Archives

Hymn of the Week: We Gather Together

Nov15

Lyrics: Adrianus Valerius (aka François Valéry). Translated to English by Theodore Baker in 1894.

Music: KREMSER, a Dutch tune arranged by Edouard Kremser.

Theme: Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. I John 4:4.

This hymn was written in Dutch to celebrate the Dutch victory over Spanish forces in the Battle of Turnhout in 1597. The Dutch tune to which it is set was originally a folk tune with the lyrics, “Wilder dan wilt, wie sal mij temmen,” or “Wilder than wild, who will tame me?” The tune was tamed by Dutch Protestants celebrating their newfound ability to “gather together” after throwing off Spanish (Catholic) rule.

1. We gather together
to ask the Lord’s blessing;
he chastens and hastens
his will to make known.
The wicked oppressing
now cease from distressing.
Sing praises to his name,
he forgets not his own.

2. Beside us to guide us,
our God with us joining,
ordaining, maintaining
his kingdom divine;
so from the beginning
the fight we were winning;
thou, Lord, wast at our side,
all glory be thine!

3. We all do extol thee,
thou leader in battle,
and pray that thou still
our defender wilt be.
Let thy congregation
escape tribulation;
thy name be ever praised!
O Lord, make us free!

We Gather Together was, for a long time when I was a teenager, my favorite hymn, mostly because I liked the tune. I still do, even though I have gone on to other favorite hymns. I still like to sing this one at Thanksgiving as we gather to thank God for what He has done and petition Him to make us and to keep us free.

Sources:
The surprising origins of “We Gather Together,” a Thanksgiving standard by Melanie Kirkpatrick.
We Gather Together with Garrison Keillor. “Keillor is joined by Prudence Johnson, Rich Dworsky, the VocalEssence Chorus & Ensemble Singers, Charles Kemper and Philip Brunelle in musical renditions of traditional hymns and humorous adaptations of songs for the season.”

Semicolon Review of Peace Like a River by Leif Enger

Oct21

Reprint from May, 2005:

Peace Like a River tells the story of the Land family, father Jeremiah, two sons, Davy and Reuben, and a daughter, Swede. The children’s mother walked out on them long before the time of the novel. Reuben, eleven years old, tells the story. Davy is sixteen when the story starts, and Reuben looks up to his older brother even though the two of them are very different. The central salient fact of Reuben’s life is his asthma; Davy is the epitome of the strong older brother.

“Davy wanted life to be something you did on your own; the whole idea of a protective, fatherly God annoyed him. I would understand this better in years to come, but never subscribe to it, for I was weak and knew it. I hadn’t the strength or the instincts of my immigrant forbears. The weak must bank on mercy–without which, after all, I wouldn’t have lasted fifteen minutes.”

Of course, this statement of Reuben’s is reminiscent of Jesus’ saying to the Pharisees: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17) Not that Davy is a Pharisee; he’s more like a lost sheep, an exile, by his own choice, from grace. Reuben, because of his asthma, knows that it is only by the grace of God, by a miracle, that he is able to breathe in and out. When crisis comes to the Land family, it is Reuben who survives and lives a healthy life, and Davy who is lost.

The language in this novel is beautiful. The author, Leif Enger, worked for many years as a reporter and a producer for Minnesota Public Radio, and the poetic, yet sparkling clear, language in this his first novel is obviously the work of a fine craftsman of words. Examples:

“No grudge ever had a better nurse.”

“Since that fearful night, Dad had responded with an almost impossible work of belief. . . . He had laid up prayer as with a trowel. You know this is true, and if you don’t it is I the witness who am to blame.”

“Listening to Dad’s guitar, halting yet lovely in the search for phrasing, I thought: Fair is whatever God wants to do.”

This last quote gives one of the central themes of the book. God is. He has compassion on the weak, on those who know their need of Him. But He doesn’t always work in the way we want, doesn’t make the story turn out the way we want it to end, doesn’t always give us the miracle. Toward the end of Peace Like a River there’s a wonderfully written chapter in which the narrator describes heaven. The chapter seems to owe something to C.S. Lewis, but it’s as good an imaginative description as Lewis ever wrote himself. Finally, at the very end of the novel, Rueben tells the reader:

“I breathe deeply, and certainty enters into me like light, like a piece of science, and curious music seems to hum inside my fingers.
Is there a single person on whom I can press belief?
No sir.
All I can do is say, Here’s how it went. Here’s what I saw.
I’ve been there and am going back.
Make of it what you will.”

