The Week in Words

Posted on December 18, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Welcome to The Week In Words, where we share quotes from the last week’s reading. If something you read this past week inspired you, caused you to laugh, cry, think, dream, or just resonated with you in some way, please share it with us, attributing it to its source, which can be a book, newspaper, blog, Facebook — anything that you read. More information is here.

Here are a few thought-provoking quotes I came across this week:

Seen at Carrie’s review of Growing Grateful Kids, by Susie Larson:

“We cannot grow beyond our ability to receive correction.” Francis Frangipane

I have never heard of Frangipane before and know nothing about him, but, wow, that one hit me between the eyes. Taking correction really goes against the grain, but how else will we be alerted to our blind spots? The Bible had much to say about being willing to receive correction and rebuke.

Seen at Robin Lee Hatcher‘s Facebook page:

Anything I’ve ever done that ultimately was worthwhile initially scared me to death. ~ Betty Bender

I sure can identify with that, and it helps to know others have felt the same way. I used to think being scared to death meant I shouldn’t do whatever it was I was scared of….but that’s not necessarily true.

I saw this while looking in my downloaded documents section. It was on a page of tips on prayer along with prayer requests for missionary Anne Dreisbach. I don’t know if this is something she said or if it is quoted from someone else:

Such as cast their eye on the promise, with a neglect of the command, are not edified by Scripture, as they look more for comfort than for duty.

I can tend to do that — scan a passage for the promises and comfort while touching lightly on the warnings or commands. But we can’t have one without the others.

You can share your family-friendly quotes in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below.

I hope you’ll visit the other participants as well and glean some great thoughts to ponder. And don’t forget to leave a comment here, even if you don’t have any quotes to share. I usually try to visit everyone who comments, but often I forget to check Mr. Linky for those who participated but didn’t comment.

Book Review: Created For Work

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Barbara Harper

After enjoying Boyhood and Beyond: Practical Wisdom for Becoming a Man by Bob Schultz with my youngest son, we tried another of his books, Created for Work: Practical Insights for Young Men. The title attracted me because I think developing a strong work ethic in young people is becoming a lost art and because people generally have a negative view of work. It was a revelation to me years ago to realize that God created and ordained work before the fall of man into sin: it’s not part of the Curse, though it is harder because of the Curse.

I don’t recall that Schultz brought out that aspect of work, but he brought out many others, using his own work and experience as an independent contractor as a backdrop for many of his insights. He discusses things you’d expect concerning work, like diligence, initiative, working within the rules, finishing well, etc. But he brought out other things I would not have thought of: looking at things from a boss’s perspective, dealing with a loss of confidence, irritations between coworkers, admitting when you’re wrong and learning from it, the dangers of diligence (becoming self-satisfied and indulgent after success), and even the way the Lord brings you into contact with other people through your work to whom you can minister. Another valuable insight was that of balancing initiative: his example was a young man who saw a neighbor’s fallen tree and decided to cut it up into firewood for them, only to discover afterward they had planned to take it to the mill to be turned into lumber.

There were just a couple of places where I disagreed with the author a bit. In one chapter titled “Great Grandpa Cornelius,” Schultz is encouraging boys to be diligent workers even before they’re of age to work at an outside job, and I agree with that. But he makes the statement, “If someone provides your food, shelter, and education, you’re a liability” (p. 42). I wouldn’t say that to a boy in the home. He goes on to say that you had no choice as a baby to have others work for you, but as soon as you can you want to work to become an asset. And I agree with that as well. From the time our boys were little, though they had jobs in the home and allowances that were loosely tied to each other, the main reason for their jobs wasn’t to earn an allowance or even to “help” their parents, but to pull together as a family and contribute to the family and to get in the habit or working. So I agree with all of that in principle, I agree with teaching boys (and girls) to work for a variety of reasons, but I still wouldn’t call being provided for as a boy at home being a liability. When he gets to be 30 or so, well, that’s different. 🙂

In another chapter titled “My Instructor,” he describes a time when his boss wanted him to install trim with costly wood in a beauitful, expensive home. He was worried because he hadn’t had much experience with the particular type of work his boss wanted him to do, worried enough to lose sleep the night before the job. He felt God was telling him that since He created the world and told Solomon how to build the temple and Noah how to build the ark, He could tell him how to do this job. And He did, through a painter who came through and gave him an off-the-cuff tip. I can’t argue with his experience, and I’ve had the experience as well of being stuck in the middle of some task, praying for wisdom, and feeling that God gave me the idea of what to do about it. But I wouldn’t want someone to take this particular experience as a substitute for owning up that you don’t know how to do a particular job or seeking out instruction on how to do it beforehand.

