A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation.
Home About Us Archives Free email subscription
Listen to these
messages
Text only for
printing
<Previous
Message
Next
Message
“She hath done what she could” (Mark 14:8a).
Yesterday
we had an interesting service in our church as Debi Irene Wahl
portrayed Fanny Crosby and her mother portrayed Fanny’s
grandmother. We were reminded of the outstanding and ongoing
contribution that one person can make to the Kingdom of God.
Interestingly, Fanny was blind, but God gifted her with an
extraordinary ability to write inspirational, Bible-based poetry which
became texts to many of the hymns we continue to sing today, such as
“Blessed Assurance”, “Tell Me the Story of
Jesus” and so many, many others.
Many
readers in this encouragement series have heard of Fanny Crosby. She
died in 1915 but her songs continue to be sung in churches all around
the world. Several times I have posted a photo
of Brooksyne standing beside Fanny Crosby's more recent tombstone in
Bridgeport Connecticut. However the original tombstone placed at the
time of her death simply stated, "She Hath Done What She Could" which
is actually a Scripture quotation from Mark 14:8, our daily text.
Fanny Crosby became blind at six weeks of age due to human error. In addition to that tragedy her father died while she was still an infant forcing her mother to go out and find full-time work. Fanny’s grandmother took over the very difficult job of raising a blind child and did so as she taught her in the ways of the Lord. Over time Fanny memorized entire books of the Bible. As she grew in her faith the Holy Spirit enabled her to express in prose that which she had learned from Scripture and from her experiences in life as she walked in the ways of holiness.
As a young mother she gave birth to a child who lived for only a short time. In her oral biography she said, “God gave us a tender babe,” and “soon the angels came down and took our infant up to God and His throne.” She privately bore the sadness of her loss and did not speak of it publicly, though it is likely reflected in a number of her songs that express her desire to be in heaven where she wrote that we are “free from the blight of sorrow, free from my doubts and fears; only a few more trials, only a few more tears." (Taken from the hymn, "Safe in the Arms of Jesus”). I’m so thankful Fanny didn't wallow in regrets or torment herself with the defeatist mind game, “What if?” Instead, she did what she could for the Lord. God mightily blessed it, and scores of generations have benefitted from her obedience.
In our Scripture text, Jesus is speaking of the woman whom the disciples scolded for pouring an alabaster box of very expensive perfume on His head. In response to their harsh rebuke He commended her actions by saying, “She hath done what she could.” The disciples gave their opinions regarding the different ways that this perfume could have been used in a more cost-efficient manner. They felt that her wasteful act of generosity was way over the top.
Perhaps she sold a treasured possession to purchase the perfume. However she obtained it, she gave every last drop unreservedly to her Master. Jesus commends her act and her story reminds us that He is very pleased when we give our all. So often we give Jesus the left-overs of our time, our labor, our devotion, and our finances whereas He desires the first fruits. He wants to be our “first love” since otherwise our hearts are prone to wandering after worthless pursuits.
We can live our life for self or in consecration to God's purpose. Recall the old saying, “Only one life will soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last.” Consider that famous quote in light of the woman (Mary) who wanted to bless her Savior in an extravagant way. She exemplifies better than anyone the unreserved dedication that all believers should have.
Mary’s act was the expression of her deep devotion and profound love for her Master. As a result the Lord ordained that her story should accompany the preaching of the Gospel, ”in memory of her” (14:9). In the end the disciples who had just rebuked Mary harshly for her “waste of perfume” were now the ones being rebuked.
I ask you today as I also ask myself: “Am I doing all that I can for the kingdom of Christ?” If so, I am building a memorial of faith as Christ is exemplified in that which I do. Just as Jesus said it of Mary, “She hath done what she could” may He also say it about us.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily Prayer: Father,
we can live in such a way that our limitations define us and guide us
in all that we think, do, and say. Or we can recognize that our
abilities are not restricted when You accomplish Your will in
our lives. The constraints we place on ourselves can be lifted by the
power of Your Holy Spirit as we give You all that we are and fully
devote ourselves to You and Your service. Let it be said of us,
“They did what they could to honor Christ", in whose name
we pray. Amen.
Can you think of another tombstone that has the phrase “She hath done what she could”? I will share the answer of one tomorrow with a photo.
Follow Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter
We now post the Daily Encouragement messages on Facebook and Twitter
The daily message and prayer on Facebook.
The daily message and prayer on Twitter.
I tend to be a slow learner with these types of programs so please pardon me if I didn't set this up right and I welcome suggested improvements as to utilizing them better.
Brooksyne (middle in photo) along with "Fanny Crosby" and her "grandmother".
Ray and Vicky Mancini (left in photo), long time friends from New Jersey, stopped by yesterday to visit, along with their friends Stewart and Debora McCloud from Long Island. They were visiting here in Lancaster County and decided to visit our church. We were so pleased.
