Thursday, June 26, 2014

Scriptures of Encouragement ~ Be Thou My Vision, Lord

by Nan Jones  @NanJonesAuthor
 

The cool breeze refreshed my sweaty brow. I lifted my eyes towards the sky, blue as a cornflower. I sensed the Spirit of God drawing near, beckoning to me from deep within. There were no words. No choirs of angels. Just a quiet knowing that He was near.

I stopped my busyness and stood still with eyes closed. I thought of Him. Of His goodness. His faithfulness. I thought of how much I needed Him to be my sure place - my refuge - when anxiety swirled about me.

In the quiet, a song began to stir in my spirit.

"Be Thou my vision, O 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, I Thy true son, 
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one."

I couldn't remember the rest of the words so I ran inside to find our hymnal, front door slapping behind me. Grabbing the hymnal from a shelf I quickly searched the index. I knew the Lord was showing me something and I didn't want the moment to evaporate.

"Riches I heed not, or 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, my victory won,
May I reach heaven's joys O bright heav'n's Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my vision, O Ruler of all."

That was it!! "Riches I heed not, or man's empty praise, Thou mine inheritance now and always..." 

Seeking Him first. Finding my treasure.

God's mercies continued: "Heart of my own heart, whatever befall, Still be my vision, O Ruler of all."

My fears over financial concerns subsided. Anxiety over successfully marketing my upcoming book disappated. My angst over letting others down, of not doing enough - being enough - slipped away. My concerns for the health of my daughter...the list goes on.

The Lord clearly showed me that with my focus on Him, His wisdom is sure. His peace is perfect. His joy my strength.

O Lord, be Thou my vision.


“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

 “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes." ~ Matthew 6:30-34, MSG
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Tweetables to Encourage Others

Finding it hard to concentrate on Jesus? @NanJonesAuthor offers insight. (Click to Tweet)

My angst over letting others down, of not doing enough - being enough - slipped away. (Click to Tweet)



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If you received Morning Glory via email please visit the Morning Glory  page. I discovered a new worship leader, Eoghan Heaslip, singing, "Be Thou My Vision". I think it will be a blessing to you.


5 comments :

  1. I love this song. Such an awesome reminder of who God is and who we can be through Him. Thank you Nan. Love you.

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    1. I have always loved this hymn, but lately it has taken on more meaning for me. I'm thankful you were blessed. Love you too!

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  2. Thank you, Nan! A very timely word. And so true...

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    1. Alycia! I'm so happy you stopped by. The Lord is teaching me so much about resting in Him and seeking His face. I'm very thankful for that. I'm also thankful this post helped you, as well. Bless you!

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  3. Thank you, Nan, for beautifully putting into words the way God interacts with us -- when we are open to Him, when we stop to listen, when we yearn to hear Him. He is with us always!

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