This is another hymn I came across in my daily devotional while reading a hymnal. Written by John Newton and included in his Olney Hymns book in 1779, this one was written under the heading of Perseverance. This hymn can easily be used to encourage yourself, as well as other believers, when trials come and difficulties arise. Why don’t you save this hymn and then come back to it once you meet a trial? I’m sure it will encourage your soul. Enjoy!
Rejoice, believer, in the Lord, Who makes your cause his own; The hope that’s built upon his word Shall ne’er be overthrown.
Though many foes beset your road, And feeble is your arm, Your life is hid with Christ in God Beyond the reach of harm.
Weak as you are, you shall not faint Or fainting shall not die! For Jesus, strength of ev’ry saint, Will aid you from on high.
Though unperceived by mortal sense, Faith sees him always near! A guide, a glory, sure defense; Then what have you to fear?
As surely as he overcame And triumphed once for you, So surely you that love his name Shall in him triumph too.
In 1869, Fanny Crosby was shown a tune by William Doane, for which she wrote this text. The text and tune were published together in Bright Jewels for the Sunday School in 1869. The first line of each stanza contains the phrase “near the cross,” emphasizing the value of Christ’s redeeming work there. Each stanza has a slightly different aspect of the main theme. The first stanza describes redemption through Jesus’ blood, and the second, the need of humanity for salvation. The third stanza is a prayer that the Christian would always remember God’s love as shown on the cross, and the fourth looks forward to heaven1. Enjoy
Jesus, keep me near the cross, There a precious fountain; Free to all, a healing stream, Flows from Calv’ry’s mountain.
Refrain In the cross, in the cross Be my glory ever, Till my raptured soul shall find Rest beyond the river.
Near the cross, a trembling soul, Love and mercy found me; There the Bright and Morning Star Shed His beams around me.
Refrain
Near the cross! O lamb of God, Bring its scenes before me; Help me walk from day to day With its shadow o’er me.
Refrain
Near the cross! I’ll watch and wait, Hoping, trusting ever; Till I reach the golden strand, Just beyond the river.
This hymn is written by Isaac Watts in 1709, who no doubt draws inspiration from Hebrews, where Jesus is clearly and profoundly portrayed as our great high priest. Christ not only intercedes to God on our behalf as the high priests of Israel did, but by offering his blood as the sacrifice for our sins, guarantees us full peace, pardon and forgiveness. This version by Kirk Ward also has an added refrain; enjoy!
Jesus, my great High Priest, Offered his blood and died; My guilty conscience seeks No sacrifice beside. His pow’rful blood did once atone, And now it pleads before the Throne.
To this dear Surety’s hand Will I commit my cause; He answers and fulfills His Father’s broken laws. Behold my soul at freedom set; My Surety paid the dreadful debt.
Refrain Now I approach the throne And I have confidence; Jesus, my great High Priest, Offered his blood and died. Now I approach the throne, And I have confidence; Jesus, my great High Priest offered his blood and died, For me.
My Advocate appears For my defense on high; The Father bows his ears And lays his thunder by. Not all that hell or sin can say Shall turn his heart, his love, away.
Refrain
Should all the hosts of death And pow’rs of hell unknown Put their most dreadful forms Of rage and mischief on, I shall be safe, for Christ displays His conqu’ring pow’r and guardian grace.
According to mythology, when St. Patrick was a missionary in Ireland in the 5th century, King Logaire of Tara decreed that no one was allowed to light any fires until a pagan festival was begun by the lighting of a fire on Slane Hill. In a move of defiance against this pagan ritual, St. Patrick did light a fire, and, rather than execute him, the king was so impressed by his devotion that he let Patrick continue his missionary work. Three centuries later, a monk named Dallan Forgaill wrote the Irish poem, “Rop tú mo Baile” (“Be Thou my Vision), to remember and honor the faith of St. Patrick. Forgaill was martyred by pirates, but his poetry lived on as a part of the Irish monastic tradition for centuries until, in the early 20th century, Mary Elizabeth Byrne translated the poem into English, and in 1912, Eleanor Hull versified the text into what is now a well-loved hymn and prayer that at every moment of our lives, God would be our vision above all else1. There are lots of versions of this song it’s hard to pick one!