I met Stewart for the first time and engaged in a conversation with him about where he worked. He offered that he worked on the Long Island Railroad. A friend, George Summers, who was in our church in northern PA about twenty-five years ago had moved to New York to work for the Long Island Railroad. Like my Mom would always said, "It never hurts to ask" so I asked Stewart if he knew George and, amazingly, he did! Now that is an extraordinary conincidence since the Long Island Railroad has 7,000 employees.
Yesterday afternoon we visited with Joe and Beulah Snavely and their daughter Kelsey who worked with our youth these last seven months. Kelsey is departing this week for Costa Rica to attend a Bible College for a year.
The Savely's live in a farmhouse over 200 years old which has been in their family at least six generations. They have lots of neat antique farm implements around their house. I asked them to stand holding the pitch forks, trying to get them to strike a pose like American Gothic! Note, Joe is not wearing a barn-shaped cap, it is on the wall!
I am involved in an organization called CBMC, a fellowship of local businessmen committed to serving Christ. Dave Balinski, on the right in the photo, is our regional CBMC leader and Joe Rose, a football payer, shared his testimony at the meeting. That's a good question on the banner!
"Lord, I Offer My Life To You" Video Long intro but great lyrics and worth the wait!
"Little Is Much" Video Ernie Haase & Signature Sound Outstanding harmony! This song fits so well with today's theme.
"Broken And Spilled Out" Video Steve Green
The following songs were all written by Fanny Crosby:
"Blessed Assurance" Video Harpeth Gospel Quartet Yesterday we learned that this song has been translated into more languages than any Christian hymn except for "Amazing Grace".
"To God Be The Glory" Video (Musicians not identified but this sounds like good congregational singing in a local church.) An interesting bit of hymn trivia is that this song was not popularized until Cliff Barrows led this song in worship in a Billy Graham Crusade held in London in 1954. It turned into a three month crusade as revival was spreading througout Great Britain and "To God Be the Glory" became the nightly theme song.
"Safe In The Arms Of Jesus" Video
Monday, January 24, 2011
We
pass this Amish farm in southern Lancaster County. We consider what it
must be like to hang wet clothes on the line when it's below freezing
(although Brooksyne reminds me that she did so until she left home for
college)!
"Lord, I Offer My All To You"
“She hath done what she could” (Mark 14:8a).
Yesterday
we had an interesting service in our church as Debi Irene Wahl
portrayed Fanny Crosby and her mother portrayed Fanny’s
grandmother. We were reminded of the outstanding and ongoing
contribution that one person can make to the Kingdom of God.
Interestingly, Fanny was blind, but God gifted her with an
extraordinary ability to write inspirational, Bible-based poetry which
became texts to many of the hymns we continue to sing today, such as
“Blessed Assurance”, “Tell Me the Story of
Jesus” and so many, many others.Many
readers in this encouragement series have heard of Fanny Crosby. She
died in 1915 but her songs continue to be sung in churches all around
the world. Several times I have posted a photo
of Brooksyne standing beside Fanny Crosby's more recent tombstone in
Bridgeport Connecticut. However the original tombstone placed at the
time of her death simply stated, "She Hath Done What She Could" which
is actually a Scripture quotation from Mark 14:8, our daily text.Fanny Crosby became blind at six weeks of age due to human error. In addition to that tragedy her father died while she was still an infant forcing her mother to go out and find full-time work. Fanny’s grandmother took over the very difficult job of raising a blind child and did so as she taught her in the ways of the Lord. Over time Fanny memorized entire books of the Bible. As she grew in her faith the Holy Spirit enabled her to express in prose that which she had learned from Scripture and from her experiences in life as she walked in the ways of holiness.
As a young mother she gave birth to a child who lived for only a short time. In her oral biography she said, “God gave us a tender babe,” and “soon the angels came down and took our infant up to God and His throne.” She privately bore the sadness of her loss and did not speak of it publicly, though it is likely reflected in a number of her songs that express her desire to be in heaven where she wrote that we are “free from the blight of sorrow, free from my doubts and fears; only a few more trials, only a few more tears." (Taken from the hymn, "Safe in the Arms of Jesus”). I’m so thankful Fanny didn't wallow in regrets or torment herself with the defeatist mind game, “What if?” Instead, she did what she could for the Lord. God mightily blessed it, and scores of generations have benefitted from her obedience.
In our Scripture text, Jesus is speaking of the woman whom the disciples scolded for pouring an alabaster box of very expensive perfume on His head. In response to their harsh rebuke He commended her actions by saying, “She hath done what she could.” The disciples gave their opinions regarding the different ways that this perfume could have been used in a more cost-efficient manner. They felt that her wasteful act of generosity was way over the top.
