0:01 [Music] But anybody guess why I picked those two songs? Yes. Yes. Very good. Both of those songs were written by Francis Havgal whom we're going to hear about today. And 0:18 there are many more hymns that um she wrote that we sing. Uh like a river glorious is another one. And um thou it leave thy throne in heaven above. Another hymn. I don't know if we sing it at RLCF, but we 0:35 should learn it. Uh so Francis Havgal wrote many hymns that we that we sing even to this day. I'll show you a picture of Francis Havgal. Here's a picture of Francis Havgal. So Francis was born the youngest child 0:54 of William Henry Havgal, a pastor in Ashley Worershire, England, and his wife Jane. Her five older siblings gave her loving attention as she grew up and all agreed that she was a very intelligent young girl. By the time she was four years 1:12 old, she was able to read the Bible and write with firm handwriting. By the age of seven, she began to compose hymns and poetry. The previous year, God had first started to move in her heart while she was listening to someone preach on the wrath 1:31 of God. Two years later, another sermon disturbed the little girl's soul. She still did not have a clear understanding of the way of salvation and was too shy to talk to any of her family about it. Still, she felt that to be a Christian 1:49 would give her the highest state of happiness possible. Her spiritual unrest was so great that she finally had the courage to seek help from another pastor at her father's church. His advice was simply to pray and try harder to be good. But that left 2:06 her feeling even more unhappy. Francis was so disappointed that for the next 5 years she never dared to open her heart to anyone about the distress of her soul. Her mother passed away when she was 11. Francis, you know what's interesting as 2:24 we read these uh stories um and hear about them. I I'm amazed how many of them lost a parent when they were quite young. And I'm I can imagine I just imagine one of my children. I've got children that are around that age losing 2:39 their mother and what that must feel like and the trauma they must go through losing a parent at such a young age. And yet they didn't let that weigh them down. They didn't get angry at God and and live with that anger and uh dis 2:57 being disgruntled or complaining about their lot in life. They lived a life that was so useful to God despite what they went through at a young age. So here's another example of that. She lost her mother when she was 11 years old. 3:10 Francis never forgot one of the last conversations they had as she was dying. Her mother had said, "You are my youngest little girl, and I am more com concerned about you than the others. I pray that the Holy Spirit will lead you 3:24 and guide you. Remember that nothing but the precious blood of Christ can make you clean and lovely in God's sight. At the age of 13, she was sent away to school. One of her older sisters, Ellen, had lovingly and seriously spoken to 3:40 her. She said, "This is one of the great events of your life, Fanny." It's interesting that her nickname, Francis, was also Fanny, like another famous Fanny we know who wrote hymns. Uh she said um this is one of the great events 3:55 of your life Fanny as she went on to speak of God's love to her and that he won't wanted her to love him completely in return. Francis was quiet for some time and then burst out boldly, I can't love God yet. Nelly that girl school where 4:13 Francis spent six months was under the leadership of a godly woman whose fervent prayer was that no student should leave there without a move of the Holy Spirit upon her heart. This really encouraged me when I read this because 4:25 that's what we pray at RLCF that no child should leave RLCF after maybe they grow up and they move somewhere else. But no child should leave RLCF without having had a move of the Holy Spirit in their heart. And we continue to pray 4:42 that wonderful that this school principal head mad head mistress prayed that for her students. By the end of that session, many of the girls returned to their homes, touched by God's grace. Francis also was affected, but she still 4:56 felt hopeless and in despair that she would never obtain salvation. She left the school for the Christmas holidays under a cloud of doubt and spiritual confusion. Years later, she wrote to her sister about that unhappy time in her life. I 5:11 would willingly have lost or suffered anything if it would have brought me to knowing the full assurance of salvation. You know, that's another thing that I noticed with a lot of these wonderful testimonies we hear that from a young 5:25 age there was unrest in their heart, not because of earthly circumstances, but because they didn't have peace with God. And that's the starting point for God being able to use them. That was the starting point for God to be able to use 5:41 them in the rest of their life. And I think of so many others maybe who had that unrest and then kind of just put out the fire and swept it under the carpet or allowed other things in the world to come up and take up their 5:53 attention. Praise God that wonderful examples like Francis Havgal that unrest that unhappy period in her life which was only unhappy because she didn't have peace with God. And uh for us also in our life, if there's ever a time that 6:11 there's a lack of peace in our heart because we know we're not right with God, we need to set right some things. We need to give ourselves fully to him. Let's not dow that flame. Don't quench the Holy Spirit. So she she wrote to her sister about 6:26 that unhappy time in her life. I would willingly have lost or suffered anything if it would have brought me to knowing the full assurance of salvation. That's how desperate she was. February 1851 was the year when everything changed and 6:40 which she would remember forever. The darkness of her spiritual life began to give way to the sunshine of God's love. A lady named Miss Cook took an interest in the young girl's Christian life. Miss Cook would later marry Francis's father. 