The Grace of Salvation, The Grace of the Refining Fires, All For His People

"On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness." - Zechariah 13:1


There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins;And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.Lose all their guilty stains, lose all their guilty stains;And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.

The dying thief rejoiced to see that fountain in his day;And there have I, though vile as he, washed all my sins away.Washed all my sins away, washed all my sins away;And there have I, though vile as he, washed all my sins away.

Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood shall never lose its powerTill all the ransomed church of God be saved, to sin no more.Be saved, to sin no more, be saved, to sin no more;Till all the ransomed church of God be saved, to sin no more.

E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream Thy flowing wounds supply,Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die.And shall be till I die, and shall be till I die;Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die.

Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I’ll sing Thy power to save,When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.Lies silent in the grave, lies silent in the grave;When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.

Lord, I believe Thou hast prepared, unworthy though I be,For me a blood bought free reward, a golden harp for me!’Tis strung and tuned for endless years, and formed by power divine,To sound in God the Father’s ears no other name but Thine.

-There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood, William Cowper

"Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me," declares the Lord of hosts. "Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones. In the whole land, declares the Lord, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive. And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, 'They are my people'; and they will say, 'The Lord is my God.'" - Zechariah 13:7-9 (bold type added)

"...though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ." - 1 Peter 1:6-7

He Will Exult Over Us With Loud Singing

"Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil...The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing." - Zephaniah 3:14-15, 17

Daytime and Nighttime

Month and the Year

Battling I long for, Your quiet waters

Battered and Beaten

Tired and Scared

Stumbling I come to, Your quiet waters

Shepherd knows my name

Now I'm found, and never the same

You sing over me,

With a sweet, sweet melody

Quench my thirst,

A thirst only You can satisfy

You sing over me,

With a sweet, sweet melody

Lead me beside still waters, quiet waters

Broken and crippled

Too weak to stand

Reaching, You pick me up

To my surprise, You carry me

-Shepherd's Song, by Heather Palmer

http://www.myspace.com/heatherapalmer

The Glory and the Wonder of the Scriptures

As I awoke this morning, the weight of the days were bound upon my back. The sorrows of life seemed to have overtaken my emotions. The last several days have been full of much sadness, heaviness, depression. By God's grace and power, I turned to His Word. The book of Habakkuk was my course; a book of three chapters. What I found there was the glory and power of God to speak to the saints through His Word, through the Scriptures. I marvel at the power and mystery of our Lord Jesus. This book, Habakkuk, was written at least a little over 2,000 years ago, yet I heard God's voice more clearly than any human has spoken to me in these recent days of darkness. O the power of God, the power and wonder of His Word. Spoken to my brother over 2,000 years ago, He found and heard from God; spoken to my brother over 2,000 years ago, a light to me amidst the darkness.

"O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you 'Violence!' and you will not save? Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise." - Habakkuk 1:2-3

"Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told." - Habakkuk 1:5

"Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith." - Habakkuk 2:4 ("bold-type" added by me)

"Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places." - Habakkuk 3:17-19a