Perhaps she sold a treasured possession to purchase the perfume. However she obtained it, she gave every last drop unreservedly to her Master. Jesus commends her act and her story reminds us that He is very pleased when we give our all. So often we give Jesus the left-overs of our time, our labor, our devotion, and our finances whereas He desires the first fruits. He wants to be our “first love” since otherwise our hearts are prone to wandering after worthless pursuits.
We can live our life for self or in consecration to God's purpose. Recall the old saying, “Only one life will soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last.” Consider that famous quote in light of the woman (Mary) who wanted to bless her Savior in an extravagant way. She exemplifies better than anyone the unreserved dedication that all believers should have.
Mary’s act was the expression of her deep devotion and profound love for her Master. As a result the Lord ordained that her story should accompany the preaching of the Gospel, ”in memory of her” (14:9). In the end the disciples who had just rebuked Mary harshly for her “waste of perfume” were now the ones being rebuked.
I ask you today as I also ask myself: “Am I doing all that I can for the kingdom of Christ?” If so, I am building a memorial of faith as Christ is exemplified in that which I do. Just as Jesus said it of Mary, “She hath done what she could” may He also say it about us.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily Prayer: Father,
we can live in such a way that our limitations define us and guide us
in all that we think, do, and say. Or we can recognize that our
abilities are not restricted when You accomplish Your will in
our lives. The constraints we place on ourselves can be lifted by the
power of Your Holy Spirit as we give You all that we are and fully
devote ourselves to You and Your service. Let it be said of us,
“They did what they could to honor Christ", in whose name
we pray. Amen.Can you think of another tombstone that has the phrase “She hath done what she could”? I will share the answer of one tomorrow with a photo.
Follow Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter
We now post the Daily Encouragement messages on Facebook and Twitter
The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.I tend to be a slow learner with these types of programs so please pardon me if I didn't set this up right and I welcome suggested improvements as to utilizing them better.
Brooksyne (middle in photo) along with "Fanny Crosby" and her "grandmother".
Ray and Vicky Mancini (left in photo), long time friends from New Jersey, stopped by yesterday to visit, along with their friends Stewart and Debora McCloud from Long Island. They were visiting here in Lancaster County and decided to visit our church. We were so pleased.
I met Stewart for the first time and engaged in a conversation with him about where he worked. He offered that he worked on the Long Island Railroad. A friend, George Summers, who was in our church in northern PA about twenty-five years ago had moved to New York to work for the Long Island Railroad. Like my Mom would always said, "It never hurts to ask" so I asked Stewart if he knew George and, amazingly, he did! Now that is an extraordinary conincidence since the Long Island Railroad has 7,000 employees.
Yesterday afternoon we visited with Joe and Beulah Snavely and their daughter Kelsey who worked with our youth these last seven months. Kelsey is departing this week for Costa Rica to attend a Bible College for a year.
The Savely's live in a farmhouse over 200 years old which has been in their family at least six generations. They have lots of neat antique farm implements around their house. I asked them to stand holding the pitch forks, trying to get them to strike a pose like American Gothic! Note, Joe is not wearing a barn-shaped cap, it is on the wall!
I am involved in an organization called CBMC, a fellowship of local businessmen committed to serving Christ. Dave Balinski, on the right in the photo, is our regional CBMC leader and Joe Rose, a football payer, shared his testimony at the meeting. That's a good question on the banner!
Today's
Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
Click on the link to open and play.
(In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song.)
Click on the link to open and play.
(In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song.)
"Lord, I Offer My Life To You" Video Long intro but great lyrics and worth the wait!
"Little Is Much" Video Ernie Haase & Signature Sound Outstanding harmony! This song fits so well with today's theme.
"Broken And Spilled Out" Video Steve Green
The following songs were all written by Fanny Crosby:
"Blessed Assurance" Video Harpeth Gospel Quartet Yesterday we learned that this song has been translated into more languages than any Christian hymn except for "Amazing Grace".
"To God Be The Glory" Video (Musicians not identified but this sounds like good congregational singing in a local church.) An interesting bit of hymn trivia is that this song was not popularized until Cliff Barrows led this song in worship in a Billy Graham Crusade held in London in 1954. It turned into a three month crusade as revival was spreading througout Great Britain and "To God Be the Glory" became the nightly theme song.
"Safe In The Arms Of Jesus" Video
Permissions:
Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on
Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided
that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the
cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not
protect or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact,
copyright and subscription information intact.
Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Scripture
references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version.
© 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD
BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation,
New King James
Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the
King
James Version.
Personal
Mission Statement:
"I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ
I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord.
My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and
to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
Daily
Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com
©
Copyright 2011
Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
Home
www.dailyencouragement.net
Contact us
This device counts unique visitors by nation and
state. I
installed the international version in mid April 2010 and the state version later. They thus register unique
visitors to since then.
"Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation"