, 

    Interposed His precious blood.  

3. O to grace how great a debtor 

    Daily I'm constrained to be! 

    Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, 

    Bind my wand'ring heart to Thee: 

    Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, 

    Prone to leave the God I love; 

    Here's my heart, O take and seal it; 

    Seal it for Thy courts above.

7. Devotional: Broken Bread

Broken Bread

Edited by Miles J. Stanford

Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and broke it, and gave it. (Matthew 26:26)

    The Lord Jesus is not going to ‘break’ anything in our lives that does not require breaking. But that of the old which remains unbroken, which we seek to hold back from the processing of His nail-pierced hands, will continually leaven and spoil our attempts to feed others.  

    “How often we have murmured under trial only to see later the preparation of the Lord Jesus of our hearts that we might be His ministers of comfort in an hour of need in the life of another (2 Cor. 1:4). Afflictions, therefore, many times are the advance token of the Father that we are being prepared for a special ministry of comfort to others. This is a principle seen throughout the Word. All that would be used of the Father in the hands of the Lord Jesus to meet the needs of the hungry-hearted must first be made a blessing by Him. This involves being broken in His hands. This process is necessary because of our tendency to think more of working for the Lord Jesus than becoming a channel for the outflowing of heavenly bread to broken hearts on every side.” -H.R.  

    “Others come to us in their deep need, and, with our hearts breaking, we are called upon to give out of our emptiness and loss what we seem to need ourselves. We are asked to ‘claim victory’ for others in distress, when it seems that we are in greater distress than they. Thus it was at Calvary! He who had loosed others from bondage was given up, as it appeared, to the full rage of the murderous enemy. He who had done the mighty works of God for others, lay in impotence and weakness in the hands of men. Yes, this is the Cross. Life, power, blessing, deliverance for others—and nothing for thyself, but to lie in the will of the Father, and accept from His hand all that He pleases to permit to come upon thee.”

6. Hymn: I Do Not Ask, O Lord

I Do Not Ask, O Lord

Author: Adelaide A. Procter

1. I do not ask, O Lord, that life may be
    A pleasant road;
    I do not ask that Thou wouldst take from me
    Aught of its load.

2. I do not ask that flowers should always spring
    Beneath my feet;
    I know too well the poison and the sting
    Of things too sweet.

3. For one thing only, Lord, dear Lord, I plead:
    Lead me aright
    Though strength should falter and though heart should bleed,
    Through peace to light.

4. I do not ask, O Lord, that Thou shouldst shed
    Full radiance here;
    Give but a ray of peace, that I may tread
    Without a fear.

5. I do not ask my cross to understand,
    My way to see;
    Better in darkness just to feel Thy hand,
    And follow Thee.

6. Joy is like restless day; but peace divine
    Like quiet night;
    Lead me, O Lord, till perfect day shall shine,
    Through peace to light.

5. Devotional: Lawn Care

Lawn Care

by F. B. Meyer

He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass. (Psalm 72:6)

    Amos speaks of the king’s mowings. Our King has many scythes, and is perpetually mowing his lawns. The musical tinkle of the whetstone on the scythe portends the cutting down of myriads of green blades, daisies, and other flowers. Beautiful as they were in the morning, within an hour or two they lie in long, faded rows. Thus in human life we make a brave show, which passes away like the beauty of grass, before the scythe of pain, the shears of disappointment, the sickle of death.  

    There is no method of obtaining a velvety lawn but by repeated mowings; and there is no way of getting tenderness, evenness, sympathy, but by the passing of God’s scythes. How constantly the Word of God compares man to grass, and his glory to its flower! But when grass is mown, and all the tender shoots are bleeding, and desolation reigns where flowers were bursting, it is the most acceptable time for showers of rain falling soft and warm.  

    O soul, thou hast been mown. Time after time the King has come to thee with his sharp scythe. Thou hast sadly learnt that all flesh is grass, and that the efforts of thy self-life are vain. Where are the kingcups and butter-cups of thy pride? They are laid low that thou shouldest bear better crops than ever; and that thou mayest do so, lo, He comes down as spring rain! He comes down; thus you have the miracle of his condescension. He comes down like rain; there you have the manner of his gentle advent. He comes on the mown grass; there is his expectancy, showing that his reason in mowing, followed as it is by the gentle raindrops, lies in the direction of new beauty and use. Do not dread the scythe — it is sure to be followed by the shower.