Rueben is a witness as all Christians are. May I be as strong a witness in my weakness to God’s grace and mercy.

Hymn #3: It Is Well With My Soul

Oct21

Lyrics: Horatio Spafford, 1873.

Music: VILLE DU HAVRE by Philip Bliss, 1876.

Theme: And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we[b] also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. Romans 5:2b-4.

Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Romans 8:17-18.

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:10-11.

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. I Peter 4:12-13.

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Refrain:
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life,
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul.

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Almost everyone knows the general outline of the story behind this well-loved hymn: In 1871, Horatio Spafford’s only son died. Also in October of that year The Great Chicago Fire ruined Spafford financially. In 1873, he sent his family, wife Anna and four daughters, on a ship to Europe; Spafford was to follow as soon as he had wound up some business affairs. The ship carrying Spafford’s family collided with another ship and sank. All four of the Spafford daughters drowned; only Anna survived. She sent a telegram to her husband with only two words: “Saved alone.” As Mr. Spafford passed over the Atlantic near the place where his daughters died, he was inspired to write the words of this hymn.

In 1881, the Spaffords, including two new baby girls, moved to Palestine and helped start a communal mission called The American Colony with the mission of serving the poor. The colony later became the subject of the Nobel prize winning Jerusalem, by Swedish novelist Selma Lagerlöf. Leif Enger also named his novel Peace Like a River from the lyrics to this hymn.

Wednesday’s Whatever: I Like Lists

Oct21

Especially book lists:
Time’s Top 10 Literary Hoaxes. This list is interesting, but it’s really the Top Ten Mostly Recent Literary Hoaxes. I’ve written about a couple of others that were perpetrated in the past:
Leonainie: The Poet Poe in Kokomo
Chatterton, the Wonderful Whelp.

C. Michael Patton’s Top Fifteen Must Have Books on Apologetics.

In light of today’s hymn (tba), Randy Alcorn’s bibliography of books about suffering and the Christian.

Also related to hymns, here’s a list of some of the hymnbooks that I have in my collection:

The Cokesbury Hymnal, For General Use in Religious Meetings, Printed in Round and Shaped Notes With Orchestration. Music Editor: Harold Hart Todd. Nashville, Tennessee: Cokesbury Press, 1923.

The Cokesbury Worship Hymnal. General Editor: C.A. Bowen. New York/Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1938.

All-American Church Hymnal. An inspiring Book of Hymns and contemporary Songs, practical and resourceful for use in all phases of religious services for Churches, Tabernacles, Sunday Schools, and Homes. Compiled by Earl Smith and John T. Benson. Nashville, Tennessee: John T. Benson Publishing, n.d.

Triumphant Service Songs. No publisher, no date. This one seems to have been published by the Homer Rodeheaver Company.

The Broadman Hymnal, Great Standard Hymns and Choice Gospel Songs New and Old, for Use in all Religious Services, such as the Worship Hour, Sunday School, Young People’s Meetings, Assemblies, and Evangelistic Services. Music Editor: B.B. McKinney. Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman Press, 1940. These were the “old hymnals” that we used at our church when I was growing up, banished to the Sunday School rooms upstairs, but not good (new) enough for the main worship auditorium.

Voices of Praise, A Collection of Standard Hymns and Gospel Songs Published for Use in the Worship Hour, Sunday Schools, Young People’s Meetings, Evangelistic Services, and all Christian Work and Worship. Editor and Compiler: BB. McKinney. Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman Press, 1947.

Worldwide Church Songs. Compiled by The Stamps Quartets. Dallas, Texas: Stamps Quartet Music Company, Inc., 1947.

Church Service Hymns, a superior collection of Hymns and Gospel Songs for every department of church work. Compiled by Homer Rodeheaver and George W. Sanville. Music Editor: B.D. Ackley. Winona Lake, Indiana: The Rodeheaver Hall-Mack Co., 1948.