And finally, in a chapter on unemployment compensation he writes that he feels that such is government aid and that instead of filing for unemployment, he should find other work he can do as unto the Lord and for His kingdom, such as yard work for a widowed neighbor, etc. My husband and I feel that unemployment compensation is a form of insurance rather than a “handout” and is a legitimate and responsible way to care for one’s family between jobs. I do agree with the other principles in the chapter, however, that ultimately we work for God, not for money, though He usually provides through a job, and that there are many useful things one can do during a jobless time, like work for others and get ones’ tools ready and prepared for the next opportunity.

The space and time to explain those few caveats makes it looks I disagree with more than I agree with, and that’s not the case: I think this is a valuable resource for boys and young men. If I’d had this when my boys were younger, I think I would have gone over it with them then as well as again as older teenagers about to leave home.

(This review will also be linked to Semicolon‘s Saturday Review of Books.)

The Week in Words

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Here are a few thought-provoking quotes I came across this week:

From a friend’s Facebook:

“Circumstances may appear to wreck our lives and God’s plans, but God is not helpless among the ruins.” Eric Liddell, Olympian

We probably would not think of God as “helpless among the ruins,” but we sure can act as if we’re thinking that way. When we’re bowled over by circumstances, we can remember that He is not.

By the way, if you’ve never read a biography about Liddell, I’d highly recommend it.

Seen at Women Living Well:

“If you have been afraid that your love of beautiful flowers and the flickering flame of the candle is somehow less spiritual than living in starkness and ugliness, remember that He who created you to be creative gave you the things with which to make beauty and gave you the sensitivity to appreciate and respond to his creation. Creativity is his gift to you and the ‘raw materials’ to be put together in various ways are His gift to you as well.” ~ Edith Schaeffer, The Art of Homemaking.

I read that book years ago and want to do so again some time. I used to struggle with whether wanting things to be pretty and pleasing was somehow unspiritual, but the realization that God made the world beautiful and enjoyable rather than just functional and utilitarian helped. We have to balance that, of course, with the available time, funds, and other responsibilities, and Mrs. Schaeffer discusses this in her book.

In a similar vein, I saw this quote at my friend Mary Beth‘s some weeks ago:

“We have our own small square of life on this planet, and it’s our choice to do with it what we will. We can bring order and beauty to that place we have been given. We can touch the people who come within our sphere of influence with love and care and comfort.” ~ Claire Cloninger

On a different subject, this was quoted in the devotional book The Invitation by Derick Bingham commenting on John 21:3:

But what good can failure do? It may shut up a path which you were pursuing too eagerly. It may put you out of heart with things seen and temporal, and give you an appetite for things unseen and eternal. It may teach you your own helplessness, and turn you to trust more implicitly in the provision of Christ. It is clear that Christians have often to toil all night in vain, that Christ may have a background black and sombre enough to set forth all the glories of his interposition. ~ F. B. Meyer, Love to the Uttermost

One of the biggest struggles I had in college was not in failing per se — I wasn’t flunking, but I was failing in my usual good grades despite good efforts, and I felt like I was failing. One of the most poignant and timely messages I ever heard was one at college on failure. I can’t remember the details, but it was a lesson I have never forgotten that God has purposes in our failure or falling short.

You can share your family-friendly quotes in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below.

Infant Holy

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Barbara Harper

This is my favorite Christmas hymn. I think I post it almost every year.

