... hearing my primitive cries to Him and answering very quickly.



(KJV) John 3: 4 - 6
Nicodemus saith unto him, 'How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?'

Jesus answered, 'Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot [u]enter[/u] into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit...'

[b]12[/b]:20 - 24
And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: the same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, '[b]Sir, we would [u]see Jesus[/u][/b].

Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. And Jesus answered them, saying, 'The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, [b][u]Except[/u] a corn of wheat [u]fall[/u] into the ground [u]and die[/u], it abideth alone[/b]: but [b]if[/b] it die, [u]it bringeth forth much fruit[/u].'

In the tomb so cold they laid Him,
death its victim claimed;
powers of hell they could not hold Him-
back to life He came!

[i]Refrain[/i]
[i]Christ is risen,
(Christ is risen),
death has been conquered,
(death has been conquered),
Christ is risen,
(Christ is risen):
He shall reign for ever![/i]

Hell had spent its fury on Him,
left Him crucified;
yet by blood He boldly conquered,
sin and death defied.

[i]Refrain[/i]

Now the fear of death is broken,
Love has won the crown.
Prisoners of the darkness - listen,
walls are tumbling down!

[i]Refrain[/i]

Raised from death, to heaven ascending,
Love’s exalted King:
let His song of joy unending
through the nations ring!

[i]Refrain[/i]



[i]©1986 Kingsway’s Thankyou Music[/i]


[url=http://www.billysloan.co.uk/songs/in_the_tomb_so_cold_they_laid_him.html]http://www.billysloan.co.uk/songs/in_the_tomb_so_cold_they_laid_him.html[/url]


Romans 7:4 - 6
[b]we should bring forth fruit unto God[/b]. For when [u]we were in the flesh[/u], the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.

[b][u]But now[/u] we are delivered[/b] from the law, [u]that being dead[/u] wherein we were held; [b]that we should serve in newness of spirit[/b], and not in the oldness of the letter.

Romans 6:4
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead [b]by the glory of the Father, [u]even so [i]we also[/u] should walk[/i] in newness of life[/b].

... the ministrations of His Holy Spirit deep in my being, knowing I'm being changed forever.



[i]Extract from[/i] "A Vision of the Lost"
by William Booth (Founder of The Salvation Army)

"On one of my recent journeys, as I gazed from the coach window, I was led into a train of thought concerning the condition of the multitudes around me. They were living carelessly in the most open and shameless rebellion against God, without a thought for their eternal welfare. As I looked out of the window, I seemed to see them all... millions of people all around me given up to their drink and their pleasure, their dancing and their music, their business and their anxieties, their politics and their troubles. [b]Ignorant- willfully ignorant in many cases- and in other instances knowing all about the truth and not caring at all[/b]. But all of them, the whole mass of them, sweeping on and up in their blasphemies and devilries to the Throne of God. While my mind was thus engaged, [b]I had a vision[/b].

[i]I saw a dark and stormy ocean. Over it the black clouds hung heavily; through them every now and then vivid lightening flashed and loud thunder rolled, while the winds moaned, and the waves rose and foamed, towered and broke, only to rise and foam, tower and break again.

In that ocean I thought I saw myriads of poor human beings plunging and floating, shouting and shrieking, cursing and struggling and drowning; and as they cursed and screamed they rose and shrieked again, and then some sank to rise no more.

[b]And I saw out of this dark angry ocean, a mighty rock that rose up with it’s summit towering high above the black clouds that overhung the stormy sea. And all around the base of this great rock I saw a vast platform. Onto this platform, I saw with delight a number of the poor struggling, drowning wretches continually climbing out of the angry ocean. And I saw that a few of those who were already safe on the platform were helping the poor creatures still in the angry waters to reach the place of safety[/b].

On looking more closely I found a number of those who had been rescued, industriously working and scheming by ladders, ropes, boats and other means more effective, to deliver the poor strugglers out of the sea. Here and there were some who actually jumped into the water, regardless of the consequences in their passion to "rescue the perishing." And I hardly know which gladdened me the most- the sight of the poor drowning people climbing onto the rocks reaching a place of safety, or the devotion and self-sacrifice of those whose whole being was wrapped up in the effort for their deliverance..'[/i]



Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm doth bind the restless wave,
Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep:
O hear us when we cry to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.

O Savior, whose almighty word
The winds and waves submissive heard,
Who walkedst on the foaming deep
And calm amid its rage didst sleep:
O hear us when we cry to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.

O sacred Spirit, who didst brood
Upon the chaos dark and rude,
Who badd'st its angry tumult cease,
And gavest light and life and peace:
O hear us when we cry to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.

