Lord of Patience by Shai Linne w/lyrics

Shai Linne - Faithful God (with lyrics)

“Though You Slay Me” by Shane and Shane (featuring John Piper)

The Mercy of God

"The mercy of God."
Psalm 52:8

Meditate a little on this mercy of the Lord. It is tender mercy. With gentle, loving touch, he healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He is as gracious in the manner of his mercy as in the matter of it. It is great mercy. There is nothing little in God; his mercy is like himself--it is infinite. You cannot measure it. His mercy is so great that it forgives great sins to great sinners, after great lengths of time, and then gives great favours and great privileges, and raises us up to great enjoyments in the great heaven of the great God.

It is undeserved mercy, as indeed all true mercy must be, for deserved mercy is only a misnomer for justice. There was no right on the sinner's part to the kind consideration of the Most High; had the rebel been doomed at once to eternal fire he would have richly merited the doom, and if delivered from wrath, sovereign love alone has found a cause, for there was none in the sinner himself. It is rich mercy. Some things are great, but have little efficacy in them, but this mercy is a cordial to your drooping spirits; a golden ointment to your bleeding wounds; a heavenly bandage to your broken bones; a royal chariot for your weary feet; a bosom of love for your trembling heart. It is manifold mercy. As Bunyan says, "All the flowers in God's garden are double." There is no single mercy. You may think you have but one mercy, but you shall find it to be a whole cluster of mercies. It is abounding mercy. Millions have received it, yet far from its being exhausted; it is as fresh, as full, and as free as ever. It is unfailing mercy. It will never leave thee. If mercy be thy friend, mercy will be with thee in temptation to keep thee from yielding; with thee in trouble to prevent thee from sinking; with thee living to be the light and life of thy countenance; and with thee dying to be the joy of thy soul when earthly comfort is ebbing fast.

--C.H. Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, August 17

The Perfection of Bliss

"The city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it."
Revelation 21:23

Yonder in the better world, the inhabitants are independent of all creature comforts. They have no need of raiment;
   their white robes never wear out, neither shall they ever be defiled.
They need no medicine to heal diseases,
   "for the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick."
They need no sleep to recruit their frames
   --they rest not day nor night, but unweariedly praise Him in his temple.
They need no social relationship to minister comfort, and whatever happiness they may derive from association with their fellows is not essential to their bliss,
   for their Lord's society is enough for their largest desires.
They need no teachers there;
   they doubtless commune with one another concerning the things of God, but they do not require this by way of instruction; they shall all be taught of the Lord.
   Ours are the alms at the king's gate,
   but they feast at the table itself.
Here we lean upon the friendly arm,
   but there they lean upon their Beloved and upon Him alone.
Here we must have the help of our companions,
   but there they find all they want in Christ Jesus.
Here we look to the meat which perisheth, and to the raiment which decays before the moth,
   but there they find everything in God.
We use the bucket to fetch us water from the well,
   but there they drink from the fountain head, and put their lips down to the living water.
Here the angels bring us blessings,
   but we shall want no messengers from heaven then.
They shall need no Gabriels there to bring their love-notes from God,
   for there they shall see Him face to face.

Oh! what a blessed time shall that be when we shall have mounted above every second cause and shall rest upon the bare arm of God! What a glorious hour when God, and not his creatures; the Lord, and not His works, shall be our daily joy! Our souls shall then have attained the perfection of bliss.

--C.H. Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, August 9

Psalm 90

A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.

Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

You return man to dust and say, "Return, O children of man!" For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night.

You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning: in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.

For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.

For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh. The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away. Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you?

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. Return, O LORD! How long? Have pity on your servants! Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil. Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

(Psalms 90:1-17 ESV)

The Cure for Difficulties

But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." —1 Samuel 16:7

Indeed it may be truthfully said that everything of lasting value in the Christian life is unseen and eternal. Things seen are of little real significance in the light of God's presence. He pays small attention to the beauty of a woman or the strength of a man. With Him the heart is all that matters. The rest of the life comes into notice only because it represents the dwelling place of the eternal being.

The solution to life's problems is spiritual because the essence of life is spiritual. It is astonishing how many difficulties clear up without any effort when the inner life gets straightened out....

Church difficulties are spiritual also and admit of a spiritual answer. Whatever may be wrong in the life of any church may be cleared up by recognizing the quality of the trouble and dealing with it at the root. Prayer, humility and a generous application of the Spirit of Christ will cure just about any disease in the body of believers. Yet this is usually the last thing we think about when difficulties arise. We often attempt to cure spiritual ills with carnal medicines, and the results are more than disappointing. The Next Chapter After the Last, 82-83.

"Problems loom so large, Lord, because they seem so prevalent. Help our church to focus on 'prayer, humility and a generous application of the Spirit of Christ.' Amen."