hymn | Craig T. Owens

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Thursdays With Spurgeon—The Best Study To Expand Your Mind

August 22, 2019 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Charles Spurgeon. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Spurgeon” in the search box to read more entries.

The Best Study To Expand Your Mind

The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy that can ever engage the attention of a child of God is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father. … It is a subject so vast that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity, so deep that our pride is drowned in its infinity. …

But while the subject humbles the mind, it also expands it. He who often thinks of God will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe. …

Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity. …

There is one name on which mutability can never be written. One heart never can alter. That heart is God’s; that name Love.

From The Immutability Of God

The vastness—the infiniteness—of God is something which should much consume us! The psalmists frequently write of the time they spent meditating on God and His awesomeness.

That word “meditate” means to mull something over and over in your mind; literally, it means “to hum.” Perhaps that’s why the psalms were written as songs, so that it would be easier for people to hum their pondering on how majestic our All-Powerful, All-Loving God is.

It’s not about the quantity of your Bible reading, but it’s about the quality of your reading. And it’s about what you do with what you have read. Soak in it. Meditate on it. Hum it over and over again throughout the day. Let the truth of God’s majesty lift your mind and spirit to new heights!

This is truly the greatest topic on which you can muse. The illumination of God will expand your mind like no other study in the world can.

Oh Lord my God when I in awesome wonder

consider all the worlds Thy hands have made.

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder

Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee,

How great Thou art! How great Thou art! (Stuart Wesley Keene Hine)

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible study, Charles Spurgeon, Deity, God's Word, hymn, lifelong learner, majesty, meditation, muse, ponder, psalms. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—These Eyes Have Never Seen

July 13, 2019 — Craig T. Owens

Jesus, these eyes have never seen

that radiant form of Thine;

the veil of sense hangs dark between

Thy blessed face and mine.

I see Thee not, I hear Thee not,

yet art Thou oft with me;

and earth hath ne’er so dear a spot

as where I meet with Thee.

Yet, though I have not seen, and still

must rest in faith alone,

I love Thee, dearest Lord, and will,

unseen, but not unknown.

When death these mortal eyes shall seal,

and still this throbbing heart,

the rending veil shall Thee reveal

all glorious as Thou art. —Ray Palmer

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: faith, God's glory, God's presence, Heaven, hymn, Jesus Christ, poem, poetry, Ray Palmer, worship. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—A Debtor To Mercy Alone

June 15, 2019 — Craig T. Owens

A debtor to mercy alone,

Of covenant mercy I sing,

Nor fear, with God’s righteousness on,

My person and off’rings to bring.

The terrors of law and of God

With me can have nothing to do;

My Savior’s obedience and blood

Hide all my transgression from view.

The work which His goodness began,

The arm of His strength will complete;

His promise is Yea and Amen,

And never was forfeited yet.

Things future, nor things that are now,

Not all things below or above,

Can make Him His purpose forego,

Or sever my soul from His love.

My name from the palms of His hands

Eternity will not erase;

Imprest on His heart, it remains

In marks of indelible grace.

Yes! I to the end shall endure,

As sure as the earnest is giv’n;

More happy, but not more secure,

When all earthly ties have been riv’n. —Augustus Toplady

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Augustus Toplady, eternal life, forgiveness, God's promise, grace, hymn, Jesus Christ, mercy, poem, poetry, Savior, security. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—O My Soul What Means This Sadness

May 18, 2019 — Craig T. Owens

O my soul! what means this sadness?

Wherefore art thou thus cast down?

Let thy griefs be turned to gladness,

Bid thy restless fears be gone;

Look to Jesus, look to Jesus,

And rejoice in His dear name.

What though satan’s strong temptations

Vex and grieve thee day by day,

And thy sinful inclinations

Often fill thee with dismay;

Thou shalt conquer,

Through the Lamb’s redeeming blood.

Though ten thousand ills beset thee

From without and from within,

Jesus saith He’ll ne’er forget thee,

But will save from hell and sin.

