by Pastor Cecil | Oct 29, 2010 | Proverbs
Proverbs 14:26-27
“He who fears the LORD has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death.”
Robert Robinson who lived from 1735 to 1790, was saved while attending a service conducted by the famous evangelist George Whitefield. Following his conversion he entered the Christian ministry, but like so many, he would lose his fervor for God.
The words of the hymn Come Thou Fount were written to express his own need for a closer walk with the Lord. His prayer is that his heart may be re-tuned to be in perfect harmony with the will of God.
In stanza two he speaks of his conversion. The word “Ebenezer” refers to a time and place when he actually received the Lord into his life as personal Savior and Lord. He goes on to remind himself and others that it is necessary to daily remind ourselves what a debt we owe to the Lord for our salvation at His expense.
“Come Thou Fount“
Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above;
Praise the mount-I’m fixed upon it
-mount of Thy redeeming love.
Here I raise mine Ebenezer;
hither by Thy help I’m come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wand’ring from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
interposed His precious blood.
O to grace how great a debtor
daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
bind my wand’ring heart to Thee;
Prone to wander, Lord I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it;
seal it for Thy courts above.
To access Come Thou Fount, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes™ Christian Music Videos, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/comethoufount in your browser or click on the image below.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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by Pastor Cecil | Oct 28, 2010 | Luke
Luke 9:23-25
“And he said to them all, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?”
I have always loved stories. Any story that begins, “Once upon a time” has me hooked. I am anxious to discover what happened “Once upon a time.” Most of these same stories conclude with the statement, “They lived happily ever after.”
I hate to be the one to bust your bubble, but it just does not work that way. As long as we are in this world we will encounter troubles and disappointments. If we make happiness our objective, we can be sure that we will become discouraged at some time and in fact very often.
It has been my experience to come in contact with people who, shall we say, “struck it rich!” All of their lives they had struggled to make ends meet and now it would appear that they owned both ends. Without exception I have witnessed that the happiness and satisfaction they were seeking could not be found.
Jesus said it all in today’s Scripture. “Whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it.” It is in serving Christ that we find that joy and peace that we find the everlasting joy that so many are searching for. Have You found it?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Oct 27, 2010 | Luke
Luke 6:38
“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”
Back in the 70’s I was stationed with the USAF in Missouri. Joyce and I and our three children were living in base housing. They were wonderful quarters except for the nightly raids. Almost every night a family of masked bandits, raccoons would rip off the lid of our garbage can and make a terrible mess. It became a daily chore to pick up after them.
We had an unexpected cold spell with the temperature well below zero fahrenheit. After dinner I took some trash out to place in the garbage can. As I opened the lid I was shocked to see a small raccoon huddled down inside to keep warm.
I picked up the can and carried it near the back door and called the family to come and see our little visitor. He (or she) was none too happy to see us and kept hissing a warning. Joyce and the kids ran and gathered some old towels and shirts which we placed inside to keep the little creature as warm as possible.
Now comes the amazing part of my story. It is true, even if it is hard to believe as I write this. From that night on, we never had the garbage lid fall to the ground. We could see where our little bandits had been in the can, but no more mess!
It causes me to wonder what effect we are having on those around us. Do we go out of our way to insure that they are provided for? There is much cold and pain in the world and most seem totally unmoved by it. I, for one want to be there with a helping hand. It’s the least I can do.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Oct 26, 2010 | 1 Thessalonians
I Thessalonians 5:21-24
“He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him.”
Joyce and I were once invited to spend the night with some dear friends of ours. We had a wonderful meal and a long visit throughout the evening and were looking forward to a good night’s rest. WRONG!
We had just started to slip into slumber land when a clock chimed. It was followed by another and another and another, each separated by several seconds or several minutes. There was one clock that was about six minutes behind the others.
The next morning we mentioned it to our hosts, and they laughed and laughed. They were so used to the chiming that they never are aware of them. The next night they were graciously placed on silent, so we slept the night away.
I fear there are times when our voices can become just annoying irritations that are rejected by others. This is why it is so vital to be directed by the Holy Spirit before we attempt to do the work on our own.
Timing is so very critical. Our words may be appropriate, but we need to have the spiritual sensitivity about when the door is open. Not only that, we need to keep in mind that we are speaking with our actions as well as with words.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Oct 25, 2010 | Genesis
Genesis 2:23-24
“And Adam said, ‘This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”
Frequently we take far too much credit for resolving conflicts than we ought. Here is a case in point. I once ministered as a Christian Counselor. Most of the people that came for counsel lived in the area and I was able to keep regular appointments.
One couple called from over 100 miles away and said their marriage was on the rocks, could they come and counsel with me. I agreed to meet with them but wondered what help I could give in just one session. I prayed for God to answer.
When the couple arrived at my office, they had a silly grin on their face. In the two hours they had spent driving to my office, they had a chance to talk about what had happened to them and what they needed to do to make their marriage work. They gave me their apologies, but they just didn’t need me now.
Wow! That is what I delight to hear. I told them that the next time they had any conflict in their relationship to just go out and drive around for two hours in order to resolve their issues.
Are you seeking harmony in your marriage? Get totally alone for a few hours and allow God to mend the broken relationship.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
