Awake, My Soul, and with the Sun (Strength in Hymn)

Awake, My Soul, and with the Sun

by Thomas Ken (1637-1711)

Awake, my soul, and with the sun

thy daily stage of duty run;

shake off dull sloth, and joyful rise 

to pay thy morning sacrifice.

Redeem thy misspent time that's past,
And live this day as if the last;
Improve thy talent with due care;
For the great day thyself prepare.

Let all thy converse be sincere,
Thy conscience as the noon-day clear; 
Think how all-seeing God thy ways
And all thy secret thoughts surveys.

Wake, and lift up thyself, my heart,
And with the angels bear thy part,
Who all night long unwearied sing
High praise to the eternal King.

Direct, control, suggest, this day,
All I design, or do, or say,
That all my powers, with all their might,
In Thy sole glory may unite. 

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host:
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

~*~*~

I. 

I guess you recognized that last bit, didn't you, even if you hadn't heard the rest? The doxology that we know and love is actually the final part of a much longer hymn.  I'm only including about half of the verses here.  The author, Thomas Ken, was an Anglican bishop whose Protestant religious convictions landed him as a prisoner in the Tower of London.  

According to CyberHymnal, "Ken wrote this hymn at a time when the es­tab­lished church believed only Scripture should be sung as hymns—with an em­pha­sis on the Psalms. Some con­sid­ered it sin­ful and blas­phe­mous to write new lyr­ics for church mu­sic, akin to ad­ding to the Script­ures. In that at­mo­sphere, Ken wrote this and sev­er­al other hymns for the boys at Win­chest­er Col­lege, with strict in­struct­ions that they use them on­ly in their rooms, for pri­vate de­vo­tions. Iron­ic­al­ly, the last stan­za has come into wide­spread use as the Dox­ol­o­gy, per­haps the most fr­equent­ly used piece of mu­sic in pub­lic wor­ship. At Ken's request, the hymn was sung at his fun­er­al, fit­tingly held at sun­rise."

II. 

What is the point?  Is this hymn demanding a lifestyle of performance?  Are we just supposed to push ourselves to do, do, do – to prove our worth?  No.  It is about being aware of God, taking time to worship, making the most of our day, serving others, getting better at what we do, keeping a clear conscience, and living well with a heart for excellence -- with God's empowerment.   All of this is wholesome and ultimately pleasant for the soul. I believe this invigorating approach is so much better than living with the “worm mentality” of thinking I can never do anything well or that I am so insignificant that my puny efforts will never make a difference or that God has to hold his nose or look away when I am in his presence.  As the Westminster catechism proclaims, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever!”  We can do that.  We were made for it.

III.

I thought of this hymn today because I had a really hard time getting up and getting going with the day since I hadn’t slept well during the night.  Unfortunately, this sleepiness resulted in a few cross words exchanged with a child who had other expectations for my activity level.  I eventually eased into wakefulness, especially with the help of a little caffeine and reading.  It was a productive day after all: a vigorous mix of laundry, helping my husband with his resume, grading and lesson planning for the classes I teach three days a week, chauffeuring my kids, cooking dinner, chatting with my family, and shopping.  And yes, wee pockets of time to pause and rest and ponder the goodness of God and the beauty of his creation.  Speaking of which, the photos here are actually not of sunrise, but this evening’s sunset as I left home for errands – but I think that’s just fine since once I got going, I lasted all day!  I love to stop and notice what God has made for our enjoyment and his own glory.

IV.

A modernized version of the hymn...  Enjoy!

Awake!

Virginia Knowles

www.WatchTheShepherd.blogspot.com

If you like my sunset and clouds photos, you might also like: Catch It While You Can

Let There Be Peace on Earth (Strength in Hymn)

"Let There Be Peace on Earth"

by Sy Miller and Jill Jackson

Let there be peace on earth

And let it begin with me.

Let there be peace on earth

The peace that was meant to be.

With God as our father

Brothers all are we.

Let me walk with my brother

In perfect harmony.

Let peace begin with me

Let this be the moment now.

With every step I take

Let this be my solemn vow.

To take each moment

And live each moment

With peace eternally.

Let there be peace on earth,

And let it begin with me.

We sang this beautiful song at my mother’s memorial service last weekend.  My sister Barb chose it, remembering that my mother had sung it often when we were children.  We decided to recruit whomever would sing it with us, even at the last minute, and ended up with eight of us.

I appreciate the sentiment of this song for its encouragement for each of us to take the initiative to work for peace in our own spheres of influence, instead of waiting for someone else “out there” to take the first step.