Infant holy, Infant lowly, for His bed a cattle stall;
Oxen lowing, little knowing, Christ the Babe is Lord of all.
Swift are winging angels singing, noels ringing, tidings bringing:
Christ the Babe is Lord of all.
Christ the Babe is Lord of all.

Flocks were sleeping, shepherds keeping vigil till the morning new
Saw the glory, heard the story, tidings of a Gospel true.
Thus rejoicing, free from sorrow, praises voicing, greet the morrow:
Christ the Babe was born for you.
Christ the Babe was born for you.

Traditional carol, translated from Polish to English by Edith M. Reed, 1921.

Repost: Christmas Grief

Posted on December 10, 2011 by Barbara Harper

This is the sixth anniversary of my Mom’s death, so, though I think of her and sorely miss her often, this day (as well as her birthday and Mother’s Day) are particularly poignant days for me. Grief seems to start out like a flood but then slowly recedes to a stream that occasionally overflows its banks. There are many fond and pleasant memories, but I don’t suppose some moments of intense missing her will ever go away until I see her again. This is what I wrote on this day last year:

_________________________________________

December could be a rather gloomy month for my family. My mother passed away Dec. 10 five years ago, my father Dec. 12 a few years earlier, and my grandmother Christmas Eve a few years prior to that, leading my brother to exclaim once that he just wanted to cancel the whole month.

The death of a loved any any time of year can shadow the whole Christmas season as we miss our normal interactions with that loved one, and several years later, though maybe the pangs aren’t quite as sharp, they’re still there, and it’s not abnormal to be caught off guard by a memory or a longing leading to a good crying jag.

When someone is grieving over the holidays, they may not want to participate in some of the “normal” happy pastimes. It’s not that they don’t ever laugh or enjoy gatherings. But as Sherry said yesterday, “I am enjoying the traditional holiday celebrations, and at the same time they move me to tears, sad tears for things that have been lost this year. I am singing the music, and yet I’m tired of the froth of jingling bells and pa-rumpumpum.” I remember almost wishing that we still observed periods of mourning with wearing black or some sign of “Grief in progress” — not to rain on anyone else’s good time, but just to let people know there was woundedness under the surface, and just as physical wounds need tenderness while healing, so do emotional ones. Normally I love baby and bridal showers and make it a point to attend, but for several months after my mom’s death I did not want to go to them. I rejoiced with those who rejoiced…but just did not want to rejoice in quite that way. I first heard the news of my mom’s death during our adult Sunday School Christmas party, and the next year I just did not want to attend. Even this year, when our ladies’ Christmas party was on the anniversary of my mom’s death, I was concerned that at some point during the evening I would have to find the restroom and lock myself in to release some tears (though thankfully that did not happen).

Other events can cast a pall over Christmas: illness, job loss, a family estrangement, etc. One Christmas we were all sick as dogs, and my father-in-law had just had a major health crisis and wanted us to come up from SC to ID to visit. There was just no way we could drag ourselves onto a plane until antibiotics had kicked in a few days later, but we did go, and if I remember correctly, that was the last time any of us except my husband saw him alive, so in retrospect we were glad we went, though it wasn’t the merriest of Christmases. A good friend grieved over “ruining” her family’s Christmas by being in the hospital with a severe kidney infection. Lizzie wrote about visiting her husband in prison for Christmas. Quilly commented yesterday about being homeless one Christmas. Yet both Lizzie and Quilly mentioned reasons for rejoicing in the midst of those circumstances.

If you’re grieving this Christmas, don’t feel guilty if you’re not quite into the “froth” this year. One quote I shared on a Week In Words post earlier had to do with giving yourself time to heal. On the other hand, there may be times to go through with the holiday festivities for family’s sake — and, truly, those times can help keep you from the doldrums. Sherry shared how making a list of reasons to celebrate Christmas helped. Look for the good things to rejoice in. E-mom left a valuable comment yesterday that we can treasure up the memories of good Christmases to tide us over the not so good ones, and then look forward to better things ahead. And as I said yesterday, remember that the first Christmas was not all about the froth, either, but was messy, lonely, and painful, yet out of it was born the Savior of the world and the hope of mankind. Rejoice in that hope and promise. Draw near to Him who has borne our griefs and carries our sorrows until grief and sorrow are done away forever.

