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Ready to Worship Season 7, Episode 7 for Friday, March 9, 2018
On this season of Ready to Worship we are examining songs that help to prepare our hearts for worship. In this episode we are going to examine one of the songs penned by the late and loved brother L. O. Sanderson. The song is entitled, The Lord Has Been Mindful of Me. Our focus will be the psalm upon which this song is based – Psalm 8.
Transcript
On this season of Ready to Worship we are examining songs that help to prepare our hearts for worship. In this episode we are going to examine one of the songs penned by the late and loved brother L. O. Sanderson. The song is entitled, The Lord Has Been Mindful of Me.
Let’s begin by examining the words of the song:
Though I, thro’ the valley of shadow,
O’er mountain or troubled sea,
And oft in the darkness, have traveled,
The Lord has been mindful of me!
Much more than my grief and my sorrow,
Much more than adversity,
Much more than the all that I have given,
The Lord has been mindful of me!
I’m rich! I am saved! I am happy!
I’ve health and prosperity!
I’ve friends! I have doors ever open!
The Lord has been mindful of me!
Chorus
The Lord has been mindful of me!
He blesses and blesses again!
My God is the God of the living!
How excellent is His name!
Likely, you know that this song is based on a psalm of David (Psa. 8). Three words summarize the eighth psalm: gaze, amaze, and praise.
First , David gazed at the heavens. We read, “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained” (Psa. 8:3). The word consider means to gaze. David studied the moon and the stars. He thought about the work of God fingers. It was as if God had dipped his fingers in light and dotted the night sky with stars. These stars declared the glory of God. Night after night they uttered knowledge. There was no language where their voice was not heard (Psa. 19:1-3). Just think of how much more we should be impressed with the moon and stars today. We have walked on the moon. Technology has allowed us to peer into the deep recesses of space. Powerful telescopes allow us to pull the stars up close.
Second, David was amazed at the thought that God was mindful of him and cared for him. We read, “What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?” (Psa. 8:4). David was just a tiny speck in the universe. He was weak, frail, and made from dust. This is what the two Hebrew words (enosh and ben adam) used in this passage mean. Why would God be mindful of and merciful to man? That was David’s question. Although David couldn’t understand why God valued and visited man, He was convinced that He did. He knew that God had crowned man with glory and honor. He knew that God had made man in His own image (Gen. 1:26-27). He knew that God had given man dominion over the creation. As amazed as David was at God’s visitation and care, we should be even more amazed today. After all, we live on the other side of the cross. The ultimate proof of God’s care was the Word becoming flesh, dwelling among us, and dying for us (John 1:14; Heb. 2:5-9).
Third, David praised God for His excellence. We read, “O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens”(Psa. 8:1; cf. v. 9). God’s glory was above the heavens. As glorious as the heavens were, they paled in comparison to the One who made them.
As we get ready to worship this week, we should stand amazed that God is so mindful of us and so merciful to us. Truly, His name is excellent!
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