Milo

November 29

JESUS CALLS US
Mrs. Cecil F. Alexander, 1818–1895
Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves Me. (John 12:26)
God’s call for discipleship comes to every believer, not just a special few. Whether or not we hear God’s call depends on our spiritual sensitivity.
The last Sunday in November is known as St. Andrew’s Day. It has traditionally been an important day in the liturgical worship of the Anglican church. It commemorates the calling of Andrew by Jesus as recorded in Matthew 4:18–20 and Mark 1:16–l8. “At once they [Simon and his brother Andrew] left their nets and followed Him.” Andrew has become the patron saint of Scotland, and the oblique cross on which tradition says he was crucified is part of the Union Jack of the British flag.
This is another of the quality hymn texts written by Cecil Frances Alexander, recognized as one of England’s finest women hymn writers. It is one of the few of Mrs. Alexander’s hymns not specifically written for children; nearly all of her more than 400 poems and hymn texts were intended for reaching and teaching children with the gospel.
Following her marriage in 1850 to the distinguished churchman, Dr. William Alexander, who later became archbishop for all of Ireland, Mrs. Alexander devoted her literary talents to helping her husband with his ministry, including writing appropriate poems that he could use with his sermons. One fall day, two years after their marriage, Dr. Alexander asked his wife if she could write a poem for a sermon he was planning to preach the following Sunday for his St. Andrew’s Day sermon. The pastor closed his sermon that day with the new poem written by his wife. These words have since been widely used in all churches to challenge God’s people to hear Christ’s call as Andrew did and then to follow, serve, and love Him “best of all.”
Jesus calls us o’er the tumult of our life’s wild, restless sea; day by day His sweet voice soundeth, saying, “Christian, follow Me.”
Jesus calls us from the worship of the vain world’s golden store, from each idol that would keep us, saying, “Christian, love Me more.”
In our joys and in our sorrows, days of toil and hours of ease, still He calls, in cares and pleasures, “Christian, love Me more than these.”
Jesus calls us: by Thy mercies, Savior, may we hear Thy call, give our hearts to Thy obedience, serve and love Thee best of all.

    For Today: Isaiah 6:8; Matthew 4:18–20; Mark 1:16–18; Luke 9:23

May we respond as Andrew did and become one of Christ’s faithful followers and a “fisher of men.” Carry this musical message as you go—

November 28

LET US WITH A GLADSOME MIND
John Milton, 1608–1674
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love [mercy] endures forever. (Psalm 136:1)
A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all other virtues.
—Cicero
A gladsome, joyous mind is the product of a grateful, praising heart. Gratefulness is the opposite of selfishness. The selfish person is boastful of his accomplishments. The grateful Christian, however, realizes that all achievements and blessings come only from God’s bountiful hand. This realization results in a life of praise.
Far too often our prayer life consists only of a series of personal requests. God wants our requests, but He also desires to hear our praise for His eternal kindness and love in response to our daily needs.
This hymn text of praise was written by John Milton in 1621 when he was only 15 years of age. It was based on verses 1, 2, 7, and 23 of Psalm 136, a psalm that refrains each of its 26 verses with the reminder that God’s love/mercy/kindness endure forever. This hymn is one of 19 poetic versions of various psalms written by Milton. Today, however, John Milton is best remembered as the brilliant, blind English poet who wrote the classic masterpieces, Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained. He is also credited with having much influence on the later hymn writings of Isaac Watts (“the father of English hymnody”) and Charles Wesley (author of 6,500 hymn texts).
Let us with a gladsome mind praise the Lord, for He is kind:
For His mercies shall endure, ever faithful, ever sure.
Let us blaze His name abroad; for of gods He is the God:
For His mercies shall endure, ever faithful, ever sure.
He with all-commanding might filled the new-made world with light:
For His mercies shall endure, ever faithful, ever sure.
All things living He doth feed; His full hand supplies their need:
For His mercies shall endure, ever faithful, ever sure.
Let us then with gladsome mind praise the Lord, for He is kind:
For His mercies shall endure, ever faithful, ever sure.

    For Today: Psalm 63:1–5; 103:2; 136; 145:9; James 1:17

It is always inspiring to read about the work of God in the life of a Bible character or some great leader in history. But it is even more profitable for us to recount the mercies of God in our own past life and to offer Him praise for His eternal love. Why not do so with this little hymn?

November 27

THANKS TO GOD!
August Ludvig Storm, 1862–1914
Translated by Carl E. Backstrom, 1901–
Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 5:20)
A thankful spirit, both for the good and the difficult, is one of the important indicators of a believer’s spiritual condition. To be able to say—
I thank Thee, God, that all our joy is touched with pain, that shadows fall on brightest hours, that thorns remain;
So that earth’s bliss may be our guide, and not our chain. I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou has kept the best in store;
We have enough, but not too much to long for more—a yearning for a deeper peace, not known before.
—Adelaide A. Procter
A prayer like this requires a life that knows and practices the intimate presence of Christ in daily living.
August Storm, the author of “Thanks to God!”, lived most of his life in Stockholm, Sweden. As a young man he was converted to Christ in a Salvation Army meeting. Soon he joined the Salvation Army Corps and in time became one of its leading officers. He wrote this hymn’s text for the Army’s publication, Stridsropet (The War Cry), on December 5, 1891. The original Swedish version had four stanzas, with each verse beginning with the word tack “thanks,” having a total of 32 “thanks” in all. The gratitude expressed to God ranges from the “dark and dreary fall” to the “pleasant, balmy springtime,” “pain as well as pleasure,” “thorns as well as roses.”
These words have come from the heart of one who lived and practiced what his lips and pen proclaimed:
Thanks, O God, for boundless mercy from Thy gracious throne above; thanks for ev’ry need provided from the fullness of Thy love! Thanks for daily toil and labor and for rest when shadows fall; thanks for love of friend and neighbor and Thy goodness unto all!
Thanks for thorns as well as roses; thanks for weakness and for health; thanks for clouds as well as sunshine; thanks for poverty and wealth! Thanks for pain as well as pleasure—all thou sendest day by day; and Thy Word, our dearest treasure, shedding light upon our way.
Thanks, O God, for home and fireside, here we share our daily bread; thanks for hours of sweet communion, when by Thee our souls are fed! Thanks for grace in time of sorrow and for joy and peace in Thee; thanks for hope today, tomorrow, and for all eternity!