6:57 She spent time with Francis and lovingly counseledled her. Francis confided in her that the greatest longing of her heart was to be certain that she was a child of God. She was willing to give up anything, even her father and brothers 7:11 and sisters to know that. What a wonderful testimony. Miss Cook's response was, "Well then, Fanny, I'm sure it won't be very long before your desire is granted and your hope fulfilled. Why can't you trust yourself to your 7:26 savior right now? What if Christ comes at this very moment in the clouds of heaven to take up his redeemed? Can't you trust him fully? Isn't his call and promise enough for you? Can't you simply commit your soul to your savior, Jesus? 7:43 Surely I could was Francis's answer as she got up and went to her room. And she tells us what happened next. I flung myself on my knees and tried to understand how hope had suddenly filled my heart. I was very happy at last. I 8:00 could commit my soul to Jesus. I need not fear his coming. I could trust him with my all for eternity. Having such bright thoughts about eternity was so completely new to me that I could hardly believe it. Then and there, I committed 8:15 my soul to the Savior. I still had trembling and fear, but I still surrendered to him fully and everything on earth and in heaven seemed right from that moment. I had finally trusted the Lord Jesus. You know, another thing that's 8:33 fascinating about this incident was that it wasn't some spectacular thing that Miss Cook shared with Francis. It was simply saying words like, "Why not trust him right now?" A simple word like that. There's nothing spectacular. There's no 8:47 theological um you know nothing fantastically theological about that statement but it the Holy Spirit had prompted Miss Cook to say that knowing that Francis was ready and that connection was made and that encouraged me too that we don't 9:03 have to rely on how we present the gospel and if we're really have a burden to reach the lost and we come across people who don't know the Lord. If we're in tune with the Holy Spirit, he'll give us the right words. It may not be 9:15 fanciful. It may not be spectacular, but it will have power and it will come at the right time to penetrate to the hearts of those we meet. The next August, she went away to school, but her studies were interrupted by an illness 9:29 from which she recovered only very slowly. Though Francis was full of energy, she accepted that time of prolonged rest with patience and faith. "I'm sure it will be all right," she wrote to a friend. If I receive good things from the hand of such a father, 9:45 should I complain at this drawback when he is only trying to teach me a lesson that I must learn? In November 1852, Francis moved with her father and his wife to Germany. There she enrolled in a school where she immediately felt her responsibility as a 10:02 Christian among the other 110 students. She relates, "I don't think there was a single other student there besides myself who had any interest in religion. It was quite challenging. I realized that I must walk worthy of my calling 10:18 for Christ's sake, and it brought a new and very strong desire to bear witness for my master, to live out his teachings, and to win others for him." The next year, the family returned to England, and Francis made a public 10:33 confession of her faith in her church. Someone prayed over her, "Oh Lord, defend this your child with heavenly grace that she may continue to be yours forever and daily increase in being filled with your Holy Spirit more and 10:49 more until she comes into your everlasting kingdom." This made a deep impression upon her mind. She observed the anniversary of this occasion as long as she lived, often spending the entire day in prayer and meditation. 11:07 Francis was a very diligent student and had learned German quite well during her year in Europe. Her father also helped her study Greek so that she could better understand the New Testament. One summer, she spent much time learning 11:19 Hebrew while teaching her young nieces. She used her free time to also learn Latin and Italian. One evening at the end of a long and tiring day, 21-year-old Francis wearily sat down in a chair and glanced at a picture hanging on the wall which made a 11:37 deep impression on her. The words under the picture were, "I give my life for thee. I gave my life for thee." Those words brought strength to her. The lines of a poem came into her mind, and she quickly wrote them down upon a scrap of 11:53 paper, and that went on to become a well-known hymn. As she read them over, they didn't seem to be quite what she wished, so she tossed the paper into the open fire at the end of the room. Strangely, the papers fell out of the 12:08 fire without being burned at all. Her father picked up the papers and read the lines she had written. He then composed music for them and so came to be one of Francis's best known hymns, Thy Life for Me. As she approached young womanhood, 12:26 Francis had an even deeper thirst