The Fount of Every Blessing

Robert Robinson was born in Suffolk, England on September 27, 1735. His father died when he was only eight years. As soon as he was old enough, his mother sent him to London to apprentice under a barber. While there, he fell in with a rough crowd and lived a life of trouble.

One day, his gang was planning on disrupting a gospel meeting of evangelist George Whitefield. But when he arrived, Robert was touched by Whitefield’s message so deeply that he could think of little else for weeks afterwards. Finally, on December 10, 1755, Robert gave his life to Christ.

He began traveling all throughout England in order to listen to some of the best preachers of his day and developed a strong desire to know God more deeply. When he was 23, he wrote the words of the beloved hymn, Come Thou Fount.

The honesty expressed in this hymn reflected the struggles that Robert faced throughout his life. There were periods of his life when he indeed was “prone to wonder.” Later in his life, he reverted back to his sinful ways and explored spiritual doctrines that opposed Scripture.

One evening, when Robert was riding in a stagecoach, he overheard a fellow passenger singing the words of the very hymn he had penned. When she finished singing, she asked Robert what he thought of the song. He replied, “Madam, I am the unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago; and I would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, if I could feel now as I felt then.”

God used the words of this song—the song that Robert had written as a young believer—to draw his heart back to Him. Today, this song serves as a strong reminder of the blessings that are ours in Christ.

Come Thou Fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of God’s unchanging love.

Can you relate? Does your heart need to be tuned to sing His grace today? While everyone around you seems to be bursting with thanksgiving, are you desperate for any sort of melodious sonnet to sing? Momma, in the midst of your sorrow, choose to fix yourself to the Fount of every blessing. In Him you will find streams of ending mercy. No matter how difficult today may seem, the mercies you need to endure have already been granted to you. Rest in His unchanging love.

Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Hither by Thy help I’m come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.

During the end of the time of the judges, the nation of Israel, under the leadership of Samuel, repented of their sin, destroyed their idols, and began to seek the Lord. At that time, the Philistines went up against Israel in battle. When the Israelites went out to fight, God sent them supernatural help and they were victorious over the Philistines. To commemorate their victory and remember the Lord’s help, Samuel took a stone and set it up as a monument. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.” From then on, every time the people saw this “stone of help,” they were reminded of the Lord’s power and protection.

Remember the help of the Lord in your grief, dear one. Find ways to commemorate what He has done for you. Write out Scripture passages that speak of His help and protection on index cards and place them where you will see them on a regular basis to remind you of who He is and what He has done. Look back and record the ways you have experienced His help throughout your life. Raise your “Ebenezer” and remember. The same God who rescued you from the danger of your sin and shame by the precious blood of His Son will also lead you safely home. 

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let that grace now like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

There is nothing like the loss of a beloved child to spread seeds of doubt in our hearts. The enemy wants nothing more than for us to wander from the Lord in the midst of our sorrow. Oh! How our hearts are prone to leave the God we love when we face hardship and heartache. But there is a solution to this fickle tendency of ours.

Dwell on His grace. Let grace fetter your heart to the One who has bestowed it upon you so abundantly. Recall the truths of Scripture to combat the lies that threaten to creep into your heart and mind. Lean into the Spirit, who has sealed you for salvation. Offer your heart to the Lord in a sacrifice of praise.

Whatever your Thanksgiving looks like today, whether you are surrounded by extended family and loved ones or carrying your sadness quietly in your heart, I pray that the Lord would tune your heart to sing His praises in ways that you could not have known how to do without having born such sorrow. May you pause today and remember His help in your life, even through the tears; and may you hold fast to His lavish grace.

Ashlee is the Editorial Coordinator for Hope Mommies and author of their I AM, Identity, and Sojourn Bible studies. She and her husband, Jesse, live in Milwaukee with their children—five on earth and two in heaven.

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