In Scripture the "hand of God" often refers to judgment. But for the Christian it is also an image of providential care. We can see this throughout the book of Ezra, where Ezra attributed his success to the fact that the gracious hand of God was ypon him.
Phillip Doddridge felt the same way. The youngest of twenty children, Doddridge was considered too sickly to live, but the gracious hand of God was upon him. His parents parents died when he was only a teenager, but he was taken in by a minister who nurtured him in spiritual matters.
Doddridge became a pastor, an educator, a hymn writer, and an author. One theme remained uppermost in his mind-the providence of God.
He wrote his hymns to illustrate his sermons and taught them to his congregation after he finished preaching. "Great God, We Sing That Mighty Hand." apparently illustrated a New Year's Sermon, where once again the theme of God's providential care emerged.
God is still our good guide and guardian.
Phillip Doddridge (1702-1751)
Posted By: Esther Pinkston
Sunday, January 3rd 2010 at 11:05PM
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