Hello OCBC family,
“Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9).

What a powerful passage and wonderful promise that God made to Joshua, and it can be applied to our own lives. The Lord is always with us, during good times and hard times; his presence is always near so we can face any situation, and this was the message that Harry Emerson Fosdick shared with us through his hymn “God of Grace and God of Glory.”

“God of grace and God of glory,
on Thy people pour Thy pow'r;
crown Thine ancient church's story,
bring her bud to glorious flow'r.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage,
for the facing of this hour,
for the facing of this hour.”

Fosdick was a pastor in the early twentieth century, at­tend­ed Col­gate Un­i­ver­si­ty, Un­ion The­o­lo­gic­al Sem­in­a­ry, and Co­lum­bia Un­i­ver­si­ty. His ordination was in 1903 and was a faithful pastor in several churches like First Bap­tist Church in Mont­clair, New Jer­sey, from 1904 to 1915. He wrote several hymns and books, but he is famous for this one. This hymn was written for the construction of Riverside Church in New York City.

“Lo! the hosts of evil round us
scorn Thy Christ, assail His ways!
Fears and doubts too long have bound us,
free our hearts to faith and praise.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage,
for the living of these days,
for the living of these days.”

The melody is the very familiar melody of the other loved hymn, “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah.”

“Set our feet on lofty places,
Gird our lives that they may be,
Armored with all Christ-like graces,
In the fight to set men free.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage,
That we fail not man nor Thee,
That we fail not man nor Thee.”

Dear saint, you might have a hard time right now, but trust in the Lord during these days, because, after all, he is the God of grace and the God of glory.
​
In His service,
Israel

Hello OCBC family,
“Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with loving kindness I have drawn you.” (Jeremiah 31:3).

This passage from Jeremiah shows us the everlasting love that the Lord has for His people; in this context, He is talking to Israel, but this everlasting love is for those who are now in Christ. God’s love was always based on grace. And that is why the phrase "The Love of God" is both sweet and powerful. It is something that cannot be fully described or understood but is received with humility. And this is Frederick Lehman's message.

Frederick Lehaman was from Germany, but he and his family moved to America when he was four years old, settling down in Iowa. At the age of eleven he became a Christian, went to seminary and became pastor. But his greatest love was gospel music. He was able to create five songbooks.

In 1917, his financials were bad and he went to work for a packing factory in Pasadena, California, packing oranges and lemons. On day, while he was working, during the break, an inspiration came and some words came to him and he started to write them down, which became the famous hymn, “The Love of God.”

“The love of God is greater far
than tongue or pen can ever tell;
it goes beyond the highest star,
and reaches to the lowest hell;
the guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
and pardoned from his sin.”

He arrived home that evening, sat at the piano and composed the familiar melody that we know and love. Just one little problem, gospel hymns at that time “must” have three stanzas, and Frederick only had two for this particular hymn.

“When years of time shall pass away
and earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
when men who here refuse to pray,
on rocks and hills and mountains call,
God’s love so pure shall still endure,
all measureless and strong;
redeeming grace to Adam's race--
the saints’ and angels’ song.”

What did Frederick do to complete his hymn with a third stanza? He remembers a verse that a pastor used in an illustration, anonymous lyrics founded on the wall of an insane asylum, written by an unknown inmate. Some people might say that the author of this last verse was an eleventh-century Jewish poet in Germany named Meir Ben Isaac.

“Could we with ink the ocean fill
and were the skies of parchment made,
were ev’ry stalk on earth a quill
and ev’ry man a scribe by trade,
to write the love of God above
would drain the ocean dry;
nor could the scroll contain the whole,
tho' stretched from sky to sky.”

Frederick Lehman dies in 1953 in California, but he never forgot about the love of God, rich and pure.

“O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure:
the saints’ and angels’ song!”
​
In His service,
Israel

Hello OCBC family,
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33).
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This passage can give us a spirit of worship, reverence, and even awe, understanding that our God is beyond our comprehension, and yet we can worship Him and offer this doxology. This doxology is a prayer to God for the wisdom of His plan. He governs the entire universe and our lives in perfect wisdom, justice, and love. This same passage was the inspiration for William Cowper (pronounced "Cooper”) when he wrote his famous hymn, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.”

He wrote many poems that became hymns, and worked very close with his friend, John Newton, the author of “Amazing Grace.” But he has a problem, chronic depression, and we can find this problem in the words of his own hymns.

“God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
and rides upon the storm.”

He and John Newton worked together for long time in a church in Olney, and when John Newton left that church to become London’s most celebrated pastor, Willam Cowper suffered another blow. Then, he decided to become more a secular writer, earning a prominent place in English literature. He was praised for his translation of Homer.

At the end of his life, his depression intensified as he aged and died in this melancholia. Nevertheless, before his passing, people shared that his face suddenly lit up as he exclaimed, “I am not shut out of heaven after all.”

We know, (because of his hymns) that William Cowper didn’t understand God completely (who can?), but he trusted in his Lord without a doubt, after all God is His own interpreter.

“Blind unbelief is sure to err,
and scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
and He will make it plain.”

Trust in the Lord, because he is near.

” Jesus answered and said to him, ‘What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.’” (John 13:7).

In His service,
Israel

Hello OCBC family,
“Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

This loved passage is in the middle of the book of Lamentation, where the author, under the inspiration of the Holy spirit, is sharing to believers that it is just because of the Lord’s mercies that we aren’t consumed. His compassions, or mercies in ESV, never come to end. And it is very interesting that every day comes to an end, but the next day, we can experience, again, his compassion. Yes, every day presents us with a new opportunity to discover more of God’s love. The author of the book of Lamentations was suffering great sorrow, but he also was looking for signs of mercy.

This passage was the inspiration to Thomas O. Chisholm, who was born in a log cabin in Kentucky in 1866. He became a school teacher at the age of 16 and became a Christian at the age of 26. He had problems with his health, and he had to jump from work to work; he did everything from journalism to insurance to evangelistic work.

Thomas Chisholm loved to write poems, and many of his poems became hymns, and his famous one is “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” We love to sing this hymn, the words are powerful, but Thomas himself confessed that there is not a dramatic story behind the writing of this hymn. He just loved to write poems, and this one was sent to his friend William M. Runyan, a musician who was moved by this poem. According Runyan, he prayed to God for guidance to compose a right melody for Thomas’ lyrics, and God answered his prayer. The hymn was published in 1923.

The popularity of the hymn was very slow at the beginning, until George Beverly Shea introduced it during one of the Billy Graham’s crusades, and then “Great is Thy Faithfulness” became the beloved hymn for many. It has been translated into several languages, and it is one of the few hymns that can be used for regular services, Thanksgiving service, weddings and funerals.

Thomas died in Ocean Park in 1960, and he wrote more than 1,200 poems and hymns.

1. Great is Thy faithfulness, O God, my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.

2. Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.

3. Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed, Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!

We just started a new year, 2026; 2025 is gone, but the mercies of our Lord are new every morning.

Let us repeat with the prophet, “great is Your faithfulness.”
​
In His service,
Israel