The words to this beautiful hymn were written by Johann Franck in 1653. He was born in Brandenburg, Germany. Involved in law and politics, he possessed also a religious spirit and a love of nature. He was influenced by his friendship with godly men, who helped him to avoid the pitfalls into which other young men stumbled. He wrote at least 110 religious songs, and this one appeared in a compilation of Johann Cruger’s, who also composed the music for it. Johann Sebastian Bach took Cruger’s work and arranged and harmonized it, giving us the glorious version we have today. The music is included in Bach’s chorale, Jesu, Meine Freude (Jesus, My Joy).

“I will sing a new song unto Thee, O God: upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings will I sing praises unto Thee” (Psalm 144:9). The Psalmist David knew that music is a powerful venue to praise the Almighty God, and evidence abounds in Scripture that he himself was an accomplished musician—in fact, he was so capable that he was chosen to play before King Saul (1 Samuel 16:18–19). It is challenging, however, to follow the example of David in playing skillfully as he did. In my own life, the task of proficiently making God-glorifying music has been a serious pursuit for some years now. Although I play and teach recorder as well, the piano has been my main instrument and I would like to share a little bit of information about choosing, mastering, and interpreting a new piano piece that God has mercifully blessed me with through the sacrificial instruction of others.
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“‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus”
‘Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, 
And to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His promise, 
And to know, “Thus saith the Lord!”

O how sweet to trust in Jesus, 
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
And in simple faith to plunge me 
‘Neath the healing, cleansing flood!


Yes, ‘tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life and rest, and joy and peace.


I’m so glad I learned to trust The,
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Will be with me to the end.


Refrain: Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more!


Brianna: This hymn was written in 1882 by Louisa Stead. As the story goes, Louisa had always felt a calling to be a missionary and go to China. But due to fragile health, she was kept home in the US. She married Mr. Stead and had a daughter named Lily. When Lily was 4 years old, the family went on vacation to a nearby beach. While there, relaxing and enjoying their vacation, they saw a young boy drowning in the ocean. Mr. Stead swam out and tried to rescue him, only he was pulled under by the boy and both Mr. Stead and the boy drowned as Louisa and her daughter watched from shore. 
    Louisa was left without any means of support except for God’s care. She and her daughter were in dire poverty—one day when there was no food in the house and no money to purchase any, Louisa opened the front door to find someone had left groceries and money sitting there for her. That same day she sat down and wrote “Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus.” She later became a missionary to Africa, remarried, and once again had to stay in the US due to her health. But once recovered, she went back to the missionary field in Rhodesia and later died in Zimbabwe. Her daughter Lily married and became a missionary as well.
    Tiffany: I love the words of this precious hymn because I have lived them out! There is a wonderful rest that comes from simply trusting my omniscient and omnipotent Savior and taking Him at His Word. When I try to do things my way—trusting in my own finite knowledge of what is best—failure always ensues. Yet the Lord daily proves His faithfulness to me, giving me ample opportunity to “prove Him over and over,” and His goodness never ceases to amaze me. My constant prayer is that He would give me grace to trust Him more. The joy, peace, and victory that comes from resting in Christ and being completely surrendered to Him is truly indescribable.


“Just as I Am”
Just as I am, without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me.
And that Thou bidst me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.


Just as I am, and waiting not
To rid my soul of one dark blot,
To Thee Whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.


Just as I am, Thou wilt receive,
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve:
Because Thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come!


Just as I am, Thy love unknown,
Hath broken every barrier down;
Now, to be Thine, yes, Thine alone,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come!


Just as I am, of that free love
The breadth, length, depth, and height to prove,
Here for a season, then above,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come!


