Tune: FINLANDIA (Sibelius)
[You regular readers will be glad to know this is a NEW posting!]
This is probably one of THE pithiest hymn texts. It seems as if every phrase is rife with good theology. Therefore, I’ve decided to use this same hymn from which to draw hymnlines all week long. So “bear patiently!”
The theme of this hymn is much like the well-beloved “It Is Well with My Soul” text; it does, however, approach the soul-wellness from several different angles. Like our annual wellness visit to the doctor, we might use it as a check-up of benchmarks.
How many times a week do I say to myself, “Just calm down. Take it easy. Don’t over-react. Keep your cool.” In other words, I have to re-convince my soul to be still. Usually I do this to avoid some unnecessary conflict or outburst. Often this inner-self conversation occurs in traffic!
I need to move beyond the first phrase of this hymnline to remember that I am not alone – that God is on my side. I’ve heard people say that God does not take sides. I think, on the other hand, that God is on everybody’s side... and mine is the one that matters when struggles arise.
“Fear not. The Lord is with you.” This blessed assurance (or similar statements) appears often in scripture – so many times that it must be a message God is trying to get through to us! “The Lord is with you.” “The Lord is on your side.” “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Our souls can be stilled by comforting statements like these.
I’m going to start off my week repeating this hymnline as needed. It might well be just the prescription the Doctor ordered for my un-ordered life. Join me in that, and we’ll see where the remainder of this hymn text leads us from now until Friday.
“Be still, souls. The Lord is on our side.”
Hear David Archuleta Sing This Hymn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p92fMgMt_Zw
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