O Trinity of love and power,
Our brethren shield in danger's hour;
From rock and tempest, fire and foe,
Protect them wheresoe'er they go;
And ever let there rise to Thee
Glad hymns of praise from land and sea.



Tune: Melita
[url=http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/efsts.htm]http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/efsts.htm[/url]

[url=http://www.hymnsite.com/fws/hymn.cgi?2191]http://www.hymnsite.com/fws/hymn.cgi?2191[/url]

(alternative) Tune: Sagina - the tune to 'And can it be'
[url=http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0005/x000558.htm]http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0005/x000558.htm[/url]

[url=http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/acibtisg.htm]http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/acibtisg.htm[/url]


[b]Psalm 104:5 - 9, Matthew 14:24 - 33, Mark 4:37 - 41,
Genesis 1:1 - 3, John 6:16 - 21, Acts 27 - 28:6[/b].

.....The blood!!Thank God for the blood!!!!

There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Emmanuels vains
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
LOSE ALL THEIR GUILTY STAINS!

Lose all their guilty stains
Lose all their guilty stains
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains

The dying thief rejoiced to see
The fountain in that day
And there may I, though vile as he
WASH ALL MY SINS AWAY!

Wash all my sins away
Wash all my sins away
And there may I, though vile as he
Wash all my sins away

WHEN I SEE THE BLOOD I WILL PASS, I WILL PASS OVER YOU!!!

PRAISE THE LAMB OF GOD!!! :-P :-P :-P :-P

... drawing me closer to Himself.



A mind at 'perfect peace' with God;
Oh! What a word is this!
[b]A sinner reconciled through blood;
This, this indeed is peace![/b]

By nature and by practice far,
How very far from God!
[b]Yet now by grace bought nigh to Him,
Through faith in Jesus' blood[/b].

So nigh, so very nigh to God,
I cannot nearer be:
[b]For in the person of His Son
I am as near as He[/b].

So dear, so very dear to God,
More dear I cannot be:
[b]The love wherewith He loves the Son --
Such is His love to me![/b]

Why should I ever anxious be,
Since such a God is mine?
[b]He watches o'er me night and day,
And tells me 'Mine is thine'[/b].



Tune: Spohr (Gerald)
[url=http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0009/x000956.htm]http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0009/x000956.htm[/url]

Tune: St Agnes
[url=http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/jtvtot.htm]http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/jtvtot.htm[/url]



(Young's Literal Translation) John 3
14 `And as Moses did lift up the serpent in the wilderness, so it behoveth the Son of Man to be lifted up, 15 that every one who [u]is believing in him may not perish[/u], but may have life age-during, 16 for God did so love the world, that His Son--the only begotten--He gave, that every one [u]who is believing in him may not perish[/u], but may have life age-during.

17 For God did not send His Son to the world that he may judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him; 18 he [u]who is believing in him is not judged[/u], but he who is not believing hath been judged already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

19 `And this is the judgment, that the light hath come to the world, and men did love the darkness rather than the light, for their works were evil; 20 [b]for every one who is doing wicked things hateth the light, and doth not come unto the light, that his works may not be [u]detected[/u]; 21 but he who is doing the truth doth come to the light[/b], that his works may be manifested, that in God they are having been wrought.'

1 John 1:7
and if in the light we may walk, as He is in the light--we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son doth cleanse us from every sin;

... ministering to me through His Spirit and putting me straight on at least two things... 8-)


Romans 8 Today's English Version

15 For the Spirit that God has given you does not make you slaves and cause you to be afraid; instead, the Spirit makes you God's children, and by the Spirit's power we cry out to God, "Father! my Father!"

16 God's Spirit joins himself to our spirits to declare that we are God's children. 17 Since we are his children, we will possess the blessings he keeps for his people, and we will also possess with Christ what God has kept for him; for if we share Christ's suffering, we will also share his glory.

18 I consider that what we suffer at this present time cannot be compared at all with the glory that is going to be revealed to us. 19 All of creation waits with eager longing for God to reveal his sons.

20 For creation was condemned to lose its purpose, not of its own will, but because God willed it to be so. Yet there was the hope 21 that creation itself would one day be set free from its slavery to decay and would share the glorious freedom of the children of God.

22 For we know that up to the present time all of creation groans with pain, like the pain of childbirth. 23 But it is not just creation alone which groans; we who have the Spirit as the first of God's gifts also groan within ourselves as we wait for God to make us his sons and set our whole being free.

24 For it was by hope that we were saved; but if we see what we hope for, then it is not really hope. For who hopes for something he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. 26 In the same way the Spirit also comes to help us, weak as we are. For we do not know how we ought to pray; the Spirit himself pleads with God for us in groans that words cannot express. 27 And God, who sees into our hearts, knows what the thought of the Spirit is; because the Spirit pleads with God on behalf of his people and in accordance with his will.

