Tag: Sweet Hour of Prayer

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The Sweetest Hour

There is something about sweets around this time of year that make them hard to resist (and maybe not just ‘this time of year.’) They have a way of pulling you back for, ‘just one more bite…’. Perhaps that mindset should even permeate our lives when it comes to what God has instructed regarding our most precious avenue to Him, prayer.

A blind English preacher, William Walford, in the 19th century wrote a song that well encompasses the precious gift of prayer. “Sweet Hour of Prayer” was written and published over 170 years ago, and very poetically encapsulates the pure sincerity of how beautiful our relationship to God can be. Three verses are well-known within the Lord’s church, (Sweet Hour of Prayer) but this fourth was new to me. Perhaps you’ll find it, as I did, a beautiful comparison to the end of our lives on this earth. But notice the reference to Moses and the end of his life as recorded in Deuteronomy 34.

Read the words from this ‘forgotten’ fourth verse:

“Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer! May I thy consolation share, till, from Mount Pisgah’s lofty height, I view my home and take my flight: This robe of flesh I’ll drop and rise to seize the everlasting prize; And shout, while passing through the air, “Farewell, farewell, sweet hour of prayer!””

If you compare the words of this verse and what we know of the area around Mt. Pisgah, on the East side of the Dead Sea, the surrounding area and landscape matches up the description in Mr. Walford’s hymn. Pair this fourth verse up with the 1st-6th verse of Deuteronomy 34 and you will notice that the poetry aligns well with these verses. God has taken Moses to show him the land that was promised to him and his fathers before him, yet does not allow him to enter the land. (Num. 20:9-11 & Deut. 34:1-12) As these parallel well, we ought not to forget or overlook the meanings behind and within these words. At the end of our lives, we can look back on all the experiences. We can see in our children and grandchildren the legacy that we have left and potentially see glimpses of how it will be when we are gone. Knowing we have an end point in our life, what should be the most meaningful and cherished thing to us? Would it be that we made time (spent time) in the sweet hour of prayer.

But if we’re honest, at times our prayers can seem not so sweet. They may feel sorrowful, bitter, painful, and anything but sweet, but read Psalm 141:2 as King David compares prayer to that of the fragrant smell of incense to the Lord. Regardless, of how we feel when and while we pray, it’s the sheer act of sincerely humbling ourselves and taking our concerns to the Almighty that bring us closer to the sweetness we find in Him.

The sweet treats in life are good in the moment, but they will always leave you craving more. Having a personal relationship with our Savior in prayer, will never leave you empty. As a matter of fact, it should leave us wanting more! But it is a relationship that requires active obedience, holy reverence, sincere humility, and genuine faith. All of which will leave us wanting, ‘just one more bite.’

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A “Sweet Hour” of Prayer? Pt 3

For the past two weeks we’ve looked at prayer and the time we spend talking with God. We have a vast array of songs that either mention prayer, focus entirely upon prayer or simply are a prayer. The more we ‘sing with understanding,’ the more we will come to realize which songs do what in our worship to God and admonishing one another.

In 1856, Love Willis wrote, and we still sing, a prayer asking our Heavenly Father to… “Hear the Prayer We Offer.” Twenty-five years later Mary Kidder asked the singer a basic question, “Ere (Before) you left your room this morning, did you think to pray?” In that same year (1875), A. Cummings penned the familiar words that we still sing; in the…“Morning, noon and evening unto Thee I’ll pray.” Our hymnals are filled with songs of prayer and songs to remind us to pray. Even within the last 30 years we have come to know and love, “On bended knee I come, with a humble heart I come; bowing down before Your holy throne.” Or perhaps you’ll know the hymn we sing asking God to “listen to our hearts…”  We pray and sing about prayers because this is our direct line of communication with God.

And as we conclude the message behind, “Sweet Hour of Prayer” let’s consider the third verse of this song written by W. W. Walford in 1845;

“Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer, Thy wings shall my petition bear to Him whose truth and faithfulness engage the waiting soul to bless; And since He bids me seek His face, believe His word, and trust His grace, I’ll cast on Him my every care and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer.”

The imaginary of this verse puts ‘wings’ on our prayers to lift our petition before God’s throne. And as our requests come before God, this song expresses that He is waiting to bless us. His promise of truth and faithfulness are just waiting to be “engaged.” That alone should strike a cord in our hearts. But before we conclude this prayer and close the page of this hymn consider how our God calls for us to seek Him, to believe in Him and to trust in Him. If our heavenly Father is asking us to search for Him, believe in His word and trust in His grace, then you can see why He calls us to ‘cast on Him’ every care. So again, slow down and wait for this time of prayer. Forget the cares of this world, the business of your schedule and spend “an hour” in prayer.

Our souls will ‘find relief’ when we, ‘take our station before God’s throne’ and ‘cast on Him our every care.’ In short, don’t watch the clock and don’t focus on yourself. If your heart is right with God, prayer can be sweet. Know that an hour of prayer won’t hurt you, but it certainly will bless you!

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A “Sweet Hour” of Prayer? Pt. 2

Last week we began looking at prayer and the time we spend talking with God. For most of us our prayer life is relatively short; two, three maybe ten minutes. Because to mirror Christ’s example of praying ‘the whole night’ (Luke 6:12) seems a little out of reach. But is it really that hard to do, pray for an hour? We blame our busy schedule and those hectic calendars that take our life in all sorts of directions. And if we’re honest with ourselves, we take on a ‘fast food’ approach to praying.

