Thankfulness That Binds
When I first started getting involved in music ministries, there was (at that time) a “new” rendition of Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing. It was widely embraced as a great modern take on a beloved hymn. However, there was a problem — I had little to no idea what the lyrics meant. I wasn’t the main leader at that point; I was just part of the team. We had a pastor overseeing the music, and he recommended the song, so I just played along like I knew what was going on. Thankfully, nobody at that time asked me what the following lyrics meant:
“Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee.”
These words utterly confused me — who on earth knows what a fetter is? Fast forward many years and many Google searches later, these words have become some of my favorites to sing because of the truth they convey.
A fetter is essentially a restraint that was used to keep a prisoner from running away. However, those aren’t the words I love most. What I love is what follows: “Bind my wandering heart to Thee.”
This line speaks to something that is true about all of us — and healthy for us to remember: we are prone to wander.
We are so prone to wander that the Bible calls us sheep.
To quote Warren Wiersbe, “Sheep have a tendency to go astray, and that is why they need a shepherd.”
The rest of the lyrics from verse two of Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing continue to hammer home that point:
“Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love.”
The heart is often used in biblical language to refer to the core of a person’s being — who they truly are. There is a constant battle for our hearts, and Scripture tells us to be careful about what we let in.
Proverbs 4:23 (NIV): Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
Proverbs 27:19 (ESV): As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man.
The truth is that we will wander. It’s going to happen. There will be times in our lives when we let our guard down and something else creeps in and grabs hold of our hearts. We all do it — it’s just the degree of wandering that’s different.
I cannot think about our wandering hearts without thinking about Luke 15:3–7:
3 Then Jesus told them this parable:
4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?
5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’
7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
I’ve had a few people over the past few weeks talk to me about their faith journey. At one point, they had embraced Christ — but then they wandered. Both of them made a similar statement that really got me thinking:
“I didn’t find my way back to God. God came and found me.”
Here’s another truth that is good to remind ourselves of: forgiveness produces love (Luke 7:47-48) These are the words of one of Pastor Chuck’s points for Sunday, and they serve as a reminder that even though we stray, we have a God who doesn’t let us stay lost. As in the parable, He goes out looking for us.
Now, God obviously knows exactly where we are and what is leading us astray. But the point is — He doesn’t give up on us. He doesn’t say, “Well, that’s the fourth time this month Adam has wandered off… I think he’s a lost cause at this point — he’ll never learn.”
No, instead He is constantly pursuing us to bring us back into the fold. That truth should motivate us to live out the words of our theme verse for this series:
1 Thessalonians 5:18 — “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
We can give thanks in all circumstances. We can praise in all circumstances. Because we have a God who never gives up on us — a God who continually forgives us — a God who sent His Son to pay the penalty for our sins.
The opening verse of Goodness of God speaks to the reality we talked about in this devotional:
“I love You, Lord
Oh, Your mercy never fails me
All my days
I’ve been held in Your hands
From the moment that I wake up
Until I lay my head
I will sing of the goodness of God.”
As we continue to focus on thankfulness this time of year, may we remember God’s goodness toward us. And may His goodness, like a “fetter,” be what keeps our hearts from wandering.