    Brianna: Born March 18, 1789, Charlotte Elliot was known by others as light-hearted and fun-loving. She lived in England where she became popular for her satirical verse and cartoons. When she was 30, she was diagnosed with a degenerative disease that quickly put an end to her carefree youth. As her disease worsened, she began to sink down into deep depression. She ceased writing and drawing, and seemed to be nearing death.
    Charlotte’s father was a godly man who often entertained ministers. One of these, Dr. Cesar Malan, of Geneva was visiting the house when he happened to ask Charlotte if she knew herself to be a Christian. Because of her illness, Charlotte tended to be irritable. In a petulant tone, she replied that she did not wish to discuss religion. Dr.  Malan apologized for any offense he might have caused and told her he would pray that she might give her heart to Christ and employ in His service the talents which He had gifted her with.
    The Holy Spirit used this simple conversation to prick Charlotte’s conscience. Because of her harsh words to the doctor, she saw the pride and alienation from God that was in her heart. After several days of misery, she went to Cesar Malan and confessed that his question had troubled her. “I am miserable,” she said, “I want to be saved. I want to come to Jesus; but I don’t know how.”
    “You are right to feel a sense of sin,” answered Malan. “Without it, no one comes to the Savior for pardon and life. But you must come just as you are, a sinner, to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.”
    Charlotte did. She came to the Savior just as she was. A new hope filled her life—a new calling. She wanted to know and serve her Savior. Despite her debilitating illness, she rose early and sought her God.
    She wrote: “My Heavenly Father knows, and He alone, what it is, day after day, and hour after hour, to fight against bodily feelings of almost overpowering weakness and languor and exhaustion, to resolve, as He enables me to do, not to yield to the slothfulness, the depression, the irritability, such as a body causes me to long to indulge, but to rise every morning determined on taking this for my motto, ‘If any man will come after Me, let Him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’”
    She began to use her literary gifts to further Christ’s kingdom. Twelve years after her conversion, she wrote the hymn, “Just as I Am.” During her life she wrote 150 hymns. Cesar Malan’s prayer was answered—her talents were used in wondrous ways. She died on September 2, 1871, at the age of eighty-two. It would be appropriate to sum her life’s vision with her own words: 
“Jesus, make Thyself to me, 
A living bright reality: 
More present to faith’s vision keen, 
Than any outward object seen: 
More dear, more intimately rich, 
Than e’en the sweetest earthly tie.”
    Tiffany: I have always treasured this classic hymn. As II Corinthians 9:15 says, “Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift”! What a relief that God did not require me to meet a certain standard of holiness before I came to Him for forgiveness and saving grace. Jesus Christ paid the price for my sins, and His righteousness is now mine to claim. In the words of another precious hymn, “In a love which cannot cease, I am His, and He is mine.” Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!


“It is Well with My Soul”
Brianna: On November 22, 1873, Horatio Spafford bade farewell to his wife and four daughters as they boarded a ship which was to take them to Europe. Earlier that year, the great Chicago fire had destroyed Mr. Spafford’s business and home. He was now sending his daughters to Europe with their mother to attend school there, as Chicago schools had been burned, while he stayed behind trying to reconstruct his business.
    That night the ship that the wife and daughters were on, sunk after colliding with another sailing vessel. All the girls drowned, leaving only the mother who survived.
    The next month, Mr. Spafford was traveling on another ship to England where he planned on reuniting with his wife. As the ship passed over the exact spot Mr. Spafford’s daughters had drowned, a poem began to form itself in his mind:


When peace like a river attendeth my way
When sorrow like sea billows roll,
Whatever my life, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.


Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hast regarded my helpless estate,
And has shed His own blood for my soul.


My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought,
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, oh my soul.


And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll,
The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend,
Even so it is well with my soul.


Tiffany: I have echoed the words of this hymn in moments of peace, joy, and gladness; and I have recalled it in times of sorrow, confusion, or disappointment. No matter what the season of life I am in, the Lord has used it to encourage me. Dear sisters, it is well with my soul! I can say that with strong confidence, because I know that my Redeemer lives—one day my faith will become sight, and even now, while I “see through a glass, darkly,” His peace, His joy, His love, His grace, His strength, and His presence fill my daily walk with my Savior. Regardless of the circumstances I find myself in, my God is ever with me and He upholds me with His right hand, where no one can pluck me out.
    Conclusion: Most hymn writers were ordinary Christian men and women who responded in a Christ-like manner to various circumstances that came their way. They then proceeded to record and share God’s faithfulness and the lessons He taught them through trials and triumphs. As daughters of the King, may each of us do likewise—proclaim the goodness of our Lord! “I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations.”—Psalm 89:1