for God. Her love of his word was intensified and she spent much time memorizing scripture passages. That's how the Gospels, the epistles, the book of Revelation, and the Psalms were absorbed into her very being. Later in 12:43 life, she memorized the book of Isaiah and the minor prophets. Her gift allowed her to write in a spontaneous way. Although she felt that every line was given to her by God. Here's what Francis wrote about how she came to write that great hymn of 13:00 consecration, Take My Life, which we just sang a few minutes ago. She said, "Here's how that hymn came about. I was traveling somewhere for a little visit of 5 days. Staying in that house with with me were 10 people, some unconverted 13:15 who others had been praying for and some converted but not rejoicing Christians. God gave me the prayer, Lord, give me all in this house. And he just did. By the end of my stay, everyone had received a spiritual blessing. On the last night, I was too 13:34 happy to sleep and spent most of the night in praise and renewal of my own consecration to God. And these little lines formed themselves and chimed in my heart one after another until they finished with ever only all for thee. 13:53 She also had a good voice and was often asked to sing at different meetings which uplifted the spirits of those there. She said, "Literal singing for Jesus is somehow the most personal and direct commission I hold for my beloved 14:08 master." As the years passed, although Francis had no doubt of her acceptance with God, she would sometimes go through periods of intermittent spiritual darkness. And again, I love the honesty of the biographer here speaking even about 14:23 times of struggle that Francis had. As she grew through those experiences, she defined the reason for them. She wrote, "I had thought that I would reach some sort of table land in my spiritual journey where I could walk for some time 14:37 in the light without the tiring rocks and hollows, crags and muddy bogs, stumbling and striving. Instead, I seem to continue to carry some of the old difficulties of the way along with frustrations caused by sin." And she she continues to write,"I think 14:55 the root of all my trouble and feeling distant from God is that I haven't made an unconditional surrender of myself to God." It's worth repeating that again. I think the great root of all my trouble and feeling distant from God is that I 15:14 haven't made an unconditional surrender of myself fully to God. Until this is done, I shall know no peace. I'm sure of it. I have so much to regret. A fear of the opinions of worldly friends, a love of the world, and a corresponding 15:30 cooling of heavenly desire and love. I want to make the most of my life and to do the best with it. But here I feel my desires and motives need much purifying. Even when my words all sound fair enough, I find an element of self and 15:46 lurking pride. Oh, that God would indeed purify me and make me white at any cost. And because she had such a desperate hunger and thirst, God met with her. In 1873, her longing for a continuous enjoyment of 16:04 the presence of God was realized. A friend gave Francis a booklet entitled All for Jesus. It explained the deeper spiritual life for which she had been yearning, but which had seemed impossible to attain. She wrote to the author of that booklet 16:20 and God used a few words from the answer to bring her to the fountain where the thirst of her soul was forever quenched. The author of the booklet emphasized the power of Jesus to keep those who abide in him from falling. That's Jude verse 16:39 24. The author, she had written to the author of this booklet because she had been so blessed by it. And the author wrote back emphasizing saying remember the power of Jesus to keep those who abide in him from falling. He is able to 16:53 keep you from falling. We read in Jude 24 and on the So that's one emphasize the power of Jesus to keep those who abide with him from falling. Secondly, emphasize the continually present power of his blood to cleanse us. That's 1 17:10 John 1:7. Franc's reaction, those few words from the author were an eye openener for Francis and her reaction was, "I see it all and I have the blessing." The sunless ravines were now forever passed. And from that day forward, her 17:28 peace and joy flowed onwards, deepening and widening under the teaching of the Holy Spirit. As she herself put it, the blessings I have received lifted my whole life into sunshine, which made everything I had previously experienced 17:44 in comparison like passing April gleams compared with the fullness of summer glory. Several years later, she told about this experience in a letter to one of her sisters. She wrote, "It was on December 2nd, 1873 that I first saw clearly the 18:04 joy of true consecration. I saw it as a flash of electric light. And what you see, you can never unsee. There must be full surrender before there can be full blessedness." There must be full surrender before there can be full blessedness. God leads 18:22 you from one into the other. God leads you from full surrender into full blessedness and fullness of joy. He showed me this so clearly. First, he showed me that the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanses us from all sin. Then he showed me plainly that he 18:40 who has thus cleansed me has power to keep me clean. So I just utterly yielded myself to him and utterly trusted him to keep me. Wonderful reminder for us. He uh who has thus cleansed me has the 18:59 power to keep me clean. After this her