Monday, August 19, 2013

"But while mortals rise and perish, God endures unchanging on."




Hymn: “Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven” – Henry F. Lyte (1793-1847)
Various Tunes: LAUDA ANIMA, ANDREWS (My favorite is ANDREWS!)

The unchanging nature of God is an attribute to which we should all rally in our worship, our adoration, our reliance… and ultimately, our evangelism. The very fact that the Bible teaches that all else may morph, our God is the great Non-Transformer!

Transformers are great time-consuming toys because you can play with them and change their shape, their function, their appearance, etc. The industry has spawned movies and Saturday morning cartoon series, books, comic books – all offering a fascination with constant change.

However, for me who lives in a world of constant flux, I am delighted that Jehovah is not like that – nor is his Son or his Spirit: these are constantly constant.

Mortals – that is those of us whom God has created and allowed to inhabit this globe – we are the ones with all the ups and downs; ours is a roller coaster existence. Just when we think we have made it to the top of our game, we seem to begin some desperate slide. It’s true with governments and empires as well as with our created race individually.

I love it when this hymn-line comes across the page… and past my lips. I am reminded that God is not only unchanging, but he is also durable. My God has staying power!

Endurance is a great thing in sports, in careers, in ministry, in life in general. Scripture (the book of Revelation in particular) teaches that those who endure to the end shall stand… shall remain standing! So endurance is a good thing for the saints of God. It is sort of like that ‘hang in there’ philosophy, but there is something more confident implied; with Martin Luther the enduring ones say, “Here I stand. I cannot recant.”

Things are probably going to change in my life today. This mortal may undergo several upsurges; there may be plunges involved. In the daily mouse-race, I may win, or I may fall down along the track – tripping on my own feet, or being tripped by a fellow racer. There may be societal upheavals that alter my existence. Somewhere in the world, a thriving government may collapse. An unspeakable tragedy may occur. I may need to say today’s hymn-line to myself as a reminder.

My fixed, ageless, unalterable God will survive, persevere and prevail. He will live on while all else perishes around me.  

Can I get an “A-men”?

This Hymn Sung in Worship to the ANDREWS tune

This Hymn to the LAUDA ANIMA tune

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Hymnlines - Hemlines: Get it?! :)

Hymnlines - Hemlines: Get it?! :)