Why does it matter so much? Why do I care so deeply about these people, the teaching, the stories and memories, about the whole experience? I don't know these answers, exactly. And I unfortunately can't quite capture how much a blessing it is to be involved with SGYC, whether as a camper, counselor, or interested observer. The Lord is working, and there's just something so unbelievably amazing about how folks from all over the country can be brought together for a week of learning and fellowship.
Spent part of this morning playing hymns, which was good. So much rich truth contained in those lyrics, good to meditate on. Some of my all-time favorites, though, would probably include "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing", "How Firm a Foundation", "Be Thou My Vision" and "God Moves in a Mysterious Way".
"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 my Ebenezer/Hither by Thy help I've come/And I hope, by Thy good pleasure/Safely to arrive at home/Jesus sought me when a stranger/Wandering from the fold of God/He, to rescue me from danger/Interposed His precious blood
"Oh, 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, Lord, take and seal it/Seal it for Thy courts above.."
"How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord/Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word?/What more can we say than to you He hath said/To you who for refuge in Jesus hath fled?
"'Fear not, I am with thee, oh be not dismayed/For I am your God, and will still give thee aid/I'll strengthen thee, help thee and cause thee to stand/Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand"
"'When through the deep waters I call you to go/The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow/For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless/And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress"
"When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie/My grace, all sufficient, shall be your supply/The falme shall not hurt you, I only design/Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine"
"The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose/I will not, I will not desert to His foes/That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake/I'll never, no never, no never forsake..."
"Be Thou my vision, oh Lord of my heart/Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art/Thou my best thought, by day or by night/Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light
"Be Thou my wisdom, and Thou my true word/I ever with Thee, and Thou with me, Lord/Thou my great Father and I thy true son/Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one
"Be Thou my battle-shield, sword for the fight/Be Thou my dignity, Thou my delight/Thou my soul's shelter, Thou my high tower/Raise Thou me heavenward, oh Power of my power
"Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise/Thou mine inheritance now and always/Thou and Thou only, first in my heart/High King of Heaven, my treasure Thou art
"High King of heaven, after victory won/May I reach heaven's joys, Oh bright heaven's Son?/Heart of my own heart, whatever befall/Still be my vision, O Ruler of all..."
"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 my Ebenezer/Hither by Thy help I've come/And I hope, by Thy good pleasure/Safely to arrive at home/Jesus sought me when a stranger/Wandering from the fold of God/He, to rescue me from danger/Interposed His precious blood
"Oh, 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, Lord, take and seal it/Seal it for Thy courts above.."
"How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord/Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word?/What more can we say than to you He hath said/To you who for refuge in Jesus hath fled?
"'Fear not, I am with thee, oh be not dismayed/For I am your God, and will still give thee aid/I'll strengthen thee, help thee and cause thee to stand/Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand"
"'When through the deep waters I call you to go/The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow/For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless/And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress"
"When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie/My grace, all sufficient, shall be your supply/The falme shall not hurt you, I only design/Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine"
"The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose/I will not, I will not desert to His foes/That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake/I'll never, no never, no never forsake..."
"Be Thou my vision, oh Lord of my heart/Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art/Thou my best thought, by day or by night/Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light
"Be Thou my wisdom, and Thou my true word/I ever with Thee, and Thou with me, Lord/Thou my great Father and I thy true son/Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one
"Be Thou my battle-shield, sword for the fight/Be Thou my dignity, Thou my delight/Thou my soul's shelter, Thou my high tower/Raise Thou me heavenward, oh Power of my power
"Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise/Thou mine inheritance now and always/Thou and Thou only, first in my heart/High King of Heaven, my treasure Thou art
"High King of heaven, after victory won/May I reach heaven's joys, Oh bright heaven's Son?/Heart of my own heart, whatever befall/Still be my vision, O Ruler of all..."
"God moves in a mysterious way/His wonders to perform/He plants his footsteps in the sea/And rides upon the storm/Deep in his dark and hidden mines/With never-failing skill/He fashions all his bright designs/And works his sovereign will
"Ye fearful saints, new courage take/These clouds that you now dread/Are big with mercy and will break/In blessings on your head/Judge not the Lord by feeble sense/But trust him for his grace/Behind a frowning providence/He hides a smiling face
"His purposes will ripen fast/Unfolding every hour/The bud may have a bitter taste/But sweet will be the flower/Blind unbelief is sure to err/And scan his work in vain/God is his own interpreter/And he will make it plain..."
UPDATE - I began writing this post about three weeks ago, it wasn't quite done yet. Analyzing the lyrics of "Be Thou My Vision", it kinda seems like an olden version of today's Christian-radio songs or man-centered worship music...Hmm.
Hopefully I'll be able to go to church in the morning, but we'll have to see what the weather does. Student ministries are great at times and have their place, and so do conferences, but it's not the same. Spending the night working on this post, trying to get some stories written a bit farther and listening to some Eli music, his "Second Hand Clothing" CD. Might play guitar for a bit.
"Ye fearful saints, new courage take/These clouds that you now dread/Are big with mercy and will break/In blessings on your head/Judge not the Lord by feeble sense/But trust him for his grace/Behind a frowning providence/He hides a smiling face
"His purposes will ripen fast/Unfolding every hour/The bud may have a bitter taste/But sweet will be the flower/Blind unbelief is sure to err/And scan his work in vain/God is his own interpreter/And he will make it plain..."
UPDATE - I began writing this post about three weeks ago, it wasn't quite done yet. Analyzing the lyrics of "Be Thou My Vision", it kinda seems like an olden version of today's Christian-radio songs or man-centered worship music...Hmm.
Hopefully I'll be able to go to church in the morning, but we'll have to see what the weather does. Student ministries are great at times and have their place, and so do conferences, but it's not the same. Spending the night working on this post, trying to get some stories written a bit farther and listening to some Eli music, his "Second Hand Clothing" CD. Might play guitar for a bit.
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