God’s Holy Spirit Revives Us: #6

Posted on June 19, 2016 by Bonita B. Evans

I help out at a Pay It Forward shop at our church. Parents with new babies come in to find baby clothing at no cost. Sometimes we hold the babies while they shop. Oh the sweetness of a brand new soul given from God. This makes me think of a hymn about the sweet spirit of God. The song acknowledges the presence of the Holy Spirit and how it can make us look and feel. It also asks the sweet Holy Spirit to stay with us and fill us with God’s love so that we might lift our hearts in praise. God’s Spirit revives us!

Scripture:

Acts 13:52 And the disciples were continually filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

Acts 15:8 And God, Who is acquainted with and understands the heart, bore witness to them, giving them the Holy Spirit as He also did to us;

Song: “Sweet, Sweet Spirit” Words and Music by Doris Akers, 1962

Verse: There’s a sweet, sweet Spirit in this place,
And I know that it’s the Spirit of the Lord;
There are sweet expressions on each face,
And I know they feel the presence of the Lord.

Chorus: Sweet Holy Spirit, Sweet heavenly Dove,
Stay right here with us, filling us with Your love.
And for these blessings we lift our hearts in praise;
Without a doubt we’ll know that we have been revived,
When we shall leave this place.                                                                                                                                       
Verse: There are blessings you cannot receive
Till you know Him in His fullness and believe;
You’re the one to profit when you say,
“I am going to walk with Jesus all the way.”  Repeat Chorus                                                                                 

Verse: If you say He saved you from your sin,
Now you’re weak, you’re bound and cannot enter in,
You can make it right if you will yield,
You’ll enjoy the Holy Spirit that we feel. Repeat Chorus

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The Presence of the Holy Spirit: #5

Posted on June 12, 2016 by Bonita B. Evans

We might imagine God’s Holy Spirit as His breath in and on us, or feel the Spirit as His light warming us, or sense His presence in and around us as a powerful and graceful state. In this Sunday’s hymn feeling, hearing, and seeing the presence of the Holy Spirit are expressed.

In the following Scripture readings Jesus tells his Disciples about receiving the power of the Holy Spirit and Peter calls receiving the Holy Spirit a gift.

Scripture:

Acts 1:8  But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends  of the earth.

Acts 2:38  And Peter answered them, repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of and release from your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Song:  “Surely the Presence of the Lord”  – Written by Lanny Wolfe

Refrain:
Surely the presence of the Lord is in this place.
I can feel His mighty power and His grace.
I can hear the brush of angels wings.
I see glory on each face.
Surely the presence of the Lord is in this place.

Verse: In the midst of His children the Lord said He would be.                                                  It doesn’t take very many, it can be just two or three.                                                                     And I feel that same sweet spirit that I felt often times before.                                                 Surely I can say I’ve been with the Lord.

Repeat Refrain

Verse: There’s a holy hush around us as God’s glory feels this place.
I’ve touched the hem of His garment, I can almost see His face.
And my heart is overflowing with the fullness of His joy.
I know without a doubt that I’ve been with the Lord.

Repeat Refrain

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Holy Spirit Teach Us: #4

Posted on June 5, 2016 by Bonita B. Evans

On this fourth Sunday the hymn asks the Holy Spirit to descend upon our heart, to wean us from the earth, to make us love God as we ought, to take the dimness of our souls away, and to let us seek and find God. It also requests that the Holy Spirit teach us to feel God’s presence, to have strength in struggles, to have patience in our praying, and to love as God would have us love.

The following scripture readings tell about Jesus when the Holy Spirit descended upon Him after he was baptized by John the Baptist.

Scripture:

Luke 3:22  And the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven, saying, You are My Son, My Beloved! In You I am well pleased and find delight!
Luke 4:1  Then Jesus, full of and controlled by the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led in the Spirit                                                                                                             Luke 4:14  Then Jesus went back full of and under the power of the Spirit into Galilee, and the fame of Him spread through the whole region round about.
Luke 10:21   In that same hour He rejoiced and gloried in the Holy Spirit and said, I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have concealed these things from the wise and understanding and learned, and revealed them to babes. Yes, Father, for such was Your gracious will and choice and good pleasure.

Song:  “Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart” by Frederick C. Atkinson (Music, 1870) and George Croly (Words, 1867) The United Methodist Hymnal Number 500

1)Spirit of God, descend upon my heart; wean it from earth; through all its pulses move; stoop to my weakness, mighty as Thou art, and make me love Thee as I ought to love.

2)I ask no dream, no prophet ecstasies, no sudden rending of the veil of clay, no angel visitant, no opening of the skies; but take the dimness of my soul away.

3)Has Thou not bid me love Thee, God and King? All, all Thine own, soul, heart and strength and mind. I see Thy cross; there teach my heart to cling. O let me seek Thee, and O let me find.

4)Teach me to feel that Thou art always nigh; teach me the struggles of the soul to bear. To check the rising doubt, the rebel sigh, teach me the patience of unanswered prayer.

5)Teach me to love Thee as Thine angels love, one holy passion filling all my frame; the kindling of the heaven-descended Dove, my heart an altar, and Thy love the flame.