4. Hymn: Praise To The Lord, The Almighty

Praise To The Lord, The Almighty

Author: Joachim Neander

Tune: OBE DEN HERREN

(Vocal)

Praise to the Lord! the Almighty, the King of creation!
O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation!
All ye who hear,
Now to His temple draw near,
Join me in glad adoration!

Praise to the Lord! who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings, yea so gently sustaineth;
Hast thou not seen
How thy desires have been
Granted in what He ordaineth?

Praise to the Lord! who doth prosper thy work and defend thee,
Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee;
Ponder anew
What the Almighty can do,
If with His love He befriend thee!

Praise to the Lord! Oh let all that is in me adore Him!
All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him!
Let the Amen
Sound from His people again,
Gladly for aye we adore Him!

3. Devotional: What Is Painful Will End

What Is Painful Will End

by C. H. Spurgeon 

I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: 

for the spirit should fail before Me, and the souls; which I have made. 

(Isaiah 57:16)        

    Our heavenly Father seeks our instruction, not our destruction. His contention with us has a kind intention toward us. He will not be always in arms against us. We think the LORD is long in His chastisements, but that is because we are short in our patience. His compassion endureth forever, but not His contention. The night may drag its weary length along, but it must in the end give place to cheerful day. As contention is only for a season, so the wrath which leads to it is only for a small moment. The LORD loves His chosen too well to be always angry with them.          

    If He were to deal with us always as He does sometimes, we should faint outright and go down hopelessly to the gates of death. Courage, dear heart! The LORD will soon end His chiding. Bear up, for the LORD will bear you up and bear you through. He who made you knows how frail you are and how little you can bear. He will handle tenderly that which He has fashioned so delicately. Therefore, be not afraid because of the painful present, for it hastens to a happy future. He that smote you will heal you; His little wrath shall be followed by great mercies.

2. Hymn: Christ Is Made The Sure Foundation

Christ Is Made The Sure Foundation

Author: John Mason Neale

Tune: WESTMINSTER ABBEY, by Henry Purcell

(Vocal)

1. Christ is made the sure Foundation, 

    Christ the Head and Cornerstone, 

    Chosen of the Lord, and precious, 

    Binding all the Church in one; 

    Holy Zion's help for ever, 

    And her confidence alone.  

2. All that dedicated city, 

    Dearly loved of God on high, 

    In exultant jubilation 

    Pours perpetual melody; 

    God the One in Three adoring 

    In glad hymns eternally.  

3. To this temple, where we call Thee, 

    Come, O Lord of Hosts, to-day; 

    With Thy wonted loving-kindness, 

    Hear Thy people as they pray; 

    And Thy fullest benediction 

    Shed within its walls alway.  

4. Here vouchsafe to all Thy servants 

    What they ask of Thee to gain, 

    What they gain from Thee, for ever 

    With the blessed to retain, 

    And hereafter in Thy glory 

    Evermore with Thee to reign.  

5. Laud and honor to the Father, 

    Laud and honor to the Son, 

    Laud and honor to the Spirit, 

    Ever Three and ever One, 

    One in might, and One in glory, 

    While unending ages run.

1. Hymn: How We Learn

How We Learn

Author: Horatius Bonar

Great truths are dearly bought. The common truth,  

Such as men give and take from day to day,  

Comes in the common walks of easy life,  

Blown by the careless wind across our way.   

Bought in the market, at the current price,  

Bred of the smile, the jest, perchance the bowl,  

It tells no tale of daring or of worth,  

Nor pierces even the surface of a soul.   

Great truths are greatly won. Not found by chance,  

Nor wafted on the breath of summer-dream,  

But grasped in the great struggle of the soul,  

Hard-buffeting with adverse wind and stream.   

Not in the general mart, 'mid corn and wine,  

Not in the merchandise of gold and gems,  

Not in the world's gay halls of midnight mirth,  

Not 'mid the blaze of regal diadems,   

But in the day of conflict, fear, and grief,  

When the strong hand of God, put forth in might,  

Ploughs up the subsoil of the stagnant heart,  

And brings the imprisoned truth-seed to the light.   

Wrung from the troubled spirit in hard hours  

Of weakness, solitude, perchance of pain,  

Truth springs, like harvest, from the well-ploughed field,  

And the soul feels it has not wept in vain.