Because of my age, I, like many others in church, have a great
love for the hymns of faith that I grew up singing when I was a boy. Now that
doesn’t mean that I don’t love all the contemporary songs that we sing today,
because I do…I absolutely do…I love todays songs just as dearly as those songs
from the past. But whether or not you’re talking about the songs of yesterday
or the songs of today, one of my favorite things to do is learn the story
behind the song. Let me give you an example. In the little church I grew up in
we would end every service the same way. We would stand together and sing the
hymn, Blest be the Tie that Binds. Here’s the story behind that song:
Centuries ago John Fawcett was the pastor of a poor church in
Wainsgate, England. Since he was a talented and dynamic preacher, he received
an offer to be the pastor of a large, affluent church in London. It was a great
opportunity, but it presented a problem: He dearly loved the congregation in
Wainsgate, and it was killing him to leave. After he and his wife had packed
away all their belongings, members of the church came to see them off. During
their goodbyes, Mary Fawcett said to her husband, "John, I cannot bear to
leave!" He thought for a moment and said, "Neither can I. And so we
won't. This is our home, these are our people and this is where we will
stay." John Fawcett spent his entire fifty-four-year ministry serving this
one church. Shortly after making this decision, he wrote these words...
The fellowship of kindred minds is like to that above.
That's the verse everyone knows. Here's one of the other verses.
We share each other's woes, our mutual burdens bear;
And often for each other flows the sympathizing tear.
This song reminds me of an immutable truth in the church, whether you’re talking about yesterday or today…we need community…we need each other.
Fall break is over and I hope that everyone who was able to get
away had a fun and restful vacation. This two-week break (just like spring
break) has an impact on three weekends of worship and always puts a dent in our
momentum. So my hope, and my strong encouragement, is that as we move into the
end of the year we will commit (or re-commit) ourselves to faithfulness in
worship, growth and service. That’s something that can begin as early as this
weekend as we kick off our annual stewardship series with the first of four
messages called “The New ABC’s of Financial Freedom.” I hope you picked up your
free copy of the book and, if you’re in a Home Group, I hope you’ve purchased
your workbook (the cost is only $5). This series isn’t something that’s focused
primarily on giving but on what it means to be a good steward with all the
resources God has entrusted to us. We’ll be talking about some very
important financial issues that impact our lives every day.
Pastor Chris
