{HSCRC13} Hymn #6, Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Before we start today's hymn challenge, I wanted to take a moment and praise God for my husband. Today is our 24th wedding anniversary, and even though we did not know the Lord when we were married, we can look back now and see how He perfectly planned our lives to be together. Our upbringings are nearly identical, we work as a team, and we love each other beyond words. That can only be through the grace and work of our precious Lord, and I thank Him and praise Him for giving me such a wonderful man to partner with in life. I love you honey!

Hymn Challenge #6: Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
Words Written by: Robert Robinson
b. Sept. 27, 1735; d. June 9, 1790

This hymn was written by Robert Robinson who was born in Norfolk, England. His mother was widowed early and was not well off. Robert Robinson became indentured to a barber and hairdresser in London even though his mother wanted to see him become a clergyman. After nearly completing his apprenticeship, he was released from his indentures. He lived a life of fear after that but in his early 20's, he found peace when he came to know Christ. He was then called to become a pastor, and he preached his first sermon on January 8, 1759. Mr. Robinson's original version of this hymn had five verses but most hymnals only contain the first three verses. He later died in 1790.

As I was letting one of my daughter's look at the list of hymns we have done, she asked why I wasn't doing a challenge on her favorite hymn—"Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing." I had no idea this was her favorite hymn. Why haven't I asked? I too love this hymn, and after my daughter and I talked I felt that I needed to dive into the words of this amazing hymn. Thank you sweetheart for inspiring our hymn today.

Look here to read the lyrics to this hymn. Maybe print them or click on the sheet music below and print it. Underline or highlight the key phrases you see. What do these phrases mean to you? What can you learn from these phrases? Some key phrases I noted are:

"streams of mercy, never ceasing"
God's mercy is never ending. We sin daily yet He continues to have compassion on us and loves us beyond measure. He sent His precious Son to die for my sins and your sins. He hurls all of our sins into the depths of the sea and delights in showing us mercy (see Micah scripture below). We need God's mercy each day. I know I will never be able to fully comprehend such love but am so thankful I am His! How about you?

Psalm 103:11-12 "For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us."

Micah 7:18b-19 "You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea."

Ephesians 2:4-5 "But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved."

Titus 3:5 "He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit."

"God's redeeming love"
As I said above, God loves us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. It was a huge cost to Jesus, and we need to live like we have been redeemed. Unbelievers are watching. Our actions speak louder than our words. Are you living like you have been redeemed? Do you live like you belong to Him or the world?

Psalm 103:2-4 "Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion."

Romans 3:23-24 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."

"Here I find my greatest treasure"
Where or what is your treasure? Can you in all honesty say that God is your greatest treasure? Are there some things that you might need to reprioritize in your life so that you can put God first? If Jesus is our treasure, then we need to try to seek His purpose, His plans, etc., in everything we do. Every situation in our lives should be about the kingdom of God. Will you ask Him to help you make Himself your greatest treasure?

Matthew 6:21 and Luke 12:34 which both read: "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

"bought me with His precious blood"
What does that statement say to you? Jesus died by shedding His blood for my sins and your sins as I stated above. But what does that mean? He took the penalty and paid with His life for our sins—not His sin because He was without sin. I shared this back in 2008 but it had such a visual impact on me that I thought I would share it again here. In Max Lucado's book He Chose the Nails, he says “Between His hand and the wood there was a list: our mistakes, our lusts and lies and greedy moments. A list of our sins. The list God has made, however, cannot be read. The mistakes are covered. The sins are hidden. Those at the top are hidden by His hand; those down the list are covered by His blood . . . What kept Him from resisting? He knew the price of those sins was death. He knew the source of those sins was you, and since He couldn’t bear the thought of eternity without you, He chose the nails. Jesus Himself chose the nails.” I can't say it any better than that! He died for you because He loves you, and He wants to spend eternity with you!

Hebrews 10:19-20 "Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body."

1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin."

"bind my wandering heart to thee"
"prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love"
Are you wandering or backsliding in your faith? It's so easy to follow the world. Repent. Ask God for His forgiveness, and move forward with Him instead of wandering in the ways of the world. Jesus wants to draw you back to Himself.

Matthew 18:12 "What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will He not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?"

James 5:19-20 "My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins."

Below you will find the sheet music to "Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing." Also, be sure to check out the link I have below for you today. It's one I could just put on "repeat" all day long!

To listen to this song sung by Mark Schultz, please click here.

For my 6x6 page today, I was inspired by my fellow DT member, Camilla Ekman. I loved not only the blue but the modeling paste from her layout here. So, I played with both the blue and the paste on this page. I also used a chipboard heart from the Blue Fern Studios Heart Set. This hymn just speaks so much of God's love for us that I thought the heart was quite appropriate. The scripture I chose was the Titus 3:5 verse noted above.

Papers: Core'dinations Tim Holtz Nostalgic Collection, Teresa Collins Now and Then 
Stamp Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink weathered wood, SU not quite navy 
Embellishments: Blue Fern Studios Heart Set chipboard; Spellbinders Fleur de lis Rectangle die; Prima flourish stencil with Liquitex light modeling paste, Frost Frappe VII flowers, resin birds; blue flowers and leaves from Wild Orchid Crafts; sewing machine

So, will you go out today and this Holy Week ahead knowing that He endured the cross for you so that you might spend eternity with Him. Do you have that assurance?

Remember to use Keyword HSCRC13 when posting your creations in any online galleries. Also, please leave a link to your creation here using Inlinkz! To see all of the information regarding this challenge and the previous studies, please see this post here. Blessings to each of you!