life was a great blessing to others. She lived as it were on the highest plane of spiritual experience and the reality and power of it was felt wherever she went. Once when Francis entered a house 19:16 meeting, someone present remarked later on that it seemed as though streams of heavenly energy were pouring out through her. Many letters that she wrote during this time show the scope of the work God did in her heart. Here is an extract from 19:34 one such letter. She writes, "One of the most intense moments of my life was when I saw the force of that word cleanses in 1 John 1:7. The force, the power of that word cleanses. I cannot describe the utterly unexpected and unimagined sense 19:52 of its full meaning that came upon me in simply believing in it in its fullness. I'm so thankful that in all of this, revelation didn't come from any human source, but from God himself through his word. I had read no books and attended 20:07 no meetings or conferences. I have waited many months before writing this. So it isn't some new and untested theory to me. In fact, the experience came before theory and that matters more to me than any theory. 20:26 Please understand, however, that it is not as if I have already attained or I'm already perfect, but I follow after. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. She's quoting from Philippians 3. And 20:41 here she goes on to write, "If all in 1 John 1:7 does not mean all, that is cleanses us from all unrighteousness." If all does not mean all, how much does it mean? And if he only cleansed me when I said my prayers last night, why would 21:00 he say cleanses in present continuous tense? I know that such a blessing is what God wants us to have. And life is completely different. Then this isn't perfection or perfectionism because if it were I would not need or desire or 21:17 claim that wonderful perpetual present tense that is goes on cleansing. I cannot do without the precious blood of Jesus even for one hour or one moment. What she's speaking about there is that often we can think that the blood of 21:33 Jesus Christ was what I needed back then a long time ago when I first repented of my sins. But she's saying that she saw and what set her free was that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us even now because we walk in the light. 1 John 1:7 21:49 and have fellowship in the light. The blood of Jesus Christ is always there to cleanse us from unconscious sin, from sin that we might not yet be freed from while we press on to perfection. In addition to the many spiritual hymns 22:02 that flowed from her heart, Francis also wrote many tracks and devotional books which inspired thousands across the world and still do to this day. This includes books like kept for the master's use, royal commandments, and 22:17 royal bounty. Francis was conscientious in every part of her life and mindful of her testimony as a professing Christian. And this spirit carried over into the area of her finances. See, she never married. She lived single 22:31 her whole life. But she said she never spent even a little bit of money without the feeling that it belonged to God. So she had to be careful how she used it. She set a Christian example even in how she dressed, neat but plain, showing her 22:44 desire not to attract attention either by being careless or extravagant in her dress. She said, "I take money matters very seriously and do not consider myself at liberty to spend a lot on clothing if I can use it instead for 23:00 God's work. Clothes can well can be well and prettily made without there having to cost a fortune. I only feel justified in getting a costly dress if it would last that much longer. See the practicality there? It's not saying that there's a certain amount 23:18 you can spend or anything like that. Sure, maybe you spend a little bit more because the dress will last longer, but remember all the money we have is God's and to seek his wisdom and guidance on what we spend our money on. She also 23:33 faced severe disappointments at times when the company responsible for printing her books in America went into bankruptcy. She said, "I have not a fear or a doubt or a care or a shadow upon the sunshine of my heart." Then a fire 23:47 destroyed many plates of her music and hymns, but even that didn't discourage her. Isn't it amazing? You know, you read the story of William Kerry who translated the Bible into Indian languages and once all of his work got burned and that 24:03 didn't discourage him. And here too, these things that God allows to happen to some. And you'd think these are this is not to make more money. This is to bless others. Why why couldn't God have preserved it? We'll see in eternity why 24:15 God had a purpose in even allowing different times of loss and allowing us to lose some things that we did for his glory. But what we must never do is lose heart. Never lose heart. Never give up hope. Never stop trusting him. He's got 24:29 a purpose. And we'll see in eternity what that purpose was. Even as God's servant, she faced recurring bouts of ill health. Sometimes this meant that this energetic soul had to go away for long periods of time and take complete 24:42 rest. But these times of illness enabled her to feel for others in their hour of trial. and she always tried to remind others of God's purpose through our suffering. A letter that she wrote to a friend reveals the depths of 24:56 compassionate understanding she had for others. Here's what she wrote. She says, "I don't feel like saying I am sorry for you, dear friend. Even though you have told me about your suffering and trial, although I feel very much for you in it, 25:09 I am so sure that the master is leading you by the right way and only plans for it to result in all the more blessing. We would be making a big mistake if we were to only choose and mark out nice smooth paths for our friends. 