Well, I’m “back in the saddle” again. I just returned from Nashville, TN, where I led worship for the Congress on Evangelism for the United Methodist Church. I’ve been attending this meeting since 1980 and have led worship for them since 1990. It is always a great meeting with solid orthodox teaching and preaching. It’s been an honor to work with them. The Congress was started over 50 years ago by Harry Denman, a committed layman in the Methodist church who devoted his life to evangelism.
It was great to be able to share some of the new rewrites of the Charles Wesley hymns. They went over wonderfully! I think “How Can it Be” was one of the favorites. It was without question the most requested song. If you’d like to re-read the lyrics, go back to the November 1 update.
After it was all over and I was packing up to go home, a couple approached me. The pastor and his wife thanked me for the music in the meeting and then asked me to pray for them. The husband told me that he wanted prayer to be set free from his addiction to pornography that threatened his marriage and his ministry. It was an act of humility and courage for him to be willing to admit this weakness. We had a powerful time of prayer and I am believing that God has indeed set him free!
This pastor is not alone. There are thousands of pastors and laity who are trapped in porn. The advent of home theatres and internet access has only increased the problem. It has even reached down to our children as they browse the web and find themselves confronted with the seedy side of the world. It is often the beginning of a trip down very destructive roads.
Pray for all who battle this dark addiction. Pray for those who walk in sexual brokenness as a result of this sin. pray for the transforming power of God to bring healing and wholeness to them.
Here is another of the new Wesley hymns that gives us hope in the midst of our struggles. It is a rewrite of “Jesus, Lover of my Soul”
Jesus, Lover of My Soul
By Wesley Putnam
1. When the winds of life are blowing
And the storms are raging wild
I have a safe place I can go
Where a frightened, weary child
Can find a holy shelter
Until the tumult’s past.
A peaceful harbor for my soul
A haven unsurpassed.
Cho. Jesus, Lover of my soul.
There’s no where else for me to go.
You are my shield, You are my home.
You’ll never leave me here alone.
2. I find grace here, in abundance,
And it covers all my sin.
It’s healing and refreshing me.
It cleans the stains within.
Exhilarating fountain
Come, satisfy my thirst.
Become a river in my heart
Til all the world’s immersed.
Cho. Jesus, Lover of my soul
You are all I’m longing for.
I’m unworthy of your grace,
Yet here I am in your embrace.
Bridge: When the trials come, I will not fear
For I can see your face.
I have boundless peace When you are near.
You are my hiding place
Thanks so much for your continued prayer for our ministry. I will be recording the new hymns in March. Keep checking back here on this web page for periodic updates on the progress.
May this new year be filled with God’s blessings and may you produce lasting fruit for His Kingdom as you serve Him.
In His service,
Wesley