Sunday's Hymn: And Can It Be That I Should Gain?

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain—
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

’Tis mystery all: th’Immortal dies:
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
Let angel minds inquire no more.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.

He left His Father’s throne above
So free, so infinite His grace—
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race:
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray—
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

Still the small inward voice I hear,
That whispers all my sins forgiven;
Still the atoning blood is near,
That quenched the wrath of hostile Heaven.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

—Charles Wesley

Other hymns, worship songs, sermons etc. posted today:

• Update: Father In Thy Presence Kneeling at Rosemary at Home
• May the Mind of Christ My Saviour at Jam and Books
• Angels from the Realms of Glory at Gospel Grace
• Be Thou My Vision at By Grace Alone
• I Have a Song That Jesus Gave Me at The Happy Wonderer
• Soon May the Last Glad Song Arise at Conjubilant with Song
• Lord’s Day 48 at Tried With Fire 
• Lord’s Day 48, 2012 at The Thirsty Theologian
• Your Weekly Dose of Spurgeon at Pyromaniacs: Our Place
• Faith Alone - November 25, 2012 at The Upward Call
• Update: Praying the Sermon on the Mount at Daily On My Way to Heaven

Have you posted a hymn (or sermon, sermon notes, prayer, etc.) today and I missed it? Let me know by leaving a link in the comments or by contacting me using the contact form linked above, and I’ll add your post to the list.

Thankful Thursday

Americans are celebrating their Thanksgiving holiday today. Here, it’s just a regular day (We had Thanksgiving back in early October) with mail delivery and everything. I’m thankful for my mailman, who regularly delivers packages of good things to me. I’m also thankful for online shopping, the only way we can get some of the things we need (like the tubes for my son’s old amp that came in the mail today), and the least expensive way to get other items (like the Manitoba wild rice I received yesterday). 

I’m thankful for the variety of food available to me. When I first moved here—35 years ago now—the pickings in the grocery store were pretty slim, especially in the winter. It’s not like that anymore, and I’m thankful for it. I’m thankful for the people who stock the supermarket shelves and the truckers who bring the food up the Alaska highway.

I’m thankful for my furnace and my warm bed. While I’m thinking of it, I’m thankful for the man who delivers oil for my furnace. Whether he knows it or not, he is an instrument of God’s providence for me.

I’m thankful that God is good and that he provides good gifts for us.  

Round the Sphere Again: Series

Two recent blog series that I recommend to you.

Attacking Anxiety
I’ll admit it; I’m a worrier. I worry less than I used to, but I can still become anxious over nothing. John MacArthur has been writing about fighting anxiety the biblical way.

• Overwhelmed by Anxiety?
• Worn Out by Worry
• Anxiety and God’s Sovereignty
• Observing God’s Care
• What Did Jesus Say About Worry?
• Our Father Overcomes Our Anxiety, Part 1
• Our Father Overcomes Our Anxiety, Part 2
• The Incompatibility of Faith and Anxiety
• The Folly of Worry in Light of Our Future

You’ll want watch for more, because this series isn’t finished.

Diagramming Scripture
For what it’s worth, in my opinion, many Christians are not careful enough in their observation of the text of scripture. They don’t see the connections or the flow of the argument, and they don’t know how to start seeing them. But there’s help: Tim Brister shows us his way to use sentence diagramming to study scripture “for greater Bible intake, ultimately leading to greater life transformation through the Spirit’s work through His Word.” 

• Disciple-Making and Sentence Diagramming, Part 1
• Disciple-Making and Sentence Diagramming, Part 2
• Disciple-Making and Sentence Diagramming, Part 3
• Disciple-Making and Sentence Diagramming, Part 4
• Disciple-Making and Sentence Diagramming, Part 5

There will be more posts in this series, too.