by Pastor Cecil | May 31, 2013 | Psalm
Psalm 90:1-2
“Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.”
“O God, Our Help in Ages Past” is a hymn by Isaac Watts and paraphrases Psalm 90. It originally consisted of nine stanzas. In present usage, however, the hymn is usually limited to stanzas one, two, three, five and nine.
The hymn was originally part of The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament, published by Watts in 1719. It has often been sung for special occasions in England. It was sung in 1941, at a religious service on board HMS Prince of Wales attended by Winston Churchill and Franklin Delano Roosevelt as part of the conference creating the Atlantic Charter. It was also sung at the funeral of Winston Churchill in 1965.
Later composers subsequently incorporated the tune in their own works. For example, George Handel used the tune in an anthem entitled, “O Praise the Lord.”
“Oh God, Our Help In Ages Past“
Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.
Under the shadow of Thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And our defense is sure.
Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
To endless years the same.
A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.
The busy tribes of flesh and blood,
With all their lives and cares,
Are carried downwards by the flood,
And lost in following years.
O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Be Thou our guide while troubles last,
And our eternal home.
To access Oh God, Our Help In Ages Past, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes.com, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/ogodourhelpinagespast 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
by Pastor Cecil | May 30, 2013 | 2 Chronicles
2 Chronicles 26:16
But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense.
I must admit that I have never had trouble with pride. I have received so much more than I deserve that I count each moment of each day as another undeserved gift from God. Two wonderful examples of men whose hearts stayed true to the Lord all the days of their lives are Joseph and Daniel. Regrettably, there are characters in the Bible that started out as God’s heroes, but ended up as zeroes because of their pride—Saul, David, Samson, as well as many others. Sadly, we must include Uzziah.
Our modern-day church scene is littered by the wreckage of ministers who started out with humility and total commitment to the Lord, but came to destruction when they grew popular and failed to rely totally on the Lord.
As long as Uzziah sought the Lord, he was able to subdue his enemies and be God’s man in leading Judah to subdue her enemies. But somewhere along the line, he began to think that it was his own ability that brought victory. That is always the beginning of the end for anyone. His success caused him to take his eyes off of the Lord and on himself. He blew it!
I have no idea what was in Uzziah thoughts when he entered the temple to offer incense to the Lord. I do know the consequences of his action—leprosy! Failing to rely on the Lord doomed him to a life of humiliation and separation. You have to feel sorry for this man who started with such great promise, but ended with such shame—FROM PRIDE TO PITY!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | May 29, 2013 | 1 Corinthians
1 Corinthians 14:7-8
Even things without life, whether flute or harp, when they make a sound, unless they make a distinction in the sounds, how will it be known what is piped or played? For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle?
I must confess that I do not like confrontation. There have been far too many times in my life when I have been called upon to take a stand and speak forth the truth regardless of the discomfort it has caused me.
Brothers and sisters, we are involved in a struggle that demands a trumpet call to battle! The enemy of our soul has so deceived the general population that to live a life of holiness is considered to be criminal. It is permissible for godless people to accuse the righteous of bigotry, but if any mention is made about their conduct, it is tantamount to violation of their rights.
While there is still time, we need to sound the alarm and call upon all believers to bombard the gates of heaven, and at the same time, call other believers to return to the righteous life that God demands.
It is foolish for religious bodies to presume they have the right to amend the Word of God and allow things that are strictly forbidden. Perhaps the reason they have been allowed this latitude is that the members have failed to search the Scriptures for themselves and discover the God-given truth. We must sound the battle cry while there is still time!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | May 28, 2013 | Ephesians
Ephesians 6:4
And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.
Years ago I heard a favorite minister relate a heartbreaking story. It was one where a father had grieved his son terribly. It seems that the father had promised to take his son on a fishing trip. The boy was in eager anticipation for the time when just he and his father would be alone on a fish-filled lake. (Such lakes are more in the area of dreams than reality)!
The day of the trip had arrived and the son was eagerly packing all of his gear into the car. It was just then that the phone rang. The father went back into the house to take the call. After a few minutes the son followed his dad just in time to hear him tell the caller that he had nothing important planned for the day and would be right there.
The long awaited trip was off. Not only was there to be no fishing trip with his dad, but the dad had thought so little of it that he told the caller that he had nothing important planned for the day. The relationship between father and son was torn asunder that day and sadly was never restored.
I wonder how many times we may have been guilty of grieving those who had been anticipating spending quality time with us. How many promises have we broken that seemed small to us, but significant to another person? But much more important, how have we grieved the heart of God by failing to keep our promises that we made to Him? LET US KEEP OUR PROMISES!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | May 27, 2013 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
I have noticed a recent increase in the number of so-called brilliant people who are led to believe in ghosts and supernatural things. These are often the same people who laugh and scorn the truth of the gospel message.
It is frustrating that so many are blinded by the devil and fail to respond to the pure message of hope and salvation. These souls have been so deceived that they believe the lies told by others who have also been deceived.
Way back in 1940 there was a movie called Pal Joey. A song from that movie was written by Rodgers and Hart. It was called; Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. I heard the tune a few days ago and it made me think of the way many people are led down the wide path that leads to destruction.
There is hope my dear friend. While it is true that the god of this world does blind the eyes of those who choose to walk away from God . . . there is deliverance. The only hope for a lost and dying world that has been bewitched by Satan, is the powerful and life giving message of salvation. Tell the world that there is hope and try as best you can to break their bondage of sin.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
