O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.
Of course, that’s the middle of the song. It begins with the title “Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing.” I’ve always loved this hymn, not just for this verse, but all of it. True, our Lord is the source of every blessing, and we receive them overflowing.
Just as true, we are prone to wander. David knew this:
With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. (Psalms 119:10 KJV)
Reading of his life, it appears that Robinson, too, was prone to wander a bit. Yet he knew the God he loved, and the God that holds his heart. Thus the plea, “Bind my wandering heart to Thee.”
Of all my favorite hymns, I wonder if their authors envisioned how many people would hear, and love, what they shared of our Lord. Could Robinson have thought his work would spread around the world for more than three centuries? Could my other favorites? I doubt it.
There are times when national leaders know their words (whether they created them or not) would become part of history to be studied. I think hymnists write with their hearts, their feelings, the very words they send to their Lord in prayer.
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it. (Amos 8:11-12 KJV)
That time is not yet. The word of the Lord is available for us to read and to share. It is handed out to children at school (well, some have stopped that) and passed out at street corners (except, as example, in some Dearborn neighborhoods.) We are free to speak of it publically, (unless we work for a government agency) and to have a copy of it at our workplace (except where complaints of discrimination have been filed.) Sharing the word must follow a labyrinth of judicial decisions in our country. Beyond our borders, there are places where Bibles have been determined illegal.
Do we care? Do we share? Or do we remain prone to wander?
Amen I definitely care and I am very careful how to pose my words, I never want something I say to become a slang or a crutch for any one, I love that song too, and after reading the words it is even more dear to me now, you have a great day sister, and may God bless you greatly.
ReplyDeleteOh how I love that hymn. That's my favourite one, I thought of having the classical one by "Paul Cardall" play at my funeral when the time comes. I know its pretty morbid to think of my own funeral, but I want to choose my own song :)
ReplyDeleteMy favourite part is, "Come to the Fount of every blessing". What an invitatioon!! We are all prone to wonder, and we have nothing to bring when turned around but our brokeness. We bring our scarifice of broken hearts to our Father, the source of every blessing. Thank you Grammy for sharing!!
We care... we share! With my book series I have dealt with praise as well as with scorning because I teach of our Lord and His Word. It's not always easy, but He created me for Him, not the other way around. <3
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