He changes not

'I hear the words of love,

I gaze upon the blood,

I see the mighty sacrifice,

And I have peace with God.

'Tis everlasting peace,

Sure as Jehovah's name;

'Tis stable as His steadfast throne,

Forevermore the same.

The clouds may come and go,

And storms may sweep my sky—

This blood-sealed friendship changes not:

The cross is ever nigh.

My love is ofttimes low,

My joy still ebbs and flows;

But peace with Him remains the same—

No change Jehovah knows.

I change, He changes not,

The Christ can never die;

His love, not mine, the resting-place,

His truth, not mine, the tie.'

Horatius Bonar

What amazingly powerful words. The Praise hymnbook has changed the words, the last verse to:

'I change, but He does not

His truth can never lie

His love, not mine upholds my faith

For Jesus shall not die.'

I like that simply because of the acknowledgement that it is God who upholds my faith. I love this hymn. I love the truth of the words that remind me that I'm so fickle! That I change so readily, that I so readily lesson, or even abandon, my trust in God...but that I certainly do not need to. Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Praise the Lord that my salvation depends not on me, but on Him. It depends not on what I do, but on what He HAS DONE. It depends not on whether I feel like praising Him or trusting Him or whether I feel happy or sad or anywhere in between at any given moment in time. It depends on the Truth of what is written in His Word. 'His truth, not mine, the tie'.

That Truth does not change, no matter how much I do. I need not trust myself, I need only trust Him. I need only thirst after Him, (Psalm 42:1-2); I need only learn to find joy in Him no matter the circumstance (Philippians 4:4). I need only KNOW I have joy in Him. Pure joy, unbounding joy. Joy that lasts, joy that is real, joy that is based on Truth.

Hallelujah.