My Hope is in the Lord (New Edition)

(4:13p.m.-2/14/10)

Oh, never underestimate the beauty and the wonder of the grace of God by the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, even when we are asleep. Ps. 127:2b: "... for So He giveth His beloved sleep."

I had laid down to take a nap on this Lord's day and awoke with this tune and these words which came forth in my waking moments which easily adapt to that which was given to Norman J. Clayton (1903-1992) "My Hope is in the Lord" (original song)

My hope is in the Lord, Who gave Himself for me,
And paid the price of all my sin at Calvary.

(Chorus)

For me He died, For me He lives,
And everlasting life and light He freely gives.

No merit of my own His anger to suppress.
My only hope is found in Jesus' righteousness.

(Chorus)

And now for me He stands before the Father's throne.
He shows His wounded hands and names me as His own.

(Chorus)

His grace has planned it all, Tis mine but to believe,
And recognize His work of love and Christ receive.

(Chorus)

(The words that came to me as I awoke – New Lyrics)

His steadfast love alone, conveys us to the throne,
And there we make our wants and wishes to Him known.

(New Chorus)

In Him, we hide, In Him abide,
As from the cross His church spills from
His bleeding side.

His glory our desire, His praise is now our hire*,
As clothed in white will one day be our full attire.

(New Chorus)

* Hire; (a) the state of being hired, or having a job; employment (b) to obtain the services of in return for fixed payment; to employ. And thus we are bought with the price of His own blood, as the payment for our sin has been made in full, through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, and as our hope is fixed in Him, we are thus employed to joyfully sing His praise through all eternity unto His glory! Hallelujah! What a Saviour!

And if this be but a minute picture of how we are blessed by Him in our temporal sleep of this life to receive good things from Him; How much more will be the case when we awake with Him in glory to be brought back with Him to reign with Him forever and ever. Amen!

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Psalm 127:1-5

Unless the LORD builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.

It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.