Looking Back
I keep a written journal as well as this online blog. I often look back through my journals and read past things. Today I was going back through and came across this hymn that became a New Year's declaration/prayer for me back at the turn of 2001. I first heard it on the Ginny Owens CD Without Condition (Great Cd btw!) It came to mean so much to me b/c Ginny is blind and singing "Be Thou My Vision" and I realized, I'm not physically blind but without Christ, I am spiritually blind. Since then, it has become one of my favorite hymns. (Along with GREAT lyrics, I love the Irish roots and potential arrangements of the song.) It was that next year that I was at a Nickel Creek concert in Greenville, South Carolina when they performed a BEAUTIFUL rendition of this very song! What a testimony and again the song was an encouragement to me. Today when I was reading through the following journal entry in my written journal, it was again an encouragement to me:

Be Thou My Vision
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
(Lord, I am blind to what you have for my life! Lead me in the steps I need to take)
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom,
(for I am not wise. With out You, I have no wisdom.)
and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward,
(Keep my thoughts heavenward and not on temporal, earthly things.)
O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
( I don't want anything to move into the position that only YOU deserve, Lord)
High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of heaven, my victory won,
May I reach heaven’s joys,
( Give me everlasting joy in every thing I do. That can only come from YOU, Lord.) O bright heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.