At the same time, I remember that true peace begins with God, and that in a world which often rejects him and chooses the way of sin, we will never see complete “peace on earth” or “perfect harmony.”  As a Christian, I am looking forward to a full and lasting peace in Heaven.  But that does not exempt me from working toward peace and justice here. You’ve heard the saying, “He was so heavenly minded that he was no earthly good.”  We should be both.  Christians should not ignore social justice issues.  Christians should work for peace.  We serve a God of peace and justice.  We pray as Jesus taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.”

Working for peace with people does not mean that we will always agree with others or accept what they do.  Sometimes, working for peace means limiting our exposure to people who have a pattern of hurting others.   It means being like Jesus and having the courage to confront and curtail those whose actions run contrary to the cause of peace and justice, even in churches and other Christian organizations.  Here is a tiny bit of what the Bible has to say about peacemaking.

Love must be sincere. 

Hate what is evil; 

cling to what is good. 

Be devoted to one another in love. 

Honor one another above yourselves.

Never be lacking in zeal, 

but keep your spiritual fervor, 

serving the Lord. 

Be joyful in hope, 

patient in affliction, 

faithful in prayer. 

Share with the Lord’s people 

who are in need. 

Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you; 

bless and do not curse. 

Rejoice with those who rejoice; 

mourn with those who mourn. 

Live in harmony with one another. 

Do not be proud, 

but be willing to associate 

with people of low position. 

Do not be conceited.

Do not repay anyone evil for evil. 

Be careful to do what is right 

in the eyes of everyone. 

If it is possible, 

as far as it depends on you, 

live at peace with everyone.

Do not take revenge, my dear friends, 

but leave room for God’s wrath, 

for it is written: 

“It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” 

says the Lord. On the contrary: 

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; 

if he is thirsty, 

give him something to drink.

In doing this, you will heap 

burning coals on his head.”

Do not be overcome by evil, 

but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:9-21

Shalom,

Virginia Knowles

P.S. #1: This post is part of my Strength in Hymn series.  My most recent entry is also from the memorial service: "Be Thou My Vision" and includes a video of my daughters singing it.  Two other hymns from the service appeared in the series before her death: "In the Garden" and a slightly different version of "Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah." 

P.S. #2: The history behind the song: "Let There Be Peace on Earth"

P.S. #3: A helpful article I found while trying to look up the above Scripture: Is Reconciliation the True Test of Forgiveness?

P.S. #4: The photos above were all taken with my iPod in my mother's garden shortly before we left for home.  The floral knob on the broken down garden gate is a visual metaphor or making beauty in a place of imperfection.  

P.S. #5: The stunning photo below, also from my mother's garden, is by my daughter Joanna Knowles of By Jo Photography.  The day after the memorial service, she flew off to Australia for a semester, so stay tuned for some more awesome photos.

Linking here:

Still Saturday

The Sunday Community

  

I Dare Not Trust the Sweetest Frame? (Strength in Hymn)

But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God.
I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.Psalm 52:8

Trust in the LORD, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
Psalm 37:3

My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;

I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

Trust.  So many of us have lost trust in other people, and often even our trust in God wavers.  I can't tell you how many times I've been reminded that people will always let you down, but we can trust in God.  And I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to doubt God, too.

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand,

All other ground is sinking sand. 

Should we trust other people?  Yes and no, I suppose.  It depends on whether they are trustworthy or not.  You are not obligated to trust someone just because they demand it.  If they've broken your trust, it is up to them to rebuild it.  Sure, give them a chance, but use your God-given caution.  People can be like quicksand, sucking us under.

A wise counselor once gave me this word picture.  If a dirty hobo shows up at your door asking for food, he can't expect to be invited into your fancy dining room for a banquet.  It's too much of a risk that he'll rob you blind or worse!  However, you can pull up a rocking chair for him on the front porch and bring out a nice hoagie sandwich, some chocolate chip cookies and lemonade.   He is receiving the amount of trust that he is due.  This counselor compared this analogy to strained relationships.  If someone has broken your trust and wants to regain it, you bring him or her "a sandwich on the porch" -- allowing basic dignity but no true intimacy.  You can grant them a little more and more trust as you go, as they prove they are able to handle it.

When darkness veils His lovely face,

I rest on His unchanging grace;

In every high and stormy gale,

My anchor holds within the veil.

Many of you have endured broken trust in the form of abuse of authority in the context of your family, your church, or a religious organization.  When the person who has wronged you claims to have God's anointing, it's very natural to feel angry at God, too, projecting the warped misrepresentation of character onto him.  This kind of darkness veils his face.  It's time to remove that barrier so we can gaze directly on the kindness and grace of Jesus and rest in what he has done for us rather than the legalistic demands of others.

His oath, His covenant, His blood

Support me in the whelming flood;

When all around my soul gives way,

He then is all my hope and stay.

