Are you clinging to the Gospel right now too? Are you clinging to the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (Rom. 1:16 ESV)? Is it hard to know what to say, do, believe right now? Do you also feel like you need His guidance and wisdom in this broken, fallen world, overwhelmingly shattered by sin? Maybe today’s infusions of deep pain bring us to desperately needing today’s reset of trust in Him and who He is.
Oh, what a grace from Him to give us His Word and songs that bring His Word to mind. Singing Christ’s hope into suffering is singing while we walk through the valley of the shadow of death (Ps. 23:4 ESV).
As we sing praise to Him, reflecting on His very essence revealed in His Word, He gives us grace to endure and to keep walking as we seek to live Gospel-centered lives.
Reset of Trust: Jesus is my guide
Dear sister, this week I’m remembering with you that we are not walking alone, but with the LORD (Ps. 23:1a ESV) who is all-powerful, all-wise, omniscient, all-knowing. This is the stuff of a praise interruption.
He is shepherding us, guiding us, leading us (vv. 1a, 2a, 3a).
He is with us! So…I will fear no evil (v. 4a ESV).
We can trust Him to be our guide in these dark days.
Praise Interruption: Reset of trust in song and Scripture
Will you join me in a praise interruption, in a reset of trust, using a mashup of hymns and Scripture in a mini-worship time now? In my own suffering, He has so grace-fully integrated praise and pain and this process has helped me endure each day. I pray this will be His gift to you today as well.
If thou but suffer God to guide thee,
and hope in him through all thy ways,
he’ll give thee strength,
whate’er betide thee,
and bear thee through the evil days.
If Thou But Trust in God to Guide Thee (Neumark, G., 1641)
Reset of trust: We praise Your wisdom
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! (Rom. 11:33 ESV)
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.
Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise (Smith, W. C., 1867)
Reset of trust: You guide me personally, with wonderful benefits
You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory (Ps. 73:24 ESV).
I will always show you where to go. I’ll give you a full life in the emptiest of places—firm muscles, strong bones. You’ll be like a well-watered garden, a gurgling spring that never runs dry (Is. 58:11, MSG).
Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
Hold me with thy pow’rful hand;
Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more.
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah (Williams, W., 1745)
Guide me to where I am completely satisfied, even in suffering
I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me (John 10:14 ESV).
Savior, like a shepherd lead us,
much we need thy tender care;
In thy pleasant pastures feed us;
for our use thy folds prepare…
Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us (Thrupp, D. A., 1836)
Reset of trust: Jesus is my good shepherd
Eternally wise God, Jesus came to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace (Luke 1:79 ESV).
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus,
thou hast bought us, thine we are.
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus,
thou hast bought us, thine we are.
Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us (Thrupp, D. A., 1836)
All the way, my Savior leads me…
For I know, whate’er befall me,
Jesus doeth all things well!
All the Way My Savior Leads Me (Crosby, F., 1875)
How we praise You! You tell us that the Holy Spirit is within those who are believers in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord (2 Tim. 1:14; 1 Cor. 6:19). You promise to us His indwelling presence and guidance. You promise that He will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come (John 16:13 ESV).
Reset of trust: Praise explosion for what is to come!
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,
who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Pet. 1:3-5 ESV).
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever (Ps. 23:6 ESV).
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (Heb. 13:20-21 ESV).
And when my task on earth is done,
when, by thy grace, the vict’ry’s won,
e’en death’s cold wave I will not flee,
since God through Jordan leadeth me.
He Leadeth Me (Gilmore, J. H., 1862).
All the way my Savior leads me—O the fullness of his love!
Perfect rest to me is promised in my Father’s house above:
when my spirit, clothed, immortal, wings its flight to realms of day,
This my song through endless ages: Jesus led me all the way!
All the Way My Savior Leads Me (Crosby, F., 1875)
If you would like my weekly gift of a playlist of hymns and songs that accompany our weekly blog posts, click here! I’m creating YouTube playlists that include videos with lyrics, using principles of music therapy and music education, that we can all use as we enter into personal worship time with Him. If particular songs belong on your audio playlists, you might discover and download them in this process (sorry about the ads…ugh…they come with the territory, but I want you to have the lyrics so you can sing).
It is my deepest prayer that these will help all of us battle this emotional time with His Word and His songs, experiencing a deep and abiding trust and faith in the One who loves us so.
Soli Deo Gloria and with care for you!
