DAILY, WEEKEND, AND HOLIDAY INTERNET EVANGELIZE TO THE WORLD MINISTRY

March 28 WHEN THE ROLL IS CALLED UP YONDER Words and Music by James M. Black, 1856–1938   For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. (1 Thessalonians 4:15) The calm assurance of a future heavenly home is one of the greatest blessings for every Christian. It has been said that only those with an absolute confidence in their hereafter truly know to live victoriously in this life. Having a personal relationship with Christ means that we need have no fear that we will not hear “the trumpet call of God,” whether we are still alive or asleep in Jesus. James M. Black was an active Methodist layman, a music teacher, and a composer and publisher of numerous gospel songs. He related this experience:   While a teacher in the Sunday school and president of a young people’s society, I one day met a girl, 14 years old, poorly clad and a child of a dru...

March 27 WE’RE MARCHING TO ZION Isaac Watts, 1674–1748   You have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. (Hebrews 12:22) Should we sing psalms or hymns in our church services? This was the controversy stirring many congregations during the 17th and 18th centuries. Isaac Watts was the life-long champion of the “humanly composed” hymn while the majority of the English-speaking churches insisted on the traditional psalm settings. Tempers frequently flared, and some churches actually split in the heat of this decidedly inharmonious musical conflict. In some churches a compromise was reached. The psalm setting would be sung in the early part of the service with a hymn used at the close, during which time the parishioners could leave or simply refuse to sing. Isaac Watts’ “Come, We That Love the Lord” was no doubt written in part to refute his critics, who termed his hymns “Watts’ Whims,” as well as to provide some subtle barbs for those who re...

March 26 WE ARE CLIMBING JACOB’S LADDER Negro Spiritual   He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. (Genesis 28:12) This delightful children’s song was inspired by the account of Jacob’s dream at Bethel as recorded in Genesis 28:10–22. In this dream, Jacob saw a stairway or ladder resting on earth with its top reaching to heaven, with God’s angels or messengers ascending and descending on it. From Jacob’s dream we learn that the gap between earth and heaven can be bridged. Although God revealed Himself in times past to various individuals as He did to Jacob, His full self-revelation required a God-Man—the Son of God in all of His deity and the Son of Man in full humanity to span the mighty gulf. Jesus Christ became the “ladder” for man to reach heaven and to enjoy even now a restored fellowship with the heavenly Father. In times past, God used dreams to speak to pe...

March 25 WHEN HE COMETH William O. Cushing, 1823–1902 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. (Colossians 3:4) The scriptural promise of Christ’s second coming is always a thrilling truth for believers to ponder. Beyond that, the thought of the Savior creating a jeweled crown from little children who love Him is a fascinating pictorial concept. William Orcutt Cushing conceived the idea for his “Jewel Song” text from the promise in Malachi 3:17: “And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels.” Pastor Cushing wrote the text for the children in his own Sunday school in 1856. Several years later, William Cushing suffered a period of deep despair in his life. After the death of his wife, he developed a creeping paralysis and the loss of his speech at the age of 47. He was forced to retire from the ministry after 27 years as an active and successful pastor in Disciples of Christ churches. When he p...

March 24 LET THE LOWER LIGHTS BE BURNING Words and Music by Philip P. Bliss, 1838–1876   Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)   I do not ask for mighty words to leave the crowd impressed,   But grant my life may ring so true my neighbors shall be blessed.   I do not ask for influence to sway the multitude;   Give me a “word in season” for the soul in solitude. —Unknown The lower lights surrounding a lighthouse guide the boats in the harbor away from the treacherous rocks and into the channel. The interesting analogy in this hymn was suggested to author and composer Philip P. Bliss as he listened to D. L. Moody tell a sermon anecdote about a pilot during a storm. “Brethren,” concluded Mr. Moody, “the Master will take care of the great lighthouse. Let us keep the lower lights burning.” Bliss, as he often did, immediately put this challenging thought into a hymn. He usually ...

March 23 THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING Daniel W. Whittle, 1840–1901 I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. (Ezekiel 34:26) How disheartening it is to see a once fertile field that has been rendered hardened and useless by a drought. Land that was intended to produce a rich harvest for its owner lies barren and lifeless. As Christians, God desires that our lives bear much fruit for Him. But the soil of our hearts must be right if we want the seeds of righteousness to grow. The parable of the sower in Matthew 13 teaches that it is possible to have four different kinds of soil in our lives: An unconcerned soil, a shallow soil, a polluted soil, and a good soil—one that responds and produces a bountiful harvest. At times many Christians feel as though they are in a spiritual drought. God seems removed. Spiritual activities are just routine business. Prayer and Bible reading become monotonous. Christian friends seem critical and irritating. We f...