Chances are, if you've been wrapping your whole life and relationships around a system instead of our Savior, most of your friends and family members in that particular context are not going to understand your angst.  They will exhort you to get back in line and conform.  It's painful to walk away  from the security you have known, even if it is making you die inside.  Take courage. Find out who the real Jesus is, he who  shed his blood to die so you could live, he who still searches out the broken to restore them to wholeness.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,

Oh, may I then in Him be found;

Dressed in His righteousness alone,

Faultless to stand before the throne. 

Jesus is coming back for the Church, his Beloved Bride.  Though we are individuals, we aren't Lone Rangers.  We are meant for community. It is good to be able to trust people around us: to enjoy a warm and healthy family life, have close friendships, and be knit in with other Christian believers for fellowship, worship, and teaching.  Heaven is going to be a huge party -- and then, in the light of his presence, our relationships will all be perfect, with no disappointment, sorrow or pain!  I can't wait!

"And those who know your name
put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord,
have not forsaken
those who seek you."
Psalm 9:10

The pictures in this post were taken outside the office of a Christian therapist.  If you suspect that you have trouble trusting God and other people in a healthy manner, I encourage you to seek out a wise, compassionate, and experienced counselor to help you work through it.

This post is the first in my Strength in Hymn series.  The second is: Let the Beauty of Jesus Be Seen in Me. 

You might also like these posts:

• Beside the Still Waters
• Dignity, Decisions, and Liberty of Conscience
• It Became to Me a Dark Thing (A Poem)
• Disillusioned and Disappointed? Take It to Jesus!

• Wisdom from Letters of Direction by Abbé de Tourville

• Wisdom Through the Church?
• King Jesus vs. Yertle the Turtle
• Gleaning Encouragement from Scriptures in Times of Disillusionment
• Recovering, Still...
• The Life of Christ, Our Identity in Christ, The Priesthood of All Believers, Submission and Humility

Virginia Knowles

www.WatchTheShepherd.blogspot.com

Lord, Have Mercy!

Dear friends,

I am so thankful for the kind words of support that have filled my inbox and been spoken to me personally in the past two days. (See Friday night's blog post, which has had over 1,000 page loads so far.)  It's been quite the journey that past few years, learning more about the mercy and grace of God.  This morning, I definitely looked forward to being spiritually refreshed at Lake Baldwin Church. I was particularly excited that our pastor, Mike Tilley, would be preaching on Colossians 2:6-15.  Mike spoke about 5 things in our walk with Christ:

A Growing Walk in verses 6-7:

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. 

A Careful Walk in verse 8:

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. 

A Christ-Centered Walk in verses 9-10: 

For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 

A Freedom Walk in verses 11-14:

The Crucifixion"
by Matthias Grunewald,
National Gallery of Art

In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.  When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 

A Victorious Walk in verse 15:

And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

All of these words from Colossians 2 are so relevant to me right now!  I don't need empty religion, but fullness in Christ.  Not everyone who teaches the Bible is Christ-centered.  So much of what we hear can be misleading and actually turn us astray from truth.  We need to know it for ourselves, reading Scriptures and meditating on what the verses say.  Even a paragraph or a chapter a day can make such a difference.   Nurturing our personal relationship with Christ will help us to endure the temptations brought by suffering, peer pressure, loss of spiritual emotions, the hypocrisy of other Christians, and our own failures and sense of unworthiness.  Since Christ has taken the punishment for our sins, we can be free to walk in a new life of victory as the Holy Spirit works in our hearts.

I thought you also might enjoy one of the songs from this morning.  I actually recorded the congregational singing on my iPod, but you can hear my voice and it's not exactly in tune...  (When I lamented about that to Thad, he patted my arm sweetly and said, "What's really important is singing joyfully."  I was doing that, from the heart.)  So instead, let me present a YouTube version of Michael Smith's classic "Lord, Have Mercy" as sung by Eoghan Heaslip.  The lyrics are on the screen...



I leave you with a poem I wrote several years ago about the mercy of God.

Rhapsody in M

by Virginia Knowles (Advent 2006)

Myriad mercies:

more and more

merited? no!  no merit in murky miserable me

Mystery:

manic malice meted on Messiah Martyr

Mighty and Meek

Miracle:

manic malice meted on my Mediator misses me

marvelous mercies ministered on me

Majestic Master:

master me

move massive mountains in me

make merry melodies in me

mirrors of Thee in mere me

more and more

myriad mercies  

~*~*~ 

But when the goodness and lovingkindness of God our Savior appeared,

he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness,

but according to his own mercy…  Titus 3:4-5a

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace,

that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.  Hebrews 4:16

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;

his mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness. 

Lamentations 3:22-23 

Christ's mercy on you and yours...
Virginia Knowles
(This post first appeared in my Weekend Gratitude series on www.virginiaknowles.blogspot.com.)