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Holy Spirit Fall On Us: #3

Posted on May 29, 2016 by Bonita B. Evans

Many Holy Spirit hymns ask the Spirit to come and be present in various ways. On this third Sunday the concept is about the Spirit falling afresh on us in order to melt, mold, fill, and use us.

In the following scripture readings Daniel and Mary were filled with the Holy Spirit and used for great things – most importantly Mary, the virgin mother of Christ.

Scripture:

Daniel 4:18  This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. And you, O Belteshazzar [Daniel], declare now its interpretation, since all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, for the Spirit of the Holy God is in you.

Luke 1:35  Then the angel said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and so the holy Thing which shall be born of you will be called the Son of God.

Song:  “Spirit of the Living God” written by Daniel Iverson

Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Break me, melt me,
Mold me, fill me,
Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.

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Welcome Holy Spirit: #2

Posted on May 22, 2016 by Bonita B. Evans

As I found myself humming and singing last Sunday’s song, “Breathe on Me, Breath of God”,  the lyrics became prayerful.  I was asking to be filled with life anew, breathed on until my heart is pure, made wholly God’s, and given eternal life with Our Father. Music can be so powerful in that way. I also happened to have a devotion that was based on Psalm 51:10-12. In it David is asking God for a right spirit, for Him not to take His Holy Spirit away, and to uphold him with His free spirit. Oh, that we might all welcome God’s spirit into our midst and our lives.

Scripture:

1 Corinthians 6:19  Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received from God? You are not your own,

Acts 9:31  So the church throughout the whole of Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was edified and walking in the respect and reverential fear of the Lord and in the consolation and exhortation of the Holy Spirit, continued to increase and was multiplied.

Song: “Holy Spirit, Thou Art Welcome” written by Dottie Rambo and David Huntsinger

Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place
Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place
Omnipotent Father of Mercy and Grace
Thou art welcome in this place

Lord in Thy presence there’s healing divine
No other power can save Lord, but Thine
Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place
Thou art welcome in this place

Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place
Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place
Omnipotent Father of Mercy and Grace
Thou art welcome in this place

Fill all the hungry and empty within
Restore us, oh Father revive us again
Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place
Holy Spirit Thou art welcome in this place

Songwriters: HUNTSINGER, DAVID / RAMBO, DOTTIE
Holy Spirit Thou Art Welcome lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

 

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Receive the Holy Spirit: #1

Posted on May 15, 2016 by Bonita B. Evans

Dear Friends in Christ,

As we move from the Sundays of Easter to Pentecost, I have been thinking about all the hymns honoring the Holy Spirit that I have heard or sung over the years. I would love to note some scripture and a song for the next several Sundays, which some consider part of the season after Pentecost.

Scripture:

John 14:26  But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall everything I have told you.

John 20:22
  And having said this, He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit!

Song:  “Breathe on Me, Breath of God” – Words by Edwin Hatch (1878) and Music by Robert Jackson (1888)

1 Breathe on me, Breath of God,
fill me with life anew,
that I may love the way you love,
and do what you would do.

2 Breathe on me, Breath of God,
until my heart is pure,
until my will is one with yours,
to do and to endure.

3 Breathe on me, Breath of God,
so shall I never die,
but live with you the perfect life
for all eternity.

Psalter Hymnal, 1987

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40 Songs for 40 Days – Day 40

Posted on April 19, 2014 by Bonita B. Evans

Day 40, the final day of this Musical Experience for Lent falls on Holy Saturday, which commemorates the day that Jesus Christ’s body laid in the tomb.

In closing, fill your heart with the following verse from Zephaniah 3:17: “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save, he will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” Imagine that! God will sing over us!

To all who shared in this musical journey, thank you, and may you have a blessed Easter for:

Christ Is Risen! He Is Risen Indeed!

FSFD040 Song Title: Jesus, My Jesus – Revelation 22:13, 16

Jesus, my Jesus You are Love. You are the Word sent from above.

Jesus, my Jesus for us pray. Forgive our sins and with us stay.

You are the Way. You are the Truth. You are the Life. Our Savior you are.

You are the Way. You are the Truth. You are the Life. Our Bright Morning Star.

Jesus, my Jesus Son of God. Given from heaven, Lamb of God.

Jesus, my Jesus be our light. Prince of Peace fight our fight.

You are the Way. You are the Truth. You are the Life. Our Savior you are.

You are the Way. You are the Truth. You are the Life. Our Bright Morning Star.

Jesus, my Jesus God with us. Immanuel you are, Jesus.

Jesus, my Jesus You are King. Alpha and Omega, You’re everything.

You are the Way. You are the Truth. You are the Life. Our Savior you are.

You are the Way. You are the Truth. You are the Life. Our Bright Morning Star.

You are Christ, our Bright Morning Star!


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40 Songs for 40 Days – Day 39

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Bonita B. Evans

Day 39 of this Music Experience for Lent falls during Holy Week on Good Friday, which commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary.

FSFD039 Song Title: God Gives – 1John 5:11-12 (If you don’t have a Bible handy, you can read this passage at BibleGateway.com)

God gives us love, in a world of hate. Joy in a world of sadness.

The blessing of faith in a hopeless time. The promise of eternal life.

And so we thank You, Lord. Thank You, for everything.

Thank You, Lord. Thank You, for everything.

Thank You, Lord. Thank You, for everything. You are so good!

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