He is faithful

To perform His gracious Word.

Though distresses now attend thee,

And thou tread’st the thorny road,

His right hand shall still defend thee;

Soon He’ll bring thee home to God.

Therefore praise Him,

Praise the great Redeemer’s name.

Oh that I could now adore Him

Like the heavenly host above,

Who forever bow before Him,

And unceasing sing His love.

Happy songsters!

When shall I your chorus join? —W.B. Bradbury

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: adoration, assurance, fear, God's faithfulness, Heaven, hymn, Jesus Christ, joy, poem, poetry, praise, W.B. Bradbury, worship. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Our Sins The Cause Of Christ’s Death

April 27, 2019 — Craig T. Owens

Infinite grief! amazing woe!

Behold my bleeding Lord!

Hell and the Jews conspired His death,

And us’d the Roman sword.

O the sharp pangs of smarting pain

My dear Redeemer bore,

When knotty whips, and ragged thorns,

His sacred body tore!

But knotty whips, and ragged thorns

In vain do I accuse;

In vain I blame the Roman bands,

And the more spiteful Jews.

‘Twas you, my sins, my cruel sins,

His chief tormentors were;

Each of my crimes became a nail,

And unbelief the spear.

It was you that pulled the vengeance down

Upon His guiltless head;

Break, break, my heart! O burst mine eyes!

And let my sorrows bleed.

Strike, mighty grace, my flinty soul,

Till melting waters flow,

And deep repentance drown mine eyes

In undissembled woe. —Isaac Watts

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: crucifixion, hymn, Isaac Watts, Jesus Christ, poem, poetry, Savior, sin, sorrow, unbelief. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Christ Jesus Lay In Death’s Strong Bands

April 13, 2019 — Craig T. Owens

Christ Jesus lay in death’s strong bands,

For our offenses given;

But now at God’s right hand He stands

And brings us life from heaven;

Therefore let us joyful be

And sing to God right thankfully

Loud songs of hallelujah.

Hallelujah!

It was a strange and dreadful strife

when life and death contended;

the victory remained with life,

the reign of death was ended;

Holy Scripture plainly saith

that death is swallowed up by death,

his sting is lost forever.

Hallelujah!

Here the true Paschal Lamb we see,

whom God so freely gave us;

He died on the accursed tree—

so strong His love!—to save us.

See, His blood doth mark our door;

faith points to it, death passes o’er,

and satan cannot harm us.

Hallelujah! —Martin Luther

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: blood, Calvary, crucified, death, God's love, Good Friday, hymn, Jesus Christ, Lamb of God, Martin Luther, Passover, poem, poetry, prophesy, salvation, Scripture, victory. 1 Comment »

Thursdays With Oswald—Jeremiah 18

August 30, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

Jeremiah 18

[These are notes from Oswald Chambers’ lecture on Jeremiah 18.]

These people are affecting to be the people of God—“We are the people of God, this is the temple of God…the prophets we like to listen to are those who prophesy smooth things.” … The early aspirations God stirred in them have gone, and now they simply make God and everything in connection with Him an affectation to go on their own ways. …

There is an obstinacy that deliberately takes the law into its own hand and leaves the source of its life. There needs to be a recognition of where the source of life is and a determination to stay at it. Backsliding is the prevailing human stubbornness after the experimental knowledge of salvation. Backsliding is never spoken of in the Bible as a degenerate tendency, but as a conscious forsaking. …

It is no longer “Satisfy us early with Thy mercy,” but “Satisfy us with these other things, we want material prosperity and success.” … Never falter by trying to make anything lesser the cause for what is greater; for instance, trying to make health of body the cause for a right spiritual relationship, or material prosperity the cause for worshiping God, and never make obedience the reason that God is blessing you, obedience is the effect of being rightly related to God.

From Notes On Jeremiah

Backsliding occurs when we deliberately try to find loopholes, evasions, or excuses for not obeying the Word of God.