The words of this lovely hymn were written by Isaac Watts, a familiar hymn writer during the 1700s. William Croft composed the tune before the song was written. The reason why I chose this beautiful hymn for my article is because of the comfort and joy those words bring to us in this particular hymn. Singing these divine words can help a lot when you are feeling alone and forsaken by God. But this song proves that God will never leave or forsake you. The lines in this hymn were written from Psalm 90:1–5.
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What if as a baby your doctor made a mistake that resulted in personal blindness?
What would you have thought? Was the doctor not educated? Negligent? Careless? How could something this tragic befall you? Would you be mad at the doctor, your parents, or even God? This “what if” was a reality for a person named Fanny Crosby. How would she handle this calamity? “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness . . . For when I am weak, then am I strong.”--2 Corinthians 12:9–10

The secret of life
Is letting go.
The secret of love
Is letting it show
In all that I do,
In all that I say,
Right here in this moment.
 
The power of prayer
Is in a humble cry.
The power of change
Is in [yielding] my life
And laying it down,
Down at Your feet,
Right here in this moment.
 
This songwriter beautifully, truthfully captures the secret to Christian living. It applies to all of us across the spectrum of life—young and old, women and men, followers and leaders, daughters, mothers, sisters, wives. Amy Carmichael puts it this way:
 
But all through life I see a cross,
Where sons of God yield up their breath.
There is no gain except by loss;
There is no life except by death.
 
What does surrender to God ultimately mean? What concepts does it carry into our lives as we seek to walk it every day? It’s helpful to lay groundwork at the start of our discussion. Please muse with me for a moment. Read slowly and ponder.

Christmas—what a special time of year! For many, it is a favorite holiday. But the meaning goes far beyond cookies, music, and presents. It’s about the risen Christ Who has come to this world to save us from our sins. That is something to be excited about!
  
​Even though most of us are quite aware of this wonderful news, we occasionally take it for granted and do not joyfully share it with others. But Christmas is a time when we have ample opportunity to proclaim Christ’s birth, death, resurrection, and the gospel message. Here I would like to share with you an ideal way to do that.

My Dear Virtuous Daughters, I would like to tell you a little story. There once was a young girl named Carrie Fisher. She came from a poor family so she had to make a
living by washing dishes in the kitchen of a rich family’s home. One day as she was drying some forks and knives, she began singing a song that encouraged Christians to shine in their corner for Christ. As she sang, she realized that she had the opportunity right where she was to shine in her corner. So she became more diligent at her work and made an effort to make each of those forks and knives to sparkle.

~What is Thanksgiving really about?
   
For some, it’s just another holiday with lots of good food to eat. But for us as Christians, it’s more than that! It’s a day where we stop and remember all of God’s blessings to us, thanking Him for what He’s done for each one of us.

Thanks to God!
(by August Ludwig Storm, translated by Carl E. Backstrom)
 
Thanks to God for my Redeemer, Thanks for all Thou dost provide!
Thanks for times now but a mem’ry, Thanks for Jesus by my side!
Thanks for pleasant, cheerful springtime, Thanks for summer, winter, fall!
Thanks for tears by now forgotten, Thanks for peace within my soul!
 
Thanks for prayers that Thou hast answered, Thanks for what Thou dost deny!
Thanks for storms that I have weathered, Thanks for all Thou dost supply!
Thanks for pain, and thanks for pleasure, Thanks for comfort in despair!
Thanks for grace that none can measure, Thanks for love beyond compare!
 
Thanks for roses by the wayside, Thanks for thorns their stems contain!
Thanks for homes and thanks for fireside, Thanks for hope, that sweet refrain!
Thanks for joy and thanks for sorrow, Thanks for heavenly peace with Thee!
Thanks for hope for the tomorrow, Thanks through all eternity!
 
      “O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever.”
—1 Chronicles 16:34

      “By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name.”—Hebrews 13:15
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      “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
—1 Thessalonians 5:18