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart; naught be all else to me, save that thou art. Thou my best thought, by day or by night, waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word; I ever with thee, and thou with me, Lord. Born of thy love, thy child may I be, thou in me dwelling and I one with thee.
Be thou my buckler, my sword for the fight. Be thou my dignity, thou my delight, thou my soul’s shelter, thou my high tow’r. Raise thou me heav’nward, O Pow’r of my pow’r.
Riches I heed not, nor vain empty praise; thou mine inheritance, now and always. Thou and thou only, first in my heart, Ruler of heaven, my treasure thou art.
“*True Light of heaven, when vict’ry is won may I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heav’n’s Sun! Heart of my heart, whatever befall, still be my vision, O Ruler of all.
This choice was a Latin hymn written sometime in the late 6th or 7th Century under the title Urbs beata Jerusalem. The original hymn was sung as an unaccompanied plainsong melody. In 1851, John Mason Neale translated the hymn from Latin into English. Many modern versions of the texts vary greatly from his original translations. The hymn has been performed at the marriage ceremonies of the British Royals Princess Margaret in 1960 and Prince Charles and Diana Spencer in 1981. It was also the opening hymn for the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee service in June 2022 (video below!) and performed a few months later at her funeral in September 20221.
Christ is made the sure foundation, Christ, our head and cornerstone, chosen of the Lord and precious, binding all the Church in one; holy Zion’s help forever and our confidence alone.
To this temple, where we call you, come, O Lord of hosts, and stay; come with all your lovingkindness, hear your people as they pray; and your fullest benediction speak within these walls today.
Grant, we pray, to all your faithful all the gifts they ask to gain; what they gain from you forever with the blessed to retain; And hereafter in your glory evermore with you to reign.
Praise and honor to the Father, praise and honor to the Son, praise and honor to the Spirit, ever three and ever one: one in might and one in glory while unending ages run!
Thomas Piggott was a missionary to China. His sister, Jean Piggott, wrote the song, Jesus, I am Resting, Resting. She was born in County Kildare, Ireland on September 8, 1845 and almost two years later on August 5, 1847, her brother Thomas Wellesley Piggot was born. Thomas, arrived in China in 1879 as a missionary. In a letter written in May 1896, he says in part “Now there are many hundreds of converts, many of them earnest, faithful men, and a large number of stations where thousands are brought under Christian influence. How shall we look on the investment of our lives and labour here, even from the near standpoint of one hundred years hence? I am, I can truly say, more grateful every day for the opportunity of serving Christ, and I believe this to be the only true and sober view of life s realities. The work pressed home now, will make all the difference a few years hence.” On July 9, 1901 he was executed at the age of fifty-three, along with seventy-six other Christian missionaries, in the Boxer Rebellion at the Sheo Yang Mission uprising. J. Hudson Taylor, a great missionary to China for 51 years, was terribly saddened to hear of the loss of his friends and fellow missionaries following the slayings. Jesus, I am Resting, Resting became a great comfort to him during this time1.
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, as 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 lovingkindness, vaster, broader than the sea! O how marvelous thy goodness lavished all on me! Yes, I rest in thee, Beloved, 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 ev’ry 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.
This hymn is a simple confession of the true believer’s desire and aim in life: to live for God, rely on his grace, and look forward to meeting him again. Enjoy!
This life I live is not my own, For my redeemer paid the price; He took it to be his alone, To be his treasure and his prize. The things of earth I leave behind, To live in worship of my King; His is the right to rule my life, Mine is the joy to live for him.
