At the foot of the cross

Was catching up on Andrew Clark's blog today and came across a post where he mentions installing a mercy seat in his house. For those of you who don't have any experience of The Salvation Army, the Mercy Seat (named after an aspect of the Ark of the Covenant) is a public place of prayer where Salvationists have traditionally made their covenants and had some of their most powerful encounters with God.

Now personally the thought of having a mercy eat in my house seems a little strange, although I do miss it's focus when I'm at other churches. However, it led me on a train of thought about kneeling at the foot of the cross. You see, you kneel or stand in front of the mercy seat.

Anyway, long story short I was reminded of these words and wanted to share them with you all. It makes me ask myself, do I kneel at the cross enough? Do I humble myself before God and before my peers often enough, or have I elevated my own position?

At the foot of the cross - One Hundred Hours

At the foot of the cross,

where I kneel in adoration

And I lay my burdens down

I exchange all my sin

for the promise of salvation

And Your name across my brow

At the foot of the cross,

I give up my vain ambition

And I leave my selfish pride

In the peace that is there,

will You restore my vision?

In all the places I am blind

I will wait here at the cross

I will wait here at the cross

I will wait here at the cross

I will wait here at the cross

At the foot of the cross

there is healing for this nation

There is rest for those who wait

And the love that we find

is the hope of all creation

We are stunned by what You gave

We will wait here at the cross

We will wait here at the cross

We will wait here at the cross

We will wait here at the cross

We will wait at the cross,

a hungry generation

With our broken hearts and lives

Will You hear? Will You come?

Will You fill our desperation?

Oh God let this be the time

Praise to the Holiest...

I just caught the end of Songs of Praise tonight to hear them singing "Praise to the Holiest in the heights".
I've always enjoyed singing the song, it's got lovely poetry and a nice tune.
Anyway, as I read the words going past I realised how much truth and power they contain! We are losing these old songs to our detriment!
To see the words take a look at: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/p/r/praiseto.htm

Everyday I am swayed...

Hi all. Long time since my last post.

Confession time: I'm a sinner. I wish I wasn't but I still am. Paul sums it up well in Romans (7:15-20):

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

Have had this song for a while, but decided to look up the words as I listened to it today (Shifting Sand by Caedmon's Call):

Sometimes I believe all the lies

So I can do the things I should despise

And every day I am swayed

By whatever is on my mind

I hear it all depends on my faith

So I'm feeling precarious

The only problem I have with these mysteries

Is they're so mysterious

And like a consumer I've been thinking

If I could just get a bit more

More than my 15 minutes of faith,

Then I'd be secure

(Chorus)

My faith is like shifting sand

Changed by every wave

My faith is like shifting sand

So I stand on grace

I've begged you for some proof

For my Thomas eyes to see

A slithering staff, a leprous hand

And lions resting lazily

A glimpse of your back-side glory

And this soaked altar going ablaze

But you know I've seen so much

I explained it away

(Chorus)

Waters rose as my doubts reigned

My sand-castle faith, it slipped away

Found myself standing on your grace

It'd been there all the time

(Chorus repeated)

My prayer? God, make me better!

Stay on the solid ground and you won't be swept around so much... time to get back some discipline and really delve into the Word.

March On!

As someone coming from the Salvation Army I have a fondness for the Salvation Army Song Book. In reality it's probably little different for the fondness many Christians over the years have had for their hymn books...

The thing is, though, there's so much good stuff in the Song Book that we'd be foolish to chuck out the baby with the bath water. Yes tradition needs to be chucked out, it's served it's purpose but good poetry is still good poetry and truth is still truth.

Today I want to share the words of a song that I have never sung in a Salvation Army meeting, written by one of the founding pioneers, George Scott Railton. It contains words of encouragement and victory! The only reason I know these words is because they were set to a new tune and performed by the South Youth Chorus.

Just read over them a couple of times and let them sink in...

Shout aloud salvation, and we'll have another song;

Sing it with a spirit that will start the world along;

Sing it as our comrades sang it many a thousand strong,

As the were marching to Glory.

March on, march on! we bring the jubilee;

Fight on, fight on! salvation makes us free;

We'll shout our Saviour's praises over every land and sea

As we go marching to Glory.

How the anxious shout it when they hear the joyful sound!

How the weakest conquer when the Saviour they have found!

How our grand battalions with triumphant power abound,

As we go marching to Glory.

So we'll make a thoroughfare for Jesus and his train;

All the world shall hear us as fresh converts still we gain;

Sin shall fly before us for resistance is in vain,

As we go marching for Glory.

March on, march on! we bring the jubilee;

Fight on, fight on! salvation makes us free;

We'll shout our Saviour's praises over every land and sea

As we go marching to Glory.

"There is Nothing"

In the run-up to Christmas my sister asked what I wanted this year. We're very fortunate in that we don't need for much, we've pretty much got everything we need/want. I tend to ask for quite practical things for Christmas, but there wasn't much to ask for.

After thinking it through I remembered that my sister has pretty good taste in music, and after quite a long time spent working in a Christian Bookshop has a pretty good knowledge of the Christian music scene. It'd been a while since I'd got any new Christian music, so I asked for a new CD - I left the decision of what type to her.

Anyway, come Christmas I had actually forgotten this request and was surprised to find a lovely CD called "Great God Who Saves" by a woman named "Laura Story".

The CD includes a song we both love called "Indescribable" which we had at our wedding (it turns out it's actually co-written by her). But another song on the CD has caught my attention: "There is nothing" herewith the words/lyrics:

Lord I come before You

To honor and adore You

For who You are and all that You have done

Lord I am not worthy

My heart is dark and dirty

Still somehow You bid for me to come

May our time be sweeter

May I be a keeper

Of the promises I make to You in song

Lord may I remember these moments of surrender

And live my life this way from this day on

So clothe me in humility

Remind me, that I come before a King

And there is nothing

There is nothing

More precious, more worthy

May I gaze deeper

May I stand longer

May I press onward to know You Lord

Lay it Down

This evening, as part of my churches choir practice, I will be taking a few moments to bring a thought to the other members. I want to talk about allowing ourselves to be used by God. I want to talk about starting right now, not waiting till we are perfect.

To help me do that I am using a song called "Lay it down", by Jaci Velasquez (lyrics here) which includes the chorus:

So I'm gonna lay it down
I'm gonna learn to trust You now
What else can I do?
Cause everything I am depends on You
And if the sun don't come back up
I know Your love will be enough
I'm gonna let it be, I'm gonna let it go,
I'm gonna lay it down.

And also use the verse from Jeremiah 29:11 (paraphrased) "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans to prosper you not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (emphasis added).

God knows what He's doing. Sometimes we just have to give in, and go along with it, even if we don't understand. Why me? Why like this? Why now? I don't know, but I know I trust Him.

Take time to be Holy

I found the words to the song my head was searching for in the labyrinth (read the previous post). Song can be found in the Salvation Army Song Book (No. 458)

1.
Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord;
Abide in him always, and feed on his word;
Make friends of God's children; help those who are weak;
Forgetting in nothing his blessing to seek.

2.
Take time to be holy, the world rushes on;
Spend much time in secret with Jesus alone;
By looking to Jesus, like him thou shalt be;
Thy friends in thy conduct his likeness shall see.

3.
Take time to be holy, let him be thy guide,
And run not before him whatever betide;
In joy or in sorrow still follow thy Lord,
And, looking to Jesus, still trust in his word.

4.
Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul;
Each thought and each motive beneath his control;
Thus led by his Spirit to fountains of love,
Thou soon shalt be fitted for service above.

William Dunn Longstaff (1822-94)