Baptist Hymnal. Edited by Walter Hines Sims. Nashville, Tennessee: Convention Press, 1956. I was born in 1957 and grew up singing from this particular edition of the Baptist Hymnal.

Worship and Service Hymnal, For Church, School, and Home. Chicago: Hope Publishing Company, 1957.

Baptist Hymnal. Nashville, Tennessee: Convention Press, 1975. I remember when this Baptist Hymnal replaced the old 1956 edition. We thought we were really up to date, contemporary.

The Hymnal 1982, according to the use of the Episcopal Church. New York: Church Hymnal Corporation, 1982.

The Hymnal for Worship and Celebration. Senior Editor: Tom Fettke. Waco, Texas: Word Music, 1986.

The Baptist Hymnal. Nashville, Tennessee: Convention Press, 1991. I wonder if my old home church in West Texas uses this hymnal now or if they simply project the lyrics on a screen as we do in my current (not Baptist) church?

I really like hymnbooks.

Hymn #5: Great Is Thy Faithfulness

Oct19

Lyrics: Thomas Chisholm, 1923.

Music: William M. Runyan.

Theme: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23.

Thomas Obadiah Chisholm was an ordinary man; he sometimes described himself as “an old shoe.” He was, at various times in his life, a country schoolteacher, editor of a small newspaper, a pastor who had to leave the pastorate because of ill health, and a life insurance agent. He wrote over 1200 poems and sent some of the them to WIlliam Runyan, a musician associated with Moody Bible Institute. Runyan took the poem Great Is thy Faithfulness and set it to music that he thought would bring out its theme of the faithfulness of a God whose mercies are new every morning. At age 75, Mr. Chisholm wrote these words in a letter:

“My income has not been large at any time due to impaired health in the earlier years which has followed me on until now. Although I must not fail to record here the unfailing faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God and that He has given me many wonderful displays of His providing care, for which I am filled with astonishing gratefulness.”

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Refrain:
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Sources:
Worship Matters: A Hymn for Ordinary Christians.
BIble.org Sermon on God’s Faithfulness
Suite 101: Great Is Thy Faithfulness

Hymn Sing!

Oct18

Have you ever been to a Hymn Sing? It’s just what it sounds like: people getting together and singing hymns, for fun and to glorify and praise the Lord.

Robert Cotrill, a Canadian pastor, writes here about how to host a community hymn sing.

The Common Room: All Day Singings

We’re getting to the end of my Top 100 Hymns Project. I thought it might be fun to give you all a chance to guess the top five hymns on the list. Click on the words Top 100 Hymns Project to see the hymns that have already been on the list, and leave your guess for the top five in the comments. I’ll send a prize package, items to be chosen by me, to the person who gets the closest to guessing the top five hymns and their position on the list.

The Top Five Hymns in the survey will be posted this week So, happy guessing and singing and reading to all!

Hymn #7: How Great Thou Art

Oct15

Lyrics: Karl Gustav Boberg in Swedish, translated into English by Stuart K. Hine and Joseph Bayly.

Music: Swedish folk melody.

Theme:

O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
Psalm 8:1,3-4

This beloved hymn, popularized by George Beverly Shea and Cliff Barrows in Billy Graham’s crusades, was translated from a Swedish poem written by Swedish pastor Karl Gustav Boberg in 1885. Karl Boberg wrote of the hymn’s origins:

It was that time of year when everything seemed to be in its richest coloring; the birds were singing in trees and everywhere. It was very warm; a thunderstorm appeared on the horizon and soon thunder and lightning. We had to hurry to shelter. But the storm was soon over and the clear sky appeared.

“When I came home I opened my window toward the sea. There evidently had been a funeral and the bells were playing the tune of ‘When eternity’s clock calling my saved soul to its Sabbath rest.’ That evening, I wrote the song, ‘O Store Gud.'”

The Swedish hymn lyrics were translated into German, then into Russian, and in the early 1930’s British missionary couple Stuart and Edith Hine heard the hymn in Russia, and Stuart began writing down the lyrics and writing new verses of his own, all still in the Russian language. Later, he translated two verses of the Russian version hymn into English and added two verses of his own. Manna Music purchased rights to the song from Hine in 1954 and published it, changing the words “works” and “mighty” in Hine’s original translation to “worlds” and “rolling”.

