I Stand Amazed…

I stand amazed in the presence
Of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me,
A sinner, condemned, unclean.

O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

For me it was in the garden
He prayed: “Not My will, but Thine.”
He had no tears for His own griefs,
But sweat drops of blood for mine.

O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

In pity angels beheld Him,
And came from the world of light
To comfort Him in the sorrows
He bore for my soul that night.

O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

He took my sins and my sorrows,
He made them His very own;
He bore the burden to Calvary,
And suffered and died alone.

O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

When with the ransomed in glory
His face I at last shall see,
’Twill be my joy through the ages
To sing of His love for me.

O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
O how marvelous! O how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

Words: Charles H. Gab­ri­el, in Prais­es, by Ed­win O. Ex­cell (Chi­ca­go, Il­li­nois: 1905)

His eye is on the sparrow!!!

And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Matthew 10:28-31 ESV

“I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Luke 12:4-7 ESV

And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
Luke 12:22-31 ESV

Spurgeon

I believe the holier a man becomes, the more he mourns over the unholiness which remains in him.
Charles Spurgeon

Faith Part 1

But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Matthew 6:30 ESV

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
Matthew 17:20 ESV

And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen.
Matthew 21:21 ESV

He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”
Mark 4:40 ESV

And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God.
Mark 11:22 ESV

But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
Luke 12:28-31 ESV

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”
Luke 17:5 ESV

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
Romans 10:17 ESV

… that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
1 Corinthians 2:5 ESV

Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak,
2 Corinthians 4:13 ESV

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight.
2 Corinthians 5:6-7 ESV

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20 ESV

But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
Galatians 3:25-26 ESV

For God so LOVED the world…

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
John 3:16-21 ESV

Young Hollywood

Everytime I look at People magazine’s website lately, it seems that many stars are entering rehab… young ones too. I just logged onto the site and see that Kirsten Dunst (25) has entered rehab. Recently, it’s been Lindsay Lohan (21), Amy Winehouse (24), Britney Spears (26), Eva Mendes (33)… it seems endless… And then you have the death of these actors Heath Ledger (28) and Brad Renfro (25)… Owen Wilson (39) attempted suicide last year… Man, it is truly sad, but the preacher in Eccesiastes calls it… Vanity of vanities. It seems as though it’s all happening at a higher rate than usual – the deaths / suicides and rehab entrances…

Lets keep young Hollywood lifted in prayer ? Only Jesus can truly define man’s life.

Grace and peace,
Jenn

The Manifold Perfection of Christ

3 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:3-8 ESV

During prayer Sunday morning, this passage was used as a focal point. As we were led through this passage and prayer, something clicked. I got it! In verse 4, we’re told not to look out for ourselves, but for others. In verses 6-8, the letter then talks about Christ who was the perfect example of this principle. He didn’t look to His own interests. He came down to earth and took the form of a servant and made our need for a Savior a priority. He didn’t look to His own comforts. He laid down His life on His own (1 John 3:16, John 10:18). He didn’t buck against the crucifixion (Isaiah 53:7). He put the will of the Father above His own (Matthew 26:39). The Son of God willingly gave His life so that those who would be called and chosen would have eternal life through His blood. He gave His life so that we would receive His righteousness. In 3 hours, He endured the wrath of God that would have taken an eternity to pour out on all men. Christ is the ultimate example of looking ‘to the interests of others’. He, though being God in the flesh, was the perfect epitome of humility by willingly laying His life down for His sheep.

These points are driven even further home when I look at the definitions of rivalry and conceit:

Rivalry – the act of competing as for profit or a prize.
Conceit – an excessively favorable opinion of one’s own ability, importance, wit, etc.

We’re to do nothing out of a spirit of one-upmanship. We’re to do nothing only for the sake of getting something back. We’re not to, as Paul says not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought to (Romans 12:3).

Jesus Christ is such a perfect example of EVERYTHING! How amazing is it that He would die for His elect ones to be reconciled to the Father. We have relationship with the Father because of the atoning blood, sacrifice, and death of the unique and Holy One – Jesus the Christ.

Jesus Christ = Adorable!

I was reading the Valley of Vision last night, looking at some of the prayers. In one, Christ was referred to as ‘adorable’. I don’t know about you, but when I hear that word, I think of something cute… like a baby. How often do we say a baby, or dress, or anything else, is adorable ? Often. It prompted me to look up the definition of the word in the dictionary. The 2nd definition of the word says:

2. worthy of being adored.

Is a baby or a dress worthy of my adoration ? No. Only Jesus Christ is worthy.

ad·o·ra·tion –noun
1. the act of paying honor, as to a divine being; worship.
2. reverent homage.
3. fervent and devoted love.

a·dore
–verb
1. to regard with the utmost esteem, love, and respect; honor.
2. to pay divine honor to; worship.
3. to like or admire very much.

May the heart of the believer find Jesus Christ purely adorable.