I died to sin upon the cross, I’m bound to Jesus in his death; The old is gone, and now I must, Rely on him for every breath. With every footstep that I tread, What mysteries he has in store; I cannot know what lies ahead, But know that he has gone before.
There is a voice that pierced the grave, A power that rolled the stone away; A sound of life, I know I’m saved, The voice of God has called my name. So I will rise, and in the air, Behold the glory of the King; I will not fear to meet him there, I know my life is hid with him.
“Boldly I approach my Father, clothed in Jesus’ righteousness; there is no more guilt to carry, it was finished upon that cross.” This is one of my favourite stanzas in CityAlight’s song from their newest album. It tells us of the benefits we have because of what Jesus has done on the cross for us. The upbeat melody is also a great accompaniment to fill your heart with joy for all our Saviour Jesus Christ has done; enjoy!
How I love the voice of Jesus, On the cross of Calvary; He declares His work is finished, He has spoken this hope to me.
Though the sun had ceased its shining, Though the war appeared as lost; Christ had triumphed over evil; It was finished upon that cross.
Now the curse it has been broken, Jesus paid the price for me; Full, the pardon He has offered; Great, the welcome that I receive.
Boldly I approach my Father, Clothed in Jesus’ righteousness; There is no more guilt to carry, It was finished upon that cross.
Death was once my great opponent, Fear once had a hold on me; But the Son who died to save us, Rose that we would be free indeed!
Free from every plan of darkness, Free to live and free to love; Death is dead and Christ is risen! It was finished upon that cross.
Onward to eternal glory, To my Saviour and my God; I rejoice in Jesus’ victory, It was finished upon that cross.
The spiritual seed behind this hymn by Charlotte Elliott (1789–1871) is sometimes regarded to be her conversion experience1. Charlotte had become an invalid in 1821, which brought her great mental distress. Her lifelong spiritual mentor César Malan, a Swiss minister and hymnologist, counselled her to replace her rage and inner conflict with peace, and simple faith in God; from that day on, she turned her literary talents to writing hymns. Although sometimes depressed by her condition, she always felt renewed by the assurance of salvation, and she responded to her Saviour in hymns with her “strong imagination and a well cultured and intellectual mind” (John D. Julian, A Dictionary of Hymnology, 1892). She wrote about 150 hymns. Her most famous, “Just as I Am,” is widely used in English and North American hymnals today2.
Just as I am, without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bidd’st me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, and waiting not to rid my soul of one dark blot, to thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, though tossed about with many a conflict, many a doubt, fightings and fears within, without, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, thou wilt receive, wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve; because thy promise I believe, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Sir John Bowring (1792-1872) was a distinguished scholar, ranked by some as one of the great minds of his day in the English-speaking world. Among his gifts was his ability as a linguist, publishing translations of poetry from such varied languages as Russian, Batavian, Spanish, Polish, Serbian, Bohemian, Magyar, Czech and Hungarian. Bowring also was twice a member of Parliament, a consul at Canton (in charge of trade in China) and a governor of Hong Kong. Despite a demanding political and diplomatic career, Bowring maintained an active avocation as a translator of poetry, composer of original poems and writer of essays on political and religious themes. “In the cross of Christ I glory” (1825) was composed while the author was in his early thirties. Appearing in Hymns by John Bowring (1825), the theme and language suggests a much more mature poet. Late 19th-century hymnologist John Julian suggests that Galatians 6:14 provides the basis for this hymn: “Far be it for me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (KJV).
In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o’er the wrecks of time; all the light of sacred story gathers round its head sublime.
When the woes of life o’ertake me, hopes deceive, and fears annoy, never shall the cross forsake me. Lo! it glows with peace and joy.
When the sun of bliss is beaming light and love upon my way, from the cross the radiance streaming adds more luster to the day.
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure, by the cross are sanctified; peace is there that knows no measure, joys that through all time abide.
In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o’er the wrecks of time; all the light of sacred story gathers round its head sublime.
Hymn of the Day 