I am a church choir director and worship leader.  I have been in ministry for over 25 years and I’ve heard lots of hymns both old and new.  A few months ago, one of my choir members brought to my attention the hymn “Face To Face”.  The words to this hymn are beautiful and I immediately thought of Sandi Patty’s “We Shall Behold Him”.  This song has always brought me to my knees. Can you imagine what it will be like to meet Jesus “face to face”?

The lyrics to the hymn Face To Face were written by Carrie Breck in 1898.  Mrs. Breck was a Christian woman, busy housewife and mother of five. During her free time (I don’t see how she had any free time with five kids) she would write poetry.  

One day, as she was pondering her thoughts on what to write, she wondered what it would be like to see Jesus, face to face.  The Lord inspired Mrs. Breck and she wrote them down in a notebook that she usually carried around with her…for whenever inspiration came.

Face to face with Christ, my Savior, Face to face- what will it be
When with rapture I behold him, Jesus Christ who died for me?

Refrain:
Face to face I shall behold him, Far beyond the starry sky;
Face to face in all his glory, I shall see him by and by.

Only faintly now I see him, With the darkened veil between,
But a blessed day is coming, When his glory shall be seen. [Refrain]

What rejoicing in his presence, When are banished grief and pain;
When the crooked ways are straightened, And the dark things shall be plain. [Refrain]

Face to face- oh, blissful moment! Face to face- to see and know;
Face to face with my Redeemer, Jesus Christ who loves me so. [Refrain]

Mrs. Breck sent her poem to Grant Colfax Tullar, a musician.  It is said that Mrs. Breck wrote over 2,000 hymns and surprisingly, she couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket and she didn’t know how to write music.

Grant Colfax Tullar, was an evangelist, talented musician and publisher.  One day, he agreed to help out a fellow pastor to conduct a crusade.  He spent the afternoon with the pastor and the pastor’s wife, visiting and praying with the sick.  When they returned to the house for a quick supper before the evening crusade they gathered for a quick meal.

The pastor, knowing that Mr. Tullar was very fond of jelly, offered the last bit in the jar to him.  Mr. Tullar quickly reacted with “So this is all for me?”  

As soon as he had said those words, the Lord blessed him with a song.  He quickly composed a melody and wrote the lyrics. The pastor of the crusade wanted Mr. Tullar to sing this new hymn at the meeting that evening but Mr. Tullar wasn’t satisfied with the words to his new melody.  Something just wasn’t right!

The next morning, Mr. Tullar received an envelope of poems by Mrs. Carrie Breck. On the top of the stack of poems was “Face to Face With Christ My Savior” and as soon as he read the words, he realized that it was the perfect fit for the melody he had written the night before.  

When he introduced the song to the crusade pastor and his wife, they joked with him that he should be given a jar of jelly more often to inspire him to write more hymns.

I began to ponder, what will it be like to meet Jesus “face to face”.  In First John 2:28, Paul writes that “And now, dear children, continue in Him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming.”   Will I be ashamed to meet Jesus? Will I be confident that I have been a faithful follower?

When I first read this hymn story, the first creative vision that came to my mind was a jar of jelly!  

Anita Mondragon wrote https://www.praisecenterchurch.com/the-christian-life-is-like-the-perfect-jar-of-jelly/ and I don’t think that I could phrase it any better, so here’s what she wrote. 

There are actually five steps to making preserves.

 1.  wash and cut the fruit

2.  sanitize the jars in scalding water

3.  cook the fruit until it sets

4.  fill the warm jars with the hot fruit

5.  close the jars tightly and process them in a hot water bath to seal.

 That seems like a lot of work to get a perfect jar of jelly, but that’s what it takes!

The same holds true with the human heart.  When Jesus finds us, He must:

1.  wash us clean in His blood.

2.  Then He begins to cut away all the old habits from our life. (did you read #2 above…scalding water - that’s not fun but it is necessary)

3.  Our hearts are sanitized and made pure by His presence within us.

4.  We are “cooked” through the trials of life until we learn how to stand firm in the face of adversity without wavering.

5.  We are then bathed in Holy Ghost Fire which seals us unto the day of redemption.

Just like the jelly is fit to be used after the five steps, so we are fit to be used in Jesus’ service.  The only thing is, that you can’t just let the jar of jelly sit on the shelf.  You have to open it to enjoy it!

My daughter and I tried to make peach preserves once. It was a difficult and tedious task. Plus, you had to watch the peaches on the stove to make sure that they didn’t burn, add the spices just at the right time and then add the other ingredients. You had to be very mindful of what you were doing.

Isn’t that just how we need to be in our Christian life. We need to be patient and not rush the process. And gust like the jar of jelly is ready to be used after the five steps are completed, we are ready to be used to spread (get the pun…sorry, couldn’t help it!) the good news of Jesus Christ.  

I want to be like Grant Colfax Tullar and exclaim every time I open my Bible “Is this all for me?” Because you know…it is!

Bible journaling can provide an intimate and creative way to spend time with the Lord and meet with Him face to face. 

If you’d like to Bible Journal this devotional I’ve provided a printable. You can print the design on sticker paper, transparent sticker paper and/or cardstock. Trace the image and use watercolor, gelatos or acrylic. Bible Journaling is all about spending time with the Lord and using the creative talents that He has given you.

If you’d like to know more about Bible Journaling, please reach out to me or check out a few of my favorite Bible Journaling blog posts.

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