    For Today: Psalm 68:19; 103:1–10; 116:12; Revelation 7:12

“A grateful person is a happy one.” Become even more aware of God’s daily blessings in life. Carry this portion of today’s hymn with you—

November 26

THANK YOU, LORD
Words and Music by Seth Sykes, 1892–1950 and Bessie Sykes, 1905–
Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! (2 Corinthians 9:15)
The gift of salvation—a personal relationship with almighty God—what an indescribable gift! Yet how often do we sincerely thank our Lord for all that He has done in making this possible? Our lack of praise and thanksgiving for His gift of salvation can be likened to the response of the ten lepers after being miraculously healed by Christ (Luke 17:11–19). Only one returned to express gratitude. The interest of the other nine was centered more in what had happened to them personally than in remembering the One who had performed the miracle in their lives. Are we ever guilty of this same carelessness?
It is interesting to imagine the life-long remorse that characterized these nine ungrateful lives:
I meant to go back, but you may guess I was filled with amazement, I cannot express
To think that after those horrible years, that passion of loathing and passion of fears,
Of sores unendurable—eaten, defiled—my flesh was as smooth as the flesh of a child.
I was drunken with joy; I was crazy with glee; I scarcely could walk and I scarcely could see,
For the dazzle of sunshine where all had been black; but I meant to go back, Oh, I meant to go back!
I had thought to return, when people came out; there were tears of rejoicing and laughter and shout;
My cup was so full I seemed nothing to lack! But I meant to go back, Oh, I meant to go back!
—Unknown
The words of this hymn have been greatly used of God since they were written in 1940 to allow believers to offer praise for the gift of their salvation—
Some thank the Lord for friends and home, for mercies sure and sweet; but I would praise Him for His grace—in prayer I would repeat:
Some thank Him for the flow’rs that grow, some for the stars that shine. My heart is filled with joy and praise because I know He’s mine.
I trust in Him from day to day; I prove His saving grace; I’ll sing this song of praise to Him until I see His face.
Chorus: Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul; thank you, Lord, for making me whole. Thank you, Lord, for giving to me Thy great salvation so rich and free.

    For Today: Psalm 100:4; 116:12, 14; 147:7; Philippians 4:6, 7; Colossians 2:7; 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Pause even now and praise God for Himself and His gift of personal salvation on your behalf. Carry this musical prayer with you—

November 25

WE GATHER TOGETHER
Source Unknown
Translation by Edward Kremser, 1838–1914
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. (Colossians 4:2)
Thanksgiving is not merely a day to be observed once each year; for the Christian it must be a way of daily living.
No Thanksgiving Day gathering would be complete without the singing of this traditional Dutch hymn. Today we sing this hymn as an expression of thanks to God as our defender and guide throughout the past year. The text was originally written by an anonymous author at the end of the 17th century to celebrate the Dutch freedom from the Spanish overlords, who had been driven from their land. Freedom was now theirs, both politically from Spain and religiously from the Catholic church.
“We Gather Together” must be understood and appreciated in its historical setting. For many years, Holland had been under the scourge of Spain, and in 1576, Antwerp was captured and sacked by the Spanish armies. Again, in 1585, it was captured by the Spanish and all of the Protestant citizens were exiled. Many other Dutch cities suffered similar fates. During the 17th century, however, there developed in Holland a time of great prosperity and rich post-reformation culture. Commerce was expanded around the world, and this was the period of great Dutch art, with such well-known painters as Rembrandt and Vermeer. In 1648 the Spanish endeavors to control Holland were finally destroyed beyond recovery.
One can readily see the references to these historical events throughout the hymn’s text: “The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing,” as well as the concern in the final stanza that God will continue to defend—“and pray that Thou still our defender will be.”
We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing; He chastens and hastens His will to make known. The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing: Sing praises to His name—He forgets not His own.
Beside us to aide us, our God with us joining, ordaining, maintaining His kingdom divine. So from the beginning the fight we were winning: Thou, Lord, wast at our side—all glory be Thine!
We all do extol Thee, Thou Leader triumphant, and pray that Thou still our defender wilt be; let Thy congregation escape tribulation: Thy name be ever praised! O Lord, make us free!

    For Today: Psalm 5:11, 12; John 16:33; Romans 8:31; Hebrews 12:5–7

Share with others, perhaps your family members, how God has guided and protected your lives throughout this past year. Sing this hymn together before enjoying the Thanksgiving meal—