This is the version of the poem/lyrics that Billy Graham and his team were given in 1954 at Graham’s Harringay Crusade. The song was used in other crusades, but it really became popular when it was used at the Madison Square Garden Billy Graham Crusade in 1957. Here’s the man himself, George Beverly Shea, singing this classic hymn back in 1969.

O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made.
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.
Refrain:
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee:
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Verse 2:
When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze:

Verse 3:
And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin:

Verse 4:
When Christ shall come with shouts of acclamation
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
Then I shall bow in humble adoration,
And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!

Cecelia: “The music to this combined with the vivid word pictures has always made this a favorite–rolling thunder, power throughout the universe displayed. You just can’t help but think of this hymn and thus God during thunderstorms, and for a little girl (and grown woman) who is afraid of them, it gives such peace.”

Sources:
Veleky Bog: How Great Is Our God by Michael Ireland. Assist News Service.
All About God: How Great Thou Art.

Hymn #8: Holy, Holy, Holy

Oct13

Lyrics: Reginald Heber, 1826.

Music: NICAEA by John Bacchus Dykes, 1861.

Theme: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” Revelation 4:8.

Steve Webb’s Lifespring Hymn Stories: Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!

This hymn was written specifically to be sung on Trinity Sunday, the first Sunday after Pentecost, eight weeks after Easter Sunday. Heber’s hymn was considered by Alfred, Lord Tennyson to be one of the fines hymns ever written. Heber was appointed Anglican bishop of Calcutta (which included responsibility for all of India, Sri Lanka, and Australia), and he was known for his hard work and devotion to the evangelization of the Indian people.

1. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee;
Holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

2. Holy, holy, holy! all the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee,
Which wert and art and everymore shall be!

3. Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee,
Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see,
Only Thou art holy, there is none beside Thee,
Perfect in power, in love, and purity!

4. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!
All Thy works shall praise Thy name, in earth, and sky, and sea.
Holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

Hymn #9: And Can It Be That I Should Gain?

Oct12

Lyrics: Charles Wesley, 1739.

Music: SAGINA by Thomas Campbell, 1835.

Theme: There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death. Romans 8:1-2.

Although I like this hymn very much, I’m rather surprised that it came in at number nine on this list. I don’t think I even heard of it until we came to the church we now attend, an Evangelical Free church. Maybe it’s not a Baptist hymn.

Some of the people who listed or wrote about this hymn had the following comments:
Jawan McGinnis: “Why did he die for me? I deserve nothing! I turned against him and went my own way but he chased and wooed me. I was helpless but he found me. I long for a life that lives in with the purpose of glorifying him in all things.”
Jennifer Donovan: This hymn rivals any praise chorus in my mind for evoking emotion (especially if it’s sung at a nice brisk tempo).
Sharon: An old pastor used to say, sing the exclamation points!
Subversive Influence: “This is one of those hymns which brims with wonder and resounds with gospel truth. They don’t write them much like that anymore. Boldly approaching the throne, mercy immense and free. These are lyrics upon which one can — and should — spend time feasting and meditating.”

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain—
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

’Tis mystery all: th’Immortal dies:
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
Let angel minds inquire no more.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.

He left His Father’s throne above
So free, so infinite His grace—
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race:
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray—
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

Still the small inward voice I hear,
That whispers all my sins forgiven;
Still the atoning blood is near,
That quenched the wrath of hostile Heaven.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

Enjoy the congregational singing in the video embedded above. One of the best side benefits of being a Christian and a church member is that we get to sing our hearts out every Sunday, no matter whether you’re a trained vocalist or a tuneless wonder. Everybody gets to sing, all together, unison or parts, loud or soft, as you will, to the Lord. Where do nonChristians go to sing like that? Singing along with the radio is all very well, but it’s not the same as singing out all of the emotions and worship in one’s heart along with a group in full voice. And I get to do this every single week, sometimes more frequently than once a week!

And I have something to sing about!