Whenever the Holy Spirit prompts us to make a change, we have a decision to make: we can obey or we can make excuses (which is conscious disobedience). Obedience shows we are rightly related to God. Our excuses and evasions show we are trying to get God to be rightly related to our way of thinking.

What God is asking you to obey may be a hard thing, but it is always the best thing! Don’t evade, justify, or make excuses—simply, as the words of the old hymn remind us, trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: backslider, Bible study, conviction, disobedience, Holy Spirit, hymn, Jeremiah, obedience, Oswald Chambers. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

November 12, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“I have learned now that while those who speak about one’s miseries usually hurt, those who keep silence hurt more.” —C.S. Lewis

“Jesus spilled His blood for you. You can spill your heart before God.” —Max Lucado

“Too often, when issues of sexual abuse come up, the Church simply stays silent. But a Gospel-centered response to sexual violation of anyone at any age begins with understanding that silence is not an option.” Read more in The Scandal Of Silence.

An abortion clinic in Michigan was shut down for numerous health and safety violations, but now it appears it may re-open.

[VIDEO] Here’s the truth of what abortion providers do—

Eric Metaxas shares the really cool story behind the Navy Hymn.

“You can be saved, Spirit-filled, and walking holy before God, yet still be guilty of unbelief. You may think, ‘I don’t have any unbelief.’ But do you get upset when things go wrong? Are you fearful of failing God? Are you restless, afraid of the future? The believer who has unconditional faith in God’s promise enjoys complete rest. What characterizes this rest? A full, complete confidence in God’s Word, and a total dependence on His faithfulness to that Word. Indeed, rest is the evidence of faith.” —David Wilkerson

Seth Godin discusses what starts to happen when our expectations slip.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: abortion, anxiety, C.S. Lewis, church, David Wilkerson, Eric Metaxas, expectation, faith, God's Word, history, Holy Spirit, hymn, Jesus Christ, Max Lucado, music, Planned Parenthood, quotes, Seth Godin, sexual abuse, silence, talk, trustworthy, unbelief, United States Navy, video. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday―And Can It Be Said That I Should Gain

March 28, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

And can it be that I should gain

An interest in the Savior’s blood?

Died He for me, who caused His pain―

For me, who Him to death pursued?

Amazing love! How can it be,

That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

He left His Father’s throne above

So free, so infinite His grace―

Emptied Himself of all but love,

And bled for Adam’s helpless race:

‘Tis mercy all, immense and free,

For O my God, it found out me!

‘Tis mercy all, immense and free,

For O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay,

Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;

Thine eye diffused a quickening ray―

I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;

My chains fell off, my heart was free,

I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

My chains fell off, my heart was free,

I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

No condemnation now I dread;

Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;

Alive in Him, my living Head,

And clothed in righteousness divine,

Bold I approach th’eternal throne,

And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

Bold I approach th’eternal throne,

And claim the crown, through Christ my own. —Charles Wesley

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Charles Wesley, condemnation, Cross, crucifixion, God's love, hymn, Jesus Christ, mercy, poem, poetry, righteousness, salvation, Savior. 1 Comment »

Poetry Saturday―There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood

March 14, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins;
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 that fountain in his day;
And there have I, though vile as he, washed all my sins away.
Washed all my sins away, washed all my sins away;
And there have I, though vile as he, washed all my sins away.

Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood shall never lose its power
Till all the ransomed church of God be saved, to sin no more.
Be saved, to sin no more, be saved, to sin no more;
Till all the ransomed church of God be saved, to sin no more.

E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream Thy flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die.
And shall be till I die, and shall be till I die;
Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die.

Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I’ll sing Thy power to save,
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.
Lies silent in the grave, lies silent in the grave;
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.

Lord, I believe Thou hast prepared, unworthy though I be,
For me a blood bought free reward, a golden harp for me!
’Tis strung and tuned for endless years, and formed by power divine,
To sound in God the Father’s ears no other name but Thine. —William Cowper