No Condemnation

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Barbara Harper

This is going to be more of a thinking out loud or a processing-my-thoughts post rather than a wrapped-up conclusion, and therefore it won’t be very polished (not that my other posts are, either. 🙂 )

I joined Do Not Depart in memorizing Romans 8 after seeing Lisa mention it. I’m ashamed to say I haven’t memorized anything in ages and I am discovering just how rusty the ol’ brain cells have gotten. I’m a little behind since Thanksgiving week, but it’s coming along.

Of course, the first verse of Romans 8 is one of the most blessed to believers:

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,
who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

What an amazing blessing to know that God loved us enough to be willing to take our condemnation for us, paying the debt in full. When we believe on Jesus as our Savior, we know our sins are forgiven and we can look forward to seeing Him without dread.

But I’ve seen people use this concept lately in a different way, such as when they’re feeling guilty about mistakes in parenting or besetting sins. While it’s good to rejoice and comfort ourselves that God covers our everyday mistakes and sins with Jesus’ blood, and we can be forgiven on that basis, “no condemnation” doesn’t mean a number of things (please forgive the awkward grammar):

1. “No condemnation” doesn’t mean God will never deal with my sin any more.

Hebrews 12:5-13 tells us about God’s chastening of believers. Believers. Those who have already been forgiven and delivered. Chastening is a different thing from condemnation for sin, yet I have seen people confuse the two.

“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth,” verse 6.

“If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?”, verse 7.

“But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons,” verse 8.

“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby,” verse 11.

I’ve been a little concerned with what I’ve been reading about grace-based parenting– I need to read one of the books going around to see what exactly is being taught. But the way I have seen some people apply it is to ditch everything Proverbs says about disciplining children in favor of grace, in the sense that as adults, when we sin, we confess it to God and whomever else is involved, and that’s it. That’s it as far as forgiveness goes, but sometimes God chastens us to help us learn how serious sin is, to help discipline us not to do it again. I think it goes back to the idea of progressive sanctification: our position in Christ is secure when we’re saved, but our everyday lives should be looking more and more like Him as we grow in Him. In fact, sometimes the more we grow, the more we’re saddened to learn just how pervasive our sin is and how much we need for Him to work on us.

There is an interesting passage in Leviticus 26:^{40- 42:}“If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me; And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity: Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land.”

2. “No condemnation” doesn’t mean no one else can ever speak to me about sin in my life.

I’ve seen sometimes when one believer tries to speak to another about a glaring problem in his or her life, he or she will react by saying something like, “Why are you condemning me? The Bible says believers face no condemnation.” (Of course, there is a right way, attitude, demeanor, and time and place to confront someone and wrong ways, and sometimes that reaction is sparked by the way someone confronted rather than the confrontation itself.) But God uses believers to help deal with issues in each others lives, and that is not the same thing as condemnation for sin.

Proverbs 25:12 says, “As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.”

Galatians 6:1 says, “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.”

Even Matthew 7:1-5, which warns us to take the beam out of our own eye before trying to remove a speck from our brother’s, isn’t saying no one should ever try to take anything out of anyone else’s eye, so to speak: it’s just warning us not to be hypocritical by dealing with other people’s issues when we have our own. Verse 5 says, “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.”

Balance is always required: these passages don’t mean we’re to become nitpicky fault-finders. There’s plenty in the Bible warning against that. But when we are aware of a definite glaring sin in another’s life, we are supposed to meekly, gently, kindly, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, confront her about it. That’s not condemning the person: that is trying to help her fully be all God wants her to be.

3. “No condemnation” doesn’t mean there aren’t consequences to our actions.

Consequences are sometimes a part of chastening, sometimes a natural outgrowth of sin. If we harm our bodies with smoking, drinking, drugs, or overeating, there will be natural consequences. If people get into a fight and destroy property or maim someone, grace doesn’t erase those consequences. It provides for forgiveness before God, but we still have to deal with the consequences.

