Purchased and Delivered

 

 

Jesus didn’t just die to purchase it

But he lives to deliver it,

That is, the believer’s salvation,

Is God’s eternal edict.

 

This brings us to God’s will

And identifying with the same,

It’s he that does the Father’s will

By believing on Jesus’ name.

 

“Jesus died for our sins”

The same is a solid, biblical truth

But there is more that’s being done,

Let me supply the biblical proof.

 

If Jesus had only died

He would still be interred today,

Hence, he’d be no different from all

That have gone death’s way.

 

By his blood we are saved

Though by his life we are made alive,

And in that he lives, we live in him,

And by his life we shall survive.

 

Purchased and delivered

To every born-again believer,

Of God’s wonderful, glorious salvation,

There are numberless receivers.

 

As of the sands on the seashore

And as numberless as the stars,

God’s kingdom is forever and ever

And none other comes on par.

 

Signed in the Saviour’s blood,

Stamped with the seal of the Holy Spirit,

Now, not a chance of being lost

According to God’s Holy Writ.

 

 

Thus, I serve a risen Saviour,

The evidence is in my heart

Where also lives the Blessed Trinity

Who’s been there from the start.

 

Yes, Jesus purchased my salvation

And he ever lives to deliver it,

And, as its Author and Finisher,

The way he leads is well lit.

 

Jesus didn’t just die to purchase it

But he lives to deliver it,

Such that, in this is my confidence

That he will not allow me to quit.

 

Stewart Russell © March 19, 2023

 

A Prayer for Barbados

In these days of economic woes

In these times of downturns and recessions,

We call on You, Almighty God

In the midst our serious situation.

For God, You are our only hope

Even as we try to ride out these times,

Fill our hearts with trust in your leadership

And rid unbelief and doubt from our minds.

Bring us back to our moral moorings

And faith in your proven wisdom,

Help us to walk in your Son’s example

And all unrighteous passions shun.

May we be models for our youth

Which are worthy of emulation,

May they follow us as we follow Christ

And so give you praise and adoration.

Teach us to number our days

And direct our hearts to your wisdom,

To recognize that this life is transient

But yours is an eternal kingdom.

Teach us Lord to set our affections

On things that are high and godly

So that we may rise above selfish greed

And reach up to things that are heavenly.

Give our leaders a sense of direction

May they reach out to you for solutions

To our present and disturbing dilemmas

And seek your way out for our Nation.

Given our current gun violence

And the terror that grips our communities,

We pray Almighty God for your mercy

And peace to bring us a sense of nationality.

That we may become our brother’s keeper

And share in one another’s joys and pain

So that this country, Barbados, under God,

Can become an international beacon again.

  

We ask these mercies in Jesus’ name,

Giving you the Father praise and glory

As we walk in the dictates of the Holy Spirit

In the oneness of the blessed Trinity.

Amen

Stewart Russell © October 2018

A New Year’s Day Prayer

 

Heavenly Father we thank you for one more year

We give you praise that we have come to this time

There is nothing in us that merits this

But Lord, you have been loving, gracious and kind.

Today we bless you and give you a high note of praise

We give you honour and to you be all the glory

We extol you and we magnify your name

For you have done wondrously and marvelously.

As we embark on this New Year with its mysteries

We ask for your guidance and your direction

Without you we are incapable of dealing with life’s vagaries

So that we need your power and your unction.

Teach us to hear your voice and discern your Spirit

And to obediently walk as you would lead

Teach us to rely on your providential care

And to trust you implicitly your sheep to feed.

For we are your children and the sheep of your pasture

We know with you shepherding us there will be no lack

Help us to count on your daily supply of nurture

And to walk with you steadfastly never looking back.

During the passage of this year, Lord

Help us to be more loving to our biological families

Teach us to be more committed to our church brethren

And to dwell together in brotherly love and unity.

Help us not to be carried away with the making of resolutions

But point us to righteous living and the manner of its execution

Exceed as always our thinking and imagination

And move us onward as we march to our full redemption

 In Jesus’ Name

Amen

Stewart Russell © 2017

An Old Year’s Night Prayer

Heavenly Father, as we close another year

We give you thanks and praise

For the fact that you have brought us thus far

We are absolutely amazed.

Through many dangers we have come

And by your mercies we have not been consumed

We thank you for the moments spent with you

And for the times that we communed.

We thank you for the faithfulness of the Holy Spirit

Even when unfaithful we had been

We thank you for your calm assurance

When we encountered the unforeseen.

We praise you Almighty Father

For your blessings that kept us through this year

We give you praise and glory

For demonstrating how much you cared.

For our families biological and spiritual

We thank you Lord for every one

And for the legacy of those no longer with us

Who have gone on to the ‘great beyond’.

We give you thanks for Barbados

For your favour on this land

For the church and other communities

That acknowledged the guidance from your hand.

And loving Father as we come to end of this year

We thank you for the blessed Trinity

The Father, the Son and Holy Spirit

Who indwell us and fits us for eternity.

Amen!

Stewart Russell © 2016