28 We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose. 29 Those whom God had already chosen he also set apart to become like his Son, so that the Son would be the first among many brothers. 30 And so those whom God set apart, he called; and those he called, he put right with himself, and he shared his glory with them.

31 In view of all this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 Certainly not God, who did not even keep back his own Son, but offered him for us all! He gave us his Son--will he not also freely give us all things? 33 Who will accuse God's chosen people? God himself declares them not guilty! 34 Who, then, will condemn them? Not Christ Jesus, who died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right side of God, pleading with him for us!

35 Who, then, can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble do it, or hardship or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger or death? 36 As the scripture says, "For your sake we are in danger of death at all times; we are treated like sheep that are going to be slaughtered."

37 No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us! 38 For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, 39 neither the world above nor the world below--there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.



A poem by Madame Guyon. (Tunes in next post)

O Thou, by long experience tried,
Near whom no grief can long abide;
My love! How full of sweet content
I pass my years of banishment!

All scenes alike engaging prove
To souls impress'd with sacred love!
Where'er they dwell, they dwell in thee;
In heaven, in earth, or on the sea.

To me remains nor place nor time;
My country is in every clime;
I can be calm and free from care
On any shore, since God is there.

While place we seek, or place we shun,
The soul finds happiness in none;
But, with a God to guide our way,
'Tis equal joy to go or stay.

Could I be cast where Thou art not,
That were indeed a dreadful lot;
But regions none remote I call,
Secure of finding God in all.

My country, Lord, art Thou alone;
Nor other can I claim or own;
The point where all my wishes meet;
My Law, my Love, life's only sweet!

I hold by nothing here below;
Appoint my journey and I go;
Though pierced by scorn, oppress'd by pride,
I feel Thee good - feel nought beside.

No frowns of men can hurtful prove
To souls on fire with heavenly love;
Though men and devils both condemn,
No gloomy days arise from them.

Ah, then! to His embrace repair;
My soul, thou art no stranger there;
There love divine shall be thy guard,
And peace and safety thy reward.


[i]Madame Guyon (during her imprisonment)[/i]



Tune: Quebec
[url=http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/jtjolh.htm]http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/jtjolh.htm[/url]

Tune: Federal Street
[url=http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0002/x000245.htm]http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0002/x000245.htm[/url]

[url=http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/atiaiott.htm]http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/atiaiott.htm[/url]

... the ministry of the Body... for prayers being answered and for prayers being offered...




Hallelujah! Sing exulting for the Holy Ghost has come
To prepare a chosen people for their Lord and heavenly home.
Soon in clouds of Light appearing, faithful to His promised word,
We shall see Him, therefore brethren, watch and pray and serve the Lord.
Come believing, cleanse your garments, in the blood on Calv'ry shed,
From the old, set free forever, formed anew in Christ our Head.

Fall upon us, mighty Spirit, in Thy fulness from above,
New creating, all-conforming in us, to the Lord we love,
To Thy service consecrated and with hearts from self set free,
Burning with Love's pure devotion we will live and die for Thee.
Gifts and graces for His members Thou are come abroad to shed,
Thus, through signs and wonders bringing, glory to our risen Head.

Hark! The ransomed choir is singing hallelujah to the Lamb!
Glory, honour, praise and worship; hail Him as the great I AM!
See the Bride in dazzling raiment hastes her glorious Lord to meet;
Come, Lord Jesus, we adore Thee, while we worship at Thy feet.
Hallelujah! Everlasting glory dawns upon us now,
As we hear with joy and rapture, His clear summons: 'Enter thou'.



Tune: Morgenlied
[url=http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/i/cirhallj.htm]http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/i/cirhallj.htm[/url]

([i]Original tune not available online, sorry.[/i])



John 3:26 - 36
And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified -- behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!" [b]John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven[/b]. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent before Him.' [b]He who has the bride is the bridegroom[/b]; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. [b]Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled[/b]. He must increase, but I decrease. He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure. The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and [i]he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him[/i]." (NKJV)

... bringing me back to life ... in Himself... and making my feet like hinds' feet.



Teach me Thy way, O Lord, teach me Thy way!
Thy guiding grace afford, teach me Thy way!
Help me to walk aright, more by faith, less by sight;
Lead me with heav’nly light, teach me Thy way!

When I am sad at heart, teach me Thy way!
When earthly joys depart, teach me Thy way!
In hours of loneliness, in times of dire distress,
In failure or success, teach me Thy way!

When doubts and fears arise, teach me Thy way!
When storms o’erspread the skies, teach me Thy way!
Shine through the cloud and rain, through sorrow, toil and pain;
Make Thou my pathway plain, teach me Thy way!

