Rebel to Redeemed…Sharing HIS Kind of Love
George Beverly Shea performed the song “The King of All Kings.” He released the song in 1954 alongside “If You Know the Lord.” The song was written by Stuart Hamblen (1908-1989), a singer and songwriter. He was one of radio’s first singing cowboys and later became a Chrisitan songwriter. Hamblen has been inducted into numerous hall of fames such as […]
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Fanny Crosby wrote “The Bright Forever.” Sometimes it’s referred to by the beginning line “Breaking through the clouds that gather.” Crosby met many distinguished figures in American history, including Henry Clay. She wrote of one encounter with the politician. “When Mr. Clay came to the institution during his last visit to New York, I was selected to welcome him with […]
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“I Am the Resurrection and the Life” comes from John 11:25 “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” The hymn was written by Norman J. Clayton. He was born on January 22, 1903 in Brooklyn, New York. By the age of twelve, he became church organist–a […]
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Out of the Depths I Cry to You is inspired by Psalm 130. The hymn was written by reformer Martin Luther. Luther was born in 1483, became an Augustinian monk in 1505 and ordained priest in 1507. He published his 95 Theses in 1517, attended the Diet of Worms in 1521 and translated the Bible into German from 1521-1534. He […]
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Praise, Praise His Name was written by Fanny Crosby. The hymn is often referred to by its first line “On the desert mountain straying.” Crosby became blind at a very young age but became a prolific hymnwriter. After finishing her education, she became a teacher at the New York Institution for the Blind in 1847. She taught English grammar, rhetoric, […]
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John W. Peterson wrote the hymn “It Took a Miracle” in 1948. Peterson was born on November 1, 1921 and died on September 20, 2006. He wrote over 1,000 songs and thirty-five cantatas throughout the course of his career. Some of this best-known hymns include “Heaven Came Down,” “Jesus is Coming Again,” and “Over the Sunset Mountains.” Performers such as […]
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George Beverly Shea released “My God and I” in 1959 on the album “In the Garden.” I’ve been unable to find any additional information about who the composer of this song is.
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George Beverly Shea performed the song “If You Know the Lord.” He released the song in 1954. The song was written by Bickley Reichner (1905-1989). I’ve been able to find no additional information on the composer. Shea served as the vocalists for specials at the Billy Graham Crusades. He died in 2013 at the age of 104.
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“All that Thrills My Soul is Jesus” was written by Thoro Harris. Harris was born on March 31, 1874 in Washington, D.C. He produced is first hymnal in 1902 while living in Boston, MA. Throughout his life he composed and compiled numerous works and became known for walking around Chicago (where he’d moved) to sell books from canvas bags he […]
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William Pierson Merrill wrote “Rise up, O Men of God!” in 1911. Merrill was born on January 10, 1867 in Orange, New Jersey. He was ordained in 1890 and attended seminary working his way up to a Doctor of Divinity in 1904. Throughout this time he served several churches and met his wife at one of them. He married Clara […]
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Daniel March wrote the lyrics to “Hark, the Voice of Jesus Calling” in 1868. At the time he was a pastor in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Asked to speak at an associational meeting, he learned shortly before the service that one of the hymns chosen was not suitable. In “great haste” he wrote the hymn, and it was sung from the manuscript. […]
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Elijah Taylor Cassel wrote “The King’s Business” in 1902. Cassel was born on November 27, 1849 in Indiana. At a young age his family moved to Nebraska. He completed a medical education and practiced in Hastings, Nebraska. Cassel married Flora Hamilton and both were talented musicians. Around 1910, he left his medical practice for the ministry and served a church […]
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“We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations” was written by Henry Ernest Nichol, a British civil engineering student and musician. He was born on December 10, 1862 in Hull, Yorkshire, England. He wrote around 130 hymns, primarily for children. “We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations” was first published in a London hymnal in 1896. The first printing […]
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The 4th of July will be here in a few days. Brooks & Dunn released the song on their June 2001 album Steers & Stripes. Kix Brooks co-wrote the song with Don Cook and Ronnie Rogers.
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Jesus! What a Friend of Sinners! was written by J. Wilbur Chapman and first published in 1910. Chapman was born in 1859 in Richmond, Indiana and attended a Quaker Day School and Methodist Sunday School as a youngster. As a young man he received a seminary degree from Lane Theological Seminary in Cincinnati, OH and later was awarded a Doctorate […]
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Happy Father’s Day! Take Thou My Hand, O Father was written by Julie Katharina von Hausmann, a Baltic German Poet (born 1825). Daughter of a teacher she became a governess until ill health forced her to return home. After her father’s death in 1864 she lived with her sisters in Germany, Southern France, and St. Petersburg, Russia. She never married […]
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“No one ever cared for me like Jesus” was written by Charles Weigle, an itinerant evangelist. The song was written after a very dark period in his life, when his wife left him. She decided she did not want to be an evangelist’s wife. After coming out of his dark spell, Weigle longed to put on paper a song that […]
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Famous evangelist Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman preached at Montreat (Presbyterian conference grounds) in Western, NC in the summer of 1915. He spoke on Psalm 45 and referenced a book he’d written in 1893 Ivory Palaces of the King. Chapman believed the hymn spoke of the relationship of Christ (the bridegroom) to his bride (the church). In the congregation that day […]
Read moreIn celebration of Memorial Day tomorrow, I thought I’d share this song (Color Me America) by Dolly Parton from her 2003 album For God and Country.
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“Jesus and His Love” is a hymn that I heard at the end of a Little House on the Prairie episode (The Gift). It is a hymn that is new to me and seems to have been written by W. Howard Doane and John R. Clemons. W. Howard Doane wrote the refrain or chorus for this hymn. He was born […]
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