The priority of prayer should be as focused as it was for our Savior. Opening the first chapter of the gospel of Luke we read that following Jesus’ baptism He takes the time to pray (vs. 21). An example of faith and power to turn His heart toward God first. But perhaps Mark chapter one shows us the priority of Jesus when it came to prayer. The text tells us in verse 33 that, ‘the whole city had gathered at the door,’ the house of Simon and Andrew, to be healed and have demons cast out. (Not sure my ‘busy schedule’ excuse can beat that.) Notice what Jesus does after a FULL day of people at His door. The next day…“In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.” He could have slept in, most of us would have, but Jesus got up early to pray. His strong desire, His priority, was to spend time talking to God!

Continuing the message of the hymn, “Sweet Hour of Prayer” let’s consider the second verse of this song as it was written by W. W. Walford almost 175 years ago;

“Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer, the joy I feel, the bliss I share of those whose anxious spirits burn with strong desires of Thy return! With such I hasten to the placed where God, my Savior, shows His face. And gladly take my station there, and wait for Thee, sweet hour of prayer.”

Again, follow the thoughts found in this verse. First, those who are eager for Christ’s return (whose anxious spirits burn) have a happiness, ‘bliss,’ that no one else can understand. And in prayer, we feel that joy and share in that ‘bliss.’ But I especially like the wording that comes next; with such a feeling of joy (bliss), I hurry to the place where I can communion with God in prayer. Where is that place? It’s wherever you make HIM your priority, your focus. Take your ‘station’ there. Position yourself, ie., get ready to spend an hour or more with your God in prayer. Be patient, slow down and wait…forget your schedule and your prayer will be ‘sweet.’

Next week we’ll conclude with the last verse of this beautiful song. Take your “station” before God’s throne and pray today!

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A “Sweet Hour” of Prayer? Pt. 1

Most of us are good when it comes to our prayer life and spending a few moments or maybe even twenty or thirty minutes in prayer is not a difficult thing to do. But do you think you could pray for a full hour, or two, or three? Personally, I struggle to stay focused on the task, and my attention tends to wander. If this is you too, could it be that we don’t have the patience or are we sincerely ‘just too busy?’

Yet, we read in the 6th chapter of Luke, beginning in verse 12 that Christ, ‘…went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.’ Or we could consider Matthew 14:23 as it reads, “…He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.” Though we don’t know how long He was on the mountain, ‘there alone’ we do know that during the 4th watch of that night He came to His disciplines as they were on the sea. The ‘4th watch’ would have been sometime between 3:00 AM and 6:00 AM. So we can assume that Jesus was praying for at least an hour or two or three, but more likely it was six or seven hours. Still, I ask myself (and you)…could I pray for a full hour?

On Monday evening, July 16, 2018 more than 70 brothers and sisters in Christ came together at the Faith Village church of Christ in Wichita Falls, Texas and together we spent 60 plus minutes in prayer. No preaching, no Bible class, just praying on behalf of our brethren. The young and old alike took time to bow their heads, focus on the family of God and raise our petitions before His throne. But before we took that hour to pray, we sang a song that calls us to consider our time in prayer. Notice the message of this hymn, the prayer, that was written in 1845 by W. W. Walford;

“Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer, that calls me from a world of care, and bids me at my Father’s throne make all my wants and wishes known. In seasons of distress and grief my soul has often found relief, and oft escaped the tempter’s snare by Thy return, sweet hour of prayer.”

Follow the four basic thoughts found in this verse. First, prayer is our opportunity to step away from the cares of this world. We must focus on God if we want a ‘sweet hour’ of prayer. Second, it’s a time we can take the ‘wants’ of our hearts and the ‘wishes’ we so desperately seek directly to the throne of God. And, true heart-felt prayer can be a relief for our souls during times (seasons) of trouble and sorrow. Don’t think you’re free from distress and grief. We live in a world of pain and sorrow, but God gives us peace in Christ. Fourth, consider how blessed you are that in prayer you can escape the clutches of Satan. Only in prayer and solely through the grace of God will we endure, but we must take time to pray.

 

Next week we’ll look at verse two and as we draw July, 2018 to a close we’ll consider the third verse in this beautiful hymn. So in the meantime find the peace and the ‘sweet’ blessing of taking time (maybe even an hour) to pray!

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Before the Throne of God

william bradbury

William Bradbury lived during the mid-1800’s (1816-1868) and wrote the music for some well known hymns sung by the saints for generations.  Songs like ” ‘Tis Midnight and On Olive’s Brow”, “He Leadeth Me” and “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less”.  Other favorites like “Just As I Am” and “Soldier’s of Christ, Arise” are all the musical work of William Bradbury.  Perhaps one of his most noted, recognizable tunes was written in 1862 to support the simple words penned by Anna B. Warner, “Jesus Loves Me”.

 

Some may remember the old hymn from W. W. Walford entitled, “Sweet Hour of Prayer”.  This is another musical arrangement from the hand of William Bradbury.  But there was yet another song (same, long meter) which took the same tune with the following words:
{sing these words to “Sweet Hour of Prayer”}before the throne of god

Before the throne of God above,
I have a strong and perfect plea:
A great High Priest whose name is love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on His hands.
My name is written on His heart.
I know that while in heav’n He stands.
No tongue can bid me hence depart.

Though you might not be familiar with these words accompanying “Sweet Hour of Prayer”, you might be familiar with these words as they accompany a tune written by Vikki Cook in 1997.  A songwriter and composer, Vikki Cook and her husband Steve have written numerous contemporary songs.  One of her more popular hymns is known as “Holy Lord” or “Great Are You, Lord”.

Listen to this old hymn (penned in 1863) sung to an arrangement developed over 120 years later.  The words are strong as you translate the Old English poetry, but the musical arrangement brings new life to a beautiful, old message.  Before the throne of God I stand…