Long as my life shall last, teach me Thy way!
Where’er my lot be cast, teach me Thy way!
Until the race is run, until the journey’s done,
Until the crown is won, teach me Thy way!



Tune: Camacha
[url=http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/t/e/teachmet.htm]http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/t/e/teachmet.htm[/url]

Tune: Proprior Deo
[url=http://www.billysloan.co.uk/songs/nearer_my_god_to_thee.html]http://www.billysloan.co.uk/songs/nearer_my_god_to_thee.html[/url]



John 4:19 - 30, 40 - 42
The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you [Jews] say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. [b]You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews[/b]. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When He comes, He will tell us all things." [b]Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am[/b] [He."] And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, "What do You seek?" or, "Why are You talking with her?" The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, "Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?"

Then they went out of the city and came to Him... So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word. Then they said to the woman, "[b]Now we believe[/b], not because of what you said, [b]for we ourselves have heard Him[/b] and [u]we know that this is indeed the Christ[/u], [b]the Savior of the world[/b]."

... His help and strength to 'be' for Him, in a new situation ...



I need Thee every hour, most gracious Lord;
No tender voice like Thine can peace afford.

[i]Refrain[/i]

[i]I need Thee, O I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee;
O bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee[/i].

I need Thee every hour, stay Thou nearby;
Temptations lose their power when Thou art nigh.

[i]Refrain[/i]

I need Thee every hour, in joy or pain;
Come quickly and abide, or life is in vain.

[i]Refrain[/i]

I need Thee every hour; teach me Thy will;
And Thy rich promises in me fulfill.

[i]Refrain[/i]

I need Thee every hour, most Holy One;
O make me Thine indeed, Thou blessèd Son.

[i]Refrain[/i]


Tune: Need (Lowry)
[url=http://www.hymnsite.com/lyrics/umh397.sht]http://www.hymnsite.com/lyrics/umh397.sht[/url]

[url=http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/i/n/ineedteh.htm]http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/i/n/ineedteh.htm[/url]



John 4:43 - 54
Now after the two days He departed from there and went to Galilee. For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.

So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they also had gone to the feast. So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine.

And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe." The nobleman said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!" Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your son lives."

[u]So[/u] [b]the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him[/b], and he went his way. And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, "Your son lives!" Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him." So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives." [b]And he himself [u]believed[/u], [i]and[/i] his whole household[/b].

This again [is] the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee. (NKJV)

... His continuing word to my heart, which is giving me the answers I need to keep moving.



O FOR a heart to praise my God,
A heart from sin set free!
A heart that always feels Thy blood
So freely spilt for me!

A heart resigned, submissive, meek,
My great Redeemer's throne,
Where only Christ is heard to speak,
Where Jesus reigns alone;

An humble, lowly, contrite heart,
Believing, true, and clean;
Which neither life nor death can part
From Him that dwells within;

A heart in every thought renewed,
And full of love divine;
Perfect, and right, and pure, and good,
A copy, Lord, of Thine!

Thy tender heart is still the same,
And melts at human woe:
Jesus, for Thee distressed I am,
I want Thy love to know.

My heart, Thou know'st, can never rest,
Till Thou create my peace,
Till of my Eden re-possessed,
From every sin I cease.

Fruit of Thy gracious lips, on me
Bestow that peace unknown,
The hidden manna, and the tree
Of life, and the white stone.

Thy nature, gracious Lord, impart!
Come quickly from above,
Write Thy new name upon my heart,
Thy new, best name of love.



Tune: Kilmarnock
[url=http://www.billysloan.co.uk/songs/i_waited_for_the_lord_my_god.html]http://www.billysloan.co.uk/songs/i_waited_for_the_lord_my_god.html[/url]

Tune: Manoah
[url=http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0005/x000565.htm]http://www.ccel.org/cceh/0005/x000565.htm[/url]

Tune: Belmont
[url=http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/tiaffwb2.htm]http://www.planetkc.com/puritan/Hymns/tiaffwb2.htm[/url]

Tune: Abridge (St Stephen) This version sings slowly and prayerfully
[url=http://www.wgma.org.uk/PandG/tunes.htm]http://www.wgma.org.uk/PandG/tunes.htm[/url]



Psalm 51:6 - 15
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts,
And in the hidden part
You will make me to know wisdom.
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Make me hear joy and gladness,
That the bones You have broken may rejoice.
Hide Your face from my sins,
And blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You.
Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed,
O God, The God of my salvation,
And my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
And my mouth shall show forth Your praise.

[b]1 John 1:6 - 9
If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness[/b]. (NKJV)