25:27 It has also struck me very much lately that the Lord's most used and blessed workers are almost always weighted in some way or another. I don't know a single servant of Christ who to our limited view is not working under 25:43 weights of hindrances of some sort, heavy weights of hindrances. This is quite a contrast from those who only claim to be Christians and have comfortable lives because of what they don't do for Jesus. What she's saying here is that those who don't really pour 26:00 out their lives for Jesus, they seem to have comfortable lives. But the ones who give their everything to Jesus and pour out their lives for him seem to be beset with hardships and difficulties. This is God's way. I am so very glad that God did not 26:17 answer prayer for my recovery during those eight months of illness. What powerful words. I am so very glad. This is her looking back on how God did something by allowing that illness to prolong for so long. I'm so very glad 26:32 that God did not answer prayer for my recovery during those eight months of illness. I would have missed all sorts of blessing and precious teaching if he had. At the same time when God leads us to give the prayer of faith, let us 26:47 pray. Nothing doubting. So it's not a rule that we just simply take sickness and allow it to be. If God leads leads us to pray, let's pray in faith without any doubt at all. Ever thirsting for more, ever longing to know more of the 27:04 ocean of God's fullness. That was Miss Havgirl's experience. About a year before her death, she wrote expressing this hunger in a letter to a friend. Shadowless communion. Think about that phrase for a moment, family. Shadowless communion. Communion with God 27:22 where there is no shadow. We don't allow any shadow to come over the brightness of being in his presence. Shadowless communion. That is how I would describe what I now taste with my savior. Still, I haven't yet had the full 27:37 continual drinking which I believe can be ours. I cannot and will not rest until I experience its fullness. If there's any topic that captivates me with intense interest on this earth, it is to hear from those who have tasted of 27:52 this shadowless communion and can show me how to have more of that beyond what I currently have. This is she's got months to live and she all that captivates her is how can I have more communion with God more communion with God and think about what 28:11 a goal to set for our lives dear family that we don't know when our end will come but whatever it might be as if we sense that our time is drawing near let our and regardless let our thrust be always I want shadowless communion more 28:27 and more shadowless communion drawing closer answer to that fellowship with God and then the very next step will be the reality of it in his presence in heaven. Her beautiful life on earth came to an end in the spring of 1879 when she 28:41 was only 42 years old. Amazing that this wonderful lady who wrote so many hymns that we sing to this day lived just a short life, 42 years and yet so full and so uh so used by the Lord. She suffered a fever at a meeting she was holding for 28:59 young men and boys. Within several days, it became clear that she was very ill. When she realized that she probably would not recover from it, "No dread of passing through the valley of the shadow of death disturbed the peace of her 29:12 soul." "I'm just excited to be so near the gates of heaven," she exclaimed to her friends sitting by her bedside. The brightness of the holy city seemed to cast its gleams over her face as she who had gladdened so many on earth with her 29:28 songs joined the angelic choirs above. The story of Francis Ridley Havgal. Amen. And as we have often been reminded um before we go and pray a prayer, our we're not given the same calling as 29:46 these men and women. And we don't read these biographies together just to imitate their lives. We're told in Hebrews 13:7 that when we observe the lives of those who have gone ahead of us, we imitate their faith. 30:03 is their faith. That same faith that Sister Havgal had and that others that we hear about and read about in the scriptures, read hear about in these stories and above all that Jesus himself had who is the author and finisher of 30:17 our faith. That same faith is what we can imitate. Lord, if you could take her, if you could give her such faith that no matter what happened, what frustrations, what disappointments, what loss she experienced, um that she would still trust you and 30:33 continue to press on, if she could have such faith that she could endure and persevere in trusting you and seeking you and receive the fullness of your Holy Spirit, then I too can have such a faith. That's what we want to take from 30:47 these lessons that we're inspired by the faith of these brothers and sisters who have gone ahead of us. So let's pray. Faith comes from hearing the word of Christ. We read in Romans 10:17. And this is the victory that overcomes the 31:00 world, our faith. 1 John 5:4. So let's pray that the eyes of our heart will be open, the ears of our heart will be open to hear Jesus, to hear his voice speaking faith into our hearts and then we too can live such lives of faith.