4. “No condemnation” doesn’t mean that I won’t or shouldn’t experience guilt.

I think of guilt similarly to pain: they both indicate that something is wrong and needs attention. Guilt can be a good tool of conscience to prick us about a sin we’ve been excusing or ignoring.

If we still feel guilt after we have confessed and forsaken the sin, then going back to verses like I John 1:9 helps. We might still feel regret, even though a sin has been forgiven: I don’t think it is wrong to wish that a sin had never happened, even as we rejoice that we have been forgiven.

Of course, there is such a thing as false guilt, guilt over things that aren’t wrong in themselves that other people say are wrong, guilt over standards that the Bible doesn’t express. Conscience is a tool in God’s hand, but conscience itself isn’t infallible. A former pastor used to put it jokingly, “If I had been captured by cannibals and they were about to toss me in their cooking pot to stew, I wouldn’t say, ‘Let your conscience be your guide,'” because obviously they have no conscience about eating people. Conscience has to be trained according to the Word of God.

5. “No condemnation” doesn’t mean I can take sin lightly.

God doesn’t take sin lightly. Some of the ways He dealt with sin in the Old Testament and even in the New Testament in places like Acts seem rather harsh to us. But we need to remember that’s how He really feels about it. That’s how awful it is, that’s how much of an affront it is to Him. And if we multiply that offense by all the sin anyone has ever committed in all of history and realize the full weight of it was all borne by Christ on the cross…it’s incomprehensible and overwhelming to consider.

So when we realize that we are not condemned for our sins, our attitude shouldn’t be, “Whew! I got away with it.” We shouldn’t have a light regard for what seems like the easy grace of I John 1:9. It wasn’t easy at all. Salvation and grace are free to us because Someone else paid the price that we could not.

Our response to the truth that in Christ we face no condemnation should rather cause us to magnify, worship, thank, and love Him even more. It should have a sanctifying effect in our lives, helping us to have a hatred for sin and a desire for holiness.

The Week In Words

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Here are a couple of thought-provoking quotes I came across this week:

Seem at Chris Anderson‘s:

“He who loves God will endeavour to make Him appear glorious in the eyes of others. Such as are in love will be commending and setting forth the amiableness of those persons whom they love. If we love God, we shall spread abroad His excellences, that so we may raise His fame and esteem, and may induce others to fall in love with Him. Love cannot be silent; we shall be as so many trumpets, sounding forth the freeness of God’s grace, the transcendency of His love, and the glory of His kingdom. Love is like fire: where it burns in the heart, it will break forth at the lips. It will be elegant in setting forth God’s praise: love must have vent.” ~ Puritan Thomas Watson, All Things for Good, p. 86.

“Love must have vent.” Love that.

Via Diane:

“How little people know who think that holiness is dull. When one meets the real thing . . . it is irresistible.” –C.S. Lewis

So very true.

You can share your family-friendly quotes in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below.

I hope you’ll visit the other participants as well and glean some great thoughts to ponder. And don’t forget to leave a comment here, even if you don’t have any quotes to share.

Because of Christmas Day

Posted on December 4, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Long time ago in Bethlehem
So the Holy Bible say
Mary’s boy child, Jesus Christ
Was born on Christmas day.

Hark, now hear the angels sing
A new King born today
And man will live for evermore
Because of Christmas day.
Trumpets sound and angels sing
Listen what they say,
That Man will live for evermore
Because of Christmas day.

While shepherds watched their flock by night
Them see a bright new shining star
Them heard a choir sing
The music seemed to come from afar.

Now, Joseph and his wife, Mary
Come to Bethlehem that night.
Them find no place to born she child
Not a single room was in sight.

Hark, now hear the angels sing
A new King born today,
And man will live for evermore
Because of Christmas day.
Trumpets sound and angels sing
Listen what they say,
That Man will live for evermore
Because of Christmas day.

By and by, they find a little nook
In a stable all forlorn
And in a manger cold and dark
Mary’s little Boy was born.

Long time ago in Bethlehem
So the Holy Bible say
Mary’s boy child, Jesus Christ
Was born on Christmas day.
Hark, now hear the angels sing
A new King born today,
And man will live for evermore
Because of Christmas day.
Trumpets sound and angels sing
Listen what they say
That Man will live for evermore
Because of Christmas day

Words and music: Jester Hairston

The Week in Words

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving weekend. Ours was wonderful, though we hate to see Jeremy leave again. But it’s not too long till he comes back for Christmas!

In the meantime, here are some thought-provoking quotes:

This was a comment on the post 5 Ways to Make More Time to Read:

Reading allows me to thrive. If I don’t, then I feel stagnant. ~ Michael D. Perkins

I feel exactly the same way.

Seen at Diane‘s:

“A surrendered mind is not one which is no longer in operation. It is, rather, a mind freed from rebellion and opposition. To be Christ’s captive is to be perfectly free.” ~ Elisabeth Elliot

From With the Word by Warren Wiersbe, p. 505:

“His promises are checks to be cashed, not mere mottoes to hang on the wall.” ~ Vance Havner

From Beyond Suffering: Discovering the Message of Job by Layton Talbert:

If he seems defiant, it is the daring act of faith. All Job has known about God he still believes. But God’s inexplicable ways have his mind perplexed to the breaking point. Job is in the right; but he does not know that God is watching with silent compassion and admiration until the test is fully done and it is time to state His approval publicly (emphasis mine). ~ Francis I. Anderson, Job: An Introduction and Commentary, p. 139.

Whatever is going on in our lives, we can trust that God is watching, aware, and caring.

You can share your family-friendly quotes in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below.

I hope you’ll visit the other participants as well and glean some great thoughts to ponder. And don’t forget to leave a comment here, even if you don’t have any quotes to share.

God of Heaven

Posted on November 27, 2011 by Barbara Harper

This has got to be one of the most beautiful songs ever written, both words and music. I had heard it on the Steve Pettit team CD Come Boldly, but didn’t really get the full impact until our church choir sang it last Sunday. Our pastor has been taking us through the book of Job, and this song grew out of a study of Job. The author, Heather Sorenson writes,

“The piece ‘God of Heaven’ was a personal response to my morning devotions a couple months ago. Something that I have been actively working on is to shift my relationship with God from a “give me/bless me/help me” vending machine to learning and knowing who God is. As I was reading through the book of Job during a particularly difficult week, I was hit with the fact that God’s response to Job did not include the solutions that I always ask for. God’s words to Job didn’t specifically offer the hope and comfort that I often beg God for in difficult times. God’s response in Job 38-41 was to show who He is. As I moved on to the rest of my day, I sat down to write a completely different song, but I was so moved by who God is, that ‘God of Heaven’ came out instead. I pray that this piece will bless both your choir and your congregation as you continue to build your relationship with God your Father.”

I am so glad our church puts the words to the songs being sung or played up so we can follow along. Our choir did a beautiful job, leaving me not only loving the music and dynamics, but filled with the wonder of my God. The full choir version is richer, but this one by the ladies of the Steve Pettit team is lovely as well.

God of Heaven, God of all the earth and sky.
Great Creator, Master of all nature.
Who gives birth to snow from heaven,
Holds the waves at ocean’s edge,
Gives the orders to the morning,
Shows each dawn its place to shine.
God of Heaven, God of all the earth and sky.

God of Ages, God who wrote the Book of Time.
Sovereign Ruler, Alpha and Omega.
Saints before, He’s guided safely.
History’s pages signed by Him.
Author of our days and hours;
Things to come are held secure.
God of Ages, Alpha and Omega.

God of Power! God who breaks the darkness.
Righteous Warrior, Champion of His children,
Goes before us into battle;
Good and evil bow to Him,
Those in bondage freed forever,
Victories won at His command!

God who heals us, God who gives us peace and hope.
God who listens, Carries all our fragile
Dreams and heartaches, wins and failures;
Binds the broken; hides the weak.
New beginnings freely offered;
Who can make us whole again?
God who heals us, God of Power,
God of Ages, God of Heaven,
God of all the earth and sky.