Abba Father,
Keep me from sinning against You as I grieve so many losses.
Grace, grace, God's grace,
grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
grace, grace, God's grace,
grace that is greater than all our sin.1
Crying to You who holds every tear.
Telling You my honest complaint.
Lamenting.
“Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD!
O LORD, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my pleas for mercy!” (Ps. 130:1-2 ESV)
Needs.
Asking.
Just as Jesus did, by Your empowering Spirit.
His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.2
Help me to bring every pain to You to squelch sin’s temptations
Grumbling.
Murmuring.
Fixation on the thorn.
Fixation on self.
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith,
knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world” (1 Pet. 5:6-9 ESV).
Sin and despair like the sea waves cold,
threaten the soul with infinite loss;
grace that is greater, yes, grace untold,
points to the Refuge, the mighty cross.
Help me to grieve with hope
Turn my eyes upon Jesus a thousand times today.
Eternal hope in each moment.
Death to self, life in His love.
“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen” (1 Pet. 5:10-11 ESV).
I know not why God's wondrous grace
to me he has made known,
nor why, unworthy, Christ in love
redeemed me for his own!3
Change my thoughts until my emotions are then refreshed.
Comfort for my wounded heart and losses.
Into the grief over my wounded body.
He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.
Help me to worship only You, my Lord
“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Col. 3:2-4 ESV)!
Protecting my heart from bitterness, hardness.
Fresh pools of Your love for me in Christ, my living water.
“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13-14 CSB).
Grace upon grace, overflowing, always sufficient.
Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt,
yonder on Calvary's mount out-poured,
there where the blood of the Lamb was spilt.
Walking forward, held up by Your Word’s truth, grieving with my hope in Christ
I know not what of good or ill
may be reserved for me,
of weary ways or golden days,
before his face I see.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith,
who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:1-2 ESV)!
I know not how the Spirit moves,
convincing men of sin,
revealing Jesus through the Word,
creating faith in him!
When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.
“So that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints” (1 Thess. 3:13 ESV)!
Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself” (Phil. 3:20-21 ESV)!
I know not when my Lord may come,
at night or noonday fair,
nor if I'll walk the vale with him,
or "meet him in the air!"
“You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand” (Jas. 5:8 ESV).
Grace and peace. Knowing. Known. Belief. Trust. Beloved. In My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
I know not how this saving faith
to me he did impart,
nor how believing in his Word
wrought peace within my heart.
But "I know whom I have believed,
and am persuaded that he is able
to keep that which I've committed
unto him against that day!"
By Your grace alone, through the faith You’ve given to me, in Jesus’ glorious name, amen!
This month’s podcast shares these Scriptures and hymns, woven together in a way that helps our autonomic nervous systems calm and God’s naturally pain-relieving endorphins increase, while we fill our minds with God’s truth. And hope, as we grieve the losses of our chronic illness and pain.
Here are some tips for using the music therapy-inspired podcast. I’m using it too when my chronic pain and fatigue take over. May our God of peace bring His healing balm to you with this podcast.
1. Use noise-cancelling headphones. Eliminate distraction. Keep the volume as low as you can hear it. Close your eyes. Put your body in a comfortable position, ideally lying flat with knees supported by a pillow.
2. Tap on your body if it’s still hard to focus on the sound.
3. As you breathe to the music, put one hand on your belly and notice its rise and fall. Fill your belly with air as each Scripture and hymn fills your thoughts. You might put the other hand on one of your body’s painful or flaring-up spots as you pray.
4. The beat of the music intentionally offers you musical phrases of inhalations of about eight beats, a short resting there, and a slow exhale of about 6-8 beats. The lengthened exhale as you belly-breathe will help to trigger the calming portion of your autonomic nervous system while releasing natural endorphins or painkillers! Ask God to help you breathe in time to the music and “sing” the hymns in your thoughts, using this set-apart time to worship and adore Him.
5. Use the entire podcast, setting aside enough time, because God’s gift of the inherently healing dimensions of music is gradual throughout.
6. Practice as He helps reset your autonomic nervous system and calm the beautifully complex body He’s created for us. It would be such a sweet grace if He helped you relax enough to fall asleep!
7. Please send me your feedback, and I will tweak our podcasts accordingly! Do you have any favorite hymns you’d like to see included? Is the length about right?
Johnston, J. H., 1910
Flint, A., 1866-1932
Whittle, D. W., 1883
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