Celtic Spiritual Poetry (13)
Thus the hated foe deals as he wearies our hearts,
And by ill temptations shakes the inward hearts with rage.
Let your mind, my men, recalling Christ sound Ho!
Stand fixed in your intent, and spurn the foeman’s wiles,
Duly protect yourselves with armour of the virtues.
Let your mind, my men, recalling Christ sound Ho!
Firm faith and blessed zeal conquer all,
And the old enemy, yielding, breaks his darts.
Let your mind, my men, recalling Christ sound Ho!
The King of virtues, too, Fount of being, highest Power,
Offers prizes to him who strives, and to the victor gives them.
Let your mind, my men, recalling Christ sound Ho!
– Columbanus, Excerpt from “A Boat Song,” Irish, 7th century[1]
…Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.
– 1 Peter 1.7-9
Source of strength
It is difficult for us to imagine the tremendous hardships faced by those Irish peregrini—wandering missionaries—as they undertook their labors for the Lord. They were opposed by established church leaders, who didn’t like being called to task for their many compromises. They were attacked by pagans who rightly saw them as a threat to their established religions. Local kings and rulers drove them away. They had few material possessions or physical comforts.
Yet they went by the thousands to preach the Gospel. Where did they acquire the strength of soul for such an effort?
In Gaul, Columbanus, anticipating the rigors of sailing on contrary rivers, wrote his boat song for his men to sing, so that they could combat the temptation to give up and turn back as their strength began to fail. Columbanus knew that the devil can use our weaknesses to thwart the Lord’s plans. If we would resist and defeat him, we must guard our souls by looking to a strength beyond our strength, the strength which comes from contemplating the risen Christ.
By singing this song together as they rowed, Columbanus and his troop sustained a common focus and reinforced one another against their souls being subverted and their purpose denied.
Similarly, Peter commended the Asian churches for keeping their focus on Christ during their time of hardship. They were experiencing hardship in the form of persecution, and the temptation must have been great to allow that to be the focal point of their thinking and planning for everyday life. But, with Peter’s encouragement, they managed to focus their minds on Christ, Whom they could not see with their physical eyes, but only with the eye of the heart, and by faith.
Columbanus composed his song to help his men do the same, so that the work of the Kingdom could go on despite their weariness.
Looking beyond our circumstances
This is the way God works to renew us and take us to new levels of spiritual life. He leads us to look beyond our circumstances and the worst-case scenarios we posit, and to focus on glorious unseen—but real—things which are our hope and strength at all times.
When we are at the end of our strength, yet more strength can be found by contemplating Christ, His sufferings on our behalf, His mighty resurrection, and His glorious reign at the right hand of God. Every day we must expect God to take us beyond where our natural strength has gone before (Eph. 3.20) by enabling us to draw on the strength of Jesus, exalted in glory.
We don’t have to let our circumstances get the best of us. Resources exist in the unseen realm to buoy and bolster our soul, and to embolden us for rejoicing and obedience, even in ways or to degrees we’ve never known before. Psalms and great hymns can reinforce this vision and help us to tap into the strength of Christ, just as Columbanus’ song did for his men.
Contemplate Christ, and all the beauty, might, and majesty attendant to Him in that glorious unseen realm. See Jesus in His glory, seeing you in your weakness. Reach out to Him in song, and receive a strength of glory you never knew possible, exceedingly abundantly beyond all you’ve ever dared to ask or think.
Questions for Reflection
1. Can you think of a psalm or hymn that focuses on Jesus in His exaltation? Use that psalm or hymn today to strengthen you in your walk with and work for Him.
2. Share your song with a Christian friend, and encourage your friend to use it, too.
Psalm 118.7-9
Windsor: Come, Ye Thankful People, Come
For the LORD stands next to me; He will give me victory!
Over all who hate my life I will triumph through the strife!
In His grace I refuge find, in His steadfast love so kind.
Trust not princes, trust not men—Christ shall be our haven then!
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
If you’d like to learn more about Columbanus, download our free, 30-day devotional on him and his work by clicking here.
Other columns of interest: This week: Our ReVision column begins a new study of “Everyday Christianity.” The Read Moorepodcast will be taking excerpts from Patrick: A Devotional History. The focus of our Scriptorium daily study is on “Matthew: The Coming of the Kingdom.” Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you. You can subscribe or update your subscriptions by going to the bottom of the home page.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
[1] Walker, p. 191.
