Rebel to Redeemed…Sharing HIS Kind of Love
Thomas Ken was born in 1637 Hertfordshire, England. He studied a Winchester College and became ordained in the Church of England in 1662. He is said to be “a man of conscience and independent mind who did not shirk from confrontations with royalty.” The story is told “when King Charles II came to visit Winchester, he took along his mistress, […]
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Children of the heavenly Father was written by Caroline W. Sandell Berg. She was born in 1832 Sweden and known as Lina Sandell, the “Fanny Crosby of Sweden.” “Lina”. She wrote hymns partly to cope with the fact that she witnessed her pastor father’s tragic death by drowning. She is said to have been very close to her father and […]
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Bread of the world in mercy broken is a communion song. The hymn was written by Reginald Heber. Heber was born in 1783 to a wealthy, educated family. He became rector of his father’s church in the village of Hodnet in the west of England. He remained there for sixteen years and was appointed Bishop of Calcutta in 1823. He […]
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As We Gather at Your Table is a communion song. The hymn was written by Carl P. Daw. Daw was born in 1944 to a Baptist Minister. He became an Episcopal Priest and served congregations in Virginia, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. He began writing hymns and served as editor for several hymnals. “He is Curator of Hymnological Collections and Adjunct Professor […]
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Henry Jackson Van Dyke was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania on November 10, 1852. He attended Princeton University, Princeton Theological Seminary and the University of Berlin. Van Dyke served as pastor of Brick Presbyterian Church for seventeen years {1883-1900}, in Manhattan, before becoming a professor of English literature at Princeton University. He was greatly respected and sought out both as a […]
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Lord, Speak to Me That I May Speak was written by Frances R. Havergal in 1872. Havergal is one of several women hymn writers who lived in the late Victorian era of England {18th Century}. Her father was an Anglican pastor and devoted himself to the improvement of church music in the Church of England. Frances was inspired by her […]
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In Gabriel’s hand a mighty stone is a song written by Isaac Watts. He is best known as the author of Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound. He was born on July 17, 1674 in Southampton, England. He wrote a large collection of works and served as minister at Abney Park. Watts died November 25, 1748 and is buried at […]
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Breath Thou the Bread of Life was written by Mary A. Lathbury. Lathbury taught art and French in Vermont and New York schools. She also served as a poet in the summer programs at Chautauqua, New York. The expression bread of life refers to Jesus teaching where he referred to himself as the Living bread or bread of life. {John […]
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Day is Dying in the West was written by Mary Artemesia Lathbury. She was born on August 10, 1841 in Ontario County, New York. Day is dying in the West was written at the request of Rev. John H. Vincent in the summer of 1880. It was a “Vesper Song” used in the responsive services. The Vesper’s came from the […]
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Breathe on Me, Breath of God was written by Edwin Hatch. Hatch was an English theologian born in Derby, England on September 4, 1835. He eventually became Bishop of Manchester and noted for his strong mental independence and extreme study habits. By the 1880s, he was a well-known lecturer. Hatch published the song privately in 1878 in a pamphlet titled […]
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There’s a sweet, sweet Spirit was written by gospel songwriter Doris Mae Akers. She was born in Brookfield, Missouri on May 21, 1923. She was one of ten children and developed an interest in music at an early age. By the age of six, she had taught herself to play piano by ear. She wrote her first song, “Keep the […]
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An art museum in Dusseldorf, Germany has a vivid painting on display of Christ, “wearing His crown of thorns as He stands before Pilate and the mob”. Underneath the painting, by Sternberg, are the word “This have I done for thee, what hast thou done for Me?” Francis Havergal came upon the painting while in Germany. Sources differ on whether […]
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Priscilla J. Owens was a Baltimore public school teacher for forty-nine years and often wrote hymns for children’s services. She was very involved in the Sunday School at her church. She wrote the words to this hymn for a missionary service in the Sunday School of Union Square Methodist Church. The song was “originally adapted to the chorus “Vive le […]
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The hymn God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is over 500 years. The song we sing today has a completely different meaning then at the time it originated. The hymn is one of the oldest known Christmas carols. Over the centuries, times and meanings have changed. The song we sing today does not have the same meaning that it did to […]
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Now Thank We All Our God is translated from the German hymn “Nun danket alle Gott”. The German hymn was written by Martin Rinkart in 1636. Rinkart was a Lutheran Minister and accomplished musician. At the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War he came to the city of Eilenburg, Saxony, which was a walled city. The city served as a […]
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Fairest Lord Jesus is a song of mystery. The author and origin of the song are unknown. The song seems to have originated as a folk song in Germany and other areas of Europe. Some historians believe the song may even date back to the 12th Century when it was sung by the German crusaders as the made their long, […]
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One Day was written by John Wilbur Chapman. Chapman was born on June 17, 1859 and came to understand salvation from D. L. Moody. Moody later encouraged him to enter full-time evangelism. Chapman was elected Moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly in 1918 and considered a leader among the American Presbyterians. Charles Howard Marsh was a student of Dr. Chapman. […]
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Despite his lack of formal education, Thomas Obadiah Chisholm became a teacher at the age of sixteen. By the age of twenty-one, he was associate editor for his hometown newspaper Franklin Advocate. He became a Christian in 1893, due to the ministry of Henry Clay Morrison, who founded Asbury College and Seminary in Kentucky. While ordained into the ministry, he […]
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He Hideth My Soul was written by Fanny Crosby, a popular hymn writer. He Hideth My Soul may have been Crosby’s prayer throughout her life. While a renowned songwriter, her life was not easy. As an infant, Fanny Crosby lost her eyesight due to fever and poor ministrations in her care. She lived the rest of her life blind, but […]
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Dr. Jeremiah Rankin was the Pastor of First Congregational Church in Washington, D. C. He was looking for a farewell hymn to close the worship service. Nothing really worked and the closest possibility was Bless Be the Tie that Binds. But, Dr. Rankin wanted something less formal and more engaging. Unable to find the hymn he wanted, he decided to […]
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